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{{Distinguish|Chenal Valley}}
{{Redirect|Chenabi|the 17th century poet and physician|Mita Chenabi}}
{{About|the river valley|other uses|Chenab (disambiguation)}}
{{pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2017}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Chenab Valley
| official_name =
| native_name = 
| native_name_lang = 
| other_name =
| settlement_type = Region
| image_skyline = File:River Chenab Ramban.jpg
| imagesize =
| image_alt =
| image_caption = Chenab River at Ramban
| image_flag =
| etymology =
| nickname =
| motto =
| anthem =

| image_map =Jammu and Kashmir location Chenab Valley.jpg
| mapsize =
| map_alt = Chenab valley in Jammu and Kashmir
| map_caption = Chenab valley in Jammu and Kashmir
| image_map1 =
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| coordinates = {{Coord|33|17|8|N|75|56|12|E|dim:100km|display=inline,title}}
| coor_pinpoint = 
| coordinates_footnotes = 
| grid_name = 
| grid_position = 
| population_as_of = 2011
| population_total = 924,345
| population_footnotes = <ref name="newsclick-july-2021"/>
| population_urban =
| population_density_km2 = auto

| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = {{flag|India}}
| subdivision_type1 = Union Territory
| subdivision_name1 = [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]]
| subdivision_type2 = Revenue Division
| subdivision_name2 = [[Jammu division]]
| parts_type = 
| parts_style = 
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| p1 =
| p2 = 


| area_footnotes = 
| area_magnitude = 
| dunam_link = 
| area_total_km2 = 
| area_total_sq_mi = 
| area_land_km2 = 17,978
| area_land_sq_mi =
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| timezone2 =
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| blank_name_sec1 = Districts
| blank_info_sec1 =
* [[Doda district|Doda]]
* [[Kishtwar district|Kishtwar]]
* [[Ramban district|Ramban]]
| blank1_name_sec1 = Demonym
| blank1_info_sec1 = Chenabi
| blank2_name_sec1 = Vehicle Registration Numbers
| blank2_info_sec1 = {{plainlist|
* JK06 (Doda)
* JK17 (Kishtwar)
* JK19 (Ramban)}}

| demographics_type1 = Languages
| demographics1_title1 = Official
| demographics1_info1 = [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]], [[Dogri language|Dogri]], [[Urdu]], [[Hindi]], [[English language|English]]<ref name="OfficialLang">{{citation|mode=cs1 |url=http://egazette.nic.in/WriteReadData/2020/222037.pdf |title=The Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020 |work=The Gazette of India|date=27 September 2020 |access-date=27 September 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title=Parliament passes JK Official Languages Bill, 2020 | work=Rising Kashmir | date=23 September 2020 | url=http://risingkashmir.com/news/parliament-passes-jk-official-languages-bill-2020 | access-date=23 September 2020 | archive-date=24 September 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924141909/http://risingkashmir.com/news/parliament-passes-jk-official-languages-bill-2020 | url-status=dead }}</ref>
| demographics1_title2 = Spoken
| demographics1_info2 = [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]] and it's dialects [[Kishtwari]]/[[Pogali]], [[Bhadarwahi language|Bhaderwahi]], [[Sarazi language|Sarazi]], [[Gojri]]
| blank_name_sec2 = Police Zone
| blank_info_sec2 = Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban (DKR Range)
| blank1_name_sec2 = Lok Sabha constituency
| blank1_info_sec2 = [[Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency]]
| blank2_name_sec2 = Forest Zone
| blank2_info_sec2 = Chenab Circle
| footnotes =
}}

