Bad weather disrupted traffic movement, construction of tunnel work, and road repair work at the Rohtang Pass last week. However, clear bright skies have blessed the valley again and BRO has opened the Rohtang Pass for vehicular traffic on the eve of Christmas.

By the end of December this year, Rohtang Pass will be completely closed down for vehicular traffic and he only way in or out of the valley is helicopter rides, which are partially sponsored by the state government.

This year Pawan Hans helicopters will fly in the valley. A fresh agreement of 40 flying hours has been signed by the government with the Pawan Hans fliers.

Currently, the BRO personnel are working in harsh weather conditions. Yesterday weather was recorded at -8 Degree Celsius. At the same time, construction work of Rohtang Tunnel was also disrupted last week because of snowfall, which forced the BRO to stop the tunnel work from the Lahaul Side at the North Portal of the tunnel.

Once the tunnel construction is complete, it will serve as the new lifeline to the Lahaul Valley, which currently depends largely on the weather conditions at the Rohtang Pass.

The flights to the Lahaul Valley will start from January 1 Onwards. For any tourist to board the flight, he/she need to get written approval from the Manali SDM. However because of unavailability of seats in the flight, it is almost impossible for any tourist to get onboard the flight.

Last year, the flight was priced at INR 8,000 for tourists. The natives of the Lahaul Valley and government officials are offered discounted tickets.