Rajauri

Rajauri or Rajouri (rəˈʤɔ:rɪ) (Hindi: राजौरी) is a town and a municipal council in Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir. Rajauri is about 155 kilometres (96 mi) from Jammu city on the Poonch Highway. Rajauri is known as the Vale of Lakes as there are many lakes around the city. Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University is based in the town.

Rajouri is a district in the Jammu & Kashmir state of India. The total area of Rajouri is 2,630 km² including 2,608.11 km² rural area and 21.89 km² urban area. Rajouri has a population of 642,415. There are 130,401 houses in the district.

Rajouri district is further divided into the following Blocks/Tehsils for administrative purposes: 1. Budhal 2. Darhal 3. Kalakote 4. Nowshehra 5. Rajauri 6. Sunderbani 7. Thanamandi 8. Manjakote

History

Rajouri saw some of the toughest fighting during Pakistani intervention in Kashmir during Operation Gibraltar. The town was initially captured from the Indian Army by undercover Pakistani commandos with the aid of local Mujahideen but the wider operation failed and, with all-out war with India looming, Pakistan withdrew its troops. Major Malik Munawar Khan Awan, a Pakistani commando officer who led the attack on Rajouri on the night of 6 August 1965, was later entitled with the name "King of Rajouri" by the Government of Pakistan.. Several villages, towns, and cities are located in Rajauri, like Saaj.