Muzaffargarh District

ضِلع مُظفّرگڑھ
District
Muzaffargarh District

Map of Punjab with Muzaffargarh District highlighted
Coordinates: 30°20′N 71°05′E / 30.333°N 71.083°E / 30.333; 71.083Coordinates: 30°20′N 71°05′E / 30.333°N 71.083°E / 30.333; 71.083
Country Pakistan
Province Punjab
Headquarters Muzaffargarh
Government
 • District Coordination Officer Ibrar Ahmed
 • District Police Officer Zeeshan Asghar
Population (2012)
 • Total 3,826,000
Time zone PST (UTC+5)
Number of Tehsils 4

Muzaffargarh District (Urdu: ضِلع مُظفّرگڑھ‎) is a district of the Punjab province of Pakistan. Its capital is Muzaffargarh city. It lies on the bank of the Chenab River.

Administration

The district is administratively divided into the following four tehsils (subdivisions), which contain a total of 93 Union Councils:[1]

Tehsil No. of Unions
Alipur 14
Jatoi 16
Kot Addu 28
Muzaffargarh 35
Total 93

Language

Dialects of Punjabi

Following are the demographics of the Muzafargarh district, by spoken language:

Inhabitants of Muzafargarh District speak a great variety of Punjabi dialects, although few of these dialects are claimed as separate language “Saraiki”, but because of good and loving nature of people there is no distinction or hate among different dialects and have a mix culture of Great (North and South) Punjab.[2]

Other Languages include:

History

In 997 CE, Sultan Mahmud Ghaznavi, took over the Ghaznavid dynasty empire established by his father, Sultan Sebuktegin, In 1005 he conquered the Shahis in Kabul in 1005, and followed it by the conquests of Punjab region. The Delhi Sultanate and later Mughal Empire ruled the region. The Punjab region became predominantly Muslim due to missionary Sufi saints whose dargahs dot the landscape of Punjab region.

Muzaffargarh region became a part of the Muslim Sultanate of Delhi when the Persian noble Sultan Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Ghauri conquered Punjab in 1185. Faisalabad slowly developed as medieval town and many Muslim Sufi missionaries converted the local population to Islam. During the Mughal period population increased and land under cultivation increased. After the decline of the Mughal Empire, the Sikh Empire invaded and occupied Muzaffargarh region. The Muslims faced restrictions during the Sikh rule. Between 1765 and 1846 Muzaffargarh was occupied by the Sikhs. Two main battles between British and Sikh armies were fought in this district on 22 February 1849 the British declare victory in Punjab.

Muzaffargarh was founded in 1794 by the Governor of Multan Nawab Muzaffar Khan. The Meaning of Muzaffargarh is "Fort of Muzaffar" because the old town lies inside the walls of a fort built by Nawab Muzaffar Khan of Multan. Prior to that the place was known by a shop called "Musan Hatti", on the road leading from Multan to Dera Ghazi Khan. In 1861 it became the headquarters of Muzaffargarh District.

After the independence of Pakistan in 1947, the minority Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India while the Muslim refugees from India settled in the Muzaffargarh District. Muslims refugees from East Punjab, Haryana, Jammu started arriving and crossed the border into Pakistan; many were given land in Muzaffargarh District to settle.

Muzaffargarh spreads over an area of 8,249 km2 and forms a strip between the Chenab River on its east and Indus River on its west, which pass along the Eastern and Western boundaries respectively of the district and a triangle at Alipur tehsil of the district. The district is bounded on the north by district Layyah, on the south by Bahawalpur and Rahimyar Khan districts across the river Chenab. Districts Multan and Khanewal are on the eastern side of district Muzaffargarh, across the river Chenab. District Jhang touches it on the northeast. Dera Gahzi Khan and Rajanpur districts lie on the western side across the river Indus. It is one of oldest districts of Punjab. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan, the population of the district was 2,635,903, of which 12.75% were urban.[3] Muzaffargarh is one of oldest districts of Punjab.

Muzaffargarh was especially hard hit by the 2010 Pakistan floods, given its position between the Chenab and Indus rivers It is spread over an area of 8,249 km2. Muzaffargarh District lies in the strip between the rivers Chenab and Indus.

