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{{Pie chart
{{Pie chart
|thumb = left
|thumb = left
| caption= Languages of Chenab Valley (2011)<ref name="census2011-C16">{{cite report |title=C-16 Population By Mother Tongue – Jammu & Kashmir |url = https://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/C-16/DDW-C16-STMT-MDDS-0100.XLSX |publisher = Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India |access-date=18 July 2020}}</ref>
| caption= Languages of Chenab Valley (2011)<ref name="census2011-C16">{{cite report |title=C-16 Population By Mother Tongue – Jammu & Kashmir |url = https://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/C-16/DDW-C16-STMT-MDDS-0100.XLSX |publisher = Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India |access-date=22 October 2020}}</ref>
|label1 = [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]] |value1 = 47.03|color1 = lightgreen
|label1 = [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]] |value1 = 47.03|color1 = lightgreen
|label2 = [[Gujari language|Gojri]] |value2 = 10.17|color2 = tomato
|label2 = [[Gujari language|Gojri]] |value2 = 10.17|color2 = tomato

Revision as of 23:43, 22 October 2021

Chenab Valley
Region
Chenab River at Ramban
Chenab River at Ramban
Chenab valley in Jammu and Kashmir
Chenab valley in Jammu and Kashmir
Country India
Union TerritoryJammu and Kashmir
Area
 • Land17,978 km2 (6,941 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total924,345
Languages
 • Spoken
  1. Kashmiri
  2. Bhaderwahi
  3. Sarazi
  4. Urdu
  5. Gojri
  6. Kishtwari
  7. Padri
  8. Pogali
  9. Rambani
Districts
Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG)Sunil Gupta (IPS)[2]

The Chenab Valley, also known as the Chenab Region, is the river valley of the Chenab River flowing through the Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts of Jammu Division in Jammu and Kashmir, India. This name refers to the erstwhile Doda district.[a][3][4][5]

Name

The term Chenab valley was used by Erik Norin in a 1926 journal article "The Relief Chronology of Chenab Valley".[6] Later, the term was popularised by various social activists and politicians referring to the erstwhile Doda district[a] formed in 1948.[1][7] The term is used as identity by residents of Doda, Ramban, Kishtwar districts who have unique identity and culture distinct from neighbouring Pir Panjal and Jammu regions.[8][9]

The Chenab valley is termed as the DKR Range (Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban Range) by police or military officials, while a separate Deputy Inspector General is posted for this range by J&K Police.[10]

Geography

Map

The Chenab Valley lies between the middle and outer Himalayan range in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is currently divided into three districts: Doda, Ramban, and Kishtwar.[1][3] The valley touches the Anantnag district of J&K to the north, the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, and Kathua district to the South, the Udhampur district to the southwest, and Salal Reasi Subdivision to the West, with Doda in its middle. It consists of six Assembly seats.[11]

Chenab Valley has mostly hilly terrain. The Chenab River flows through all the districts of this region including Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban. The area is an active seismic zone.[12]

History

The demography of Chenab valley which is referred to erstwhile Doda district is complex as compared to its neighbouring districts primarily because of the wide diversity in its population. In the past, Doda was largely inhabited by Sarazi population before people started settling here from Kashmir and other adjoining areas.[13][14] The reasons for this migration in the 17th and 18th centuries is a matter of ambiguity among historians.[15] However Sumantra Bose says it was repression by feudal class that drew people to the district of Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar.[16][17]

The Chenab valley consists of areas drawn from the principalities of Kishtwar and Bhadarwah, both of which were part of Udhampur district in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir.

People

Kashmiris form majority in Chenab Valley but Gujjars, Paharis & Bhaderwahis have also significant population. Chenab Valley is rich in cultural heritage and ethical values, but also has age-old traditions of secularism and tolerance.[16] Though this place has also faced rising insurgency. During the rise of insurgency in Kashmir in the early 1990s; this place was second most affected place in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The main occupations of the people of the valley are farming and cattle rearing.

Controversy

The term 'Chenab Valley' is a widely used term for identifying the three districts of the erstwhile Doda district by all political parties except the Bhartiya Janata Party, who don't recognise this term. The BJP's stand on this name is that 'there is no Chenab valley and it is only the Jammu division for representation of the region'.[18] While other parties including JKNC party's stand on this name is based on developmental negligence and wants separate divisions from Jammu division for Chenab valley and Pir Panjal.[19]

Demographics

Religion in Chenab valley (2011)[20]
Religion Percent
Islam
 
 59.98%
Hinduism
 
 39.22%
Other or not stated
 
 0.80%
Sex Ratio in Chenab valley in 2011 Census.[20]
(no. females per 1,000 males)
Religion (and population) Sex Ratio
Muslim (pop 554,355)
 
 932
Hindu (pop 362,578)
 
 884
Other (pop 7,412)
 
 722
Total (pop 924,345)
 
 913

Language

Languages of Chenab Valley (2011)[21]

  Kashmiri (47.03%)
  Gojri (10.17%)
  Bhaderwahi (9.90%)
  Siraji (8.28%)
  Dogri (5.03%)
  Kishtwari (4.18%)
  Pahadi (4.03%)
  Hindi (3.02%)
  Padari (1.86%)
  Other (6.51%)

Chenab Valley is home to a variety of ethnic groups. Officially, Urdu and English are used, but the Chenab Valley is home to a variety of languages, including Kashmiri, which is the most widely spoken language in the region[22], Gojri, Kishtwari, Bhaderwahi, Sarazi, Dogri, Rambani, Pogali, Pahari, Bhalessi, and Padri.[23]

Tourist destinations

Chenab valley is also the hub of hilly tourist attractions after Kashmir, some of them are as follows;

Chenab valley Divisional Status

There has been a movement demanding divisional for the Chenab valley by various social and political activists for a long time. The demand rose in 2018 and 2019 when Ladakh got divisional status and the former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah added "Two Separate Divisional Status for Chenab Valley and Pir Panjal Region" to his party's political agenda.[24]

As of 2021, the movement for divisional status again increased after rumours of second bifurcation of J&K and demand for a separate state of Jammu.

