Srinagar, Oct 12: Taking further steps towards promotion of village tourism, Jammu and Kashmir government today said it has decided to develop the periphery of Gulmarg tourist resort to enable nature lovers to enjoy the scenic beauty of the valley. The peripheral villages of the famous meadow resort like Baderkoot, Gogaldara, Rangawali, Dardpora and Toshamaidan would be developed and adequate infrastructure created for the tourists, officials in the tourism department said. The officials said these measures would not only increase the state income but would also open up new employment avenues in tourist sector for the local residents. Besides development of tourist infrastructure in the state, pilgrim and heritage tourism was also being given proper emphasis, they said. In this regard, so far Rs 6.69 crore have been released during the current financial year for development of holy cave of Amarnath, Mattan, Kheerbhawani Temple, Baba Reshi, Khanqah Moalla, Pathan Masjid, Aish Muqam, Jamia Masjid and Katra.
The state government has already announced the concept of paying guest tourism in the villages around popular tourist destinations in Jammu and Kashmir.
The officials said the paying guest concept would serve dual purpose of catering to the rising demand for accommodation at these places as well as preventing the degradation of the environment caused by construction of luxurious star hotel accommodation.
They said it will also better the economic condition of the locals as they will benefit the most from tourists renting their spare accommodation.
Bureau Report