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| Jammu tourism festival sans Tourism Minister | | | Early Times Special Correspondent
Jammu | Mar 29
News Analysis
More or less an official show with minimum involvement of private stake holders in tourism promotion
The 15 days long Jammu tourism festival, commencing on April 1 with insipid events of illumination of the Bahu fort with band display and lazer show/fire works in the fort premises, is being held sans the involvement of Minister for Tourism, Muzaffar Hussain Baig. Strangely the Tourism Minister does not figure anywhere in the preparations and even holding of the festival, which is claimed to be aimed at promoting tourism in Jammu region, by exposing its multi socio-cultural heritage. In fact none of the ministers belonging to Kashmir is believed to be having any involvement in the programmes of the festivals, which is spread over to various places of the region.
Jammu festival—2008, which is claimed to kick off the summer calendar of fairs and festivals like the Mongri mela, Sud Mahadev Mela, Bhaderwah festival, Shankri festival and Bani Sarthal etc during the summer months of the year, has the involvement of ministers only from Jammu region, with Roads and Buildings Minister, Gulchain Singh Charak being given out of proportion importance and projection in highlighting Jammu heritage, art and culture.
The festival, which is more an official show, with various government departments at the helm of affairs, will have the minimum involvement of non government stake holders in the tourism and pilgrimage promotion. Barring few events like illumination of Raghunath Temple, which obviously could be the responsibility of Daram Arth Trust and three city walks programmes being organized with the collaboration of two travel and tour operators and a trekkers group of Jammu, all other events are being organized exclusively by the official agencies. However some outside agencies have been involved in organizing the event of car rally, called rally of the lakes, starting from Shimla and taking round of Ranjeet Sagar lake, Mansar lake, Sruinsar lake and Slal lake.
Unlike the past when the non government stake holders in promotion of tourism and pilgrimage in the region, whose active involvement in holding of the events was ensured, by putting responsibility on them, this year's festival is going to be more or less an official show, with the major responsibility falling on the tourism department and J&K Academy of Arts, Culture and languages. Jammu Prayatan Vikas Mandal, an epic body of 24 bodies of traders connected with tourism and pilgrimage as well as the local cultural and art troupes are not delegated any responsibility for organizing the events.
However what is more amiss is the dropping of the main event of the festival which was an essential part during past few years of initiating the same, viz taking out of a carnival of Jammu's multi cultural and social heritage, with various ethnic groups participating in their traditional dresses and display of various aspects of art and culture of the region. Taking out of this carnival in the past was claimed by the organizers to be a symbolic of composite culture and communal harmony in the region, by highlighting diversity of socio cultural heritage, traditional way of living and dresses by various classes and ethnic groups. This event was believed to be the soul and essence of the festival.
In the meanwhile absence of the involvement of the Tourism Minister as well as any other minister in the coalition government belonging to Kashmir valley in the bonanza, claimed to be aimed at promoting tourism in the region, is giving rise to many speculations. One reason could be that since this year's festival is being held in the backdrop of forthcoming assembly elections, the coalition partners through this exercise are trying to project the ministers and other leaders from Jammu region in the events being held in various parts of the region, while the ministers from Kashmir valley, including the Deputy Chief Minister and Minister incharge tourism, Muzaffar Hussain Baig are over busy in clearing ground for promoting their prospects in the forthcoming assembly elections in the state. |
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