Malik Manzoor
Unexplored and unprecedented beautiful places in Noorabad are:
Baddy Behak – the wonderland, Zajji Marg – the queen of beautiful meadows, Kousarnag – the jewel in the ring, Sundertop – a beautiful hill, Bumberoun Bagh – a mysterious place, Hooni Heing mountain, Noon Khoul, Chirrenbal, Kongwatten, and more.
Kashmir is known for its natural beauty and heavenly atmosphere. The beautiful places encompass man-made gardens, lush green meadows, pure and pristine water bodies , attractive valleys, cool and serene lakes, captivating and snow-clad mountains, green and thick forests, cold glaciers, and beautiful parks. When we talk about Kashmir as a whole we find many unexplored places which have immense potential to boost tourism. Among these places fall highly striking places like Noorabad.
Noorabad is a far-flung area in district Kulgam known for Ahrabal waterfall. But the waterfall is not the only tourist destination, it is only one of Noorabad’s natural gifts that has been explored and brought on the tourism map. Noorabad is full of wonderful and exquisite natural beauties that haven’t been brought on the tourism map. In Ahrabal, we have very beautiful places like Kongwattan, Chirrenbal, Hawksar and the adventurous spot called Kousarnag. Kousarnag is a wonderful place lying between snow-covered mountains. It is a miracle of nature. This spring gives us the sensation of fairyland and peace of mind. Its very cold and pristine water is restorative and beneficial. The place is worth exploring.
Nature has bestowed Noorabad with exotic spots. Baddy Behak (The big meadow), Zajji marg, Noon khol, Sunder Top, Bumberoun bagh, Paansan pathri, Nuss pathri, Seki was, and the historical mountain hooni heing are among the famous tourist haunts, which leave us spellbound. Besides the charming beauty, these health resorts also offer pleasures like skiing, scatting, horse riding, mountaineering, fishing, trekking, and camping, etc.
The big pasture (buddy behak ) is the land of wonders and surprises. It lies among the lush green forests and snow-covered cliffs. The first glimpse of this unique combination of many meadows bestows our emotions a swirl as a result sorrows of mind vanish abruptly.
As soon as we move on, beautiful niches get unfolded offering scenic elegance holding up everything we carve for, or that surprises us. Our steps experience strong friction on the lush green grass and soothing breeze because we get absorbed in the peaceful environment and stay at the same place. This wonderland has many varieties of enchanting things in its bag to offer and attract tourists. For example, the Sunder Top (A beautiful mountain) induces the excitement of mountaineering and is worth visiting. It is the second-highest mountain in the Pir Panchal range after Hooni Haeng mountain. Sunder top is famous for medicinal plants too. Those people who know medicinal plants can find a variety of rare and novel herbs here. So a visit to big behak will not only be a pleasure but also an opportunity to conduct research programs. It is pertinent to mention here that at the backside of Sunder Top lies a mysterious land called Bumberun Bagh. As the name suggests, it is a mythological place that attracts only audacious and courageous people. There are some beautifully engineered and crafted pillars of stone. These pillars make us dumbfounded as we are unable to find reasons and sources behind constructing such marvelous pillars in that deserted place. Old men relate many myths about this place. This mysterious place should be explored and brought on the tourist map.
In short, big behak is a wonderland full of spellbound places, glaciers, streams, and springs. Moreover, this place marks the far end of Kulgam and Banihal as well. The road from Kulgam goes through DH Pora, DK Marg, Tsimmer up to Gulzarabad. After Gulzarabad road connectivity is not desirable and favorable. You have to hire horses or walk on foot to enter the paradise of Noorabad.
Adjacent to Big Behak are two beautiful and alluring meadows called Nuss pathri and Paansun pathri. Paansan path was once a tourist destination and there were some huts too. But for unknown reasons, the meadow has been ignored and neglected in terms of development by the tourism department consequently the beauty of nature is missing on the tourist map as well.
Zajji Marg: It is queen of all the beautiful meadows and pastures. This marvelous meadow has a magical effect in its surroundings and atmosphere. It heals wounds and soothes ailments. Its serene and cool breeze sways emotions and gives a rush to blood as a result we feel more energetic and enthusiastic. The splendiferous lofty mountains surround this magnificent piece of land and make it unique.
Hooni Heing: It is a common word in the Kashmiri language. It is used to imply distant places. Hooni Heing Mountain is a historical mountain because in the middle of 1960 an airplane was hit its top and crashed leaving all the boarded souls dead. Since then this mountain has evolved as a famous top. In ancient times people marked the end of the day by looking at this top because this mountain remains bright until the sunsets. This mountain is worth visiting and the right choice for aerobic exercise such as mountaineering.
Noon khoul: It is a land of glaciers. The glaciers of Noon khoul mothers a gorgeous tributary of river vishew. It is a cold and peaceful place that is full of deep ravines and small pastures. Rocky mountains tend to be very mysterious and lovely.
In short, Noorabad is an abode of scenic beauty, natural waterfall, springs, Apple orchards, deep gorges, extraordinary panorama, lush green meadows, snow clad mountains, fascinating valleys, thick and dense forests, clear crystal water bodies, and above all pollution-free environment.
Tourism department should organise tourism mela in Noorabad and add these places to the prospectus. It is a natural tendency in humans that they love the variability and novel things. Noorabad has a broad spectrum of distinct beautiful places to fascinate tourists worldwide and this scope can contribute to local economies by creating employment opportunities and sustainable development . Noorabad can attract more tourists than we expect provided infrastructure and road connectivity is developed.