The Kashmir division is a revenue and administrative division of the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.[1] It comprises the Kashmir Valley, bordering the Jammu Division to the south and Ladakh to the east. The Line of Control forms its boundary with the Pakistani-administered territories of Gilgit−Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir to the north and west and west, respectively.
Kashmir division | |
|---|---|
Region administered by India as an Administrative division | |
 Interactive map of Kashmir division | |
![A map of the Kashmir division (in red) of the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.[1]](https://www.search.com.vn/wiki/en/File:Kashmir_Division_in_Greater_Kashmir.svg) A map of the Kashmir division (in red) of the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.[1] | |
| Coordinates: 34°14′N 74°40′E / 34.233°N 74.667°E | |
| Administering country | India |
| Union territory | Jammu and Kashmir |
| Districts | Anantnag, Baramulla, Budgam, Bandipore, Ganderbal, Kupwara, Kulgam, Pulwama, Shopian and Srinagar. |
| Capital | Srinagar |
| Historical divisions | |
| Government | |
| • Type | Division |
| • Divisional Commissioner | Pandurang Kondbarao Pole |
| Area | |
| • Total | 15,948 km2 (6,158 sq mi) |
| Dimensions | |
| • Length | 135[4] km (83.885 mi) |
| • Width | 32[4] km (19.884 mi) |
| Elevation | 1,620[4] m (5,314 ft) |
| Population (2011[2]) | |
| • Total | 6,888,475[2] |
| • Density | 431.93/km2 (1,118.7/sq mi) |
| Demonym(s) | Kashmiris, Koshur |
| Ethnicity and language | |
| • Languages | Kashmiri, Urdu, Hindi,[5] English,[6] Pahari-Pothwari, Gojri, Shina[7] |
| • Ethnic groups | Kashmiri, Pahari, Gujar, Shina |
| • Religion (2011[8]) | 96.41% Islam, 2.45% Hinduism, 0.81% Sikhism, 0.17% Christianity, 0.16% Others |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Vehicle registration | JK |
| Highest peak | Machoi Peak (5458 metres) |
| Largest lake | Wular lake(260 km2 (100 sq mi))[9] |
| Longest river | Jhelum river(725 kilometres)[10] |
| Website | http://kashmirdivision.nic.in/ |
Its main city is Srinagar. Other important cities include Anantnag, Baramulla, Sopore and Kulgam.
Districts
The Indian administrative districts for the Kashmir Valley were reorganised in 1968,[11] and 2006,[12] each time subdividing existing districts. Kashmir Division currently consists of the following ten districts:
| Name of district | HQ | Area | Population[13] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (km2) | Total (sq mile) | Rural (km2) | Urban (km2) | 2001 census | 2011 census | |||
| Anantnag | Anantnag | 3,574 | 1,380 | 3,475.8 | 98.2 | [14] | 778,408 | 1,078,692 |
| Kulgam | Kulgam | 410 | 158 | 360.2 | 49.8 | [15] | 394,026 | 424,483 |
| Pulwama | Pulwama | 1,086 | 419 | 1,047.5 | 38.6 | [16] | 441,275 | 560,440 |
| Shopian | Shopian | 312 | 120 | 306.6 | 5.4 | [17] | 211,332 | 266,215 |
| Budgam | Budgam | 1,361 | 525 | 1,312.0 | 49.1 | [18] | 607,181 | 753,745 |
| Srinagar | Srinagar | 1,979 | 764 | 1,684.4 | 294.5 | [19] | 1,027,670 | 1,236,829 |
| Ganderbal | Ganderbal | 259 | 100 | 233.6 | 25.4 | [20] | 217,907 | 297,446 |
| Bandipore | Bandipore | 345 | 133 | 295.4 | 49.6 | [21] | 304,886 | 392,232 |
| Baramulla | Baramulla | 4,243 | 1,638 | 4,179.4 | 63.6 | [22] | 843,892 | 1,008,039 |
| Kupwara | Kupwara | 2,379 | 919 | 2,331.7 | 47.3 | [23] | 650,393 | 870,354 |
| Total | 15,948 | 6,158 | 15,226.4 | 721.5 | 5,476,970 | 6,888,475 | ||
Demographics
Religion
Religions in Kashmir Division (2011)[24]
The Kashmir division is largely Muslim (97.06%) with a very small Hindu (2.11%) and Sikh (0.58%) population.[24] Among Muslims, about 10% are Shias, remaining being Sunni. Majority of the population is made up of ethnic Kashmiris, with a significant minority of Pahari-Pothwari and Gujjar-Bakarwal people mainly living near the border area adjoining Pakistani administrated Kashmir. However, originally there was originally a very large Kashmiri Hindu population in the valley prior to being ethnically cleansed in the 1990s. It is estimated that there were over 300,000 Kashmiri Pandits who were forced to flee due to intense persecution by Kashmiri Muslim separatists, who saw them as a threat because they were considered close to the Indian establishment. [25]
Language
Kashmir division: mother-tongue of population, according to the 2011 Census.[26]
The majority of the population speaks Kashmiri (85.28%), while the remainder speaks either Gujari, Pahari-Pothwari or Hindi.[13]
Urdu is also widely understood as a literary language in Kashmir due to it being a medium of instruction in schools.[11][13]