Shimla, Dec 3 (PTI) Asia’s largest natural ice rink in Shimla will likely open for skating on Thursday, an official said.
The rink was tested for ice on Wednesday by skating veterans and a few tourists, Rajat Malhotra, the secretary of the Ice skating club, said.
For the past few years, skating has been starting in the second week of December.
Gupta said he hopes to have a skating season and conducive weather.
He said the morning session would start at 8 am, and the evening session would depend on the quality of the ice, he said.
A clear sky and a temperature below 4 degrees Celsius are the most conducive prerequisites for the freezing of ice, but construction activity in the vicinity of the rink and demolition of Rivoli Theatre above it, which blocked sunlight, have posed a challenge to its formation.
Last year, the ice skating season commenced on December 11, and in 2023, it began on December 11.
The subscription fee for the full season for seniors and juniors (aged under 16) is Rs 3,000 and Rs 1,800, said Manpreet Singh, the president of the club, which boasts of around 300 members.
“It is my first experience, and though we are falling, it is a good experience. I have been wanting to do this for a while,” said Hyderabad-based Anshu, a college student from Manipal.
Krish from Kolkata said he tried skating for the first time on the natural ice skating rink. “We had read about ice skating in Shimla on Google and came here to give it a try.” In 2016, Shimla saw its warmest December ever, with mercury soaring to 22 degrees, reducing the skating season to only six sessions.
The last lowest of 12 sessions was in 1972, while the maximum, 118 skating sessions, was held in the 1997-98 season.
The rink, which is equal to five tennis courts (58m X 30m), was formed in 1920, when Blessington, an Irish military officer, found water he sprinkled on the tennis court quickly freezing, and decided to turn the space into a rink.
At present, the rink is shrunk to 40m X 20m space due to construction. PTI BPL VN VN
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