Pahalgam

Pahalgam
Pahalgom
Town
View of valley in Pahalgam town, Anantnag district, Jammu and Kashmir, India
View of valley in Pahalgam town, Anantnag district, Jammu and Kashmir, India
Pahalgam is located in Jammu and Kashmir
Pahalgam
Pahalgam
Location in Jammu and Kashmir, India
Pahalgam is located in India
Pahalgam
Pahalgam
Pahalgam (India)
Coordinates: 34°01′N 75°11′E / 34.01°N 75.19°E / 34.01; 75.19
Country India
Union Territory Jammu and Kashmir
DistrictAnantnag
Elevation
2,740 m (8,990 ft)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total
5,922
Languages
 • OfficialKashmiri, Urdu, Hindi, Dogri, English[1][2]
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
192126
Vehicle registrationJK-03
Websiteanantnag.nic.in/tourist-place/pahalgam/

Pahalgam (Urdu pronunciation: [pɛhɛlɡɑːm]), known as Pahalgom (Kashmiri pronunciation: [pəhəlʲɡoːm]; lit. 'village of shepherds' in Kashmiri)[3] is a town and a notified area committee, near Anantnag city in the Anantnag district of the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.[4][5][6][7][8] It is a popular tourist destination and hill station. Its lush green meadows and pristine waters attract thousands of tourists from all over the world each year.[9] It is located 45 kilometres (28 mi) from Anantnag on the banks of Lidder River at an altitude of 7,200 feet (2,200 m). Pahalgam is the headquarters of one of the eleven tehsils of Anantnag district.

Pahalgam is associated with the annual pilgrimage to the shrine Amarnath Yatra. Chandanwari, located 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) from Pahalgam. The town is the starting point of the yatra that takes place every year in the months of July–August, receiving hundreds of thousands of tourists. Because of its religious significance and role as a base camp, the town attracts 70% of visitors to the valley.[10] This flood of tourists overwhelms some of the local infrastructure, especially waste management in the town.[10]

  1. ^ "The Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Act, 2020" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 27 September 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Parliament passes JK Official Languages Bill, 2020". Rising Kashmir. 23 September 2020. Archived from the original on 24 September 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
  3. ^ Betts, Vanessa; McCulloch, Victoria (2014). Footprint Delhi & Northwest India. Footprint Travel Guides. p. 158. ISBN 9781910120866.
  4. ^ "Vale of Kashmir | valley, India". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 16 July 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Jammu and Kashmir | union territory, India". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 19 June 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  6. ^ "Jammu and Kashmir summary". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 4 November 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  7. ^ "Kashmir | Region, Indian subcontinent". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 17 June 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  8. ^ "Kashmir summary". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Pahalgam: Valley of paradise". Bangalore Mirror. 24 June 2010. Archived from the original on 1 May 2013.
  10. ^ a b Bashir, Subzar; Goswami, Subhrangsu (1 January 2016). "Tourism Induced Challenges in Municipal Solid Waste Management in Hill Towns: Case of Pahalgam". Procedia Environmental Sciences. Waste Management for Resource Utilisation. 35: 77–89. doi:10.1016/j.proenv.2016.07.048. ISSN 1878-0296.