Srinagar, July 29: The Jammu and Kashmir Union territory government led by Manooj Sinha is developing unexplored tourist destinations in the Valley especially in the villages, in order to ease the rush of visitors to the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg and other known picturesque spots.
Officials here in the tourism department said that the influx of tourists to villages is witnessing a push in the rural economy, as well as employment generation.
“Some of the new tourist destinations in the villages have been able to attract a lot of tourists and it has given a push to the Home Stay program in these villages,” one of the tourism officials said, insisting not to be named.
According to the government, the aim of the administration was to develop 181 villages across Jammu and Kashmir as tourist villages under the tourist village development programme.
The officials said that under the mission youth initiative, the government was trying to rope in unemployed youth in the rural areas to create the Home Stay facilities for the stay of tourists.
The J&K government had already announced a scheme for the unemployed youth in the rural areas who are interested in getting connected with the tourism and hospitality service sector.
J&K government provides Rs 10 lakh, including Rs 8.50 lakh from a banking partner, to such youth. Mission Youth J&K provides a special upfront incentive (subsidy) of Rs 1.5 lakh or 15% of the project cost (whichever is minimum), along with a special subsidy of Rs 3.5 lakh towards loan repayment.
It is to mention here that the Panchari village of Udhampur in Jammu province was the first village to be declared as the tourist village with Home Stay facilities by the J&K government under the Tourist Village Development Programme (TVDP).
Panchari village was brimming with activities as there is a lot of tourist influx into this village as more and more tourists are coming to enjoy their holidays here.
First tourist village in Kashmir province to come into the tourism map was Anderwali hamlet of Sangerwani village in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
Many tourist groups have stayed so far in Anderwali of Pulwama and some youth have started making Home Stay facilities in this village due to the rush of tourists.
The government takes into consideration scenic beauty, adventurous terrain, art and cultural significance, history and archaeology of that village before selecting it as a tourist village.
The ambitious programme has the potential to mobilize the diverse geographical and socio-economic landscape of the entire Jammu and Kashmir region.
The main objectives of the programme are to develop new tourism destinations that integrate social, cultural, and spiritual characteristics with economic aspects, providing the necessary infrastructure for tourists within these selected villages.
The villages included in the programme were selected based on their potential for rural tourism in consultation with the Tourism Department and an expert committee of Mission Youth.
This initiative aims to promote homestays across the UT, strengthen the rural economy, encourage youth entrepreneurship, and provide employment opportunities for women in the tourism sector.
The initiative also recognizes the potential of J-K for film shootings and aims to promote filming in the region by offering financial aid to villages for their sustainable development.
“Destinations that lag behind in the sphere of tourism infrastructure can overcome the downsides by introducing homestays as a means of accommodation facilities for tourists which do not require heavy investment,” the officials added .
Meanwhile, with the reports that tourists are being overcharged in various tourist spots here in the Kashmir valley, the government has directed all the concerned authorities to take concrete steps to stop such menace.
Sources said that the government has been informed about the tourists being overcharged by the hoteliers, houseboat owners, service providers and transporters at various tourist destinations, thus giving a bad name to the whole industry of the Valley.
Accordingly the government has impressed upon all the concerned participants that concrete steps need to be taken to check this menace of overcharging which is giving bad name to the whole tourist industry of Kashmir.
“It has been noticed that the tourists are being overcharged by the hoteliers, houseboat owners, service providers, transporters etcetera at the various tourist destinations of the valley including at Dal Lake, Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Sonamarg,” the officers here said.
The government has also enquired about the notification of the rates issued in this regard by the concerned deputy commissioners, director tourism Kashmir, chief executive officers of Tourism Development Authorities. “The rate list fixed shall be erected or displayed at the airport, TRC, Tax stands, hotels and at the Tourist destinations in adequate numbers for the convenience of the tourists,”
