{"id":94618,"date":"2026-04-07T23:17:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T17:47:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/?p=94618"},"modified":"2026-04-07T23:17:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T17:47:15","slug":"tonga-makes-a-comeback-reappears-on-srinagar-streets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/07\/tonga-makes-a-comeback-reappears-on-srinagar-streets\/","title":{"rendered":"Tonga makes a comeback, reappears on Srinagar streets"},"content":{"rendered":"

At 70, Ghulam Rasool Kumar revives a fading mode of transport; draws crowds, memories and quiet curiosity<\/strong><\/p>\n

Srinagar, Apr 07 (KNO): In the middle of Srinagar\u2019s fast-moving traffic and modern bustle, a slow, rhythmic clip-clop has begun to turn heads again.<\/p>\n

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A traditional tonga, once a common sight across Kashmir, has returned to the streets, thanks to a 70-year-old man, Ghulam Rasool Kumar, determined to keep a piece of the past alive.<\/p>\n

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As per details available with the news agency\u2014Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Ghulam Rasool, a resident of Srinagar, has reintroduced the horse-drawn cart, offering locals a rare glimpse into a bygone era when tongas were an integral part of daily life in the Valley.<\/p>\n

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For decades, these carts ferried passengers through markets, neighbourhoods and riverbanks, long before motor vehicles came to dominate the roads.<\/p>\n

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With time, they gradually disappeared, replaced by cars, auto rickshaws and buses, surviving only in memory and old photographs.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Kumar\u2019s initiative is now bringing that memory back to life. Moving through the city at a slow pace, the tonga has become an instant attraction.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

People across age groups pause to watch, often recalling a time when such rides were routine. Youngsters stop to take pictures or hop on for a short ride.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to revive something that belongs to our culture,\u201d Kumar says. \u201cThis is not just transport, it is part of who we were.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Locals say the experience offers more than just a ride. It creates a moment of pause in an otherwise hurried day something increasingly rare in the city\u2019s changing landscape.<\/p>\n

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Children wave as the cart passes, while commuters slow down to make way, some with smiles of recognition, others with curiosity.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It is pertinent to mention, that the revival comes at a time when Srinagar recently witnessed panic buying at petrol pumps and LPG outlets following rumours linked to global developments in West Asia, although authorities have maintained that supplies remain adequate\u2014(KNO)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At 70, Ghulam Rasool Kumar revives a fading mode of transport; draws crowds, memories and quiet curiosity Srinagar, Apr 07 (KNO): In the middle of Srinagar’s fast-moving traffic and modern bustle, a slow, rhythmic clip-clop has begun to turn heads again.   A traditional tonga, once a common sight across Kashmir, has returned to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":94619,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-94618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-jk"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94618"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94618\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":94620,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94618\/revisions\/94620"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/94619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.khushalekashmir.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}