<div>Jammu and Kashmir has rebuilt its flood-ravaged tourism and transport infrastructure and the state is ready to receive tourists with new enthusiasm, senior officials said.</div><div> </div><div>The state suffered heavy floods, described as the worst in a century, in September last year with key tourist hotspots, including many areas in Srinagar, under water and hundreds of thousands of people stranded in their homes.</div><div> </div><div>"The affected areas have been cleaned and the damage has been repaired," said Talat Parvez, Kashmir's director of tourism.</div><div> </div><div>He said the famous Boulevard Road on the banks of Dal Lake is again buzzing with tourist activity.</div><div> </div><div>The state's tourism secretary Shailendra Kumar said visitor flows in January were "normal", similar to the same month last year.</div><div> </div><div>Any remaining damage will be fixed by March 31, Kumar said in New Delhi at an event organised by the Jammu and Kashmir tourism board.</div><div> </div><div>Hotels and other businesses in tourist places in Kashmir are operating smoothly, and guest accommodation capacity has reached the pre-flood level, the officials said.</div><div> </div><div>"We are trying to send a message that we are ready to look after visitors," Kumar said.</div><div> </div><div>Hotels had reported massive cancellations following the floods. Tourism plays a major role in the state's economy, which suffers from a high youth jobless rate.</div><div> </div><div>The sector accounts for about 30 per cent of workforce through direct and indirect employment. Linked to tourism is Kashmir’s thriving handicrafts trade.</div><div> </div><div>More than 95 per cent of travellers to Jammu and Kashmir are domestic, but the industry hopes to attract more foreign tourists by promoting more attractions such as adventure and rural tourism.</div><div> </div><div>"Kashmir has the image of a honeymoon destination because of Bollywood films but we have more to offer," Parvez said.</div><div> </div><div>He said people from Southeast Asian countries made up about 65 per cent of 115,000 overseas tourists the state received in 2014.</div><div> </div><div>The state tourism department is working on three religious “circuits” to attract Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim travellers.</div><div> </div><div>Buddhist sites of Ladakh will be promoted to visitors from East Asian countries such as Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.</div><div> </div><div>Hindu pilgrims mostly visit the Vaishno Devi and Amarnath sites and their number was more than 10 million last year.</div><div> </div><div>Domestic leisure tourists numbered about 1.1 million during the year, less than the 1.4 million the government was expecting before September.</div><div><img src="/image/image_gallery?uuid=dbdd821b-b06c-42e9-aef6-ddbaaa590dd7&groupId=219112&t=1422958285602" width="600" height="328" vspace="5" hspace="5" alt="" /></div><div>"We are setting a target of 1.5 million tourists for Kashmir this year. We want to promote the state as a four-season destination," Parvez said.</div><div> </div><div>Golf, skiing, rafting, village tourism, Sufi sites and historic places are among the attractions being promoted.</div><div> </div><div>The peak season for the Valley’s tourism is summer, when holidaymakers visit Kashmir to enjoy its cool climate.</div><div> </div><div>Skiing is a big draw in winter, which brings snowfall and sub-zero temperatures. Riding on the international reputation of Gulmarg as a ski destination, the state wants to add more skiing facilities.</div><div> </div><div>The Gulf region and Europe can be potentially huge sources of tourists, but the tourism department faces a tough challenge to boost foreign arrivals without direct international flights.</div><div> </div><div>"Gulf tourists won’t come unless we have direct flights," Parvez said.</div><div> </div><div>Air India Express launched a direct Srinagar-Dubai flight in 2009 but the service was later terminated.</div><div> </div><div>Europeans earlier visited the state for its handicrafts and leisure, but their numbers have dwindled because of travel warnings by their governments over safety and security issues.</div><div> </div><div>Kumar said the state tourism industry wants with the Civil Aviation Ministry to allow international air connections.</div><div> </div><div>"At the state level, we are ready to handle international flights," he told Business World Online.</div>
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