Kashmir: Cheer is back as tourists begin to trickle in

Hindustan Times

3 hours ago

The return of hum of suitcase wheels, hotels, streets bustling with tourists, Valley is slowly regaining its charm. So much so that chief minister Omar Abdullah couldn't resist to take note. Tourists take a horse ride at Sonamarg in Ganderbal district in Jammu & Kashmir on Sunday. (PTI)
The tourism industry had faced a setback after the April 22 Pahalgam attach, but, slowly, the travel industry is reviving in Kashmir. The attack had resulted in sudden flight on the tourists from the Valley and since then the efforts for tourism revival were underway.
On Sunday, Omar Abdullah shared a picture on social networking site X from Pahalgam, where the tourist resort was full of travellers. The resort had become empty after the attack.
From the last two weeks, tourism is picking up in Kashmir, thanks to the Vande Bharat train that is running packed since it was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 6 and the efforts of J&K government and tourism players from across the country.
'Tourism industry is resurrecting itself after the Pahalgam attack. The second part of June is turning out to be good with many visitors arriving here. Gradually it is increasing and we are even getting some hotels as 'sold out,' said Sajad Ahmad Kralyari, secretary general of travel agents association of Kashmir.
Before the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, over 2 lakh tourists were present in the valley. Post-attack, all scrambled to get out with 95% of tourist bookings cancelled. Now, the tourist footfall, as per tourism players, is 30-40% of what it was before the terror attack with the launch of the train service and reopening of 16 tourist destinations.
'The last time I was in Pahalgam I cycled through a market that was all but deserted. Today I came back to a Pahalgam that was bustling with activity. Tourists from various parts of the country competed for space with local picnickers who were enjoying the cool climate & rainy weather. It's very satisfying to see the efforts my colleagues & I have been putting in slowly bearing fruit,' Omar Abdullah wrote on X while sharing long queues of tourists.
Sajad Kralyari said that the Vande Bharat train played its part in the influx of tourists besides efforts by local and national tourism players. 'The train did a lot of boost to tourism. Besides, the hoteliers dropped rates by 40-50%. The visit of the country's top travel agents helped a lot,' he said.
Tour operators now hope that more tourists will come with the beginning of the Amarnath Yatra on July 3. Even the number of passengers and flights coming to Kashmir has slowly increased with tour operators saying they have started receiving advance booking again. 'Due to cancellation of advance bookings. I closed my hotel then reduced staff. Now I have opened the hotel again and in coming days will hire more people,' said Ghulam Mohudin, a hotel owner in Indra Nagar.
The recent opening of 16 tourist places (eight each in Kashmir and Jammu) has also helped to attract tourists. Soon after the Pahalgam attack, the government had shut down 48 tourist destinations due to security reasons. Last week after security assessment, 16 locations, including in Pahalgam, were again opened and J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha said more tourist places will be opened in a phased manner after security assessment.
The J&K government took several initiatives to get back tourists, CM Omar Abdullah chaired a cabinet meeting in Pahalgam, and also held a meeting of administrative officers in Gulmarg besides hosting several travel association bodies in Kashmir.
Prominent hotelier and former president of Gulmarg Hoteliers Club, Mukhtar Shah said that the tourism graph is increasing. 'This used to be our peak season with our hotels fully booked owing to heat in the rest of the country but unfortunately due to the Pahalgam attack, that is not the case currently but the graph is increasing and next month will be much better,' he said.
He said that high spending tourists were not yet coming while flights coming into Kashmir are still half of what used to be before the attack. But he said the Vande Bharat train and Amarnath yatra would be tourism boosters. 'Train is the best way to boost tourism as those coming to Vaishno Devi will easily come here now. There is also an upcoming Amarnath yatra,' he said.
Kashmir had witnessed back to back record tourist arrivals for the past three years. Last year, as per official numbers of the tourism department, 34.98 lakh tourists visited the himalayan valley, up from 31.55 lakh in 2023 and 26.73 lakh in 2022. This year , the numbers already reached 6 lakh till the Pahalgam incident.