Historical Settlements of Jammu
Lalit Gupta
lalitguptajammu@gmail.com
Known as the Land of Sapphire and Saffron, Kishtwar lies beyond the ramparts of the Pir Panjal, to the east-south-east of Kashmir, bounded by Ladakh to the north, Padar and Chamba to the east, and Bhadarwah to the south. Nearly 230 km north-east of Jammu, the ancient town rises upon a back-of-the-whale-like plateau, spread across about 20 square kilometres, poised between longitude 75°43’30” and 75°47’00” E and latitude 33°17’30” and 33°22’15” N.
Encircled by steep slopes, high ridges, narrow valleys, and rocky cliffs, Kishtwar stands on the left bank of the river Chandra-Bhagha-Asikini of the Vedas-near its confluence with the Maru-Warwan (Maru-Vriddha). At its heart lies the Chougan-a rare level expanse and a vital landmark amid an otherwise rugged Himalayan terrain.
Local history and oral traditions hold that Kishtwar’s plateau was once occupied by a lake formed by ancient floods and seismic activity. The waters are believed to have drained either after a massive earthquake near Thathri or through the intervention of Sage Kashyap. This act of release is said to have created fertile land that supported some of the region’s earliest settlements, remembered as Kashyapvas. The Rigveda, in its Nadi Sukta, also mentions the Maru-Vriddha, while during the Mahabharata period, the region was known as Lohit Mandal. The epic records that Arjuna, before advancing into Kashmir, subdued the ten mandalas of Dvigarta, including the Lohit Mandala.
The fertility of Kishtwar’s plateau did not merely sustain life; it conferred distinction. Among its prized products was saffron, cultivated in select pockets. Renowned for its deep colour and potency, Kishtwar saffron has been valued since ancient times for culinary, medicinal, and ritual use. Though never produced on a scale comparable to Kashmir, it remains an enduring marker of the region’s agrarian and cultural heritage.
Kishtwar also plays a role in the broader currents of early trans-Himalayan history. The Indo-Greek king Menander (Milinda in Sanskrit tradition) is said to have embraced Buddhism under the influence of the monk Nagasena, who hailed from the Nagseni area of Kishtwar. In subsequent centuries, the Kushanas under Kanishka and his successors extended their authority across vast stretches of north-western India, encompassing Gandhara, Ladakh, Kashmir, Kishtwar, and Jammu. With the decline of Kushana power, the region fragmented into smaller polities ruled by feudal lords-Ranas and Thakurs-of mixed tribal and racial origins, governing sub-regions such as Nagseni, Padar, Dachhan, Sarthal, Kuntawada, Bunjwah, and Chhatru.
Kishtwar’s historical identity is equally shaped by its association with sapphires. The high-altitude tracts of Padar became renowned for yielding some of the finest blue sapphires in the world, distinguished by their hue and exceptional clarity. These gemstones entered long-distance trade networks reaching Central Asia and Europe, and by the nineteenth century, were regarded among the most valuable sapphires known.
An invasion of Kishtwar in the eighth or ninth century is attributed to the Khri-rgyalpo-the throne-kings of Ladakh-most likely from the Suru-Khartse region. In its aftermath, the town came to be known as Bhotnagar. The invading ruler, described as mild and conciliatory, soon returned to Ladakh. In the ensuing period of conflict, powerful Ranas named territories after themselves or their ishta devtas, such as Mahakalgarh and Samarthgarh. According to Kirti Kamudi, one Rana who regarded Kishtwar as the playground of Lord Shiva named it Kashta-Var, while the Vasuki Purana refers to the region as Kashta-Nivarak.
Exploiting these internal rivalries, Panjsasi traders from Punjab-dealers in medicines and hill products-entered Kishtwar around the eighth or ninth century and settled in Kandani. Their presence was marked by frequent skirmishes until Kahen Singh Sen, a wandering prince of Gaud desh (Bengal), defeated them by taking advantage of a religious festival at the Hoderi spring, when the Panjsasis had laid down their arms. Kahen Singh Sen thus emerged as the first historical ruler whose descendants continued to rule Kishtwar, despite periodic revolts.
