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Kashmir region

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Asia

   SOS Children played a central role after the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake.
   For more information see SOS Children: Kashmir Earthquake

   Coordinates: 34°30′N, 76°26′E
   A physical map of the Kashmir region
   A physical map of the Kashmir region
   Nanga Parbat, the 9th highest peak in the world and one of the most
   dangerous, is in the Northern Areas of the Kashmir Region, now in
   Pakistan.
   Nanga Parbat, the 9th highest peak in the world and one of the most
   dangerous, is in the Northern Areas of the Kashmir Region, now in
   Pakistan.

   Kashmir ( Kashmiri: کٔشِیر, कॅशीर; Urdu: کشمیر) is the northwestern
   region of the Indian subcontinent. Historically the term Kashmir was
   used to refer to the valley lying between the Great Himalayas and the
   Pir Panjal range. Today Kashmir refers to a larger area that includes
   the Indian administered regions of Kashmir valley, Jammu and Ladakh,
   the Pakistani administered regions Northern Areas and Azad Kashmir, and
   the Chinese administered region of Aksai Chin.

   Kashmir was originally an important centre of Hinduism and later of
   Buddhism. Half-way through the 12th century CE, Shah Mirza became the
   first Muslim ruler of Kashmir and started the line Salatin-i-Kashmir.
   For the next five centuries Kashmir had Muslim rulers, which included
   Sultan Sikandar (also known as Butshikan, or "iconoclast") who ascended
   the throne in 1398, Zain-ul-abidin, who became the ruler in 1420, the
   Mughals, whose rule lasted until 1751, and the Afghan Durranis, who
   ruled Kashmir from 1752 until 1820. That year, the Sikhs under Ranjit
   Singh, annexed Kashmir, and held it until 1846, when the Dogras,
   starting with Gulab Singh, became the rulers of Kashmir (under the
   paramountcy, or tutelage, of the British Crown). The Dogra rule lasted
   until 1947, when the former princely state became a disputed territory,
   now administered by three countries, India, Pakistan, and China.

   In the 1901 Census of the British Indian Empire, the population of the
   princely state of Kashmir was 2,905,578. Of these 2,154,695 were
   Muslims, 689,073 Hindus, 25,828 Sikhs, and 35,047 Buddhists. The Hindus
   were found mainly in Jammu, where they constituted a little less than
   50% of the population. In the Kashmir Valley, the Hindus represented
   "only 524 in every 10,000 of the population (i.e. 5.24%), and in the
   frontier wazarats of Ladhakh and Gilgit only 94 out of every 10,000
   persons (0.94%)." In the same Census of 1901, in the Kashmir Valley,
   the total population was recorded to be 1,157,394, of which the Muslim
   population was 1,083,766, or 93.6% of the population. These percentages
   have remained fairly stable for the last 100 years. In the 1941 Census
   of British India, Muslims accounted for 93.6% of the population of the
   Kashmir Valley and the Hindus constituted 4%. In 2003, the percentage
   of Muslims in the Kashmir Valley was 95% and those of Hindus 4%; the
   same year, in Jammu, the percentage of Hindus was 66% and those of
   Muslims 30%. Among well-known people of Kashmiri lineage are Allama
   Muhammad Iqbal, the famous Urdu poet, Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime
   minister of India, and Nawaz Sharif, former prime minister of Pakistan.

Etymology

   The Nilamata Purana describes the Valley's origin from the waters, a
   fact corroborated by prominent geologists, and shows how the very name
   of the land was derived from the process of desiccation - Ka means
   "water" and Shimir means "to desiccate". Hence, Kashmir stands for "a
   land desiccated from water". There is also a theory which takes Kashmir
   to be a contraction of Kashyapmir or Kashyapmeru, the "sea or mountain
   of Kashyapa", the sage who is credited with having drained the waters
   of the primordial lake Satisar, that Kashmir was before it was
   reclaimed. The Nilamata Purana gives the name Kashmira to the Valley
   considering it to be an embodiment of Uma and it is the Kashmir that
   the world knows today. The Kashmiris, however, call it Kashir, which
   has been derived phonetically from Kashmir, as pointed out by Aurel
   Stein in his introduction to the Rajatarangini.

