Record 10K vehicles cross Atal Tunnel on Christmas

Abhinav Vashisht

KULLU, DECEMBER 26

The strategically important 9.02-km-long Atal Tunnel registered a record passage of 10,689 vehicles within 24 hours from 8 am on December 25 to 8 am on December 26 from Manali towards Lahaul. The earlier record was 7,515 vehicles on January 1.

Due to the weekend and Christmas, a large number of tourists thronged Manali and a majority of them visited the new tourist attraction Atal Tunnel, world’s longest tunnel at an altitude of 10,040 feet. The engineering marvel was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 3, 2020.

According to the information, 4,569 vehicles of other states and 6,120 vehicles within the state entered the tunnel within 24 hours from the South portal. Similarly, 3,496 vehicles of other states and 5,198 vehicles of Himachal came from Lahaul side to Manali as a total 8,694 vehicles crossed the tunnel from the North portal.

A large number of tourists from all over the country and abroad are visiting the Lahaul valley via the Atal tunnel. Tourism businessmen Sanjay and Rinku said that the tourism opportunities had increased manifold in the region after the opening of the Atal Tunnel.

Many residents are concerned due to the huge influx of tourists. They say that putting an excessive burden on the area than the carrying capacity will ruin the ecology of the region. Some alleged that it was hard to breathe inside the tunnel due to excessive pollution because of a large number of vehicles. They demanded that there should be regulation as the rush is expected to increase further when the Kiratpur to Manali fourlane becomes fully functional.

Some careless tourists violate rules and overtake other vehicles recklessly causing traffic jams. The number of tourists in Manali is increasing day by day. Due to this there is no space to park the vehicles in Manali and tourists are forced to wander here and there in search of parking space. Some of them park their vehicles on the road sides, which creates further traffic congestion.

Kullu Superintendent of Police Gurdev Sharma said that in view of the tourist season, additional police personnel had been deployed at various tourist places. He added that negligence of some tourists were also coming to the fore and they were being fined.

Concern over huge tourist influx

• Residents are concerned due to the huge influx of tourists
• They say that putting an excessive burden than the carrying capacity on the area will ruin the ecology of the region
• Some alleged that it was hard to breathe inside the tunnel due to excessive pollution caused by a large number of vehicles
• They demanded that there should be regulation as the rush is further expected to increase further when the Kiratpur to Manali four-lane becomes fully functional
• Some careless tourists violate rules and overtake other vehicles recklessly, causing traffic jams

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