Why Muzaffarabad
Muzaffarabad serves as the capital and largest urban center of Azad Kashmir. Situated within the Muzaffarabad District, the city is located near the confluence of the Jhelum and Neelum rivers. The surrounding territory shares boundaries with the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the west, Neelum District to the north, and the districts of Kupwara and Baramulla to the east.
The settlement was established in 1646 by Sultan Muzaffar Khan, the chief of the Bomba tribe. That same year, he erected the Red Fort to guard the area against incursions by the Mughal Empire. Throughout its history, the region experienced significant military engagements, including a 1827 guerrilla campaign against Sikh forces led by Raja Zabardast Khan, 19th-century Dogra military developments, and the Battle of Muzaffarabad in October 1947. In October 2005, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake centered near the city destroyed approximately half of its buildings and led to major loss of life across the region.
As the primary educational hub of the territory, Muzaffarabad maintains a literacy rate of roughly 77.5 percent, noticeably above the national average. Linguistically, approximately half of the district's population speaks Pahari, while Gojri and Kashmiri account for most of the remaining residents. Higher education is centered around the University of Azad Jammu & Kashmir, founded in 1980, which operates its primary facilities in the city as well as the King Abdullah Campus in Chatter Class.
Local travel within the city relies on buses, rickshaws, and small pickup trucks. Following the 2005 earthquake, public infrastructure—including roads and bridges—was widely reconstructed with international assistance. Muzaffarabad does not have an operational airport or a rail network, with the nearest railway station located in the Rawalpindi District.
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