TBM Staff - Mumbai People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti has urged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to revoke an order issued by the Jammu and Kashmir Cable Car Corporation. The order directs tourist guides and service providers to be charged as normal passengers for the second phase of the Gulmarg Gondola Project.
Expressing her concerns, Mufti questioned the rationale behind the local administration’s decisions, which she believes are detrimental to the interests of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. She criticised the recent directive in Gulmarg, which makes it mandatory for tourist guides and service providers to pay for the second phase of the gondola cable car, deeming it poorly conceived and nonsensical.
The issue arises from a previous order passed by the Jammu and Kashmir Cable Car Corporation last month. This order specified that guides and service providers must be charged as regular passengers if they accompany tourists to Affarwat on the second phase of the Gulmarg Gondola Project. Mehbooba Mufti pointed out that this was not the previous practice, as they were allowed to accompany visitors with the assistance of a special pass. She highlighted that these individuals already struggle to make a living that barely sustains their families by assisting tourists. She appealed to Manoj Sinha to reconsider this order, as it could have a profoundly negative impact on their livelihoods.
