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Improved Air Connectivity Will Open Distant Destinations To Tourists: Sukhu

By LokMarg 2nd September 2023

To increase the footfall of tourists and achieve the target of tourist arrivals to around five crores annually, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu stressed strengthening the air connectivity and said that 16 heliports were being constructed in all the district headquarters including tribal and far-flung areas in a phased manner to facilitate the tourists to access unexplored destinations in no time.

He was presiding over a meeting late Friday evening in this regard. A detailed presentation was also given on how to enhance the tourism influx to achieve the desired target.

It was informed that in the first phase, nine heliports were to be developed including Jaskot in district Hamirpur, Rakkar and Palampur in Kangra, Sultanpur in district Chamba, Manali in Kullu, Jispa, Sissu and Rangreek in Lahaul-Spiti and Sharbo in district Kinnaur.

CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said, “Detailed project reports (DPRs) for the construction of Sultanpur, Rakkar, Palampur and Jaskot heliports have been received, while for other heliports, the process was underway. Apart from this, the Kangra Airport was being expanded to facilitate the high-end tourists.”

The Chief Minister informed that in the second phase, the remaining seven heliports would be set up in Pangi and Holi in district Chamba, Auhar in district Bilaspur, Dharkiyari in district Sirmaur, Chanshal in district Shimla, Jankaur-Haar in district Una and Galanag in district Solan.

He said that FCA approval for establishing Rakkar heliport has been received and FCA cases of six heliports including Jaskot, Manali, Jispa, Sissu, Rangrik, Pangi and Holi have been uploaded on the portal.

“Once commissioned fully, the heliports will prove to be a boon to the tourism sector of the State,” CM Sukhu stated.

“When the destinations are made easily accessible, many people prefer to travel there thereby giving a fillip to the local tourism industry and adding to the economy”, added Sukhu.

Tourism is one of the key sectors contributing to the economy of the State, besides opening up employment and self-employment opportunities to the local youth.

He reiterated that the State Government has decided to make district Kangra as ‘Tourism Capital’ of the State and would spend about Rs 3000 crore on this mega venture. This initiative will bring many new projects in the times to come.

Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi, Education Minister Rohit Thakur, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Anirudh Singh, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Sunder Singh Thakur, Principal Private Secretary to Chief Minister Vivek Bhatia and other senior officers also attended the meeting. (ANI)

Incessant Flash Floods Ravage Manali

By LokMarg 12th July 2023

Incessant rain, which has led to flash floods and landslides, has caused significant damage in Himachal Pradesh’s Manali.

Himachal Pradesh Minister Jagat Singh Negi said that the flash floods have damaged the national highway and disrupted water and electricity supply.

“The Manali Vidhansabha constituency has suffered significant damage due to flash floods. Houses, land, and gardens have been destroyed, and the national highway is damaged due to flash floods. The link road adjacent to the bridge is also badly damaged. There is no net connectivity, electricity and water. We have made arrangements to provide food to the stranded tourists,” Negi said.

Due to incessant rainfall in the region, many tourists have been stranded in Manali.

Internet services and electricity supply have been disrupted due to the flood in the area.

Neha, a tourist from, Ludhiana, Punjab said, “We want to go home. We were scheduled to return on Sunday but we are stuck due to flood.”

Another tourist, Sanjeev Arora, said they have been trying to go back for the past two days.

“We are here in Manali since 5th July. The main track is damaged. We have been trying to go back for the past two days. The internet services and electricity supply is disrupted,” he added.

Meanwhile, Himachal Chief Minister’s Office informed that 2000 people stranded in the Kasol area have been evacuated so far.

“So far 2000 people stranded in the Kasol area of Kullu district have been evacuated. On the way at one point named Dunkhara, there is a heavy landslide and one poclain and two machines have been deployed round the clock to clear the Kasol-Bhuntar road. A team of the district administration has reached Kasol. More than 2200 vehicles have passed through Kullu from Manali so far and food is being distributed to them at Ramshilla Chowk. CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is closely monitoring the situation”, the CMO statement said.

Speaking on the relief and rescue operations being conducted in the state amidst heavy rainfall, acting DGP of Himachal Pradesh Satwant Atwal Trivedi said that evacuation procedure is underway with 1000 vehicles already having left from Kullu – Manali and are enroute to Chandigarh.

The Nurpur police on Wednesday informed that water will be released from Pandoh Dam (Mandi) from 6 pm today to 3 pm tomorrow due to incessant rains in the district.

“People are urged not to go near low-lying areas like rivers, drains and dam areas for the next few days”, the Nurpur Police said.

Meanwhile, Congress MLA from Manali Bhuvneshwar Gaur hit out at the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) over the poor construction of the highways which were washed away during the flash floods. (ANI)

Rescue Ops In Manali’s Atal Tunnel Gets Over

By LokMarg 31st December 2022

An eight-hour-long rescue operation at the Atal tunnel under the Rohtang Pass where hundreds of tourist vehicles were stranded amid heavy snowfall was successfully completed, according to police.

Police teams from Keylong, Manali, ATR South Portal, and North Portal jointly conducted the rescue operation, which continued for more than eight hours till Friday morning after the incident was reported on Thursday night.
DSP Lahaul, DSP Manali, HO Manali, and SHO Keylong were present to supervise various units.

According to sources, the last vehicle sent back from South Portal towards Manali was around 2 am Friday.

Around 400 vehicles were rescued safely from the south portal of Rohtang Tunnel, Manali which were stranded due to snowfall in Manali and Lahaul Spiti in Himachal Pradesh, according to SDM Surender Thakur on Thursday.

The police teams of both districts are assisting stranded tourists, rescue is currently underway at South Porta

This comes after the tribal district of Lahaul and Spiti received the season’s first snowfall. (ANI)