JAMMU

The Jammu Province is another division of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Often confused with its city, Province essentially consists of ten districts, including the city. It covers an area of 20.36 sq.kms.The province is located between the ‘regions of the outer hills’ towards the South of Kashmir. It is closely connected with Punjab and Himachal Pradesh states of India. Three major rivers flow through the province - River Tawi in the eastern region, Jhelum in the west and River Chenab flows from the mountains into the plains near the town of Akhnur. It then flows through the Jammu district and eventually enters the plains of the Punjab in Pakistan.

Jammu is separated from Kashmir Valley by the PirPanjal range of mountains, the highest point being in Patnitop. Most of the land is hilly or mountainous, comprised of the Shivalik Range. Great Himalayas lie towards the east in the districts of Doda and Kishtwar. Kashmir is located to the north of Jammu, Ladakh is located to the east and Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the south. On the west lies Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, separated by the Line of Control.

Its province is comparatively hotter than Kashmir and Ladakh. The climate varies with altitude, which ranges from 600 to 1200 m. City experiences hot temperature similar to Punjab. The winters are mildly cold and monsoons witness heavy rainfall. It does not receive any snowfall. However the higher mountains receive mild to heavy snowfall and are covered with snow during winters. Patnitop, one of the top tourist places receives heavy snowfall during winters and the white blanketed hill resort attracts a large number of tourists every year. Famous Vaishno Devi temple also gets covered with snow during winters. The National Highway between J&K gets closed frequently during winters due to heavy snowfall.

With the foundation of Jammu, goes a famous legend. It is believed that Raja JambuLochan who founded it saw an amazing thing during one of his hunting campaigns. He saw a goat and a lion drinking water at the same place near from River Tawi. After satisfying their thirst the animals went on their own ways. Raja was astonished to witness this unnatural event. He gave up the idea of hunting and declared it a place of peace and tranquillity. He ordered that a palace be built and the city was founded around it. The city was known as Jambu Nagar, which with time became Jammu. It is a historic place, which was a part of Harrapan civilization. It finds a mention in the Mahabharta, the famous Hindu epic.

Like Kashmir and Ladakh, Jammu also has some beautiful locations. It receives a huge number of tourists annually. City is known as ‘City of temples’. There are a lot of temples which are the major articles of tourist attractions.

The places of interest are Purmandal, Vaishno Devi shrine, Nandini Wildlife Sanctuary, Mansar Lake, Bahu Fort, Raghunath Temple, Peer Kho Cave, Shivkhori, Machail Mata temple and many more. Also celebrates many vibrant festivals throughout the year.

It is well connected with the rest of the world. It has road connectivity with Kashmir, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. It has a sound rail network that connects it with all the major states of the country. It has an Airport also.

Jammu province consists of ten districts:

Area	20.36 sq.kms
Altitude	305 m
Temperature Summer Winter	Max      Min 43.0 C     23.4 C 26.2 C     4.3 C
Rainfall	107 cms (July to September)
Best Season	September to April
Clothing	Summer: light cottons, Winter: woolens
Population	6,98,674 (as per Census 2001)
Languages	Dogri, Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu and English

Distance from Jammu

• Pathankot : 107 km
• Delhi : 583 km
• Amritsar : 219 km
• Shimla : 458 km
• Srinagar : 293 km

TEMPLES & SHRINES

• Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine (Katra)
• Raghunath Mandir, it is located in the heart of town, an amazing complex of 17 spired shrines in a garden setting. The main shrine is dedicated to Lord Rama.
• Ranbireshwar Mandir, dedicated to Lord Shiva, who with Vishno and Brahma form the supreme triad of Hindi deities

Apart from these, there are many more temples and shrines wroth to visit

OTHER PLACES OF WORSHIP IN JAMMU

CHRISTIAN

• Garrison Church, Satwari
• St. Paul Church, Wazarat Road
• St. Peter Church, Christian Colony

MUSLIM

• Jamia Masjid, Talab Khatikan
• Jamia Masjid, Ustad Mohalla
• Jamia Masjid, Gole Market
• Ibrahim Masjid, Wazarat Road

SIKH

• Sunder Singh Gurudwara, Gurudwara Road
• Tali Sahib Gurudwara, Talab Tillo
• Maharani Chand Kaur Gurudwara, below Gumat
• Gurudwara Singh Sabha, Nanak Nagar
• Kalgidhar Gurudwara, Rehari
• Singh Sabha Gurudwara, Raghunath Bazaar