Tribune News Service,Mandi, December 13

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is likely to reopen the Rohtang Pass tomorrow. The 13,050-foot high Rohtang Pass was closed after snowfall on Thursday.The pass is the gateway to the Lahaul valley on the Manali-Leh highway. With the closure of the pass, the tribal district of Lahaul-Spiti was cut-off from the rest of the state. The BRO started the snow-clearing operation on both sides of the Rohtang Pass yesterday.Col KP Rajendra Kumar, Commander, 38 Border Roads Task Force (BRTF), Manali, said they had cleared the road from Manali up to Rani Nullah late in the evening. Nearly 8 km was left to reach the Rohtang Pass, he said, adding that they would reopen the pass tomorrow. They had encountered up to 4 feet of snow on the road, he said. But the team from Stingri in Lahaul-Spiti district could not reach Koksar till this morning due to an avalanche.The BRO maintains the strategically important nearly 490-km-long Manali-Leh highway to maintain supplies for the armed forces posted in Ladakh region along the borders with China and Pakistan.Lahaul-Spiti residents stay connected with the outside world through Internet and telephones. The helicopter service is the only means of travel for the people during medical and other emergencies after the closure of the pass.

Chill grips state

• Shimla: Himachal continued to reel under intense cold wave with Keylong in tribal Lahaul and Spiti recording a low of minus 4.6 degree Celcius, Manali minus 3 degree C and Kalpa in Kinnaur minus 2.2 degree C while the key tourist destinations of Dalhousie, Shimla and Dharamsala recoded a minimum temperature of 3 degree C, 3.4 degreeC and 6.6 degree C. Una was the hottest with the maximum temperature of 19.6 degree C followed by Bhuntar 18 degree C, Kangra 17.1 degree C and Solan 16.4 degree C. The local MeT Department has predicted rain and snow in high hills on December 16 and 17. — TNS