The '''Chenab Valley''', also known as the '''Chenab Region''', is the river valley of the [[Chenab River]] flowing through the [[Kishtwar district|Kishtwar]], [[Doda district|Doda]], and [[Ramban district]]s in the [[Jammu division]] of the Indian [[union territory]] of [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Geelani vows to resist settlement of retired soldiers in Kashmir |date= 23 July 2015 |url=http://www.greaterkashmir.com/mobi/news/kashmir/geelani-vows-to-resist-settlement-of-retired-soldiers-in-kashmir/192366.html |work= Greater Kashmir |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151003142351/http://www.greaterkashmir.com/mobi/news/kashmir/geelani-vows-to-resist-settlement-of-retired-soldiers-in-kashmir/192366.html |archive-date=3 October 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Swami |first1=Praveen |others=Photography by Praveen Swami |title=Through the Pir Panjal |url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/other/article30251182.ece |magazine=[[Frontline (magazine)|Frontline]] |publisher=[[The Hindu Group]] |date=6 July 2001 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250927095016/https://frontline.thehindu.com/other/article30251182.ece |archive-date=27 September 2025 |language=en |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
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 district|Doda]], [[Ramban district|Ramban]], [[Kishtwar district|Kishtwar]], and some parts of [[Reasi district|Reasi]], [[Udhampur district|Udhampur]], and [[Kathua district|Kathua]].{{sfn|Behera|2006|page=130}}{{r|saha}}

''Chenab valley'' was used by [[:sv:Erik Norin|Erik Norin]] in a 1926 journal article titled ''The Relief Chronology of Chenab Valley''.<ref>{{citation |title=The Relief Chronology of the Chenab Valley |first=Erik |last=Norin |journal=Geografiska Annaler |volume=8 |year=1926 |pp=284–300 |doi=10.2307/519728 |jstor=519728}}</ref> The term was later popularised by various social activists and politicians referring to the erstwhile Doda district formed in 1948.<ref name="newsclick-july-2021">{{Cite news|last=Ayoob|first=Anzer|title=J&K: Chenab Valley Seeks Separate Divisional Status as well as Council|url=https://www.newsclick.in/Jammu-kashmir-chenab-valley-separate-divisional-status-council|date=17 July 2021|work=NewsClick.in|access-date=20 July 2021}}</ref>{{sfn|Behera|2007|loc= [https://books.google.com/books?id=qM6kW9ZRMRkC&pg=PA28 Map 1–3, p. 28]}}

==Geography==
The Chenab Valley lies between the middle and outer [[Himalayan range]] in the [[Jammu division]] of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is divided into three districts: [[Doda district|Doda]], [[Ramban district|Ramban]], and [[Kishtwar District|Kishtwar]].<ref name="newsclick-july-2021"/> The valley touches the Anantnag district of south Kashmir to the north; the state of [[Himachal Pradesh]] and the [[Kathua district]] of {{abbr|J&K|Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)}} to the south; the [[Udhampur district]] of J&K to the southwest, and [[Reasi district]] of J&K to the west; with Doda in its middle. It consists of eight assembly seats.<ref name="ET promises">{{Cite news|title=Ghulam Nabi Azad promises to develop Chenab Valley as 'Model region'|url=https://m.economictimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/ghulam-nabi-azad-promises-to-develop-chenab-valley-as-model-region/articleshow/45033174.cms |date=4 November 2014 |newspaper=[[The Economic Times]]|access-date=24 August 2021}}</ref>

Chenab Valley has mostly hilly terrain. The [[Chenab River]] flows through all the districts of Chenab Valley including Doda district, Kishtwar District, and Ramban District. The area is an active [[seismic zone]].{{r|dna quakes}}

==History==
The [[demography]] of Chenab valley which is referred to erstwhile [[Doda district]] is complex as compared to its neighbouring districts primarily because of the wide diversity in its population. In the past, Doda was largely inhabited by [[Sarazi]] population before people started settling here from Kashmir and other adjoining areas.{{r|saha|doda story}} The reasons for kashmiri population settling here in the past in 17th and 18th century is matter of [[ambiguity]] between historians.<ref name="Mini Kashmir">{{Cite web|url=https://kashmirlife.net/mini-kashmir-1147/|title=Mini Kashmir|date=11 January 2011|website=Kashmir Life|language=en-GB|access-date=16 Jul 2020}}</ref> However, [[Sumantra Bose]] says it was repression by feudal class that drew people to the district of [[Doda district|Doda]], [[Ramban district|Ramban]] and [[Kishtwar district|Kishtwar]].{{r|Snedden|saha}}

