SHIMLA, May 27: Tourists are flocking to Himachal Pradesh’s popular hill destinations to escape the scorching heat in the plains, with more than 6.31 lakh vehicles entering Shimla over the past 24 days, officials said on Tuesday.
According to officials, nearly 70,000 vehicles reached the hill town in the last 72 hours alone, causing severe traffic congestion across the state capital.
With the summer tourist season yet to hit its peak, the heavy influx has already choked roads in the “Queen of Hills”, prompting police to appeal to tourists to follow traffic regulations and behave responsibly.
Officials said around 3.70 lakh vehicles entered Shimla from the Chandigarh-Kalka route, while many others arrived through Kinnaur, Bilaspur and Kullu.
Additional Superintendent of Police Abhishek said the sudden tourist rush has worsened the city’s longstanding parking problem.
Over the past week alone, around 1.54 lakh vehicles entered Shimla, putting immense pressure on the city’s traffic infrastructure, he said.
To manage the situation, authorities have divided Shimla into five traffic zones, each supervised by a gazetted officer. Volunteers are also being deployed to assist traffic police and alternative routes are being used to ease congestion.
Officials said vehicles heading towards Upper Shimla are being diverted through the Shoghi-Mehli route.
Authorities expect tourist inflow to increase further in June and said additional police personnel will be deployed after the ongoing panchayat elections conclude on May 31.
Officials noted that the tourist season has started earlier than usual this year due to intense heatwave conditions affecting several northern and western states, including Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi.
