Shorter Amarnath yatra period harmful to state's economy - Early Times Newspaper Jammu Kashmir

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Shorter Amarnath yatra period harmful to state's economy

12/23/2015 9:42:13 PM

Those Kashmir centric politicians besides the separatists who have been opposed to a two-month Amarnath yatra period should realize that after the rise of Pakistan sponsored insurgency in the Kashmir valley the first thing that had been affected is the flow of tourists into the valley. Imagine the way the state's economy has been hit when between 1989 and 1994 the anual tourist arrival to Kashmir ranged between 10,000 and 12,000 against over eight lakh prior to the rise of militancy related violence. And those who have been campaigning for a shorter Amarnath yatra period should realize that as a result of militancy related violence about 50,000 people, connected with tourist trade have lost their job. And during the last 15 years it has been seen that instead of flow of tourists,excursionists,and holidayers to Jammu and Kashmir it is the pilgrim tourism that has thrived, survived to feed several thousand families of people in the state connected with pilgrim tourism. And if the reports compiled by the association of hoteliers in the Kashmir valley are concerned most of the hoteliers have reduced the staff, they had engaged over the last 30 to 40 years. The staff has been cut down due to slump in tourism industry with over 50,000 people losing jobs after the occupancy fell down to 15 percent. The drastic decline in number of tourists visiting the State has resulted in job losses even in the high-end hotels. Officials said the occupancy has declined across the different hotel ranges and is even less than 15 percent in some low-end segments. Reports have revealed that Kashmir has witnessed near 2 lakh decrease in the tourist inflow against last year's arrival of 11 lakh including low and upper high end segments. However, Director Tourism, Kashmir, Mehmood Ahmad Shah, said the numbers were still robust as Kashmir bounced back from the after-effects of the floods. He, however, said they are looking at the better season ahead as the tourism players' brace up to add newer properties in their portfolio. The industry honchos said the number of tourists visiting the State is "a mere trickle'' even as the winter has already set in and tourist resorts including Gulmarg has received a heavy snowfall. The fall in the tourist numbers has taken a toll on the hotel industry as their earnings have taken a hit due to which they have resorted to downsizing of staff. Losses are not confined to the hotel industry. If one takes into account traders, transporters and those engaged in the sale of handicraft and handloom items too have suffered severe losses.Even the poor ponywallas, porters too have been hit hard. However, this does not seem to bother the separatists who, of late have emerged as the saviour of ecology of the state. These separatists seem to be worried over the degradation of forests which they find face threat from increased Amarnath pilgrim traffic. They do not know that large number of ponywallas and porters derive their survival from bumper Amarnath pilgrim traffic.Had these separatists and Kashmir centric politicians not been opposed to a longer period of yatra traders, hoteliers, transporters, porters and ponywallas would been the most beneficiaries of these pilgrims. Since the Government and the Shrine Board have been forced to curtail the period of yatra the result is curtailment in the number of pilgrims to the holy cave of Amarnath. Such restrictions are not placed on the pilgrimage to Mata Vashno Devi with the result pilgrims come round the year and during the last 20 years the number of pilgrims to Mata Vaishno Devi has increased from 18,000 a year to over 80 lakh a year.And the entire region olf Jammu, not only the people in Katra earn their livelihood from increased pilgrim traffic. And if these separatists and Kashmir centric politicians would have not forced the Government to change the route for Kounsar Naag yatra Kashmiris would have been benefitted. But for separatists, who have multiple sources of income bother about state's ecology and not worried about the livelihood of people of Kashmir. So long militants continue to enact dance of death and destruction in Jammu and Kashmir only the pilgrim tourism will survive hence let separatists and Kashmiri centric politicians work for attracting heavy rush of pilgrims to all the shrines in the state.

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