The Pir Panjal Range ( ; ) is a range of mountains in the Lower Himalayan region located in the Western Himalayas of northern

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. It runs southeast to northwest between the Beas and Neelam/Kishanganga rivers, in the Indian state of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

and Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, with its northwestern end extending into territory administered by Pakistan. The Himalayas show a gradual elevation towards the Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal ranges. Pir Panjal is the largest and westernmost range of the Lesser Himalayas. Near the bank of the Sutlej River, it dissociates itself from the main Himalayan range and forms a divide between the Beas and Ravi rivers on one side and the Chenab on the other. Further west, the Pir Panjal range forms the southwestern boundary of the Kashmir Valley, separating it from the hills of

Jammu Jammu () is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute ...

region, forming a divide between the Jhelum and Chenab rivers.

Etymology

The Pir Panjal range is named after the Pir Panjal Pass, whose original name as recorded by Srivara, is ''Panchaladeva'' (

IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Brahmic family, Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that ...

: ''Pāñcāladeva'', meaning the deity of ''Panchala''). Panchala is a country mentioned in the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

in the northwest

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. However, there are also traditions that place the Mahabharata regions in western Punjab and southern Kashmir. Scholar Dineshchandra Sircar has analysed the geography described in the ''

Shakti Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; 'energy, ability, strength, effort, power, might, capability') in Hinduism, is the "Universal Power" that underlies and sustains all existence. Conceived as feminine in essence, Shakti refer ...

‐sangama

Tantra Tantra (; ) is an esoteric yogic tradition that developed on the India, Indian subcontinent beginning in the middle of the 1st millennium CE, first within Shaivism and later in Buddhism. The term ''tantra'', in the Greater India, Indian tr ...

'', where this is indeed the case. Scholar M. A. Stein believes that the concept of deity must have been translated into that of a Pir after the region was Islamised.

Peaks of the range

Deo Tibba () and Indrasan () are two important peaks at the eastern end of the mountain range. They can be approached from both the

Parvati Parvati (, , IPA: /Sanskrit phonology, pɑɾʋət̪iː/), also known as Uma (, , IPA: Sanskrit phonology, /ʊmɑː/) and Gauri (, , IPA: /Sanskrit phonology, gə͡ʊɾiː/), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the Devi, ...

-Beas Valley (Kulu District), Upper Belt of Chamba Himachal Pradesh and the Chandra (Upper Chenab) Valley ( Lahaul and Spiti District) in Himachal Pradesh. The hill station of Gulmarg in Kashmir lies in this range.

Passes

Haji Pir Pass (altitude ) on the western Pir Panjal range on the road between Poonch and Uri in Indian-administered Kashmir. Despite taking the pass twice in military operations (in

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and

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...

), India left the pass under Pakistani control. The Pir Panjal Pass (also called ''Peer Ki Gali'') connects the Kashmir valley with

Rajouri Rajouri or Rajauri (; ; ) is a city in the Rajouri district in the Jammu division of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is located about from Srinagar and from Jammu (city), Jammu city on ...

and Poonch via the Mughal Road. It is the highest point of the Mughal Road at and lies to the southwest of the Kashmir Valley. The nearest town to the pass in the Kashmir valley is Shopian. The Munawar Pass (altitude ) is a pass north of Peer Ki Gali, overlooking Rajouri. The Banihal pass () lies at the head of the Jhelum River at the southern end of the Kashmir Valley. Banihal and Qazigund lie on either side of the pass. The Sinthan pass connects the Kashmir valley with Kishtwar in the Jammu region. The Saach Pass, a mountain pass in the Chamba district connecting Chamba with the Pangi valley of

, India. Himachal Touris

. ''Himachal Tourism''. Accessed 6 December 2019.

Rohtang Rohtang Pass (Rohtang , literally meaning "pile of corpses"Polgreen, Lydia. ''New York Times''. Accessed 31 July 2010.) is a high mountain pass (elevation ) on the eastern end of the Pir Panjal Range of the Himalayas around from Manali in t ...

La (altitude ) is a

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since mountain ranges can present formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human and animal migration t ...

on the eastern Pir Panjal range connecting Manali in the Kullu Valley to Keylong in the Lahaul Valley.

Tunnels

Jawahar Tunnel

The Jawahar Tunnel is a long tunnel through Pir Panjal mountain under the Banihal pass connects Banihal with Qazigund on the other side of the mountain. The Jawahar Tunnel was named after the first Prime Minister of India was constructed in the early 1950s and commissioned in December 1956 to ensure snow-free passage throughout the year. It is at elevation of about . It was designed for 150 vehicles per day but now used by more than 7,000 vehicles per day. Therefore, a new wider and longer tunnel has been planned at a lower elevation.

Banihal Qazigund Road Tunnel

Construction of a new long twin-tube Banihal Qazigund Road Tunnel started in 2011 and was commissioned in 2021. The new tunnel is at a lower elevation than the existing Jawahar tunnel and has reduced the road distance between Banihal and Qazigund by . It is also less prone to snow avalanches as it is at a lower elevation.

Atal Tunnel

The Atal Tunnel has been built under the

Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas on the Leh-Manali Highway. With length, the tunnel is the second longest road tunnel in India and has reduced the distance between Manali and Keylong by about . The tunnel is at elevation whereas the Rohtang pass is at elevation. Lying on the Manali-Leh axis, this is one of the two routes to Ladakh.

Banihal Railway Tunnel

The Pir Panjal Railway Tunnel, an railway tunnel, passes through the Pir Panjal Range in Jammu and Kashmir. It connects Quazigund and Banihal and is a part of the Udhampur-Srinagar- Baramulla railway project. The tunnel was commissioned on 26 June 2013 for regular service. It is India's longest railway tunnel.