Second batch of envoys from EU, Gulf countries arrive in Srinagar

A fresh batch of 25 foreign envoys from the European Union and Gulf countries arrived in Srinagar today. The purpose of the visit of envoys is to get first-hand information about the ground situation after the abrogation of Article 370 in August last year. This is the second tour of the foreign delegates’ to Jammu and Kashmir.

The batch includes envoys from Germany, Canada, France, New Zealand, Mexico, Italy, Afghanistan, Austria, Uzbekistan, Poland, as well as envoys of the European Union. The delegation was scheduled to visit north Kashmir’s Baramulla in helicopters immediately upon their arrival, but it has been delayed due to bad weather.

In Baramulla, the delegation is scheduled to meet several trade bodies, skilled youth, Sarpanchs, and different civil society groups. The delegates will interact with industrialists and business representatives in Srinagar during the day. It will visit Jammu tomorrow and meet the Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu and higher officials of the administration.

A team of 15 envoys, including US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster, paid a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir in January. The Central Government abrogated Article 370 and bifurcated the erstwhile state Jammu and Kashmir into union territories, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh on the 5th of August, 2019.