Heavy snowfall in Shimla, Manali

Popular tourist destinations Shimla, Manali, Chamba and Dalhousie remained cut off from the rest of Himachal Pradesh for the second consecutive day on Sunday. The supply of essential commodities and transportation of struck tourists was hampered on Sunday. The electricity supply has been disrupted here and in Manali since Friday night due to snapping of transmission lines. Even the water supply was affected due to busting of pipes. Connectivity on the Chandigarh-Manali national highway remained snapped near Kullu, some 40 km before Manali, since a large stretch of the highway is under a thick blanket of snow, a government official told media. Shimla, which experienced 53 cm of snowfall, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 0.4 degrees Celsius on Sunday. Traffic bound for the state capital from Chandigarh remain disrupted near Shogi, about 15 km from here. Rail traffic on the Kalka-Shimla line also remain hampered.