The Amarnath Temple is a Hindu shrine located in the Pahalgam tehsil of the Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. A cave situated at an altitude of 3,888 m (12,756 ft), about 168 km from Anantnag city, the district headquarters, 141 km (88 mi) from Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, reached through either Sonamarg or Pahalgam. It is an important shrine in Hinduism. The cave, located in Sind Valley, is surrounded by glaciers, snowy mountains and is covered with snow most of the year, except for a short period in the summer, when it is open to pilgrims. In 1989, pilgrims numbered between 12,000 and 30,000. In 2011, the numbers reached a peak, crossing 6.3 lakh (630,000) pilgrims. In 2018 pilgrims numbered 2.85 lakh (285,000). The annual pilgrimage varies between 20 and 60 days.
Rajouri or Rajpur is a district in the Jammu division of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region. The Line of Control lies to its west, Poonch to its north, the Reasi district to the east and the Jammu district to its south. Rajouri is famous for its "Kalari". Representing an ancient principality, Rajouri was a joint district, along with Reasi, at the time of princely state's accession to India in 1947. The two tehsils were separated and Rajouri was merged with the Poonch district. Rajouri again became a separate district in 1968. The Rajouri district comprises 13 tehsils (boroughs). The land is mostly fertile and mountainous. Maize, wheat and rice are the main crops of the area and the main source of the irrigation is the river Tawi that originates from the mountains of Pir Panjal.
Ganderbal is a town and a municipality committee in Ganderbal district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters of Ganderbal district.It is in Central Kashmir, it has an average elevation of 1,619 metres. It is bordered by district Srinagar in the south, Bandipore to the north, Kargil in the northeast, Anantnag to the south-east and Baramulla in the south-west.The current District Magistrate of Ganderbal is Mr. Shyambir Singh.District Ganderbal is known for its beauty,there are many beautiful places in Ganderbal.Sonmarg is the most famous place in Ganderbal, Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra is also done in Ganderbal.
Pahalgam, known as Pahalgom is a town and a notified area committee, near Anantnag city in the Anantnag district of the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is a popular tourist destination and hill station. Its lush green meadows and pristine waters attract thousands of tourists from all over the world each year. It is located 45 kilometres (28 mi) from Anantnag on the banks of Lidder River at an altitude of 7,200 feet (2,200 m). Pahalgam is the headquarters of one of the eleven tehsils of Anantnag district.
The 2000 Amarnath pilgrimage attack on 1 and 2 August was the massacre of at least 89 to 105 people and injury to at least 62 people, in at least five different coordinated attacks by Islamist militants in Anantnag district and Doda district of Indian administered Kashmir.
The valleys of Jammu and Kashmir include the Kashmir Valley, Chenab Valley, Sindh Valley, and Lidder Valley. Srinagar, with its renowned Dal Lake and Mughal Gardens, Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Bhaderwah, Patnitop, and Jammu are all popular tourist destinations in Jammu and Kashmir. Thousands of Hindu pilgrims visit the sacred temples of Vaishno Devi and Amarnath each year, which has a substantial impact on the state's economy.
On 26 May 2008, the government of India and the state Government of Jammu and Kashmir reached an agreement to transfer 99 acres (0.40 km2) of forest land to the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) in the main Kashmir valley to set up temporary shelters and facilities for Hindu pilgrims. This caused a controversy, with demonstrations from the Kashmir valley against the land transfer and protests from the Jammu region supporting it. The largest demonstration saw more than 500,000 protesters at a single rally, among the largest in Kashmir's history.
Masud Choudhary was an Indian educator, social reformer, thinker and an administrator of Jammu and Kashmir union territory. He was the founding Vice Chancellor of Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University in Rajouri, J&K. He was also the Chief Patron of the Gurjar Desh Charitable Trust.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police or JKP is the law enforcement agency of Jammu and Kashmir. JKP was established in 1873 and has primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within Jammu and Kashmir in India.
Betaab valley, originally called as Hajan Valley or Hagan Valley, is situated at a distance of 15 km (9.3 mi) from Pahalgam in the Anantnag district in India's union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley got its name from the Sunny Deol-Amrita Singh hit debut film Betaab (1983). The Valley is towards northeast of Pahalgam and falls between Pahalgam and Chandanwadi and is en route Amarnath Temple Yatra. The valley surrounded by lush green meadows, snow clad mountains and covered with dense vegetation.
