Rohtas Fort

Rohtas Fort

Monday, September 28, 2009

about jhelum

Jhelum or Jehlum (Urdu, Punjabi: جہلم) is a city in northern Punjab Province, Jhelum District, Pakistan. Jhelum lies on the right bank of the Jhelum River. The 16th-century Grand Trunk Road passes through the city. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan the population of Jhelum was 293,000.[2] The name of the city is derived from the words Jal (pure water) and Ham (snow), as the river that flows through the river originates in the Himalayas.[3] There are numbers of industry in and around Jhelum city. Major industries include a tobacco factory, wood, marble, glass and flour mills.

History

Main article: History of Jhelum

Jhelum is near the site of the famous Battle of the Hydaspes between the armies of Alexander the Greatand Raja Porus This battle took place a few miles downstream from the city centre, along the river banks. The city was founded to commemorate the death of Alexander's horse, Bucephalus, and was originally called Bucephala. Nearby there is also the historic 16th century Rohtas Fort, another historic fort since Sikh era located at the backside of main Bus stand near Railway Phatak Jhelum City now being used as stores under Railway Authorities and also Tilla Jogian; a centuries-long history of the area.

[edit]Early history

The history of the district dates back to the semi-mythical period of the Mahabharata. Hindu tradition represents the Salt Range as the refuge of the fivePandava brethren during the period of their exile, and every salient point in its scenery is connected with some legend of the national heroes. Modern research has fixed the site of the conflict betweenAlexander and Porus as within Jhelum district, though the exact spot at which the Macedonian king effected the passage of the Jhelum (or Hydespes) has been hotly disputed. After this event, we have little information with regard to the condition of the district until the Muslim conquest brought back literature and history to Upper India. The Janjuas Rajputs and Jats, who now hold the Salt Range and its northern plateau respectively, appear to have been the earliest inhabitants[4]

The Gakhars, who appear to represent an early wave of conquest from the west, and who still inhabit a large tract in the east of the District; while the Awans, who now cluster in the western plain, are apparently later invaders, the Gakhars were the dominant race during the early Muslim era and they long continued to retain their independence, both in Jhelum itself and in the neighbouring District of Rawalpindi[4].

[edit]Mughal era

During the flourishing period of the Mughal dynasty, the Gakhar chieftains were among the most prosperous and loyal vassals of the house of Babar. But after the collapse of the Delhi empire, Jhelum fell, like its neighbours, under the sway of the Sikhs.[4]

[edit]Sikh era

A Fort in Jhelum City, built during Sikh era.

In 1765 Gujar Singh defeated the last independent GakharsChief, Muqarrrab Khan, and reduced the wild mountaineers of the Salt Range and the Murree Hills to subjection. His son succeeded to his dominions until 1810, when it fell to Ranjit Singh. Under the Lahore government the dominant classes of Jhelum suffered much from fiscal actions; and the Janjua,Gakhars, and Awan families gradually lost their landed estates, which passed into the hands of their Jat dependents.[4]

[edit]British era

In 1849 Jhelum passed with the rest of the Sikh territories into the power of the British. Ranjit Singh, however, had so thoroughly subjected the wild mountain tribes who inhabited the District that little difficulty was experienced in reducing it to working order. In 1857 the 14th Native Infantry stationed at Jhelum town mutinied, and made a vigorous defence against a force sent from Rawalpindi to disarm them, but decamped on the night following the action, the main body. being subsequently arrested by the Kashmir authorities, into whose territory they had escaped.

