G is a 24 hour digital bureau: The third G20 Tourism Working Group meeting is scheduled to be held in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar on Monday. This is the first major international event in the region after the abrogation of Article 370. For the three-day summit, the union territory has been kept under three levels of security. National Security Guard (NSG), Marcos Commandos and Special Operations Group (SOG) of Jammu and Kashmir Police have been deployed around Sher Kashmir International Convention Center (SKICC), venue of the meeting.
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The meeting will be attended by G20 member countries, invited countries, international organizations and industry stakeholders. Five major priority areas i.e. green tourism, digitalisation, efficiency, MSME and destination management will be discussed here. Foreign delegates will be taken to Srinagar markets and introduced to the arts and crafts of Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing a press conference at SKICC on Sunday, G20 Chief Coordinator Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that Srinagar has undergone a massive make-over and developmental approach in the last few years, especially in the last few months to welcome delegates from various countries. He said the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting has the highest delegation and will be the ‘most important event’ held in Jammu and Kashmir.
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He further said, ‘It is very important to use this meeting to draw attention to Jammu and Kashmir and help revive its handicrafts. It is an opportunity to showcase our rich culture and heritage. No other working group does this better than the tourism group’.
It will be the most significant event in Jammu and Kashmir, he added.
He further said, ‘We have organized 118 meetings from Rann of Kutch to Kohima and from Kanyakumari to Kashmir now. There is a sense of connectedness everywhere and I have no doubt that Srinagar has a similar spirit… We walk around Srinagar and see a completely transformed city. Srinagar is much more beautiful today. (It has) better facilities. It’s a really smart city, which you want to showcase to the world’.