MANALI: President of India Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday visited the 9.02km-long Atal tunnel on Saturday, along with his wife and daughter. This is also the first time ever that any Indian President has set foot on the Lahaul Valley. He was accompanied by the Himachal governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar and chief minister Jai Ram Thakur. The President had expressed his wish to visit the strategically important Atal tunnel, which is the longest traffic tunnel in the world above 10,000ft during his visit to Dharamshala.
The President, his wife Savita Kovind and daughter Swati Kovind were given a warm traditional welcome at Sissu helipad in Lahaul valley by local women, the governor and the CM. Cabinet minister Ram Lal Markanda and CM presented him a Thangka painting. The President was impressed by the beauty of Lahaul valley with towering snow-capped peaks. He admired the Sissu lake and Sissu waterfall next to the helipad and also praised the beauty of Chandra river, a tributary of Chenab.
