‘Boats, shikaras waiting for tourist: J-K CM Omar Abdullah shares aerial footage of empty Dal Lake

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday shared a video of Dal Lake, showing the gentle waters, once alive with shikaras, now lying eerily still.

“It is so sad to see Dal Lake,” Abdullah wrote in the caption on Instagram. “Normally this time of the year, the lake should be bustling with shikaras laden with tourists. Right now it is completely empty, the boats docked at the side waiting and hoping……”

His words summarise the despair sweeping through Kashmir’s tourism-dependent economy after the Pahalgam terror attack. The attack which claimed 26 lives and sent shockwaves across the country, has led to widespread cancellations of travel plans. Tour operators, hotel owners and local artisans who rely on the influx of tourists now stare a bleak season.

Dal Lake, often called the ‘jewel in the crown of Kashmir’, has long been a symbol of the region’s serene beauty. At this time of the year, the lake is usually abuzz with honeymooners, families and foreign visitors eager to experience the magic of Kashmir. But this season, silence reigns.