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Perhaps one of the most promising but also the most under promoted sector of J&K tourism are its lakes, rivers ,ice and water bodies. With only the world famous Dal Lake and Mansar Lake where a limited commercial water activity tourism development seems to have taken place , some of the other equally beautiful water bodies which have huge potential of attracting tourists for its scenic beauty are still unexplored. Many parts of these beautiful lakes are infested with weeds, and thick surface foliage thus making it sometimes impossible for the conventional propeller driven motorboats, resulting in inaccessibility of the complete water body. Lake exploration cruises therefore are difficult to be either charted or operated by motorboats, thus severely limiting its tourism potential. The Hovercraft is the ideal watercraft for such situations. Floating on a cushion of air, it is not affected by either water foliage or mud flats. It glides easily over them. Moreover, it does not create the wave effect, thereby having the least damaging effect on sensitive lake ecology. With the hovercraft, it is possible, rather routine to access even the most picturesque but un-accessed part of any lake, water body, wetland or confluence, safely and easily.
Operating a swift water river cruise with Hovercraft , similar to the cruise operating on the river Tawi at Jammu, provides a truly amazing experience to the visitor. The ability of the Hovercraft to seamlessly transit between terrains like land and water is an unforgettable experience for all.
The principal beneficiary of such lake or river cruises is the economy of the respective tourist areas from where the Hovercraft Cruise will chart its circuit. Cruise travel, world over is seen as an economy generating leisure activity.A vibrant Cruise sector has a number of spin off effects on the service sector. When such cruise crafts, depart, stop over, or arrive at their designated stations, automatically there is a demand of a whole lot of services. For instance, temporary stalls/sale outlets are erected at these stoppage points which sell traditional handicrafts, souvenir, etc. |
Least but not the least important, such adventures have the potential of:
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Bringing the area up on the international tourist map. |
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Spin off in the shape of income generation for locals. |
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Attracting a select high value dedicated Indian and foreign tourists to avail of the activity which will be the first in the country |
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Pioneering and standardising lake/river tourism development. |
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Lake mapping/monitoring/ ecological surveys and inspection. |
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Generation of foreign exchange |
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