Rain,snow relent but power situation not yet normal in HP

Going without power supply for 32 hours,Shimla,however,continued to shiver under intense cold conditions in the absence of heating systems. The hill capital witnessed a minimum of 3.6 degrees Celsius compared to Tuesday’s 0.3 degrees.

The supply to some parts of the town was restored late on Wednesday afternoon,though there were several complaints of cuts.

In Manali,vehicular traffic was restored on the national highway even as a landslide and uprooted trees disrupted the traffic on the right bank of Kullu-Manali road.

Kullu Deputy Commissioner B M Nanta said: “The traffic is operational on the left-bank road. Some other roads have also been cleared of snow. However,the national skiing event that started on July 7 could not be properly resumed.”

In Shimla district,some parts of the apple belt remained cut off as it took time to clear the roads of snow.

Additional Chief Secretary Harinder Hira,who is officiating as Chief Secretary,said: “There is no report,so far,about any major problem in any of the snow-affected areas. Deputy commissioners have been asked to respond to the situation without any loss of time.”

The temperature remained below zero in the higher reaches.

Met Director Dr Manmohan Singh said another western disturbance was likely to approach the region between Thursday and Friday,resulting in heavy snowfall and rainfall across the state.