{"id":11133,"date":"2026-02-02T19:33:27","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T19:33:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/?p=11133"},"modified":"2026-02-02T19:33:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T19:33:27","slug":"prioritize-tourism-in-budget-to-fight-unemployment-mla-gulmarg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/2026\/02\/02\/prioritize-tourism-in-budget-to-fight-unemployment-mla-gulmarg\/","title":{"rendered":"Prioritize tourism in Budget to fight unemployment: MLA Gulmarg"},"content":{"rendered":"

Srinagar, Feb 02:\u00a0<\/strong>Calling tourism the \u201clifeline\u201d of Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s economy, Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Gulmarg Farooq Ahmad Shah on Monday urged the Centre to give the sector \u2018a central place\u2019 in the upcoming Budget 2026\u201327.<\/p>\n

He said a genuine revival of tourism and horticulture can tackle unemployment and create sustainable livelihoods for thousands across the Union Territory.<\/p>\n

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Budget Session in Jammu, Shah said the region has unmatched potential but continues to face chronic underfunding. \u201cTourism is our economic key,\u201d he said, urging the government to treat the sector as a national priority to address unemployment.<\/p>\n

Shah said tourism, if given serious policy attention, can power jobs, self-employment and infrastructure growth across the region.<\/p>\n

The MLA said there has been a decade-long delay in the release of funds under the Prime Minister\u2019s Development Package (PMDP). \u201cIn 2014, the Prime Minister announced Rs 2,000 crore for the tourism sector. Sadly, only Rs 400 crore has been released so far, while Rs 1,600 crore remains pending. That delay has held back vital projects in Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg and other destinations that could have transformed our tourism economy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Highlighting the link between tourism and youth employment, Farooq Shah said that Kashmir\u2019s hospitality industry, adventure tourism and handicrafts could absorb thousands of unemployed youth if given financial and institutional support.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have the human resource, we have natural beauty and what we need is vision-backed funding,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also drew attention to the horticulture sector, calling it \u201cthe other half\u201d of Kashmir\u2019s economic base. \u201cOur agro-based products face post-harvest issues every year. Under the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP), we must focus on cold storage, processing units and marketing channels. The government should also consider KCC loan waivers for small orchardists,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

The MLA Gulmarg further said that despite multiple challenges, the people of Jammu and Kashmir continue to show resilience. \u201cOur youth want opportunities, not handouts. Tourism and horticulture can provide those opportunities if the right budgetary decisions are taken this time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Shah also raised concerns about the rising unemployment and unfilled vacancies in government departments. \u201cThousands of posts remain vacant. Daily wagers and SPOs are worried about their future. The upcoming Budget should send a message of hope, not hesitation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Calling the present administration \u201cpromising and responsive,\u201d the MLA added that the leadership must now translate intent into action. \u201cOur Chief Minister has a vision and a mission to address the people\u2019s hardships. The team must work in unison to fulfil public expectations. This government is of the people, by the people, and for the people,\u201d Shah said.<\/p>\n

He further said that Kashmir\u2019s true prosperity lies not just in infrastructure or statistics but in empowering its people through sustainable sectors. \u201cTourism is not merely a pleasure, but it is a livelihood. If we treat it that way, this Budget could mark a new beginning for Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s economy,\u201d the MLA said\u2014(KNO)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Srinagar, Feb 02:\u00a0Calling tourism the \u201clifeline\u201d of Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s economy, Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Gulmarg Farooq Ahmad Shah on Monday urged the Centre to give the sector \u2018a central place\u2019 in the upcoming Budget 2026\u201327. He said a genuine revival of tourism and horticulture can tackle unemployment and create sustainable livelihoods for thousands […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11134,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11133","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11133","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11133"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11133\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11135,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11133\/revisions\/11135"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11134"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11133"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11133"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11133"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}