J&K is a much talked about State when we deal with tourism industry. Actually, it is the British who gave great publicity to Kashmir as an attractive place for tourists. They meant the Valley of Kashmir, and had little idea of tourism either in Jammu or in Ladakh region. The real reason for giving so much hype to Kashmir tourism then was that firstly Kashmir had cool climate while the plains of India were hot for the British rulers and they would love to enjoy holidays in Kashmir. The House Boats of Dal Lake in Srinagar became an important component of Kashmir tourism. We see that the traces of British tourist culture are still visible in some of the older House Boats on the Dal Lake. Secondly, the Government of the Maharaja extended facilities to the British tourists much beyond their expectation. Most of the services were provided by the state as part of protocol. Naturally Kashmir emerged as the very lucrative and attractive destination for British tourists.
After independence, a new tourist culture developed in which the bulk of the tourists were local Indians and not the British or the Europeans. As economy of the country grew with the passage of time, and people could afford to undertake tourist trips to Kashmir, their number began to increase. In this way all components of Kashmir tourism were activated. Taxis, House Boats, handicraft marketing chapters, hikers, naturalists and philanthropists began to flock to Srinagar during summer. The number of foreign tourists also increased considerably when Ladakh region was thrown open to foreign tourists. In this way, tourism began to emerge as an important economy generating service in the State. Elected representatives from each region of the State became conscious of the potential of tourist industry and brought pressure on the Government to expand the industry so as to reach hitherto neglected areas.
In a state of great euphoria for giving extraordinary importance to the tourist industry in the State, the State rather overplayed and raised not one but three establishments in the shape of many Tourism Development Authorities, Tourism Department and Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation. The ultimate goal of all the three agencies is to promote tourism in the State. But then the question arises what was the need of having three agencies for one simple purpose. This is a very pertinent question and people would like to know the rationale for doing so.
In the first place, the question arises what is the criterion for declaring Tourism Development Authority for any area. The Department of Tourism has to be very clear about it. Take the case of Nobra, the farthest region in Ladakh province almost touching on the border with China. Ever since Nobra was thrown open to foreign tourists, there has been great flux to this area. It has its unique attraction as far as geography, topography and strategic location is concerned. Though sparsely populated, yet the people of this region have preserved their very unique culture, language, and ways of life despite great economic and historical pressures. If the elected representative of this region has been demanding Tourism Development Authority for Nobra for so many years, he has a sound case and should not have been hoodwinked. LAHDC has also recommended that Nobra should be given the status of TDA. In the same way, if the Government assured that the creation of Tourism Development Authority for Doda was under its consideration, when will that consideration come to a final end? Four years have already gone by and the matter is lying where it was.
In final analysis, the point we would like to make is that the Government should consider Tourism Development Authority on the basis of definite criterion only. Secondly, no discrimination has to be made in accepting or rejecting proposals for fresh declaration of Tourism Development Authorities. Thirdly, declaring any area as Tourism Development Authority presupposes provision of adequate funds for infrastructure. Only after assuring these pre-requisites should the Government announce Tourism Development Authority for a particular area otherwise not, and the expectations of the people should not be raised unless these are fulfilled.
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