After Pahalgam attack, tourist footfall down in Dal Lake too

SRINAGAR: Shockwaves of the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam have also reached the serene waters of Srinagar's iconic Dal Lake, located 90km from the ill-fated town that saw 26 killings on April 22. Known for its houseboats and unique Shikara rides, the lake has seen a dramatic 80% decline in tourist activity, according to estimates.
Also called the ‘Jewel in the Crown of Kashmir', the lake lacked the usual bustle of visitors on Sunday, leaving Shikaras eerily vacant despite peak tourist season setting in. Shikara owners were passing time, playing cards or engaging in conversations about the far-reaching consequences of the attack on this thriving tourist spot.
Shikara rides on Dal Lake are one of the most popular activities for tourists visiting Kashmir. There are around 3,000 Shikaras in Dal Lake, divided and operated from 25 ghats (landing steps) spread around the lake in the heart of Srinagar. There are around 800 houseboats that cater as places of stay for tourists in Dal Lake.
Talking to TOI, Shikara owners blamed what they called "factually incorrect" information spread in some media platforms for the sudden fall in tourists in Srinagar.
Zameer Hussain Bhat, president of the local Shikara association at Ghat 19A, said the number of Shikaras differed from 60-100 at one ghat and half capacity of them used to be occupied during normal days, now hardly 3-4 Shikaras from each ghat get tourists whole day and some did not get even one for the past five days. "Pata nahin kis shaitan ki nazar lag gayee" (I do not know which devil's eye has affected us). Otherwise, we were getting an unprecedented number of tourists in the past 3-4 years," Bhat added.
He added Shikara owners did not have time for a meal earlier, as there used to be long queues of tourists. "Now there are hardly 50-60 tourists in the entire Dal Lake area," he said.
Rashid Khan, a Shikara owner from Ghat 14, informed that in the past five days, there had been a fall of 80% tourists. He added in a normal day by 12 pm, one person used to complete two rounds at least but today till 1 pm, not a single tourist has visited them. "This time we had witnessed highest bookings and visitors since January. Now all bookings are cancelled, we have been rendered workless," said Farooq Alim of Ghat 16.
He said many people came from Gujarat, Mumbai and Bengal.
All Shikara owners unequivocally criticised the attack and termed it as direct attack on their livelihood. Similarly, wooden houseboats that offer stays to tourists in the floating waters of Dal are also adrift without guests. Houseboat owners reported that even their bookings for May were cancelled, deepening the crisis.
Manzoor Pakhtoon, president of the local houseboat association, told TOI that there were around 800 houseboats affected by the sudden cancellation of bookings and reduction in tourist footfall. He appealed to the govt to ensure no misinformation is spread about such incidents so that people do not cancel bookings out of panic.
The impact of the crisis extends beyond Shikara owners to the entire ecosystem of vendors along Dal Lake. Those who sell snacks, fresh fruit, jewellery, traditional clothing, and handicrafts from their boats in Shikaras are also bearing the brunt of the downturn.
The usually overcrowded airport of Srinagar also has no visitors and the security check-in process, which used to take 40 minutes to 1 hour, is now done in 10 minutes. Flights from Delhi and Chandigarh are hardly half full and mostly with locals or those coming for work.