Srinagar

At the foot of the Pir Panjal mountains, vast snow-blanketed meadows of Dobjan in the Shopian district, some 70 km South of Kashmir, witnessed a one-of-a-kind snow festival. 

The two-day festival, which concluded on Sunday, aimed to promote the off-beat tourist destinations in the area to give a boost to the local economy. 

Located along the historic Mughal Road at an altitude of over 9,000 feet, Dobjan is known for its lofty pine trees, hot water springs, believed to have therapeutic powers, and majestic snow-clad mountains.  However, unlike other tourist destinations in the Valley, the surreal landscape failed to draw tourists and remained largely unexplored. 

The lack of adequate infrastructure, mobile connectivity and proper promotional campaigns were seen as some of the key reasons for the limited tourist influx. 

This year, the district authorities decided to organise a snow-fest to showcase the beauty of the area and its storied cultural heritage. 

“The festival not only showcases the beauty of the area, but also highlights the possibilities of tourist promotion,” said Mohammad Shahid Saleem Dar, District Magistrate. 

Named after the popular love-legend of Heemal-Nagrai, the festival featured a flurry of activities including snow sculpting, skiing, and snow cricket. Local handicrafts and cuisines were the other key highlights of the event. 

Promoting off-beat destinations 

In 2024, the Valley received around 3 million tourists with a 10 to 12 per cent increase in foreign tourists. Most of the visitors, however, preferred to visit the prominent destinations like Gulmarg and Pahalgam, leaving the off-beat destinations relatively unexplored. 

A good number of such destinations like Mughal Road, Daksum, Sinthon Top, Gurez, Lolab and others have huge potential to emerge as tourist hot spots. 

Last year, as the Valley witnessed, a well-nigh snowless winter, many of these off-beats received a significant snowfall. It not only offered tourists an opportunity to visit these places but also underscored the need for their development and promotion. 

“It has been one of the priorities of the government to develop the lesser-known tourist destinations to attract more tourists,” said a tourist official. 

He said that in recent years, snow festivals and carnivals have been organised at many places to promote these hidden gems. 

Notably, in 2023, the Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Department identified 75 off-beat tourist destinations for their promotion. 

The department along with other stakeholders ran digital promotional campaigns to promote these destinations.