The Deputy Commissioner, Kullu, Sh. Hans Raj Chauhan, IAS formally launched the online tourism permits issuance system with payment gateway facility on 17th May 2016 in Kullu.

He informed that at present the vehicles are permitted upto Marhi but these vehicles would soon be allowed to go up to the Rohtang Pass after putting in place necessary arrangements as per the directions of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

While the BRO had restored the road at 13,050-foot-high Rohtang Pass on April 6, but tourists’ vehicles were allowed only up to the Gulaba barrier.

The NGT had recently allowed 800 petrol and 400 diesel vehicles to go to the Rohtang Pass for tourism purposes every day. The NGT had imposed charges of Rs 500 for all vehicles passing through the eco-sensitive Rohtang Pass area at the time of applying for permit and also Rs 50 as congestion charges. The BRO carries out maintenance of the Rohtang road on Tuesdays and thus vehicles are not permitted to go beyond Gulaba barrier on Tuesdays.

The DC informed that the online permits would be available to tourists three days in advance and the online payment could be done through the websites at http://hpkullu.nic.in, http://himachal.gov.in and http://admis.hp.nic.in/ngtkullu

The snow is a major attraction for thousands of tourist visiting the famous tourist spots of Kullu and Manali in Himachal Pradesh and as the snow is available round the year at Rohtang Pass, the tourists make it a point to visit Rohtang Pass. However, after the NGT order restricting the number of vehicles, the tourists were facing difficulties in getting these permits in offline mode. The Deputy Commissioner informed that the online booking facility would assist tourists to book their Rohtang expedition to avoid undue hassles as they can get permits online from the comfort of their homes.

The Deputy Commissioner informed the public and transport operators that the permits to visit Rohtang Pass will be available through the software 3 days in advance. The permits for residents of Lahaul & Spiti and those going beyond Rohtang Pass will be issued manually in the office of the SDM/Tourism at Manali.

The software has been designed, developed and implemented by the NIC Himachal Pradesh State Centre, Shimla.