No responsibility for blasts, say parking slips in Srinagar

This is something you wouldn’t expect when you park your vehicle, and pay for it too. Parking slips being issued by local authorities at a tourist hotspot in Srinagar are coming with a very unusual warnings of possible bomb blasts, a development that could scare tourists away from the Kashmir Valley.

“No responsibility for Blast (sic),” read the parking slips issued at Cheshmashahi by the Department of Floriculture, Kashmir.

“Such mindless warnings will only discourage tourism—which provides livelihood to lakhs of people in the Kashmir Valley—and won’t serve any purpose,” local resident Asrar Ahmed said. He noted that the the devastating floods of 2014, followed by the ongoing round of political unrest, had already jolted the tourism-reliant economy of the Valley in recent times.

Local tourist operators believe that Shimla is reaping the benefits as tourists look for alternate summer destinations with similar climactic conditions.

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti blames television channels for spooking tourists away by spreading “false propaganda” about the state and, projecting the Valley as a dangerous area.

When contacted by National Herald, Floriculture Officer of Srinagar, Naseer Ahmad Hussaini, said that it was the responsibility of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation to manage parking arrangements at Chashmashahi.

Shafqat Khan, the Commissioner of Srinagar Municipal Corporation, however, said that the parking facility near Chashmashahi was being managed by the Floriculture Department.

“We have verified that parking tickets being provided by the Floriculture Department near the Botanical Gardens area, have such warnings. The department must take corrective measures without any delay,” Khan told NH.

The Director of Floriculture Kashmir, Hussain Mir, refused to comment on the issue, whereas several calls to Farooq Shah, who is the Secretary, Tourism Department and Floriculture, Gardens and Parks Department, went unanswered.