The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday said that the people of Kashmir for centuries have welcomed the Amarnath pilgrims and this legacy will continue with the same spirit and sincerity.

Mehbooba was interacting with the local businessmen, taxi drivers, hoteliers, ponywalas, and civil society members at Pahalgam ahead of the annual Amarnath Yatra that will begin on 3rd July. Pahalgam, which is the main base camp of the Amarnath Yatra, wears a deserted look after the killing of 26 civilians, including 25 tourists, by terrorists on 22 April.

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Mehbooba said, “Ensuring a peaceful Amarnath Yatra is a collective responsibility of every Kashmiri. The biggest security of Amarnath Yatris are the people of Kashmir”.

“The people of Pahalgam have kept the Hindu-Muslim unity alive in the country. The security of Amarnath Yatris is the responsibility of every inhabitant of Pahalgam”, she stressed.

Mehbooba said that the terror attack has caused a severe setback to tourism in the Kashmir valley and hopes of its revival were now on the Amarnath pilgrimage.

The PDP president said she had called those workers of her party who live along the route of the yatra and has asked them to secure the pilgrimage. She told them that the people of Pahalgam have to secure the yatra so that it passes off well and confidence is restored among the tourists, by virtue of which tourism will be restored.

“We want Amarnath yatris to come. The way in which the people of Kashmir have welcomed them for centuries, God willing, they will be welcomed this year as well. They will be served well and they will return safe and sound to their homes,” she said.

Thousands of ponywallas, hoteliers, shopkeepers, and taxi and auto drivers suffered due to the terror attack. They have taken loans from banks and they are in distress, she said.

She appealed to the Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to reopen parks like Chandanwari, Aru, and Beetab Valley in Pahalgam so that tourists would visit these places and help the hoteliers and ponywallas to earn their livelihood. These parks were shut down after the Pahalgam terror attack.