The Pir Panjal Range, also Panchaladeva in Hindu scriptures, is a group of mountains in the Lesser Himalayan region, running from east-southeast to west-northwest across the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, the Indian administrated Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Pakistani administered territory of Azad Kashmir, where the average elevation varies from to. The Himalayas show a gradual elevation towards the Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal ranges. Pir Panjal is the largest range of the Lesser Himalayas. Near the bank of the Sutlej River, it dissociates itself from the Himalayas and forms a divide between the Beas and Ravi rivers on one side and the Chenab on the other. The renowned Galyat mountains are also located in this range.
Etymology
The Pir Panjal range is named after the Pir Panjal Pass, whose original name as recorded by Srivara, is Panchaladeva. Panchala is a country mentioned in the Mahabharata in the northwest Uttar Pradesh. However, there are also traditions that place the Mahabharata regions in western Punjab and southern Kashmir. Scholar Dineshchandra Sircar has analysed the geography described in the Shakti‐sangama Tantra, where this is indeed the case. Scholar M. A. Stein believes that the concept of deity must have been translated into that of a Pir after the region was Islamised.
Peaks of the range
and Indrasan are two important peaks at the eastern end of the mountain range. They can be approached from both the Parvati-Beas Valley, Upper Belt of Chamba Himachal Pradesh and the Chandra Valley in Himachal Pradesh. The hill station of Gulmarg in Kashmir lies in this range.
The Jawahar Tunnel is a long tunnel through Pir Panjal mountain under the Banihal pass connects Banihal with Qazigund on the other side of the mountain. The Jawahar Tunnel was named after the first Prime Minister of India was constructed in early 1950s and commissioned in December 1956 to ensure snow-free passage throughout the year. It is at elevation of about. It was designed for 150 vehicles per day but now used by more than 7,000 vehicles per day. Therefore, a new wider and longer tunnel has been planned at a lower elevation.
Construction of a new long twin-tube Banihal Qazigund Road Tunnel started in 2011. The new tunnel is at a lower elevation than the existing Jawahar tunnel and, when completed, would reduce the road distance between Banihal and Qazigund by. It would also be less prone to snow avalanche as it will be at a lower elevation.
The Atal Tunnel is being built under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas on the Leh-Manali Highway. With length, the tunnel will be the second longest road tunnel in India and is expected to reduce the distance between Manali and Keylong by about. The tunnel is at elevation whereas the Rohtang pass is at elevation. Lying on the Manali-Leh axis, this is one of the two routes to Ladakh.
The Pir Panjal Railway Tunnel, an railway tunnel, passes through the Pir Panjal Range in Jammu and Kashmir. It connects Quazigund and Banihal and is a part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla railway project. The tunnel was commissioned on 26 June 2013 for regular service. It is India's longest and Asia's fourth longest railway tunnel.
