17/12/2011
***Manali Winter Carnival 2012 - 9th to 13th January 2012****
The winter carnival of Manali began its journey way back in 1977. The first carnival was inaugurated by Late Dr. Y. S. Parmar the then Chief Minister of Himachal. The show, infact, was brainchild of Shri Harnam Singh, the founder of WHMI (that is how the present Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports was known as then) This Mountaineering Institute was then in its infancy and looking for areas of growth. Water sports and snow sports were its natural offshoots as both these resources are abundant in the State. In order to popularize skiing Shri Harnam Singh started open ski competitions at the upcoming Solang Slopes. Skiing then was dominated by skiers of HAWS, ITBP and Gulmarg Ski School - all professionals; participations of locals and non-professionals was only notional. These competitions were successful in drawing young blood and attracting a lot of local enthusiasts to the sport. One look at the breed of the skiers at the highest level shows that the initiative was highly productive. To further boost the sport and exhibit it to the lay public and the tourists the Director of WHMI started hosting cultural events simultaneously with the skiing competitions. This was the beginning of the Manali Winter Carnival.
