Rains give Mt Abu a miss, Nakki lake drying up

PALANPUR: A weak monsoon has severely hit tourism industry, the main livelihood of Mount Abu, this year. With just about two per cent of the aggregate required rainfall till July end, Abu is facing the worst water crisis in last five years. Nakki lake, which is the cynosure of all tourists eyes, has hit rock bottom, literally.
Against the average requirement of 2,800 mm rainfall, the hilly resort has received just 243 mm so far, sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) officials said."In view of the scarcity, we have had to impose water supply cuts. At present, water is being supplied to here every third day," said SDM Tina Soni. She, however, pointed out that that the water shortage is a common phenomenon in entire Rajasthan.
Water storage in the town has reached critical levels, so much so, that a tanker is sold at Rs 800, that too on advance booking. Vandan Agarwal, owner of Hotel Hilltone, said, "Now, most customers first inquire about the water position of the hill station instead of asking about accommodation."
Voicing the worst fears of a tourist destination, a tourist Rakesh Dave from Ahmedabad said, "If this condition prevails for a fortnight, I am sure tourists will think twice before coming here."
Locals have turned to the gods for mercy and a way out of the impending crisis. They have been offering special prayers to the rain god. Yagnas, prabhat pheri (a morning procession prayer), and several other forms of appeasing the rain gods have been organised so far.
In fact, last week, the entire town observed a complete bandh, keeping their shops and businesses closed and had their food outside the town. This was in accordance with an old belief in the region, according to which rain god are appeased if the locals eat outside the town.
According to locals, if rains are delayed by another fortnight, many might start evacuating the place. "As many as 90 per cent of the locals have no other source of income. We have to rely on tourists," said Mohan Singh, a taxi driver. Similarly, people from all professions, be it photographers, taxi drivers, hoteliers or owners of roadside kiosks, are all waiting for tourists to step into the hills," said an official of Rajasthan tourism office.
The hilly tourist town of Mount Abu situated at an altitude of 5,742 ft plateau amid Aravali ranges covering an area of 5,000 acres attracts lakhs of tourists every year.