International

After Malaysia and Thailand, B’desh sends third highest number of tourists to JK

After Malaysia and Thailand, Bangladesh has become the third country to send tourists to Jammu and Kashmir.

Speaking to The DailyStar, Nazir Mir, Chairman of Association of Tour Operators of Kashmir (AKTO) said, “We started our promotional campaign in Bangladesh last year and it is amazing that we received third largest number of foreign tourists from Bangladesh in 2017 after Malaysia and Thailand.”

Mir added that the state received around 5,500 Bangladeshi tourists in 2017. Around 15,000 came from Thailand and 20,000 Malaysian tourists visited the state in 2017.

Mir pointed out that local tourists are still the highest in number however they are looking to tab more international tourists.

“As we are getting only 50,000 foreign tourists every year, now we are planning to concentrate more on international tourists to flourish our tourism industry.”

He also stressed on the fact that there is no security concern regarding tourists who visit the state.

“You can’t find a single unwanted incident around the tourist spots so far,” he told the DailyStar.

Jammu and Kashmir consists of three regions — Jammu, the Kashmir Valley and Ladakh, he said, adding “We get pilgrims for Jammu, families and groups for Kashmir valley and youth for Ladakh,” he added.

Mir also said that the tourism scenario is getting better every year and  many interesting activities for the tourists have been lined up including fairs, festivals, sports and adventure.

“We should expect satisfactory growth in arrivals, he added.

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