Himalayan News Service

Myagdi, March 25:

The number of visitors to the Tatopani (hot water spring) in Myagdi’s Singa village has fallen drastically this year, following a Maoist attack in the district headquarters, Beni, last year.

The spout used to draw large crowds during the previous winters. Deteriorating security situation is the main reason behind the falling number of visitors, according to Birendra Man Shakya, chairman of the Spout Management Committee. According to available data, over 5,000 visitors used to visit the spot yearly during the previous years. Shakya said only 500 people visited the place this year. Taking a bath in the hot water spout or a dip in the pond here is believed to cure many skin and stomach ailments, including gastric, ulcer, uric acid problems and other diseases.

Bhagwati Shrestha, a local woman, said, “I was a heart patient. I was also suffering from gastric and ulcer. But I got completely cured after I started taking a daily dip in the spring.”

The main feature of the pond is that its water has a fragrance of black salt and sulphur and it remains warm throughout the year. The declining number of visitors has affected hotel and lodge owners. Fal Bahadur Sherchan, a hotelier, said, “Hotel business has been badly affected

after the number of winter visitors declined drastically.” Man Bahadur Gharti, another hotelier,

has started thinking of quitting and turning to another vocation.