Shimla, Sept 24,
The southwest monsoon has begun its retreat from Himachal Pradesh, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Wednesday, marking the onset of the withdrawal phase after a season that battered the hill state with unprecedented intensity and devastation.
According to the Meteorological Centre in Shimla, the monsoon has withdrawn from several parts of the state and turned weak in the remaining regions. The official withdrawal line now passes through Rampur Bushahr in Himachal, extending across parts of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The IMD has forecast that conditions are favourable for a complete withdrawal from the rest of Himachal and Jammu & Kashmir within the next two to three days.
The past 24 hours remained dry across Himachal, with minimum temperatures ranging from 7°C in Kukumseri to 26°C in the lower hills, while Una recorded the state’s highest at 35.4°C. Both day and night temperatures stayed 2–4°C above normal. The forecast suggests clear skies and dry weather in all districts until September 30, with no adverse weather warnings in place.
Also read:Himachal Monsoon withdrawal soon: IMD predicts dry spell after September 21
While the withdrawal signals the seasonal shift towards autumn and the eventual onset of winter, the scars of this monsoon remain deep. Advancing a week early on June 20, the rains went on to break century-old records of intensity. In their wake, they washed away bridges and dams, left nearly 15,000 houses and shops damaged or destroyed, and claimed about 450 lives. The state government has pegged the total loss to life and property at nearly Rs 50,000 crore.
For Himachal, the retreat of the monsoon this year does not simply mark a weather transition but also closes one of the most destructive chapters in its recent history.
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