Coordinates: 34.6333°N 74.

8333°E

Gurez
Gurez, or Gurais[6] (Guráai in the local Shina language),[7]
is a valley located in the high Himalayas, about 86 kilometres Gurez
(53  mi) from Bandipore and 123 kilometres (76  mi) from Guráai
Srinagar, to the north of the Kashmir valley. At about 2,400 Gurais
metres (8,000 ft) above sea level, the valley is surrounded by
snow-capped mountains. It has diverse fauna and wildlife Tehsil
including the Himalayan brown bear and the snow leopard.
The Kishanganga River flows through the valley.[8]

The valley lies near the Line of Control, which separates it

from the Astore and Neelum districts of Pakistan-administered
Kashmir. Being situated very close to the Burzil Pass, which
leads into Astore, the inhabitants are ethnic Dards/Shins. They
speak the Shina language and have the same styles of dress
and culture as their kinsmen in Pakistani-administered Gilgit-
Baltistan.[9]

Dawar is the central township in the area. The population of View of Habba Khatoon in Gurez
the area is estimated to be about 30,000, and is scattered
among fifteen villages. Tourism industry is emerging , hotels
like Gurez knights, kaka Palace, woodvibes provide service to Gurez
tourists.

Due to heavy snowfall (around 2 metres (7 ft)) and closure of

Razdan Pass in winter, the valley remains cut off for six
months of the year.[10]

Contents
History
Location in Jammu and Kashmir
Geography
Habba Khatoon
Economy
Energy
Fishery
Demographics
Religion
Peer Baba
Transportation
Air
Rail
Road
See also
Gurez
References
External links

History
Historically, Gurez was part of ancient Dardistan, stretching
between Sharada Peeth in the west, Minimarg in the north,
Drass in the east, and Bagtore in the south. The valley falls
along the ancient Silk Route, which connected the Kashmir
Valley with Gilgit, before continuing further to Kashgar.
Archaeological surveys in valleys north of Gurez have
uncovered hundreds of carved inscriptions in Kharoshthi, Gurez (India)
Brahmi, and Tibetan. In particular, the carvings provide Coordinates: 34.6333°N 74.8333°E
insights into the origins of the Kashmiri people and the early
Country India
history of Buddhism.
Union Territory Jammu and Kashmir
The ancient capital of the Dards, Dawar, is located in the District Bandipora
Gurez Valley and is an important archaeological site. Other Government
archaeological sites of importance in the valley include  • Vidhan Gurez
Kanzalwan, where the last council of Buddhism is believed to Sabha
have been held and, further downstream, the ruins of the Constituency
ancient Sharda University are preserved along the  • MLA Vacant[2]
Kishenganga/Neelum River.  • Sub- Dr. Mudasir Ahmad
Divisional Wani, JKAS[3]
Prior to the partition of Kashmir, Gurez had been a destination Magistrate
for foreign tourists, including Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who Elevation 2,580 m (8,460 ft)
is known to have visited some time before he became the US
Population (2011)
president.[11] During the colonial period, Gurez was often
 • Total 37,992[1]
visited by trekkers. Nehru and Indira Gandhi, accompanied by
Sheikh Abdullah, were among those who visited the area in Demographics
the 1940s, fishing for trout at Naranag, one of the lakes in the  • Literacy[1] 59.17%
mountains above the valley.[12]  • Sex ratio[1] 653 ♀/ 1000 ♂
Languages
Geography  • Official Kashmiri, Urdu,
Hindi, Dogri,
English[4][5]
While describing the Kishenganga Valley (Gurez), Walter R.
 • Spoken Shina, Kashmiri
Lawrence writes in his book The Valley of Kashmir,
Time zone UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN 193503
"Perhaps Pahalgam, the village of the shepherds Vehicle JK-15
that stands at the head of the Liddar valley with registration
its healthy forest of pines, and Gurez, which lies
Website bandipore.nic.in (htt
at a distance of thirty-five miles from Bandipora,
p://bandipore.nic.in)
the port of the Wular Lake, will before long rival
in popularity the other margs. Gurez is a lovely
valley five miles in length lying at an elevation of
about 8000 feet above the sea. The Kishenganga
river flows through it, and on either side are
 mountains. The climate is dry and mild, excellent
English vegetables can be grown, and the wild
raspberries and currants are delicious."[13]

