| Shopian | |||
| — city — | |||
|
|
|||
| Coordinates | |||
| Country | India | ||
| State | Jammu and Kashmir | ||
| District(s) | Shopian | ||
| Population • Density |
211,000 (2001[update]) • 344 /km2 (891 /sq mi) |
||
| Sex ratio | 950:1000 ♂/♀ | ||
| Time zone | IST (UTC+05:30) | ||
| Area |
612.87 square kilometres (236.63 sq mi) • 2,057 metres (6,749 ft) |
||
|
Codes
|
|||
Shupiyan or Shopian (Kashmiri: शोपियां, شوپیاں) is a town in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the administrative headquarter of the Shopian district.
Contents |
Shopian District derives its name from its chief town, Shopian, about which Frederic Drew, while justifying the basis of its nomenclature, states that it is the distortion of word “SHAH-PAYAN”, i.e. Royal Stay. Shopian has been an ancient Town of Kashmir, which among other factors has a certain historical importance since it is situated on the ancient imperial route commonly known as Mughal Road which connects Lahore and Srinagar. Shopian was one out of six Wazarat Headquarters in Kashmir from 1872-1892 A.D. Shopian Town - the District Headquarter is situated at a distance of 51 Km from Srinagar and 20 Km from Pulwama on 2146 Mts above the sea level. It has decades old road connectivity with Anantnag as well as Kulgam. Currently under Construction Mughal Road is expected to link Shopian District with the districts of Poonch and Rajouri. In the event of its completion this road would be an alternate link between the two most populated Administrative Divisions of the state and is likely to boost the economy of this district.
Located in the South and South – West extremity of Kashmir Valley, Shopian lies in close proximity of Peerpanchal Mountain Range. It is bound by District Kulgam on its East and District Budgam on its North- West and is flanked by District Pulwama in the North and Districts of Rajouri and Poonch on its South and South-West respectively.
Most of the area in Shopian District is Hilly gifted with agro-climatic conditions, large areas of Shopian are covered by Orchards especially those of Apple and Walnut. As such the district is known as Apple Bowl of the State particularly for the production of famous variety of Apple named as Ambri.
Presently Shopian District - having two Assembly Constituencies - consists of One Tehsil, One CD Block Shopian and a part of Block Keller, One Municipal Committee with 13 Wards, 43 Patwar Halqas and 231 inhabited villages.
The District is dominated by Muslim Kashmiri-speaking Kashmiri. The other languages like Pahari, Gojjri, Dogri, Pastoo etc. are also spoken by certain population of the District.
As per the census of 2011, the total population of the District is 2.66 lac including 0.15 lac of ST Population. About 95% of the population lives in its rural areas. Only 5% population falls in its urban area. About 62.49 % census 2011 of the population was found literate. The literacy rate among male and female has been recorded as 71.86 % and 52.77% respectively as per census 2011.
The District has the privilege of having a “Holy Relic” of the Prophet Mohammad (SAW) at Khankah Pinjoora.
The District has a number of springs and streams, of which Hemal Nagrai and Dobijen Spring are very famous.
The District with lush green forests especially in the areas like Sedow, Hirpora and Keller is rich in scenic beauty. Development of these villages/areas as tourist villages if undertaken will boost the tourism in the District for economic development of the people.
Shopian has the honour to had Imam Shahi Hamadan entered via it into the Kashmir valley to spread the message of Islam. A major development in Kashmir was the establishment of the first branch of the Ahl-i Hadith in Srinagar, in 1925, by Sayyed Hussain Shah Batku, a Kashmiri student of the Madrasa Miyan Sahib in Delhi, a seminary set up by one of the pioneers of the Ahl-i Hadith in India, Maulana Anwar Shah Shopiani was a notable member of the Jamiat Ahl-i Hadith. Maulana Anwar Shah Shopiani (d.1969). Anwar Shah was a close disciple of Batku, and played a major role in spreading the message of the Ahl-i Hadith in Shopian and Srinagar. He also undertook missionary tours to outlying regions of the state, including Bhadarwah (Doda) and Ladakh. Like Anwar Shah, Maulana Mubaraki was a trained 'alim, a prolific writer and a powerful orator. He edited two Ahl-i Hadith journals, Tauhid and Muslim, and wrote extensively against the Ahmadis, the Shi'as, the Arya Samajists and the Christian missionaries, all of whom he saw as bent on for the extirpation of Islam from Kashmir. He served as the president of the Ahl-i Hadith jama'at in Kashmir for several years, as well as the Imam of the Central Jamia Ahl-i Hadith Masjid in Srinagar.
Many of the Great Ulema of Jamate Islami have had their origin from Shopian. The most influential and prominent among them are Moulvi Mohmad Amin (Shopian), Maulana Ghulam Ahmad Ahrar (Shopian, d. 2004) and Maulana Hakim Ghulam Nabi (Chittragam, d. 2002). These three persons had a pivotal role in Jammats establishment in J & K and were well known for their piousness, religious fervor and tremendous oration. The pains taken by them espacially Maulana Ghulam Ahmad Ahrar and Maulana Hakim Ghulam Nabi in travelling to every nook and corner of Kashmir Valley and Jammu region and promulgating the message of Islam are well known.
Besides this there is a Community Information Centre (CIC) at Block Head Quarter Gagren which provides ICT facilities to the local populace as well as to the Govt.
Shupiyan is located at .[1] It has an average elevation of 2057 metres (6748 feet). It is located 54 km from Srinagar.
As of 2001[update] India census,[2] Shupiyan Town had a population of 12,396. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Shupiyan has an average literacy rate of 59%, lower than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 67%, and female literacy is 51%. In Shupiyan, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Shopian town is also known as "Apple Town of Kashmir", as the apples of this town are famous for their superb quality. The Aharbal waterfall is 12 km away from Shopian town. Other tourist places near the town include Rambi Ara, the historical Jama Masjid that resembles the Jama Masjid of Srinagar, Kungwatan,Kowsernag, Nagi Rai Nag at Sofannaman ,Lawahinthora Shahlatoo, Sulphar Spring at Dhobijan on the famous Mughal Road and other religious places.