‘Tour Operators Ready To Bear Losses from JK Cancellations, But Don’t Spare Pakistan’
Jitendra Srivastava, a tour & travel operator in Lucknow, says business has suffered post Pahalgam attack but the industry stands firmly with Govt against terror. His views:
Almost all the tour packages that were booked for Jammu and Kashmir in the past couple of months have been cancelled in less than 24 hours after the heinous killings of tourists in Pahalgam. The incident has not only sent shivers in those who are going or planning to go there but also angered the people at large. Additionally, people have also started cancelling their trips to the Vaishno Devi.
However, be it pilgrims, vacation seekers or travel operators, there is one common thread that binds us all: We want the government of India and our armed forced to take revenge in a decisive manner, not merely a surgical strike but some conclusive action that sends a loud and clear message to the world and the sponsors of terrorism.
Talking about the travel business, there was an unprecedented surge in travellers choosing several spots in Jammu Kashmir this year. These included popular destinations like Gulmarg, Hajan Valley, Tulip Garden and several others. But the horrific incident at Pahalgam put paid to all the bookings in the entire region. Yes, it is getting a bit difficult for tour operators to immediately refund the advance booking funds, especially for flights and hotels, and particularly small operators are staring at major loss of business.
Besides, there is uncertainty from our counterparts in Jammu-Kashmir. We are also not sure if the local operators and hotels will be in a condition to refund the money due to the volatile situation in the Valley. We are also not sure if tourism will remain open in the next months (May and June) which are the peak time to visit hill stations. The element of fear in the mind of tourists will definitely prevent them from going there in the near future.
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I would also like to mention that J&K emerged as the most sought after tourist destination in the past few years, especially after the abrogation of Article 370, because of the good connectivity options as compared to other hill stations. This was helping the tourism industry bridge their losses suffered during Covid years.
Commendably, in most cases, amid the prevailing emotions of grief and fear, people have come forward to share the financial loss with the operators. For, they understand that this is not a time for haggling but to stand united with their countrymen, be it the hotel owner in Kashmir or their local booking agent. No one is in a hurry to, or pestering for quick refunds.
Nevertheless, the Pahalgam terror attack has left such an emotional scar in the minds of the travellers that they are not willing to even shift their destinations to safer states like Uttarakhand, Himachal or Northeast. One only hopes that the coming months will be healing.
The reason is: most of the people are deeply shocked by the tragedy and are not in a mood to enjoy this part of the season. We, as Indians, could also understand the common emotions and the anger. The prevailing sentiment among the tourism industry too is one of grief and anger. We demand the government to take strict action so that things normalise fast and people could fearlessly move around and enjoy what is rightly called the heaven on the earth. Till the time this happens, travel industry is willing to bear the hit on its chin.
As told to Rajat Rai
