My City Khuiratta, azad kashmir
Khuiratta is a very nice place 160 kms east to Islamabad.
Its located in Kotli which is a district and main city of Azad Kashmir.very nice and worth seeing place. its most area consists of a valley which is named the Bannah valley. All basic needs of everyday life are provided, like electricity, telephone, hospitals and a good networks of roads throughout the whole valley.its most famous places are dhairy sahibzadian, sairi, manjwal, phalni, bhayyal, gayaen, karjai deehari bagh darbar mai toti and chattar.Literacy rate is very good in this town. There are so many government and private schools and colleges in the Khuiratta town. Government high school khuiratta , holy public college and school the Pasban academy khuiratta are much popular for their eduational level.

Khuiratta city, located near the control line between Indian occupied Kashmir and Azad Kashmir. It's at a distance of 25 kms from the Kotli City District of AJK. It's an easy approachable place. If you have landed in Islamabad. Then you can use rent a car or just go to peer Wadhai bus station and you will find commfortable small vans going to Khuiratta directly. You will reach the town in 3 hour and 30 minutes. It is not more than 160 kms journey but the whole journey is full of excitement and thrill. As the zig zag road is moving along the high mountaineous chain. It is a developing city, lies between tow big straight chains of mountains (east and on west side). This whole area is commonly called the Bannah Valley and Khuiratta is the business and commercial center of this valley. This place is worth seeing. You can easily find the hotels, restaurants, and other everyday needs of life. People of Khuiratta are very polite, civilized, and well-educated. There are many government and private schools, colleges, and hospitals.

Khoiratta lies 28Km South of Kotli. A vibrant town, at an elevation of 2570 meters above sea-level is most famous for the annual Vasakhi mela (spring festival). Thousands of people from the Kotli, other adjoining districts and even Pakistani & Indian Punjab flock to the festival in spring to watch sports, animal parades and horticultural displays. The nearby Banah is a beautiful area full of natural springs and waterfalls. At Bahees Naraha several springs emerge from the mountains. This was an important Hindu place of worship in ancient times. Close to Khoiratta are the Bagh Fatehpur and Bagh Sain Hazuri which are known for their natural beauty. Thousands of people flock to Mai-ka-Makam Shrine, a distance of 4Km from Khoiratta, to pay homage to Mai Toti Sahiba.

Kashmirs Wedding


INTRODUCTION

Kashmir is known as "Paradise on Earth", the land of beautiful valleys and snow-clad mountain peaks, stretching plains with flowerbeds and frizzy air. The Kashmiri society has more affinity with the societies of India rather than the other Himalayan people. Structurally, the society is complex and generally stratified and there is a caste system. There is an unique language adhered to the people i.e. the Kashmiri language. Kashmir has a different tradition altogether - the folk-lore, dress, traditions and cuisine. The people are warm and the families are close-knitted. The emphasis is on brotherhood and peace

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MARRIAGE THROUGH THE AGES

Kashmir form a distinct cultural and ethnic group - effervescent, elaborate and easy-going yet. This characteristic trend is reflective in their marriages as well. It is the state perhaps with the maximum number of customs and rituals. And to be odd enough, these rituals are more of a enjoyable nature rather than the orthodox type. A Kashmiri marriage also gives opportunities to all the relatives to enjoy and participate in it substantially.

MATCH MAKING

For the Kashmir, matchmaking is a detailed procedure, wherein match is found by spreading the news that somebody wishes to marry off his daughter or son. Rishte (matches) start pouring in for the prospective bride or groom then. Matching of horoscopes (janam kundlis or teknis) is traditionally a necessity.

COSTUMES

Bridal Wear

The bridal dress is very elaborate for the Kashmiri girls. The bride has to wear a headwear, which consists of a long cap called Kalpush. The cap is folded two to three times and lined with either silk or cotton from inside A belt about two meters long and one-and-a-half meters wide, known as the Haligandun, with its loose ends embroidered, is tied to the waist of the bride.

Groom's Attire

Kashmiri groom usually wears a pheran and the waistband. Other add-ons include a sword at his waistband and local embroidered shoes (paazar) at feet. Custom has it that the groom's eldest paternal uncle (chacha) ties the turban for him, known as the gordastar with a golden thread called dov.

Valley of Kashmir

Neelum Valley is situated at the North & North-East of Muzaffarabad, running parallel to Kaghan Valley. The two valleys are only separated by snow-covered peaks, some over 4000m above sea level. Excellent scenic beauty, panoramic views, towering hills on both sides of the noisy Neelum river, lush green forests, enchanting streams and attractive surroundings make the valley a dream come true.

