Mubashir Aalam Wani
Srinagar, Jun 9: The houseboat owners in the Valley are jubilant after witnessing huge tourist footfall that reminds them about the golden period of 70’s.
This year, 80 per cent of the houseboats, located at famous Dal Lake, Nigeen Lake and other places remained jam-packed easing the worries of houseboat owners who have been grappling to survive.
After the slump in tourist influx due to the Covid-19 and other reasons, the footfall of tourists recorded an increase in Jammu and Kashmir.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had on April 10 stated that J&K is its “golden period” of tourism as nearly 80 lakh tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir in the past few months, breaking a 20-year-record.
Vice Chairman of Houseboat Owners Association Kashmir, Manzoor Ahmad Pakhtoon said that almost 80 per cent of the houseboats remained occupied with the guests, who visited from different parts of the country and outside as well.
“Around 1600 rooms out of 2700 got booked by tourists at Dal and Nigeen Lake,” he said.
The houseboat owners were jubilant after witnessing the huge influx of tourists.
One of the houseboat owners, Tariq Ahmad said that the huge rush of tourists could be witnessed in Jammu and Kashmir after the gap of many years.
“The government must help in modifying the houseboats as the tourists visiting here prefer modified houseboats with modern facilities. We should be allowed to modify the houseboats for the comfort of the tourists,” he said.
