Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha on Tuesday said the Pakistan-sponsored terror ecosystem evolved in the last 30 years in the former border state has been isolated through developmental schemes.
The new Union Territory, a land of peaceful co-existence of almost all religious sects, had to suffer state-sponsored terrorist attacks from Pakistan but it is now witnessing a new era that has opened limitless possibilities for growth and peace, he said at the inaugural session of the Third Tourism Working Group meeting of G-20 countries in Srinagar.
China, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkiye—all sympathizers of Pakistan, which is not a G-20 member—are not attending the Srinagar meeting, being held to showcase the positive changes that have taken place in J&K since August 2019 when its “special status” was abrogated with the scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution.
L-G Sinha said PM Modi has completely eliminated injustice, exploitation, and discrimination which several sections of society faced for seven long decades owing to circumstances that evolved mostly because of orchestration from abroad.
Today, J&K stands among the developed regions of India on some measurable milestones, and “we are committed to people’s prosperity both economically and socially,” he said.
He said foreign investments are also coming into J&K, the green shoots of better times that people are anxiously looking up to.
L-G Sinha pointed out that grassroots democracy has been strengthened, new industries are coming up, rapid agricultural growth is making the villages prosperous, infrastructure development is progressing rapidly and the emphasis on technology is transforming J&K into a digital society.
Referring to the recent boom in tourism, he said a record of over 18 million tourists visited the Union Territory in 2022.
Tourism contributed over seven percent to J&K’s GDP last year, he added.
The L-G said more than 300 films were shot in J&K in 2022. After almost four decades, the UT revived its relationship with Bollywood and launched a film policy in 2021 to attract more investment into the film sector and to make J&K the most popular film shooting destination, as it was in the past.
“I am confident that J&K will soon find its place in the top 50 destinations of the world and will be on the bucket list of travelers across the globe,” he said.
He said J&K is developing India’s largest book village on the banks of Wular Lake, in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district, and many hiking trails for tourists who love the tranquility of nature.
“Our aim is to make the countryside and popular destinations more sustainable and preserve the beauty of fascinating heritage sites,” he said.
Tourism cannot grow in isolation but needs good infrastructure, sound policies, and effective and responsive administration.
“No less fundamental to me is the fact that only peace and happiness of people can bring warmth in the hospitality we Indians eternally enjoy. I would like to mention here that tourism in Jammu and Kashmir is also a reflection of the multi-religious and multi-cultural ethos of India,” he said.
L-G Sinha said it is a matter of great pride for 13 million citizens of the Union Territory to host the G-20 meeting of the tourism working group that is deliberating on global architecture for sustainable tourism.
The world can see that the entire society, especially, the young generation is scripting a bright future for themselves and the nation. The speed and scale of rapid development in Jammu Kashmir are awe-inspiring, he added.