THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Jammu and Kashmir government is busy cleaning up the Dal lake and beautifying its surroundings these days as part of the efforts to make Kashmir valley tourist-friendly. However, the waste-ridden Kovalam is reaping the benefits of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s hard work.
With reports of encounter killings in Jammu and Kashmir trickling in, the valley has ceased to lure domestic tourists. Kovalam is said to be one of the destinations that have benefited from Kashmir’s loss.
Domestic tourist footfalls in Kovalam have shown a marked increase compared to the last few years and tourism industry insiders attribute this to the fading allure of Kashmir as a tourism destination.
“This August was better than that last year. Since nothing much has changed, we feel that the revival of militancy in Kashmir has worked to our advantage,” said Jacob Melethottam who runs a string of small restaurants along Eve’s beach at Kovalam.
The tourism ministry in Kashmir has stated that the reports of terrorism had affected tourism. Hundreds of tourists have already cancelled their bookings. The houseboat industry suffered the worst.
“We might be netting the Kashmir betrayers,” said George Mathew of India Hols. “A good chunk of the bookings we got were late, by the last week of July. And some of our clients had even told us that they had opted for Kerala only because Kashmir had become inaccessible,” Mr Mathew said.
For nearly five years, Kashmir’s tourism prospects have been on the rise. “The floods in July last year provided the first jolt. Now militancy seems to be decimating the potential of the place,” Mr Mathew said.
Destinations like Thekkady, which was fast deteriorating as a tourism spot for the last few years, too have seen an unprecedented rise in numbers.