==Demographics==
{{See also|List of Scheduled Castes in Jammu and Kashmir}}
{{Pie chart|label1=[[Islam]]|value1=59.9|color1=Green|label2=[[Hinduism]]|value2=
39.2|color2=darkorange|label3=Others|value3=1.1|color3=Grey|caption=Religions in Jammu Division (2011)<ref name="2011 Census">{{citation|mode=cs1 |title=Population by religion community – 2011|url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/C-01/DDW00C-01%20MDDS.XLS|work=Census of India, 2011|publisher=The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150825155850/http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/C-01/DDW00C-01%20MDDS.XLS|archive-date=25 August 2015}}</ref>}}

Chenab Valley is home to a variety of ethnic groups. Among the languages spoken in the region, [[Kashmiri language|Kashmiri]] and its dialects{{snd}}Kishtwari, Rambani, Pogali<ref>{{cite web |last1=Koul |first1=Omkar N. |title=Spoken Kashmiri: A Language Course |url=https://www.koshur.org/Kashmiri/introduction.html |website=Koshur.org}}</ref>{{snd}} is the most widely spoken, with the proportion of its speakers {{citation needed span|amounting to between 50 and 60 percent of the population.|date=November 2025}} Other languages include [[Gojri language|Gojri]], [[Sarazi language|Sarazi]], [[Pahari language|Pahari]], [[Bhadarwahi language|Bhadarwahi]].{{citation needed|date=November 2025}}

==Tourist destinations==
Chenab valley is also the hub of hilly tourist attractions after Kashmir, including:

*[[Bhaderwah]] Valley, in [[Doda district]], a famous tourist destination of Chenab Valley
*Hansrajtop, in Pogal Paristhan, [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]]
*[[Jai Valley]], in [[Bhaderwah]], Jammu and Kashmir
*[[Chinta Valley]], also in Bhaderwah, Jammu and Kashmir
*[[Jantroon Dhar]], the large meadows in [[Thathri]] subdivision of Doda district
*[[Padri Top]], the group of meadows in Bhaderwah
*[[Bimal Nag]], a meadow in [[Drabshalla]] tehsil (subdistrict) of [[Kishtwar district]]
*[[Mughal Maidan]], a tourist destination in Kishtwar district
*[[Chatroo]], famous for its small lake, a tourist destination in Kishtwar district
*[[Sinthan Top|Sinthan Pass]], in the higher reaches of [[Kishtwar district]] on Kishtwar-Anantnag Road
*[[Bhal Padri]], a beautiful meadow in [[Gandoh (Bhalessa)]]
*[[Lal Draman]], a scenic tourist destination in Doda district
*Dessa Valley, in Doda district
*[[Sanasar]], in Ramban district
*Dagantop, in Gool area of Ramban district

== Natural disasters ==
=== 2013 Doda earthquake ===
A 5.8 earthquake hit the [[Doda district]] on 1 May 2013, killing two and injuring 69.<ref>{{cite news |title=IIT scientists, NDMA assess damages in quake-hit Chenab Valley |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/iit-scientists-ndma-assess-damages-in-quakehit-chenab-valley/article4711542.ece |work=The Hindu |agency=PTI |date=13 May 2013 |language=en-IN}}</ref> Seismic activity continued in the valley throughout 2013, prompting teams of seismologists to study the area. A local belief states that the earthquakes were being caused by hydroelectric construction projects in the area.{{r|dna quakes}}

=== 2017 Thathri flash floods ===
Flash floods wreaked havoc in [[Thathri]] town of [[Doda district|Doda]] district of J&K, inundating vast areas along the Batote- Kishtwar National Highway and washing away half a dozen houses. Six persons were killed in the flash floods.<ref>{{cite news |title=Monsoon active across India, 6 killed in J&K flash floods |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/monsoon-active-across-india-6-killed-in-jk-flash-floods/articleshow/59714097.cms |work=The Times of India |agency=PTI |date=22 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241127113731/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/monsoon-active-across-india-6-killed-in-jk-flash-floods/articleshow/59714097.cms |archive-date=27 November 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== 2021 Hunzar Kishtwar cloudburst ===
A cloudburst hit Hunzar hamlet in Dachhan area of [[Kishtwar district]], resulting in the death of 26 persons and 17 injured on 28 July 2021. As per reports, only 7 dead bodies were recovered while 19 dead bodies were not found.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Kishtwar Cloudburst: Two More Bodies Recovered, Toll Reaches 7, Says Officials |url=https://thechenabtimes.com/2021/07/28/kishtwar-cloudburst-two-more-bodies-recovered-toll-reaches-7-says-officials/ |date=28 July 2021 |work=The Chenab Times |access-date=31 July 2021}}</ref>

