Tourism In Kashmir Hit By Cancellations Amid West Asia Tensions And LPG Crisis
Tourist footfall was expected to improve this Spring as the authorities had projected tourist footfall to touch around 10 lakh during the spring season.
Published : March 12, 2026 at 3:42 AM IST
|Updated : March 12, 2026 at 1:41 PM IST
Srinagar: Known as Iran-e-Sageer (Little Iran), Kashmir was a hub of Persian culture, language, literature and art between the 14th and 18th centuries as it remained a key destination in the Silk Route that connected India with Persia.
While the Iranian influence has somewhat faded over the decades, Tehran has had an impact on Kashmir, hardly anyone could have imagined two weeks back.
The ongoing West Asia conflict--in its 13th day on Thursday--triggered by the US and Israel attacking Iran late last month, killing its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and Iran's retaliatory attacks in the Gulf, has disrupted global markets on a massive scale.
Kashmir's hospitality sector, which has been at the receiving end since the dastardly terrorist attack on tourists in Pahalgam last year, is also feeling the heat as safety concerns and energy crisis triggered by the raging conflict are leading to cancellations.
After 2025 saw the lowest 11.16 lakh tourist turnout in the last four years following the Pahalgam attack, the footfall was projected to grow to 10 lakhs in spring this year.
The conflict has put a question mark on these projections. The timing is particularly damaging as it coincides with the opening of key tourist attractions like the Tulip garden on the foothills of the Zabarwan hills in Srinagar, which drew 8.25 lakh visitors in March-April 2025.
Farooq Ahmad Kuthu, president of the Kashmir Travel Operators Association, was confident of a higher footfall until last month. Now, he says, inquiries have massively declined in the last 12 days.
"Tourists had started trickling in from November last year. We were expecting tourist arrivals to reach around 20 lakh this year," he said. "Nearly 50 per cent of the arrivals were expected in the first half of the year, especially at Tulip Garden and Badamwari Garden in Srinagar." Kuthu is unsure of the numbers pulling through.
Nasir Shah, Jammu and Kashmir chairman of the Indian Association of Tour Operators, said they have witnessed around 30 per cent cancellations in March bookings. "People are hesitant to travel amid the ongoing situation," he said.
While overall anxiety and uncertainty are making people put their leisure travel plans on hold, the impact on cooking fuel is exacerbating the situation. Iran has targeted oil facilities in the region, forcing many to close, while also choking the crucial Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas passes.
This has triggered an energy shortage, especially in India and other countries that are heavily dependent on crude oil imports. As is the case in other states in the country, J&K hotels and restaurants are also considering restricting operations due to low occupancy and shortages of commercial cooking gas.
Gowhar Maqbool, president of the Kashmir Hotels and Restaurants Owners Association, which represents around 1,200 hotels and restaurants, said current hotel occupancy stands at only 15 per cent. He also said that the situation may get worse if cooking gas supplies run out and may force many restaurants to shut down.
The central government has enforced the Essential Commodities Act to regulate LPG supplies and prioritise domestic cooking gas for households. This has created a supply crunch for hotels and restaurants that depend on commercial LPG.
Jagmohan Singh Raina, president of the All-India LPG Federation, acknowledged that commercial LPG supplies to hotels and restaurants have stopped. This, he said, can push the tourism sector "to the verge of closure".
The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), the region’s key trade body, has raised concerns with the government about the disruption in gas supplies. The chamber said that long-term shortages could lead to layoffs in the hospitality sector.
According to KCCI general secretary Fiaz Ahmad, such a development would worsen unemployment in the Union Territory, which already records a jobless rate of 6.7 per cent, compared with the national average of 3.5 per cent. More than five lakh people directly or indirectly depend on tourism for their livelihood, and the sector contributes nearly 7 per cent to Jammu and Kashmir’s Gross State Domestic Product, according to the Economic Survey 2025–26.
Meanwhile, Kashmir’s Divisional Commissioner Anshul Garg said the administration currently has adequate fuel reserves to last for more than two weeks, while LPG supplies are expected to last for around 13 days. He also said that residents and businesses should avoid panic buying.
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