S. P. Varma is a social worker and peace activist from Jammu and Kashmir. He has been actively involved in peace-building efforts in conflict-ridden areas of the Kashmir valley.
Mehmood-ur Rehman was an Indian civil servant, best known as the chairman of the 2008 Committee on Socio-Economic Backwardness of Muslims in Maharashtra. He was Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University from 1995 to 2000 and served as the chairman of Bombay Mercantile Cooperative Bank.
On 10 July 2017, the first Monday of the month of Shraavana, 8 Hindu civilian pilgrims on the way from Amarnath Temple in Kashmir Valley, in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, were killed in a terror attack. The pilgrims mostly belonged to the Indian state of Gujarat. Eight people were killed and at least 18 people were injured in the attack.
On 20 July 2001, in the month of Shraavana, 13 people were killed and 15 other injured in a terror attack on a pilgrim night camp at Sheshnag Lake near the Amarnath Temple glacial cave shrine in Kashmir Valley in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, in two explosions and firing by militants. In a pre-dawn attack, terrorists penetrated several layers of security cordon and exploded two improvised explosive devices (lEDs), casualties included 8 Hindu civilian pilgrims entailing 2 women, and 3 Muslim civilians and 2 security personnel.
On 30 July and 6 August 2002, in the month of Shraavana, 11 people were killed and 30 injured in a terror attack by Islamic extremists from Lashkar-e-Taiba's front group of al-Mansuriyan, on Nunwan base camp at Pahalgam of the Amarnath Hindu pilgrimage (Yatra) to Amarnath Temple glacial cave shrine in Kashmir Valley in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. In the spate of attacks on Yatra in the third consecutive year, 2 pilgrims were killed and 3 injured on 30 July when terrorists threw grenades at a civilian taxi of pilgrims in Srinagar. Further, 9 people were killed and 27 injured on 6 August by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists' hail of bullets at Nunwan base camp at Pahalgam.
Indian Army operations in Jammu and Kashmir include security operations such as Operation Rakshak, which began in 1990, Operation Sarp Vinash in 2003 and Operation Randori Behak in 2020. Other operations include humanitarian missions such as Operation Megh Rahat and operations with a social aim such as Operation Goodwill and Operation Calm Down. The Indian Army works in tandem with the other arms of the Indian Armed Forces and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir such as during Mission Sahayata or joint operations.
Jammu and Kashmir is a region administered by India as a union territory and consists of the southern portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and between India and China since 1959. The Line of Control separates Jammu and Kashmir from the Pakistani-administered territories of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan in the west and north. It lies to the north of the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab and to the west of Ladakh which is administered by India as a union territory.
Chowdhary Zulfkar Ali is an Indian politician and former cabinet minister of Jammu and Kashmir. He is an Advocate by profession and was part of the 11th and 12th Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly from Darhal constituency. He is a second-generation politician whose father Chowdhary Mohmmad Hussain was a renowned politician in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. Zulfkar has also served as Cabinet Minister under the Chief Ministership of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Mehbooba Mufti 2015 to 2018. He was associated with Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party and served as district chief of the party for district Rajouri 2003 to 2013. He resigned from the PDP and became one of the founding member of Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party. Presently Vice President of the party. Ali has been Honoured with Best Legislature 2012. As a Cabinet Minister, Ali headed various portfolios. Zulfkar also implemented the national food security act (NFSA) in the state and launched a food for poor scheme (MMSFES).
Chanderkote is a village panchayat located in Ramban district in the Indian state of Jammu-Kashmir.
On 13 September 2023, a confrontation erupted between Indian security forces and militants in the Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The week-long encounter in the Gadol forests in the Anantnag district ended on 19 September, in which Lashkar-e-Taiba commander, Uzair Khan was killed along with two senior Indian Army officers and a J&K Police officer. After losing 4 security forces personnel on the first day, Indian security forces were finally able to clear the militant hideout on the 7th day of the operation, as the dense jungles and rough terrain of the area provided cover to the militants.
