Economic Disruptions in Conflict-Prone Regions: Labour and Tourism Impacts in Jammu & Kashmir

Abstract

In Jammu & Kashmir’s regional economy, informal labour and tourism form core structures and at the same time, see the economy as being fragile and sensitive to shocks arising from instability. Events that transpired in the region in April 2025 had immediate effects on the labour and tourism dependent markets of Kashmir, Jammu and Katra. The primary sources of information for the study – field interviews, observatory and secondary economic indicators – evidence a sharp and sudden decline of touristic and transport activities; hotel occupancies were low, particularly in the case of Kashmir. In Katra, earnings from religious tourism collapsed. The economy of Jammu did not resist partially but did so with a significant weakening of its economically active population. Informal actors experienced severe income drops and job breaks or disruptions, and a growing reverse migration phenomenon. The cycles of tourism and the informal labour livelihoods rely on one another, and with the slightest operational disruptions, the economic shock on a conflict-ridden region is intensified. The study calls for the need to devise specific systems and strategies that protect informal workers during crisis times.