Srinagar, Aug 13: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Saturday launched 75 home-stays in rural areas to commemorate the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ in the 75th year of independence at a programme organised at SKICC.
An official spokesman in a statement issued here said that these home stays were owned by Self Help Group (SHG) members of Jammu and Kashmir Rural Livelihood Mission (JKRLM) in partnership with OYO Group under project ‘Crown of Incredible India’.
The spokesman said that speaking on the occasion, the LG said that the country’s leading travel tech company
OYO Group in collaboration with JKRLM would build 200 more home stays by December 2022 to boost rural livelihood in J&K.
He said that in a short time, SHGs had emerged as a powerful tool for women empowerment and socio-economic transformation in J&K.
The LG said that under the banner of the UMEED programme, JKRLM was empowering the rural women entrepreneurs and the mission was to provide a national market for the local products.
He said that the launch of 75 home stays with OYO Hotels and Homes would prove to be a milestone in the pursuit of social equality, social justice, and social security.
The LG said that the partnership with OYO and the launch of Tourist Village Network, in which Mission Youth had selected 75 such villages under both Kashmir and Jammu divisions, known for their unique landscape, cultural diversity, and heritage value would go a long way in expanding the tourism ecosystem to rural areas of J&K.
The spokesman said that the affordable tariffs offered by the OYO home stays would cater to a better and more immersive traveling experience.
He said that the home stays had all the basic room amenities, and great views, and provided an opportunity for travellers to experience beautiful rural landscapes and nature in its truest form.
He said that identified on the parameters of scenic beauty, landscape, cultural diversity, and heritage, the 75 new home stays were located in Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramulla, and Bandipora districts of Kashmir and Doda, Kishtwar, Poonch, Udhampur, and Kathua districts of Jammu.
The spokesman said that JKRLM organised a workshop for home-stay owners in Srinagar on August 1 and 2, 2022, and a similar workshop was going to be held in Jammu on August 16 and 17, 2022, for the home-stay owners.
He said that OYO had partnered with JKRLM to offer end-to-end solutions that would transcend beyond just listing of home stays on its platform and include identification of the homes, their audit, transformation, and civil work, transfer of technology, training of home-stay owners, branding and marketing.
The spokesman said that commenting on the developments, OYO founder Ritesh Agarwal said, “We are honoured to be a part of the ‘Crown of Incredible India’ project inaugurated by the LG in February. These home-stays are a testimony to the vision of the Prime Minister and the LG to widen and deepen the prospects for tourism in the country, provide sustainable livelihood to the rural community, and also empower women.”
Secretary to the Government, Tribal Affairs Department, and CEO Mission Youth, Shahid Iqbal Choudhary said that the government with its various schemes and programmes was reaching out to youth and women to realise the vision of inclusive development.