The Sind Valley is a Himalayan sub-valley of the

Kashmir Valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range a ...

in the Indian union territory of

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. The entrance of the Sind Valley lies northeast of Srinagar the capital of Jammu and Kashmir. It is a long gorge valley with an average width of .

History

The Sind Valley had a strategic importance on the ancient Silk Road. It worked as a bridge between

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

, China and

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former ...

along with Srinagar-Skardu Route. First

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or ''dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global po ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and then Islam spread in Kashmir through this route. The Sind Valley still connects

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu a ...

with the rest of India through a National Highway NH 1D, though it remains closed during winter due to heavy snowfall at

Zojila Zoji La (sometimes Zojila Pass) is a high mountain pass in the Himalayas. It is in the Indian Union territory of Ladakh, Kargil district, Kashmir. Located in the Drass, the pass connects the Kashmir Valley to its west, with the Drass and ...

Geography

The Sind Valley is situated within the jurisdiction of Kangan tehsil, of Ganderbal district. It is bordered by the

in the west,

in the east, Kishanganga in the north and the Lidder Valley in the south. It has a length of and reaches a maximum length of at village Preng towards the north through a stream Wangath Nala which flows down from

Gangabal Lake The Gangabal Lake, also called Haramukh Ganga, is a lake situated at the foot of Mount Haramukh in Ganderbal district, north of Srinagar, in Indian-administered Kashmir. It is an alpine high altitude oligotrophic lake, home to many species o ...

. At some places the width is less than which gives only space to NH 1D, a National Highway which connects

and the

. It is formed by the flow of the Sind River which flows down from east to west. The River originates from the inner Himalayas at Drass in Machoi Glacier and runs through green forests of pine and fir and

alpine meadow Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alpine tundra gets ...

s of Sonamarg. The Sind Valley contributes heavily to the economy of the State, through generation of hydroelectricity, provides fresh water supply to other districts and irrigation for agriculture. The Sind River flows through the entire valley passing several natural landmarks, tourist spots including Baltal, The meadow of gold, Gagangear, Naranag and

Wayil Wayil is a tourist village in the Ganderbal District of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is located on the bank of Sind River, around 8 km from Ganderbal, 30 km northeast from Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and ...

. The main towns in the valley are Gund, Mammer, Kangan, Wangath, Preng, Wussan and Manigam.

Geology

The Sind Valley has formed over a period of several thousand years as the Sind River cuts into the Himalayan mountains. The

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such a ...

s of the valley are shrinking. Today, the river continues to deposit the sheets of sand in the lower areas of Ganderbal. Gradual

erosive Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is di ...

processes have washed away side forests and created a deep gorge at many places.

Ecology

The Sind Valley has many glacier fed streams, the tributaries of the Sind River are home to different types of

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-sa ...

among of which is the

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...

. The valley is the natural habitat of

Himalayan black bear The Himalayan black bear (''Ursus thibetanus laniger'') is a subspecies of the Asian black bear found in the Himalayas of India, Bhutan, Nepal, China, and Pakistan. Description It is distinguished from '' U. t. thibetanus'' by its longer, thic ...

, the Himalayan brown bear,

musk deer Musk deer can refer to any one, or all seven, of the species that make up ''Moschus'', the only extant genus of the family Moschidae. Despite being commonly called deer, they are not true deer belonging to the family Cervidae, but rather their f ...

snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a felid in the genus '' Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because the global population is es ...

and

hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The ...

. Markhor and ibex are also spotted in Sonamarg of the Sind Valley.

References

External links