Jammu & Kashmir to connect tourism hotspot Gulmarg with Kargil

Jammu & Kashmir is looking to connect Gulmarg with Kargil and Drass in Ladakh, with a 600 km-long highway. The new highway will be constructed touching all the picturesque tourist spots in the Kashmir Valley, each of which will be “another Gulmarg”, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam has said.

The project cost is estimated at Rs 8,000 crore. “We are planning to construct a 600 km road which will touch tourist attractions like Keran, Gurej and Machhal. The road will connect all unexplored tourist spots and picturesque valleys and help open them for the tourists,” Subrahmanyam told a group of visiting journalists.

The chief secretary said there will be 12-13 major tunnels along the road and it will also facilitate connectivity to the forward locations. “Each of these tourist locations will be another Gulmarg,” he said.

While picturesque Keran and Machhal are located along the Line of Control in Kupwara district, Gurez is a valley surrounded by snow-capped mountains in Bandipora district. Kargil and Drass now fall under the Union Territory of Ladakh.

Gulmarg, located about 50 km from Srinagar, is one of the best tourist attractions in the country with its snow-clad mountains, magnificent beauty and winter game facilities.

The chief secretary said the Jammu and Kashmir administration has also intensified construction of rural roads. “Earlier, on an average 1,300 km rural road was built in a year but now we are planning to build 5,000 km rural road in a year,” he said.