   The name Kashmir is derived from the Sanskrit words kaśyapa (कश्यप) +
   mara (मर), which means "the sea of the sage Kashyapa".

History

   1909 Map of the Princely State of Kashmir and Jammu. The names of
   different regions, important cities, rivers, and mountains are
   underlined in red.
   1909 Map of the Princely State of Kashmir and Jammu. The names of
   different regions, important cities, rivers, and mountains are
   underlined in red.

   By the early 19th century, the Kashmir valley had passed from the
   control of the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan, and four centuries of
   Muslim rule under the Mughals and the Afghans, to the conquering Sikh
   armies. Earlier, in 1780, after the death of Ranjit Deo, the Raja of
   Jammu, the kingdom of Jammu (to the south of the Kashmir valley) was
   captured by the Sikhs under Ranjit Singh of Lahore and afterwards,
   until 1846, became a tributary to the Sikh power. Ranjit Deo's
   grand-nephew, Gulab Singh, subsequently sought service at the court of
   Ranjit Singh, distinguished himself in later campaigns, especially the
   annexation of the Kashmir valley by the Sikhs army in 1819, and, for
   his services, was created Raja of Jammu in 1820. With the help of his
   able officer, Zorawar Singh, Gulab Singh soon captured Ladakh and
   Baltistan, regions to the east and north-east of Jammu. In 1845, the
   First Anglo-Sikh War broke out, and Gulab Singh "contrived to hold
   himself aloof till the battle of Sobraon (1846), when he appeared as a
   useful mediator and the trusted advisor of Sir Henry Lawrence. Two
   treaties were concluded. By the first the State of Lahore (i.e. West
   Punjab) handed over to the British, as equivalent for ( rupees) one
   crore of indemnity, the hill countries between Beas and Indus; by the
   second the British made over to Gulab Singh for ( Rupees) 75 lakhs all
   the hilly or mountainous country situated to the east of Indus and west
   of Ravi" (i.e. the Vale of Kashmir). Soon after Gulab Singh's death in
   1857, his son, Ranbir Singh, added the emirates of Hunza, Gilgit and
   Nagar to the kingdom.
   Portrait of Maharaja Gulab Singh in 1847, a year after signing the
   Treaty of Amritsar, when he became Maharaja by purchasing the
   territories of Kashmir "to the eastward of the river Indus and westward
   of the river Ravi" for 75 lakhs rupees from the British (Artist: James
   Duffield Harding).
   Portrait of Maharaja Gulab Singh in 1847, a year after signing the
   Treaty of Amritsar, when he became Maharaja by purchasing the
   territories of Kashmir "to the eastward of the river Indus and westward
   of the river Ravi" for 75 lakhs rupees from the British (Artist: James
   Duffield Harding).

   The Princely State of Kashmir and Jammu (as it was then called) was
   constituted between 1820 and 1858 and was "somewhat artificial in
   composition and it did not develop a fully coherent identity, partly as
   a result of its disparate origins and partly as a result of the
   autocratic rule which it experienced on the fringes of Empire." It
   combined disparate regions, religions, and ethnicities: to the east,
   Ladakh was ethnically and culturally Tibetan and its inhabitants
   practised Buddhism; to the south, Jammu had a mixed population of
   Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs; in the heavily populated central Kashmir
   valley, the population was overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim, however, there
   was also a small but influential Hindu minority, the Kashmiri brahmins
   or pandits; to the northeast, sparsely populated Baltistan had a
   population ethnically related to Ladakh, but which practised Shi'a
   Islam; to the north, also sparsely populated, Gilgit Agency, was an
   area of diverse, mostly Shi'a groups; and, to the west, Punch was
   Muslim, but of different ethnicity than the Kashmir valley. After the
   Indian Rebellion of 1857, in which Kashmir sided with the British, and
   the subsequent assumption of direct rule by Great Britain, the princely
   state of Kashmir came under the paramountcy of the British Crown.

