Shimla administration divides city into seven zones for better crowd control on New Year's eve

The local administration has divided Shimla into seven and police into seven six sectors to control the crowd ahead of the tourist rush for the New Year celebrations.

"As more tourists prefer to visit Shimla on New Year in comparison to Christmas, we have divided Shimla into seven sectors and a magistrate has been appointed for each sector. Police have also been divided in the city into six sectors. Amid COVID-19 fears, we have deployed additional 250 Policemen for tourists in addition to 400 policemen deployed for the winter season; they are also being deputed for the New Year special duty", said Aditya Negi, the Deputy Commissioner of Shimla district administration.

"The force has also been deployed to implement the Covid-19 protocol amid the fear of Omicron. The local administration is expecting 40 to 45 thousand people for the New Year Celebration in Shimla. This year in comparison to previous years the tourists' arrival on New Year would be less. The administration is fully prepared to welcome the tourists and also directed to implement appropriate COVID-19 behaviour. Tourists are also moving to the outskirts of Shimla city instead of coming to a crowded place", added the Deputy Commissioner of Shimla district administration.

"The tourists here are worried only about the vehicular traffic jam; they are not worried about any Covid-19 virus", said Shalini, a tourist from Bengaluru.

"We have to live with the virus. So it's better if we take proper precautions and move on with our normal life. My family and I have decided to stay away from the crowded place while we are enjoying our holiday in Shimla", said Neetu from Hyderabad.

Thousands of tourists annually visit Himachal Pradesh during Christmas and New Year. This year the local administration is not expecting much crowd in the city as people are preferring to visit the outskirts of the Shimla districts and town.

( With inputs from ANI )