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Rohtang opens to tourists today

Tourists will be allowed to visit the Rohtang Pass only through local taxis from today. Manali SDM Raman Gharsangi said permits to cross the Gulaba barrier would be provided manually by the administration. The online permit system would be resumed once tourist traffic increased. He said the road condition of the pass would be reviewed after some time and tourist vehicles also be allowed after the conditions become suitable. The SDM said tourists would be allowed to cross the Gulaba barrier after 9 am and they would have to reach back by 6 pm. The permitted time for visitors would depend on weather conditions. Since there were a few visitors at present, the vehicles would be allowed to return from Rohtang-Manali road. When the number of vehicles increased, they would be sent ahead on the Rohtang-Koksar road to return from the north portal of Atal Tunnel from Lahaul side to avoid traffic jams. Gharsangi said the commercial activities as per the guidelines of the NGT would be allowed. The eco-friendly market in Marhi would also be opened for the convenience of tourists. They would have to follow the corona guidelines. Rohtang is a world-famous tourist destination. The tourists enjoy various adventure activities in the snow, besides the scenic view. The livelihood of a large number of people is depend on the tourist influx. As per sources of the tourism department, around 400 tourist vehicles were daily crossing the green tax barriers set up before Manali. The tourist arrival started gaining pace from June 2 and is expected to increase as the government has relaxed the requirement of the RTPCR report for tourists to enter Himachal. Some hoteliers said online permits to visit Rohtang Pass should be provided to avoid crowding. Conditions: - Tourists will be allowed to cross the Gulaba barrier after 9 am - They will have to reach back by 6 pm - The permitted time for visitors will depend on weather conditions - The vehicles will be allowed to return from Rohtang-Manali road

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RT-PCR test is no more required to enter Himachal Pradesh

Relaxing the existing COVID-19 restrictions, the Himachal Pradesh Cabinet, on Friday, decided to do away with the requirement of RT-PCR tests for entering the state. A decision was also taken to increase the shop opening timings from 9 am to 5 pm from June 14. Shops have, however, been asked to remain closed on weekends. According to the latest guidelines issued by the state governments, offices can function with 50 per cent of staff. Further, intra-state public transport has been allowed to operate with 50 per cent occupancy, thus allowing easy commuting options to the local population. In April, Himachal Pradesh had closed its borders to tourists citing the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases during the second wave of the deadly pandemic. The state government has now lifted section 144 from Himachal Pradesh. The night curfew will, however, remain in force between 5 pm to 5 am.

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Patnitop ropeway reopens for weekend operations in J-K after month-long Covid closure

The Patnitop ropeway in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir started weekend commercial operations on Friday, over a month after it was closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The 2.8-km ecofriendly cable car project by Skyview is the first-of-its-kind leisure, lifestyle and adventure destination, located amidst bountiful nature, in the lap of the Himalayas. “Skyview by Empyrean, the recently launched hospitality venture of Empyrean Skyview Private Limited (ESPPL) is now open at Sanget-Patnitop for visitors starting today (Friday) for weekends only — 11 am until 5pm,” its managing director, Syed Junaid Altaf, said. It is the country’s highest ropeway in terms of ground clearance of over 65 meters and the largest Indo-French collaboration in mountain infrastructure development. It was built in a record time of 2.4 years under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model and started its commercial operations on July 20, 2019. Last year, the ropeway resumed its operations on October 10 after remaining closed for more than six months due to the outbreak of the coronavirus. “We look forward to welcoming visitors to this unique and holistic adventure and lifestyle destination,” Junaid said. He said the Skyview is an ideal getaway for locals and tourists who visit nearby Katra, the base camp for Vaishno Devi pilgrimage, for religious tourism and for those looking to combine or extend their stay in Patnitop. Spread over 22 acres in the panoramic Sanget valley and Patnitop, Skyview is just a 90-minute drive from the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine. It takes a two-hour drive from Jammu on the four-lane highway, crossing four spectacular tunnels, to reach this picturesque destination.

