This year is the second consecutive year that the beautiful snow-clad Himalayan mountains were visible from western Uttar Pradesh&rsquos Saharanpur. After the lockdown due to COVID-19 and the rainy weather, the peaks were visible even if they were situated several hundred kilometres away. The photos that were clicked by two doctors and one government employee has gone viral on social media.
&ldquoIt is a rare sight. We saw the peaks of the greater Himalayas towards the north of Saharanpur after the clouds cleared up following two days of rain. It was a clear sight. Around 30-40 years ago, one could see it every day, but now because of increased pollution, one can rarely see them. All of us amateur photographers were delighted when we saw the peaks,&rdquo Vivek Banerjee, a Saharanpur-based doctor whose photos have been widely shared, said in a statement.
Many Twitterati tried to explain the reasons behind this sight. They stated that it was due to the COVID-19 second wave lockdowns that were imposed. These lockdowns caused a decrease in air pollution to the extent that the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Saharanpur City was clocking in only 85. Another factor was the rainy weather in northern India that was caused by Cyclone Tauktae which cleared up the cloud covering mist and haze, making the mountains visible.
Saharanpur lies at the northwestern tip of Uttar Pradesh, very close to the border with Uttarakhand, and at just over an hour's distance away from Dehradun.
The picture clicked by Dr Banerjee was shared on Twitter by Sanjay Kumar, a UP Cadre IAS Officer who is passionate about photography, along with Indian Forest Services Officer Ramesh Pandey.