G20: India will hold its third G20 Tourism Working Group meeting in Srinagar during May 22-24, 2023. This event will be significant for Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), as it will be the first major international gathering to take place there since August 2019, when the state was bifurcated into two Union Territories (UTs) of J&K and Ladakh, and its distinct legal status under Article 370 of the Constitution was abolished.
Taking the region’s weather into account, the months of April-June have been selected as the ideal months for hosting the G20 tourism stakeholders’ meeting in Srinagar and Leh as the Valley looks most picturesque during this period.
Rs 7.5 crore renovation effort underway in J&K
The Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC), located on the Dal Lake, will be the primary site for hosting the G20 meetings. The venue is undergoing a renovation worth Rs 7.5 crore, which involves updating the digital infrastructure and refurbishing the interior and exterior. Preparations for the upcoming meeting are in the final stages, and various arrangements such as multi-tier security and traffic diversions are also being planned.
During the three-day event, discussions will take place in Srinagar, and the foreign delegates will have the opportunity to go sightseeing in Baramulla, Dachigam National Park, and the ski resort of Gulmarg.
Furthermore, the Narbal-Gulmarg road stretch from Srinagar is being upgraded, and the Nehru Guest House, along with other huts in Chashmeshahi, is being renovated.
The UT administration has established a dedicated medical task force that includes advanced life support mobile ambulances at the event and excursion locations.
In addition to G20 members, delegates from guest countries and various international organizations will participate in the summit. On the eve of the event, a major event will be held to promote film tourism, which the UT government has been actively promoting in recent years.
G20 meeting scheduled amidst Opposition from neighbouring countries
The upcoming high-profile meeting in Srinagar will provide India with an opportunity to demonstrate it to the world that normalcy has been restored in the Union Territory.
Despite opposition from Pakistan and China, India has decided to go ahead with the G20 meeting in Srinagar. Pakistan had urged its G20 allies, such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and China, to prevent the meeting from taking place in Srinagar.
Numerous foreign countries, including United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France have in the past designated Kashmir as a no-go zone and issued travel advisories warning their citizens against visiting the region due to safety concerns.
It is time to assure these countries that J&K has turned over a new leaf and a new era of peace and tranquillity has dawned on Kashmir thanks to the proactive measures taken by the government to root out terror and bring prosperity to the people of the state.
It is now imperative to combat the negative narrative prevalent worldwide and seize an opportunity to internationally promote the UT.
According to reports, nearly two million tourists visited the valley in 2022. The G20 meeting is also seen as a chance for India to refute Pakistan's false allegations of human rights violations in the Kashmir Valley.
The meeting is expected to boost tourism, create economic benefits, generate employment for locals, and make the region a stable destination for investment.
In February, the first tourism working group meeting was conducted in Rann of Kutch, Gujarat, with a focus on rural and archaeological tourism via tours and side events.
The second meeting took place in Siliguri, West Bengal, from April 1 to 3, and featured a side event on adventure tourism in the region. India has planned 215 G20 meetings for various working groups and aims to cover almost all state capitals and UTs.
Hopeful Prospects: G20 Summit will reverse negative perceptions about Kashmir
Currently, there are many positive developments as people eagerly anticipate the upcoming international event with optimism and enthusiasm. They seek to dispel the negative perceptions that the world has held for decades, particularly since the height of armed militancy in 1990, which turned Srinagar into a city of frequent funerals and expanding graveyards due to the numerous deaths caused by bombs and bullets.
In the past, as has been mentioned before, several countries, such as the US, UK, Germany, and France, all influential members of the G20, had issued advisories to their citizens, warning of the hazards of traveling to a perilous location like Kashmir and these concerns were justified then, as terrorists abducted and killed citizens from the US, the UK, Germany and Norway among others. All this while, when terror held sway, the ordinary Kashmiris held their own beliefs and pined for peace.
They did not support any harm inflicted upon domestic or foreign visitors. However, foreign terrorists who did not respect local customs and as well as local terrorists misled by Pakistani propaganda that advocated violence and destruction, silenced their voices.
Today, the people of Kashmir, waking up from decades of false propaganda about India’s intentions recognize today that this is the perfect time to undo past wrongs.
In 2022, nearly two million tourists visited the Valley, with most staying in Srinagar or passing through, but this only tells one part of the story. While it confirms that Srinagar is safe for visitors, the place still requires international branding, which, the Kashmiris deeply believe, can only be achieved through the G20 meeting.
The people of Srinagar are now eager to host a successful G20 meeting which, they believe, will bring economic benefits. These benefits are not limited to an increase in tourism but also include opportunities for investment and the potential to train local youth in professions that can compete on a global scale. There is a desire to elevate Srinagar and the Kashmir region to the status of other successful economic hubs like Shanghai and Dubai.
People today believe that the right ecosystem is now being created for the economy to flourish, and it would lead to breaking down of political barriers. The responsibility to promote the idea that Kashmir is safe without excessive security measures lies not only with the government but also with local stakeholders such as political and business leaders who have already expressed their support for the upcoming event.
It is crucial that the event is not portrayed as a response to the designs of the enemy, but rather as a Kashmiri-owned event, delivering its own strategic message to all, including disruptive forces within and beyond the border. Pakistani designs to spoil that environment should be foiled at all cost.
The people of Kashmir have seen through the Pakistani gameplan and do not any longer subscribe to the blind separatist ideology that forces from across the border have tried their best to plant and nurture over the years.
It is time countries like Pakistan and China, now working in close tandem with each other, must be made to realise that their plan to misguide the Kashmiris and use them as pawns in their strategy vis-à-vis India has failed and they should mend their ways before it backfires on them.
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