"The valley is extremely picturesque, as the river comes dashing along through a rich meadow,
partly covered with lindens, walnut and willow trees, while the mountains on either side
present nothing but a succession of most abrupt precipices, and Alpine lodges, covered with fir
trees."[14]

Habba Khatoon

Gurez's most formidable

peak is Habba Khatoon,
around which legends
abound and at one time,
even a film starring Dimple
Kapadia was planned.[15]
This pyramid shaped peak
Fareed Kaloo; president Habba was named after the
Khatoon club presenting a cultural Kashmiri poet Habba Hajji Abdul Aziz Samoon(middle) at a
item in Gurez Khatoon. She was a press conference in Srinagar
beautiful and intelligent
woman from Saffron
village chandhara, and originally known as "Zoon" (which means Moon in English). She was the daughter
of a peasant Abuddi Rather, who married her to an illiterate peasant boy named Habba. Zoon was ill-
treated by her mother-in-law and husband, because she spent most of her time in poetry and singing.
Dejected by her plight, she changed her name to Habba Khatoon.

The emperor of Kashmir, Yousuf Shah Chak, was enthralled by her beauty, intelligence and poetry. He
arranged her divorce from Habba and married her. According to the story, Shah Chak was imprisoned by
his rival King Akbar, Habba Khatoon used to wander near the peak that now bears her name to look for
her lover. After her husband's death, she wandered the banks of river Jhelum in mourning. She died twenty
years later by drowning into the jhelum and now her tomb is at Athwajan.[16]
[17]
Habba Khatoon Drama
club was founded in 1976 by the poet Late Hajji Abdul Aziz Samoon (Retired Police Officer; SSP). The
club played a pivotal role in safeguarding the cultural ethos and traditions of the Dard-Shin tribe. Hajji
Abdul Aziz Samoon(KPS) was also Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Dard-Shina Development
Organization (JKDSDO), a body representing Dard community in the state JKDSDO [18]
[19]

Economy

Energy

There is no central electricity in Gurez, although, as of 2009, a hydro-electric plant was constructed by the
National Hydroelectric Power Corporation. It is unclear if any of the generated energy will be available to
the valley itself.[20] India had initially planned to construct a 100-metre-high dam on the Kishenganga,
which would have flooded the majority of the Gurez Valley and forced nearly all of its residents to relocate.
But due to resistance by the Dard Shin and by Pakistan Government, which is constructing a dam
downstream, the dam's height was reduced to 37 metres. Set for completion in 2016, the dam now diverts
water from the Kishenganga towards Wular Lake in Bandipora district via a 20 kilometre concrete tunnel,
and generates 330 Mega Watts electricity for the Indian States. Although construction of the dam has
temporarily bring work and money into the area, the Dard Shin have expressed concern that around 130
families were forced to leave their homes and to relocate in the different districts of Jammu and Kashmir,
and more than 300 hectares (740 acres) of land in the valley is submerged.[21]

Because of the lack of electricity, there is no significant industrial activity in the valley. The only electricity
which is available comes from a few diesel generators which provide power to some parts of the area in
summer for an hour at a time.
The Indian government's relocation plans are unclear, and it has not yet
committed to providing hydroelectricity to those who will remain in the valley.[22]

Fishery

Kishenganga River, with a length of 150 kilometres (93  mi), supports world-class trout with an average
weight of 11 kilograms (24 lb). As of 2006, there were plans to develop the fishery potential of the area,
making it a resource for the surrounding region.

Fish in the river include:[23]

Brown trout (Salmo trutta fario)

Rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri)

Demographics
According to the 2011 census of India, Gurez Tehsil had a population
of 37,992 people with 22,978 males and 15,014 females. The number
of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes numbered 104 and 31,094
respectively. Most of the people in Gurez speak Kashmiri and
Shina.[1]

