‘Back to Kashmir’: Hopes brighten for tourism revival as COVID cases record sharp drop

Srinagar:   Tourism operators have started receiving queries from visitors as COVID cases record a sharp drop across the country.

Sensing opportunity, tourism stakeholders have asked the government to initiate the process of inviting tourists to Kashmir.

“The numbers have started stabilizing and now it is the time that government starts resuming tourism activities in Kashmir. They should resume promotional activities as lots of people associated with the sector have suffered for the last two months,” said president Travel Agents Association of Kashmir (TAAK) Farooq Ahmad Kuthoo.

Kuthoo said they have started receiving queries from tourists for the last one week as the situation has started improving across India. “It is a good time to host tourists as the weather in Kashmir is pleasant. We are now getting queries from our clients. The government should take a call to allow tourism,” he said.

President TAAK said the government should issue fresh guidelines so that tourists could start arriving in Kashmir. “All the tourists should be asked to bring RTPCR negative report along. They should be allowed to leave the airport only after they are negative. There should be proper guidelines in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” he said.

Hoteliers and houseboat owners said they have completed all the procedures to ensure the safe stay of tourists in Kashmir. “We are ready but the government needs to take the call. There has to be a communication between state government and stakeholders,” said Waheed Ahmad Malik,  former president of Kashmir Hotels and Restaurant owners Association.

Secretary Tourism Sarmad Hafeez said they have initiated the process to lure tourists back to Kashmir. “We are right now using our time to build infrastructure for upcoming seasons. All the hoteliers, shikarawalas, and travel agents have been vaccinated so that tourists will have the confidence to visit Kashmir,” he said.