Heavy tourist rush leads Uttarakhand and Himachal roads choke amid severe heatwave

Heavy tourist influx has led to severe traffic congestion across major hill destinations including Haridwar, Chamoli, Manali, Shimla, and Dehradun amid an intense heatwave across North India. Officials from Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, including Surjeet Singh Panwar and Lokjeet Singh, along with Shimla administration, highlighted ongoing traffic management efforts as popular tourist routes continue to witness massive vehicular pressure during the peak season. With the summer tourist season yet to reach its peak, Shimla, the 'Queen of Hills’, is already choked with vehicles, leading to frequent traffic jams and prompting police to make a special appeal to tourists to adhere to traffic rules and conduct themselves as responsible citizens.