Expressing concern over the prolonged suspension of flights to the state, Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee president Virbhadra Singh has urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to ask Air India to restart flights immediately to all the three destinations.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, he said the suspension of flights was not only affecting business of hoteliers and others connected with the tourist trade but also causing inconvenience to the public, especially during medical emergencies.
He said regular flights to Himachal Pradesh were not operational for the past four months and the tourist flow to the state had come to a standstill. With Kingfisher and Air India suspending operations, air link to the state had been completely disrupted.
As such, the airports at Bhuntar in Kullu-Manali, Gaggal in Kangra and Jubbarhatti in Shimla had not seen any flight over the period. He said Air India used to provide services between Delhi and Kullu.
Virbhadra said at present Shimla was the only state capital without an air link. This was adversely affecting the public and corporate and government officials who used to travel regularly.
The Manali Hoteliers Association had reportedly written to the Union Tourism Secretary seeking air connectivity to the state, but to no avail. He said in case flights were not restarted, the tourism industry would suffer huge losses. Manali had 620 hotels and the region attracted huge crowds during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Some hotel owners complained that they had started getting telephone calls for the cancellation of bookings for Christmas-New Year celebrations due to the absence of flights. He further said the tourism industry in Dharamsala was also likely to be hit as several disciples of the Dalai Lama used to visit him during winters to seek his blessings.
He said as an immediate solution Air India should be asked to restart flights immediately to all the three destinations.
