Jammu and Kashmir to throw open 75 unexplored destinations

Hyderabad: To mark India's 75 years of Independence under the caption 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav', the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has identified 75 new unexplored tourist destinations with the theme of 'New hopes, New Destinations' offering new experiences to the visitors.

There has been a steady growth in the number of tourists coming from South India, particularly from the two Telugu States. This was announced by the Tourism Development Authority of Patnitop CEO Sher Singh and Tourism Development Authority of Gulmarg CEO Zahoor Ahmad Raina during a press conference here on Saturday. The authorities said that the two Telugu States contribute a large chunk of domestic tourist inflow in J&K.

Sher Singh said that like all other sectors the tourism also got affected due to corona pandemic. However, after easing out restrictions, the number of tourists coming to the UT has increased. He said that from June this year till date, 5.5 lakh domestic tourists have travelled to Jammu and Kashmir and more than 10 per cent of the tourists come from Southern states particularly, the two Telugu States. He also said that a large part of the tourists were temple-bound tourists, who visit the famous temple Vaishnav Devi. "We have a complete tourism package having all the facilities like pilgrim, adventure, lakes, gardens and water sports. People are visiting the state without any security threat," said Sher Singh.

Zahoor Ahmad Raina said that there are many unexplored places in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir such as Baherwan, Tosemaidaan, Wullar, Aharbal, Bhimgarh Fort etc. He said that annually 38 lakh domestic tourists visit Jammu and Kashmir. "The new destinations are not fully explored and there are a lot of virgin areas, forests, valleys. There is a need to change perception about security. There are many nice stories of compassion and the cost is also not as high as Hyderabad city," said Zahoor Ahmad.

The authorities said that they were planning to have a Film City in the valley. They have also approached the film industry to start the shootings by having a 'Single Window' system for granting all the permissions.