The Himalayas are appearing increasingly bare and rocky this winter as snowfall across the region drops sharply, alarming scientists and meteorologists who warn of serious long-term consequences.
Experts say winter snowfall over the past five years has consistently fallen below the average recorded between 1980 and 2020. Rising temperatures are also causing whatever snow does fall to melt rapidly, while lower-altitude areas are seeing more rain instead of snow—a trend linked in part to global warming, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and other scientific studies.
Researchers note that many parts of the Himalayas are now experiencing what is known as a “snow drought,” where winter snow becomes unusually scarce. Combined with accelerating glacier melt driven by climate change, the decline in winter snowfall is intensifying an already severe crisis across the region.
Scientists warn that shrinking snow and ice cover will not only transform the appearance of the Himalayas but also disrupt ecosystems and affect the lives of hundreds of millions of people. Winter snowmelt plays a vital role in feeding rivers and streams each spring, supplying water for drinking, irrigation, and hydropower across South Asia.
Reduced winter precipitation—both snowfall in the mountains and rainfall in the lowlands—also raises the risk of forest fires due to increasingly dry conditions. At the same time, the loss of snow and ice destabilises mountain slopes, increasing the frequency of rockfalls, landslides, glacial lake outbursts, and destructive debris flows.
Data from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) underscores the severity of the decline. Almost all of northern India recorded no rainfall or snowfall in December, and many areas of northwest India—including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh—are expected to receive up to 86 percent less precipitation than the long-period average between January and March.
Meteorologists stress that this is not an isolated anomaly. Studies using multiple datasets show a clear downward trend in winter precipitation across large parts of the western and central Himalayas. Research published in 2025 indicates that snowfall in the northwestern Himalayas has dropped by about 25 percent over the past five years compared with the 1980–2020 average.
Similar patterns are being observed in Nepal, where much of the winter season has remained dry in recent years. While some winters have seen intense snowfall, experts say these have been isolated extreme events rather than the sustained, evenly distributed snowfall seen in the past.
Snow persistence—how long snow remains on the ground—has also declined sharply. According to the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), the 2024–25 winter recorded the lowest snow persistence in 23 years, nearly 24 percent below normal. Four of the last five winters have shown below-normal snow persistence across the Hindu Kush Himalaya region.
Scientists link the trend partly to weakening westerly disturbances—weather systems from the Mediterranean that traditionally bring winter rain and snow to South Asia. These systems are now considered weaker and, in some cases, shifting northward, reducing their ability to deliver moisture.
Experts warn the Himalayas now face a “double threat”: rapid glacier loss combined with dwindling winter snowfall. Together, they say, these changes pose profound risks to water security, ecosystems, and disaster resilience across the region, with consequences that could affect nearly two billion people downstream.
