Independence Day celebrations in the subcontinent inexplicably drives valley folks to head to the hills! They cause the “system” to burst at its seams while the valley awaits its foreign visitors (two reports)
Beware! 1.5 lakh visited 6000 bed-resort last week
Srinagar: The weekends in Pahalgam, the Valley of shepherds may be chaotic as the famous tourist destination in South Kashmir’s Islamabad district has just 6000 beds and cannot fulfill the demands of lakhs of tourists visiting the picturesque hill resort.
To avoid security hassles associated with August 14 and 15 and to escape sweltering heat, a record number of Valleyites last week thronged Pahalgam, Gulmarg, Yousmarg and Sonamarg.
According to an estimate, on 14 and 15 August, 1.5 lakh people visited Pahalgam, which has just 6000 beds. The result was chaos and confusion.
Gulmarg has 1200 beds while Sonamarg can accommodate 400 people for a night. As a result people who had escaped to these heights to avoid tension and anxiety, found themselves grappling problems.
Abdul Rasheed who spent the days at Pahalgam said: “I visited Pahalgam on 14 August. The situation there was chaotic due to traffic jam.
“I saw lot of people wandering around with their families. Many had to sleep in local Masjids and open spaces for the night as accommodation in Pahalgam is limited.”
On what led to the unexpected rush, he said: “People want to avoid security hassles on 14 and 15 August. Besides, Ramadan begins next Sunday.”
Mushtaq Ahmad of North Kashmir who had gone to Sonamarg narrated the same story: “Sonamarg was packed on 14 and 15 August. Many people didn’t get accommodation and had to stay in open spaces for the night.”
Thousands of people also converged to Gulmarg on 14 and 15 August.
Director Tourism, Farooq Shah said: “Yes, we’ve reports that more than 1 lakh people visited Pahalgam on these days. The situation was same in Gulmarg.”
On what was the reason for this unexpected rush of people to these places, he said, “I think people want to enjoy.”
Although people generally visit these tourist spots with their families to enjoy and avoid security hassles in the plains, it has been observed that tension follows them even in the heights.
Due to unexpected rush of people in the hill resorts on 14 and 15 August, scuffles, arguments and brawls were witnessed between visitors, hoteliers and restaurant owners who overcharged people.
According to reports, a restaurant at Pahalgam charged Rs 300 for a single plate of rice.
Ghulam Hassan of Sopore who had gone to Pahalgam said: “I tried to escape the tension associated with 14 and 15 August but huge rush at Pahalgam created chaos.”
Hassan has a piece of advice. “People of the Valley should plan their picnics to these places in advance so that they don’t face problem of accommodation.”
In the same period, 935 international tourists visited Pahalgam this year against 1343 international tourists last year.
This was stated by Minister for Tourism and Culture Nawang Rigzin Jora in a written reply to a question of a PDP legislator from Pahalgam, Rafi Ahmad Mir.
Jora also informed the assembly that there was decline in the total number of tourists (both domestic and international) visiting Kashmir in 2009 compared to 2008.
“Between 1st April 2008 to 15 July 2008, 415078 tourists visited Kashmir. However, only 302628 tourists visited Kashmir during the same period this year,” he said.
The tourism minister said that for increasing the international tourist influx to Kashmir during this year, government was emphasizing to encourage tourist flow from South Asia, East Asia, Central Asia and Middle East and other countries.
“Tourism is our priority sector and we’ve adopted two pronged strategy for capacity building and promotion of tourism,” Jora said adding tourism department had enhanced its presence at international level through travel fairs, conferences and conventions held outside India.
He said that the State government was investing heavily on tourism sector for infrastructural development, capacitance building and promotion of tourism.
“We’re making a vigorous publicity campaign through print and electronic media inviting visitors to the State from South and Central Asian countries besides European and American countries.
The literature about the State has also been printed in various languages and distributed within India and through Government of India offices abroad,” the minister said.
Foreign visitors not coming often: Govt
Srinagar: As government is planning to woo tourists from South Asia, East Asia, Central Asia and Middle East to Kashmir, the number of international tourists visiting Valley has declined this year.
The official figures reveal that the international tourists who visited Kashmir between April to mid July this year were 6,501 while as 7,419 visited Kashmir during the same time last year.
In the same period, 935 international tourists visited Pahalgam this year against 1343 international tourists last year.
This was stated by Minister for Tourism and Culture Nawang Rigzin Jora in a written reply to a question of a PDP legislator from Pahalgam, Rafi Ahmad Mir.
Jora also informed the assembly that there was decline in the total number of tourists (both domestic and international) visiting Kashmir in 2009 compared to 2008.
“Between 1st April 2008 to 15 July 2008, 415078 tourists visited Kashmir. However, only 302628 tourists visited Kashmir during the same period this year,” he said.
The tourism minister said that for increasing the international tourist influx to Kashmir during this year, government was emphasizing to encourage tourist flow from South Asia, East Asia, Central Asia and Middle East and other countries.
“Tourism is our priority sector and we’ve adopted two pronged strategy for capacity building and promotion of tourism,” Jora said adding tourism department had enhanced its presence at international level through travel fairs, conferences and conventions held outside India.
He said that the State government was investing heavily on tourism sector for infrastructural development, capacitance building and promotion of tourism.
“We’re making a vigorous publicity campaign through print and electronic media inviting visitors to the State from South and Central Asian countries besides European and American countries.
The literature about the State has also been printed in various languages and distributed within India and through Government of India offices abroad,” the minister said.
(Rising Kashmir)