   Ranbir Singh's grandson Hari Singh, who had ascended the throne of
   Kashmir in 1925, was the reigning monarch in 1947 at the conclusion of
   British rule of the subcontinent and the subsequent partition of the
   British Indian Empire into the newly independent Union of India and the
   Dominion of Pakistan. As parties to the partition process, both
   countries had agreed that the rulers of princely states would be given
   the right to opt for either Pakistan or India or—in special cases—to
   remain independent. In 1947, Kashmir's population "was 77 per cent
   Muslim and it shared a boundary with Pakistan. Hence, it was
   anticipated that the Maharaja would accede to Pakistan, when the
   British paramountcy ended on 14-15 August. When he hesitated to do
   this, Pakistan launched a guerilla onslaught meant to frighten its
   ruler into submission. Instead the Maharaja appealed to Mountbatten for
   assistance, and the Governor-General agreed on the condition that the
   ruler accede to India." Once the Maharaja signed the Instrument of
   Accession, which included a clause added by Mountbatten asking that the
   wishes of the Kashmiri people be taken into account, "Indian soldiers
   entered Kashmir and drove the Pakistani-sponsored irregulars from all
   but a small section of the state. The United Nations was then invited
   to mediate the quarrel. The UN mission insisted that the opinion of
   Kashmiris must be ascertained, while India insisted that no referendum
   could occur until all of the state had been cleared of irregulars."

   In the last days of 1948, a ceasefire was agreed under UN auspices;
   however, since the plebiscite demanded by the UN was never conducted,
   relations between India and Pakistan soured, and eventually led to two
   more wars over Kashmir in 1965 and 1999. India has control of about
   half the area of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir;
   Pakistan controls a third of the region, the Northern Areas and Azad
   Kashmir. According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Although there was a
   clear Muslim majority in Kashmir before the 1947 partition and its
   economic, cultural, and geographic contiguity with the Muslim-majority
   area of the Punjab (in Pakistan) could be convincingly demonstrated,
   the political developments during and after the partition resulted in a
   division of the region. Pakistan was left with territory that, although
   basically Muslim in character, was thinly populated, relatively
   inaccessible, and economically underdeveloped. The largest Muslim
   group, situated in the Vale of Kashmir and estimated to number more
   than half the population of the entire region, lay in
   Indian-administered territory, with its former outlets via the Jhelum
   valley route blocked."

   The UN Security Council on 20 January 1948 passed Resolution 39,
   establishing a special commission to investigate the conflict.
   Subsequent to the commission's recommendation, the Security Council
   ordered in its Resolution 47, passed on 21 April 1948, that the
   invading Pakistani army retreat from Jammu & Kashmir and that the
   accession of Kashmir to either India or Pakistan be determined in
   accordance with a plebiscite to be supervised by the UN. In a string of
   subsequent resolutions, the Security Council took notice of the
   continuing failure to hold the plebiscite.

   The Government of India holds that the Maharaja signed a document of
   accession to India October 26, 1947. Pakistan has disputed whether the
   Maharaja actually signed the accession treaty before Indian troops
   entered Kashmir. Furthermore, Pakistan claims the Indian government has
   never produced an original copy of this accession treaty and thus its
   validity and legality is disputed. However, India has produced the
   instrument of accession with an original copy image on its website.
   Alan Campbell-Johnson, the press attache to the Viceroy of India states
   that "The legality of the accession is beyond doubt."

   The eastern region of the erstwhile princely state of Kashmir has also
   been beset with a boundary dispute. In the late 19th- and early 20th
   centuries, although some boundary agreements were signed between Great
   Britain, Afghanistan and Russia over the northern borders of Kashmir,
   China never accepted these agreements, and the official Chinese
   position did not change with the communist takeover in 1949. By the
   mid-1950s the Chinese army had entered the north-east portion of
   Ladakh. : "By 1956–57 they had completed a military road through the
   Aksai Chin area to provide better communication between Xinjiang and
   western Tibet. India's belated discovery of this road led to border
   clashes between the two countries that culminated in the Sino-Indian
   war of October 1962." China has occupied Aksai Chin since 1962 and, in
   addition, an adjoining region, the Trans-Karakoram Tract was ceded by
   Pakistan to China in 1965.

Current status and Political Divisions

   Shown in green are the regions Northern Areas and Azad Kashmir, under
   Pakistani administration. The buff-coloured region is Jammu and Kashmir
   (including Ladakh) under Indian administration, while the
   beige-and-khaki striped region is Aksai Chin, under Chinese
   administration.
   Shown in green are the regions Northern Areas and Azad Kashmir, under
   Pakistani administration. The buff-coloured region is Jammu and Kashmir
   (including Ladakh) under Indian administration, while the beige-and-
   khaki striped region is Aksai Chin, under Chinese administration.
   A political map of Kashmir showing the different districts.
   A political map of Kashmir showing the different districts.

