Mahabaleshwar, Thoseghar & Mahalaxmi temple see large crowds; traffic on highways at a standstill
Rain, road widening and flyover construction works have been causing delays of about two hours on the Pune-Bengaluru national highway due to heavy traffic congestion. Toll plazas at Khed Shivapur, Anewadi, Tasawade, Kini and Kognoli are also witnessing long queues.
Jayant Sawant, an IT professional from Pune, said: "I was returning to my hometown Kolhapur, and the MSRTC Shivshahi bus journey took me seven hours to reach Kolhapur from Swargate, which is usually covered in five hours.
At the Karad and Malkapur stretch, the bus got stuck for more than an hour due to severe traffic congestion."
Hill station Mahabaleshwar is also packed with tourists enjoying on-and-off drizzling rains, a pleasant climate, lush green surroundings and a foggy atmosphere. Prices of hotels are seeing a sharp hike.
Tourist spots like Lingmala Waterfall, Mahabaleshwar Temple, Krishnabai Temple, Kate's Point, Kas Plateau, Tapola, Bamnoli, Thoseghar Waterfall, Chalkewadi Windmills among others are seeing a huge rush of tourists.
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Over 3 lakh devotees visited the revered Mahalaxmi temple in the city on Friday and Saturday. As per Paschim Maharashtra Devasthan Samiti (PMDS) officials, on Friday, the temple was visited by 1,87,650 devotees. The count is expected to further increase on Sunday. In Kolhapur district, tourist places like Jyotiba temple, Panhala fort, Rankala lake, New Palace, Kaneri Math, and Nrusinhawadi Datt temple are packed with tourist devotees.
Due to the tourist rush, local shopkeepers and street vendors are seeing good business.
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