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Economic Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Industry seeks government sops to revive tourism in Kashmir
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads New Delhi: Airlines and the hospitality industry have asked the government for incentives to revive tourism in Jammu and Kashmir that has come to a standstill after the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam. SpiceJet and Air India have asked the government to waive the user development and aviation security fees at the Srinagar airport for a year so that they could offer cheaper tickets to passengers travelling to Kashmir. Currently the airport charges a user development fee of Rs 1,050 and aviation security fee of Rs 200 per traveller. These are included in air ticket prices.'After the Pahalgam incident, tourists are terrified, and no one is travelling to the Kashmir region. There is no demand for air travel to and from Kashmir and hotels are empty there,' the Federation of Indian Airlines wrote to the government last week. 'Apart from security and security measures, financial measures are important to rebuild traffic,' the airline lobby group said in a letter that ET has targeted attacks on tourists in Pahalgam took place at a time when Jammu and Kashmir was witnessing a tourism boom. The number of visitors was at a 15-year high, and the union territory's own revenue generation had started showing signs of Monday, 4,061 passengers arrived at the airport, almost half of what the airport handled a day before the attack. Following the terrorist attack, India did retaliatory strikes in Pakistan during which multiple airports near the border, including Srinagar, were shut have also reduced flights and are operating around 50 daily flights to Srinagar compared with 92 they operated before the in Kashmir are currently offering discounts of 30-50% which was never the case, said Mushtaq Reshi, president of the domestic tour operators' association in Kashmir and managing director of Essence a property such as Treebo Vitasta Villa in Srinagar is available for Rs 6,839 a night, down from Rs 16,886 before the terror Ahmed Chaya, president of the Jammu and Kashmir Hoteliers Association and chairman and founder of the Mushtaq Group of Hotels, said his association, during a recent meeting with J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah, has sought support for hoteliers in terms of interest waivers on loans for at least six months. "We have also requested for relief on electricity bills and other expenses. The business is badly hit and occupancies are almost zero," he Gosain, president of the Indian Association of Tour Operators, said he would urge the government to give incentives like lower taxes on hotels and flights for at least one year as a one-off measure."Further, tour operators should be invited and the government should undertake a campaign to underline that Kashmir is safe and secure to travel. Additionally, the film industry should be given incentives to shoot (there) as that also helps greatly in wooing travellers," he the Travel Agents Association of India has started an event, called Rally for Valley, in Kashmir on Tuesday."The situation is quite pathetic in terms of business for hotels,' said association president Sunil Kumar. 'Seventy-five of our association members are in Kashmir (for the event) from the North, West and South India … We can't expect people to travel here unless we lead by example. So, we will spend three days in Kashmir," he Tramboo, chairman of Pinnacle Resorts that operates The Khyber in Gulmarg, said if the government can allow exemption on GST for six months to one year, it will help encourage tourism. "This exemption should be applicable to all businesses allied to tourism like transportation, gondola and tour operators," he said. Nazir Rah, MD, Rah Bagh by The Orchard, Srinagar said hoteliers, especially those who have loans, are seeking support from the government as they would like some relief in terms of relaxation on monthly EMIs until business returns for the better.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Citing 'no travel demand,' airlines ask government to waive user charges at Srinagar airport for a year
Citing 'no travel demand,' airlines ask govt to waive user charges at Srinagar airport for a year NEW DELHI: Citing virtually "no demand for air travel to and from Kashmir," India's biggest airlines have asked government to waive off Rs 1,250 (taxes extra) that are paid by every passenger flying out of Srinagar as airport & security charges for a year to create a fiscal incentive and help revive visitor flow to the valley. The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), which represents Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet, recently made this request to aviation secretary Samir Kumar Sinha in a representation. Following the deadly April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, tourism has all but collapsed in Kashmir. Airfares to the valley and hotel tariffs had skyrocketed post-Covid in