Hyderabad: The historic decision to abrogate Article 370 that conferred J&K with special powers will in all likelihood bring rich dividends to both newly formed union territories Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
This move is likely to change not only the current political dynamics in the region but also expected to spur economic and business activities. ETV Bharat traces five new growth areas of development in the newly formed union territories (UTs) due to the recent changes:
1. Tourism and Hospitality: Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh have the potential to become the world's biggest tourist destinations.
Tourism contributes about 15% of GDP of the erstwhile state. It is estimated that almost 50-60% of the total population of J&K is directly or indirectly engaged in hospitality and tourism-related activities.
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh tourism In addition to traditional recreational tourism, a vast scope exists for adventure, pilgrimage, spiritual and health tourism. This will, in turn, improve the job opportunities for the local people of UTs.
2. Horticulture and Food Processing Industries: A vast natural resource base has enabled J&K to develop land for cultivating major fruits.
The state’s share in the overall apple production in India was 76.25 percent in 2017-18, with the overall production of apples in the state reaching around 1.74 million metric tonnes.
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh Horticulture and Food Processing Industries Food processing industries could also receive a boost, there could be some opportunities in the anvil for e-commerce players but for all that purchasing power has to improve, all these have to be integrated.
With varied agro-climatic conditions, the scope for horticulture is significantly high in J&K. This will aim at promoting investments and fiscal incentives.
3. Information and Communication Technology Sector: The Nordic countries, consisting of Finland, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, and Sweden have experienced a data center boom over the past decade.
IT infrastructure requires a low temperature to operate at an optimum level. With the average monthly temperature in winters as low as -2 degrees Celcius, Kashmir can be an attractive place for companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Amazon that have growing operations in India and neighboring China.
Information and Communication Technology According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) monthly time-series data on unemployment, Jammu & Kashmir had the highest monthly average unemployment rate of 15 percent between January 2016 and July 2019 among all the states.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation on Thursday said that new BPOs would be established in J&K. He also urged public and private sector companies to come up and establish their center in J&K and will improve job prospects of the locals.
4. Real Estate: As per realty experts, the lackluster property prices in Jammu and Kashmir will shoot up by up to 50 percent because of the opening up of the realty market after the government's decision to revoke Article 370 and Article 35A.
In Srinagar's prime Pantha Chowk area, houses can be bought for as low as Rs 2,300 per sq ft, which are among the lowest in Indian metro cities and even lower than the outskirts of most tier 2 cities.
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh Real estate Now if that is open to all, there will be a demand for purchasing properties and that may drive up prices and attract bigger investors towards it.
5. Handicrafts Industry: J&K is famous for its small-scale and cottage industries such as carpet weaving, silks, shawls, basketry, pottery, copper and silverware, paper-mâché and walnut wood.
Now with greater availability of land, outside parties will invest more in these industries, increasing the demand and supply both for the producer and consumers. These products should be advertised and must be sold all over the world.
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh Handicraft Industry Due to decades of violence and tensions, development couldn't take place in this paradise on the earth. With the removal of the special status of J&K, it is now open to new ventures. With good governance and right policy changes, only the sky is limit to the once terror-infested state. Scraping of Article 370 is only the first step towards it.
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