Tourists have been thronging Indian state Himachal Pradesh as the heatwave has hit the plains and the second wave of COVID-19 seeing a significant decline in the country.

People from the plains are visiting tourist hotspots like Shimla, Kufri, Narkanda, Dalhousie, Manali, Lahaul and other places in the hill state in large numbers to get rid of the scorching heat.

The occupancy in the hotels has increased in the past few days but it has yet to reach its peak, said Mohinder Seth, president of Tourism Industry Stakeholder Association, PTI reported.

However, the increase in the number of tourists has posed a challenge to the state government to ensure adhering of Covid protocol by the visitors amid fears of an impending third wave of coronavirus infections.

The occupancy in the hotels has increased between 60 and 90 percent in the past few days, Mohinder Seth, president of Tourism Industry Stakeholder Association said.