Manali: Denied air connectivity for many months at a go that has hit tourism hard in scenic Kullu valley, tour operators, hotel owners, business associations, taxi and luxury coach operators have demanded improvement in the road conditions and restoration of air flights to the valley at the earliest.
President of Manali Hoteliers Association, Anup Ram Thakur after holding a joint meeting with Kullu- Manali Hoteliers Association, Home Stay Association, Beopar Mandal, Taxi Operators Union, Auto Rikshaw Union and Luxury Coach Association declared that a delegation would meet chief minister Virbhadra Singh on April 14 to apprise him about the bad condition of roads in Kullu-Manali valley and the overall business being impacted because of no flights to Kullu airport.
Unless there was a regular air service, the inflow of domestic and international tourists to Manali would not get a boost, said Thakur.
Led by Thakur, the delegation under the newly floated banner of Kullu Manali Paryatan Vikas Manch also resolved to fight issues confronting the slowing tourism industry in the valley jointly.
Sanjay Dutta, an engineer by qualification but is a journalist by choice.
He has worked for the premier new agency Press Trust of India and leading English daily Indian Express.
With more than a decade of experience, he has been highlighting issues related to environment, tourism and other aspects affecting mountain ecology.
Sanjay Dutta lives in a village close to Manali in Kullu valley of Himachal.
Tourist industry is right in demanding better road and flight facility for boosting tourism into Manali etc. As habitant of Pradesh, my appeal along with so many inhabitants to HP Govt. is please improve the road surface in between Kiratpur to Ghagas at least and for God sake.