Weather Changes in Two Himalayan Districts

Climate change is a global problem that shifts how much rain falls and how hot it gets. Two districts in the Indian Himalayas – Solan in Himachal Pradesh and Tehri Garhwal in Uttarakhand – show different patterns of these shifts. Researchers used long‑term climate data from 1964 to 2023 and statistical tests that do not rely on normal distributions. They looked at temperature, rainfall in each season, and soil moisture. During the first period (1964‑1993) before big cities grew, Tehri Garhwal saw more rain in winter and its soil stayed wetter. But the monsoon season brought less rain, and the soil dried a little during that time. Solan’s winter and summer rains increased while its monsoon and the season after it lost some water. In both places temperatures stayed almost flat.In the later period (1994‑2023) when urban areas expanded, the story changed. Tehri Garhwal’s monsoon rain became highly uneven across space, sometimes higher and sometimes lower. Solan’s monsoon rain steadily fell. Both districts experienced a small rise in the hottest part of winter, about 0. 02‑0. 03 degrees per year. Solan’s coldest nights warmed more than Tehri Garhwal, especially after the monsoon. Soil moisture in Tehri Garhwal dropped during winter and summer, while Solan’s soil stayed about the same or grew slightly after the monsoon. These differences highlight that climate impacts vary even within a small region. Local governments need tailored plans to protect water supplies and land use, rather than one‑size‑fits‑all solutions.