Rains cool Himachal hills

Shimla, May 17 (IANS) Temperatures across Himachal Pradesh fell sharply on Wednesday due to widespread rains, with Tissa in Chamba district recording the highest rainfall of 22 mm in the state."Rainfall occurred in many places, with the maximum temperatures plummeting 4 or more degrees and the minimum by 3 to 5 degrees," an official at the meteorological office here told IANS.He said Shimla town recorded 2.1 mm of rains while Kullu, Dharamsala, Kufri, Narkanda and Palampur towns also saw rains.Shimla recorded a maximum temperature of 24.1 degrees Celsius, a fall by one degree from Tuesday's. The night temperature was 15.4 degrees Celsius.Likewise, Sundernagar in Mandi district saw a high of 33.9 degrees Celsius while it was 32.3 degrees in Bhuntar in Kullu district and 30.8 degrees in Dharamsala and 19.6 degrees in Kalpa in Kinnaur district.Una was the hottest at a high of 36.4 degrees Celsius.The Met department has forecast rain and thundershowers in the state till Friday.