Hetauda, January 27

Most tourists have complained that they have been duped on one pretext or another at Simbhanjyang of Thaha and Palung of Daman in Makawanpur.

Thousands of domestic and foreign tourists have flocked to in the tourist destinations after snowfall some days ago. Simbhanjyang is two hours’ walk from Hetauda.

Thousands of domestic tourists have reached there to play in snow and enjoy natural beauty.

The tourists have complained that they were cheated in every way, for example, while purchasing mobile recharge cards or buying food materials.

A local Saroj Lama of Hetauda said Rs 300 was charged even for a normal meal. He said the tourists paid Rs 10 to 20 more for mobile phone recharge cards. A domestic tourist Hari Lamichhane said the concerned authorities such as the municipality, the food and quality control office and the district administration office had paid no attention to hygiene and sanitation at local hotels. “We were forced to pay high as there was no alternative,” he added.

Locals said that local tourism entrepreneurs at Simbhanjyang had failed to cater quality service as advertised by them. They also added that the concerned authorities were least bothered about infrastructure development in the tourist area.