In Jammu Kashmir, ₹500 crore spent in two years for tourism promotion, ₹50 crore on advertisements

October 29, 2025 by News Desk

The Jammu Kashmir Tourism Department on Tuesday said it has spent more than ₹500 crore in the past two years on upgrading tourism infrastructure and promotional campaigns, which it credited for record tourist arrivals across the region.

Tourism Minister informed the Legislative Assembly that ₹253.75 crore were allocated under the Capex budget in 2023–24 and ₹268.42 crore in 2024–25 for infrastructure development. “No centrally sponsored scheme was implemented during this period,” he added.

The minister said ₹50.50 crore were earmarked for advertisements and publicity, of which ₹42.74 crore were utilised. The campaigns, he said, helped promote new destinations and contributed to a sharp rise in tourist inflow.

“Over four crore tourists visited Jammu and Kashmir in the past two years — an unprecedented figure considering the region’s population of 1.3 crore. Foreign tourist arrivals also increased from 19,000 in 2021–22 to 47,000 in 2022–23,” he said.

The minister noted that offbeat destinations such as Gurez, Bangus, Doodhpathri, Aitham, and Basohli have witnessed growing popularity following the department’s focused promotion.

He added that Jammu and Kashmir has also re-emerged as a prominent film-shooting destination, citing major Bollywood productions such as Leo and Dunki that were filmed in the region.