The walnut farmers and traders in Kashmir are worried about the decline in prices of Kashmiri walnut due to large imports from California and Chile. According to traders, Rs 800 crore industry is in deep crisis with prices falling drastically due to large imports of California and Chile produced walnuts. “Kashmiri walnuts producers and traders are suffering badly and Centre and state governments are watching as mute spectators. Walnuts grown in Kashmir particularly Anantnag, Shopian, Pulwama, Kupwara, Baramulla and Bandipora are purely organic, as no fertilizer or pesticide was used…
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Business
Hamulla: The Bat manufacturing village of Kashmir
Like in the Kashmir Valley, Sopore town and Pampore town are famous for the production of apples and saffron respectively. Similarly, in Anantnag district of south Kashmir, village identified as Halmulla Sangam, recognizes its identity for manufacturing cricket bats. The vital part of the Halmulla Sangam is that this entire village consisting of around 100 families is associated with cricket bat making business. Most of the families are those who have been associated with the cricket bat making industry for the last 40 years. People associated with this business said…
Read MoreKashmir is the safest place, say women travelers
From joy rides on snow scooters to shopping in a floating market in the scenic Dal Lake, Kashmir has it all to make it ‘the safest place and a shopping paradise’, according to a group of women travelers from Hyderabad, who are out on an expedition to Jammu and Kashmir. Keeping aside the insecurities arising after continuous violence in the state, the women travelers visited Srinagar, including Gulmarg and Pahalgam. “I have been here and knew all the media stories on Kashmir are overplayed which creates fear among travelers,” Rashida…
Read MoreAAI Serves termination notice to local shopkeepers at Srinagar airport, Owners protest, Allege bias
Shopkeepers at the Srinagar airport today staged a protest here after they were asked to vacate the premises by the authorities. The protesters, who gathered at the Press Enclave, alleged that there were being discriminated against as a large number of shopkeepers and salesmen would be rendered jobless. “Some time ago, a tender was floated for leasing out the entire space at the airport to a master concessionaire, who would in turn run it as per his convenience. The qualification for tendering were fixed in such a way that hardly…
Read MoreBudget 2018 – Key Highlights
* Arun Jaitley says that the government does not propose any changes in tax slabs this year. * FM proposes a fiscal deficit of 3.3% of GDP for 2018-19. * Finance Minister Arun Jaitley proposes revising emoluments as per the following structure: — Rs 5 lakh for the President of India — Rs 4 lakh for the Vice President — Rs 3.5 lakh for the Governors * Jaitley also proposes automatic revision of emoluments of Parliamentarians every five years, indexed to inflation. * We have already exceeded our disinvestment target,…
Read MoreKCCI objects to proposed land transfer to police dept
Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) president Javid Ahmad Tenga has expressed resentment over the proposed transfer of HMT Watch Factory industrial land to the police department. “It is unfortunate that the state government is contemplating to transfer industrial land retrieved from the HMT Watch Factory, Zainakot, to the police department for a housing colony,” Tenga said in a statement. “The KCCI had recommended that the chunk of land along with infrastructure created by the erstwhile HMT factory be converted into a gem and jewellery park. The proposal has…
Read MoreWGFI & IISM celebrated World Snow Day at Gulmarg
The Winter Games Federation of India in association with the Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering (IISM) celebrated World Snow Day in Gulmarg on Sunday. A statement issued by the institute said the day was celebrated all over the world to ‘bring children to snow and promote snow sports among our future generations’. It said 90 children from Kashmir and many from other statesparticipated in the celebrations. JS Dhillon, Director, IISM, said many children were interested to pursue snow sports but there was a huge gap in the knowledge on…
Read MoreTourism in doldrums, footfall down in last 6 years
The government’s claim of creating tourism infrastructure in the state has fallen flat as the number of tourists arrivals in the state is decreasing with each passing year. Except the Vaishno Devi shrine and the Amarnath cave, almost all other tourist destinations in the state have witnessed a dip in tourists in the last six years. The Tourism Department last year spent a huge amount by participating in two international events at Berlin and Thailand, but it failed to attract foreign tourists. The state also organised 22 national travel marts…
Read More‘Gul Makai’ Malala biopic shoot creates buzz in Sonamarg
A biopic based on Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai is currently being shot in Sonamarg on the Kashmir-Ladakh axis after the makers discovered that the area resembled the Swat valley known as the ‘Switzerland of Pakistan’. The film shooting has created a buzz in the area in the winter months as more than 700 locals have been engaged in its production in sub-zero temperatures. Even as well-known teenaged actor Reem Shaikh is playing the role of Malala, who had shot to fame after surviving a Taliban attack, more than…
Read MoreUS asks its citizens not to travel to JK, Advisory will affect Kashmir Tourism
The United States Administration of President Donald Trump has warned Americans to exercise maximum caution while travelling to India due to a spurt in crime and terrorism. The advisory has been issued by the US State Department, which asked the American citizens to avoid going to Jammu and Kashmir except for the Buddhist-dominated region of Ladakh. The State Department had on Wednesday launched improvements on sharing information with US travelers to provide clear, timely and reliable safety and security information. “Exercise increased caution in India due to crime and terrorism.…
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