=== 2023 Doda earthquake ===
On 13 June 2023, a 5.4-magnitude earthquake occurred in the Doda district, followed by tremors across North India and Pakistan. The earthquake caused injuries to five people.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/earthquake-of-54-magnitude-in-jks-doda-tremors-felt-in-new-delhi/article66963896.ece |title=Earthquake of 5.4 magnitude in J&K's Doda, tremors felt in New Delhi |date=13 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230613085338/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/earthquake-of-54-magnitude-in-jks-doda-tremors-felt-in-new-delhi/article66963896.ece |archive-date=13 June 2023 |work=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/earthquake-jammu-kashmir-katra-doda-tremors-epicentre-magnitude-2392793-2023-06-14 |title=3 earthquakes jolt Jammu and Kashmir's Doda, Katra areas |date=14 June 2023 |work=[[India Today]]}}</ref>

=== 2025 Chositi Kishtwar cloudburst ===
On 14 August 2025, more than 50 people died and dozens were injured in flash floods in Chositi village of Kishtwar District due to a cloudburst.{{citation needed|date=August 2025}}

==History==

The various areas referred to as "Chenab Valley" used to be part of the principalities of [[Bhaderwah]], [[Kishtwar]], [[Chamba State|Chamba]], and other smaller principalities which were annexed by the [[Dogra dynasty|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]]. The move was criticised by the Jammu-based [[Jammu Praja Parishad|Praja Parishad]], a [[Hindutva|Hindu nationalist]] political party, as an attempt to Islamise the state's administration.{{sfn|Behera|2006|page=110}}

In the past, the area around Doda was largely inhabited by [[Sarazi language|Sarazi]] population before people started settling here from the Kashmir valley and other adjoining areas.{{r|saha|doda story}} The reasons for this migration in the 17th and 18th centuries are a matter of [[ambiguity]] among historians.<ref name="Mini Kashmir"/> [[Sumantra Bose]] says that repression by the feudal class in the Kashmir valley drew people to these areas.<ref name="Snedden">{{citation |last=Snedden |first=Christopher |title=Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s5KMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PR21 |year=2015 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-1-84904-342-7 |page=xxi, 23}}</ref><ref name="saha">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sahapedia.org/sarazi-endangered-language-of-the-chenab-valley|title=Sarazi: Endangered Language of the Chenab Valley|website=Sahapedia|language=en|access-date=16 July 2020}}</ref>

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 [[Rana Rajput|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.<ref>{{cite web |title=History {{!}} District Doda {{!}} India |url=https://doda.nic.in/history/ |access-date=2 February 2023 |work=[[National Informatics Centre]] |publisher=Doda Administration}}</ref>

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]],{{efn
| name = Nullah in Doda
| The Nullah traversed by Vigne is most likely the [[Neeru river]], which joins the Chenab at [[Pul Doda]].
}} 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.<ref name="history-dispatch">{{cite news |title=Doda: Brief History, Places of Attraction |url=https://www.thedispatch.in/doda-brief-history-places-of-attraction/ |access-date=2 February 2023 |work=The Dispatch |date=19 April 2019 |archive-date=2 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230202044608/https://www.thedispatch.in/doda-brief-history-places-of-attraction/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1948, the erstwhile Udhampur district was partitioned into the present [[Udhampur district]], containing the Udhampur and [[Ramnagar, Udhampur|Ramanagar]] tehsils, and [[Doda district]] containing the [[Ramban district|Ramban]], [[Bhadarwah]], [[Doda, Jammu and Kashmir|Doda]], [[Thathri]] and [[Kishtwar district|Kishtwar]] tehsils.<ref name="profile">{{cite web |url=http://kvkdoda.nic.in/district_profile.html |title=District profile |work=Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Doda |access-date=23 October 2016 |archive-date=9 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009071020/http://kvkdoda.nic.in/district_profile.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{r|Snedden}}{{sfn|Behera|2007|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=qM6kW9ZRMRkC&pg=PA28 28]}}

