Date:18/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/18/stories/2008081857621200.htm

National

Agitation hits Jammu’s economy hard

Staff Reporter

Jammu: Pilgrimage tourism and Jammu’s economy have been hit hard by the Amarnath land row which entered the 48th day on Sunday. Small traders and daily wagers are its worst victims.

Trains to Jammu are coming in empty. Before the agitation started in the first week of July, it was difficult to get reservations in trains to Jammu. Nearly 7 million Vaishno Devi Shrine pilgrims arrive in Jammu every year. Katra, the base camp to the shrine, is an hour’s drive from Jammu city.

Pilgrims stay in Jammu for a day or two and do their shopping, which did wonders to the city’s economy. Most of the passengers headed for Jammu these days are Army personnel joining duty. The impact of the drop in pilgrims’ arrival is quite evident. “We have never seen this kind of a situation,” says Sukhdev Singh a cloth trader. “It may not be a problem for big businessmen, but small traders like me have to earn every day to feed our family.”

Pilgrims who did reach Jammu are in deep trouble though. All the hotels in the town are closed and there is hardly any restaurant that is open.

Private transporters to Katra are refusing to ply their vehicles. Thankfully, the State Transport Road Corporation buses continue to run.

Meanwhile, there are no signs of a letup in the agitation against the order cancelling allocation of land to the Shrine Board.

The Shri Amarnath Yatra Sangharsh Samiti, spearheading the agitation, has decided to intensify the stir.

According to a Samiti press release, a large number of men will court arrest on Monday. On August 19, it will be the turn of women. Children will follow suit on August 20.