Himachal Pradesh: Police Issues Challan to Thar Driving in River
Holiday rush prompts risky river drive by tourist; police take action in Himachal Pradesh. Watch our video to find out!
Himachal Pradesh Police has issued a challan after a video of driving a Mahindra Thar in Chandra River of Lahaul and Spiti has gone viral on social media. According to the reports, hundreds of tourists are traveling to Himachal Pradesh to celebrate Christmas and New Year creating a lot of rush and traffic in the hills. People’s interest to visit the Atal Tunnel has resulted in record breaking increase in hotel occupancy in the resorts of Shimla, and Manali to 90 per cent. Even though the influx of tourists is a boost for the hospitality sector, managing it is challenging for the administration. Several videos have surfaced on social media showing a long queue of vehicles on roads. More than 28,200 vehicles crossed the Atal Tunnel on 24th December 2023. And in the midst of this rush, a tourist found a ‘creative’ way to beat the traffic. There was a huge traffic jam at many places on the Lahaul to Manali route on the evening of 24th December 2023. Therefore, one tourist ditched the roads and drove across the river. Many other tourists took the video of the act. In the video, the tourist was seen driving a Mahindra Thar SUV through the Chandra river in Lahaul Valley. Luckily, the water level in the river wasn't high otherwise the drive could have even caused the tourist(s) their lives. The video has been widely shared and is receiving severe criticism. The Himachal police has issued a challan to the driver of the SUV. Local Superintendent of Police Mayank Chaudhry said, “Recently, a video went viral in which a Thar is crossing the river Chandra in District Lahaul Spiti. The said vehicle has been issued a challan under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and to ensure that no one commits such an offense in the future, the district police have deployed police personnel at the said place.” More Police forces have also been deployed in the area to ensure that such incidents don’t take place again. Officials expect more than 1 lakh vehicles to enter Shimla, Kullu, & Manali this week for the New Year celebrations. Shimla’s Director General of Police, Mr. Sanjay Kundu has appealed to the tourists to prioritize safe travel practices and follow traffic rules.
