Shimla: Popular tourist destinations Shimla, Manali and Dalhousie remained cut off throughout Saturday from the rest of Himachal Pradesh following continuous snowfall, officials said. Electricity supply was snapped here and Manali as power lines were damaged badly due to falling trees.
But plentiful snowfall has cheered members of the hospitality industry in the hope that tourists will come in large numbers in the coming days. Traffic bound for Shimla could only reach Shogi, about 15 km from here, due to snowfall, an official told IANS.
Likewise, heavy traffic on the National Highway-21 was blocked near Patlikuhl, 20 km before Manali. This was the season’s first significant snowfall that froze the “Queen of Hills” and resulted in the freezing of taps. Director General of Police Somesh Goyal said it was after decades that Shimla received so much of snow. According to the Met office here, certain areas in Shimla like the Mall Road, the Ridge, the US Club and Jakhu hills and Manali got more than a foot of snow.
