It is -30 degrees in parts of Himachal

Shimla -- Himachal Pradesh saw clouds return with icy winds Wednesday even as the weatherman predicted more snow, and temperatures plummeted to -30 degrees Celsius in some areas.

Shimla experienced the season's first snowfall Monday. Although snowfall was light in this resort town, traffic was affected in the higher parts of the town.

The minimum temperature was 0.4 degrees Celsius in downtown Shimla. At several places, pipes froze water supply Wednesday.

Kaza, the headquarters of Spiti valley, recorded -21 degrees Celsius while the mercury dipped further to -21.5 Celsius at Patseo in the adjoining Lahaul Valley, said S.R. Thakur, an official in Kaza, 450 km from here.

And in some places also in Spiti Valley, the lowest temperature was -30 C. The tribals there were melting ice for drinking and cooking.

The Hindustan-Tibet Road continued to be closed to traffic at Kufri and Narkanda where snowfall was much heavier - 20 cm to 30 cm - Monday.

The sprawling tribal belt of Lahaul and Spiti and upper Kinnaur continued to groan under arctic conditions with another spell of snow Wednesday. Most lakes and rivers were frozen.

Diesel iced over at several places, due to which state roadways buses have not been able to ply for the past two days.