Hope and fear when tourists return to Pahalg after attack

One week after a devastating belligerent attack near the Pahalgha mountain resort in India, Kashmir killed 26 people, the city carries a quiet emptiness, although tourists have begun to rotate in a small number.

The main street abandoned by visitors last week – with shops, closed and hotels, completely emptied – again sees fleeting signs of life.

Last Tuesday, the fighters opened fire for people, mostly tourists who visited Baisaran, a mountain meadow three miles (5 km) from Pahalgam, often described as “Switzerland of India”.

The attack was one of the most deadly in recent years, devastating the lives of many families and ignited wide anger in India.

In the days thereafter, the tension between India and Pakistan, which they both claim to Kashmir in full, but apply it only in part, has increased significantly, with each country declared response measures against the other.

There is now an increase in speculation about whether there will be a military reaction from Delhi.

While violence often explodes in the region, with fighters aimed at security forces and civilians after riots broke out in 1989, the murder of tourists is rare and shocked local business and tourists.

Tourism is the basis of the economy in places like Pahalgam and now there is a fear that a lot of livelihoods can be irrevocably hit.

In a selfie point outside the city, overlooking lush meadows and a hurry Akshai Solanki, a tourist from Mumbai, said he had a “panic” among his group of travelers on the day of the attack. But they had decided to continue their journey because the flights back home became inaccessible.

Other tourists said that the constant assurances of the locals and the security forces gave them a sense of comfort. A driver who took visitors from the capital, Srinagar, told the BBC Hindi that he is praying for visits not to “distance” from Kashmir.

After washing three days, the salesman of the scarf Rafi Ahmed said he was able to sell only a few pieces and fear for his livelihood in the long run if tourists stopped coming.

Among those who exhort tourists to come to Pahalgha, was the Bollywood actor Atul Kulkari, who visited the urban days after the attack. He told BBC Hindi, if the message from the fighters is “Do not come here, we have to answer by entering even more numbers.”

“Do not cancel reservations, cancel your other plans and come here,” Kulkari said.

But the uncertainty and retention of the size in Pahalg, and it may take several years before the sense of normality is restored, the owners and residents of the local business told the BBC.

Indian authorities have begun combining operations in the region, holding hundreds of people and destroying homes belonging to alleged fighters.

India and Pakistan have been reported to have exchanged fire to small weapons across the border.

The escalation in tensions is the retention of tourists and business owners at Tentterhooks.

Indian authorities often claim that Kashmir has witnessed a period of relative peace after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government canceled its autonomous status in 2019. Before the General Elections in India in 2024, Modi welcomed the “freedom” that has come in the region, stating that Kashmir touches new heights.

Higher leaders have pointed out the high tourist number – about 23 million last year and millions more over the years – as proof of a big boom after years of Unquiet. But last week's attacks again destroyed every idea of ​​lasting peace in the Restive Valley.

“This (attack) is spots on us … How we delete it is a long -term concern,” Rafi Ahmed Meer, a Pahalgan politician, told BBC Hindi, calling for tourists to remember that the local Kashmiris rushed to help after the attacks, even taking bodies.

Travel cancellation coefficients planned by cities such as Pune, Mumbai and Bengaluru are very high, said Abhishek Sansare, based in Mumbai Tour Operator in front of the BBC. A group of prominent tour operators said at a press conference that about 80-90% of all reservations had been canceled.

“After the attack, there is a feeling that a war is emerging. So tourists are confused about what to do,” Sansare said. “Some of those who have already made pre -reservations are moving forward with their plans. I also go there to the 2nd next month.”

The attack on tourists is also likely to weigh on Kashmir in other ways. Complication on the highest railway bridge in the world, which will connect the Kashmir Valley to the rest of India, had to happen this month after a few delays.

The timeline to open this exhibition project now “seems uncertain,” a source told the BBC.

The region was just beginning to attract newly constructed business investment, but these could also dry out if the hostilities were rising.

“People who have invested in logistics and other sectors will now think twice because of the security environment. Until they regain some confidence, I do not provide investments coming to Kashmir immediately,” said Ubair Shah, who owns one of the largest cold storage facilities in cashmere.

As the region continues to fit, local leaders have expressed deep grief for the families who lost their loved ones.

In a fearless speech at the Jamu and Kashmir meeting on Monday, the Chief Minister of the State and the Minister of Tourism Omar Abdullah paid tribute to the victims by reading the names of all 26 people.

He said that the people from every part of the country were attacking, and while they came to Kashmir at his invitation, he could not provide their safe return.

“I had no words to apologize to them. What can I tell the children who saw their father immersed from blood? To the widow of the Navy officer who was married only a few days ago?

“Some people told me they would come to Kashmir for the first time, but they would have to pay for their festive life,” he said, adding that the attack had “carved” Kashmir.