A view of the Himalayas from Saharanpur town.
For the second year in a row, snow-clad Himalayas were visible from western Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur town, as Covid induced restrictions and rainy weather combined to make the peaks visible from the town which is situated hundreds of kilometers away.
Photos and videos clicked by three residents of the town have gone viral on social media - two of them are doctors while one is a government employee.
"It 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," Vivek Bannerjee, a Saharanpur based doctor whose photos have been widely shared said in a statement
Dr Bannerjee's photos were also shared on twitter by Sanjay Kumar, a UP cadre IAS officer passionate about photography.
"What a fabulous view of snowclad Upper Himalayas more than 150 kms from Saharanpur city. Two days of heavy rains across North India after Cyclone Tauktae landfall ensured all pollution in air, mist and haze is gone," Mr Kumar said in his tweet.
Indian Forest Services officer Ramesh Pandey also shared one of the photos taken by Mr Bannerjee