Jan. 15, SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) - The Indian Himalayas are experiencing empty ski resorts and canceled holidays due to a lack of snowfall, scientists have connected the "unusual" winter to the El Nino weather phenomenon.

The famed Gulmarg resort, one of the highest in the world, has seen fewer skiers due to the dry period in Kashmir, leaving hotels in the picturesque area waiting for fresh falls to entice visitors with the expansive views of snow-capped peaks.

According to scientists, the harsh winter weather in northern India this year—which included no snow in the mountains and intense cold made worse by dense fog in the plains—is unlike anything that has been experienced in the region in almost ten years.

The 35-year-old snowboard instructor Farhat Naik of Gulmarg expressed his dismay at the sight of dry, bare ground where a knee-deep blanket of snow usually covered the area. "Fifty percent of the season is already gone," he remarked.

"We are now hoping for snowfall in February first week," he stated, adding that all of his American and European clients had canceled their vacations because of the absence of snow, which had a negative impact on the region's economy, which is centered on tourism and agriculture.

Travel sector leaders from Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, two nearby states, also voiced their complaints about cancellations.

According to Kushaal Sangwan, the proprietor of Blue Poppy Resort, reservations have decreased to 20% in the Uttarakhand ski resort of Auli. "Our cancellations have jumped and people cancel (just) days before the booking if there is no snow."

A meteorological pattern known as the western disturbances—regular extra-tropical storms that have their origins in the Mediterranean Sea—brings winter snow and rain to northern India, including the Himalayas.

These storms are common in the winter, but this season they have been relatively rare, according to senior scientist R.K. Jenamani of the India Meteorological Department (IMD). "When there's no weather system, how can there be (snow)," he replied.

According to Gufran Beig, a former chief scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, the disappearance of western disturbances is related to rising temperatures and shifting wind patterns brought on by the active El Nino weather phenomenon and climate change.

Beig noted that the weather at this time of year was highly unusual. Although there is an abundance of moisture in the air, it is still rather cold in Delhi in January and there isn't any snow. This winter has been among the longest and dirtiest on record."