Why Govt fails to bring many tourists like spots on tourism map?
“Bitter Truth“
By Syed Tahir
A well-known fact that, Kashmir throughout the ages has remained another name of paradise, and it is understood that it is like cradled in the lap of Majestic Mountain of the Himalayas; Kashmir is the most beautiful place on earth.
One of medieval India’s most famous Sufi poets Amir Khusruw once said, “Ghar firdous bar-rue zamin ast, hami asto, hamin asto, hamin asto” (If there is a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here).
While as Mughal Emperor Jahangir also said that, if there is paradise anywhere on earth, it is here, it is here and it is here, and then why many place in Kashmir has been left unattended or rather I can say why they have not been brought on the tourism map so for.
If we talk about Parihaspora, this place was once capital of Buddhism Parihaspora Pattan and now it lies in ruins as the department of Archaeology & Museums was supposed to protect and preserve the archaeological wealth and cultural heritage but they have failed to do so, and with the result this monumental site is in shambles.
Parihaspora is the historic village in north Kashmir’s Pattan area, once this place was the capital of Kashmir during the Shankervarman Regime and it was found in the 8th century AD by then the king of Kashmir, Lalityaditya Muktapid.
This historical place is located at a distance of just three kms away from the Baramulla-Srinagar National Highway, at the first sight one will observe the steep plateau that gives a telescopic view of beautiful monuments and impression of tourist site, but the place has not remained in such a condition as it had been in 8TH century AD by the king of Kashmir, Lalityaditya Muktapid.
Sonaullah Mir Sahib of Pattan area said that once this place was called a city of laughs or a smiling city, but it has not remained so due to callous attitude of the Archaeological and Museum department and fact is also that the previous regimes also didn’t pay any attention towards this historical place.
King Lalitaditya Mukhtapida of Karkota Dynasty, who ruled Kashmir in early eighth century, Chinese traveler Hieun Tsiang visited Kashmir during the reign of king Durlabh Vardhana in 7th century from this dynasty, Mir told me after he aboard the bus in Pattan that was on way to Srinagar.
He also said that, Durlabh Vardana was a Budhist and the revival of Hinduism had started gaining momentum during this period .The Karkota kings were liberal and gave equal respect to Budhism and Hinduism.
However recently a batch of (1990-95) Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) Shahkote Uri visited here for get-together who were disappointed after seeing the monumental site in shambles.
“We were expecting that authorities may have made this scenic place, but there is nothing more than stones left here and there scattered, yes I can tell you that one’s pride is lowered here”, said former students of JNV.
Lalityaditya Muktapid was the ruler of his time but now it looks that his property has not got any attention as was much needed from the concerned departments of A&M.
In the outskirts of Pattan town and thesil, this historical place has a highest potential to be developed as tourist spot but it seems that the land has been deliberately left unattended, so that the influential people and land mafias could grab the tourist spot in peanuts.
This place also lacks basic facilities, even though there is no proper drinking water which makes it difficult for local tourists to stay here.
This historic place is almost spread over a vast expanse of about 90-100 kanals of land and that is filled with some almond trees and other varieties, and need of the hour is to beautify it with highest standard of tourism, so that the historical village will not lose its name and fame from books.
Pertinently SSM College of Engineering and Technology is located here at Divsar Parihaspora in Pattan area, and there is no local transport that could ferry them as well as local tourists to this place. One fails to understand that why government has left such historical places in shambles when there was a need to restore the pristine beauty of these areas.
This is the bitter truth that, government doesn’t want to pay any attention towards the rich, cultural heritages in Jammu and Kashmir, otherwise it will boost the tourism industry, if they could bring some more places on the tourism map.