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Journalism of Courage
Himachal Pradesh’s tryst with VVIP tourists is not yet over. After Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s sojourn in Prini, it is President Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s turn to take a break in Shimla.
Kalam’s visit, scheduled for the second week of June, will be the first by a President since R. Venkataraman occupied the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Manali had been Venkataraman’s favourite holiday destination and he visited it annually while K.R. Narayanan gave Himachal a complete miss.
Sources said Shimla’s Presidential retreat, located in the 100 acre Rashtrapati Niwas, (made by the Britishers when Shimla was India’s summer capital), is being spruced up for the Presidential visit. Kalam has only a few public engagements, including an interaction with school children in Shimla. He will be spending the rest of his time privately.
Almost coinciding with Kalam’s visit, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi will be on a business-cum-holiday trip to Himachal Pradesh.
Sources said that initially Sonia was scheduled to vacation in Manali. But since Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has invited her to inaugurate a power project, she will be taking stock of her party’s affairs in Shimla before taking a three-day holiday in Manali.
Tourism officials said that VVIP tourists reinforce the Himalayan state’s image as a tourist destination. ‘‘Prini (Vajpayee’s adopted home village) is already a tourist attraction as no tourist visiting Manali leaves without seeing it,’’ an official said.