Kashmir, but now are at rock bottom as hardly any tourists go there now. Airlines were asked to resume Srinagar flights but are reporting low aircraft occupancies on flights to and from the place. In fact, travel agents from across the country will converge in Kashmir this weekend in a bid to revive tourism. The Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI), which is one of the country's biggest umbrella organisations for agents with over 1,600 members, is holding its meeting in Srinagar and Pahalgam from June 13-15. The FIA letter titled "support required to boost air travel demand at Srinagar airport" to aviation secretary Sinha says: "After the Pahalgam incident, tourists are terrified and no one is travelling to Kashmir region for tourism purposes. There is no demand for air travel to and from Kashmir. Hotels are empty there." "Apart from safety and security measures, which government of India is taking, financial incentives also play an important role in rebuilding traffic. Currently, every departing passenger (from Srinagar) pays Rs 1,050 as user development fee (UDF) and Rs 200 as aviation security fee (ASF), plus GST.... request government (to) waive both UDF and ASF for every departing passenger from Srinagar airport for one year with immediate effect. It will boost air travel demand to and from Srinagar airport," the FIA letter says. About the upcoming meet in Kashmir this weekend, TAFI VP Anil Kalsi said: 'Our members from all over the country will go to Srinagar and Pahalgam and assess the situation for themselves. Once and if they feel confident about the place and about the safety & security of tourists, they will again start presenting Kashmir as a destination. We will be staying across hotels, including houseboats, and have meetings with government representatives. Airlines will also be a part of this meeting we are having in Kashmir.' Srinagar hotels and flights commanded a big premium before the Pahalgam attack, as Kashmir was seeing unprecedented tourist footfalls post-Covid. But after the April 22 attack, tourists already there left Kashmir in droves and those who had plans to visit cancelled the same. 'What happened in Pahalgam was tragic and shocking beyond words. Authorities there need to regain the confidence and trust of tourists for the latter to return there,' said a Delhi-based travel agent. If the agents' meeting finds the situation safe enough for that to happen, what incentives will the local hotels and airlines offer for tourists to return? 'The near complete collapse of demand has left airfares and hotel tariffs at near bottom levels, so prices are very low. Gulmarg's Khyber, for instance, used to have daily tariffs of about Rs 75,000 which are now down to Rs 21-22,000 and the hotel is offering packages,' said Kalsi. J & K is currently focused on ensuring a safe Amarnath Yatra, as they hope that will send out a message that tourists can return to Kashmir. The yatra duration has been curtailed to 38 days, instead of 52 days in 2024, and will be between July 3 and Aug 9, 2025. A total of 581 companies from various Central Armed Police Forces, along with personnel from the Jammu and Kashmir Police, will be deployed along the pilgrimage routes to ensure safety of the lakhs of pilgrims.
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Airlines seek govt support to revive air travel demand to Kashmir
New Delhi: The Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), representing major Indian carriers, including Air India, IndiGo, and SpiceJet, has requested the government to provide immediate support to revive air travel demand to and from Srinagar airport. In a letter addressed to Samir Kumar Sinha, the secretary of the civil aviation ministry, the FIA highlighted the sharp decline in tourism in the Kashmir region following the Pahalgam terror attack. 'After the Pahalgam incident tourists are terrified and no one is travelling to Kashmir region for tourism purposes. There is no demand for air travel to and from Kashmir. Hotels are empty there,' said the letter dated May 29. The federation requested Sinha to waive off the User Development Fee (UDF) and GST for Srinagar, believing that eliminating these charges, along with existing safety and security efforts by the government, will encourage more people to fly to the region. 'Currently every departing passenger pays Rs. 1,050 as UDF and Rs. 200 as Aviation Security Fee (ASF), plus GST. May we request, if the government can waive both UDF and ASF for every departing passenger from Srinagar airport for a period of one year with immediate effect. It will boost air travel demand to and from Srinagar airport,' the letter said. The federation also appealed to the MoCA to coordinate with the finance ministry to implement the waiver and streamline passenger data requirements with the Bureau of Immigration. 'Airlines have played a vital role in connecting India and contributing to nation-building, especially in promoting tourism in Kashmir over the years,' the FIA said. 'However, the current situation has severely impacted passenger traffic,' it added.