Religion

Gurez is majority Sunni Muslim. Before the arrival of Mir Sayyid Ali
Hamadani, the region was predominantly Hindu. Hamadani visited the
Kashmir valley three times, accompanied by about seven hundred
preachers, known as "Sadaats". Of these seven hundred people, seven Religion in Gurez Tehsil
settled in Gurez and included Baba Abdur Razaq Shah and Baba (2011)[24]
Dervaish whose shrines are located near the hamlet of Fakirpora. The
   Islam (83.98%)
names of the other saints are unknown, although they also have
   Hinduism (14.24%)
shrines, located at Chorwan, Bagtore, Dangital Tulail across the
Kishan Ganga River, and at Kamri across the border near Dood-Gagi    Sikhism (1.16%)
village in Pakistan administered Jammu and Kashmir.[26]    Christianity (0.36%)
   Buddhism (0.05%)
Islam is the largest religion in Gurez, followed by 84% of the people.    Not Stated (0.21%)
Hinduism is the second-largest religion with 14.24% adherents.
Sikhism and Christianity form 1.1% and 0.3% of the population
respectively.[24]
Peer Baba

The Peer Baba came from Multan (Pakistan) in 1933 and

established himself in a cave at Durmat, north of Kanzalwan. He
was about 35 years old, and his religion is unknown. He is said to
have fasted for months without taking any food or water. On
occasion, he came down to Kanzalwan and asked for food in Farsi
with an Urdu accent. He never refused mutton offered by local
Muslims. He was hard of hearing, spoke very little and was
popularly known as "Nanga Baba". In Feb 1940, he came down Shrine of Baba Razaaq in the lap of
from Durmat to Rajdhan during a heavy snowstorm and mountain in Dawar[25]
subsequently died. When the Dilawar Malik, one of the big
landlords of Kashmir saw Peer Baba dead in a dream at the same
spot, who was his devotee sent his men who tried to bring the
Baba's body to Bandipur for burial, they were attacked by a large
number of honeybees, and he was instead buried close to Razdaan
Pass.

Transportation

Air

There is a helipad in the tehsil headquarters Dawar. There is

another helipad in Badoab, 43 kilometres from Dawar. The nearest Shrine of Baba Darvaish in Fakirpora
airport is Sheikh ul-Alam International Airport in Srinagar, located near Khandyal
150 kilometres from Dawar. A helicopter service was started in the
region by the state government in 2017. Using this service people
can reach Gurez from the Sheikh ul-Alam International Airport in
20 minutes cutting down the travel time by a huge margin.[27]

Rail

There is no railway connectivity to Gurez Valley. The nearest

railway station is Sopore railway station located 115 kilometres
from Dawar.
Grave of Peer Baba

Road

The tehsil is connected to other places in Jammu and Kashmir and India by the Bandipora–Gurez Road.
Road connectivity has been a major issue for the population due to their being heavy snowfall during the
winter months. In 2015 the Border Roads Organisation had submitted a proposal to the Indian Central
Government for the construction of a 18-km long tunnel that would ensure year long connectivity of the
Gurez to the rest of the Kashmir Valley. However the project has not moved past the DPR stage.[28]

See also
Markoot
Dawar
 Tulail Valley
Operation Eraze
2017 Gurez sector avalanche

