Reasi is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and a

notified area committee A nagar panchayat (town panchayat; ) or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,000 ...

and

tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

Reasi district Reasi district is a district of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The Reasi district is bordered by Udhampur district and Ramban district in the east, Jammu district in the south, Rajouri district in the west and by Kulgam distri ...

of the

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 so ...

n 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 ...

. Situated at the bank of River

Chenab The Chenab River () is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It is formed by the union of two headwaters, Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul regi ...

, It is the headquarters of the

. In the eighth century, Reasi was a part of the

Bhimgarh Bhimgara is a village in Khoyrasol CD Block in Suri Sadar subdivision of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Geography Bhimgarh is located at on the north bank of Ajay River. History There are remains of an old fort with lo ...

state established by Rajput king Bhim Dev Rasyal. The name Reasi is derived from the town's old name "Rasyal".

Geography

Reasi is located at . It has an average elevation of 466 metres (1,529 feet).

Reasi area

Reasi is a District, located 64 km from

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...

. Majority of the population ekes out its livelihood from small business ventures, govt jobs and agriculture. Of the 12293 hectares of agricultural land in the area, 1011 hectares is irrigated. Important crops are Maize, Wheat, Paddy and Bajra. Vegetables are also grown. Climatically, most parts of the area falls in the sub

tropical zone The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

and the rest in the

temperate zone In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

. Summers are generally warm and winters are cold with snowfall on the higher reaches.

Brief history

The erstwhile Bhimgarh State, now called Reasi, was established by Bhim Dev in the eighth century. Brief accounts of successive rulers are known from 1652 when Hari Dev was the king of Jammu. In 1810, during the rule of Diwan Singh, Jammu was under turmoil. Palace intrigues and mutinies shook the administration. It was at this time that

Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839), popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of Punjab", was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century. He s ...

sent

Gulab Singh Gulab Singh Jamwal (1792–1857) was the founder of Dogra dynasty and the first Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, the largest princely state under the British Raj, which was created after the defeat of the Sikh Empire in t ...

to take control. Gulab Singh came down heavily on the rebels and established the rule of law. After defeating the rebels in the Reasi area, he handed over the administration to his trusted commander,

General Zorawar Singh Zorawar Singh (1784–12 December 1841) was a military general of the Dogra Rajput ruler, Gulab Singh of Jammu. He served as the governor (''wazir-e-wazarat'') of Kishtwar and extended the territories of the kingdom by conquering Ladakh and Ba ...

. In 2005, the first municipal election was held and Mr. Kuldeep Mengi elected as a first chairman of the municipal corporation of Reasi. During the devastating floods of September 2014, Saddal Village in the Reasi district faced significant devastation, with a landslide that submerged all roads leading to the town.

Demographics

India

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

, Reasi had a population of 36,355. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Reasi has an average literacy rate of 75%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 78%, and female literacy is 70%. In Reasi, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age. Reasi has 177 villages with total area of 74932 square km and toal population of 71501 individual

Main spoken languages are

Dogri Dogri (Name Dogra Akkhar: ; Devanagari: डोगरी; Nastaliq: ; ) is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India, with smaller groups of speakers in adjoining regions of western Himachal Prade ...

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Gojri Gojri (, ), also known as Gujari, Gujri, Gojari, or Gojri, is a variety of Rajasthani spoken by the Gurjars and other tribes of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. In India, the language is mainly spoken in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, ...

and

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...

Religion

Hinduism is followed by 85.74 people. Islam is followed by 10.66% adherents. Christianity and Sikhism are followed by 3.5% and 0.05% people respectively.

Historical places

Mata

Vaishnodevi Vaishno Devi (also known as Mata Rani, Trikuta, Ambe and Vaishnavi) is a manifestation of the Hindu Mother Goddess, Durga or Adi Shakti. The words "''Maa''" and "''Mata''" are commonly used in India for ''Mother#Synonyms and translations, mot ...

br>
Bhumika Temple, Deva Mai, Nau Pindian, Baba Dhansar,

Siar Baba Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki. Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...

Bhimgarh Fort Bhimgarh Fort, generally known as the Reasi Fort, is near Reasi, a town approximately 64 km northwest of Jammu. The fort is on a hillock approximately 150 metres high. Initially, it was constructed of clay by Rajput king Bhimdev Rasyal Of Re ...

Kalika Temple Kalika may refer to: * Kali, also known as Kalika, the Hindu goddess associated with universal energy * Kālikā, a daughter of Daksha, Dakṣa Places in Nepal * Kalika, Chitwan, Bagmati Province * Kalika, Sindhupalchok, Bagmati Province * Kalika ...

, Sula Park, Sihar Baba &

Shivkhori Shiv Khori, is a famous cave shrines of Hindus devoted to lord Shiva, situated in the Sangar village, Pouni, near Reasi town in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir in India. Location In Reasi district, there are many shrines such as Mata ...

are few of the attractions of Reasi besides its picturesque locale and surroundings.

Transport

Reasi is just 64 km from

Jammu city Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of , ...

and can be reached by Road, Rail or Air. Nearest Airport is 80 km is

Jammu Airport Jammu Airport, officially known as Jammu Civil Enclave, is a domestic airport serving Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is situated 14 km (8.7 miles) from the India–Pakistan border. Infrastructure Terminal 1 The terminal can only ...

and Nearest Railway Station is Shri Vaishno Devi Katra railway station is 26 km. But Reasi railway station is a proposed railway station on Jammu-Baramulla railway line.

Geology and mining

Reasi has rich ores of bauxite,

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

and precious stones.

Current times

Being far away from the

Udhampur Udhampur (ˌʊd̪ʱəmpur) is a city and a municipal council in Udhampur district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters of Udhampur District. Named after Raja Udham Singh, it serves as the district capita ...

Highway and somewhat inaccessible due to the hilly area, economic progress in Reasi has been rather slow. However, the economic activity picked up since the 1980s with the construction of the Salal Hydroelectric Project. The militancy in the 1990s came as a setback to prosperity, but induction of Army in the area has given a sense of security to the people. But what may change the face of Reasi in the not so distant a future, is the Jammu - Srinagar Railway Line, which will pass through Reasi and is likely to bring development and prosperity to this area. After the completion of this project, the development of Reasi would be tremendous. Almost all major banks have their presence in Reasi to meet financial need of newly created district.

World's Highest Railway Bridge

Reasi will have the world's highest railway bridge by December 2022.

Chenab Bridge The Chenab Rail Bridge is a steel and concrete arch bridge between Bakkal and Kauri and just 42 km from main Reasi town in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The bridge spans the Chenab River at a height of above the river, mak ...

(359 meters) being built by

Konkan Railway The Konkan Railway (abbreviated KR) is one of the 19 railway zones in India with its headquarters at CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The first passenger train ran on Konkan railway tracks on 20 March 1993, between Udupi and ...

s will overtake the

Millau Viaduct The Millau Viaduct (french: Viaduc de Millau, ) is a multispan cable-stayed bridge completed in 2004 across the gorge valley of the Tarn near (west of) Millau in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie Region, in Southern France. The design te ...

(323 meters) located in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

References

External links

Daily Excelsior

Official Website of J&K Government
{{Municipalities of Jammu and Kashmir Cities and towns in Reasi district