Bharatiya Janata Party has accused National Conference Presidentand MP Dr Farooq Abdullah for resorting to “theatre politics” and shedding crocodile tears about development of local tourism around Jammu in the area of Surinsar Lake.

“One among many outcomes of his stint out of power is his new found love for the Dogra heritage and tourism potential of the Jammu region. While in power he and his party took every step possible to destroy the rich Dogra heritage and neglect the tourism potential of Jammu lest it threatened the Kashmiri monopoly,” BJP Spokesperson Anil Gupta said.
He said that Farooq Abdullah has exposed his ignorance of the multifarious development projects launched by Modi government for promotion and rejuvenation of local heritage and tourism potential of the area.
“Curiously enough none of his local leaders also deemed it fit to brief him about the Mansar Rejuvenation Project 2020 whose e- foundation was laid on November 1 last year jointly by Dr Jitendra Singh Union Minister in PMO and LG Manoj Sinha. The project envisages holistic development of the twin lakes of Mansar-Surinsar and the intervening area into a multi-purpose tourist destination,” Gupta said.
He said that to ensure that the project does not become the victim of financial crunch or uncertain fund support the complete project is centrally funded with an outlay of 198.37 crore.
“It’s a comprehensive project which apart from promoting tourism and development of a week-end picnic spot for the locals also has ecological and religious importance. It also aims at preservation and promotion of the rich Dogra heritage by renovating the local “haveli” as well as the historic temples in the area,” Gupta said.
Pertinently, Farooq Abdullah had visited Surinsar and made a fervent appeal to the LG to develop the area as a tourist destination to boost the local economy and tourism in the Jammu region.