The Rajatarangini, the eleventh-century Kashmiri chronicle, refers to Kishtwar as Kashtavat, and as a separate hill state in the time of King Kalsha (r. 1063-89). It is spoken as a place of refuge for those fleeing Kashmir, often straining relations between the two regions. It also records the presence of feudal Thakurs in the Chandra-Bhagha valley. Between the tenth and twelfth centuries, these local chieftains were displaced by migrants from the Pala and Sena dynasties of Bengal, whose offshoots ruled several western Himalayan states. The Vanshavalis of these houses explicitly trace their lineage to Bengal.
By around 1400 CE, Kishtwar’s rulers adopted the suffix Singh. During the reign of Rai Singh, conflicts arose with the Muslim sultans of Kashmir. Ferishta records an unsuccessful Mughal attempt in 1547, followed by Kishtwar’s subjugation in 1574 by Ali Shah Chak, after which its ruler, Bahadur Singh, became tributary and forged marital ties with the Chak dynasty. Yakub Shah Chak later sought refuge in Kishtwar, where he died in 1588. His mother, Shanker Dei, is remembered for constructing important watercourses and masonry tanks that served the town.
The defeat of Raja Gur Singh by Jahangir’s forces consolidated Mughal influence. In the 17th century, Kishtwar’s ruling family embraced Islam under the influence of the Sufi saint Hazrat Farid-ud-Din Qadri. Although Hindu Rajput names and practices persisted for some time, the period witnessed significant cultural transformation marked by syncretism and tolerance. Sufi shrines-particularly that of Farid-ud-Din Baghdadi-emerged as major spiritual centres, drawing devotees from far and wide, while migration from Kashmir further diversified the population. Despite external pressures, Kishtwar largely retained its autonomy as an independent hill state.
This autonomy ended in the early nineteenth century. Enraged by Raja Teg Singh-also known as Saif-Ullah Khan-refusing to surrender Shah Shuja of Kabul, who had fled Lahore and found refuge in Kishtwar as a royal guest, Maharaja Ranjit Singh ordered Gulab Singh to invade the state in 1821. Through intrigue involving a forged letter and an attempted execution of Wazir Lakhpat Rai, Kishtwar’s administration collapsed. Teg Singh submitted and proceeded to Lahore, bringing Kishtwar under Sikh control. In recognition of his services, Gulab Singh was made the hereditary Raja of Jammu, and the ancient state of Kishtwar lost its independence-first absorbed into the Sikh domain and, after 1846, into the Dogra Empire.
Administratively, Kishtwar remained part of Udhampur until 1948, after which it was included in the newly created Doda district, attaining district status only in 2007-08. Despite producing notable national-level political figures-such as the late Om Mehta, former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha member, Krishna Mehta, the first woman Member of Parliament from Kishtwar, and prominent National Conference leaders including Bashir Ahmad Kichloo and his son Sajjad Ahmed Kichloo-the region endured decades of political and administrative neglect. This “step-motherly” treatment resulted in chronic underdevelopment, particularly in roads, healthcare, and basic infrastructure.
Although endowed with immense natural assets-including the Chenab’s hydropower potential, vast forest resources, and valuable minerals such as sapphire-these remained largely underutilised for much of the post-Independence period. Tourism, despite the region’s scenic beauty and pilgrimage traditions such as the Machail Yatra, suffered from neglect and inadequate infrastructure. Even after the establishment of bodies such as the Kishtwar Development Authority (KDA), progress remained slow and uneven. The prolonged delay of the Dulhasti Hydroelectric Project-initiated in 1985 but commissioned only in 2007-stands as a stark example of administrative apathy.
A perceptible shift emerged only after 2014, with increased focus on large hydroelectric projects and high-altitude conservation, including the Kishtwar High Altitude National Park (KHANP), known for its snow leopard population. In recent times, particularly following the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty in April 2025, Kishtwar has begun to assume a new role as north-Bharata’s emerging hydropower hub. The Government of India has fast-tracked multiple projects along the Chenab, including the 260 MW Dulhasti Stage-II, 624 MW Kiru, 540 MW Kwar, and 850 MW Ratle projects, along with the 1,856 MW Sawalkot project downstream. Together, these initiatives aim to generate over 6,000 MW of clean energy, firmly positioning Kishtwar as a cornerstone of regional energy security and infrastructure development.
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