Dipender Manta
Tribune News Service
Mandi, August 9
Hoteliers of Kullu and Manali are upset with the poor condition of the Chandigarh-Manali national highway, which has affected their business in the past few years.
The highway is full of potholes between Sundernagar and Pandoh in Mandi district due to the ongoing work of the Kiratpur-Manali road widening project. The road stretch between Mandi and Pandoh has become prone to landslides due to deep cutting of hills in the area.
The highway has remained blocked due to frequent landslides during this rainy season. The damaged highway has become a death trap for motorcyclists, especially those travelling during night, as they fail to negotiate potholes.
Rajender Mohan, a councillor of the Municipal Corporation Mandi, has also raised the issue with the district administration. He has urged the Deputy Commissioner to ask the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to repair and maintain the road to avoid fatal accidents.
Tourists facing inconvenience
There is urgent need to accomplish the construction work of the highway in the stipulated time. Due to the poor condition of the highway, tourists travelling to Kullu and Manali are being inconvenienced. —Hem Raj Sharma, Hotelier
Hem Raj Sharma, a hotelier in Manali town, says, “There is urgent need to accomplish the construction work of the highway in the stipulated time. Due to the poor condition of the highway, tourists travelling to Kullu and Manali are being inconvenienced. It takes them long hours to reach Manali, making the journey cumbersome”.
Anup Thakur, president of the Hoteliers Association Manali, says, “The state and Central governments should ask the authorities concerned to speed up the construction work on the highway and complete it in a time-bound manner. Due to the delay in the completion of the road project, the tourism industry of Kullu and Manali is suffering”.
“Kullu and Manali lack good air connectivity because of the delay in the expansion of the Bhuntar airport. As a result, the tourism industry of Kullu and Manali is facing difficulties in attracting high-end tourists. This road project is the lifeline of the tourism industry of Kullu and Manali and we are waiting desperately for its completion,” he adds.
Naveen Mishra, Director of the NHAI in Mandi, says that efforts are being made to complete the project in time. “We are hopeful that the highway stretch between Sundernagar and Nerchowk will be completed by November this year, while the stretch between Nerchowk and Pandoh will take at least one year because of the tough terrain”.
Chandigarh-Manali highway full of potholes, hoteliers upset
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