From 1975 to 1976, the [[Government of India]] conducted the [[Forest Survey of India#History|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.<ref>{{cite book |title=Tropical Forest Resources Assessment Project: Forest Resources of Tropical Asia|date=1981 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |location=Rome |isbn=92-5-101105-2 |chapter=Country Briefs: India |id=(Report prepared by the FAO of the UN as cooperating agency with the United Nations Environment Programme)| access-date=25 July 2023|url= https://www.fao.org/3/ad908e/AD908E13.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Department of Agriculture |title=Preinvestment Survey of Forest Resources in Chenab Valley |date=1976 |publisher=Government of India |location=Dehradun |page=116 |url=https://fsi.nic.in/inventory_report/JammuKashmir/Chenab%20Valley%20Volume%20_II.pdf |access-date=25 July 2023}}</ref> The area is an active [[seismic zone]].<ref name="dna quakes">{{cite news |title=Chenab valley quakes not due to hydro projects: Scientists |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-chenab-valley-quakes-not-due-to-hydro-projects-scientists-1900120 |work=DNA India |date=21 November 2013 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="gk-feb-21">{{Cite news|title='Earthquakes, cloudbursts can damage Chenab Valley dams'|url=https://www.greaterkashmir.com/editorial/earthquakes-cloudbursts-can-damage-chenab-valley-dams|date=9 February 2021|newspaper=[[Greater Kashmir]]|author=Tahir Nadeem|access-date=9 September 2021}}</ref>

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 [[Persecution of Muslims|anti-Muslim]]. Since the 1990s, many such incidents of killings by terrorists and VDCs have been reported.<ref name="terrorism">{{cite magazine |last=Joshi|first=Rajesh|title=Slow Death in Doda|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/slow-death-of-doda/206010|date=17 August 1998|magazine=Outlook|access-date=20 Jun 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Sharma|first=Arun|date=2019-07-17|title=J&K cops overhaul village defence committees, PDP says Centre design to arm RSS workers|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/jk-cops-overhaul-village-defence-committees-pdp-says-centre-design-to-arm-rss-workers-5833095/|access-date=2020-06-16|work=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref>

In 2006, [[Ramban district|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.<ref name=profile/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/news/8-new-districts-in-jk-13-new-tehsils/8998.html |title=8 New Districts in JK, 13 New Tehsils|work=Greater Kashmir|date= 7 July 2006}}</ref>

==Demands for divisional status==
[[File:Jammu and Kashmir location Chenab Valley.jpg|thumb|Location of the districts for which separate divisional status is sought within Jammu and Kashmir]]

There has been a movement demanding separate administrative division for the Chenab valley by various social and political activists for long time. In 2014, a major protest was called in Doda for the demand of separate administrative division.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Protest by Doda Development Front over demands of Chenab region|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/protest-by-doda-development-front-over-demands-of-chenab-region/story-qSWbSD9owZwg8UbzKYvwcK.html|date=26 June 2014|work=[[Hindustan Times]]|access-date=10 April 2022}}</ref> The demand rose again in 2018 and 2019 when [[Ladakh]] got divisional status and the former chief minister of [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], [[Omar Abdullah]] added "Two Separate Divisional Status for Chenab Valley and [[Pir Panjal Region]]" to his party's political agenda.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Separate division for Ladakh: Omar promises two more for Chenab valley, Pir Panjal if voted to power|url= https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/separate-division-for-ladakh-omar-promises-two-more-for-chenab-valley-pir-panjal-if-voted-to-power/articleshow/67902569.cms |date=8 February 2019 |work=[[Times of India]] |access-date=31 July 2021}}</ref> The districts of the proposed Chenab Valley consists of six Assembly seats.{{r|ET promises}}

