The geographically diverse states of Jammu and Kashmir boast breathtaking mountain passes that offer thrilling adventures. For centuries, these passes have been integral to Kashmir’s folklore, facilitating communication, interaction, and connection among the people. Before the nineteenth century, they served as both barriers and gateways, controlled by those who guarded against infiltration and collected customs and taxes. Traders and communication link operators had lifelong relationships with these passes.
Riding on the Pir Panjal mountains via Mughal Road has been my passion for a long time. Finally, I grabbed the opportunity to venture into the pristine Himalayas, surrounded by stunning mountains, offering breathtaking views, scenic waterfalls and hidden gems. On June 21, 2025, I set off immediately along with my cousin, Azad Ahmad Farhad and started my ride from my home town Pulwama at 4:00 PM and reached the picturesque meadow of Dubjan Shopian at 5:00 PM, covered a distance of 40 km from Pulwama.
Along the Mughal Road
Set against the magnificent Pir Panjal Range, this beautiful alpine meadow is a solitary quiet place away from busy tourist destinations and passing through the peeking lofty pine trees which overlooks the mighty Pir Panjal on the famous Mughal Road – a vast meadow with hot springs which are traditionally soothing for your body and relieve you of joint pain and dry skin.
At the fringes of Dubjan is the Hirpora Wildlife Sanctuary, a biodiversity hot spot that allows one to peep into the profusion of flora and fauna in Kashmir. It is home to the endangered Pir Panjal Markhor, a wild goat species found here. Leopards, the Himalayan black bear, and various other species of birds take refuge here.
The flora and fauna of Jammu and Kashmir consist of a good number of forested regions along with wildlife shelters. The top of Dubjan is called “Seem Koar” and from the spot, visitors get a view of a few districts, like Kulgam, Shopian, Pulwama and Srinagar. There are two hot springs, and people usually call the hot springs there as “Tata Pani”.
After spending some time at Dubjan, I moved ahead along with my pillion rider Azad and reached the famous Pir ki Gali around 20km away from Dubjan.
Pir Ki Gali is an old Mughal Road cross in the Pir Panjal range located at an altitude of 3,485 meters and the only connecting route between Shopian in Kashmir Valley with Poonch in Jammu. The pass is named after a sufi saint who meditated in the area.
While some sources mention Sheikh Ahmad Karim, others mention Sheikh Nooruddin Noorani or Peer Baba as the associated saint. Regardless of the specific saint, it is believed that a saint locally known as Pir meditated in the area, giving the pass its name. A small shrine dedicated to him is located at the top of the pass, where his hand imprints are believed to be seen on a large stone.
This pass offers breathtaking views of the surrounding mountains and valleys. And the ethereal splendour of the pass is intensified by winter snow cover. Pir Ki Gali is a wonderland for botanists and wildlife photographers, given the varied alpine vegetation here. The Centre’s recent approval of the Peer Ki Gali tunnel on the historic Mughal Road is a transformative step in addressing one of the most pressing infrastructural and humanitarian concerns in Jammu and Kashmir — the need for all-weather connectivity between the Kashmir Valley and the Jammu region.
During the journey on Mughal road, I saw a number of bridges on the way. The notable among them are Dubjan Bridge, Lal Ghulam Bridge, Ratta Chamb Bridge, Chatta Pani Bridge, Panar Bridge and Bafliaz Bridge.
Noori Chamb and Bafliaz
Moving ahead, we reached Poshana Army base camp located in Poshana Village where the army verified our identity cards and registered our names before we proceeded towards Rajouri. We reached Bafliaz by 8:30 PM covered a distance of 65 km from Pir Ki Gali. It falls in the Poonch district and it connects Poonch and Rajouri districts to Kashmir.
A little ahead of Bafliaz on this route is the Noori Chamb, named after Noor Jahan. It is located near the hill village of Bahramgala in the Poonch district. There is a waterfall and is a popular tourist spot. The stretch of Noori Chamb is of lush green pastures. As we reached Bafliaz, the weather suddenly changed.