Athmuqam

Athmuqam is situated at a height of 1371m, it is the sub-divisional headquarters of the area. It is an attractive place known for its variety of fruit. All necessary facilities via bazaars, post offices, banks, hospitals, and telephone exchanges are present.

Neelum

At a distance of about 9 Km from Athmuqam, Neelum is situated on the right bank of the river Neelum at 1524m above sea level with fascinating scenery. The panoramic lush green valley is profound in fruit and wildlife.

Sharda

A breath-taking green spot at an altitude of 1981m. Shardi and Nardi are two mountain peaks overlooking the valley, reputedly named after legendary princess Sharda. It has a captivating landscape with numerous springs and hill-sides covered with trees. On the right bank, opposite Sharda, the Neelum is joined by the Surgan Nallah along which a track leads to Nurinar Pass and through it to the Kaghan Valley. Ruins of an old Buddhist University can also be found in Sharda.

Kel

A small valley situated at a height of 2097m. This is another picturesque place in the Neelum Valley. The Shounter Nallah joins river Neelum at this place and leads to Gilgit Agency (Northern Areas) over the Shandur at 4420m.

About Azad Kashmir

Kashmir the Beautiful

style="font-weight:bold;">History of Kashmir

According to a legend, the great sage Kashyap drained a lake and the Brahmins then inhabited it. The place came to be known as Kashmir. A land of turbulent past and present, the missionaries of Emperor Ashoka introduced the Buddhism in the region. The religion flourished under the rule of Kushan in 2nd Century. However, Hinduism continued to be the dominant religion of the region for many centuries. In the 7th Century, Durlabhavarrdhana founded the Karkota dynasty, which was replaced by Utpalas in 855 AD, which were succeeded by the Tantrins, Yaskaras, Guptas abd Loharas ruled respectively. The first Muslim who reigned Kashmir was Shams-ud-Din who replaced the last Hindu king, Udiana Deva in 1346. Moghul emperor Akbar conquered it in 1586 and thus Kashmir became a part of his vast empire.

1757 saw the victory of Ahmed Shah Durrani and Kashmir went out to Pakistan until 1819, when Ranjit Singh won it again to annex it to his Sikh empire. In 1846, the British defeated the Sikhs and sold it to Ghulab Singh of Jammu for Rs 7.5 million under the Treaty of Amritsar and gave him the status of an independent princely ruler of Kashmir. He conquered Ladakh and added it to his dominion. Maharaja Ghulab Singh died in 1857 and was succeeded by Maharaja Rambir Singh. Maharaja Partab Singh and Maharaja Hari Singh ruled over Kashmir in succession.

The India-Pakistan partition took place during the reign of Hari Singh in 1947 and the rulers of princely states were given the choice to freely accede to either India or Pakistan or to remain independent. However, since the Maharaja of Kashmir was a Hindu, he chose to join India despite the majority of the Muslim population in his dominion. However, since then there have been controversies over the decision and Pakistan claims that the decision was partial and the region should be a part of its dominion.

People of Kashmir

According to historians, the ancestors of Kashmiris are early immigrants from India proper. With the spread of Buddhism, many scholars came to Kashmir from far-off lands for research and study. The contact of Kashmiris with the Roman, Greek and Persian civilizations resulted into a fusion of cultures. Most of the people claim their descent from the Indo-Aryan stock but one can easily find people belonging to diverse and different races inhabiting Kashmir with distinct looks, dresses, food habits, customs, speech and traditions.

Kashmiris have made remarkable contributions to the arts of story-telling and mystical poetry,

Handicrafts of Kashmir

Jammu and Kashmir is not only home to the vast cultural and ethnic diversity but also the myriad arts and crafts that have been carefully nurtured for the centuries. A variety of motifs, techniques and crafts flourished in the land as the people from different regions flocked through this beautiful place and many of the skilled craftsmen decided to settle amidst its charming abundance of natural beauty.

Carpet
Kashmiri carpets are world renowned for two things - they are hand made and they are always knotted, never tufted. The yarn used normally is silk, wool or silk and wool. Woolen carpets always have a cotton base while silk usually have cotton base.
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Namdas
Far less expensive are these colorful floor coverings made from woolen and cotton fiber, which has been manually pressed into shape. Prices vary with the percentage of wool - a Namda containing 80% wool being more expensive than one containing 20% wool. Chain stitch embroidery in woolen and cotton thread is worked on these rugs.

Shawls
There are three fibers from which the Kashmiri shawls are made - Wool, Pashmina and Shahtoosh. Woolen shawls being are the cheapest while the Shahtoosh are the most expensive ones. Woolen shawls are popular because of the embroidery, worked on them, which is a specialty to Kashmir. Both embroidery and the type of wool used causes differences in price.