{"id":288211,"date":"2025-04-23T07:25:20","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T07:25:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/23\/kashmir-valley-was-blooming-with-business-now-its-stained-with-blood-again\/"},"modified":"2025-04-23T07:25:21","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T07:25:21","slug":"kashmir-valley-was-blooming-with-business-now-its-stained-with-blood-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/23\/kashmir-valley-was-blooming-with-business-now-its-stained-with-blood-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Kashmir valley was blooming with business. Now it\u2019s stained with blood, again"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Kashmir<\/div>


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“Gar firdaus bar-rue zamin ast, hami asto, hamin asto, hamin ast.”
<\/em>(If there is heaven on Earth, it is here, it is here, it is here.)
<\/em>
These immortal words by poet Amir Khusrau have long echoed through the pristine valleys and snow-laden slopes of Kashmir<\/a>. They speak of a paradise nestled in the Himalayas\u2014a land of tulip gardens, apple orchards, and snow-covered peaks. But on April 22, 2025, that paradise was shattered.

A brutal terror attack in Pahalgam<\/a>, one of the most beloved tourist destinations in Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s Anantnag district, left at least 28 civilians dead, many of which had come seeking peace and beauty. According to initial reports, four terrorists allegedly affiliated with The Resistance Force (TRF), a Lashkar-e-Taiba-linked group, opened fire near a popular meadow, turning a place of serenity into a scene of unspeakable horror.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Pahalgam attack: Baisaran turns into a valley of terror<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Live Events<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The news reverberated far beyond the valley. In a rare show of unified sorrow, Indian leaders across party lines condemned the attack. President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi<\/a>, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi all expressed deep anguish. Global voices joined in too with US President Donald Trump<\/a>, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, Russian President Vladimir Putin and others offering solidarity with India.<\/p>\n

Yet amid the official condolences and promises of justice, an unsettling silence looms over Kashmir\u2014not just the silence of grief, but one that threatens the steady rhythm of economic recovery, tourism revival, and the fragile sense of normalcy that had begun taking root in recent years.<\/p>\n

From lockdown to lifeline: A fragile resurgence
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After years of militancy, followed by the political upheaval of Article 370\u2019s abrogation in 2019 and the Covid-19 lockdowns, Kashmir had finally begun to bounce back. Tourism, the region\u2019s economic lifeline, was thriving once again. In 2023 alone, a record-breaking 2.1 crore tourists visited the Union Territory, according to an ET report.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Pahalgam Attack: 28 dead, several injured in targeted firing; survivors recall horrendous act as govt mulls action plan<\/a>
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Hotel rooms were so fully booked that tourists had to be accommodated in private homes. Major hotel chains were expanding. \u201cTaj Vivanta is adding 20 new rooms,\u201d Rajesh Sharma, J&K Chair of industry body FICCI, had said. International investors like LuLu Group from Abu Dhabi had entered the region, setting up a hypermarket in a new mall in Srinagar.<\/p>\n

In Gulmarg, one of the top ski destinations in Asia, development was gaining momentum. \u201cWe\u2019re preparing to invite bids for a luxury hotel project abandoned in the 1980s,\u201d said Minga Sherpa, Deputy Commissioner of Baramulla. \u201cMany big Indian hotel chains have shown interest in the 7-acre prime land next to the Gulmarg Gondola.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ski slopes had recently been alive with laughter and adrenaline. Rishab Mittal, a 28-year-old snowboarder from Haryana, summed up the spirit of modern Kashmir tourism: \u201cWhen I ski down a mountain, my trainer films it, and I post it to Instagram. I\u2019m doing this for fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Commerce was on the rise…but, will it continue?
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It wasn\u2019t just tourism. Apple trade in Sopore, Asia\u2019s second-largest fruit market after Delhi\u2019s Azadpur, had also seen a boom. \u201cMilitancy has reduced, and there are about 1,000 active traders now,\u201d said Zahwoor Ahmad, a seasoned apple trader. <\/p>\n

The annual turnover at Sopore\u2019s mandi had touched Rs 7,000 crore in 2024, sustaining livelihoods across Kupwara, Bandipora, Baramulla, and Budgam\u2014regions deeply reliant on this seasonal commerce.<\/p>\n

Even border tourism had begun to pick up, with once-inaccessible regions like Gurez, Keran, Teetwal, and R S Pura now seeing footfalls from across India. Jammu and Kashmir were not just recovering; they were rebranding themselves as premium tourism and investment hubs, fit for destination weddings, luxury golf vactaions, and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) tourism.<\/p>\n

A new normal was built on hope
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The Union Territory was slowly inching toward a new identity. As per government data, the tourism sector\u2019s contribution to the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) rose from 7.84% in 2019-20 to 8.47% in 2022-23. Development projects worth Rs 6,400 crore were unveiled before elections by PM Modi at a massive rally in Srinagar\u2019s Bakshi Stadium.<\/p>\n

But the progress had a quiet condition\u2014a silent pact between hope and peace. For this new era to last, the guns needed to stay silent.<\/p>\n

The cost of a bullet: Progress in jeopardy?
<\/h2>\n

This latest attack has cast a long shadow. Candlelight vigils and protests have erupted across Srinagar, Poonch, Kupwara, Baramulla, and Jammu, with even locals joining in. \u201cIt is not just tourists, but our livelihood, our families,\u201d said Gulzar Ahmad Wani, president of the Pahalgam Taxi Association. <\/p>\n

The fear now is that the cycle may repeat\u2014the valley\u2019s economic gains undone by fresh waves of insecurity. Will tourists still come? Will investors hold back? Will families that bet their futures on Kashmir\u2019s peace be forced to rethink?<\/p>\n

The attack in Pahalgam is not just a tragedy\u2014it\u2019s a test. A test of the valley\u2019s resilience, of the people\u2019s faith, and of the government\u2019s ability to protect what Kashmir has fought to regain: stability, growth, and dignity.<\/p>\n

(With inputs from ET Bureau)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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“Gar firdaus bar-rue zamin ast, hami asto, hamin asto, hamin ast.”(If there is heaven on Earth, it is here, it is here, it is here.)These immortal words by poet Amir Khusrau have long echoed through the pristine valleys and snow-laden slopes of Kashmir. They speak of a paradise nestled in the Himalayas\u2014a land of tulip […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":288212,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/img.etimg.com\/photo\/118783427.cms","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[602],"tags":[1491,60572,449,79342,42190,7645,224189,223890,224107,223902,224190,224187,224188,3044],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288211"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=288211"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288211\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":288213,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288211\/revisions\/288213"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/288212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=288211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=288211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=288211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}