Question

How come it is is colder at higher altitudes comparitively from low lying plains if sunlight first reaches the higher altitudes ?

Answer 1

The climate of a place is not solely dependent on the altitude factor. There are other factors like the distribution of temperature is insolation. Insolation is the incoming solar energy intercepted by the earth. This falls obliquely on the slopes of the altitude and therefore the intensity is lesser on the hills than in the plains