ABOUT AZAD KASHMIR

Azad Jammu and Kashmir  (Urdu: آزاد جموں و کشمیر‎ Azad Jammu o Kashmir), abbreviated as AJK and commonly known as Azad Kashmir, AJK translated into English means The Free State Jammu and Kashmir, is a self-governing administrative division of Pakistan. The territory lies west of the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir, and was previously part of the formerprincely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which ceased to exist as a result of the first Kashmir war fought between India and Pakistan in 1947.

Azad Kashmir is part of the greater Kashmir region, which is the subject of a long-running conflict between India and Pakistan. The territory shares a border with Gilgit–Baltistan, together with which it is referred to by the United Nations and other international organisations as "Pakistan-administered Kashmir".[note 1] The territory also borders Pakistan's Punjab province to the south and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to the west. To the east, Azad Kashmir is separated from the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir by the Line of Control, the de facto border between India and Pakistan. Azad Kashmir has a total area of 13,297 square kilometres (5,134 sq mi), with an estimated population of around 4.6 million people.

The territory has a parliamentary form of government, with its capital located at Muzaffarabad. The President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir is the constitutional head of the state, while the prime minister, supported by a Council of Ministers, is the chief executive. The unicameral Azad Jammu & Kashmir Legislative Assembly elects both the prime minister and president. The state has its own Supreme Court and a High Court, while the Government of Pakistan's Ministry of Kashmir Affairs serves as a link between it and Azad Kashmir's government. Neither Azad Kashmir nor Gilgit-Baltistan elect members to Pakistan's National Assembly.

A 2005 earthquake killed 100,000 people and left another three million people displaced, with widespread devastation. Since then, with help from the Government of Pakistan and foreign donors, reconstruction of infrastructure is underway. Azad Kashmir's economy largely depends on agriculture, services, tourism, and remittances sent by members of the British Mirpuri community. The territory's official language is Urdu, although Pahari, Hindko, Gojri, Punjabi, and Pashto are also spoken. It has a literacy rate of approximately 64%.

AZAD KASHMIR DISTRICTS

• MUZAFFARABAD
• 
• NEELUM
  
• BAGH
  
• POONCH
  
• KOTLI
  
• MIRPUR
  
• BHIMBER
  
• SUDHNUTI
  
• HATTIAN BALLA
  
• HAVELI
  

HISTORY AZAD KASHMIR

HISTORY OF KASHMIR IN ENGLISH

At the time of the Partition of India in 1947, the British abandoned their suzerainty over the princely states, which were left with the options of joining India or Pakistan or remaining independent. Hari Singh, the maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, Wanted his state to remain independent.

In Spring 1947, an uprising against the Maharaja broke out in Poonch, an area bordering the Rawalpindi division of West Punjab. Maharaja's administration is said to have started levying punitive taxes on the peasantry which provoked a local revolt and the administration resorted to brutal suppression. The area's population, swelled by recently demobilised soldiers following World War II, rebelled against the Maharaja's forces and gained control of almost the entire district. Following this victory, the pro-Pakistan chieftains of the western Jammu districts of Muzaffarabad, Poonch and Mirpur proclaimed a provisional Azad Jammu and Kashmir government in Rawalpindi on 3 October 1947.

On 21 October, several thousand Pashtun tribesmen from North-West Frontier Province poured into Jammu and Kashmir to liberate it from the Maharaja's rule. They were led by experienced military leaders and were equipped with modern arms. The Maharaja's crumbling forces were unable to withstand the onslaught. The raiders captured the towns of Muzaffarabad and Baramulla, the latter 20 miles (32 km) northwest of the state capital Srinagar. On 24 October, the Maharaja requested military assistance from India, which responded that it was unable to help him unless he acceded to India. Accordingly, on 26 October 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh signed an Instrument of Accession, handing over control of defence, external affairs and communications to the Government of India in return for military aid.Indian troops were immediately airlifted into Srinagar.[16] Pakistan intervened subsequently.Fighting ensued between the Indian and Pakistani armies, with the two areas of control more or less stabilised around what is now known as the "Line of Control".

India later approached the United Nations, asking it to resolve the dispute, and resolutions were passed in favour of the holding of a plebiscite with regard to Kashmir's future. However, no such plebiscite has ever been held on either side, since there was a precondition which required the withdrawal of the Pakistani Army along with the non-state elements and the subsequent partial withdrawal of the Indian Army.from the parts of Kashmir under their respective control – a withdrawal that never took place. In 1949, a formal cease-fire line separating the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir came into effect.