There is a common reason for this demand. People allege negligence in terms of developmental issues by the government if the Chenab valley remains linked to the Jammu division.[1]

Hill Development Council

In 1996, Dr. Farooq Abdullah as Chief minister promised administrative autonomy to Chenab. Later in 2000, a bill demanding a Hill Development Council for Chenab valley was presented in the legislative assembly by the Sheikh Abdul Rehman (then MLA Bhaderwah).[25]

Natural disasters

2013 Earthquake in Chenab valley

  • A 5.8 earthquake hit the Erstwhile Doda on 1 May, 2013, killing two and injuring 69.[26] Seismic activity continued in the valley throughout 2013, prompting teams of seismologists to study the area. A local belief states that the earthquakes were being caused by hydroelectric construction projects in the area.[27]

2017 Thathri flash floods

  • Flash floods wreaked havoc in Thathri town of Doda district of J&K, inundating vast areas along the Batote- Kishtwar National Highway and washing away half a dozen houses. Six persons were killed in the flash floods.[28]

2021 Hunzar Kishtwar Cloudburst

  • Cloudburst hits Hunzar hamlet in Dachhan area of Kishtwar district resulting into death of 26 persons and 17 injured on 28 July, 2021. As per reports, only 7 dead bodies were recovered while 19 dead bodies were not found.[29] As of October 5, 2021, one out of 19 missing persons' dead bodies was found after more than 70 days, while 18 others remain missing.[30]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Anzer Ayoob (17 July 2021). "J&K: Chenab Valley Seeks Separate Divisional Status as well as Council". NewsClick.in. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  2. ^ "Jammu and Kashmir Police - Zone/Range". jkpolice.gov.in. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  3. ^ a b Tahir Nadeem (9 February 2021). "'Earthquakes, cloudbursts can damage Chenab Valley dams'". Greater Kashmir. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  4. ^ "Geelani vows to resist settlement of retired soldiers in Kashmir". Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  5. ^ "THROUGH THE PIR PANJAL". The Hindu. 7 July 2001. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  6. ^ Erik Norin (1926), "The Relief Chronology of the Chenab Valley", Geografiska Annaler, 8: 284–300, doi:10.2307/519728, JSTOR 519728
  7. ^ Behera, Navnita Chadha (2007), Demystifying Kashmir, Pearson Education India, Map 1-3, p. 28, ISBN 978-8131708460
  8. ^ "Chenab Valley: Victimized In All Political Regimes". Kashmir Age. 5 January 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  9. ^ Vikalp Ashiqehind (9 November 2018). "Sarazi: Endangered Language of the Chenab Valley". Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  10. ^ "DIG DKR Range chairs crime review meeting". State Times. 14 October 2021. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  11. ^ "Ghulam Nabi Azad promises to develop Chenab Valley as 'Model region'". Economic Times. 4 November 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Chenab valley quakes not due to hydro projects: Scientists"
  13. ^ "Sarazi: Endangered Language of the Chenab Valley". Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  14. ^ "Story of Doda misunderstood by Kashmir". Greater Kashmir. 13 March 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  15. ^ "Mini Kashmir". Kashmir Life. 11 January 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  16. ^ a b Snedden, Christopher (2015), Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris, Oxford University Press, p. xxi, 23, ISBN 978-1-84904-342-7
  17. ^ "Sarazi: Endangered Language of the Chenab Valley". Sahapedia. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  18. ^ "BJP cries foul over use of term 'Chenab valley' again". Tribune (India). 11 November 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  19. ^ "Small Separatism". India Today. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  20. ^ a b C-1 Population By Religious Community – Jammu & Kashmir (Report). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  21. ^ C-16 Population By Mother Tongue – Jammu & Kashmir (Report). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  22. ^ N. Koul, Omkar. "Spoken Kashmiri — A language course". Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  23. ^ "Chenab valley languages belongs to Western Pahari classification: BHC". The Chenab Times. 10 January 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  24. ^ "Separate division for Ladakh: Omar promises two more for Chenab valley, Pir Panjal if voted to power". Times of India. 8 February 2019. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  25. ^ "Why oppose Hill Council status for Chenab, Pir Panjal valleys?". Brighter Kashmir. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  26. ^ "IIT scientists, NDMA assess damages in quake-hit Erstwhile Doda". The Hindu. 13 May 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  27. ^ "Erstwhile doda quakes not due to hydro projects: Scientists"
  28. ^ "Chenab Valley: 6 Killed in Thathri Floods". Times of India. 22 July 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  29. ^ "Kishtwar Cloudburst: Two More Bodies Recovered, Toll Reaches 7, Says Officials". The Chenab Times. 28 July 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  30. ^ "Hunzer Kishtwar Cloudburst: Body of one out of 19 missing people found after 70 days". The Chenab Times. 5 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.

Notes

  1. ^ a b Erstwhile Doda district refers to the present day three districts in Jammu and Kashmir viz. Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban.

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