A tale of two towns

With the Lok Sabha elections for the last leg of AnantnagLok Sabha seat over, focus was briefly shifted to twin sister districts ofShopian and Pulwama that lie on the edge of southern border of Kashmir valley,touching Pir Panjal mountains. The twin districts, which were carved out of”Greater Anantnag” are among the most fertile regions of South Asia and home tomost of apple, saffron, rice and milk produced in entire Kashmir valley. Thesetwin sister districts are also home to the greatest Kashmiri EmperorAvantivarman as well as legendary modern-day poets like Mehjoor (PeerzadaGhulam Ahmad) and yet these twin districts are today synonymous with unendingviolence, hopelessness and despair. Therefore, there is all the more need tohumanize the people of both Pulwama and Shopian and present these twindistricts to the world in their rich historic glory and hope.   

Unlike Anantnag (Islamabad) and Kulgam, which have alwaysbeen better known among all districts of South Kashmir, Shopian and Pulwamahave relatively remained under shadows till these twin districts came intoprominence as the nerve center of what is now designated as the “new agemilitancy” of Kashmir. Pulwama was earlier a tehsil of the greater Anantnagdistrict but was carved out as a separate district in 1979 and Shopian waslater carved out as a separate district out of Pulwama in 2007, both for betteradministrative governance.

   

Yet, despite their recent administrative origin both Pulwamaand Shopian actually have very rich and glorious historical past.  Pulwama in particular is home to legendaryKashmiri Emperor “The Great Avantivarman” of Utpala dynasty on whose name thepresent day Avantipora is also named. Emperor Avantivarman built two magnificent temples in Avantipora, whichhe designated as the new capital of Kashmir. The first temple of Avantishwar isdedicated to Lord Shiva and the second temple of Avantiswami is dedicated toLord Vishnu. Both these temples were built in characteristic Kashmiri stonecolonnaded peristyle inspired by the temples of ancient Greece and Rome.

The immensely rich and secular history of Pulwama is alsoreflected by the presence of some of the most revered religious shrines locatedin this district. Tral is home to more than two hundred-year-old shrine of Khankaq-e-FaizPanah, which was built in the honor of thirteenth century Sufi saint HazratAmeer Kabeer Mir Syed Ali Hamdani (RA), who came to Kashmir from Hamdanprovince in Eastern Iran for the spread of Islam and left behind a culturallegacy of the Persianization of Kashmiri culture. Pulwama is also home to thefamous religious shrine dedicated to Devi Jawala Bhagwati or Kashmir’s “Goddessof fire” at Khrew. Located on top of a hillock, the temple holds an annual fair– “Mela Jawala Mukhi”, which is attended by pilgrims from all over J&K andother parts of India.

Also unknown to most people, Pulwama district is one of therichest and the highest revenue generating districts in entire J&K state.Whether it is world class saffron from Pampore or apples from Tral, the Pulwamadistrict is an immensely fertile region that also produces most of the ricegrown in Kashmir valley, for which it is also known as “rice bowl of Kashmir”as well as producing most of the milk in entire J&K, for which it is alsoknown as “Anand” of Kashmir, named after Gujarat’s Anand district that becameworld famous for Amul milk and dairy production. Furthermore, cement factoriesat Khrew contribute nearly Rs. 2000 crore each year to J&K’s economy and isthird largest source of revenue for the state after tourism and banking sector.

Shopian on the other hand is an ancient land locatedstrategically on medieval imperial Mughal route that connected Srinagar withLahore during Mughal rule over Kashmir valley. The name “Shopian” or “Shyupian”as it is pronounced in Koshur language has many mythical origins. Some believethat it is derived from Persian “Shah Payan”, which means “royal stay”, othersbelieve it to have come from Sanskrit “Shin Van” or “snow forest”, indicatingShopian’s high altitude location on Pir Panjal mountain range and its closeproximity to “Peer Ki Gali”, the highest point between Kashmir valley andJammu’s Poonch & Rajouri regions that still houses magnificent ruins of”Mughal Sarai” or royal Mughal rest house.

Unlike Gulmarg, Pehalgam and other tourist locations ofKashmir valley, highly picturesque Shopian is highly underrated even though itis immensely rich in natural beauty spots like Aharbal waterfalls and Kausarnagand Nandansar Lakes. Not many people are aware of this but Shopian is also hometo Hirapur wildlife sanctuary, which is much larger than Srinagar’s more famousDachigam national park. While Shopian is not economically as advanced asPulwama, its fertile soil is perfect for horticulture and the district issecond to none in terms of apple production, both in Kashmir and all overIndia.

Just like Pulwama, the district of Shopian is also known forits secular character. Shopian is believed to be the entry point from whereHazrat Mir Syed Ali Hamdani (RA) is said to have entered Kashmir valley. Thereis also a very famous Jama Masjid in Shopian town, which is built in the samearchitectural style as that of Jamia Masjid Srinagar. There is also an ancientTirathraj Kapal Mochan Shiv Mandir in Nagbal village of Shopian, which is oneof the holiest shrines of Kashmiri Pundits. This is the only place in Kashmirvalley, where Kashmiri Pundits can perform their sacred rituals of Upnayana(thread ceremony) and Shraddha (ceremony performed after death).

The story of both Pulwama and Shopian is therefore full ofhope amidst an all-pervasive atmosphere of gloom and pessimism. The rich andglorious historic legacy of these twin districts, the immense fertility of theland and humongous economic potential that these two sister districts presentto its people, especially its youth is something for which Pulwama and Shopianmust be known for rather a place which is synonymous with death anddestruction.

(The author is a political activist and aspiring politician,who has worked as PRO to Ex-CM of J&K)

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