Orange alert for thunderstorms, hail in Himachal

Shimla: The weather department on Thursday issued an orange alert for thunderstorms and hailstorms in parts of Himachal Pradesh and predicted light rain and snowfall on April 3 and 4.The orange alert has been issued for Chamba, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi and Shimla districts, while a yellow alert for thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds has been sounded for the remaining districts.According to the Meteorological Centre, Shimla, parts of the low and mid hills are likely to receive rain, while the high hills may witness light snowfall over the next two days.Kukumseri in Lahaul-Spiti recorded the lowest minimum temperature at 3.1°C, while Neri recorded the highest maximum temperature at 32.9°C on Thursday.Meanwhile, the monthly weather report issued by the Met department said Himachal recorded 93.7 mm rainfall in March, the 56th-highest for the month since 1901. The highest March rainfall in the state was recorded in 1948, at 382 mm.However, rainfall in March this year was still 17% below the normal of 113.4 mm.The report also noted that both heat wave and cold wave conditions were recorded during March. Heat wave conditions prevailed for five days in Mandi, three days each in Solan and Kullu, two days in Kangra, and one day in Sirmaur.A severe cold day was reported at isolated places in Una, Mandi and Kangra on March 16, and in Kalpa, Una, Mandi, Kangra, Bilaspur and Chamba on March 20. Cold wave conditions also prevailed in parts of Mandi for two days during the month.