Handwara

Handwara, Jammu & Kashmir हंदवारा ہندوارہ
Town
Handwara, Jammu & Kashmir Location in Jammu and Kashmir, Handwara, Jammu & Kashmir Handwara, Jammu & Kashmir (India)
Coordinates: 34.40°N 74.28°E / 34.40; 74.28
Country	India
State	Jammu and Kashmir
District	Kupwara
Government
• Type	Democratic
Elevation	1,582 m (5,190 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	269,311
Languages
• Official	Kashmiri
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	193221
Vehicle registration	JK09
Website	kupwara.nic.in

Handwara (Kashmiri language: हंदवारा (Devanagari), ہندوارہ (Nastaleeq)) is a town under the Municipal Committee in the Kupwara District of Jammu and Kashmir, a disputed territory between India and Pakistan since 1947.

Geography

Handwara is located at 34.40°N 74.28°E / 34.40; 74.28, at an average elevation of 1,582 metres (5,190 feet) above sea level.

Location

Handwara is a Municipal Committee Town as well as a Tehsil in the district of Kupwara, Jammu and Kashmir. The town of Handwara is divided into 13 wards, for which elections are held every 5 years.

Handwara Tehsil spreads into the Wadder Bala and Behni-pora on the one side and across Malikpora on the other side. It ranges between Monabal in Mawar Constituency and Kralgund areas. Sagipora, Unisoo, Kandi and Jaggerpora areas also fall into its domain.

Population

According to the 2011 Census in India, the Handwara Municipal Committee has a total population of 13,600, consisting of 7,379 males and 6,221 females.

The majority of Handwarans speak Kashmiri.

Constituency

Handwara is an electoral constituency of District Kupwara located in the extreme north of Jammu and Kashmir. It comprises the main town, which consists of 13 Municipal Wards as well as various other blocks. The main blocks are the Rajwar and Ramhal blocks. More blocks were added to Handwara due to a major cabinet decision by the most recent National Conference Government. The thirteen Wards of Handwara Municipal Committee include Durashpora, Herpora, Banday Mohalla, Zargar Mohalla, Khanbal A, Khanbal B, Bagatpora, Kachiwara, Gonipora, Braripora A, Brariporra B and Bagatpora.

Some of the well-known political parties active in Handwara are Jammu & Kashmir National Conference, Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference, Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party. The J & K and Awami Ittihaad parties are making inroads into Handwara and adjacent areas.

Handwara is a politically volatile area of District Kupwara. It has been the home constituency of the late Abdul Gani Lone and Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan, besides some other prominent personalities. The current MLA of Handwara is Sajjad Lone of Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference, who won against Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan of Jammu & Kashmir National Conference by a margin of more than 5000 votes in the 2014 assembly elections.

There is also an Awqaf Committee, chaired by Ghulam Rasool Banday, which looks after the mosques of Handwara Town, resolves civil disputes, helps in match finding, and involves itself in various social projects.

Infrastructure

Handwara is connected to the rest of the state by roads. A bypass has been constructed overseeing Handwara town to relieve the main roads of increasing traffic. It is connected to Baramulla district via the Baramulla-Handwara Highway passing through Watergam town.

Handwara has many different facilities, such as its own Tehsil office, ADC office, District Hospital, Government Degree College, Boys' and Girls' Higher Secondary Schools, a Sessions Court and a Police Station. Some of the prominent banks serving Handwara include J & K Bank Handwara, J & K Ban, Handwara (South), HDFC Bank, Punjab National Bank, Gramen Bank, SCARD Bank, Cooperative Bank and Sate Bank of India. Recently, a number of shopping malls have been constructed near the new bus stand at Handwara and Rajwar Road, Handwara. Those facilities have contributed to Handwara's development into a semi-urban town.

Education

Handwara has remained educationally below average until more recently, when it emerged as a state leader in education. In 2013, it reached the top positions in the Matriculation examination, which largely speaks to the standard of education.

Handwara accommodates more than 15 private schools and many Government-operated schools. Some of the top private schools are Keh-Ka-Shan Public School, owned by Bashir Ahmad Khan; New Millennium Public school, owned by Shahbaz Ahmed Mir; and Monarch Public school, owned by Zahoor Ahmed Ahanger. Handwara also accommodates a boys and a girls Secondary School, located next to a Government Degree College on Handwara Kulangam Road. Thousands of students study in these schools, and many continue their education locally, regionally and abroad. Notably, the heightening educational standards of the state have enabled the participation of many students in studies abroad in places such as London, the United States of America, Canada, and Dubai, establishing significant advances over previous, practical limitations on such studies abroad.

Handwara is a town with great dignitaries and educationalists. The Census of 2011 showed the literacy rate of Handwara City at 77.26%, higher than the national average of 67.16%. There is a gender difference within literacy, with male literacy at 87.40%, while the female literacy rate is a much lower 64.91%.

Sports

As in other parts of the sub-continent, cricket is the most followed sport in the town. Presently, there are three cricket clubs operating: Jamia Sports Club, Handwara Sports Cricket Club, and Star Eleven Cricket Club. Additionally, football is also popular, boosted by leading clubs including Handwara Mavericks Football Club.

Conflicts

Handwara Incident

On 12 April 2016, in the Handwara town of Kupwara district of Indian administered state of Jammu and Kashmir, a girl student was allegedly molested by army personnel from 21 Rashtriya Rifles. Protesting at the incident, protesters pelted stone. The mob also ransacked the army bunker in Handwara Chowk and tried to put it on fire. The army retaliated by firing in which two civilians named Iqbal Ahmad and Nayeem Bhatt were killed. At least six civilians were also injured.

One of the victims Nayeem Bhatt had participated in the India U19 cricket camp, and was the first player to be selected from the Kupwara region. Bhatt reportedly stopped at the protest incident to take a photograph with his mobile phone. The second victim Iqbal was declared dead when he was admitted to a hospital.