Srinagar, Jan 5:  The Confederation of Indian Industry (JK Chapter) will organize ‘Kashmir Festival’ in the United States of America to promote the rich cultural heritage and tourist destinations of Jammu and Kashmir.
 After their return from the business trip to the US, the young business delegates from Jammu and Kashmir here said that the visit was “fruitful” and “educative”. 
 Delegation leader, Waseem Trumboo who is chairman CII JK State Council said: “We will organize Kashmir Festival for a week in the USA to promote our state and create awareness about the rich cultural heritage, scenic locales and adventurous tourist destinations of the state.”
 He said it will help “us in to woo tourists to Kashmir and boost our hospitality sector.”
 The delegation also discussed sharing of cold storage technology. “It would be big plus point to our horticulture sector. We lack infrastructure like cold stores, etc here,” he said
 Notably, the delegation during their stay in the US visited popular ski destination of Aspen, Colorado where the group was welcomed by the local business associations and appreciated CII for bringing the first ever delegation from Jammu & Kashmir. 
 According to the delegates they also discussed the possibility of setting “sister-city relationship between Aspen and Srinagar.”
 “The US skiers had all praise for quality of snow in Gulmarg and Srinagar,” they said.
 “It was a great learning experience interacting with various chambers and business associations in USA. It was encouraging to see the people in the US showing interest in our culture and tourist destinations,” Asif Iqbal Burza, Chairman, CII Kashmir Zone, and Director Senator Inns PVT Ltd and Ahad Hotels and Resorts, said. 
 Farooq Amin, Director Sales and Marketing Kanwal Foods and Spices Private Limited, who formed part of the delegation said that the visit was “fruitful” and “good learning experience”.
 “We interacted with investors who showed their keenness to invest here.  We also talked about joint ventures. The investor in USA also showed their keenness in investing in transport sector of the state,” Amin said.
  “We also had meeting with Farooq Kathwari- a renowned US-based Kashmiri businessman who showed his willingness to invest in the state,” he said.
 Sheikh Imran, Director, Kashmir Sunsilk Industries Private Limited said it was really good to connect with the people in the US.
 “We had meeting with Exim Bank officials who assured us of providing facilities for raising loan from the bank. We had also interaction with people of Hollywood and Intel,” Imran said.
 Suhail Manzoor Guna, Managing Director Saifco Hotel said: “We learned a lot from our visit and it was a great experience. It gives opportunity for local business to get the exposure and learn more about the trade and other aspects of business.”
 Vivek Bhardwaj, who was managing the delegation, told Greater Kashmir over phone that the objective of delegation was to explore mutual trade opportunities for industry and showcase strength of Jammu and Kashmir.
Bhardwaj said the key sectors identified for investment in J&K were hydroelectric power generation, infrastructure, tourism, food processing, IT/ ITES, Healthcare, Waste management and Water Treatment.

Lastupdate on : Sat, 5 Jan 2013 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 5 Jan 2013 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sun, 6 Jan 2013 00:00:00 IST