PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Nainital
In view of the surging tourist footfalls, Nainital police implemented a special traffic plan with the entry of outside vehicles being temporarily halted after the town’s traffic volume exceeded its parking capacity. These vehicles were stopped at temporary parking lots on the Russi Bypass and Narayan Nagar, just ahead of Nainital.
The superintendent of police, Jagdish Chandra stated that only tourists with prior bookings at hotels with parking facilities were permitted to enter the town on Sunday. Tourists without parking reservations were sent into the town by shuttle after their vehicles were parked at designated parking spots. Besides, police remained deployed throughout the day on major roads and intersections across the town. Police personnel were constantly engaged in maintaining smooth traffic flow, and diversions were immediately implemented whenever traffic jams arose.
Notably, due to the tourist season, Nainital has been witnessing a huge influx of tourists with pressure piling on the town’s traffic system. The police administration has appealed to the people for cooperation, asking them to follow traffic rules and refrain from unnecessarily driving vehicles into the town and to avoid roadside parking.
Meanwhile, a scuffle broke out between a group of tourists and police in Mallital on Sunday afternoon after Nainital’s DSA parking lot was packed and police tried to move the vehicles further away. The dispute escalated quickly and it reached the police station. There, too, a heated debate ensued between the tourists and the police.
Later, the tourists apologised. Thereafter, they were released following counselling.
