59 km Hindustan-Tibet road to be mettled, says CM

Shimla, May 20 (UNI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said a sum of Rs 28 crore will be spent on widening and metling of 59 km stretch of Hindustan-Tibet road between Phagu to Kumarsain.

The work had already been awarded and widening and mettling would start within the next 10 days, he said after inaugurating tourist hut at Hatu peak in Narkanda, about 70 km from here.

The work of cutting had already been started and would be completed before the onset of the apple season so that the fruit growers do not face any inconvenience in transporting their produce outside the state, Mr Singh said.

A sum of Rs three crore had been allocated for the development of Narkanda area since it has become favorite adventure spot from the tourism point of view, he said.

The existing infrastructure under the tourism development project would be improved and strengthened in view of the increasing number of tourists visiting the area, he added.

The Chief Minister also announced the spending of Rs 15 lakh for the development of Hatu temple to promote religious tourism in the area, besides sanctioning Rs five lakh for improving the temple complex.

Later, Mr Singh laid the foundation stone of the Integrated Development of Small and Medium Town Development (IDSMT) project, to be constructed at a cost of Rs 1.20 crore.

UNI