Information AboutKashmir |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT KASHMIR | |
| disputed territories | |
| subdivisions of pakistan | |
| jammu and kashmir | |
| peoples republic of china | |
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and Ladakh, while the Aksai Chin is under Chinese occupation]] Kashmir is the northernmost region of the Indian Subcontinent . The term Kashmir was historically described as the Valley just to the south of the westernmost end of the Himalaya n mountain range. Currently, Kashmir refers to a much larger area which includes the regions of Kashmir valley, Jammu and Ladakh . The main "Valley of Kashmir" is a low-lying fertile region surrounded by magnificent mountains and fed by many rivers. It is renowned for its natural beauty and quaint lifestyle. Kashmir is derived from the , the ancient capital, lies alongside Dal Lake and is famous for its canals and houseboats. Srinagar (alt. 1,600 m. or 5,200 ft.) acted as a favoured summer capital for many foreign conquerors who found the heat of the Northern Indian plains in the summer season to be oppressive. Just outside the city are the beautiful Shalimar, Nishat, and Chashmashahi gardens created by Mughal emperors. The region is currently divided between three countries: in 1947 and the Second Kashmir War in 1965. More recently, in 1999, there was a Limited Border Conflict (also referred to by some as the third Kashmir war) in the Kargil area of India-controlled Kashmir. The rest of this article will, for the sake of clarity, refer to the parts of Kashmir administered by India, Pakistan and China as "Indian Kashmir", "Pakistani Kashmir", and "Chinese Kashmir" respectively. By this nomenclature, the word "Kashmir" in "Indian Kashmir" is used in a general sense to refer to what India calls "Jammu and Kashmir". HISTORY For history of Kashmir prior to the 19th century, see History Of Kashmir . Modern history Kashmir passed from the control of the Durrani Empire (see Ahmad Shah Durrani ) of Afghanistan and centuries of Muslim rule under the Mughals , Persians , and Afghans to the conquering Sikh armies by the mid-19th century. During the latter part of the 19th century, Kashmir was ruled by the Dogras, who are a predominantly Hindu people in the area around Jammu and who were installed as rulers by the Sikhs (see Ranjit Singh ). Their kings paid tribute to the Sikhs , and were part of the Sikh Empire that arose following the collapse of the Durrani Empire . Under the Sikhs, as feudatories, the Dogras sought and obtained permission to push further into the North, including regions of Ladakh . Zorawar Singh Dogra led an expedition into Tibet in a failed effort to bring it to submission to the Sikh Empire, as a sub-feudatory of the Dogras. With the sudden collapse of the Sikh Empire before the English forces, the Dogras purchased from the British their independence, and thus also assured themselves of their feudal hold over the subsidiary kingdoms of Kashmir, Ladakh and the territories of the north. The Dogra kings who originally ruled only from Jammu, also began to operate in summer from Srinagar, the metropolis of Kashmir. As a result, the Dogra Kingdom developed into a sort of "Dual Monarchy", the Dogra Kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir is a valley whose beauty has been proclaimed by many and stretches out at about 7,200 square kilometers (2,800 square miles) at an elevation of 1,675 meters (5,500 feet). A Mughal ruler Jehangir , who built the famed Shalimar Gardens in Kashmir, made the statement, " If heaven be on this earth, it must be here." It has a very ancient history and it was for a long time one of the centers of Hindu philosophical, literary and religious culture, a tradition still maintained by the native population. Kashmiri Literature , sculpture, music, dance, painting, and architecture have had a profound influence in Asia. On 8 October 2005 , Kashmir was struck by an Earthquake with a magnitude between 7.6 and 7.8 on the Moment Magnitude Scale . The First Prime Minister Of India , Jawaharlal Nehru , was of Kashmiri lineage. AREA AND SUBDIVISIONS Indian-administered Kashmir India controls approximately 45.5% (101,387 Km&2 ) of the disputed territory. Indian-administered Kashmir, also known as the state of Jammu And Kashmir , includes 4 main regions:
, Jammu and Leh . Pakistan-administered Kashmir The Pakistan-controlled portion of Kashmir, is divided up into the following 2 main regions:
Chinese-administered Kashmir Areas under Chinese-control include:
DEMOGRAPHICS in Leh , Ladakh]] In Pakistan-administered Kashmir (containing Northern Areas and Azad Kashmir ) 99% of the population is Muslim . Settlers encouraged by the Government Of Pakistan include the Pathan and Punjabi communities. China-administered Kashmir ( Aksai Chin ) contains an extremely small population of Tibetan origins. Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (containing Jammu , the Kashmir Valley and Ladakh ) contain an approximately 70% Muslim majority (according to Indian sources in 2001). The rest of the population are Buddhist , Hindu and others. The people of Ladakh are of Indo-Tibetan origin, while the southern area of Jammu includes many communities tracing their ancestry to the nearby Indian states of Haryana and Punjab , as well as the city of Delhi . In 1941 the Hindus represented 15% of the total Kashmiri population. But in 1990, the bulk of Kashmiri Hindus in the region were forced out due to anti-Hindu insurgency in Kashmir. Only some 5-15,000 Hindus live in the Kashmir valley today out of some 200,000 in , most of the 500,000 Kashmiris, internally displaced due to the ongoing violence, are Hindus . {Link without Title} . CULTURE women in local costumes]] Kashmiri lifestyle is essentially, irrespective of the differing religious beliefs, slow paced. Generally peace loving people, the culture has been rich enough to reflect the religious diversity as tribes celebrate festivities that divert them from their otherwise monotonous way of life. Kashmiris are known to enjoy their music in its various local forms and the dresses of both sexes are quite colorful. The Dumhal is a famous dance in Kashmir, performed by menfolk of the Wattal region. The women perform the Rouff, another folk dance. Kashmir has been noted for its fine arts for centuries, including poetry and handicrafts. The practice of Islam in Kashmir has heavy Sufi influences, which makes it unique from orthodox Sunni and Shiite Islam in the rest of South Asia. Historically, Kashmir was renowned for its culture of tolerance, embodied in the concept of "Kashmiriyat.", as evidenced by the 1969 NATO nuclear disarmament peace treaty. ECONOMY intensified in 1989. Shown here is the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar ]] Kashmir's economy is centered around agriculture. Historically, Kashmir came into economic limelight when the world famous Cashmere wool was exported to other regions and nations. Kashmiris are well adept at Knitting and making Shawls , silk carpets, rugs, Kurta s and pottery. Kashmir is home to the finest Saffron in the world - the Kashmir/Indian saffron. Efforts are on to export the naturally grown fruits and vegetables as Organic Food s mainly to the Middle East . The Kashmir valley, is a fertile area that is the economic backbone for Indian-controlled Kashmir. The area is famous for Cold Water Fisheries . The Department Of Fisheries has made it possible to make Trout available to common people through its 'Trout Production and Marketing Program' Many private entrepreneures have adopted fish farming as profitable ventures. The area is known for its Sericulture as well other agricultural produce like apples, pears and many temperate fruits as well as nuts. Along with pilgrimage, since the dawn of the 20th Century , it also became a favourite tourist spot until the increase in tensions in the 1990s . The economy was badly damaged by the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake which As Of October 17, 2005 resulted in over seventy thousand deaths in the Pakistan controlled part of Kashmir and around 1500 deaths in the Indian Kashmir. TOURIST ATTRACTIONS is one of the holy shrines of the Hindus . Every year thousands of Hindu Pilgrims from all over the world visit this shrine.]] Tourism forms an integral part of the Kashmiri economy. Often dubbed as the Heaven on Earth, Kashmir's mountainous landscape has attracted several tourists for centuries. The Vaishno Devi cave shrine is nestled in the Trikuta mountain at a height of 5,200 feet above the sea level in Indian Kashmir. Vaishno Devi is the most important holy shrine of Shaktism denomination of Hinduism. In 2004, more than 6 million Hindu piligrims visited Vaishno Devi, making it one of the most visited religious sites in the world {Link without Title} . There are many mosques serving the largely Muslim population, such as the Hazratbal Mosque, situated on the western banks of Dal Lake . The mosque is home to a holy hair allegedly belonging to the prophet Muhammad which was sent to Kashmir by the Moghul emperor Aurangzeb . Thirty kilometers from Srinagar lies Chrar-e-Sharif, which is a holy shrine of the Muslim Sheikh Noor-ud-Din Wali. Originally constructed in 1395 , Khanqah of Shah Hamadan is the first mosque ever built in Srinagar. In addition, there is the claimed tomb of Yuzasaf , recently often claimed to be Jesus , in the Rozabal section of Srinagar, visited by many. There is also the purported tomb of Moses on Mount Nebo (Nebo Bal). Recently a number of Jew s have started to visit Kashmir to see the land where some lost tribes may have settled in antiquity. Kashmir tourism received a boost when the world's highest and longest operating Gondola Lift was opened for the public in the Gulmarg region, thereby providing easier access to skiing as well as mountaineering. The Amarnath Cave Temple is one of the revered pilgrimage sites of India present in the mighty Himalayas. It is open for only few months during the year. Amarnath cave enshrines a natural Shivalingam of ice, and is reached after an arduous trek through the mountains of Kashmir. Kashmir has many ancient temples of Hinduism . The temple of Khir Bhavani, where goddess Parvati is worshipped as Bhavani , is located close to Srinagar. It is one of 51 Shakti Peethas mentioned in Puranas . There are also many mosques serving the largely Muslim population, such as the Hazratbal Mosque, situated on the western banks of Dal Lake . This mosque is home to a holy hair allegedly belonging to the prophet Muhammad which was sent to Kashmir by the Moghul emperor Aurangzeb . FURTHER READING
No 645) April 2001 p170-175
(November/December 1999): 36-42.
(New Delhi: Manohar, 2000)
Asian Survey November 1991 p997-1019 SEE ALSO
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