Parking problem in the Queen of Hills— Shimla could soon be a thing of the past with Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Thursday dedicating mega parking project worth about Rs 82 crores at Tutikandi near ISBT to the people of Shimla.

Besides, Thakur also dedicated Rs 8 crore renovated town hall at the Mall to the people.

Officials said the 13 storied car parking will have facility to park about 850 small vehicles besides four buses. The basic amenities would also be made available to facilitate the general public.

Addressing the media and others after the inauguration of car parking, the Chief Minister said that this parking would go a long way in decongesting the flow of tourist vehicles to Shimla. He said this parking complex was probably one of the biggest projects in Shimla. "Tourists all over the country and world visit Shimla, but they used to face lot of inconvenience for parking their vehicle," he said.

Thakur said tourism development was the top priority of the state government for which all possible efforts would be made for external funding. He said that major thrust would be laid on developing unexplored and virgin areas from tourism point of view.

He said the Town Hall, Shimla was another ambitious project.  Apart from historic Gaiety Theatre, the Town Hall building was another USP of the town. He said that Rs. 26 crore project with ADB assistance has also been implemented for renovation of Bantony Castle.

Education Minister Suresh Bhardwaj said that these two projects would go a long way in promoting the tourism activities in the state. He said that the Town Hall was the historic and monumental building of the town which has been renovated by maintaining the old design and architect. He said all these projects dedicated today were got sanctioned by state government headed the then Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal.

Asian Development Bank's Kenichi Yokoyama also appreciated the efforts of the state government in completing this project in a stipulated time period. He said that the car parking facility would prove a boon for the tourists and general public as the long pending demand has been fulfilled.