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US embassy will start processing student visas from Monday

In what is a big relief for Indian students planning to join colleges in the US, the US Embassy has announced that starting June 14, Monday, the US Embassy and consulates in India will open "tens of thousands" of visa interview slots for Indian students who are planning to join courses at universities and colleges in America in the Fall 2021 session starting August-September this year. Students have been advised to visit the US embassy website to schedule their visa appointments. "Student visas remain a top priority for the US mission to India and we are making every attempt to facilitate student travel in time for the fall semester. As such, on June 14, 2021, we will open limited July and August student visa appointments at posts across India. Indian students applying for F1, J1, M1 and their dependent visas should login to our website and start booking their interview slots. They will be allowed to travel to the US up to 30 days before the start of their courses," said Don Heflin, minister counsellor for consular affairs, US Embassy, in an interaction with students on a social networking page on Thursday. The US embassy is looking at issuing the same number of student visas in India in 2021 as the summer and fall of 2019. While thousands of visa interview slots will be opened up in June some slots will also be reserved to be made available in July and August. However, parents of students who wanted to accompany them to the US on visitors visas would not be granted visa interviews or allowed to travel at present, Heflin announced. "Prior to your visa interview, please review your I-20 programme start date. Students beginning a new programme with a programme start date on or after August 1 may travel to the United States up to 30 days prior to the programme start date and do not need to submit a request for a national interest exception. Continuing students may also resume their programs on or after August 1, and travel 30 days before their programme resumption date. We are unable to approve expedite requests for Fall 2021 students with scheduled appointments in July or August. If your appointment date may result in a potentially late start, please reach out to your school to discuss options," the US embassy spokesperson said. On April 30, US President Joe Biden had signed the Presidential Proclamation 10199 suspending most non-immigrant travel from India. In light of the travel suspension and due to the current pandemic situation in India, most other routine non-immigrant visa appointments at the US Embassy New Delhi and the consulates in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai remain extremely limited. However, few emergency visa appointments in certain categories are being accommodated.

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Kerala tourist destinations to be 100 per cent vaccinated zones

All popular holiday destinations in Kerala may soon be declared as complete "vaccinated zones" as the state government is mulling to provide the COVID-19 jab to everyone in the tourism sector, which had suffered massive losses due to the pandemic. The government has already started providing vaccines to those working in the industry after including them in the prioritised list considering them as front line COVID fighters, Tourism minister P A Mohammed Riyas told the state Assembly in Thiruvananthapuram on tuesday. "We are mulling to make famous tourist destinations in the state 100 per cent vaccinated zones by July 15 with the support of the health department," he said during the question hour. The minister also said the state tourism sector had incurred losses to the tune of Rs 33,675 crore due to the COVID-19 situation. In order to resolve the issues in the tourism sector due to the pandemic, state Finance Minister K N Balagopal had announced a rejuvenation package for the sector and earmarked an amount of Rs 30 crore as government share for its revival. In addition to the existing provision of Rs 100 crore, Rs 50 crore has been additionally earmarked to Tourism Department for marketing, he had said while presenting the budget. Two new tourism circuits were also announced in the budget and Rs 50 crore was allocated for implementation as part of efforts to strengthen the sector.

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Dragon boat, paragliding festival to pull tourists in Dalhousie and Chamba

In a major boost to the tourism industry in Dalhousie and Chamba after Covid lockdown, the authorities are organising a three-day dragon boat festival and paragliding festival. The administration hopes that both these events would help in attracting tourists in the region. While talking to TOI on Thursday, deputy commissioner Chamba, DC Rana informed that they have planned to hold a three-day dragon boat festival in Chamera lake at Taleru and a three-day paragliding event at Khajjiar, near Dalhousie in the month of October. "The idea behind organising these festivals is to attract tourists and bring back some enthusiasm among people connected to tourism industry in the region," said Rana. Besides creating a regional identity of these far-off exotic but less frequented places of Chamba district by tourists, the events would also prove to be helpful in supporting the local economy and creating job opportunities. About the paragliding festival, he informed that the administration had notified a few paragliding sites in Khajjiar which was already visited by a large number of tourists who visit Dalhousie. Reacting to the initiatives taken by the Chamba administration to attract tourists, Ashish who runs a hotel in Dalhousie said both the festivals were the encouraging for the business of tourism which was already facing sharply falling revenues and losses. He, however, opined that government should give them immediate relief by way of beginning the unlocking process, doing away with the e-pass system allowing tourists to visit Dalhousie who had taken the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine, etc.

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