SHIMLA: A video of a tourist driving a SUV through Chandra river in Lahaul-Spiti to beat traffic jam in Himachal Pradesh has gone viral.
The tourist opting to drive his jeep through the river amid the festivities on Monday evening has drawn criticism from the locals.
The man was challaned under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and to ensure that no one commits such an offence in the future, the district police have deployed a police personnel at the said place, said Lahaul-Spiti SP Mayank Chaoudhry.
Major traffic congestions occurred at multiple points along from Mandi-Manali to Lahaul route.
Numerous videos circulating on social media depict an extensive lineup of vehicles on the roads
On Monday, massive traffic was witnessed at the Atal Tunnel as thousands of tourists thronged to hill station.
As many as 28,210 vehicles crossed the tunnel in 24 hour.
Himachal Pradesh government has issued an advisory to tourists to get an advance booking of a hotel or a homestay unit before travelling to the hills, else you may have to spend a night in the cold.
As per official records, nearly 65,000 tourists were recorded at Atal Tunnel, Rohtang in upper Manali on Sunday with over 12,000 vehicles ferrying them.
Due to congestion and snowfall at South Portal of the tunnel, vehicles were stranded on the icy roads, turning joy into a nightmarish experience for the nearly 3,000 tourists at minus 12 degrees.
After months of tourism business nosedived in the wake of floods and landslides caused by incessant rains that wreaked havoc in July-August, tens of thousands of holidaymakers have already converged across destinations in the state.
Shimla got over 50,000 tourists on Sunday to celebrate Christmas.
Available information suggests a room fetching Rs 3,000 from October to mid of December is sold off at Rs 6,000 a day in most of the hotels in Shimla, Kufri, Chail, Narkanda and Kasauli.
The state’s economy is highly dependent on tourism, besides hydroelectric power and horticulture.