Tourism cacophony is the cherished rhetoric not only of the echelons of the Tourism Department but also of all garrulous ministers and politicians of the State. They usually talk of lush green tourist destinations of the Valley, the snow clad peaks and the waters flowing down from them. They speak of attraction of tourist for these destinations. They speak of skiing, mountaineering and so many more pleasure sports that are the attraction for the tourists all over the world. But when these tall claims are verified on the ground and realities are assessed, a different and of course very disappointing picture comes before our eyes. What then is the position on the ground, let us have a look.
In 2012 a total of 12502515 tourists visited the State and it declined to 10950620 in 2013. In the year 2014, 9525021 tourists visited the State while as in 2015 the number further declined to 9203691. In the year 2016 when Kashmir valley witnessed several months’ long unrest, the number of tourists declined to 8434402 while as in 2017 up to ending October 7309285 tourists visited J&K. These figures show there has been steady decline in the number of tourists coming to the State from the year 2012. The claim of the tourist authorities that our tourism is on the rise, and shall be touching new heights with the passage of time, is nothing but a tall claim that has no takers.
According to the Economic Survey, 97 projects which were sanctioned under Prime Minister’s Reconstruction Plan (PMRP) several years back have yet not been completed by the Tourism Department. With the delinking of Project Infrastructure Development at Destinations and Circuits (PIDDC) Scheme, the Union Ministry has been approached for release of Rs 81.85 crore for completion of these projects. Against this, the Ministry released an amount of Rs 43.45 crore during 2016-17, the Government said, adding an amount of Rs 38.41 crore is still required for completion of these projects.
The point to be highlighted is that despite availability of funds and the roadmap and despite having identified known tourist destination nothing concrete and visible has been done to improve the infrastructure and other requirements of tourist industry in the State. It is claimed that tourism provides more than 6 per cent to the gross income of the State and without quoting figures the jobs done by tourism and the expectations from tourism are eulogized and praised with exaggeration. J&K does not figure in the list of 10 premier tourist destinations n India on the basis of the number of tourists visiting the destinations. If the number of tourists is dwindling since 2012 and if the department has not been able to implement the 97 works identified long back and provided in the budget, what is the truth about claiming that the Government is deeply seized of the interests of people involved in tourism industry? Either the Minister for Tourism is producing fake numbers and claims or the story behind the curtain is true and cannot be challenged.
It needs not to be debated whether we have enough tourist destinations in the State. All of the three regions of the State have their distinction and cannot be clubbed together as the one-destination in J&K. If Kashmir is known for the grandeur of her nature, Jammu is known for her art and heroic history and finally Ladakh is known for her topography and sustained cultural ethos of millennium. All the three regions have their story and as such there can be multiple cultural destinations within the boundaries of the State.
Let us be candid about the ground situation. The State Government needs to give a shake up to the entire Tourism Department so as to make it functional in real sense of the term. It must examine whether the tourism can have the potential of giving J&k number one position among the tourist destinations in the country. At the face of it, it appears that there is more of claims and trumpeting than of actual work being done on the ground in connection with tourism. We must remember that tourism is the one sector which has the potential to provide opportunities of employment to non skilled workforce and as such needs to be promoted. It has auxiliaries like the transport, hotel industry, handicrafts, and other services. Its promotion means promoting those sectors as well. That speaks of the importance of the industry which h as to be promoted not demoted.
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