‘Mini Kashmir’ picking up as winter tourism spot

Bhadarwah, December 30

Buoyed by the steady rise in tourist footfall in this Doda district town, billed as ‘Mini Kashmir’ for its scenic beauty, the Bhadarwah Development Authority on Sunday organised a marathon to promote snow games here.

Over 200 students from different schools of Bhadarwah and dozens of volunteers participated in the marathon ‘Run Bhadarwah Run’, officials said. The marathon was aimed at promoting snow games in the town to attract holiday makers during winter, they said.

The marathon was flagged off by Jammu Tourism Director OP Bhagat and BDA Chief Executive Officer Rajinder Prasad Khajuria from the new bus stand.

After passing through various localities of the old town, it culminated at the new bus stand, where they were received by Doda District Development Commissioner Anshul Garg.

“We have decided to promote winter tourism in a big way here and to achieve our goal, we have planned different campaigns. Today’s marathon was one among them,” said Khajuria.

He said the involvement of locals was a must for the success of these efforts.

“To give our plans a practical shape and to make it a success, the involvement of local people is mandatory. Today’s event is primarily aimed at engaging locals from different sections of society, especially youth, and making them believe that winter tourism is possible here,” he said.

Bhagat said tourism had become the second biggest industry and to be part of the rapidly growing sector, it was imperative to introduce new places to tourists and open the doors to them during winter.

Bhadarwah has a vast potential in the tourism sector and every effort would be made to attract more tourists to the place which is popularly known as ‘Mini Kashmir’ for its resemblance with the ‘paradise on earth’.

A local participant, Arif Rana, said the decision to promote winter tourism would go a long way in not only boosting the economy of the region but would also help address the growing unemployment among youth. — PTI