Tourist rush in Lahaul, locals want influx of vehicles capped, carrying-capacity assessment

Pratibha Chauhan

Shimla, July 20

Residents and tourism stakeholders of the Lahaul valley are struggling to cope with the influx of almost 10,000 vehicles every day during the peak summer season in the absence of a Tourism Master Plan and basic facilities even two years after the opening of the Rohtang tunnel.

The locals fear that they will lose their heritage, cultural identity and the fragile Himalayan ecology due to the sudden tourism boom after the opening of the Rohtang tunnel. They are now demanding a carrying-capacity study or assessment for allowing the growth of sustainable tourism in the valley. “On an average, over 10,000 vehicles entered the Lahaul valley every day during the peak summer season from May 1 to July 15 this year but we do not have infrastructure like parking spaces, waste management, water supply, public toilets and other facilities to cope with this sudden rush,” says Tenzin Karpa, president of the Lahaul Hoteliers Association.

10K vehicles entered valley every day

• As many as 1.32 lakh people had visited Lahaul in 2019 and in 2022, two years after inauguration of the Rohtang tunnel, the tourist count surged to over eight lakh
• On an average, over 10,000 vehicles entered the Lahaul valley every day during the peak summer season from May 1 to July 15
• A total of 55,606 tourist vehicles crossed the Atal Tunnel in one week between May 12 and 18 this year
• Around 25.76 lakh vehicles had passed through the tunnel from January 2022 to December 2023

Karpa says that there is an urgent need to cap the number of vehicles entering Lahaul daily and simultaneously address issues like the need for a proper mechanism for traffic and waste management, parking lots and regulating haphazard construction activities, especially of hotels.

Virender, pradhan of Tandi panchayat, echoing similar sentiments, says that in the absence of Town and Country Planning regulations, Lahaul, especially areas around Sissu where the north portal of the Rohtang tunnel is located, is witnessing ugly concretisation. “Before it is too late, the authorities concerned should ensure that high-rise hotels do not come up in the area as these will be nothing more than an eyesore and ruin the natural beauty and landscape of the place,” he adds.

Virender advocates local mud structures for hotels as they involve low cost and are environmentally and architecturally suitable for the rugged hill topography.

“We believe that sustainable eco-friendly tourism is required for economic growth and not hydroelectric projects,” says Vikram Katoch, vice-president of the Save Lahaul Society. He rues that the Atal Tunnel was opened four years ago but still one does not find signage or boards along the National Highway-3 in Lahaul regarding facilities such as toilets, restaurants, petrol stations or information about the next town or village. He also advocates a carrying-capacity assessment, capping the number of vehicles entering Lahaul during the peak summer months and better waste and traffic management.

It is for the first time that the residents of Tandi panchayat, 15 km from Sissu, are relying on underground water to meet their drinking and irrigation requirements. Locals say the mushroom growth of 4,000 hotels, guesthouses and camping sites in the Lahaul Valley has led to an acute water shortage, which requires urgent attention of the government.