Shimla water crisis: Residents appeal tourists to stay away

Himachal Pradesh High Court on Tuesday ordered a halt on construction activities and car washing for a week in the core areas of the parched state capital to save water.

Shimla has been facing acute water shortage for over a week now and such is the situation that queues of people waiting for drinking water to be supplied can now be seen even on city's famous Mall Road, which once used to to be full of tourists. Hotels and lodges have been badly hit by the crisis, with cancellations pouring in after news of the water shortage became widespread.

It is now being reported that event the residents of the Shimla are appealing to tourists to not visit the city so as to not cause further shortage.

Himachal Pradesh High Court on Tuesday ordered a halt on construction activities and car washing for a week in the core areas of the parched state capital to save water.

Shimla's daily requirement of water is around 42 million litres a day but supply has come down to 22 MLD this year, said a NDTV report.

Areas facing the worst crisis are Kasumpati, Chhota Shimla, Vikasnagar, Patyog, Kangna Dhar, New Shimla and Panthaghati.

The water shortage is being attributed to a dry winter and a prolonged dry spell in the region. According to Hindustan Times, Shimla has no direct source of water and more than half of the town's water is lifted from Gumma, an area that draws water from the Shimla catchment sanctuary.

On Sunday night, several men and women assembled outside the waterworks office on Mall Road for a midnight sit-in protest, reported The Indian Express. They later decided to march towards the residence of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, but police stopped them. Following the protest, Thakur on Monday ordered the setting-up of a high-level committee under Chief Secretary Vineet Chawdhry to mitigate the water crisis.