A blanket of darkness covered the road, plunging it into silence. The bone-chilling cold and desolate scenery made the views appear ominous. The road to Shahdara was treacherous – wet and rocky. Potholes, unexpected narrow turns, unmarked speed breakers, signal-less crossings, and construction materials further obstructed the road. Despite all these odds, we enjoyed the journey and finally we reached the shrine of Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah at Shahdara by 9:30 AM.
Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah shrine
We went to the Baitul Zaireen (A house built for the devotees by the Auqaaf committee of the shrine) and booked a room for the night stay. Then we also went to the shrine and paid obeisance at the shrine of Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah.
The forefathers of Syed Ghulam Shah Badshah belonged to Mashad (Iran) that is why he was called Mashadi. His grandfather Peer Yar Ali Shah migrated from Mashad (Iran) during the middle of 16th century to disseminate the message of Islam and settled in the village Sayedan Kasrawan in today’s Chakwal district of Punjab, Pakistan.
His grandfather had three sons; one among them was Syed Idrees. On the instructions of his spiritual guide Syed Hazrat Lateef Hussain (Imam Barry), Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah was told to march towards the north of Rajouri, near Thana Mandi where he would find a place called Sein Dara and subsequently Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah along with his well off followers came to Shahdara and remained here for 41 years. He left for his heavenly abode at the age of 73 in January 1806AD/1226 Hijri.
A shrine was constructed over his grave by a Multani craftsman in 1804 AD/1224 on the instructions of Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah before his death. The shrine is 34 kilometers away from Rajouri district headquarters in the lap of hills surrounded by beautiful mountains of district Rajouri and is located at an altitude of 5807 feet above the sea level.
In the compound of the shrine is an orange tree that bears fruit round the year and devotees collect leaves of the orange tree with reverence, believe that the orange falls from the tree only to those whose wish is granted. The devotees are mostly the seekers of an offspring; they sit on the floor of the shrine under the orange tree with the hope that the orange will fall on them to get their wishes fulfilled.
Sign of Communal Harmony
The shrine at Shahdara is a symbol of communal harmony as people from different religions and regions come here. The Auqaaf committee is runs a free community kitchen where we also had tea and unlike the other shrines of valley, no beggars are seen in or outside the shrine. There is a beautiful neat and clean park in the shrine built on the pattern of Nishat and Shalimar gardens. The management of the shrine is administered well and look after the accommodation facilities and are managing a free community kitchen throughout the year.
Next morning, June 22, 2025, we got up early and offered predawn prayers. Then we went to a nearby hotel and had breakfast. After breakfast, my friend Dr Nusrat Hussain from Poonch called and invited me to visit Sain Miran Baksh Guntrian located on Doda ridge of tehsil Haveli District Poonch. Without hesitation, I accepted his invitation and departed Shahdara at 7:00 AM. On reaching Rajouri city at 7:45 AM, 26 km from Shahdara, we paused to have a cup of tea.
Rajouri, a picturesque town in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, lies at the foothills of the Himalayas near the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan. Steeped in history, it was once ruled by Rajput kings and played a key role during the Mughal and British eras. The town is home to historical landmarks, including forts, temples, and palaces, and hosts a vibrant cultural mix of communities such as Dogra, Pahari, Kashmiri, and Gujjar.
Its diverse festivals, like Diwali, Eid and Baisakhi, showcase its cultural richness. Islam is the largest religion in Rajouri city followed by over 62.71% of the people. Hinduism is the second-largest religion with 34.54% adherents and Sikhism form 2.41% of the population.
Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University
During the 1947-48 Indo-Pak War, Rajouri was a strategic location, witnessing heavy clashes between Indian and Pakistani forces, contributing significantly to the defence of the region. I steered my bike towards Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University which is located at the foothills of the great Himalayan Pir Panjal range in Rajouri, 7 km from Rajouri and has come into existence by an Act of the Jammu & Kashmir Legislative Assembly called the Jammu & Kashmir Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University Act No. XVI of 2002.
