- Akhnoor
Infobox Indian Jurisdiction
native_name = Akhnoor | type = city | latd = 32.87| longd =74.73
state_name = Jammu and Kashmir
district = Jammu
leader_title =
leader_name =
altitude = 301
population_as_of = 2001
population_total = 10,770| population_density =
area_magnitude= km²
area_total =
area_telephone =91 1924
postal_code = |181201vehicle_code_range =
sex_ratio =
unlocode =
website =
footnotes =Akhnoor is a town in
Jammu district in the state ofJammu & Kashmir ,India .Geography
Akhnoor is located at coord|32.87|N|74.73|E| [ [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/12/Akhnur.html Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Akhnoor] ] . It has an average elevation of 301
metre s (988 feet).28 km from Jammu, Akhnoor is located on the foot hills of the Himalayas. It is an extremely beautiful town. The army cantonments make it more beautiful with their lovely old houses and clean and green environment. The picturesque town is located on the banks of the
Chenab River .Demographics
As of 2001 Indiacensus , [GR|India] Akhnoor had a population of 10,770. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Akhnoor has an average literacy rate of 76%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 55% of the males and 45% of females literate. 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.The languages spoken are Dogri followed by Punjabi, Urdu, Hindi and English.
History
Akhnoor has historical places to visit, such as the caves where the pandavas were believed to have hidden.
The popular story of how 'Virat nagar' got its name converted to Akhnoor is that the Mughal emperor's wife had vision problem in her eyes. She was prescribed to wash her eyes with the holy water of Chenab using some ayurvedic medicines by a local Hindu priest. Her vision was regained and hence the name in Urdu the word 'noor' means vision/glow/shine and the word 'aankh' means the eye, so the vision regained to her eyes and hence Akhnoor.
The people of this town had fled during Indo-Pak war in 1965 and 1971 and returned back after ceasefire. The border is around 18 km by road, aerial distance is only around 8 km. The people had also suffered problems when the main bridge over Chenab was washed away on 10 Sep 1992 until it was rebuilt and opened on 13 Apr 1994.
Places of interest
The places to visit in Akhnoor are Kameshwar Temple which is believed to be 5000 yrs old, remains of
Harappa civilization , Jiapota bank of river Chenab, Pandav cave, Durga Mandir at Jiapota, Sikh Gurudwara in Chandian, remains ofAkhnoor Fort , Peer Baba in Bal-da-Bagh etc. The new attraction is the very new 2 KM walk-way constructed along the bank of the river Chenab from Gurudwara to Hari-Mandir, on the one side which is river Chenab flowing on the other side are the rocks.A very large number of people gather in evening at the banks of river in hot summer to get relief from the heat, as cold breeze flows along the banks. The water temperature is around 25 degree Celsius in summer and many people take a dip or swim. A good number of hawkers with eatables also come to earn their living.
Infrastructure development
A new concrete, 2 way bridge is built now by 'D2 Construction Company' 0.5 KM upstream the present steel bridge. Fact|date=September 2008
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
