Business Archives | Page 101 of 104

Casinos can start in Kashmir, but not a priority: Deputy CM

September 4, 2015 Editor

Casinos were a potential avenue for tourism promotion in Jammu and Kashmir, but it was not a priority right now, Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh said on Thursday. On a visit to Goa, a hub for tourism and offshore as well as onshore casinos, the BJP leader was asked if he planned to emulate Goa’s casino experience in India’s northernmost state to promote tourism. “Casinos can happen, but it is not our priority right now. What can be done later can be thought out,” he said. He said Jammu and…

We will make J&K round the year destination: Secretary Tourism

September 3, 2015 Editor

Secretary Tourism Farooq Shah interacted with travel trade associations of Kashmir to get their ideas to promote Kashmir to increase both domestic and international tourist arrivals. The travel trade representatives put forth their suggestions and the Secretary Tourism assured them of making J&K a round the year destination. The tourism stakeholders held a two hour long brainstorming session with Farooq Shah and the meeting discussed various ways to and strategies to promote J&K’s unexplored and existing tourism potential. He asked the travel trade fraternity to support the efforts of tourism…

Kashmir crafts can sell like hot cakes if marketed properly – Mufti

September 3, 2015 Editor

Stresses upon GI Registration, price tagging of genuine products Stressing better branding of Kashmir Handicrafts, Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed today called for a concerted effort to overcome challenges in better marketing of hand-made products in the burgeoning domestic and international markets. Describing today’s entrepreneur as a “technopreneur” who is ready to take on the world, Sayeed said the export-oriented handicraft products will sell like hot cakes, even in wake of fierce competition, if we stick to globally-recognised benchmarks in originality and pricing. Investors should take a cue from the…

Affarwat gets season’s first snowfall

September 1, 2015 Editor

The high-altitude Affarwat area in ski-resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir Monday received season’s first snowfall, resulting in dip in temperatures across Kashmir, even as some other parts of the Valley witnessed rainfall, officials said. Meteorological department officials said Affarwat received slight snowfall on Monday morning. “There was an overall five-degree dip in temperature due to the snowfall,” they said. The temperature recorded on Monday was 23.2 degrees while it was 28.7 degrees on Sunday, a MeT official said. Director MeT, Sonam Lotus said weather will remain fine for next…

Govt forms panel to fix rates for cold storage of fruits

September 1, 2015 Editor

Plans to expand storage facilities across state to help fruit growers The government today constituted a committee to fix rates of cold storage facility for apple and other fruits. The government is also planning set up controlled atmosphere storage facilities at Sopore, Parimpora, Jablipora, Kulgam, in Kashmir, and Narwal in Jammu. The committee, which has Director, Horticulture, and Director, Horticulture Produce and Marketing as its members, is mandated to hold threadbare discussions and make suggestions for better storage of fruit, besides suggesting rate for storage of apple and other fruits…

Streamline traffic around tourist places: TAAK to traffic police

August 28, 2015 Editor

Travel Agents Association of Kashmir (TAAK) has flayed local administration especially traffic police for their failure to maintain proper traffic arrangements on boulevard and around Mughal gardens. In a statement, President of TAAK Peerzada Faiyaz Ahmed said the world famous Mughal gardens face worst criticism from the tourists thus giving a bad name to the tourism of the state. “Visiting Cheshmashahi, Nishat and Shalimar has become so painful that it takes full day to have a half day’s trip. There are no or very less parking areas demarcated around these…

Onion brings tears to consumers’ eyes

August 27, 2015 Editor

Ban on imports from PaK leads to crises in market The ban on imports of onions from across Line of Control (LoC) the prices of onion in Kashmir have reached to Rs 70 -75 per kg in retail. In wholesale the rates are in between Rs 50 to 60 kg while Kashmir grown onions are being sold at Rs 45 to 50 per kg. It’s getting harder for middle class people to cope with the increasing rates of the onions. “If the situation remains the same, I think the common people…

Labourers’ strike enters 24th day at Qazigund-Banihal Tunnel Project

August 27, 2015 Editor

The strike by local labourers working on 8.5-km Qazigund-Banihal tunnel—undertaken by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)—against “disparity in wages” entered its 24th day Wednesday, hampering work on the project that has already been marred by delays. The Qazigund-Banihal portion of the highway expansion project is undertaken by the NHAI’s Srinagar-based Project Implementing Unit and has already missed several deadlines. A fresh deadline of the project is May, 2016. On May 27 this year, Minister for Roads & Buildings Syed Altaf Bukhari expressed concern over the slow pace of…

Tourism dept gears up for winter games

August 26, 2015 Editor

Attract families for winter sports in Valley: Shah Soon after taking over the charge as Secretary Tourism, Farooq A Shah called a high level meeting to discuss ways and means to promote and organize winter games in Kashmir in the upcoming winter season. The meeting was attended by veterans in winter sports, officials of tourism department and Winter Games Association of J&K on Sunday at Civil Secretariat. Shah said Gulmarg has become a premier ski resort in the Himalayas and many athletes throng the place during winter. He, however, stressed…

Dachigam National Park off limits for tourists

August 26, 2015 Editor

With the authorities making Dachigam National Park ‘out of bounds’ for visitors, the move has irked the local tour and travel operators who say their tour itineraries have been disturbed. “Many of our clients who go to Dachigam park return disappointed,” the tour operators said. “We are being told the closure has been ordered by the CM office. But we wonder why no prior intimation was given to us,” they said, adding that a prior intimation about the park closure “would have guided us not to include Dachigam visit in…