BY TANVEER AHMAD DAR
Kashmir is the northernmost geographical region of the India sub-continent. Kashmir is a paradise for a nature lover with its rising mountains, blooming gardens and flowering meadows, picturesque lakes, and serene valleys.
Being an ideal tourist destination for family tours, honeymoon tours and the perfect place for adventure enthusiasts, Jammu and Kashmir offers abundant tour options for travellers of all kind.
The place is replete with all the necessary topographical and geographical features that are necessary to promote tourism, adventure sports; just the requisite infrastructure needs to be put into place.
Several fairs and promotional activities should be conducted in different parts of the country like showing online banners, starting a blog or posting articles, thinking of social media marketing, using email newsletters, checking the contextual advertising on SEO, using tourist promo videos and applying offline promo.
Kashmir has immense potential for pilgrimage tourism; some historical and religious places are Shankarcharya temple, Kheer Bhawani, Amarnath Cave, Charar-e-Charif, Hazratbal Mosque, Khanqah Shah e Hamdan, etc.
There is an immense need for planning at micro and macro level to devise a comprehensive plan for future sustenance of this growing industry.
Kashmir ‘s natural landscape had made it one of the popular destinations for adventure tourism in South-Asia like mountaineering, rock climbing, trekking, hill walking, mountain biking, white water rafting and hand gliding.
Kashmir is a suitable destination for several other types of tourism which are yet to be exploited like medical tourism, eco-tourism, polo-tourism and leisure tourism.
Tourism acts as a catalyst in the development of backward and far-flung regions of a particular area. Same in the case of JK where tourists are attracted towards the areas which are located in remote region of UT, like Lolab and Bangus valley in Kupwara, Daksum valley in Anantnag, Gurez valley in Bandipura.
Tourist visits such unexplored attractive spots can give boast to the economic condition of the residents by promoting local art like Handicrafts, Handlooms, cricket bat industry and Ayurvedic stuff.
The development of tourist infrastructure in Kashmir will attract more and more visitors; building large highways, air and rail transport, upgraded hotels, building alternate roads in certain areas is a must to improve connectivity.
Tourism marketers should provide trained and knowledgeable guides to the visitors. Marketing mechanism should be transparent, responsible and accountable. Selling tourism products should be in the reasonable prices. Tourism has to improve the entertainment facility.
Tourist always look for comfortable stay like clean hygienic and well maintained spaces. The waste disposal system must be improved. The privatisation of tourism sector can help to fill the gap by providing efficient and skilled manpower and develop the necessary infrastructure to exploit the booming tourism sector in JK.
Tourism sector can generate a lot employment in the UT and it can also contribute to the economy of the UT.
Tourism sector-includes sub sector like Trade, Hotels and Restaurants, Transport, Storage and Communication, Banking and Insurance, Real Estate, ownership dwellings and business sector.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of GK.