Ever since I landed in Srinagar six days back, I have been constantly moving from one houseboat to another, taking a Shikara every morning to work, and been eating in some of the most frequented tourist restaurants in the city.
When thinking of Kashmir, one instantly remembers the fabled kind heartedness and generous hospitality of Kashmiris, who are known to go above and beyond for their guests. I too experienced this warmness, though laced with some instances of swindling. This is common in any famous tourist city, but as an aspiring journalist, I was compelled to find the methods used by service providers to extract just that little bit more out of visitors. What I found, not only shifted the focus of my original intention to write this story, but also compelled me to start working towards a greater issue, which is aggravating the plight of Kashmiri tourist service providers.
FREE SHIKARA RIDE
Ive been living in a houseboat, a famous attraction on every tourists to-do list ever since I came here from my home town of Mumbai. Houseboats are just on the edge of Dal Lake, specifically lined up in front of famous Boulevard. To go to these houseboats, one has to first step onto a shikara which on your first ride has a standard fare of 50 Rupees. After you have reached your desired houseboat, all rides on the shikara to the street are not to be charged. Sadly, before I learned of this custom, I had been told by my houseboat manager each ride back to the shore would cost me 50 Rupees, and after 8pm, a single ride to the shore increases to 200 Rupees. Living in this houseboat and being charged for every shikara ride for two days, Id spent a considerable amount of money which I could have avoided, had I known I was being duped.
When I tried to look into this issue, it was a shikara owner named Hamid, who enlightened me, and made me aware of how I was paying where I shouldnt have been. Hamid was quite enthusiastic in his explanations, and was keen to speak to me once I mentioned I worked for a local newspaper. Hamid spoke in almost perfect English, perhaps a testament to his involvement in the tourism industry. He said, You are not supposed to be charged for shikaras after your reservation is made, but perhaps what compels some of us to do this is that we are still suffering from the devastation wrought by the 2014 floods. The floods in 2014 badly hit many Kashmiri businesses including tourist trade.
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Hamid confessed how he was still feeling the effects of his losses during this period. He took his family to Delhi during the floods, and came back to discover hed lost a few of his shikaras, and his houseboat which he invested life savings, was damaged beyond repair. The government has perhaps forgotten it is we who function the tourism industry on the ground, and we received no help, not even moral support, after
The floods. Hamid even offered to introduce me to other members of the shikara union, who suffered similar circumstances after the deluge.
PRE-PAID TAXI
The next facet of the tourism industry I wanted to look at were the cab drivers, especially the pre-paid taxi drivers from the airport, who are the first contact point of any tourist arriving from Srinagars airport. I took a pre-paid cab from the airport to Dal lake boulevard, which at the counter I was told would cost me around 720 Rupees. An unusually high amount I thought, as a cab from the airport to my house in Mumbai costs me considerably lesser, which is also around thirteen and a half kilometers, almost same distance from Srinagar airport to Dal lake. My curiosity towards inquiring about this high charge led me to a tourist taxi stand on Boulevard, where you can find a group of cab drivers waiting for daily fares to the city. It was here I was introduced to Nazir, who everyone was seated around. I introduced myself, and narrated my experience of the pre-paid taxi fare to Nasir. I noticed through my narration, Nasir had a wry smile on his face and knew exactly what he was going to say once Id finished my spiel. If you were to take a cab from this taxi station to the airport, wed charge you around 600. When I asked why the difference, he said there is a commission involved. A commission, that the cab driver has to pay to the Airports Authority of India, while he is at the airport waiting for a customer. When I asked if this fare was legitimate, he became instantly hesitant and said he wasnt sure of its legitimacy, but knew if he wanted customers from the airport, the commission had to be paid. It seemed inevitable to me, to ask him why he hasnt thought of challenging this or questioning this commission. We cant afford another altercation with the center (New Delhi).
INDIAN MEDIA
Anything we do or say, is so wickedly mangled by Indian press, that even questioning a government official will be portrayed as seditious.
The media situation was of such aggravation to the cab drivers in the room, the tension was almost palpable. Nasir said it was the time of Ramazan, so he didnt want to curse, but he didnt hold back when expressing his sentiments towards the Indian media. These people are savages. They drive our customers away from the state, and we struggle to make ends meet. We even invest some of our own money, go to New Delhi or Mumbai, to find potential tourists and bring them here. What does the Indian media get from portraying us in such horrible ways? Nasir was referring to the incident where a tourist died from a stone throwing incident, which was picked up by Indian news channels for multiple days.
Nasirs explanations for the common cab drivers plight in Srinagar made me aware of the fact that the dependency on tourism of the a seizable section of states residents, is critical to their survival. Having been a tourist here for almost six days, I havent once felt in danger or received any bodily harm. I wonder why then is the National Media transfixed on slandering Kashmir?
This experience with the tourism industry has been the ideal stepping stone for someone trying to get a sense of the state. Its people are most effected by what we say, what we think, and how we perceive Kashmir in our metropolitan cities. People visiting this state is the means by which many Kashmiris earn a living. If the Centre does not aid these local service providers, and if mainstream news channels keep driving away potential tourists, how will the the tourism industry here survive? If we want to think of Kashmir as a prized tourist destination, we need to start treating the state, and its people, with the concern they deserve.
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