Winter snow that once fed mountain rivers for the last several decades and centuries, powered streams and rivulets, and sustained Himachal Pradesh’s orchard-based economy has all but vanished this time, signalling an alarm in the Himalayan region.
Even those seasonal rains that traditionally nurtured life and livelihoods in the hills have also failed, drying not just water sources but also the hopes of farming communities.
As the hill state grapples with parched slopes, weakening springs, and stressed orchards, a striking contrast unfolds across the northern plains, which remain shrouded in dense fog and choked by dangerously high levels of air pollution. The widening weather divide highlights a deepening climatic imbalance in the region, where the Himalayas face a silent hydrological crisis even as the plains struggle under toxic air.
Most high mountain peaks, the Dhauladhar ranges, and the snowline over the high Himalayas—from Lahaul-Spiti to Kinnaur and the Ladakh region—look like a stark, denuded landscape rather than the gleaming white ramparts of winter. The high temperature and bright sun during the day are adding more distress than relief –a reprieve, though, for the tourists thronging Shimla, Kullu-Manali, and McLeodganj for year-end celebrations.
Says S. S. Randhawa, a former principal scientist at the HP Council for Science and Technology: “In the absence of snow, mountains lose their natural insulation, accelerating glacial retreat, destabilising slopes, and reducing the slow, regulated release of water into rivers and streams.”
An expert in glacier studies, Randhawa admits that there are disturbing signals on the weather front, as Himachal Pradesh has already seen several episodes of cloudbursts, floods, and torrential rains. But now, an abrupt dry spell and snowless winters. The scenarios look irretrievable.
Moreover, he explains, “The snowless mountain ridges heat up faster during the day and cool sharply at night, intensifying freeze-thaw cycles that trigger landslides and extreme weather events.”
Even as the direct impact of the current weather crisis is going to adversely hit the apple crop in the state, an economy of Rs 5500 cr, which is already hit by low productivity, the elusive winter rains, and snow, will cause dangerous effects on agriculture, hydropower, and drinking water security.
Crops like apples require sufficient winter chilling hours (snow cover) for proper development. The current conditions are causing significant water stress, poor flowering, and a greater risk of disease, resulting in major losses for farmers. “
The reduced snowfall leads to less snowmelt, which is vital for feeding rivers, streams, and natural springs during the summer months. This is expected to cause severe water scarcity for drinking, irrigation, and hydropower generation in the coming months,” says Harish Chauhan, a farmers’ leader and apple orchardist.
In the Kangra region, for example, rivers and streams feeding the irrigation channels and drinking water supply systems have dried up. The districts of Hamirpur, Una, Kullu, Mandi and Kangra are also passing through a period of growing vulnerability, rather than revival, after the monsoon calamities hit the areas hard.
Himachal Pradesh, on the other hand, is passing through an extreme rain deficit in November, with only about 1 mm of rainfall recorded against a normal of ~19.7 mm for November 2025.
That amounts to roughly a 95% deficit, making November one of the driest November months in more than a century of records. Most districts experienced a severe lack of rain, with dry weather dominating throughout the month.
The adjoining state of Punjab, due to the failure of the rains, has upset the finely balanced agrarian system. The poor winter rains have reduced the soil moisture. The wheat is badly hit.
“The dry conditions have also worsened air quality, as the lack of rain fails to disperse pollutants and dust, prolonging smog episodes across cities and rural areas alike. Together, declining rainfall and rising dependence on groundwater highlight Punjab’s growing vulnerability to changing climate patterns,” admits Harjeet Bajwa, a professor of environmental sciences in Punjab.
As per MeT forecasts, there are chances of a western disturbance around this week, which might bring some light to moderate snow/rain to the higher reaches, potentially breaking the prolonged dry spell. However, the overall long-term trend points to warmer winters and less predictable precipitation patterns, linked to broader climate change effects on the Himalayan region.
Even as most tourist destinations in Himachal Pradesh are packed with revellers, many complain about missing snow. “We came here in the hope of seeing snowfall on Christmas, but having experienced a bright sunny day, it looks like snow has already said goodbye to the year. The old-timers have been saying that earlier in their time, Shimla used to have a high wall of snow on both sides of the mall. That time is over now,” said Amisha Gulati, a tourist from Ludhiana, adding that the felling of the forests, the raising of the pollution level, population growth in the hill town—which the Britishers developed only for a 30,000 population—and high-rise concrete constructions in Shimla are some of the factors disturbing the weather cycle.
The recently approved New Shimla Development plan has opened new floodgates for the haphazard constructions threatening the identity of the hill town.