   The region is divided among three countries in a territorial dispute:
   Pakistan controls the northwest portion ( Northern Areas and Azad
   Kashmir), India controls the central and southern portion ( Jammu and
   Kashmir) and Ladakh, and the China controls the northeastern portion (
   Aksai Chin and the Trans-Karakoram Tract). India controls the majority
   of the Siachen Glacier (higher peaks), whereas Pakistan controls the
   lower peaks. India controls 101,387 km² of the disputed territory,
   Pakistan 85,846 km² and China, the remaining 37,555 km².

   Though these regions are in practice administered by their respective
   claimants, India has never formally recognised the accession of the
   areas claimed by Pakistan and China. India claims those areas,
   including the area "ceded" to China by Pakistan in the Trans-Karakoram
   Tract in 1963, are a part of its territory, while Pakistan claims the
   region, excluding Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract.

   Pakistan argues that Kashmir is culturally and religiously aligned with
   Pakistan (Kashmir is a Muslim region), while India bases its claim to
   Kashmir off Maharaja Hari Singh's decision to give Kashmir to India
   during the India-Pakistan split. Kashmir is considered one of the
   world's most dangerous territorial disputes due to the nuclear
   capabilities of India and Pakistan.

   The two countries have fought several declared wars over the territory.
   The Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 established the rough boundaries of
   today, with Pakistan holding roughly one-third of Kashmir, and India
   two-thirds. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 began with a Pakistani
   attempt to seize the rest of Kashmir, erroneously banking on support
   from then-ally the United States. Both resulted in stalemates and
   UN-negotiated ceasefires.

   More recent conflicts have resulted in success for India; it gained
   control of the Siachen glacier after a low-intensity conflict that
   began in 1984, and Indian forces repulsed a Pakistani/Kashimir
   guerrilla attempt to seize positions during the Kargil War of 1999.
   This led to the coup d'etat of Pervez Musharraf in Pakistan.

Demographics

   A Muslim shawl making family shown in Cashmere shawl manufactory, 1867,
   chromolith., William Simpson.
   A Muslim shawl making family shown in Cashmere shawl manufactory, 1867,
   chromolith., William Simpson.

   In the 1901 Census of the British Indian Empire, the population of the
   princely state of Kashmir and Jammu was 2,905,578. Of these 2,154,695
   were Muslims (74.16%), 689,073 Hindus (23.72%), 25,828 Sikhs, and
   35,047 Buddhists. The Hindus were found mainly in Jammu, where they
   constituted a little less than 50% of the population. In the Kashmir
   Valley, the Hindus represented "524 in every 10,000 of the population
   (i.e. 5.24%), and in the frontier wazarats of Ladhakh and Gilgit only
   94 out of every 10,000 persons (0.94%)." In the same Census of 1901, in
   the Kashmir Valley, the total population was recorded to be 1,157,394,
   of which the Muslim population was 1,083,766, or 93.6% and the Hindu
   population 60,641. Among the Hindus of Jammu province, who numbered
   626,177 (or 90.87% of the Hindu population of the princely state), the
   most important castes recorded in the census were "Brahmans (186,000),
   the Rajputs (167,000), the Khattris (48,000) and the Thakkars
   (93,000)."

   Among the Muslims of the princely state, four divisions were recorded:
   "Shaikhs, Saiyids, Mughals, and Pathans. The Shaikhs, who are by far
   the most numerous, are the descendants of Hindus, but have retained
   none of the caste rules of their forefathers. They have clan names
   known as krams ..." It was recorded that these kram names included
   "Tantre," "Shaikh," "Mantu," "Ganai," "Dar," "Damar," "Lon" etc. The
   Saiyids, it was recorded "could be divided into those who follow the
   profession of religion and those who have taken to agriculture and
   other pursuits. Their kram name is "Mir." While a Saiyid retains his
   saintly profession Mir is a prefix; if he has taken to agriculture, Mir
   is an affix to his name." The Mughals who were not numerous were
   recorded to have kram names like "Mir" (a corruption of "Mirza"),
   "Beg," "Bandi," "Bach," and "Ashaye." Finally, it was recorded that the
   Pathans "who are more numerous than the Mughals, ... are found chiefly
   in the south-west of the valley, where Pathan colonies have from time
   to time been founded. The most interesting of these colonies is that of
   Kuki-Khel Afridis at Dranghaihama, who retain all the old customs and
   speak Pashtu."

