Lockdown, flash floods hit business, shopkeepers pack up in McLeodganj

Lalit Mohan

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, August 25

Covid lockdown and lack of foreign and domestic tourists have led to permanent closure of about 10 per cent shops in McLeodganj.

McLeodganj, also known as Little Lhasa, wears a deserted look these days due to the shutting down of many shops. Adil, a shopkeeper, said, “We have been selling handmade Tibetan artefacts and Thanka paintings for the past 30 years. Most of our customers were foreigners who visited McLeodganj. For the past two years, there are no foreign tourists and our business has been badly hit.”

Norbu said the lockdown had hit vendors like him very badly. “There was some improvement in tourist inflow in July, but soon videos of flash floods in Bhagsunag went viral on social media. That again deterred tourists from heading towards this area. We don’t know when things will normalise,” he said.

Sanjeev Gandhi, general secretary of the Smart City Hotel Association of Dharamsala, said many shops had been shut in McLeodganj due to lack of business. Being a popular tourist destination, rentals here were very high. Those running cafeterias and gift shops were the worst-hit as they were totally dependent on tourists for their income.