Azad Kashmir
This article details only the area administered by Pakistan. For the full region see KashmirAzad Kashmir (
Urdu:
آزاد کشمیر), is part of the
Pakistani section of the state of
Jammu and Kashmir, along with the
Northern Areas; its official name is Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The name Azad Kashmir means "Free Kashmir" in
Urdu. It covers an area of 13,300
km² (5,135
mi²), with its capital at
Muzaffarabad, and has an estimated population of almost three million people.
After the partition of India in 1947 and the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947,Kashmir is an integral part of India and is under illegal occupation by pakistan since 1947. Pakistan did not gain any administrative rights to a portion of Kashmir as per a cease-fire agreement. Parts of Azad Kashmir were lost to Indian forces in the
1971 war but were returned by India as part of the
Simla Accord, in 1972. Pakistan divided the region into two administrative sub-regions:# Azad Kashmir, 250 miles (400 km) in length with the width varying from 10 to 40 miles (15 to 65 km), 13,300 km² (5,135 mi²), #
Northern Areas, a much larger area, 72,496 km² (27,991 mi²), incorporated into Pakistan and administered as a de facto dependency, and## A small part, the
Trans-Karakoram Tract, of the Northern Areas that was ceded to the
People's Republic of China by Pakistan in 1963.
Azad Kashmir is nominally
autonomous, with its own elected
President,
Prime Minister, Legislature, and High Court. The state is divided into two administrative divisions which in turn are composed of seven districts.
| Division | District | Area (km²) |
|---|
| Mirpur | Bhimper | 1,516 |
| | Kotli | 1,862 |
| | Mirpur | 1,010 |
| Muzaffarabad | Bagh | 1,368 |
| | Muzaffarabad | 6,117 |
| | Neelum[Note: Neelum is a recently created district and no figures are available yet. Refer to the link below. ] [ ] | |
| | Poonch | 855 |
| | Sudhnati | 569 |
| Azad Kashmir | 7 districts | 13,297 |
|---|
Although a proper
census has not been taken in recent years, the best estimates conclude that the Azad Kashmir region has approximately 3.2 million inhabitants. The population of Azad Kashmir includes the
Potwari (whose language includes the Mirpuri dialect), the nomadic
Gujjars, who largely inhabit the upper hills and slopes and some
Kashmiris and
Hindko-speaking
Pathans,. Tribes or clans (biraderi) are important for some groups in the region and include: the
Sudhun (
Sadozai) ,
Rajputs, Mirpuri
Jats, and
Gujjars. The Hindko and Potwari dialects are both related to Punjabi, but have distinct separate features. Potwari is spoken in the
United Kingdom by the Mirpuri community; Mirpuri is a local dialect of Potwari spoken in and around the
Mirpur and
Kotli districts. About 70% of Pakistanis living in the UK today are Mirpuris. Azad Kashmir is predominantly
Muslim, although over 100,000 Hindus and Sikhs lived there until 1947, after which they were systematically driven out by religious zealots of the Pakistani establishment.
Azad Kashmir is cold, mountainous region that boasts some of the most scenic mountains and river valleys. The region includes a significant part of the
Himalayas, but does not include
Nanga Parbat, the world's seventh highest mountain peak, which is in the "
Northern Areas".
*
2005 Kashmir earthquake*
Pakistan*
Muzaffarabad*
Jammu and Kashmir*
Kashmiri*
Indo-Pakistan WarsOfficial
* Official website of the Government of Azad Kashmir
* Official Azad Kashmir tourism site
;Unofficial
* MUZAFFARABAD ONLINE
* KPLink.com Photo Gallery - Sharda Peeth
* Pbase photo gallery, taken by Gharib Hanif
