Srinagar: Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinay Kumar Saxena on Wednesday granted “industry” status to hotels and guesthouses registered with the tourism department in an aim to strengthen the hospitality sector in the Union Territory.This order will come into effect on June 1. This is expected to benefit 1,257 hotels and guesthouses in the UT, including 1,078 in Leh and 179 in Kargil, as they can now avail electricity and water tariffs at industrial rates, which are lower than commercial rates. Stakeholders, including the All Ladakh Hotel and Guesthouse Association, had been pressing for granting industry status to the sector.“The hospitality and tourism sector has significant potential to promote sustainable economic development and tourism in Ladakh. This improvement will also enhance the visitor experience and establish Ladakh as a world-class tourism destination rooted in sustainability, culture and hospitality,” Saxena said.Now hospitality units will get incentives, concessions and infrastructure support at par with other industries in Ladakh. Most of these hotels operate only for about six months in a year and remain closed during the harsh winters, when temperatures drop as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius at some places, resulting in high maintenance costs, making the hotel and guesthouse business unsustainable.The new tag makes hotels and guesthouses eligible for concessional bank loans under the industrial policies of the UT and Central government. These hotels and guesthouses will also be exempted from property tax, and will also be able to access capital incentives, subsidies and other schemes.