2 months after attack, tourists start returning to Pahalgam

Two months after the Pahalgam attack killed 26 people and also brought the valley’s tourism sector to a grinding halt, tourists have started returning to the famous tourist destination in south Kashmir.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah who visited Pahalgam over the weekend said that this time, he found the tourist spot “bustling with activity”.

“The last time I was in Pahalgam, I cycled through a market that was all but deserted. Today, I came back to a Pahalgam that was bustling with activity. Tourists from various parts of the country competed for space with local picnickers who were enjoying the cool climate and rainy weather,” Omar wrote on X late on Sunday night.

He said, “It’s very satisfying to see the efforts my colleagues and I have been putting in slowly bearing fruit.”

Omar Abdullah — in the last week of May — had also travelled to Pahalgam, where he chaired a Cabinet meeting at the famed tourist resort. The move was aimed to send a message that Kashmir is safe for tourists.

Earlier this month, several parks at popular tourist destinations across Jammu and Kashmir, which were closed following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, were reopened in the first phase.

In the valley, those associated with the tourism industry say tourists have started to arrive in Pahalgam. “The number is increasing each day at Pahalgam which is a positive sign,” Mushtaq Pahalgami, president of the Pahalgam Hotel and Guest House Owners Association, told The Tribune.

He said other domestic tourists mostly from Punjab and also southern states, local visitors from Kashmir are also coming to Pahalgam.

Rauf Tramboo, president of the Travel Agents Association of Kashmir, said that the travel agents in the valley are getting queries from tourists for the upcoming autumn and winter season.

“We are hopeful that we will be able to fill the gap which was created after the Pahalgam attack,” he said.

He said that they are focusing on the season starting from September. “During the Amarnath yatra, we usually don’t see many tourists in Kashmir. The period is focused mainly on yatra pilgrims,” said Tramboo, adding that their entire focus is to get a good number of tourists after the yatra is over in August.

J & K