Biting cold conditions tightened its grip over several parts of North India with fresh snowfall across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand today.

According to India Meteorological Department, an intense western disturbance along with induced cyclonic circulation is affecting Western Himalayan region and plains of northwest India.

In Jammu and Kashmir, higher reaches witnessed fresh snowfall and rains lashed the plains forcing closure of many roads. The Jammu-Srinagar highway remained closed for the second day following landslides and snowfall and avalanche hitting the highway in the Jawahar-Tunnel area. Traffic department officials said landslides triggered by incessant rains hit the strategic highway at some places. Authorities also announced closure of schools for the day in Kathua and Udhampur districts as a precautionary measure.

In Himachal Pradesh, normal life has been disrupted due to heavy snowfall and rain since last night. In Shimla, due to heavy snow, interior roads were blocked at many places. The weather department has forecast heavy snowfall and rain today.

In Uttarakhand, schools were closed in many districts due to bad weather. Higher Himalyan regions received fresh snowfall while rain occurred in the lower areas including capital Dehradun.

Snowfall reported in higher reaches of Chamoli, Uttarkashi, Tehri, Rudraprayag and Pauri district of Garhwal region during last 24 hours. Many roads connected to remote high altitude areas have been affected following the snowfall.

In Mussoorie  , tourists enjoy the snowfall. In Kumaon region many peaks are covered with snow. In plain areas of the state like Haridwar, Dehradun and Udhamsingh nagar have received rainfall since morning. As per experts the change in weather is fruitful for the agriculture and horticulture.

In Delhi, rain and hailstorm lashed several areas this morning, causing inconvenience to lakhs of commuters due to water logging. Rain and wind have helped in improving air quality in the city. Air Quality Index was recorded 205 at 6 AM.

Cold weather conditions continued in most parts of Punjab and Haryana. In Punjab, Pathankot was the wettest place with 94  millimeter of rainfall and Gurdaspur was the coldest place with 5.3 degrees Celsius temperature.

In Haryana, Ambala, Hisar and Karnal recorded minimum temperature of around 11.5 degrees Celsius. A Punjab agriculture department official said, rain is beneficial for the wheat crop and will help boost the yield. It will also help in containing the fungal disease yellow rust.

In Gujarat, many parts of Kutch and Saurashtra received unseasonal rain during the last 24 hours due to western disturbance.