Pahalgam, July 22: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha today visited Nunwan and Chandanwari Base Camps and reviewed the services and facilities for the pilgrims.

The Lieutenant Governor interacted with the pilgrims, service providers, langer sevadars, sanitation workers, medical staff, and administrative, Police and security officials deputed for the ongoing Shri Amarnathji Yatra. He took stock of department-wise arrangements, logistics, lodging, disaster management, healthcare and other facilities that have been put in place on travel route and Yatra base camps at Pahalgam axis.

The Lieutenant Governor lauded the dedication, passion and commitment of Camp directors, officials of Shrine Board, Civil and police administration, security forces, service providers, volunteers and every-one involved in the holy yatra for ensuring a pleasant and memorable pilgrimage for the devotees of Baba Barfani.

“Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra has crossed 3,35,000 mark. The success of the yatra will give a significant boost to the tourism sector in the Union Territory. 97 percent positive feedback received from Pilgrims. The Yatra is going on smoothly, meeting all the expectations. We are witnessing an overwhelming atmosphere of spiritual fervor and festivity throughout the base camps,” the Lieutenant Governor said.

The Lieutenant Governor directed health officials to conduct an in-depth analysis of patterns and causes for the health-related incidents among pilgrims, and take precautionary measures to improve overall health outcomes for the devotees.

He also reviewed the Yatra feedback system and directed for incorporating traffic feedback option for better traffic management and to facilitate the smooth movement of the pilgrims.

The Lieutenant Governor was accompanied by Dr Mandeep K. Bhandari, Principal Secretary to Lieutenant Governor and CEO, Shri Amarnath Ji Shrine Board; Vijay Kumar Bidhuri, Divisional Commissioner Kashmir; V K Birdi, IGP Kashmir; Rahul Yadav, MD, JKPDCL and Nodal Officer, Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra for Pahalgam Axis; Syeed Fakhrudin Hamid, Deputy Commissioner Anantnag and other senior officers of District Administration, SASB, Police and Security Forces.

Srinagar, July 22: Despite passing of over two and half-years since the notification of the Jammu and Kashmir Land Grants Rules, 2022, the Government is yet to implement the new framework in the world-famous tourist destination Gulmarg, allowing several hotels and commercial establishments to continue operations illegally on the government land.

In a notification dated December 9, 2022, the Government, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 4 read with Section 9 of the J&K Land Grants Act and all other enabling provisions, notified the J&K Land Grants Rules, 2022.

The Rule 12 of the Rules of 2022 states: “All leases (except the subsisting/expired residential leases) including lease granted under the J&K Land Grants Rules, 1960, Notified Area (All Development Authorities set in Tourism Sector) Land Grants Rules, 2007 and leases expired or determined prior to the coming into force of these Rules or issued under these Rules shall not be renewed and shall stand determined.

“Such leases shall again be put to auction as per the provisions of these Rules and the Deputy Commissioner concerned shall be the authority for issuing the notice of auction”, Rule 12 further reads.

“However, majority of hotels in Gulmarg are functioning in complete contravention of these Rules and the administration has not initiated retrieval or auction proceedings in all these cases despite having full authority to do so”, the daily Excelsior quoted an official as saying, adding “this has resulted in substantial revenue losses and raised serious questions about transparency and rule enforcement”.

As per the conditions laid down under the J&K Land Grants Rules, 2022, the Government land that has been encroached upon shall not be leased to the encroacher. However, such encroached land may be leased out to any eligible person or institution or legal entity etc after eviction of the encroacher. Furthermore, in the event of any violation of the lease conditions, the lease shall stand automatically terminated and the land shall be resumed by the Government free from all encumbrances with immediate effect and without any compensation.

“Despite these clear provisions, the Rules are being openly violated, as a large number of hotels continue to occupy land beyond the extent specified in their expired leases, with no action being taken by the concerned authorities”, sources said, adding “the prolonged inaction is occurring in a highly sensitive and eco-fragile zone where unchecked commercial activity could have long-term environmental consequences”.

According to the Rules, there should be an Empowered Committee to identify and designate the land and the purpose for grant of lease, recommend the period of grant of lease, which shall ordinarily be for 40 years, monitor every lease agreement entered into and conditions thereof and recommend to the Government for cancellation of any lease.