The University is nurtured by the Jammu & Kashmir Wakf Council with the motto "Iqra bismi rabbika lazi khalaq" which means, "Read in the name of Allah who has created all that exists". It reflects the vision and idealism for which the university stands. The objective identified for the university in the Act is to import quality education and undertake research in basic and job-oriented fields like Business Management, Social Sciences, Bio Sciences, Computer Sciences, Information Technology, Arabic, Mathematics, Nursing, Tourism, Education, Languages and B.Tech., Diploma in Engineering and Doctoral Programmes.
The region in which the university is located has rich geographic, climatic and cultural diversity. The climate varies from subtropical in the southern parts to temperate in mountain northern fringes. The average temperature varies from 7ºC during winters to 37ºC during summers.
To Poonch and Guntrian
After spending some time at the University campus, I continued my journey and reached Bhimber Gali, a mountain pass located in the Bhimber village of Poonch at an elevation of 1650 m, 58 km from Rajouri city and is named after a mountain pass "Bhimber Gali" on the mountain ridge separating the Poonch River and the Rajouri Tawi basins.
Bhimber Gali is the point at which four roads meet, one from Hamirpur Balakote, second from Rajouri via Manjakote, third from Mendhar Tehsil and fourth from Poonch via Surankote. This area borders Pakistan administered Kashmir and thus the surrounding areas often remain in news for cross LoC ceasefire violations.
I continued my journey on Poonch via Surankote route and reached Poonch city at 1:30 PM, 87 km from Rajouri city and covered a total distance of 267 km from Pulwama. After taking lunch, we moved ahead to the shrine of Sain Miran Baksh located in Guntrian village which is the last stop located on Doda ridge of tehsil Haveli District Poonch. This village is 10 kilometers away on the north-eastern side of Poonch city and connected with a motorable road.
On reaching Guntrian Sharief, we offered Asr prayers. The Ziarat Sharief has one double storey mosque, langer Khanna, Asthan of Hazrat Sain Mira Baksh and a Darsgah where a good number of children are enrolled for providing Islamic studies, including the Quran, Hadith, Fiqh and other related subjects.
The Roza Sharief is decorated with attractive marble and Kashmiri khatam band wood work. The attractive natural beauty of this place had impelled Hazarat Sain Baba Miran Baksh to migrate from across the LoC in 1954. His native village Nanga Nari is located on the southern slope of Neza Pir Pass across the Line of Actual Control.
Sain Miran Baksh was a famous spiritual personality of his time and hundreds of devotees thronged his Asthan every day in the village Guntrian. In the first instance, Baba Sahib would beat his devotees with a stick and abuse them just to prevent them from coming near him for blessing. Then slowly and politely the devotees would come close to Baba Sahib for his blessing.
Sain Miran Baksh settles in Guntrian
Sain Miran Baksh would wear a green long shirt (Kurta) and grass shoes and was fond of taking tea. He travelled from place to place in search of a location which could suit him for meditation and selected the village Guntrian and settled there once for all.
The real name of Baba Sahib is Sain Miran Baksh Awan and he was a Darvesh with a secular outlook. His father Mohammad Aziz was popularly known as Mattu and had three sons of whom Baba Sahib was the eldest. When he was seven years old, he was employed by Raja Ghulam Mohammad Jagirdar of Sadhrun and after serving for about twelve years, he left the job and became a disciple of Pir Noor Din Shah of Rankari. He came under the influence of Baba Wasta and Begam Shabia, who were also disciples of Pir Noor Din Shah and remained in the company of saintly souls for many years.
Apart from Muslims, a large number of Hindus and Sikhs also visit the Asthan for the blessings of Sain Sahib. When patients came to his Asthan, they drink water of a nearby holy spring and it is believed they get relief.
We departed at 7:00 PM and reached Poonch City where my friend Dr Nusrat Hussain received us with warmth and took us to his home for the night stay. Dr Nusrat Hussain is a government teacher, but is also actively involved in many social activities and has been appreciated many times by Poonch administration for his humility and help to the needy and destitute people in Poonch and Rajouri. Next day, we safely returned home by 4:00 PM with beautiful memorable experiences.
One thing that stands out in these beautiful mountains valleys is the syncretic culture of the region - the unity and communal harmony the people irrespective of their caste, creed and religion.
Have you liked the news article?
