DEHRADUN: With inclement weather playing spoilsport for campaigning, the MeT department's phones haven't stopped ringing as politicians call up for weather updates so that they can fix their canvassing schedule.
"Will the weather permit me to go to the hills for campaigning? When will it be safe to file nominations? When will the rains end? Which areas will be affected by rains in the next few days?" are among the questions being repeatedly asked to the MeT officials by candidates and their party members.
A major area of three out of the five Lok Sabha constituencies of Uttarakhand, namely Tehri, Almora and Pauri, are situated in mountainous terrains and politicians need to plan out their strategies according to the geography and the weather.
Congress state spokesman Surendra Kumar said his staff frequently collects weather updates to help candidates chalk out their schedule. "Choppers cannot fly when it's snowing or raining. Moreover, there is also a danger of getting stuck due to landslides caused by rains, so it is a wise move to know about the weather predictions in advance," he said.
The Himalayan state has witnessed frequent rains in the last 10 days, making it virtually impossible for politicians to reach the higher reaches especially at Pauri and Tehri. On April 13, chief minister Harish Rawat was expected to visit Kedarnath valley via helicopter to have a look at the ongoing preparations for the char dham yatra and meet the local residents of Guptkashi to collect their feedback. However, owing to the incessant rains, he was forced to call off the visit at the last minute.
A senior official told TOI, "In the last few weeks, senior politicians, including BJP candidate from Pauri B C Khanduri, staff of chief minister and other Congress leaders have contacted me for the weather forecast."
Congress candidate from Pauri, Harak Singh Rawat pointed out that his Lok Sabha constituency had several mountainous areas. "We have to ensure that we can reach out to maximum possible people and therefore, it is important to have information about weather," he added.
State MeT director Anand Sharma said westerly disturbances were causing rains in this season. "Light to moderate rains were predicted for April 11, 12 and 13 and similar conditions are likely for the next three days and may continue for a week," he added.
"Will the weather permit me to go to the hills for campaigning? When will it be safe to file nominations? When will the rains end? Which areas will be affected by rains in the next few days?" are among the questions being repeatedly asked to the MeT officials by candidates and their party members.
A major area of three out of the five Lok Sabha constituencies of Uttarakhand, namely Tehri, Almora and Pauri, are situated in mountainous terrains and politicians need to plan out their strategies according to the geography and the weather.
Congress state spokesman Surendra Kumar said his staff frequently collects weather updates to help candidates chalk out their schedule. "Choppers cannot fly when it's snowing or raining. Moreover, there is also a danger of getting stuck due to landslides caused by rains, so it is a wise move to know about the weather predictions in advance," he said.
The Himalayan state has witnessed frequent rains in the last 10 days, making it virtually impossible for politicians to reach the higher reaches especially at Pauri and Tehri. On April 13, chief minister Harish Rawat was expected to visit Kedarnath valley via helicopter to have a look at the ongoing preparations for the char dham yatra and meet the local residents of Guptkashi to collect their feedback. However, owing to the incessant rains, he was forced to call off the visit at the last minute.
A senior official told TOI, "In the last few weeks, senior politicians, including BJP candidate from Pauri B C Khanduri, staff of chief minister and other Congress leaders have contacted me for the weather forecast."
Congress candidate from Pauri, Harak Singh Rawat pointed out that his Lok Sabha constituency had several mountainous areas. "We have to ensure that we can reach out to maximum possible people and therefore, it is important to have information about weather," he added.
State MeT director Anand Sharma said westerly disturbances were causing rains in this season. "Light to moderate rains were predicted for April 11, 12 and 13 and similar conditions are likely for the next three days and may continue for a week," he added.
TOI
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