Jammu & Kashmir was created and unified by Gulab Singh. Since 1947, it enjoyed special autonomy within India. Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah sought to deepen this autonomy, envisioning a status similar to that of two Soviet republics of Belarusia & Ukraine before USSR disintegrated in 1990.
However, the Jammu and Kashmir's complex ethnic, linguistic, and regional diversities made unity difficult. Despite widespread desire for greater autonomy across these diverse groups, the central government has gradually reduced J&K's special status, using constitutional mechanisms to centralise control while claiming to uphold the Constitution, democracy and rule of law. This has triggered misplaced calls for the division of the region once again by those who wrongly believe that diversity is an ill omen.
Vivisection of J&K
Those advocating division claim Kashmir Valley has "nothing in common" with another main region. Yet they reject this same logic when applied to Chenab Valley and Pir Panjal, denying stark diversities within these two regions.
In Ladakh, only Buddhists sought separation from J&K; the other communities opposed it until a 1989-1995 Buddhist Association boycott alienated Kargil region and other minority groups in Leh region. After August 5, 2019, Kargil erupted in protests, and even Leh's non-Buddhists showed deep disappointment. Ignoring public sentiment breeds contempt and pushes people toward alternatives unless democratic options like local referendums are offered. Buddhists initially wanted only Union Territory status, but to unite Ladakh's population (where they're 48% only), the Leh Apex Body now demands full statehood to accommodate aspirations of the people of Kargil and others from Leh Ladakh.
Chenab Valley and Pir Panjal have distinct identities but suppressed desires for regional institutions out of loyalty to unified J&K. A large section of the population in these regions also prefer UTs with assemblies, potentially reducing Jammu to a narrow strip between Lakhanpur and Patnitop. This would dismantle Gulab Singh's legacy entirely and soak the region pregnant with dissatisfaction of its inhabitants in more uncertainty. A pragmatic solution is possible only through a deeper understanding of the complexities of the regional identities and the multiple dilemmas of the other two regions.
Regional identities
Union Territory of J&K consists of the following four natural regions:
1) Sub-mountain & semi-mountainous loop comprising of Kathua, Samba, Jammu & Udhampur Districts measuring 8385 Sq kms + Reasi sub Division,
2) Chenab valley (Outer Hills) with Doda, Kishtwar & Ramban Districts falling in it & spread over 11885 Sq Kms +Mahore & Dharmadi sub-Divisions of Reasi District,
3) Pir Panjal (Jhelum basin ), having within it the Districts of Rajouri & Poonch covering 4034 Sq kms + tiny contiguous areas of Reasi District &
4) Kashmir Valley ( Jhelum Valley) formed on 15948 sq km, as a homogenous entity in general with recorded history of 5000 years and anthropological presence of 7000 years.
In the Jammu region, the Dogras constitute 79.38%, Gujjar 6.51%, Koshur 5.79%, Punjabi 5.11% & Pahari 2.55%. The entire loop falls in sub-tropical zone. The exceptions are Lohai Malhar areas in Kathua bordering Bhaderwah in Doda District; and Mahore & Dharmadi sub-divisions of Reasi District otherwise (Latter) falling in the Chenab Valley.
The Chenab Valley region is temperate with 65.74 % Koshur population, 11.24% Gujjar, 5.56% Dogra 4.45% Pahari.
The Pir Panjal region formed by the two Districts of Rajouri & Poonch has 56.10% Paharis, 38.46% Gujjar, 3.78 Koshur and 1. 07% Dogra population. This region is partly temperate and partly sub-tropical.
These regions differ vastly in geography, language, ethnicity, culture, and political aspirations. Their distinct identities deserve recognition: Jammu as the 'Duggar zone,' the three districts and two Reasi subdivisions as 'Chenab Valley' (already used locally), and the twin border districts as 'Pir Panjal.'
In Pir Panjal especially, the two largest ethnic communities face an identity crisis, made worse by the strong political positions their counterparts hold across the border in Pakistan-Administered Kashmir, making an urgent case for affirmative action.
The present discourse on vivisection of J&K is confined to Kashmir and ‘Duggar zone’, with no space in the dialogue for the inhabitants of the Pir Panjal or Chenab Valley. This, ignites resentment among them.
Reorganisation of the Divisions
Regional identities should be formalised through divisional reorganization, creating territorial units based on ethnicity and language - similar to India's 1956 linguistic reorganization that created Punjab and Andhra Pradesh. However, Punjab's experience offers a cautionary tale. Punjabi Sikhs, particularly, never reconciled with Punjab's divisions in 1947 and 1956. Given the Sikh empire's legacy, a "unity in diversity" approach preserving Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal together might have better addressed Punjabi aspirations than repeated divisions. This lesson is relevant for J&K's reorganization.
Administrative Reorganisation for J&K
Immediately after partition, J&K had two Governors for 3.2 million people (1941). Today, with a projected 16.5 million (2025), it still has just two divisions. By comparison, Himachal Pradesh 6 million (2011) has three divisions, while Pakistan-Administered Kashmir 4 million and Gilgit-Baltistan 1.5 million (2017) and each have three divisions. This makes the case for re-organising J&K and adding more divisions.
