In December 2022, as India took over the G20 presidency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that this was a “unique opportunity” for the nation to “showcase the country’s strengths”. He said that India’s G20 presidency will set a global example of “people’s participation” and present the country’s States and Union Territories (UTs) as attractive global investment and tourism destinations.
Therefore, the Third G20 Tourism Working Group (TWG) convention in the serene Kashmir Valley on 22 May bears special significance not only for unlocking the treasures of the region’s tourism sector but also for the people’s participation to showcase India’s strengths.
The Rann of Kutch in Gujarat and the picturesque Siliguri in West Bengal were the destinations for the first two Tourism Working Group meetings in February and April, respectively. However, besides asserting India’s bold geopolitical stand on Kashmir, the destination for the TWG’s third meeting offers visiting G20 dignitaries an opportunity to witness the enormous tourism potential of the Kashmir Valley. For the thousands of households directly dependent on tourism and farming, the meeting will provide a platform for the promotion of local traditions, Kashmir’s handloom, pashmina, dry fruits, and world-famous products like saffron.
The meeting will be an opportunity for all sections of Kashmiri society to participate in the global agenda for green, inclusive, and resilient tourism development. Considering Kashmir’s tourism potential and the eco-sensitive nature of the Valley, the TWG meeting will enable the local administration to learn from global best practices for the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The meeting will also be a critical step for the finalisation of the Goa Declaration on sustainable tourism in June.
From terrorism to tourism
The pristine beauty of the Kashmir Valley has given it the moniker of, ‘Heaven on Earth,’. In 1988, it saw the arrival of 700,000 tourists, including approximately 75,000 foreigners. However, the peace and tranquillity of the Kashmir Valley was shattered in 1989 when Pakistan and its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) lulled the masses of Kashmir Valley and sent thousands of trained terrorists to start armed conflict and terrorism. Pakistan-sponsored terrorists ruined the normal functioning of society, claimed thousands of lives and made the economy bleed, especially the tourism sector.
As violence escalated with 1,500 incidents of bomb blasts and firing, only 200,000 tourists visited the Valley in 1989. After 1989, the number of these tourists from Europe, the United States (US) and other parts of the world reduced to a trickle, exacerbating the economic woes of the Kashmiris. The US and many European countires designated Kashmir a no-go zone and issued travel advisories from time-to-time because of the grave safety concerns posed by Pakistani terrorists. Between 1990 and 1991, the tourist arrival was a meagre 6,287, mostly domestic, a 98-percent fall since 1989. Most of the tourism infrastructure was either burned by terrorists or used for other purposes, putting the Valley under severe economic distress.
However, following the abrogation of Article 370 and 35A, which gave temporary special status to Jammu and Kashmir under the Constitution of India, the Kashmir Valley has witnessed increasing positive psychological and socio-economic transformation. The region once again emerged as a favourite holiday destination for domestic and foreign tourists. In 2022, more than 18.8 million tourists visited the Union Territory (UT), the highest ever in the 75 years of India’s independence. Tourism accounts for 7-8 percent of the UT’s GDP and generates revenues worth INR 80 billion annually. The sector provides direct or indirect employment to approximately 100,000 people. According to the Comprehensive Tourism Policy of 2020, Jammu and Kashmir aims to attract INR 20 billion investment in the tourism sector for the next five years, contributing to more local employment generation.
Thirty three years after 1989, terrorism has declined, and the Valley’s security environment has seen a stable transformation. The mass participation in “quasi violence” perpetuated by Pakistan, like stone pelting incidents and strike calls, has largely become extinct. For example, in 2017, there were 1,412 stone pelting incidents, which increased to 1,488 and 1,999 in 2018 and 2019, respectively. Since 2021, the Valley has not reported even a single such quasi-violent incident. Inspired by the return of peace, the UT administration launched a rural homestay project in 2022 with the special assistance of INR 50,000 for every unit, keeping in view the increasing number of tourists and SDG goals. By December 2022, at least 200 homestays were available with OYO, and domestic and foreign tourists enjoyed the rural culture, cuisine, and traditions with warm hospitality.
The return of foreign investments to the Valley is also a reliable measure of the success of the local administration to ensure peace in the region, an inevitable condition for the safety of tourists. In March 2023, Kashmir saw its first-ever foreign direct investment of INR 500 crores, with Dubai-based Emaar enterprise starting the construction of a shopping and office complex. Furthermore, with the fervent support of UNESCO, the administration initiated a facelift of the Srinagar district under the national Smart Cities Mission setting aside INR 30 billion, with time-bound completion in 2023.
After the temporary provisions of Articles 370 and 35A were abrogated, Kashmiris also realised that self-correction for economic revival and economic reconstruction is the only way to develop a better future. The general public in the Valley wants to participate in the inclusive growth of tourism and other economic sectors. They are convinced that the G20 summit offers a developmental approach based on an aspirational, integrative, green, inclusive, and resilient tourism model that will boost local handloom products and other artisans.
Pakistan will try to make persistent efforts to sabotage the upcoming G20 TWG meeting in Srinagar for its parochial interests with some local secessionist support. Pakistan announced its intentions when Pakistan-sponsored terrorists killed five soldiers in a terror attack in the border district of Rajouri. The attack was carried out by the People’s Anti-Fascists Front (PAFF)—an offshoot of Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM)—that has openly and explicitly identified the upcoming G20 event in Srinagar as the next target. It has also started a global boycott campaign. However, only China and Türkiye have fallen prey to such illicit propaganda and will not attend the Srinagar meeting. However, the people of the Kashmir Valley are upbeat. For them, the TWG meeting provides a unique opportunity to showcase the region’s abundant natural wealth and tourism opportunities to the world’s most affluent economies. Tourism in the Valley has seen a dramatic revival since 2019. Following the withdrawal of the travel advisories, it is poised to see a boom in high-end tourists. The event will increase the general environment of positivity, create much-needed economic opportunities, and also contribute to an ideological integration of the Valley’s youth with the rest of India.
Ayjaz Wani is a Fellow with the Strategic Studies Programme at the Observer Research Foundation.Views are personal.
This article was originally published on ORF website.