No snow, no go: winter tourists cancel Indian ski resort holidays as ‘unusual’ weather pattern leaves Himalayas high and dry
- Ski resorts in India say European and American clients have cancelled their trips due to a lack of snow, a blow to an economy focused on tourism and agriculture
- Scientists say this winter’s conditions in northern India, marked by the absence of snow in the mountains and thick fog, have not been seen for about a decade
A lack of snowfall has led to empty ski resorts and holiday cancellations in the Indian Himalayas, with scientists linking the “unusual” winter to the El Nino weather phenomenon and climate breakdown.
El Nino is a natural climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean that brings warmer sea-surface temperatures.
Scientists said that this winter’s conditions in northern India, marked by the absence of snowfall in the mountains and biting cold made worse by thick fog in the plains, have not been seen for about a decade.
“Fifty per cent of the season is already gone,” said Farhat Naik, 35, a Gulmarg snowboard instructor, ruing the sight of dry, barren land that would normally be covered in a knee-deep layer of snow.
“We are now hoping for snowfall in February, first week,” he said, adding that his European and American clients had all cancelled their trips because of a lack of snow – a blow to the tourism- and agriculture-focused economy of the region.