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Bhanu P Lohumi
Tribune News Service
Shimla, June 3
With residents on the social media asking tourists to keep off water-starved Shimla, tourism business in the town has been severely hit. Up to 50-60 per cent hotel bookings stand cancelled and the occupancy rate too has dropped by half.
Tourism Industry Stakeholders Association president MK Seth claims while the per day loss to the hotel industry is Rs 60 lakh, the losses to allied sectors are even more.
There are 268 registered hotels in Shimla with 4,356 rooms.
“We urge Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur to rescue the ailing tourism industry by issuing an advisory that all is well in Shimla and that hoteliers are providing safe water to tourists through tankers,” Seth says. The 670 unregistered flats in Shimla’s residential areas and suburbs are eating into the water share of domestic consumers, he reasons, adding that the situation is unlikely to improve until action is taken against these units.
High taxes apart, the government’s failure to develop tourist places in the suburbs and provide basic amenities are also cited as reasons for the Shimla’s tourism woes.
Meanwhile, government schools in the Municipal Corporation area have been closed for a week and a section of residents is moving out to native places. “I will be leaving for Mandi with my family as there is no water in the town. I hope things turn normal soon,” says Jakhoo resident Devender Sharma.
Stepping in, the Army has provided water browsers to the MC to assist in ferrying water to the far reaches. The Shimla-based Army Training Command has set up a joint monitoring mechanism and instituted effective water-saving measures.
Some establishments producing mineral water have chipped in too. The water provided by them is being supplied by the police free of cost at public places and police stations. Also, some shopkeepers have slashed mineral water prices. A restaurant run by the HPTDC at the Ridge has opened a counter to sell mineral water.
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