The [[Hindutva|Hindu nationalist]] [[Bharatiya Janata Party]] maintains that "there is no Chenab valley and it is only the Jammu division for representation of the region",<ref name="bjp-cv">{{Cite news|title=BJP cries foul over use of term 'Chenab valley' again|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/features/bjp-cries-foul-over-use-of-term-%E2%80%98chenab-valley%E2%80%99-again-321424|date=11 November 2016|work=[[The Tribune (India)|The Tribune]] |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> while the [[Jammu & Kashmir National Conference]] says that the demand is based on developmental negligence and wants separate divisions from Jammu division for Chenab valley and Pir Panjal.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/states/story/20190121-small-separatism-1427723-2019-01-11|title=Small Separatism|date=11 January 2019|work=[[India Today]]|access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref>

The areas of the three districts are termed as the ''DKR Range (Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban Range)'' by police and military officials, while a separate Deputy Inspector General is posted for this range by [[Jammu and Kashmir Police]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=DIG DKR Range chairs crime review meeting|url=https://web.statetimes.in/dig-dkr-range-chairs-crime-review-meeting/|date=14 October 2021|work=State Times|access-date=19 October 2021|archive-date=28 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028164456/https://web.statetimes.in/dig-dkr-range-chairs-crime-review-meeting/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Hill Development Council===
In 1996, chief minister [[Farooq Abdullah]] promised administrative autonomy to Chenab. Later in 2000, a bill demanding a Hill Development Council for Chenab valley was presented in the legislative assembly by the Sheikh Abdul Rehman (then MLA from Bhaderwah).<ref>{{Cite news|title=Why oppose Hill Council status for Chenab, Pir Panjal valleys? |url=http://brighterkashmir.com/why-oppose-hill-council-status-for-chenab-pir-panjal-valleys--|date=25 March 2020|work=Brighter Kashmir|access-date=8 August 2021}}</ref>

In July 2015, then chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir [[Mufti Mohammad Sayed]], ruled out the demand of Chenab Valley Hill Council and announced Chenab Valley Development Fund (CVDF) for the development and upliftment of mountainous and remote districts of Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban.<ref name="i825">{{cite news | title=Mufti rules out Council, sets up Chenab Valley Development Fund | work =[[Daily Excelsior]] | date=4 July 2015 |url=https://www.dailyexcelsior.com/mufti-rules-out-council-sets-up-chenab-valley-development-fund/ | access-date=30 July 2023}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Panun Kashmir]]
*[[Duggar (region)]]
*[[Pir Panjal Region (Jammu Division)|Pir Panjal (region)]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="doda story">{{Cite news |first=Naseer A. |last=Ganai|url=https://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/more/news/story-of-doda-misunderstood-by-kashmir|title=Story of Doda misunderstood by Kashmir|date=14 March 2015|newspaper=Greater Kashmir |archive-date=17 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617061458/https://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/more/news/story-of-doda-misunderstood-by-kashmir/ |language=en}}</ref>}}

===Works cited===
* {{cite book |first=Navnita Chadha |last=Behera |title=Demystifying Kashmir |publisher=[[Brookings Institution Press]] |date=2006 |isbn=978-0-8157-0860-5}}
** {{cite book |first1=Navnita Chadha |last1=Behera |title=Demystifying Kashmir |date=2007 |publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=978-81-317-0846-0 |language=en}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book |first=Rekha |last=Chowdhary |title=Jammu and Kashmir: 1990 and Beyond |publisher=[[Sage Publishing]] |date=2019 |isbn=978-93-532-8231-8 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Kumar |first=Vikas |title=Numbers as Political Allies: The Census in Jammu and Kashmir |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-1-009-31721-4 |date=2023 |ref=none}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Amin |first1=Mir Gowhar |last2=Sehgal |first2=Sandeep |title=Medicinal uses of edible wild fruits of Chenab Valley of Jammu, India |journal=Indian Journal of Ecology |date=2021 |volume=48 |issue=2 |pages=563–568 |issn=0304-5250 |publisher=Sher-E-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Jammu |ref=none}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Valleys of Jammu and Kashmir]]
[[Category:Jammu Division]]
[[Category:Himalayas]]
[[Category:Chenab Valley]]

Chenab Valley - Revision history

Trainscafe at 13:33, 6 January 2026