Amidst a shutdown and heightened security, envoys of 22 countries reached Kashmir on Wednesday on two-day tour during which the government has showcased the efforts to restore normality and accelerated development in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The team is expected to visit Jammu on Thursday.
This is the fourth such visit of envoys after the Centre abrogated Article 370 and split the state into two UTs.
The diplomats immediately after landing in Srinagar drove to Magam town in Budgam district where at a government- run degree college they met some recently elected members of the District Development Council (DDC), students, and some elected village heads. Some DDC members praised the conduct of elections.
They were accorded traditional reception at Srinagar airport by girls who sang Kashmiri welcome song and showered flower petals at them.
The Lal Chowk that is the business hub of Srinagar also observed shutdown. No separatist or other group had called for the shutdown.
The diplomats began their meetings immediately after landing in the valley. They are scheduled to meet a delegation of officers, political leaders, civil society, journalists, traders and those connected with the tourism sector. The National Conference and PDP have said that they were not invited to meet the envoys.
Among those in the team are ambassadors of the European Union, Italy, France, Ireland, Sweden, Belgium, Brazil, Bangladesh, and Ghana.
In January 2020 European Union chose not to send its representatives unless they were allowed to meet people freely.
The diplomats held meetings with various groups and delegations at the Sher-e- Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC) on the banks of the Dal Lake. They visited the Hazaratbal Shrine in the heart of Srinagar and took stock of the situation.