Chumb (), officially called Chammb, is a city in the southern tip of

Azad Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir ( ), is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. The Chammb sector consists of many villages, Kherowal, Burejal, Nagial, Paur, Dingawali, Chak Pandit, Praganwala, Jhanda, Singry, Sardari, Banian, Punjgran, Barila Sharif, all of these villages are located within Chhamb sector. People are from various ethnic groups such as

Gujjar The Gurjar (or Gujjar, Gujar, Gurjara) are an agricultural ethnic community, residing mainly in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, divided internally into various clan groups. They were traditionally involved in agriculture, pastoral and nomadic ...

s, Bakerwals, Paharis, Khokhars. A Baradari system is prevalent throughout the region. The Pakistan Army has built its infrastructure in Chammb. Most people's languages are Pahari-Pothwari and Punjabi. Chammb is also known as Iftikharabad due to Maj General

Iftikhar Khan Janjua Iftikhar Khan Janjua (; died 9 December 1971) of the Pakistan Army is one of the most senior Pakistani officers to have been killed in action. He is known in Pakistan as the hero of the Rann of Kutch, as he was a brigadier in command of 6 Briga ...

who played a key role in occupying Chammb. It is divided into two parts South Iftikharabad and North Iftikharabad. There is only one police station (Singry). Chammb sector was under Indian control until the War of 1971, when the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

regained the area. Chammb is the last outpost of Pakistan's Azad Kashmir. Chammb has fertile land and farmlands can be found here.

History

1965 War

Chammb came under the Indian side as per the 1949 cease-fire agreement. During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, the Pakistani troops invaded the Chhamb-Jaurian sector of Indian-administered Kashmir as part of

Operation Grand Slam Operation Grand Slam was a key military operation of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. It refers to a plan drawn up by the Pakistan Army in May 1965, that consisted of an attack on the vital Akhnoor Bridge in Jammu and Kashmir, India. The br ...

, making significant gains and capturing Chammb. However, the ''status quo ante'' was reestablished in the

Tashkent Agreement The Tashkent Declaration was signed between India and Pakistan on 10 January 1966 to resolve the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. Peace was achieved on 23 September through interventions by the Soviet Union and the United States, both of which pus ...

1971 War

Pakistani forces raise the Pakistani flag 1971

The Pakistan Army made another attempt to capture this strategically important area and invaded Chammb on the same principles as it invaded in 1965. The reason behind this plan was to deter Indians from attacking the crucial north–south line of communications passing via Gujrat. The fighting around Chamb was intensely fierce and took a toll on both the advancing Pakistani troops and the Indian regiments. On 9 December 1971, the first Pakistani troops entered the surrounding area around Chammb under the personal supervision of Maj General

A memorial of Major General

is located in Chammb where his helicopter crashed during the battle. He was immediately evacuated to CMH Kharian, but could not survive the wounds and succumbed- just days before Chhamb was captured. He was awarded the

Hilal-e-Jurat The Hilal-e-Jurat ( , as if it were ''Halāl-e-Jurāt''; English: Crescent of Courage , sometimes spelled as Hilal-e-Jur'at, Hilal-e-Jurat, Hilal-i-Jurrat and Hilal-i-Juraat)Various official sources that are highly reputable spell the name of th ...

. The Chammb sector had a population of around 10,000 people at the time it was captured. The area became a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

as most of its residents fled to India following the Pakistani takeover.

Since 1971

In 2020, Gen Bajwa visited the Chhamb sector and emphasised upon troops to extend all-out support to local population affected by ceasefire violations.

Education

A Boys College (Kherowal), a Girls College (Dingawali), a Boys High School (Porre), and a Girls High School (Punjgran) are located here. The people who belong to the south are Punjabi and the north is mostly Paharis and Gujjars from Rajauri. It is primarily agricultural land. The people are mostly farmers. The members of the Chackmerry community in Chhamb are descendants of early

settlers who had arrived here from Rajauri in India.

References