CS throws open Tulip garden to public; inaugurates e-ticketing

Tourists at Tulip garden in Srinagar. —Excelsior/Shakeel
Tourists at Tulip garden in Srinagar. —Excelsior/Shakeel

Excelsior Correspondent

SRINAGAR, Mar 23: Asia’s largest Tulip garden on the foothills of Zabarwan hills in Srinagar was thrown open for public, marking the beginning of new tourism season in Kashmir region.
Chief Secretary, Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, declared the garden open in presence of senior officers from Floriculture Department, Tourism Department, J&K Bank and a large number of tourists, who had come from different parts of the country besides locals.
Chief Secretary, while speaking on the occasion, stated that the Government is expecting arrival of heavy tourist influx this year as compared to last year. “The later part of 2021 had broken past records of tourist arrival to the region and we are optimistic of an incredible tourism boom this year also.
He said that the improved road and air connectivity in the UT will greatly enhance the influx of domestic and foreign tourists thus generating income for the local populace. He said that condition of Jammu-Srinagar National Highway has improved a lot and it takes very less time to travel than earlier, besides air traffic has also improved significantly.
Chief Secretary said that tourism is reviving fast post COVID and the necessary steps are being taken up by the administration to make the stay of tourists more comfortable. He said that government under a comprehensive policy has explored and developed hidden and virgin tourist destinations and tourists will have more places to visit beyond Gulmarg, Pahalgam and other places. He said that the government has added 75 new virgin destinations, 75 new adventure treks, 75 heritage sites, and 75 religious sites.
Later, Chief Secretary also inaugurated J&K Bank enabled e-ticketing facility for the visitors becoming the first visitor to generate E-ticket. He said that queuing up for long time was cumbersome for the visitors, so E-ticketing was introduced to make the visit of tourists hassle free.
Commending J&K Bank for its people friendly initiatives, Dr A K Mehta said the Bank is doing yeoman services and I compliment the management for coming up with online portal well within timeline as expected.
The E-booking provision has been made available on the website of Floriculture Department from the day one to enable the tourists and visitors to plan their visit comfortably online.
Chief Secretary also directed the Floriculture department to take feedback from the tourists for making their stay more comfortable.
Dr Mehta appealed the people to visit Jammu and Kashmir and experience the serene splendor of tourist destinations like Tulip Garden.