J&K plays host to G20 working group meet

India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant said the tourism working group meeting in Kashmir has had an overwhelming response

- Mir Ehsan and Ashiq Hussain

India hosted a tourism working group meeting of the G20 in Srinagar on Monday, one of the biggest international events held in Jammu & Kashmir since the nullification of Article 370 in August 2019, and one that served as a reiteration on the global stage of the region being an integral part of the country.

Though China skipped the meeting, delegates and officials from G20 members, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, the UK, the US and the European Union (EU), attended the inaugural events at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre on the banks of Dal Lake.

Some members of the grouping of the world’s largest economies and guest countries invited by India to be part of the G20 process this year, such as Indonesia and Saudi Arabia, were represented by officials from their embassies in New Delhi instead of representatives from the capitals, people familiar with the matter said. Private tour operators also represented some countries, including Turkey, the people added.

India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant said the tourism working group meeting in Kashmir has had an overwhelming response. “Normally, in any meeting and event, four to five countries do not come for various reasons... but here in Kashmir, we had an outstanding response. Sixty-one participants from 29 countries, and one country not coming, is a very good response. So, we are looking forward to very positive and fruitful discussions [on Tuesday],” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already said that the recommendations on tourism from the working group will be action-oriented and a lot of this will emerge from the meeting in Kashmir, he said. Some countries are being represented by their private sector, he added.