Struck by Pahalgam terror attack, Kashmir-bound tourists from Uttarakhand cancel bookings

Terrified by the gruesome terrorist attack in Pahalgam, people in Uttarakhand who had planned to visit Kashmir have cancelled their bookings. According to the International Air Transport Association and other tours and travel agencies, almost all flight tickets and lodging bookings have been cancelled in the last 48 hours, for the first time.

Information provided by travel and air ticket operators in Uttarakhand indicates that people who had planned to visit Kashmir for summer tourism have now cancelled their plans following the terrorist attack in Pahalgam. Tour operators in Dehradun said they had been receiving calls throughout the day for cancellations of air tickets and hotel bookings in Jammu and Kashmir ever since terrorists killed 26 tourists on Tuesday.

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Tour operators associated with the International Air Transport Association stated that for the first time, almost all flight tickets booked for Jammu and Kashmir from Dehradun and other parts of the state have been cancelled.

According to members of the Association, air tickets and hotel bookings were cancelled both online and through respective tour operators. Speaking to the media, Sudhir Kumar, director of Doon Tours and Travel, said, “Tourists bound for Jammu and Kashmir have taken a U-turn on their plans after the attack on tourists in Pahalgam. They are not willing to risk their lives. Since the terror attack in Pahalgam, our offices have been receiving calls for only cancelling hotel and flight bookings for Jammu and Kashmir.”

Similar views were expressed by Manish Sharma of Comfort Tours in Dehradun. Sharma said, “In the past few years, Jammu and Kashmir had once again emerged as a favoured destination for tourists from Uttarakhand. A large number of people from Dehradun used to visit Kashmir during the summer. More than 200 people from Doon alone had planned to visit Kashmir. They had booked flights, hotels, and local transport through us. However, no one wants to go there anymore.”

Another tour operator from Dehradun, Mukesh Sharma, said that people travel to Kashmir from Dehradun either by air or by road. “Those travelling by their own vehicles have easily cancelled their plans, while those flying are now trying to cancel their tickets,” he said. A member of the International Air Transport Association informed that all 35 air tickets he had booked for Kashmir for April were cancelled on Wednesday itself.