SRINAGAR: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has called for the formulation of a tourism master plan for Jammu and Kashmir.
As per a fresh notification from the MoEFCC, the UT administration has been advised to prepare a tourism master plan in consultation with the Departments of Environment and Forests of the Union Territory.
“The Tourism Master Plan shall be prepared by the Department of Tourism, Union Territory administration in consultation with the Departments of Environment and Forests of the Union Territory,” the notification reads.
It said the tourism master plan shall form a component of the Zonal Master Plan.
The MoEFCC has asked the Jammu and Kashmir government to come up with a Zonal Master Plan for the eco-sensitive zone.
The notification said the tourism master plan shall be drawn based on a carrying capacity study of the eco-sensitive zone.
The MoEFCC said a committee comprising the Principal Secretary (Environment and Forests), Chairman of the Pollution Control Committee, an expert each in ecology and environment and civil constructions from an institute of repute such as IIT Jammu, and a representative from the Department of Environment and Forests, shall be constituted for suggesting environmental safeguards or measures for the construction of new hotels and resorts, which shall form a component of the Tourism Master Plan.
“The said committee shall put in place a risk assessment study on landslides, slope stability, and seismicity and recommend environmentally friendly and safe construction measures to be adopted,” it said.
It said the establishment of new hotels and resorts shall be permitted only in predefined and designated areas for eco-tourism facilities as per the tourism master plan.
“All new tourism activities or expansion of existing tourism activities within the eco-sensitive zone shall be in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Central Government and the eco-tourism guidelines issued by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (as amended from time to time) with emphasis on eco-tourism, eco-education, and eco-development,” the notification reads.
It said until the Zonal Master Plan is approved, development for tourism and expansion of existing tourism activities shall be permitted by the regulatory authorities concerned based on the actual site-specific scrutiny and recommendation of the monitoring committee—(KNO)
