Ladakh safe for tourists, says L-G; seeks removal of travel advisories

With travel advisories issued by the United States and the United Kingdom asking their citizens not to travel to Jammu and Kashmir, the Lt Governor of Ladakh, Brig BD Mishra (retd), said it was creating confusion and concern among the foreign and domestic tourists planning to visit the region as Ladakh has been categorised under J&K.

The L-G stated that appropriate action would be taken against these travel advisories.

Sources said the UT may take up the matter with the Union Ministry of External Affairs to save the region from the negative impact of the travel advisories at the start of the tourism season.

The US travel advisory stated: “US citizens are reminded that the Department of State has a ‘Do Not Travel’ advisory for Jammu and Kashmir.”

“Terrorist attacks and violent civil unrest are possible in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Do not travel to this state (with the exception of visits to the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh). Violence happens sporadically in this area and is common along the Line of Control (LOC) between India and Pakistan. It also occurs in tourist spots in the Kashmir Valley: Srinagar, Gulmarg, and Pahalgam. The Indian government does not allow foreign tourists to visit certain areas along the LOC,” the advisory stated.

While the advisory clearly focuses on exception of the visits to the Eastern Ladakh that share its boundaries with China, it doesn’t talk about the Western Ladakh (Kargil district) that shares border with Pakistan.

Meanwhile, the L-G also appealed to the tourism stakeholders to welcome the tourists “with open arms”.

Stating that tourism is the lifeline of people in Ladakh and majority of the people depend on it for their livelihood, the L-G sought cooperation from all tourism stakeholders to welcome and support tourists and not indulge in any malpractices that might hamper the footfall of tourists. The L-G stated that going by the trend he was expecting the tourist footfall in Ladakh to rise in 2025 compared to last year.

Further adding that nobody wants Kashmir’s economy- which is dependent on tourism – to suffer, the L-G sought everyone’s support and the need to evoke the “nation above everything else” sentiments to overcome the difficult period.

J & K