Kashmir abuzz with tourists in New Year

Covid pandemic has shut the doors of global destination and now Indian tourists sre heading towards desi locations. Latest example is J&K where thousands of people from different parts of the country reaching to Gulmarg, Pahalgam and other areas of the valley for the New Year. After a lull of nearly one-and-a-half years, the valley was again abuzz with tourists. As tourist arrivals spiked, the region witnessed huge traffic jams. The situation was such in the popular skiing destination Gulmarg that some tourists had to ring in the New Year from their vehicles stuck in traffic.

Hotels and resorts organised various events on the New Year’s Eve. Firecrackers illuminated the sky and musical shows enthralled the tourists.The tourism department too organised an event in Gulmarg that drew a large number of visitors. Kashmir Divisional Commissioner P K Pole was the chief guest at the event. After many years the tourism industry in the valley has seen such a busy December. With the pandemic upsetting plans of travel to Europe, Kashmir emerged as the most preferred destination for tourists.

The tourism industry in Kashmir has suffered in the past few years for various reasons, particularly after the government imposed restrictions following the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in August 2019 and the Covid-19 pandemic.