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Kashmir's new normal: tourists, turmoil, and rising militancy!

Kashmir's visible army presence once deterred protestors and mujahideen. Now, it hosts tourists from Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan alongside gun-wielding Rashtriya Rifles (RR) personnel.

By Sanjay Kapoor
New Update
Kashmir's Tourism and Rashtriya Rifles

Kashmir's Transformation: Tourists Amid Turmoil and Rising Militancy | Photo courtesy: Social media

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Kashmir's Paradox: Tourism Boom Amid Rising Militancy and Army Presence

Five years is indeed a long time to change everything in a state, more so in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. For those who have not been to the beautiful state of lakes, icy peaks, and verdant slopes for a long time or those who have memories of films like “Kashmir ki Kali” that displayed abundant natural beauty and a languid pace, the trouble-torn state has changed even in comparison to what it was before August 2019.

Then, Kashmir had a visible presence of the army that was meant to scare brick-batters, protestors, and stray gun-toting mujahideen that had escaped the security dragnet around the Srinagar valley. Now it is a contradictory mix of a high volume of tourists from states like Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan that roam around cheek by jowl with gun-wielding security personnel of anti-militant organisations like Rashtriya Rifles (RR). Is this normal?

This bizarre contradiction is heightened by the sudden spurt in the killings of officers and men of the Indian army in the dense jungles of Kathua, Doda, and Reasi districts in the Jammu region—seemingly far away from the Kashmir valley. These heightened encounters and killings have increased traffic snarls due to the movement of troops and army convoys to areas considered close to the border with Pakistan like Sopore, Baramulla, and Kupwara. When the army convoy travels, all civilian traffic comes

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