New Delhi: With the nullification of Article 370 of the Constitution paving the way for non-residents to buy land in Jammu and Kashmir, the Maharashtra government on Wednesday said it plans to buy land for two resorts in the region.
According to officials, the Maharashtra Tourism development Corporation (MTDC) will set up two resorts - one in Pahalgam in Kashmir Valley and the other in Leh, Ladakh. They said the resorts will aid the tourists going for the Amarnath Yatra and to visit the Vaishno Devi shrine.
The decision has come nearly a month after the government revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, which led to the lifting of the ban on property purchases by non-residents, opening the way for Indians to invest and settle there, just as they can elsewhere in India. The measures, however, were expected to provoke a backlash.
The government said it has allocated Rs 1 crore each to build the two resorts, and a land survey to identify the location will be undertaken in 15 days.
State tourism minister Jaykumar Rawal said MTDC board has decided to set up two resorts; one in Ladakh and another one in J&K. “In Jammu and Kashmir we haven’t found a place yet, we are looking at Srinagar, somewhere close to the airport,” he said.
“In Leh, we are planning to start a mountaineering resort, because of Maharashtrians are interested in mountain climbing, we are going have our on mountaineering resort there,” he said adding we have earmarked Rs one crore for each of the resorts. He further said MTDC is planning to write to the J&K governor asking if there is a government land available they can buy.
Jaykumar Rawal had earlier said the MTDC “does not want to miss the opportunity to invest in Jammu and Kashmir”, which is very popular among tourists.
The MTDC is a state-owned body involved in the development and maintenance of various tourist locations across the state. It also owns and maintains resorts at all key tourist centres in Maharashtra.
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