With G20 event, India seeks to project normalcy in disputed Kashmir

The meeting will be the first significant international event in Kashmir since New Delhi stripped the Muslim-majority region of semi-autonomy in 2019

Pakistan, which controls part of Kashmir but, like India, claims the entire territory, slammed New Delhi for holding the meeting, while China will not attend the event

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Indian paramilitary soldiers keep guard by the Dal Lake ahead of a G20 tourism working group meeting in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir. Photo: AP

Published: 2:41pm, 22 May 2023

As India prepares to host a meeting of tourism officials from the Group of 20 (G20) in the disputed region of Kashmir, authorities have deployed elite commandos and stepped up security in the region’s largest city.

The meeting will be the first significant international event in Kashmir since New Delhi stripped the Muslim-majority region of semi-autonomy in 2019. Indian authorities are hoping the meeting will show that the controversial changes have brought “peace and prosperity” to the region.

Since the 2019 changes, the city, known for rolling Himalayan foothills and exquisitely decorated houseboats, has become a major domestic tourist destination. Hotels have been mostly booked out for months.

Kashmir has also drawn millions of visitors, who enjoy a strange peace kept by ubiquitous security checkpoints, armoured vehicles and patrolling soldiers.

The meeting is good and it could boost tourism

Mufeed Hilal, college student

For the G20 meeting, the city has spruced up its commercial centre and roads leading to the convention centre on Dal Lake, while police have increased security even further, placing a massive security cordon around the site.