The terror attack in the Baisaran Valley near Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22 has affected tourism across the region, and Jammu is no exception. One of the major tourist attractions in Jammu—the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra—has seen an approximately 20 per cent drop in devotees after the attack, according to Anshul Garg, CEO of the shrine board, who spoke to Outlook Traveller.
The temple in Jammu’s Reasi district in the lap of Trikuta hills attracted around 32 lakh devotees between April and June last year, according to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, which has been managing the temple shrine since 1986.
“While it is too soon to draw a trend, there is a drop in the footfall. However, we have yet to see how long the effect will continue,” said Garg to OT.
The Jammu region is one of the three administrative divisions of Jammu and Kashmir and is separated from the Kashmir Valley by over 250 km. Known as a city of temples, Jammu welcomes people who visit the religiously significant shrines that dot the region.
Shiv Khori, the dargah of Peer Budhan Ali Shah, Raghunath temple, and a host of other Devi temples are some of the different religious spots that attract tourists to Jammu.
Many travellers don’t consider Jammu a standalone destination but club it with other tourist spots in the Kashmir Valley. “Some people who travel to Jammu consider it a secondary destination, and the highlight of their trip is always the Kashmir Valley,” said Captain Anil Gour, President of the Travel Agents Association of Jammu, while speaking to OT.
“Most of our tourists head north to Kashmir after spending a day or two in Jammu. We have lost all those tourists after the attack. Since people are refraining from visiting the Valley because of the volatile situation, there is no reason for them to visit Jammu either,” he said.
The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) launched a train from Katra to New Delhi on April 23, a day after the attacks in Pahalgam, for people who wanted to cut short their trip and return to their respective destinations as soon as possible.
“Most of our reservations to Kashmir have been cancelled. While Jammu is geographically distant from Kashmir and things here are normal, why will someone visit Jammu without being able to go to Kashmir?” questioned a distressed Mahavir Prasad Vyas, who runs Suhana Safar Tour Operators in the Preet Vihar area of Jammu.
He also mentioned that some people have changed their vacation destinations to Shimla, Manali, and other locations in Himachal Pradesh.
Another tour operator, Waseem Sheikh, who co-owns the Srinagar-based J&K Tour Plaza, echoed Vyas’ sentiments.
“Some people with prior bookings arrived in Kashmir, but skipped Pahalgam. Others changed their destination to Himachal Pradesh. Some visited Mata Vaishno Devi in Jammu and then headed to Himachal," said Sheikh. “If we were receiving 100 new booking calls in a single day earlier, now we are getting only three to four such calls. We have very few new bookings."
"The people of Jammu and Kashmir from farmers and fruit vendors to hoteliers and shop owners are dependent upon tourists for their sustenance and have suffered a terrible blow because of this incident. However, we are hopeful that things will revert to normalcy soon," said Sheikh.
Note: Outlook Traveller reached out to the Directorate of Tourism Jammu, J&K for inputs, but received no response at the time of publication. This story will be updated as and when we receive a statement.
