Chenab Valley (Jammu Division)

**Chenab Valley** is a loosely-defined contentious term sometimes used to refer to parts of the Jammu Division of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The term is used to describe the present-day districts of Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban, and at times Reasi and parts of Udhampur and Kathua.

The first three districts were originally part of a single district called Doda, which was created in 1948 from the eastern parts of Udhampur district in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. These districts are sometimes collectively referred to as the **Doda belt**. The term is seen to be aimed at a communal break-up of the Jammu Division and iteration of Kashmiri Muslim irredentism.

## Name

The term _Chenab Valley_ derives from the Chenab River. The term is sometimes used to refer to the mountainous regions of north-eastern Jammu Division, including the districts of Doda, Ramban, Kishtwar, and some parts of Reasi, Udhampur and Kathua.

## Geography

The Chenab Valley lies between the middle and great Himalayan range in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It constitutes parts of the Doda, Ramban, and Kishtwar districts of Jammu and Kashmir. The area is an active seismic zone.

## History

The various areas referred to as "Chenab Valley" used to be part of the principalities of Bhaderwah, Kishtwar, Chamba, and other smaller principalities which were annexed by the Dogras of Jammu, who made them part of the Dogra princely state of Jammu and Kashmir established following the Treaty of Amritsar (1846). During Dogra rule, most of these areas were part of the Udhampur district. In 1948, the Udhampur district was divided into two by the government of Sheikh Abdullah, in a move that was criticized by the Jammu-based Praja Parishad as an attempt to Islamize the state's administration.

In the past, the area around Doda was largely inhabited by Sarazi population before people started settling here from the Kashmir valley and other adjoining areas. The reasons for this migration in the 17th and 18th centuries are a matter of ambiguity among historians. Sumantra Bose says that repression by the feudal class in the Kashmir valley drew people to these areas.

The early history of Chenab Valley is not well documented, with few chronicles available about the rulers of Kishtwar and Bhaderwah. The settlement reports indicate that the area was ruled by various groups including Ranas, Rajas, and independent chiefs from time to time, including the Jaral Ramas, Katoch Rajas, Bhaus Manhases, Chibs, Thakkars, Wanis, and Gakkars. In 1822 AD, Doda was conquered by Maharaja Gulab Singh and became the winter capital of the Kishtwar state.

English traveller G.T. Vigne visited Doda in 1829 and described his journey through the region. He mentions traveling through a deep and rocky nullah which joins the Chenab River, and then crossing the river over a dangerous bridge in the Himalayas. Vigne writes about the bridge in Doda, a strong rope stretched from one bank to the other, tied to rocks. A wooden structure was placed over the rope and additional ropes were tied to it, allowing the structure to move back and forth. He also encountered another type of bridge, which was crossed on foot, made of small ropes bound with pieces of bark and woven into a thick rope. Hanging ropes were provided for support.

In 1948, the erstwhile Udhampur district was partitioned into the present Udhampur district, containing the Udhampur and Ramanagar tehsils, and Doda district containing the Ramban, Bhadarwah, Doda, Thathri and Kishtwar tehsils.

From 1975 to 1976, the Government of India conducted the Preinvestment Survey of Forest Resources specifically in the Chenab Valley by Department of Agriculture. During this period, a detailed survey of forests in the Chenab Catchment area was done in Doda, Bhaderwah, Kishtwar, and Ramban divisions of the forest. The area is an active seismic zone.

In 1990s, various incidents were reported about the suppression of Hindus by the Militant organizations. In response to the rising terrorism, the government authorities made Village Defense Committee (VDC) in various villages. However, incidents of VDC members indulging in criminal activities have also been reported in the past. In a village called Karada, four Muslims were allegedly killed by VDC members. This incident also triggered the terrorist organisations to target those who supported the VDCs, believing them to be anti-Muslim. Since the 1990s, many such incidents of killings by terrorists and VDCs have been reported.

In 2006, Ramban was made into an independent district and the hilly area to the east of the present Doda district was separated as the Kishtwar district. The remaining areas include the Doda tehsil carved out of Kishtwar and the original Bhadarwah, now divided into three tehsils.