Tourist arrivals in J&K declined since Art 370 revocation
Domicile certificates issued to 33.8 lakh beneficiaries in UT till January 25
Press Trust of India

letterschd@hindustantimes.com

New Delhi : Tourist arrivals in Jammu and Kashmir has declined since the revocation of the erstwhile state’s special status, tourism minister Prahlad Patel informed Parliament on Tuesday.

In a written reply to a query in Rajya Sabha, he said 84,326 tourists visited Kashmir since August 5, 2019, while 87,94,837 visited Jammu and 1,00931 tourists visited Ladakh.

The total number of pilgrims/tourists who visited Jammu since August 2019 is 76,80,775.

On August 5, 2019, the Centre revoked the special status, or limited autonomy, granted under Article 370 of the Constitution to Jammu and Kashmir.

“Since, August, 5, 2019, the number of tourist arrivals in Jammu & Kashmir declined. The impact was felt more severely in Kashmir valley than in the Jammu division. However, the tourist footfall in J&K is gradually increasing since last few months. In respect of handcraft sector, no noticeable job losses in J&K have happened since August 05,2019. The artisans engaged in different handicrafts activities are continuing their job and the government is providing support through different schemes and steps taken by the Centre,” Patel said.

“In addition to the efforts of the UT administrations, Ministry of Tourism is giving financial assistance to service providers in UTs of J&K and Ladakh approved by the Ministry of Tourism and UT Tourism Department for undertaking promotional activities including participation in international and domestic travel marts/fairs/exhibitions/road shows and undertaking online promotion/sales tours overseas to give boost to the tourism sector in the region,” Patel said.

Meanwhile, as many as 33.8 lakh domicile certificates have been issued in Jammu and Kashmir till January 25, Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.

Union minister of state for home G Kishan Reddy also said that since the abrogation of Article 370 and bifurcation of J&K into UTs, 58 civilians have lost their lives in 54 terror attacks.

‘Stimulus package released’

Tourism minister Prahlad Patel said the government released a stimulus package of Rs 5.6742 crore as relief in the wake of pandemic for its disbursement among the tourism stakeholders.

The amount disbursed among the stakeholders is to the extent of Rs 1,000 per beneficiary per month for a period of three months, he said. He informed the House that this benefit has further been extended for a period of six months at ₹1,000 per month and ₹618.70 lakh has recently been approved.A