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| Illegal commercial operation by hoteliers in Pahalgam, Director Tourism unmoved | | Movera Hotel inferno exposes Tourism Department | |  Saahil Suhail
Early Times Report
Anantnag, May 9: As many as fifteen hoteliers at Movera Pahalgam, are operating their hotels illegally allegedly with the active support of Director Tourism Kashmir.
Interestingly, a recent inferno in one of the illegally operating hotels on Saturday exposed the tourism department officials, who allow them to carry on commercial operations illegally while clamming in to have shut the hotels.
Locals informed Early Times that they were surprised to see police evacuating tourists from the hotel, which according to them don't have the proper permission from the department of tourism to operate.
Staffers and tourists, who received minor injuries during the inferno, were given first aid at Primary Heath Center Pahalgam.
Highly placed sources said those hoteliers are operating their commercial business (Hotels) with the active support of some senior officials including Director Tourism Kashmir.
He said that department is imposing small fines on these hoteliers once the issue gets highlighted in media. "It is because of the media, Tourism Department is imposing fine on them for operating illegally otherwise department has given them green signal," they added.
On Last Tuesday, a team of tourism department headed by Assistant Director Tourism, Pahalgam, Zahida Parveen, raided ten hotels, huts and guest houses operating illegally and imposed fine on all of them. "Fine of about Rs 10000 was imposed on the hoteliers found operating in violation of the law," Parveen was quoted by local daily.
Locals affiliated with tourism sector, appealed department to seal the structures operating illegally and accused department of playing with the lives of tourists.
"This is sheer injustice with the visiting tourists, department is deceiving them by not allowing them to stay in these hotels," they said, adding officials concerned where succumbing under political pressure.
Hundreds of commercial structures have come up in the area on the banks of Lidder River during last several years.
Though in 2013, the area was brought under the ambit of Pahalgam development authority but the constructions continued to come up there under the nose of PDA officials.
Most of these illegally raised structures (huts, hotels and guest houses) are being owned by police officers, bureaucrats and businessmen having political patronage. |
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