Omar Abdullah on Tuesday thanked Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the decision to reopen tourist destinations in Jammu and Kashmir that were closed following last year’s Pahalgam terrorist attack.
His remarks came a day after Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha ordered the reopening of 14 tourist spots that had remained shut for security reasons. Abdullah said he had recently raised the issue with Shah during meetings in Jammu and Delhi and was assured that the sites would be reopened. He said the assurance has now translated into formal orders.
After the repeal of Article 370 and the conversion of Jammu and Kashmir into a Union territory, law and order and policing remain under the central government. Following the Pahalgam terrorist attack in April last year, the Lieutenant Governor administration closed 48 tourist sites across the region as a precautionary measure.
Abdullah said the closure of tourist destinations for nearly 10 months did not serve any purpose and noted that even during the worst years of militancy, such sites were not shut. He said local residents suffered heavy losses as tourism is a key source of livelihood.
On Monday, Sinha said the decision to reopen the sites followed a comprehensive security review and discussion, and that the destinations would be opened to both tourists and locals with immediate effect. With the latest order, 42 of the 48 closed destinations have now been restored.
The closures were imposed after terrorists killed 26 civilians on April 22 last year, including 25 tourists, triggering a mass exodus and severe economic disruption. While earlier phased reopenings in June and September failed to draw visitors, officials said heavy snowfall in December helped revive interest, with over one lakh tourists visiting the Valley in January.
Among the destinations reopened are Doodhpathri, Kokernag, Pir Ki Gali and Srinagar’s Tulip Garden, the largest of its kind in Asia.