“However, the Empowered Committee has not started performing its functions strictly as per the Rules of 2022 in respect of Gulmarg. Moreover, there is no implementation of Rule 11 pertaining to rates of premium and ground rent for the lease”, sources said, adding “it has specifically been mentioned in the Explanation appended to Rule 11 that mere deposition/recovery of the premium and ground rent shall not confer any right of occupancy unless the lease is granted by the Government”.

“Several influential hoteliers of Gulmarg, who are illegally operating after the expiry of lease period and are in the illegal occupation of adjoining land, are making all out efforts to get the Rules of 2022 modified as strict implementation of Rules will result into auctioning of entire Gulmarg as all leases except two have expired and outlived maximum period”, sources said.

Srinagar, July 23: In a major crackdown on fraudulent trade practices threatening the credibility of Kashmir’s world-famous handicraft industry, the Directorate of Handicrafts and Handloom, Kashmir, has blacklisted and deregistered ‘The Kashmir Art Bazaar’, Tangmarg, after the showroom was found guilty of selling a machine-made carpet for ₹2.55 lakh to a tourist by fraudulently passing it off as a hand-knotted Kashmiri GI-certified product.

As per Order No. 10-HD(QC) of 2025 dated 22.07.2025, issued by Director Handicrafts and Handloom Mussurat Islam, the seller used a fake QR code resembling the official label issued by the Indian Institute of Carpet Technology (IICT) to mislead the buyer into believing the carpet was an authentic GI-certified craft. A formal criminal complaint has been ordered, and further legal proceedings have been recommended under the GI Act and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

The matter came to light after a tourist complained to IICT, stating he had paid ₹25,000 in advance for a carpet from The Kashmir Art Bazaar, located in Konchipora, Tangmarg, with the total transaction amounting to ₹2.55 lakh. The showroom allegedly presented a certificate and QR code claiming IICT certification.

Upon verification, IICT confirmed the QR label was forged and not issued by their institution. The case was escalated to the department’s Quality Control Division, which conducted a physical inspection, seized the carpet, and issued a show-cause notice to the proprietor.

In his response, the proprietor denied the fraud, claiming the customer declined the purchase once told the carpet wasn’t GI-certified. However, this was contradicted by photographic evidence submitted by the complainant, as well as findings from IICT that confirmed the fake label had been pasted onto a machine-made carpet.

The department termed the reply “totally misleading and unsatisfactory,” and concluded the act was a deliberate attempt to cheat the buyer by exploiting Kashmir’s GI craft reputation. The Director stated in the order that the seller had deliberately created a fake QR label resembling the original GI label of IICT and pasted the same on a machine-made carpet to cheat the concerned tourist.

Citing violations of Sections 6 and 7 of the J&K Registration of Tourist Trade Act, 1978, the Directorate ordered immediate blacklisting and deregistration of the seller.

“Furthermore, it is hereby ordered that a formal complaint shall be filed against the proprietor of The Kashmir Art Bazaar with the office of the Senior Superintendent of Police, Tourism Enforcement, TRC, for initiating stringent action against him for pasting a fake QR code purportedly in the name of IICT, and requesting to investigate the network which seems to run this racket of pasting fake GI QR labels on machine-made items.”

The order further observed that once the seller realised the fraud had been detected, he attempted to remove the fake QR label from the carpet to cover up the malpractice. However, evidence provided by the complainant and expert verification from IICT confirmed the wrongdoing.

The department noted that such acts not only violate consumer trust but directly undermine the GI-certified identity of Kashmiri craft, threatening the livelihood of thousands of artisans and weavers.

Srinagar, July 22: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Tuesday launched a web portal to expedite the process of providing relief and compassionate appointment to the families of terror attack victims in the Union Territory.

Sinha said the portal, developed by the Home Department in collaboration with the National Informatics Centre, will be centralised platform to capture and maintain comprehensive district-wise data on terrorism-affected families.

“Launched a dedicated web portal today for terror victim families in Jammu Kashmir. The initiative will streamline & expedite the process of providing relief, compassionate appointments, and other forms of assistance to those who have suffered from terrorism in the UT,” the LG said in a post on X.

“I am personally monitoring and overseeing the redressal of all cases across the UT,” Sinha added.

On July 13, Sinha handed over appointment letters to the next of kin of 40 terror victims in Baramulla.

Speaking on the occasion, he had said that the government was committed to providing jobs and justice to terror victim families. He also said that the days of family members of terrorists getting jobs were over.