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| Not militants but protesting crowds wreck tourist traffic to Kashmir | | | Gareeb Dass
Jammu | June 27
What the militants,operating in Kashmir,could not do the separatists' triggered violence over the diversion of forest land to the Shrine Board,did in wrecking the tourist and pilgrim traffic to the paradise on the earth.When groups of people took to the streets in Srinagar, clamouring in favour of cancellation of the land transfer order there were about two lakh tourists enjoying their stay in the valley and another one lakh pilgrims waiting for their turn to offer prayers in the holy mountain cave of Amarnath.According to travel agents,hoteliers and houseboat owners,about another 30,000 excursionists were expected to be in Srinagar within next one week.They admitted, the current tourist fow,the Government figures confirm it,was the highest tourist traffic to Kashmir during the last 19 years.And these very hoteliers,transporters and traders who had started earning a fortune from the tourist influx feel crestfallen with tourists cutting short their stay.Not only this:number of groups of visitors have cancelled their reservation.
Pelting buses carrying tourists and Amarnath pilgrims was enough to cause scare among a flood of tourists.For three days most of the tourists were forced to stay indoors in their hotel and houseboat rooms.Those staying in rooms,taken on rent,in the residential houses kept their doors and windows shut to save themselves from any possible attack.For them,who had come to Srinagar to enjoy for which they were spening their fortune could not stomach the inconvenience caused to them by the three-day consecutive shutdown.There was no other alternative for them except to cut short their stay.No doubt the violence and the shutdown were not meant against terrorising tourists and pilgrims,it cast a shadow on tourism and pilgrim traffic.The protesters were against what they called cultural aggression on Kashmir.They were upset over what they perceieved as a threat to eco system and democgraphic character of the valley by the flow of pilgrims to Amarnath.They did not want the land to have been diverted to the Board for constructing permanent structures at Baltal.But it can happen in any other tourist resort or country that tourist will cut short their stay even if there are even small incidents of violence.
Two years ago a brisk tourist season was hit when militants attacked several buses carrying visitors to the tourist resorts and to the Mughal gardens.However since last year Kashmir winessed uninterrupted flow of tourists and pilgrims to the Amarnath cave.And a number of tourists and pilgrims who had landed in Jammu on way to the valley developed cold feet.Some of them went back without either visiting the tourist resorts or without going to the holy cave.Prior to the rise of violence over the diversion of land to the Shrine Board people in the valley and traders,transporters and hoteliers in Jammu were seen jubilant over the unprecedented rush of tourists and pilgrims.It is understandable if ponywallas,Dandiwallas,traders and transporters in Pahalgam and elsewhere in the valley were excited with the rush of the pilgrims and excursionists because each tourist and pilgrim spends,on an average,between Rs.2,000 and Rs.10,000 per day.And if the affluent class among the tourists is taken into account they spend more than Rs.25,000 per day.Those who do not believe it should know that lodging rates in two star to five star hotels in kashmir ranges between Rs.3,000 and Rs.14000 per day.
When the tourist season in Kashmir started with the advent of spring season in April those connected,directedly or indirectly, with tourism were apprehensive of the role militants would play in wrecking the tourist season.As days passed these fears remained unfounded.But they had never imagined that the tourist and pilgrim traffic would be wrecked by those who have been trying to attract encursionists to the valley.Whatever has happend is unfortunate and one hopes that the row over the diversion of land to the Board is defused.so that tourist and pilgrim traffic picks up again.(eom) |
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