Jammu and Kashmir state of India, located in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent in the vicinity of the Karakoram and western Himalayan mountain ranges. The state is part of the larger region of Kashmir, which has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China.

India and Pakistan claim all of Kashmir, but the territory has been partitioned since 1947. India controls most of Kashmir, which it has organized as the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan administers the northwestern portion of the territory as Azad Kashmir.

Most of the population is engaged in agriculture; the principal crops are rice, corn, wheat, and oilseeds. Among livestock raised are buffalo, cattle, sheep, goat, and poultry. Silk weaving and carpet weaving are major industries. The majority of the population is Muslim.

Major industrial towns are Jammu, Kashmir, Srinagar.

Area, 38,830 square miles (100,569 square km). Population: (1994 est.), 8,435,000.

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