Himachal Pradesh High Court Mandates Age Limit, Fitness Certificate For River Rafting, Kayaking In Kullu

“It is desirable to fix upper age limit to persons who are intending to do kayaking or associated river sports and also to prescribe the necessity of senior citizens participating in such activities producing a Fitness Certificate. The desirability of having capability to swim may also be required to be prescribed”, the bench comprising Chief Justice M.S Ramachandra Rao and Jyotsna Rewal Dua ordered.

The directions were passed as a follow-up to a previous directive issued on November 23, 2023, where the court scrutinized the adherence to safety regulations in adventure sports, specifically river rafting.

The court had then taken note of the shortcomings in safety measures and pointed out that several rafting operators were not complying with Rule 11(b) of the Himachal Pradesh River Rafting Rules, 2005, which mandates operators to possess two rescue rafts or a combination of one raft and a kayak.

The court had then directed DC Kullu to file a report as to what active measures have been taken to implement these Rules, how many operators were penalized for not following these Rules in the last two years and what other effective steps were proposed for ensuring that fatal accidents do not occur while rafting.

Building upon the previous order, the court's recent decision focuses on further strengthening safety protocols in adventure sports, particularly in light of a tragic incident involving the death of a 65-year-old tourist.

While mandating the necessity of senior citizens to produce a Fitness Certificate before participating in such activities to ascertain the physical fitness and suitability of older individuals for these adrenaline-pumping endeavours the bench asked DM Kullu to examine this aspect and make appropriate recommendations in this regard.

The matter has been posted on 18 July 2024 for further consideration.

Case Title: Court on its own motion Vs. State of HP

Click Here To Read/Download Order