Snowfall Triggers Traffic Gridlock
Heavy snowfall over the past 48 hours disrupted life across Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Kashmir. Tourist hubs such as Manali and Shimla suffered the worst impact. Slippery roads and heavy tourist inflow during the Republic Day weekend caused massive traffic jams. Near Manali, vehicles lined up for nearly 15 km on the Chandigarh–Manali highway. Cars moved at a crawl, leaving commuters stranded for hours.
Tourists Stranded Overnight
More than 600 tourists got stranded near Manali after traffic stopped completely. Many spent the night inside their vehicles in freezing conditions. Some travellers left their cars and walked long distances to reach safety. “We stayed stuck for over three hours and then walked nearly 7 km,” said Akshay, a tourist from Delhi. Another visitor said they survived the night on instant food while waiting for roads to reopen.
Road Closures and Taxi Complaints
The State Disaster Management Authority reported 683 blocked roads across the state. Authorities closed two national highways, NH-03 and NH-505. They also shut key routes such as Koksar–Rohtang Pass and Darcha–Sarchu. The Manali–Lahaul route through the Atal Tunnel remained closed. Meanwhile, tourists complained of overcharging by private taxis. Several visitors said drivers demanded ₹10,000 to ₹15,000 for short trips after buses stopped running.
Power, Water Hit; Fresh Advisory Issued
Snowfall also disrupted power and water supply. Officials reported damage to 5,775 distribution transformers and 126 water schemes. Large parts of Shimla stayed without electricity for over 30 hours. Rural areas may face longer outages. Bus services on more than 1,200 routes remained suspended. Despite the disruption, tourist arrivals increased sharply. With more snow forecast between January 26 and 28, the state government issued a fresh advisory urging people to avoid unnecessary travel.
