Manali hoteliers protest steep house tax hike amid slow tourism recovery

Resentment is mounting among hoteliers in Manali after the Municipal Council abruptly raised house tax by over 30 per cent, compounding the financial strain on an industry still reeling from repeated natural disasters over the past three years. Hoteliers say the steep hike has come at the worst possible time, with tourism remaining erratic due to damaged roads and many establishments still repairing damage from floods and landslides.

Over the past month, the Manali Municipal Council (MC) issued fresh tax bills reflecting the revised rates. Earlier, several hoteliers had received inflated bills with penalties running into thousands of rupees. These were later corrected after individual appeals, with officials attributing the discrepancies to a “technical fault” during the transition to an online billing system.

But the corrections have done little to ease frustration. Hoteliers continue to crowd the MC office daily, seeking explanations for anomalies in the revised calculations. Long queues of property owners and hotel representatives have become routine, with many alleging the process lacks transparency and consistency.

Nitin, a hotelier from Mall Road, said the hike felt like a blow to an already fragile sector. “For three years we have faced one disaster after another and the industry has never fully recovered. At a time when we are struggling to pay staff, a 30 per cent tax hike is simply unjust,” he said.

Another hotelier, Harish, voiced similar concerns. “Authorities should have consulted stakeholders before enforcing such an increase. The MC claims it is uniform across the state, but Manali’s circumstances are unique. Tourism here has been unstable for years due to weather disruptions and road closures,” he said.

Krishan, who runs a mid-sized hotel near Gompa Road, expressed disappointment at what he described as a lack of sensitivity towards disaster-hit businesses. “We are still repaying loans and suffering losses. A sudden tax jump without relief measures shows how disconnected the administration is from ground realities,” he said.

When contacted, the Executive Officer (EO) of the Manali MC said the increase was part of a uniform policy applied across Himachal Pradesh. He added that anomalies in bills were being addressed and that the shift to an online system would eventually streamline the process.

Despite these assurances, hoteliers plan to submit a collective representation demanding either a rollback or phased implementation, warning that the hike threatens the survival of many small and medium establishments at a time when tourism remains unpredictable.