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The Kashmir Timeline

The Jhelum

The river that made the Valley habitable.

The Jhelum photograph

Photo: Myasinilyas · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Known in Kashmiri as the Vyeth and in Sanskrit as the Vitasta, the Jhelum rises at Verinag, winds slowly through Srinagar under its old bridges, passes through Wular Lake and leaves the Valley through the gorge at Baramulla. For most of history it was Kashmir's main highway.

Facts

  • Its slow, looping course through the flat valley floor made it easy to travel by boat but prone to flooding.
  • It joins the Chenab in Pakistan, and both rivers eventually reach the Indus.