The Proposed Seven Divisions for J&K could be:
1. Maraz (Anantnag): Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian, Pulwama
2. Kamraz (Baramulla): Baramulla, Bandipora, Kupwara
3. Srinagar: Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal
4. Chenab Valley (Doda): Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban,
5. Udhampur: Udhampur, Reasi
6. Jammu: Jammu, Samba, Kathua
7. Pir Panjal (Rajouri): Poonch, Rajouri
+ Projected population by 2025 is 16.5 Million
Additionally, Ladakh spans 59,146 sq km with a population of 274,000 (2011) across seven districts under one division. When Ladakh division was first created within J&K, divisional offices were split between Leh and Kargil. After the 2019 reorganization created separate union territories, Kargil deserves full divisional status, comprising Kargil, Drass, and Zanskar districts.
Implementation Process
There is no need for constituting a Commission. Instead, the Council of Ministers should decide based on the ruling party's manifesto, followed by a committee under the Financial Commissioner (Revenue) to handle logistics, staffing, infrastructure, and boundaries.
This committee would handle restructuring divisional offices for smaller jurisdictions, identifying sites for new office complexes and infrastructure, and arranging interim offices. It would also redeploy surplus staff while minimizing creation of the new posts, including reassigning the job profile of the 20 ADDC positions to the two district Planning & Development offices, transferring appellate powers to Regional Directors (Survey & Land Records), and consolidating regional directorates across other departments that are byproducts of major departments like Health, Agriculture, Tourism, and Industries.
The committee would budget for five modern, earthquake-resistant office complexes reflecting local architectural styles, and review boundary adjustments based on public input.
Under the 2019 Reorganization Act, the Lieutenant Governor holds authority to create administrative units. The more than year-long transition between announcement and formal notification allows time to build public support for this transformative reform. This reorganization would improve governance, recognize regional identities, and promote broader unity.
Policy Interventions and Decisions
The notion of inter-divisional development disparities is now largely outdated. The Sikri Commission (1980) identified gaps between the two divisions, but by 2000, the Godbole Committee reported Jammu had overtaken Srinagar in development. Central investments and geographical factors favour Jammu. Development must follow a need-based approach across villages, panchayats, blocks, municipalities, and districts and sustained through statutory safeguards.
The first State Finance Commission under Mehmood U Rehman identified districts facing disparities. A time-bound financial package through a separate Planning and Development window should address these gaps. A UT-level Balanced Development Board with twenty members, including economists, development specialists, environmentalists, and legislators, should guide policy and monitor implementation across all twenty districts and two capital cities.
The Lieutenant Governor deserves credit for introducing three-tier Panchayat Raj, but the framework needs reform before elections. Currently, DDCs have uniform membership regardless of population, meaning districts with 200,000 people have the same number of members as those with over a million. Population-based slabs should determine DDC size. Urban populations (27%) need direct representation through electoral constituencies, not ex-officio memberships for mayors and chairpersons in District Development Boards renamed District Development Councils.
Private Universities legislation is overdue. Thousands of J&K students study elsewhere in the rest of the Country under PM scholarships and self-financing draining crores from the UT. New public and private universities meeting UGC standards could retain these funds. The NC manifesto proposes creation of additional universities which can be achieved by upgrading two campuses each of Kashmir and Jammu Universities into independent institutions. The largely self-sufficient IUST Awantipur and BG Shah University Rajouri demonstrate success. The South and North campuses (Kashmir University) and Bhaderwah and Kathua campuses (Jammu University) merit upgradation, with addition of employable programs. Technology-led and skill-based private universities should be prioritised outside the two capital cities including Districts.
Separate academies should promote mother tongues based on Mother tongues Census 2011 speaker populations: Kashmiri Academy in Srinagar (56% speakers) with sub offices in Doda and Jammu, Dogri Academy in Jammu (21%), Gujri in Poonch (10%), Pahari in Rajouri (10%), and Punjabi in Jammu (1.87%). The J&K Academy should focus on art, culture, and official languages (Urdu, Hindi, English).
The Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Services (JKAS) has become unwieldy. Specialised services like Information, Industries, Handicrafts, Handloom, Tourism, Protocol & Schematic posts in Social Welfare Department should be de-cadred. Core services should constitute JKAS, with others as allied services, ensuring equal opportunities for specialists also.
A socio-economic caste survey should identify SC/ST sub-categories respectively in sub-tropical and temperate regions for earmarking quota commensurate with their population within the share of reservation fixed for the two categories. This is called for owing to the extreme educational and economic backwardness of these people who haven’t been benefitted by reservations. The survey should also examine application of the Mandal Commission's eleven-point criterion, modified for housing and militancy impacts, for identification of Backward classes in J&K and by aligning UT reservations with national template; the RBA and LOC/IB distinctions shall get scrapped.
Conclusion
These reforms, recognising regional identities and other socio-economic disparities, through divisional reorganisation, ensuring need-based development, strengthening local governance, expanding educational opportunities, promoting linguistic diversity, and reforming reservations, offer a comprehensive path forward. While honoring the region's complex legacy and its diversity, genuine unity can be fostered.
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