Due to limited parking and a surge in tourist footfall, traffic congestion has become a significant issue in Nainital, one of Uttarakhand's top tourist destinations. This prompted the Uttarakhand High Court to seek the help of experts from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Kashipur to devise a long-term solution.
On Thursday, a bench comprising Chief Justice G Narender and Justice Alok Mahra directed IIM Kashipur to assess the load-bearing capacity of Nainital’s roads and submit a comprehensive report. The court also asked the institute to inform it by Monday whether it could take help from other institutions like IIT Roorkee, the Indian Road Congress, the Central Road Research Institute, and the Geological Survey of India for the study.
Additionally, the bench requested an update from the state government regarding the proposed development of a parking facility on 45 acres of land belonging to a defunct factory in Ranibagh, as well as plans for a shuttle service for tourists to reduce the number of vehicles entering Nainital.
The bench reviewed the ongoing construction of a multi-storey parking facility for 90 vehicles at the site of the old Ashok Talkies in Nainital, which is being developed at an estimated cost of ₹5.25 crore.
During the hearing, Advocate D.S. Patni, representing the Nainital municipality, raised concerns about the project, calling it a misuse of public funds. In response, the state government asserted that the land in question is government-owned. Taking note of the concerns, the court issued verbal instructions to temporarily halt the construction work.
The court will take up the matter again on Monday as it was hearing over half a dozen petitions related to environmental concerns, traffic congestion, parking issues, and the carrying capacity of Nainital's roads.
Lawyer Karthik Jayshankar, representing environmentalist Ajay Singh Rawat in one of the petitions, informed the court that IIM Kashipur Director Somnath Chakrabarti, along with a team of experts, appeared virtually before the court on Thursday. They informed the court that the IIM team had visited key locations and presented initial recommendations, including improved parking infrastructure, traffic diversions, and a shuttle service to help reduce congestion in the area.
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