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| Winter sports under cloud due to closure of hotels | | | Mustansir
Srinagar, Dec 9 : With the closure of at least 250 hotels under the directions of the J&K High Court for failing to comply with pollution control norms, the winter tourism particularly the popular winter sports season has come to a grinding halt.
According to the official figures 140 hotels in Srinagar city, 90 in Gulmarg and 20 in Pahalgam have closed as they have not installed the mandatory sewage treatment plants. The authorities sealed the hotels following a court order during the course of hearing on the issue of implementing sewage treatment norms.Due to the closure of the hotels the tourists arriving here are facing difficulties and so the winter sporting season in Gulmerg. Though the tourism department is leaving no stone unturned to attract the tourists and is organizing winter sporting conclaves, however, the situation is more or less the same as it was at the time of closure of the hotels.
Latter the state cabinet gave approval to the joint treatment plants on certain conditions but the decision has not been implemented as yet adding more to the chaotic situation. The Tour and travel operators in Srinagar said that a large number of tourists have cancelled their bookings and are looking to go to neighboring states like Himachal Pradesh where winter tourism is popular.
Those who favour the implementation of pollution control norms argue that when owners can spend a few millions on setting up the hotels, why can't they expend a small percentage of it for treating effluents. |
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