Following the 1949 cease-fire agreement with India, the government of Pakistan divided the northern and western parts of Kashmir that it occupied at the time of cease-fire into the following two separately-controlled political entities:

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) – the narrow, southern part, 250 miles (400 km) long, with a width varying from 10 to 40 miles (16 to 64 km).

Gilgit–Baltistan formerly called the Federally Administered Northern Areas (FANA) – the much larger political entity to the north of AJK with an area of 72,496 square kilometres (27,991 sq mi). It was directly administered by Pakistan as a de facto dependent territory, i.e., a non-self-governing territory. However, it was ostensibly granted "full autonomy" on 29 August 2009.

At one time under Pakistani control, Kashmir's Shaksgam tract, a small region along the northeastern border of Gilgit–Baltistan, was provisionally ceded by Pakistan to the People's Republic of China in 1963 and now forms part of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

In 1972, the then current border between the Indian and Pakistani controlled parts of Kashmir was designated as the "Line of Control". This line has remained unchanged since the 1972 Simla Agreement, which bound the two countries "to settle their differences by peaceful means through bilateral negotiations". Some political experts claim that, in view of that pact, the only solution to the issue is mutual negotiation between the two countries without involving a third party such as the United Nations.[citation needed] The 1974 Interim Constitution Act was passed by the 48-member Azad Jammu and Kashmir unicameral assembly.

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HISTORY IN URDU

GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE

The northern part of Azad Jammu and Kashmir encompasses the lower part of the Himalayas, including Jamgarh Peak (15,531 feet [4,734 meters]). However, Sarwali peak in the Neelum Valley is the highest peak in the state.

SARWALI PEAK

Fertile, green, mountainous valleys are characteristic of Azad Kashmir's geography, making it one of the most beautiful regions on the subcontinent.

The southern parts of Azad Kashmir including Bhimber, Mirpur and Kotli districts has extremely hot weather in summers and moderate cold weather in winters. It receives rains mostly in monsoon weather.

In the central and northern parts of state weather remains moderate hot in summers and very cold and chilly in winter. Snow fall also occurs there in December and January.

This region receives rainfall in both winters and summers. Muzaffarabad and Pattan are among the wettest areas of the state. Throughout most of the region, the average rainfall exceeds 1400 mm, with the highest average rainfall occurring near Muzaffarabad (around 1800 mm). During summer, monsoon floods of the Jhelum and Leepa rivers are common, due to high rainfall and melting snow

.

MUZAFFARABAD

MUZAFFARABAD

Muzaffarabad  (Urdu: مُظفَّرآباد‎; Pahari, Potwari: مُظفٌر آباد) is the capital of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan.

It is located in Misfired District on the banks of the Jhelum and Neelum rivers. The district is bounded by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa in the west, by the Kupwara and Baramulla districts of Disputed territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the east, and theNeelum District of Azad Kashmir in the north.

MUZAFFARABAD FULL PIC 

Early history

The original name of Muzaffarabad was Udabhanda

Hieun tsang, the celebrated Buddhist pilgrim who is said to have visited the valley in 633 A.D mentions Pan-nu-tso, i.e., modern day Punch, Ho-lo-she-pu-to i.e. modern day Rajauri. He entered India from Udabhanda, Urasa (present Muzafrabad and Uskara) entered the valley via Baramula gorge.

Udabhanda was the capital of the Shahi dynasty. The Shahi (Devanagari शाही), also called Shahiya, dynasties ruled portions of the Kabul Valley (in eastern Afghanistan) and the old province of Gandhara (northern Pakistan and Kashmir) from the decline of the Kushan Empire in third century to the early ninth century. The kingdom was known as Kabul-shahan or Ratbel-shahan from (565 – 670 CE) when they had their capitals in Kapisa and Kabul, and later Udabhandapura (also known as Hund) for its new capital.

The term Shahi is the title of the rulers, likely related to the Kushan form Shao or Persian form Shah and refers to a series of 60 rulers probably descended from the Kushans or Turks (Turshkas).

Modern history

The capital of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir, is situated at the confluence of the Jhelum and Neelum rivers. It is 138 km from Rawalpindi and about 76 km from Abbottabad. The present name of Muzaffarabad has been given to it after the name of Sultan Muzaffar Khan, a chief of Bomba Dynasty (1652). There are two forts, namely, Red and Black Fort, situated on the opposite sides of river Neelum. The Neelum river streams through the town, joins the river Jhelum at Domel and plays a dominant role in the micro-climate of Muzaffarabad.

