Himachal Pradesh Panchayat Bans Tourists: Here's Why [Video]
The Himachal Pradesh Panchayat has made a bold decision by suspending tourism activities in the Sissu Valley. This particular decision has been made after the increasing number of unruly tourists disturbing the culture and peace of the popular tourist destination. Recently, showing a prime example of this, a video has gone viral in which three shirtless men were seen standing out of the sunroof of a Hyundai Creta, drinking and dancing.
This video showing these idiots stunting at Sissu Valley has been shared on X by Nikhil Saini on their page. In this short clip, we can note that there is a black-colored Hyundai Creta that was driving slowly on a single-lane road due to a traffic jam. The attention then shifts to the three shirtless men who were standing out of the panoramic sunroof of this SUV.
It can be observed that these men also had drinks in their hands and were dancing and making a scene at the spot, where there were a lot of people. Thankfully, what happened immediately was that a police officer came behind the Hyundai Creta, and after noticing him, all three men immediately went inside the SUV with their drink glasses.
Soon after, the police officer walked ahead of the car and captured a clear photo of it for the challan. This particular Hyundai Creta has a registration number from Haryana — HR 26 FK 3540. In the video, we can also note that people around the vehicle were laughing when the police officer started clicking pictures for the challan.
As mentioned above, the Sissu Gram Panchayat has completely suspended tourism for 40 days, starting from January 20 till February 28. Between these dates, no tourists will be allowed in Sissu village, which is situated in the Chandra Valley of Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal Pradesh. According to the authorities, this ban has been imposed because local institutions believe that tourist movement and recreational activities could disturb the solemn religious observances.
It has also been highlighted that this period of the tourism ban coincides with important local festivals and religious restrictions known as “dev restrictions.” The local festivals Halda and Poona will be celebrated during this suspension. These festivals require silence and discipline, the absence of large crowds, and respect for dev (deity) orders.
The Sissu Gram Panchayat stated that there has been a huge surge in tourist footfall due to year-round access through the Atal Tunnel, snow-capped mountains, and other scenic views.
This particular decision to ban tourism in Sissu Valley has been collectively taken by the Sissu Gram Panchayat, Raja Ghepan Committee, Devi Bhoti Committee, Labarang Gompa Committee, Mahila Mandal, and Yuvak Mandal.
As part of this tourism shutdown, all tourism-related activities will be stopped, and the villages under the Sissu Gram Panchayat will be closed to tourists. The restricted areas include the entire stretch of Pagal Nullah to Ropsang and areas held by the Sissu helipad.
The list of all prohibited activities includes ATV (All-Terrain Vehicle) rides, hot air ballooning, zip lining, skiing, bungee jumping, tube sliding, and others.