Shimla, Aug. 7 -- As intense monsoon rains hit Himachal Pradesh for the third consecutive year, scientists and environmentalists have raised serious concerns over the increasing frequency of high-intensity rainfall, triggered by a dangerous combination of global warming, delayed western disturbances, and monsoonal systems.

The alarm was sounded following an incident early Thursday morning, when a massive deodar tree collapsed onto the Environment Directorate building in the US Club area of Shimla. The tree, which had been leaning precariously for days due to continuous rain, uprooted around 5:30 AM, causing partial damage to the building's roof and entrance gate. Fortunately, no casualties were reported.

Senior scientist on climate Chan...