On October 8, 2005, the city was struck by an earthquake measuring a magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter Scale..

On October 8, 2005, the city was struck by an earthquake measuring a magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter Scale..

2005 Kashmir earthquake

The city was the site of the epicenter of the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, which occurred on October 8, 2005 and had a magnitude of 7.6. The disaster destroyed 50% of the buildings in the city (including most of the official buildings) and is estimated to have killed up to 80,000 people in the Pakistani-controlled areas of Kashmir.

As of 8 November 2005 the Pakistani government's official death toll was 87,350. Some estimates put the death toll over 100,000...

Valleys

Garhi Dopatta              Awan Patti            Kutla           Pirchinassi Neelam Valley Leepa Valley Jhelum Valley Chikkar Kardala

HAVELI

Haveli District

Haveli District is the 9th districts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. It was formerly a part of Bagh District, but it separated from Bagh on 1 July 2009 and become the ninth district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Ethnic Groups

People of Haveli Districts are most educated than all districts of Azad Kashmir.Gujjar,Rathor and Khawaja are major tribes of the District Haveli.Other includes sayyed Sherazi, Khan (Pathan),Niazi, Dar, Kiani,Sheikh etc. Mumtaz Hussain Rathore(ex.Prime Minister AJK) ,Ch Muhammad Aziz(Ex s minister) Kh Khursheed(ex.President AJK),Khawaja Saeed Ex. Chief justice of AJK,Khawaja Shad Ex. Chief justic of AJK,DFO Shah Muhammad Chaudhary,Dr Pro Nadeem Ahmed Bukhari (Dean UAJK),Dr Pro Shahid (MUST),Dr Abdul Hameed Peerzada(Uni Of Poonch), Ch Muhammad Fareed DC,Zafar Mahmood Khan Comisnor,Sadiq Dar Secretary Education,Ch Muhammad Din Ex.Chairman,Ch Talib Hussain, Haider Sherazi Anchor Person(journalist) ,Aziz Khan Niazi, Raja Mirza Khan Kiani ,Moaz Ullah Khan (Press Reporter),Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan (Son Of Moaz Ullah Khan),Dr.Abdul Ghani ,Dr Shkeel Ghani,Dr. Shabbir Ahmed,Khawaja Tarique Saeed chairman zakwat koncal.are most popular Personalities of Haveli.

Education

According to the Alif Ailaan Pakistan District Education Rankings 2015, Haveli is ranked 17 out of 148 districts in terms of education. For facilities and infrastructure, the district is ranked 146 out of 148.

HATTIAN BALLA

Hattian Bala District

Hattian Bala is one of the ten districts of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. Its district headquarters is in the town of Hattian Bala.

History

Before the establishment of the Azad Kashmir in 1948 it was the part of the Baramula district, tehsil Uri (now in Indian Kashmir). After ceasefire during the first war between India and Pakistan Hattian Bala became part of Muzaffarabad District until 2009. It was announced district in July 2009 during the coalition government of Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan. Newly established district is the Gateway to Srinagar with 0.3 million population.

Indian controlled district Baramula is located in the east of Hattian Bala while Kapwara of Indian Kashmir is in the northeast, Neelum district of AJK in the northwest, Muzaffarabad in the west and Bagh in the south.

Economy

The rural urban ratio is 90:10. The majority of the rural population depends on agriculture, livestock and forestry for its subsistence. Many people are working or settled abroad in the Middle East, UK and USA and they support their families behind and in the development of the area. Hattian Bala is a mainly hilly and mountainous region with stretches of plains along the riverside, the river Jehlum which enters from the Chakothi LoC point and passes through the Jehlum valley flowing east to northwest. Due to fast flowing winding streams, Hattian Bala has great potential to generate hydroelectricity. Hydro power stations are Kathai, Leepa, and Sharian. The district has much natural beauty, its mountains have beautiful valleys like Leepa, Khalana Chham, Ghail, Saina Daman and Chakar Salmia.

Administrative divisions

Hattian Bala Districts consists of three tehsils:

• Hattian Bala
• Chikkar
• Leepa

The district council of Hattian Bala has 12 union councils (comprising 8 UCs from Constituency No.5 and 4 UCs from Constituency No.6), one municipal committee at Hattian, and one town committee at Chikar.

The rural development department has 3 Markz (centers): Hattian, Leepa and Chikar. Assistan Director LG&RDD Hattian is the administrative officer for the rural development with 2 project managers at each center.