Authorities in Indian-administered Kashmir have temporarily closed more than half of the tourist resorts in the picturesque Himalayas after a recent deadly attack on tourists, raising tensions between India and Pakistan.
The decision to close 48 of the 87 government-approved resorts was taken as a precaution, according to at least two police officers and three officials who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with department policy.
They did not specify how long these places would be closed to visitors.
The decision came a week after gunmen killed 26 people, including many Indian tourists, near the resort town of Pahalgam.
India described the attack as a “terrorist attack” and accused Pakistan of supporting it.
Pakistan has denied any involvement in the attack, and a previously unknown militant group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance has claimed responsibility.
Some tourists who survived the attack told Indian media that the gunmen singled out Hindu men and shot them at close range. Among the dead were a Nepalese citizen and a local Muslim who was driving a pony.
The bloody event marked the beginning of diplomatic retaliation between India and Pakistan, including visa cancellations and the recall of diplomats.
New Delhi also suspended a key water-sharing agreement with Islamabad and closed its border with Pakistan. Pakistan responded by closing its airspace to Indian airlines.
The region is divided between India and Pakistan, with both sides laying claim to it. New Delhi views all violence in Indian-controlled Kashmir as Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.
Pakistan denies this, and many Kashmiri Muslims see the militants as part of a local struggle for independence.
Indian tourism has boomed in Kashmir after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government began actively encouraging travel to the region, hoping to tout the rise in tourist numbers as a sign of stabilisation in the area.
Millions of tourists visit Kashmir to admire the Himalayan foothills and beautifully decorated houseboats, despite constant clashes between rebels and government forces.
According to official information, the region will be visited by about three million tourists in 2024, which exceeds 2.71 million visitors in 2023 and 2.67 million in 2022.
However, the recent attack has scared many travellers, with some fleeing the region. Tour operators are also reporting mass cancellations, estimated at over a million.
Against the backdrop of increasing
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
