Locals oppose plan to divert holy water of Manikaran to Kasol for commercial use; local MLA says alternative found

Shimla/Manali: The proposal of transferring water from Manikaran -- a pilgrimage site for both Hindus and Sikhs -- to Kasol in Himachal Pradesh's Kullu district to establish hot bath facility has led to a disagreement with locals opposing the move and now an alternative has been found by digging hot water spring in Kasol.

It was decided in a recent meeting of the Special Area Development Authority (SADA) that a new nature park would be built in Kasol with a hot bath facility for which the water would be diverted from Manikaran through pipes.

The locals threatened to launch an agitation if the holy water of Manikaran is used for commercial purposes at Kasol, a much sought after tourist destination. The distance between Manikaran and Kasol is about five kilometers.

Opposing the proposal, the locals also submitted a petition in this regard to Kullu Deputy Commissioner Torul S Raveesh.

Confirming the same, the deputy commissioner said that the proposal was in a preliminary stage and it was yet to be decided that the water would be diverted from which location.

The locals and the BJP leaders here had maintained that even the local deities would not allow transferring of water from Manikaran to Kasol and maintained that if the hot baths have to be built, it should be set up in Manikaran.

The BJP leaders had earlier said that the holy water of Manikaran should not be used for commercial purposes as it is also Manikaran by the local deities.

Sunder Singh Thakur, a local Congress MLA, told PTI on Thursday that there was a proposal for utilization of spill over water in Manikaran but now we have found an alternative with digging of hot water springs in Kasol itself.

He said it should be ensured that the holy water is not used for commercial purposes like Kunds for tourists and toilets. Some people are against the development of the region and oppose the development works, he added.