G20 Delegates Arrive In Srinagar Amid Warm Welcome

Delegates from G20 member countries, guest countries, and international organisations arrived in Srinagar to participate in the G20 meeting, being held from May 22 to May 24.

Upon their arrival at the airport in Srinagar, the delegates were accorded a warm and traditional welcome by the cultural troupes and senior Jammu and Kashmir authorities.

Local artists performed traditional dance, in a magnificent display of Jammu and Kashmir's cultural heritage. The route to Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC), the venue of the meeting has been given a massive makeover with graffiti depicting the scenic beauty and colours of Srinagar.

This is the only working group meeting taking place in Srinagar as part of the G20 effort with excellent response from all the member countries, all the invited countries, and the international organisations, having the highest participation registered compared to the first two Tourism Working Group Meetings at Rann of Kutch and Siliguri.

The meeting will deliberate on the five key priority areas namely Green Tourism, Digitalisation, Skills, MSMEs, and Destination Management. These priorities are key building blocks for accelerating the transition of the tourism sector and achieving the targets for 2030 SDGs, according to a government statement.

"A side event on 'Film Tourism for Economic Growth and Cultural Preservation' will be organised on 22nd and 23rd May 2023, focusing on strategies to promote film tourism in J&K. The event will witness the participation of G20 member countries, invited countries, international organizations, and industry stakeholders," the statement read.

It further added that a draft 'National Strategy on Film Tourism' will be unveiled to provide a roadmap for harnessing the role of films in promoting tourist destinations.

The G20 meeting in Srinagar will be the first major global event in Jammu and Kashmir after the 2019 scrapping of special status. Nearly 100 delegates will experience the scenic beauty, handicrafts, cuisine, and culture of the Valley during the conference.

Security across Srinagar has been stepped up with the deployment of the Marcos, a special unit of the Indian Navy, and the National Security Guards, and a major facelift has been given to the city, ahead of the G20 summit.