The Other Kashmir: Society, Culture and Politics in the Karakoram Himalayas, Professor K. Warikoo

Ladakh Studies Member Professor K. Warikoo of Jawaharlal Nejhru University has recently published this edited volume, which may be of interest to our members. For more information, please follow the link below for more details and for the list of contributors:

http://www.idsa.in/book/OtherKashmir.html

The book is priced at INR 1495

The Karakoram Himalayas have unique geo-political and geo-strategic importance as the boundaries of South and Central Asian countries converge here. Abutting the borders of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and India; and being situated in close proximity to Central Asia, the Karakoram-Himalayan region has been an important constituent of India's trans-Himalayan communication network in the continent and beyond. This region is the cradle from where ancient Indian culture including Buddhism spread in different directions to Central Asia, East Asia and South East Asia. The Karakoram-Himalayan region—what has also been called 'Northern Areas' of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir and comprising Hunza, Nagar, Gilgit, Baltistan, Yasin, Astore, Chilas, Koh-Ghizar , Gupis , Punial and Ishkoman—is the single largest territorial unit of the State. This area constitutes about two-thirds of the total area of 84,471 sq. miles of the entire Jammu and Kashmir State.

The region displays a wide diversity of cultural patterns, languages, ethnic identities and religious practices. The entire region has been a melting pot of different cultures and faiths—Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. Whereas a variety of languages—Ladakhi, Balti, Shina, Burushaski, Gojali, Khowar etc. exist in the region, the cross-border linkages between various ethnic-religious groups turn this frontier into a complex vortex of geopolitics. The induction and settlement of Punjabis, Pakhtoons and the Taliban cadres by Pakistan as its calculated policy to colonise the Shia/Ismaili dominated region has not only changed its demographic balance but also led to the rise of sectarianism and religious extremism often leading to violence and conflict. At the same time, the region has been witnessing a new urge for revival of its indigenous languages, cultural heritage and social practices. The social and political aspirations of different indigenous ethnic-religious groups in Karakoram-Himalayas have remained suppressed due to the geopolitical and religious factors. The book is a collection of papers contributed by area specialists and experts from the region-Gilgit-Baltistan, Mirpur-Muzaffarabad and Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as well-known academics and strategic analysts.