PROSPECT OF HEALTH TOURISM IN JAMMU AND KASHMIR

Is health tourism a mere buzz phrase or our society has evolved to the extent that we can think of promoting it in Jammu and Kashmir? In Kashmir where tourism is the backbone of the economy, can we after 23 long years of unrest afford to follow the trend of sustainable development and think in terms of health tourism? We are living in a place where unemployment is more pandemic than disease itself, green tourism gives hope of providing employment through credible and believable means. Health tourism or medical tourism as called popularly is a term used to refer tourists’ wellbeing at economical costs. It can greatly change the image of Kashmir in the minds of tourists and make it a popular travel destination again. Even though right now in Kashmir we don’t have the infrastructure to support our aspirations of changing the face of tourism but there is a huge scope of development and infrastructure build-up. Though sporadic events of turmoil may initially hinder the growth of medical tourism here but once concept is popularized through campaigns, workshops and youth awareness we can dream of a Kashmir as the new healthcare destination in India. The paper covers a vast range of literature on medical tourism which will help us in accessing its pros and cons and scope of its development in Kashmir. Also how we can establish risk free medical tourism here and guarantee sizable employment.