Srinagar: Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on Sunday said the famous tourist resort of Pahalgam has a huge potential to be developed as a leisure-cum-education centre on the pattern of Dalhousie in Himachal Pradesh.
“Pahalgam will be developed as an all-season destination after its Master Plan is approved by the State Cabinet,” Sayeed said.
The Chief Minister was chairing a high-level meeting called to review the Draft Master Plan for Pahalgam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.
Referring to a few established quality schools and institutes that have come up in and around Pahalgam, the Chief Minister called for developing a cluster of mainstream and adventure institutes in the resort to increase its USP. He stressed on taking up add-on activities like skiing, ropeway from Mammal to Bysaran, mountain biking in Aru and joyrides for children in Pahalgam Amusement Park.
“The tourists will be attracted to Pahalgam if we offer them wholesome entertainment,” he said, directing the Tourism Department to devise a plan to attract visitors to other tourist spots like Aru and Betaab Valley in the winter months.
The Chief Minister issued directions for underground electric cabling and ensuring uninterrupted power supply to the Pahalgam resort so that the visitors don’t face any hassles during their stay.
He said he would visit the resort to identify and assess the feasibility of various tourism infrastructure development projects conceived in the Draft Master Plan. .
Sayeed also directed the Tourism Department to undertake awareness campaigns about ecological conservation so as to save the treasures of nature for posterity.
“The Pahalgam Development Authority (PDA) will ensure picking up of discarded bottles and tins littered around Pahalgam bowl to ensure its cleanliness, an activity which shall be outsourced by the PDA,” he said, while asking the authorities to strictly implement the ban on use of polythene.
The Chief Minister directed PDA to ensure that no illegal structures come up in the area that put the environment to grave risk.
He said future development of Pahalgam and its notified area will be done only after the revised Master Plan is approved by the Cabinet. He also asked the Tourism Department to revive expeditions to known places like Kolahoi Glacier.