Kargil, Aug 25: Keeping in view the upcoming Suru Festival, Administrative Secretary, Tourism & Culture, Housing & Urban Development and Information & Public Relations, UT Ladakh, Sanjit Rodrigues stated Kargil should gain its own recognition on the tourism map and attract visitors to stay rather than only being treated as a transit point.
He added that to achieve this, the UT Administration is working on various initiatives, among them the Suru Festival being one which is a unique initiative.
“To decentralize tourism in Ladakh, clusters of villages have been identified for setting up homestays under centrally sponsored schemes so that locals can generate supplementary income while staying in their native places,” Rodrigues said.
He highlighted that training youth in avenues like trekking and guiding, along with the establishment of a library and a museum in Kargil, is a priority.
Secretary also said that the UT Administration is committed to creating a network of libraries across all Blocks of Kargil besides prioritizing the construction of rock gardens.
He stated this while attending the press briefing given by Chief Secretary, UT Ladakh, which was also attended by media persons of Kargil.
Subsequently, the Administrative Secretary held an interaction with the media persons of Kargil and discussed various issues like tourism promotion and development activities in the district.
The Administrative Secretary then urged media personnel to ensure maximum promotion of the upcoming Suru Festival, along with post-event publicity, to attract more tourists this year and in upcoming seasons thereby benefiting local stakeholders in every aspect.
He further stated that conservation of heritage sites is also a key priority of the UT Administration. In this regard, conservation of sites like Hunderman and other areas will be explored on priority. He added that the restoration of the Karchey Khar Buddha Maitreya statue has also resumed.
Later on, the Administrative Secretary visited Sher Bagh and Bulbul Bagh to take stock of the projects being executed there by various Departments.
He was accompanied by the Deputy Commissioner, CEO, LAHDC-Kargil, Rakesh Kumar; ADC-Kargil, Imteeaz Kacho who is also the Administrator, Municipal Committee of Kargil; Arifa Iqbal, Executive Officer, Municipal Committee of Kargil; Accounts Officer, Tourism Development Authority, Kargil; Deputy Director, Archives & Archaeology, Khadim Hussain; Assistant Executive Engineer, R&B-II Division and other engineering and administrative staff.
He also checked the maps and outlays of the various projects and passed necessary action for speeding up the pace of work. He finally visited the Tourist Facilitation Centre (TFC) being managed by the Tourism Development Authority, Kargil.
The Deputy Commissioner, CEO, LAHDC-Kargil, Rakesh Kumar; SSP-Kargil, Shree Ram R; ADC-Kargil, Imteaaz Kacho; Deputy Director, Archives & Archaeology, Khadim Hussain; along with members and representatives of various news organizations were present on the occasion.
