The Central Government’s decision of scrapping Article 370, which granted special status to the State of Jammu and Kashmir, has been hailed by stakeholders in the tourism industry here.
Travel and tour operators in Ranchi have been promoting Kashmir, also known as ‘paradise on earth’ as a tourist destination for over a decade now.
Along with its scenic beauty, Kashmir is also popular for skiing, Gondola rides and houseboat stays.
“I have been promoting tourism in Kashmir since 2009. I feel after this historic decision, it will take a while for the tourism industry to revive there. It is a little too early to predict the future of tourism there as people have been apprehensive about visiting the place due to the unrest there,” said Sony Mehta from Skyline Travels in Ranchi.
Mehta, who has been to Kashmir thrice, also feels that easy travel options to any destination are an added bonus. “Another major reason for promoting Kashmir as a tourist destination is that Srinagar has good connectivity from the national Capital with a lot of flights operating on a regular basis. Pangong Tso or Pangong Lake has become very popular from the movie 3 idiots. Ladakh, which is not so densely populated and still remains to be untouched, is another place worth visiting.
Gulmarg and Sonamarg are other popular destinations people love to visit for skiing.”
Manas Mukherjee from Jai Tours & Travels is of the opinion that removal of Article 370 will help in the development of the region as new hotels and investments will give a boost to the tourism industry which is a major source of income there.
“It’s a welcome move for the tourism industry which will result in new hotels opening in the valley creating numerous job opportunities. This will definitely create a lot of demand among the customers in times to come. It’s the most beautiful place in India and the locals there are very warm and welcoming. Packages for Pahalgam and Ladakh have always been very popular,” Mukherjee added.
Sagar Madnani from Travellers Pleasure strongly feels that the coming years will be a boom for the travel industry in Kashmir. “These days people want the best when travelling. Apart from the political unrest, people have also cancelled their plans due to lack of good hotels and resorts. Being from the tourism industry, we are hoping that many hotels will now open their chains in Kashmir fulfilling the demand for premium properties. In the next two-three years, this move will prove to be a boon for the travel and tourism industry in the valley.”
Renu Hirani, an avid traveller, is ecstatic with this decision and is gearing up to plan a second trip to Kashmir. “From a tourist’s point of view, I am looking forward to visit the place again as soon as possible. Places like Pahalgam, Sheshnaag and Sonamarg have to be ticked off my bucket list. Doodhpathri is the most part of Kashmir and is an untapped tourist destination.