   Two Muslim women, posed with wicker baskets on their heads, and a boy
   in Kashmir. 1890s. Photographer: unknown.

   Muslim papier maché ornament painters in Kashmir. 1895. Photographer:
   unknown.

   Three Hindu priests writing religious texts. 1890s, Jammu and Kashmir,
   photographer: unknown.

   Full-length portrait of two Ladakhi men. 1895, Ladakh, unknown
   photographer.

   In the 1911 Census of the British Indian Empire, the total population
   of Kashmir and Jammu had increased to 3,158,126. Of these, 2,398,320
   (75.94%) were Muslims, 696,830 (22.06%) Hindus, 31,658 (1%) Sikhs, and
   36,512 (1.16%) Buddhists. In the last census of British India in 1941,
   the total population of Kashmir and Jammu (which as a result of the
   second world war, was estimated from the 1931 census) was 3,945,000. Of
   these, the total Muslim population was 2,997,000 (75.97%), the Hindu
   population was 808,000 (20.48%), and the Sikh 55,000 (1.39%).

   According to 2001 Census of India, the total population of the
   Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir was 10,143,700. Of
   these, 6,793,240 (66.97%) were Muslims; 3,005,349 (29.63%) were Hindus;
   207,154 (2.04%) were Sikhs; and 113,787 (1.12%) were Buddhists.

   In Pakistan-administered Kashmir (containing Gilgit, Baltistan and Azad
   Kashmir) 99% of the population is Muslim. Baltistan is mainly Shia,
   with a few Buddhist households as well, while Gilgit is Ismaili. AJK is
   majority Sunni. Many merchants in Poonch are Pathans; however, these
   individuals are not legally considered to be Kashmiris.

   China-administered Kashmir ( Aksai Chin) contains an extremely small
   population of Tibetan origins numbering less than 10,000 inhabitants.

   According to political scientist Alexander Evans, approximately 95% of
   the total population of 160,000-170,000 of Kashmir brahmins, also
   called Kashmiri Pandits, (i.e. approximately 150,000 to 160,000) left
   the Kashmir Valley in 1990 as militant violent engulfed the state.
   According to an estimate by the Central Intelligence Agency, about
   300,000 Kashmiri Pandits from the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir
   have been internally displaced due to the ongoing violence.
   Occupied by      Area       Population   % Muslim % Hindu % Buddhist % Other
   India       Jammu          ~3 million    46%      50%     –          4%
               Kashmir Valley ~4 million    95%      4%      –          –
               Ladakh         ~0.25 million 49%      –       50%        1%
   Pakistan    Northern Areas ~0.9 million  99%      –       –          –
               Azad Kashmir   ~2.6 million  99%      –       –          –
   China       Aksai Chin     –             –        –       –          –
   Statistics from the BBC In Depth report

Culture and cuisine

   Muslim women from northern Ladakh in local costumes
   Muslim women from northern Ladakh 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 dress of both sexes is quite colourful.
   However, the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Muslim-dominated
   Kashmir, Hindu-dominated Jammu and Buddhist-dominated Ladakh poses a
   grave danger to the security of the region where mixed populations live
   in regions such as Doda and Kargil.

   The Dumhal is a famous dance in Kashmir, performed by men 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.

   The Kasmiri cuisine is famous for its delectable vegetarian as well as
   non-vegetarian dishes. The style of cooking is different for Hindus and
   Muslims although with a lot of similarities. Traditional Kashmiri food
   includes dum aloo (boiled potatoes with heavy amounts of spice), tzaman
   (a solid cottage cheese), rogan josh (lamb cooked in heavy spices),
   zaam dod (curd), yakhayn (lamb cooked in mild spices), hakh (a
   spinach-like leaf), rista-gushtava (minced meat balls in tomato and
   curd curry) and of course the signature rice which is particular to
   Asian cultures.

