Tourists advised not to visit Kullu, Manali

Dushyant Singh Pundir and Abhinav Vashisht

Tribune News Service

Manali, December 17

The region reeled under darkness since Saturday after 133 kv high-tension line near Bajaura were damaged and hundreds of poles were uprooted in the snowfall.

In a statement, Additional District Magistrate Vinay Singh said 110 jawans of the SSB were pressed into service for the restoration of the HT lines at Nau village to assist 140 labourers and technical staff of the Electricity Board.

The situation remained grave in the region and residents and tourists were having a harrowing time in the absence of power and proper water supply.

Rahul, a resident of Kullu, said they were resorting to conventional methods to keep themselves warm in the freezing temperature.

He said routine life had become hazardous and they could not book LGP cylinders due to lack of power.

Meanwhile, a hotelier in Manali said 90 per cent of the tourists had left the town in the past two days after roads were restored.

Amanpreet Singh, a resident of Amritsar, said he had to stay in a hotel in complete darkness and would rush back to his hometown as soon as Kullu-Manali road was opened.

On health services, Kullu Zonal Hospital MS Kamal Kapoor said the hospital administration was fully equipped to handle such adverse situation.

He said surgeries were not being carried out, however, the OT could be made available in case of emergencies.

The X-ray machine was shut down today due to ongoing repair of the diesel genset.

All health and ambulance services were fully functional, he added.