A plan to divert the natural hot spring at Manikaran - a pilgrimage site for Sikhs - to the nearby tourist destination Kasol in Himachal Pradesh has upset the local residents and sparked a row.
Kasol is located just 4 km away from Manikaran, in the Parvati Valley of Kullu district.
It was proposed at a meeting of Special Area Development Authority (SADA) that a new nature park will be built in Kasol which would have 'Jacuzzi hot baths'. The water for this park would be brought from Manikaran through pipes.
The locals have threatened mass agitation if the plan to "use the holy water for commercial purposes" is not withdrawn, according to a report by Times of India.
Residents of Manikaran Valley met with the Deputy Commissioner in Dhalpur and submitted a memorandum to the state government, urging that Manikaran is a revered pilgrimage site where local deities also come to bathe, and opposed the proposed plan to divert the hot water to Kasol.
Shwar Singh, Chhadibardar of Lord Raghunath told IANS, "Kasol is not a pilgrimage site; it is a tourist destination. The sacred water of a pilgrimage site should not be transported through pipes..."
The proposal has also sparked off a war of words between the local politicians. BJP leader Narotam Singh Thakur took a jibe at Congress MLA from Kullu, Sundar Singh Thakur, for having "vested interest" in the project.
Earlier, former MP Maheshwar Singh had also publicly lodged opposition to the proposal, saying that the water from a sacred site like Manikaran should not be used for commercial purposes.
"Whenever we have talked about development, some people in Kullu have opposed it, making religion an excuse. But no one will be allowed to thwart development process on the pretext of religion," the Kullu MLA said, responding to these allegation, as reported by TOI.
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