PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Nainital
While the Nainital district administration and police claimed that thanks to the measures taken by them, particularly the strictly implemented traffic plan, the Kainchi Dham foundation day ceremony and the fair had passed off peacefully, several locals and traders alleged that the traffic plan had proved a spoiler. Notably, thousands of devotees had attended the foundation day ceremony and the fair held on Monday at the temple hallowed by the association of the revered Neeb Karori Baba. Things had been smooth despite the huge inflow of devotees due to the route diversion and shuttle service plans implemented by them, claimed the SSP, Manjunath TC.
But striking a discordant note with the police claim, the secretary of the Hotel and Restaurant Association, Nainital, Hitesh Sah said that a large number of bookings for hotels had been cancelled with the police having stopped vehicles. “Many hotels lay vacant,” he lamented.
Echoing the view, the secretary of the trade board, Vikram Tiwari said that this year the crowd on the foundation day was not as much as expected. “Tourists did not arrive due to the strictness of the police. The traffic plan not just affected the locals’ movements but also marred their business a lot,” he alleged.
