Srinagar, May 10: Chief Minister Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah on Sunday inaugurated the India Golf Carnival 2026 at the Royal Springs Golf Course (RSGC) in Srinagar, with more than 100 golfers participating in the event, including over 30 players from Jammu & Kashmir.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said Kashmir has long shared a deep association with golf and possesses some of the finest golf courses in the country, including Srinagar, Gulmarg and Pahalgam.

“We are trying to encourage local golfers and use these courses for tourism promotion as well,” he said, adding that the tournament was aimed at improving the sport and inspiring a new generation of young golfers in Jammu & Kashmir.

Highlighting the growing interest in golf tourism in Kashmir, Omar Abdullah said many golfers from outside the Valley have started visiting Srinagar for long weekends, particularly during holidays in North India, solely to play golf.

“There is hope that it will definitely benefit tourism,” he said.

The Chief Minister also that a group of young golfers is also expected to visit Pahalgam in the coming weeks, while the Gulmarg golf course is expected to become fully operational by July after fresh equipment and facilities are put in place.

On efforts to place Kashmir on the global golfing map, Omar Abdullah said the government, in collaboration with tourism stakeholders and organisers, is planning similar events for Gulmarg and Pahalgam as well.

“The idea is that whenever people think about golf tourism, the first thought that should come to their minds is and its three major golf courses,” he said.

He added that the government would continue to invest in promotion, maintenance and infrastructure to strengthen golf tourism in the region.

Responding to a question on the impact of such events on the hospitality sector and employment generation, the Chief Minister said the administration intends to host more such tournaments in the future.

“Our aim is to see both local golfers and golfers from outside Kashmir play here together. We want to see more and more golfers coming to Kashmir,” he added.

Director Tourism Kashmir Syed Qamar Sajad said the India Golf Carnival 2026 was being organised as an “ice-breaking event” for the promotion of golf tourism in Jammu & Kashmir in collaboration with partner organisations, including CII and other agencies.

“We have around 80 participants from outside from the UT and the rest are from J&K. In total, around 110 golfers are participating in the event. We expect that it will significantly boost golf tourism in the Valley,” he said.

Srinagar, May 9:Just as the public outrage and administrative action against drugs intensifies, provisional stores, departmental stores and road side vendors in Kashmir openly flout the rules and laws meant to decrease the incidence of smoking.

The practice of selling loose cigarettes and cigarettes to minors here remains rampant, quietly easing children and teenagers into nicotine addiction.

Many shops in Kashmir now display a rate list of single cigarettes, sold without pockets, known as loosies, or per stick.

The bustling markets and neighborhood kirana shops across Kashmir have resorted to this practice to help the consumers tide over the hurdles created by law.

The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), 2003, and a specific 2016 notification by J&K government ban the sale of loose cigarettes, beedis, and loose tobacco.

The laws also bar sale of cigarettes to minors.

A senior official in the Drug and Food Control Organisation said it is this practice of selling loose cigarettes that helps minors buy it. “This ways it is affordable, and they don’t have to worry about storage and hiding while at home,” he said.

He said a single cigarette is what the minors start with, and it is their first step towards addiction.

Doctors also believe that the easy availability of single cigarettes is fueling tobacco consumption in Kashmir.

Kashmir is already grappling with smoking prevalence.

Rates among the highest in India.

The smoking prevalence is around 20.8 percent in J&K, nearly double the national average.

This has earned J&K the tag of the “smoking capital” of North India in various reports over the years.

In February this year, GoI increased the prices of cigarettes by imposing higher taxes and excise duties on tobacco products to discourage smoking and increase public health revenues.

However, this has not translated into decrease in consumption as loosies are available.

Under COTPA, tobacco products must be sold in original, intact packaging.

The packaging must bear prominent graphic health warnings, which loose cigarettes bypass entirely.

Selling to minors under 18 is also prohibited. In addition, sale of cigarettes within 100 yards of educational institutions is also banned.

Despite periodic enforcement drives, raids, and fines compliance remains poor.

Shopkeepers often cite customer demand and thin profit margins on full packs as reasons for the practice.

Doctors have expressed alarm over access for young people.

A single cigarette is often priced between Rs 8-25 depending on the brand, makes the habit affordable for students and teenagers who cannot afford full packs.

Loose sale cigarettes are rampant near schools, stakeholders said.

“Kashmir already has high stress levels due to various factors; easy tobacco access worsens public health outcomes like respiratory diseases and cardiovascular problems,” doctors said.

Srinagar, May 09: People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti said on Saturday that strict action should be taken against drug peddlers, but innocent families should not suffer by having their houses demolished.

While addressing a party convention in central Kashmir’s Budgam district, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir said, “If anyone is involved in drug trafficking, they should be jailed, but you should also ask those police personnel who release them after taking money from them. Why are their houses being bulldozed? What is the fault of the family members? Why are you demolishing their houses? There is no justice.”

She also criticised chief minister Omar Abdullah over the coercive action, saying, “Omar, if the people had liked bulldozer baba, why would they have voted for you? People voted for you and gave you 50 MLAs thinking you will safeguard them.”

Referring to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha’s padyatra as part of the Nasha Mukt J-K Abhiyaan in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district earlier in the day, the PDP president alleged that government employees, school teachers and students were directed to arrive for the event at 6:30 am.

“I will not name the person who messaged me at midnight last night. That person said the LG is organising Nasha Mukt Abhjiyaan event in Anantnag, but all employees and schools, including women and girls, have been directed to arrive at 6:30 am. I want to tell the LG that the campaign is a good initiative, but… making them wait, I think, is an excess,” she said.

The PDP chief accused the government of “rampant corruption”, saying deserving youths are denied opportunities while political favoritism dominates recruitment.