Gulmarg, Indian-administered Kashmir – A dismayed Javad Ahmad appears to be like up on the clear blue sky and the barren and crimson ski slopes in Gulmarg, a preferred vacationer vacation spot within the Indian-administered Baramulla district of Kashmir.
Sitting outdoors his closed ski store, he hopes for snowfall as an unusually dry winter disrupts tourism and threatens livelihoods within the Himalayan area.
A ski teacher by occupation, Ahmad is often booked nearly daily between December and February, as tens of millions of Indians go to the picturesque valley, ski the white slopes and sightsee across the snow-capped mountains and valleys.
However he’s out of labor this yr, together with tons of of different trainers and mountain guides.
All ski resorts booked till early February have been cancelled. On common, he says, the mountains was 9 to 12 meters excessive [9-12 metres] of snow at increased altitudes. That is solely a meter of snow.
The well-known ski resort of Gulmarg, near the Line of Management that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan, now appears to be like abandoned.
“That is the primary time in twenty years of my snowboarding profession that I’ve been with out work in January,” says the 41-year-old.
“It breaks my coronary heart to see these mountains with out snow.”
‘I am fascinated about altering jobs’
The snowless mountain slopes have pressured Ahmad to rethink his occupation.
“I do not see the long run in snowboarding. I am fascinated about altering jobs, which once more is not simple for me. If the scenario stays the identical, I could need to search for another livelihood,” he says.
Muhammad Yasin, one of many oldest ski trainers in Gulmarg, says the ski resort was busy at the moment of yr, “however now it is all empty”.
“If it snows, our work begins and if not, we will solely wait,” says Yasin.
Indian-administered Kashmir, together with the Ladakh area, is dealing with a extreme dry spell this winter, each within the plains and at increased altitudes within the western Himalayas.
In Kashmir, the economic system is basically depending on tourism, which contributes 7 p.c to the area’s gross home product (GDP). In accordance with authorities information, 16.8 million vacationers visited the valley till the top of September 2023, whereas round 19 million vacationers arrived in 2022 – the yr tourism was revived within the disputed area, additionally claimed by neighboring Pakistan, after nearly three years of lockdown. .
Tourism in Indian-administered Kashmir was hit laborious in 2019 when New Delhi scrapped the area’s particular standing and imposed a months-long safety measure. That was rapidly adopted by the coronavirus pandemic and extra lockdowns, disrupting lives and livelihoods.
However the lack of snowfall this yr has as soon as once more raised fears of one other wasted yr. And never just for ski trainers, but in addition for hoteliers, guides and different workers.
“That is my first time visiting Kashmir and it’s fairly disappointing with out snow,” stated Muhammad Suhail, a vacationer. “We had paid for the resort and different issues prematurely, in any other case we’d have canceled the journey.”
Quite a few resort bookings have even been cancelled.
“Nearly 30 p.c of bookings have been canceled and that is growing daily,” stated Aijaz Bhat, resort supervisor in Gulmarg.
“Our company try and go away early.”
‘Snowless, brown land’
Pony using is among the many prime native sights for vacationers. Now the boys who handle the ponies say they wait at their stand all day and return house within the night with out making any cash.
“We earn lower than two {dollars} a day. The vacationers get upset and are available again after they see snowless, brown land,” stated 45-year-old Bashir Ahmad.
The meteorological division in Indian-administered Kashmir has forecast dry climate till January 24. If the spell continues, it’s unclear whether or not India’s annual Nationwide Winter Video games, often held in Gulmarg within the first week of February, can go forward.
“Throughout winters, tourism in Gulmarg will get a lift because of the Nationwide Winter Video games. If the scenario continues, the video games could also be canceled this yr,” stated Ghulam Nabi Lone, chairman of the seaside city’s merchants affiliation.
The residents of Gulmarg blame the native administration’s failure to deal with air pollution as the explanation behind the scarcity of snowfall, particularly in environmentally delicate vacationer locations.
“We have not seen Gulmarg like this in many years. The authorities are unable to regulate air pollution,” stated Tariq Ahmad, president of Pony Staff Affiliation in Gulmarg. “In addition they reduce down the forests for development functions and dump waste within the forests.”
There have been fears of a water disaster
Consultants additionally say unregulated tourism could have contributed to air pollution and local weather change within the Himalayan area.
“Elevated customer numbers usually result in overuse of sources, waste era and CO2 emissions, which impacts native ecosystems and worsens world warming,” says environmentalist Anjal Prakash.
Gulmarg Improvement Authority CEO Raja Wasim stated whereas sustainable tourism was the authority’s precedence, it couldn’t take all measures directly. “It’s a gradual course of and it’ll take a while earlier than we will change and regulate issues,” he says.
Wasim additionally denied that the dearth of snowfall had hit vacationer footfall within the space, however admitted that there had been some resort and ski cancellations.
Consultants additionally say the snow scarcity within the higher Himalayas could have been brought on by climate-related disturbances, which have modified conventional rainfall patterns.
“The Himalayas have been experiencing the impacts of local weather change, together with retreat of glaciers and adjustments in snowfall patterns,” stated Prakash, including that elements akin to rising temperatures, melting or retreating glaciers and altering atmospheric circulation have contributed to the lowered snowfall.
“This shift threatens water availability, agriculture and ecosystem well being,” he provides. “Native populations face elevated vulnerability to pure disasters and useful resource shortages, escalating socio-economic issues.”
Geologist Shakil Romshoo warns {that a} lack of snow within the area might additionally result in water shortages later within the yr.
“The lower than regular snowfall, with abnormally excessive daytime temperatures, could result in water shortages in summer time, which is not going to be ample to fulfill the calls for of water-intensive paddy cultivation in Kashmir,” he stated.
“The low snowfall has already hit winter tourism in Gulmarg and different hill stations within the valley and if the development continues, it is going to worsen sooner or later.”
