Not a good year for Kashmir tourism

SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir, India – Riding high on good tourism season in the year 2012, the tourism players in Kashmir were happy that season would be the same in year 2013 but hanging of Afzal Guru

SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir, India – Riding high on good tourism season in the year 2012, the tourism players in Kashmir were happy that season would be the same in year 2013 but hanging of Afzal Guru jolted their hopes as Kashmir was put under curfew and restrictions for more than one month resulting in impact on the domestic tourism sector.

In the later half of the year, the issue of STPs which led to the closure of commercial activities in hotels could not help the sector to revive from the earlier losses.

However, Minister for tourism, G A Mir told Greater Kashmir said that tourism season was good but cannot comment on the number of tourist who visited Kashmir.

โ€œWe are thankful to the people who gave us such a good season and ensured that tourists donโ€™t face any problems. Infact it is the collective job of both government and tourism stakeholders to make assure that we provide best services to the tourists who come to this place,โ€ he said.

Mir added that he is hopeful that the f orthcoming season will be better than the year 2013. โ€œWe have to ensure that 2014 will bring better results for our tourism sector and for that we have to maintain peace because tourism in Kashmir is subservient to it.โ€

Chairman, Jammu and Kashmir Hoteliers Club (JKHC), Mushtaq Chaya opines that the season by and large was good but not as good as compared to last few years.

โ€œDisturbances in valley played its role in derailing what could have been a good season for tourism players who are always at receiving end from last 20 years,โ€ Chaya said adding that he is hopeful that forthcoming season will bring cheer to tourism traders and other people affiliated with this sector.

President, Kashmir Hotel and Restaurant Owners Federation (KHAROF), GM Dug said that tourism season has been overall good. โ€œExpect few incidents the season was good,โ€ Dug said.

President, Kashmir Hotel and Restaurant Association (KHARA), Showkat Chowdhary however has different opinion about the tourism season.

โ€œThere is an obvious ploy by centre government to keep us economically backward and for this they have hired some paid NGOs whose job is to file PILs in the court to hoodwink the working of our economy,โ€ Chowdhary said.

He adds that the tourism traders and people affiliated with the sector had high hopes from the year 2013. โ€œIt was seen as the next leap by tourism players in Kashmir after remaining jobless for more than 24 years. But the hanging of Afzal Gu ru which was again a ploy by Centre government dashes our chances of breaking away from economic aggression.โ€

President, Travel Agents Association of Kashmir , Fayaz Ahmad said that the season this year was only 30 percent as compared to 2012.

โ€œ This year our season was spoiled by lot of incidents that took place in Kashmir We have to remember that the tourism in Kashmir is subservient to normalcy any untoward incident has direct bearing on our business,โ€ he said.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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