References
1. "Bandipora district census" (https://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/A-2_Data_Ta
bles/01%20A-2%20J%20&%20K.pdf) (PDF). Govt of India Census. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
2. Rashid, Hakeem Irfan. "Jammu and Kashmir Assembly dissolved" (https://economictimes.in
diatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/jk-assembly-dissolved-amid-claims-for-power/articles
how/66739283.cms). The Economic Times. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
3. "SDM Gurez" (https://www.facebook.com/Sub-Divisional-Magistrate-Gurez-1005070717701
30/). Retrieved 13 July 2021 – via Facebook.
4. "The Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020" (http://egazette.nic.in/WriteReadDa
ta/2020/222037.pdf) (PDF). The Gazette of India. 27 September 2020. Retrieved
27 September 2020.
5. "Parliament passes JK Official Languages Bill, 2020" (http://risingkashmir.com/news/parliam
ent-passes-jk-official-languages-bill-2020). Rising Kashmir. 23 September 2020. Retrieved
23 September 2020.
6. Spelt ‫ ُگریز‬in Kashmiri and ‫ گورأى‬in Shina
7. Schmidt, Ruth Laila; Kaul, Vijay Kumar (2008). "A comparative analysis of Shina and
Kashmiri vocabularies" (https://doi.org/10.5617%2Fao.7372). Acta Orientalia. 69: 231–303.
doi:10.5617/ao.7372 (https://doi.org/10.5617%2Fao.7372). In this orthography áa represent
a long a with a high falling pitch.
8. Benanav, Michael (17 September 2018). "A Journey to Kashmir's Gurez Valley" (https://ww
w.nytimes.com/2018/09/17/travel/kashmir-gurez-valley.html). The New York Times.
9. "Gurez an introduction" (https://web.archive.org/web/20090710154416/http://gurais.wetpaint.
com/page/Gurez+an+Introduction%3A). 4 January 2008. Archived from the original (http://gu
rais.wetpaint.com/page/Gurez+an+Introduction%3A) on 10 July 2009.
10. Kumar, Sonali; Kumar, Prasenjeet (27 May 2017). The Outsider's Curse: A Memoir of the
First "Outsider" Lady IAS Officer (https://books.google.com/books?id=-oIlDwAAQBAJ&q=raz
dan+pass&pg=PT31).
11. "Hidden paradise" (http://www.tribuneindia.com/2008/20081206/saturday/main1.htm). 6
December 2008.
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5414). 27 August 2007.
13. (P: 16)
14. Sir Charles Ellison Bates, 1872 AD
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kashmir.com/kashmir_gurez_valley.html). Archived from the original (http://go2kashmir.com/k
ashmir_gurez_valley.html) on 21 November 2008. Retrieved 13 December 2009.
17. Kashmir Images. "Shina conference" (https://web.archive.org/web/20111005191305/http://d
ailykashmirimages.com/news-first-shina-conference-concludes-16330.aspx). Archived from
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30.aspx) on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
18. Greater Kashmir. "Shina Poet" (http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2010/Dec/16/the-shina-
poet-19.asp).
19. kashmirimages. "Dard community alleges discrimination" (https://web.archive.org/web/2012
0523030822/http://www.dailykashmirimages.com/news-dard-community-alleges-discriminati
on-16579.aspx). Archived from the original (http://www.dailykashmirimages.com/news-dard-
community-alleges-discrimination-16579.aspx) on 23 May 2012. Retrieved 26 October
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20. "Electricity still a far-fetched dream for Gurez valley" (http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/in
dia-news/electricity-still-a-far-fetched-dream-for-gurez-valley_100240322.html). 30 August
2009.
21. "Dammed if you do" (https://web.archive.org/web/20101228020145/http://www.geographical.
co.uk/Magazine/Photostories/Gurez_Valley_-_May_10.html). May 2010. Archived from the
original (http://www.geographical.co.uk/Magazine/Photostories/Gurez_Valley_-_May_10.htm
l) on 28 December 2010. Retrieved 8 January 2011.
22. "Dammed if you do" (https://web.archive.org/web/20101228020145/http://www.geographical.
co.uk/Magazine/Photostories/Gurez_Valley_-_May_10.html). May 2010. Archived from the
original (http://www.geographical.co.uk/Magazine/Photostories/Gurez_Valley_-_May_10.htm
l) on 28 December 2010. Retrieved 8 January 2011.
23. "Gippsland Aquaculture Industry Network GAIN" (https://web.archive.org/web/20120220165
637/http://www.growfish.com.au/content.asp?ContentId=7373). 2 September 2006. Archived
from the original (http://www.growfish.com.au/content.asp?ContentId=7373) on 20 February
2012.
24. "Gurez Population" (https://www.censusindia2011.com/jammu-kashmir/bandipore/gurez-pop
ulation.html). Census India. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
25. "Photos by Zahid Samoon" (http://www.trekearth.com/members/zaid_abraham). 16 January
2007.
26. "Religion in Gurez" (https://web.archive.org/web/20090705164830/http://gurais.wetpaint.co
m/page/Rise+Of+Islaam+in+Gurez). 14 June 2008. Archived from the original (http://gurais.w
etpaint.com/page/Rise+Of+Islaam+in+Gurez) on 5 July 2009.
27. "Srinagar - Gurez chopper service introduced at Rs 3000" (https://www.travelinntours.com/bl
og/srinagar-gurez-chopper-service-introduced-at-rs-3000).
28. "Proposed Gurez-Bandipora tunnel stuck at DPR stage" (https://www.greaterkashmir.com/to
days-paper/proposed-gurez-bandipora-tunnel-stuck-at-dpr-stage).

External links
Official website (http://bandipore.nic.in/)

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