Gulmarg – In ancient times, it was known as “GauriMarg.” It was renamed to Gulmarg by ruler ‘Yousf Shah Chak,’ which means meadows of flowers in the district Baramulla, as it is a prominent hill station and a prime attraction for tourists. It is the most renowned skiing destination. This gorgeous hill station is situated in the Pirpanjal range in the western Himalayas at an altitude of (2730) meters. It is an eminent attractive spot called Paradise on Earth. The British administrators frequently visited Gulmarg for leisure and recreation purposes. In 1927, British rulers established the first ski club in Gulmarg. During that time, two ski events were held. The first skiing school was established by the Indian army at Gulmarg in 1948, and later, it became the high altitude warfare school. In India, Gulmarg is one of the locations suitable for developing winter sports.To attract an enormous number of tourists in winter for skiing, there was some development in 1968; the Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering was established to train ski trainees.
It has become the dreamland for skiers in India and from Asian and European nations. National-level skiing events were held in Gulmarg in 1998, 2004, and 2008. These winter sports games are mainly carried out on the Mountain peaks of Apharwat at an elevation of 4267m. It is considered the heartland of winter sports in India and is rated Asia’s 7th best ski destination. The most charming destination offers multifariousness of sports to athletics in the area of winter sports, like downhill skiing, tobogganing, snowboarding, and Heli-skiing – usually, skiers get a taste of Mount Apharwat and reach by a chair lift, and it connects Kongdoori and takes skiers to higher altitude.
Gulmarg is an all-season destination, and in winter, 70% of tourists visit for skiing and to enjoy the serene holiday. In winter, its mountains are covered with white powdery snow and have dazzling views, attracting many tourists every year and providing downhill skiing and snowboarding assistance to skiers. Now, it retains the status of the best Himalayan ski resort in the world, and annually, it receives the heaviest snowfall from November to April, making it more appropriate for skiing and has a lot of potential to develop a Gulmarg ski resort internationally. Most of its mountain slopes have become the center for skiing. These slopes are superb for beginners. One can run skiing from 500 meters to 3 km easily.
Skiing as a sport has recently invaded the market in Jammu and Kashmir, and it shows incredible successful development in Gulmarg. It offers unique topography, climate conditions, attractive views, and peaceful hospitality of local people, which hold pertinent potential for winter sports in Gulmarg as it is pleasing for domestic, national, and foreign athletes with the finest ski facilities as foreign-based equipment also provides to skiers and have wide and longdownfall ski tracks. It receives the heaviest snowfall eachyear. These ski slopes are among the longest compared to other ski tracks in Asian countries.
Gulmarg is the first winter sports center in India. Tourists visiting Gulmarg and getting snowboarding, snow cycling, ice skating, snow scooters, and snow rugby services are popular activities among tourists. These days, influential ski resorts in Gulmarg offer pleasing skiing areas with diverse ski slopes for all skiers. Visitors can easily reach these ski slopesfrom primary sources such as chair lifts or helicopter services.
Gulmarg Ski Resort also offers a variety of accommodations and restaurant facilities. Skiing sport in Gulmarg is an emerging product of adventure tourism. It should opt and get the benefits of a progressive development strategy to take advantage of domestic and international markets. The world’s famous ski destination, Gulmarg, is a prime attraction for skiers in winter. Each year, it receives many winter tourists, and 1/3rd of them participate in skiing. When examining the flow of skiers at Gulmarg from 2010 to 2019 and the data collected from various sources, the data shown in the period 2010 to 2019, the total number of participants, both domestic and foreign skiers, who took part in skiing was some 28282, and 21563 were domestic tourists, and 6719 belongs from foreign countries.
The flow of skiers has continually gone up for the last ten years. In the base year 2010, the total number of participants who took part in different skiing activities was 1325, out of which 86.03 percent were domestic and 13.96 percent were from foreign countries. In 2019, the data showed some rapid growth compared to previous years; the total number of domestic skiers was 3100, and 1150 were foreign skiers out of 4250.
The percipience of the lowest flow of skiers in Gulmarg is – extreme cold in winter, disconnectivity of roads due to heavy snow and insufficient facilities in winter sports activities, and sometimes nonavailability of snow in peak winter season. The in-depth study was conducted on tourists’ interest in skiing sport in Jammu and Kashmir. Gulmarg is the most charming spot frequented by travellers in winter for skiing and in summer for its healthy climate and scenic beauty.
Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering was founded in 1969 by the Government of India’s Ministry of Tourism in Gulmarg. The main aim of this institute is to develop Gulmarg as a ski resort of international pattern. Every year, this institute attracts an ample number of trainees and tourists from local and national levels and throughout the world. It plays a significant role in promoting skiing sport in Gulmarg, and every year, itorganizes a snow festival around Christmas, during which particular sports and cultural activities are conducted infresh snowfall. During that period, numerous adventure tourists and winter sports lovers flock to Gulmarg. It provides comfortable accommodation facilities totourists participating in skiing activities as the institute develops a high infrastructure level. Also, it takes care of skiers and provides high-level and latest ski and snowboarding equipment to enhance their thrilling experience in Gulmarg. The institute offers training in adventure courses, viz, snow skiing, mountaineering, water skiing, paragliding, white water rafting, and parasailing.
These significant activities train and delight tourists who come to Gulmarg, making Jammu and Kashmir an exciting winter skiing spot worldwide. Itis a well-known ski resort in India and is proliferating and fascinates many skiing lovers annually. There are a lot of potential and eminent long downfall ski tracks ranging from two to four kilometers. It may emerge as a leading skiing spot in the world. It is one of the prime attractions for tourists in the winter season. The best season for skiing in Gulmarg is December to April. Now, the need is to develop a proper infrastructure so that the flow of skiers may increase annually, the tourism industry will flourish, and the Jammu and Kashmir tourism industry would benefit from it and make it more friendlier for skiing sport.
(Author is Researcher, Data Analyst, Academician (Tourism Studies).Email: [email protected])
