The India Meteorological Department has forecast heavy rainfall over Uttarakhand, South Interior Karnataka and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Monday. Thunderstorms with lightning and gusty winds of 40 to 50 kmph, gusting to 60 kmph, are expected over Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.

Widespread rain with lightning is also likely across Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Heavy rain is likely to continue in Himachal Pradesh till September 29. The IMD had issued a red alert on September 27 for torrential rain and thunderstorms in parts of Uttarakhand, including Dehradun, Tehri, Haridwar and Pauri. The Char Dham Yatra has been suspended amid the deteriorating weather.

Himachal Pradesh has seen the season’s first snowfall, with fresh snow in Kaza in Lahaul-Spiti and in Kinnaur’s Kunnu-Charang and Chitkul areas. Temperatures fell by 10 to 11 degrees Celsius at Losar, Kaza, Tabo and Kalpa, and Kukumseri in Lahaul-Spiti recorded a low of 5.3 degrees Celsius.

In Uttarakhand, snowfall was reported at Hemkund Sahib in Chamoli, with about half a foot of snow around the shrine, and near Chakratirth on the Badrinath-Satopanth route. The Hemkund Sahib Yatra continues till October 10.