Geography and climate

Muzaffargarh
Climate chart (explanation)
JFMAMJJASOND
 
 
7.2
 
 
21
5
 
 
9.5
 
 
23
8
 
 
20
 
 
29
14
 
 
13
 
 
36
20
 
 
9.8
 
 
40
24
 
 
12
 
 
42
29
 
 
61
 
 
39
29
 
 
33
 
 
38
28
 
 
11
 
 
37
25
 
 
1.7
 
 
35
18
 
 
2.3
 
 
29
11
 
 
6.9
 
 
23
6
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm
Source: World Meteorological Organization

The city of Muzaffargarh is located in southern Punjab province at almost the exact centre of Pakistan. The closest major city is Multan. The area around the city is a flat, alluvial plain and is ideal for agriculture, with many citrus and mango farms. There are many canals that cut across the Muzaffargarh District, providing water from nearby farms. This makes the land very fertile. However usually land close to the Chenab are usually flooded in the monsoon season.

Muzaffargarh features an arid climate with very hot summers and mild winters. The city witnesses some of the most extreme weather in the country. The highest recorded temperature is approximately 54 °C (129 °F), and the lowest recorded temperature is approximately −1 °C (30 °F). The average rainfall is roughly 127 millimetres (5.0 in). Dust storms are a common occurrence within the city.

Religion

The population is Muslim, with a Sunni majority and a Shia minority.There are also Christians and Hindus in the city.

Pakistan Standard Time

Pakistan Standard Time (PKT) is the time zone for Pakistan. It is 5 hours ahead of GMT/UTC (UTC+05:00). Daylight saving time is no longer observed in Pakistan.

Main towns

The district's towns include Basti Malik Wala, Taliri, Mauza Bahadur Dawana, Dawana Bahadur Peer Rajan Bukhsh, Kot Addu and Khangarh, among others.

Education

Although Muzaffargarh is one of the oldest and largest districts of Pakistan by area and population, it still has only a single campus of Virtual University of Pakistan. The literacy rate is one of the lowest in the country.

The city known for private education system and almost 500 to 600 private schools are registered under the Punjab Education Foundation(PEf) and funded by PEF. Annually tests are taken by PEF for Quality Assurance and NEEF and NTS are the main conducting agencies. Luqman Baloch is the City Coordinator for NEEF and Yaseen Farooq is attached with the NTS. Due to PEF lot of children getting quality education in private sector.

Agriculture

Wheat, sugarcane and cotton are the main crops grown in the district. Rice, jawar, bajra, moong, mash, masoor, ground nuts, maize and oil seeds such as rape / mustard and sunflower are also grown in minor quantities in the district. Mangoes, dates, citrus and pomegranate are the main fruits grown in the district. Dates, jaman, pears, phalsa and bananas are also grown in minor quantities in the district. Onions, carrots, cauliflower and peas are the main vegetables grown in the district. Ladyfinger, turnips, tomatoes, potatoes, garlic and chillies are also grown in the district in minor quantities.

Forests

An area of 100,864 acres is forested in the district. There is also linear plantation of 1250 A.V. mile the roads/rails/canals in the district. Trees grown in the area are kikar, shisham, millbury, eucalyptus, bamboo and coconut.

Major industries

A turbine at the Muzaffargarh Thermal Power Station

The district's major industries include cotton ginning and pressing, flour mills, jute textile, oil mills, paper/paperboard articles, petroleum products, polypropylene bags, power generation, readymade garments, solvent extraction, sugar, textile composite and textile spinning.

PARCO

PARCO's Mid-Country Refinery is the country's largest and most complex refinery and employs critical processes involved in refining. Commissioned in the year 2000, PARCO’s 100,000 barrels per day, Mid-Country Refinery (MCR) at Mahmood Kot in Muzaffar Garh, represents about 35% of Pakistan’s refining capacity. It helps substitute import of approximately US$100 million per year worth of refined, value-added oil products. The MCR mainly processes crude oil of Upper Zakum from Abu Dhabi and light Arabian crude from Saudi Arabia.

KAPCO

Kot Addu Power Company Limited (KAPCO) was incorporated in 1996 with the purpose of contributing economic power to the national grid. KAPCO provides services for plant maintenance, availability, quality standards and financial performance. In April 2005, KAPCO was formally listed on all the three Stock Exchanges of Pakistan.

AES Lalpir

Lal Pir (Pvt.) Limited owns and operates Lal Pir Thermal Power station. It is located in Muzaffargarh.

TPS Muzaffargarh

The Thermal Power Station Muzaffargarh consists of 3 oil-fired steam-operated units of 210 MW, each with provision of adding another 3 units of same or more capacity.

References

  1. ↑ Tehsils & Unions in the District of Muzaffargarh – Government of Pakistan
  2. ↑ http://www.findpk.com/cities/Explorer-pakistan-Muzaffargarh.html
  3. ↑ "Urban Resource Centre". urckarachi.org.

External links

Media related to Muzaffargarh District at Wikimedia Commons

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