US issues travel advisory for its citizens, asks them not to visit Kashmir

New Delhi, Mar 09: The United States on Saturday issued a travel advisory for its citizens visiting India owing to civil unrest and increased risk of 'terrorism' in Jammu and Kashmir.

Americans were further advised to avoid travelling within 10 kilometres of Indo-Pak border "due to the potential for armed conflict." However, the country allowed its citizens to visit the eastern Ladakh region and its capital Leh.

"Sporadic violence occurs particularly along the Line of Control separating India and Pakistan, and in tourist destinations in the Kashmir Valley: Srinagar, Gulmarg, and Pahalgam," the Department of State advisory added. However, it said tourists can visit the Ladakh region and its capital, Leh.

On February 14, a Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist drove an explosive-laden van into a bus carrying Central Reserve Police Force soldiers in Kashmir's Pulwama district, killing 40 of them.

The US Department of State said the administration has limited ability to provide emergency services in rural areas from eastern Maharashtra, northern Telangana and western West Bengal, because American employees need special permission to enter these areas. "Incidents of violence by ethnic insurgent groups, including bombings of buses, trains, rail lines, and markets, occur occasionally in the northeast," it added.