Shimla, March 24 The state government will repair highways and roads before the upcoming tourist season, and an adequate police force will be deployed to manage traffic, said Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while replying to a question from BJP MLA Surender Shourie on Tuesday.
He acknowledged that the heavy flow of tourists during the peak season strains the state's carrying capacity, leading to traffic congestion during peak seasons.
The chief minister said that no scientific study on carrying capacity has been conducted for tourist destinations in the Banjar constituency in Kullu district, and currently, there are no plans to undertake one.
Responding to another question from BJP MLA Sudhir Sharma of Dharamshala regarding the money spent on advertisements, he stated that various state government departments, boards, and corporations have spent Rs 22.87 crore on advertisements over the last three years.
The Department of Information and Public Relations spent Rs 14 crore, while other departments spent the remainder. However, the previous BJP government had spent a budget of Rs 28 crore, he added.
Sukhu said that the previous government spent Rs 6.36 crore on hoardings, whereas the current government has spent only Rs 2.40 crore and added that, comparatively, a lower amount has been spent on other publicity and promotional activities in print and electronic media.
Sudhir Sharma said that if the budget for advertisements had been allocated for Dharamshala, work on the Central University's North Campus could have commenced.
Responding to this, the chief minister said that if the Central Government agrees to bear the costs for electricity and water, the state government will deposit the funds.
Sukhu said that the state government will introduce a 'Scrap Policy' during the next Cabinet meeting, under which obsolete items and vehicles lying in government offices, schools, and police stations will be scrapped in a time-bound manner.
He said this while responding to a question asked by Congress MLA from Shahpur, Kewal Pathania.
