Rains brought down mercury in Himachal Pradesh on Sunday, bringing cheers to thousands of tourists who have thronged the hill stations to escape the heat wave in the northern plains. Higher reaches saw mild snow.

Shimla recorded a maximum temperature of 20 degrees Celsius with a rainfall of 6.3 mm. The weather department has forecast more thundershowers in the state till Monday.

Nearby areas also experienced rain. "Most of the areas in the state saw rain, bringing the temperatures down considerably. Higher reaches got mild spells of snow too," a weatherman told .

Kalpa in Kinnaur district recorded a temperature of 10.4 degrees Celsius, while it was 34.2 degrees Celsius at Una town. The day temperature at Dharamsala town stood at 26.6 degrees Celsius.

Keylong, the headquarters of Lahaul-Spiti, recorded three cm of snow.

"What a pleasant relief in Shimla," said Rohit Gandhi, a tourist from Delhi.