Srinagar, Apr 07 (KNO): The Jammu and Kashmir Government has said that it has allocated over Rs 305.27 crore in the past two financial years to boost the tourism sector in the Union Territory.
Data accessed by the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), suggested that the Kashmir division received the lion's share — Rs 9,210 lakh in 2022-23 and Rs 9,527 lakh in 2023-24, while Jammu division was allocated Rs 5,685 lakh in 2022-23 and Rs 6,105 lakh in 2023-24.
Notably, the government launched several initiatives to rejuvenate tourism in the region, which paved a way to enhance tourist footfall besides it opened up new areas for sustainable tourism development.
Meanwhile, the increased allocation suggests a long-term policy shift towards equitable tourism development across both divisions.
Jammu and Kashmir government earlier said that it has witnessed a significant surge in tourist footfall over the past two years, with over 1.29 crore tourists visiting the Union Territory excluding pilgrims.
The data revealed that a total of 55,15,679 tourists visited J&K in the year 2023, while the year 2024 saw a remarkable increase in tourism, recording 74,48,688 tourist arrivals.
In the year 2023, 55,327 foreigners visited the Union Territory, while in 2024, the number further rose to 65,452. This brings the total number of foreign tourists visiting J&K in the last two years to 1,20,779, the official figures states—(KNO)