A reducing snow cover and warmer temperatures over the years are pushing the ski slope regions from middle altitude hills of Himachal Pradesh to the higher reaches, leaving ski enthusiasts dejected and triggering anxiety among winter sport lovers about the changing climate pattern.
It is mid-January, but the erstwhile capital of British India – Shimla is yet to witness the season’s first snowfall, and as the State capital over the past decade has been witnessing an inconsistent, abrupt, and reducing trend of snowfall, the winter sports admirers have been forced to move to higher reaches of mountains to scout for snow-capped slopes to glide smoothly for skiing.
In yesteryears, the Shimla town Kufri, a popular tourist spot, situated at around 8,800 feet, was a paradise for the skiers, but over the years due to a gradual decrease in snowfall and rampant construction on the once pristine ski slopes, the skiers now prefer high altitude slopes in Solang valley in Manali, and at Keylong and Sissu in Lahaul-Spiti district, situated at an altitude ranging 9,000-10,300 feet.
“This year so far there has been no substantial snowfall at Kufri. Last week, mild snowflakes occurred which were negligible. The trend of decreasing snowfall has been seen for the past around two decades now. The snow months have shrunk. This is an ominous sign for winter sports. Till the mid-1990s, there used to be snowfall in November as well, and intermittent spells of snow often continued till March and even beyond at times. But in the past years, the pattern has changed and snow spells have been largely limited to January-February. With Kufri seeing lesser and abrupt snow year after year, especially since the late 1990s, the focus of skiers has shifted to the Lahaul-Spiti district and Manali. Kufri, which was once the first choice of ski lovers since the British time is now losing its winter charm,” Sanjeev Atri, a retired ski instructor based at Kufri, told The Hindu.
Pointing out that apart from dwindling snowfall, the rampant construction of commercial buildings on the ski-friendly slopes of Kufri is another reason behind ski enthusiasts turning away from this destination, Mr. Atri said “I remember that till the late 1980s, when winter sports were center of attraction at Kufri, even police personnel were deputed to protect the ski slopes. But nowadays even when it snows at Kufri, the snow is not sufficient for creating suitable slopes for skiing, it offers nothing more than photo-ops for tourists.”
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Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh, so far, has not received snowfall this winter (2023-24). Even last year it received a meager six-centimeter (cm) of snow. Last season (2022-23), the snowfall in Shimla town was the third lowest in its recorded history, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Earlier, in the year 2005-06 winter, Shimla town received nil snowfall while in the year 2009-10, the town got a scant 1.8 cm of snow. The winter season usually runs between November till March.
Shimla, as per the data, over the past few years received the following amount of snow: 2010-11 (31.5cm), 2011-12 (119.4cm), 2012-13 (92.8cm), 2013-14 (76cm), 2014-15 (83.8cm), 2015-16 (25cm), 2016-17 (106.5cm), 2017-18 (20.8cm), 2018-19 (128.8cm), 2019-20 (198.7cm), 2020-21 (67cm) and 2021-22 (161.7cm).
“The data indicates that Shimla is witnessing a decreasing snowfall. A decreasing trend of snowfall and rainfall on average has been observed across the State during the past decade or so, and it is naturally a matter of concern. A gradual temperature rise could be a reason behind this,” said Surender Paul, director of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) at Shimla.
Concerned over the depleting snow, Himachal Pradesh Winter Games Association, president Luder Thakur said while over the years the ski slope regions from middle altitude hills have shifted to relatively higher reaches of the State, this year, in particular, has been disturbing as in absence of decent snow, organising the winter sports even at the higher altitude slopes has turned difficult.
“In the past few years, after Kufri started witnessing lesser and abrupt snowfall, the skiers shifted to higher altitude slopes. For the past few years, we have been organising winter sports competitions on slopes at Sissu and Keylong in the Lahaul-Spiti district, besides at Solang Valley in Manali. To have a decent and groomed ski slope for skiing, there should be at least 2-3 feet of snow on the slope, and intermittent spells should continue. However, this year as there has not been a rich spell of snow so far, the winter sports enthusiasts are dejected. We are eagerly waiting for snowfall as we are to hold the junior national winter games, which includes alpine skiing, cross country, and snowboarding at Sissu, but with slopes staying dry in the absence of snow, the wait is getting longer,” Mr. Thakur added.
