Srinagar, Oct 12: Jammu and Kashmir aims to become the first Himalayan territory to adopt a Mountain Development Policy, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on Monday, stressing that the framework must be developed through collective efforts rather than in isolation.
Addressing the 13th Sustainable Mountain Development Summit at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K), Omar said his government was keen to implement the policy but stressed the need to involve all stakeholders in its formulation.
“From my governance side, I would tell you that we would love to implement it, but it is important that the policy is not created in isolation,” he said.
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The Chief Minister talked about the importance of environmental protection to Jammu and Kashmir’s economy and livelihoods and said agriculture and horticulture contributed far more to the region’s economy than tourism, contrary to a widespread perception outside the region.
“Most people outside J&K have a misconception that the region’s economy survives on tourism, but in reality, the contribution of the tourism sector towards the economy of J&K is on the third or fourth number. Agriculture and horticulture are far above anything else,” he said.
“For us, protecting our environment and sustainable mountain development is our existence, and our very survival depends on it,” he added.
Omar said environmental protection could not be left to the government alone, calling for responsible behaviour by citizens and coordinated action to address the growing challenges posed by climate change.
“Protecting the environment is a primary job of the government, but at the same time, I believe that citizens should use the environment judiciously,” he said, adding that neither a region nor a country could tackle climate change single-handedly.
Referring to changing weather patterns in Kashmir, the Chief Minister said the region had experienced a shortage of rainfall, uneven snowfall and an unusual series of cloudbursts over the past couple of years.
“This is a new reality. This is a reality we are living with. With this, we need to learn how we can sustain our livelihoods along with development. Development is essential,” he said.
On tourism, Omar acknowledged the environmental pressure caused by the growing number of visitors but cautioned against viewing tourism and pilgrims as the sole contributors to ecological damage.
He said the government had discussed the possibility of limiting tourist numbers in closed-door meetings, but imposing restrictions would be difficult given the dependence of many families in Jammu and Kashmir on the sector.
“In closed rooms, we are discussing limiting the number of tourists, but in reality, we cannot restrict them to limited numbers because many families in Jammu and Kashmir are dependent on the tourism sector,” he said.
The Chief Minister, however, acknowledged that some tourist destinations lacked the capacity to accommodate more visitors and said there was a need to expand tourism to other areas.
“It is true that some of our tourism destinations do not have the same carrying capacity, and we need to widen the tourism sector. It is also true that there is more pressure on the environment because of tourism, but saying that all the issues related to the environment occur just because of yatris and tourism isn’t correct at all,” he said.
Urging people to examine their own contribution to environmental degradation before blaming tourists, Omar called for greater responsibility in reducing plastic use and other harmful practices.
“Before raising fingers at tourists, it is our responsibility to protect the environment. We need to look at ourselves and see how much plastic bag usage and other hazardous things are being used by the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
