The tourism industry in Kashmir is flourishing with travellers taking a vacation in the magnificent vistas of the Kashmir Valley. With the increase in tourist footfalls, the demand for good accommodation facilities is rising too. And to cater to this need, the Jammu and Kashmir administration is working to bring about 50,000 homestays with their ‘homestay’ initiative. Arun Kumar Mehta, the chief secretary of Jammu and Kashmir made this significant announcement last month.
Tourism Is Burgeoning In Kashmir
With the drop in Covid-19 positive cases, tourists are packing their bags to travel to their loved destinations and Kashmir is witnessing a massive crowd. The tourist footfalls took a spike in 2022 in comparison to 2021. As per the Ministry of Home Affairs, about 1.05 crore tourists took a trip to Jammu and Kashmir in the first 6 months of 2022 whereas the number was only 41,267 in 2020. The chief secretary of J&K said that the growth in the tourist industry will be a boost for everyone, mainly the locals.
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Locals Can Earn A Sustainable Income From These Homestays!
Arun Kumar Mehta shared that the Union Territory administration is encouraging and guiding the locals in different tourist destinations for the homestay initiative in J&K. He is hoping that Kashmir is soon going to have about 50,00 homestays and rooms under the homestay initiative all around the stunning destinations. As of now, 75 locations have been decided to construct the rooms.
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Manoj Sinha, the Lieutenant Governor of J&K inaugurated 75 OYO homestays on 16 August under the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. The new homestays fall under the ‘Umeed’ scheme of the Jammu and Kashmir Rural Livelihood Mission. The opening of more homestays will be very helpful for the locals there to earn and it will get easier with an increase in demand. In fact, the goal of the Umeed scheme is to decrease poverty there with creating an earning source for the common people. Mehta also shared that the railway services are improving and with the present good air connectivity and road connectivity, the tourist footfalls will surely increase.