SHIMLA, Apr 18: The Manali-Atal Tunnel Rohtang-Keylong and Manali-Leh route in Himachal Pradesh witnessed record traffic in just over a day, local authorities said, following steep rise in mercury in the plains and lower Himalayas.
Deployment of traffic police and security convoys along the Manali-South pole of ATR and North pole to Keylong has been beefed up for smooth and safe passage of commuters.
The Lahaul-Spiti district police said in a press release on Sunday that from 8 am on April 15 to 8 pm April 16 around 12,849 vehicles crossed these highways. As many as 6,635 vehicles entered and 6,214 exited. Of these, 3,994 vehicles were from Himachal Pradesh alone, while the 2,641 others were from outside the state.
The district administration said tourist footfall increases in the Lahaul-Spiti district with the onset of summer, but this time around an early rise in temperatures touching and crossing the 40 degrees in plains across north India has fueled the numbers.
A total of 12,849 vehicles moved from Atal Tunnel Rohtang to District Lahaul-Spiti in 24 hours. The beauty, environment and cooler temperatures in the hills attracts tourists from neighbouring states through the season.
The most visited spots are Atal Tunnel Rohtang, Chandra Ghati, Sissu Lake, District Headquarters Keylong, Jispa and Darcha among others.
On Sunday, Keylong recorded a minimum of 2 degrees Celsius and a maximum of 17.2 degrees, while the resort city of Manali saw a low of 7 and high of 25.4 degrees Celsius. Besides local and traffic police personnel, the third Indian Reserve Corps, Pandoh, is on deployed for ATR security along the highway tunnel built under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas on the Leh-Manali Highway. It was opened to traffic in 2020 end. (AGENCIES)
