A huge rush of tourists is expected in Mandi, Kullu, Manali and other parts of Himachal Pradesh this summer. However, poor condition of road is expected to act as a deterrent. An emergency meeting of Hotel Associations of Manali, Kullu and Mandi held at a local hotel here, urged Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to take immediate steps to repair the roads of the State at the earliest.
Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has also been requested by the travel agents and hoteliers’ associations to tame the erring NHAI for getting the roads cleared without further delay. Associations appreciated the earlier efforts of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, which had yielded good results, but the contractors assigned to fill up the big potholes and repair the roads had not allegedly been done according to the specifications and the potholes had been filled up with earth instead of stones and pebbles.
Consequently the potholes could not bear the brunt of the first rain and reappeared and the condition of the road became deplorable once again. Those associated with the tourism sector have urged the Government to look into the issue on a priority before the onset of the peak summer tourism season.