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The ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan turned out to be an unexpected opportunity for the people of Patnitop and Batote and those dependent on tourism for livelihood.
Many people from Jammu and other surrounding areas preferred to stay in hotels in Patnitop and Batote with their travel companions, marking the area as safe and secure. Many visitors who left Kashmir halfway preferred to stay in hotels in Patnitop. Following the Pahalgam attack, tourism in Jammu and Kashmir wore a deserted look, which affected Patnitop as well. However, over the past few days, tourists have started to visit again, due to which there has been a rise in income for the hoteliers. According to hotelier Rajesh Kumar, due to the Pahalgam incident, the situation worsened in Jammu, due to which the tourism business was deeply affected. However, many people left Jammu and came to Patnitop, a hill station in Udhampur district, which is a sign of relief for everyone. "Ever since the situation in Pahalgam worsened, our work was absolutely zero, the people who were from here fled from Jammu and are now coming to live here. Now we have got relief because vehicles have come, otherwise, the situation was bad", he told ANI. Tourist Kiran Patel, who came from Gujarat to visit Kashmir, stated that she went to Srinagar, however, everything was banned following the Pahalgam incident and due to the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan. However, she was pleased to come to Patnitop and said that she felt safe. "We have come from Gujarat to visit Jammu and Kashmir. When we left, the situation here had become serious. We went to Srinagar, and the situation there had become very serious. We could only go to Sonamarg, everything else was closed, then we came to Patnitop and have been staying in a hotel here for two nights. We saw all the places here and we felt very safe," she said. (ANI)
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