SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha announced Saturday reopening of 16 of 48 tourist destinations that had been shut since the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, taking a significant step towards restoring normalcy.Eight of the spots to be reopened from June 17 are in the Valley and the rest in Jammu. The move follows appeals from CM Omar Abdullah, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and tourism industry stakeholders. “We have decided to open several destinations across J&K, including parks in Pahalgam and Betaab Valley,” Sinha said in Pahalgam after meeting tourism operators. He promised to reopen other sites after security assessments are over. Betaab Valley is so named as the 1983 blockbuster Betaab was shot in this Pahalgam pocket.The LG announced reopening of Verinag, Kokernag, and Achabal gardens in south Kashmir’s Anantnag, and Badamwari, Duck Park, and Taqdeer Park near Hazratbal in Srinagar. But Tulip Garden, a key Srinagar landmark whose prolonged closure CM Omar had protested, is not on the latest reopening list. “If you shut down Tulip Garden, then close all of Kashmir,” Omar had said recently, expressing frustration over closures of tourist spots. In Jammu, the list of destinations to be reopened includes Sarthal and Dhaggar in Kathua, Devipindi, Siyad Baba, and Sula Park in Reasi, Guldanda and Jai Valley in Doda, and Pancheri in Udhampur.After the Pahalgam attack, LG Sinha’s administration shut down 48 of J&K’s 87 tourist spots. On Saturday in Pahalgam, Sinha met a delegation of elected representatives, tour and travel operators, pony owners, and hotel associations. “I have assured them that restrictions on other tourist destinations will be lifted after thorough security assessments,” he said. A committee of divisional commissioners and IGs will coordinate with district officials and the tourism department to identify more locations for reopening, Sinha added.The LG cited increased tourist arrivals due to the recent opening of the Kashmir-Katra railway line and heavy ticket bookings. “The Centre and corporate sector are organising conferences in J&K, which will help us move towards normalcy,” Sinha said.The LG referred to the upcoming Amarnath Yatra from July 3 to Aug 9, saying the annual pilgrimage would help boost the local economy and revive tourism while pointing out that the people of Kashmir had always supported the event.