Economy

   Tourism is one of the main sources of income for vast sections of the
   Kashmiri population. However, the tourism industry in Kashmir was badly
   hit after insurgency intensified in 1989. Shown here is the famous Dal
   Lake in Srinagar.
   Tourism is one of the main sources of income for vast sections of the
   Kashmiri population. However, the tourism industry in Kashmir was badly
   hit after insurgency intensified in 1989. Shown here is the famous Dal
   Lake in Srinagar.

   Kashmir's economy is centred around agriculture. Traditionally the
   staple crop of the valley is rice, which forms the chief food of the
   people. Indian corn comes next; wheat, barley and oats are also grown.
   Blessed with a temperate climate unlike much of the subcontinent, it is
   suited to crops like asparagus, artichoke, seakale, broad beans,
   scarletrunners, beetroot, cauliflower and cabbage. Fruit trees are
   common in the valley, and the cultivated orchards yield pears, apples,
   peaches, cherries, etc. are of fine quality. The chief trees are
   deodar, firs and pines, chenar or plane, maple, birch and walnut.

   Historically, Kashmir came into the economic limelight when the world
   famous Cashmere wool was exported to other regions and nations (exports
   have ceased due to decreased abundance of the cashmere goat and
   increased competition from China). Kashmiris are well adept at knitting
   and making shawls, silk carpets, rugs, kurtas, and pottery. Kashmir is
   home to the finest saffron in the world. Efforts are on to export the
   naturally grown fruits and vegetables as organic foods mainly to the
   Middle East. Srinagar is also celebrated for its silver-work, papier
   mache and wood-carving, while silkweaving continues to this day. 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
   Programme'. Many private entrepreneurs have adopted fish farming as a
   profitable venture. The area is known for its sericulture as well as
   other agricultural produce like apples, pears and many temperate fruits
   as well as nuts. Aside from being a pilgrimage site for centuries,
   around the turn 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 70,000 deaths in the
   Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir and around 1,500 deaths in Indian
   Kashmir.

Tourism

   Amarnath is one of the holy shrines of the Hindus. Every year thousands
   of Hindu pilgrims from all over the world visit this shrine.
   Amarnath 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
   "Paradise on Earth," Kashmir's mountainous landscape has attracted
   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.

   There are many mosques serving the largely Muslim population, such as
   the Hazratbal Mosque, situated on the banks of the Dal Lake. The sacred
   hair of the Holy Prophet Muhammad is said to have been brought to this
   part of the world by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and this relic lies
   in the Hazratbal shrine. The shrine was built in white marble in
   contemporary times and bears a close resemblance to the holy shrine of
   Medina in Saudi Arabia where the prophet rests.

   Nature has lavishly endowed Kashmir with certain distinctive favours
   which hardly find a parallel in any alpine land of the world. A spell
   on a houseboat on Dal Lake has always been one of the real treats, and
   Kashmir also offers some delightful trekking opportunities and
   unsurpassed scenery.

   Srinagar City is centred around Dal Lake and this huge lake attracts
   millions of tourists, both domestic and foreign. A drive along the
   Boulevard (the road along the banks of the lake) has been a favourite
   with locals and tourists alike mainly because of the scenic beauty of
   the boulevard and the shikaras. Srinagar City also has a lot of gardens
   along the banks of Dal Lake. Nishat, Cheshma-i-Shahi, Shalimar and
   Harven gardens all were built by the Moghuls and are absolutely
   breathtaking in view all through the year. These gardens have the famed
   Chinar trees. These majestic trees resemble Maples but are much bigger
   and more graceful.

   Long ago, Dal Lake was renowned for its vastness, which stretched for
   more than 50 square miles. Unfortunately, today, due partly to unabated
   tourist influx that largely has been unorganized for some years now,
   this lake has shrunk to less than 10 square kilometres largely due to
   the abundance of residential and tourist sectors along its banks.
   Government mismanagement and apathy have also been contributing factors
   to the shrinking of the lake.

   Pahalgam is at the junction of the streams flowing from Sheshnag Lake
   and the Lidder River. Pahalgam ( 2,130 meters) once was a humble
   shepherd's village with astounding views. Today, Pahalgam is Kashmir's
   prime tourist resort. It is cool even during the height of summer when
   the maximum temperature does not exceed 25 degrees C.

   Kashmir Valley

                 Dal Lake

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