Early Times Report
Jammu, June 2: Even as Covid-19 has badly affected pilgrimage tourism at the shrine of Mata Vaishnu Devi, which is seen as the backbone of economy in Jammu, the Tourism officials look more concerned about resumption of tourism in Kashmir alone.
Within a day, the Tourism department held at least three high level meetings and inspections for resumption of tourism in Kashmir while around half a dozen such events were held within a week. But no such mega development could be reported from Jammu.
Official documents reveal that special arrangements have been put in place for resumption of tourism in Kashmir. As per the official documents, the government has established special vaccination centers at TRC, Srinagar, Nigeen Club, Nehru Park and Raj Bagh where the members of tourism trade are being inoculated currently.
“Similarly, the tourism players are inoculated at the famous tourist destinations of Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Doodpathri and Yousmarg,” the official documents said.
Such developments are the outcome of high level meetings held by the Tourism department.
In one of the meetings, the senior officials sought inspection of the facilities even for the winter games when actually summer has just commenced in Kashmir.
At a meeting in Srinagar, a total review of facilities at Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Srinagar was done.
In another such development, on May 27, the Tourism Secretary visited Nehru Park, Nigeen and other vaccination centres set up for vaccination and interacted with the representatives of various tourism trade bodies. He said that the Government has declared people associated with tourism as frontline workers and the drive is aimed at safeguarding the lives of people having maximum interaction with the public and reinvigorating the sector to bounce back soon.
During the drive the Tourism department asked the “stakeholders in Kashmir to take advantage of this drive and get vaccinated at an earliest.”
But business players in Jammu complained that any such mega drive was awaited in the winter capital region. “Similar efforts are much needed for Jammu where pilgrimage tourism holds the key to economy but we don’t know when the concerned will get active here as well,” the tourism players said.
Meanwhile in another meeting in Kashmir, the Tourism department directed immediate quality check of equipment like lifts, snow beating machine and other related equipment used in recreation or skiing activities at the resort.
On May 17 alone, the Tourism department held three meetings including one with hoteliers club to discuss revival plan for tourism. |
