Shimla, July 9: Pictures of tourists flouting COVID-19 guidelines at several tourist spots in Himachal Pradesh surfaced on social media platforms raising concerns about safety and health. Soon after the photos of crowded streets in Manali made headlines, the Manali administration took the matter seriously and decided to impose a fine of Rs 5,000 or 8 days in jail for tourists who were found without face masks. The viral images of the heavily crowded streets of Manali drew criticism with the netizens calling Himachal Pradesh the place to trigger COVID-19 third wave. Manali Flocked by Tourists; Netizens Share Images of Crowded Streets in The Himachal Town And Wonder If COVID-19 Third Wave is Coming.

In a bid to make sure people follow the COVID-19 protocols, Police personnel has been deployed at various places. Tourists have been thronging Himachal Pradesh to escape from the scorching heat and sultry weather in the plains due to which the occupancy in the hotels has increased in the past few days.  People from the plains are visiting tourist hotspots like Shimla, Kufri, Narkanda, Dalhousie, Manali, Lahaul, and other places in the hill state.  Dharamshala Boy Amit, Seen Asking People to Wear Masks in Viral Video, Becomes Police Mascot for COVID-19 Protocols.

Earlier in June, it opened the state for travellers outside the state and the state government had also eased several restrictions for tourists. It waived off the protocol of compulsory RT-PCR tests and e-pass for travelers to the state, leading to massive footfall across all the major destinations.

Earlier this week, the Health Ministry had warned that gross violations of COVID-19 appropriate behavior after lifting lockdown restrictions in different parts of the country can lead to the easing being nullified. During a briefing on the situation of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is on a downward trajectory in India, the ministry highlighted pictures from different places showing gross violation of coronavirus rules.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 09, 2021 02:20 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).