An old photo

During British rule Jhelum was a district of Rawalpindi Division, and was larger than the current district of Jhelum. On April 1, 1914, the tehsil of Talagang was detached from the District and incorporated with the new District of Attock. The old Jhelum district (minus Talagang) covered an area of 2,813 square miles (7285 km2) and included Chakwal tehsil - it was bounded by Shahpur and Attock to the west, and by Rawalpindi to the north - the Jhelum Riverseparated it from Kashmir to the north-east and from Gujrat and Shahpur to the south-east and south.[4]

During British rule Jhelum was connected by the North-Western Railway to other cities in the Indian empire, 1,367 miles from Calcutta, 1,413 from Bombay, and 849 from Karachi. The population according to the 1901 census of India was 14,951.[4]

According to the Imperial Gazetteer of India "The present town is of modern origin, the old town, which may have been the Bucephala of Alexander having been, on the left or opposite bank of the river. Under Sikh rule the place was quite unimportant, being mainly occupied by a settlement of boatmen, and at the time of annexation contained about 500 houses.

It was then chosen as the site of a cantonment and as the head-quarters of the civil administration. For some years it was the seat of the Commissioner of the Division, but in 1859 his head-quarters were transferred to Rawalpindi. Under British rule Jhelum has steadily advanced in prosperity; and it is the entrepôt for most of the trade of the District, though, since the completion of the Sind-Sāgar branch of the North-Western Railway; the salt trade no longer passes through it. It is an important timber dépôt, the timber from the Kashmir forests which is floated down the river being collected here. A good deal of boat-building is carried on. The cantonment, which is 3 miles from the civil station, contains the church and post office. The normal strength of the garrison is one Native cavalry and four Native infantry regiments. The municipality was founded 1867. During the ten years ending 1902-3 the receipts averaged Rs. 32,100, and the expenditure Rs, 31,900. Receipts and expenditure from cantonment funds in the same period averaged Rs. 31,900 and Rs. 6,100 respectively. The chief income of the municipality in 1903-4 was Rs.34,200 chiefly from octroi; and the expenditure was Rs. 41,000. The town has two Anglo vernacular schools, a municipal high school, and a middle school maintained by the American Presbyterian Mission. Besides the civil hospital, the mission also maintains a hospital."[4]

Marble Lectern in memory of 35 British soldiers

During the Indian Rebellion of 1857 35 British soldiers of HM XXIV regiment were killed by the local resistance. A lectern inside St. John's Church Jhelumthe church shows the names of those 35 soldiers. St. John's Church is located in Jhelum Cantonment, Pakistan beside the river Jhelum. It was built in 1860 and is a landmark of the city. It is a Protestant church and was in use during the British period. For forty years it remained closed. Now it has been renovated and opened and almost in good condition.

British soldier William Connolly won a Victoria Cross in this battle. Mirza Dildar Baig took part in the struggle of 1857 in Jhelum, arrested and hanged near theriver Jhelum. His shrine is there and he is also known as .shahid nasir . The railway bridge on the river Jhelum was built in 1873 by the British engineer William St. John Galwey. He also made the great Empress Bridge over the river Sutlej.

[edit]Origin of name Jhelum

Tareekh-e-Jhelum Book Cover

Anjum Sultan Shahbaz records some stories of the name Jhelum in his book Tareekh-e-Jhelum as[5]:

“Many writers have different opinions about the name of Jhelum. One reason is that in ancient days Jhelum was known as Jalham. The word Jhelum is reportedly derived from the words Jal(pure water) and Ham (snow). The name thus refers to the waters of a river (flowing besides the City) which has its origin in the snow-capped Himalayas.[6]

However some writers says when “Dara-e-Azam” reached a certain place on the river bank by winning the many battles, he fixed his flag on that place and called that place “Ja-e-Alam” which mean “Place of Flag”. With the passage of time it became Jhelum from “Ja-e-Alam”.

According to a traditional story, Hazrat Saeed Bin Abi Waqas, brother of Hazrat Saad Bin Abi Waqas, was sent to China for preaching Islam, during his journey he reached at city of Jhelum, he saw the shadow of city in water of the river and said “ha-za Jheelum” (this is Jheelum), Which means “City besides river, in full moon night”

Here a notable point is that in English its spellings are Jhelum or Jheelum, not Jehlum.

Ahmed Shah Abdali also used “Jheelum” in place of Jhelum and “Harian” for Kharian in his Diary.

”

(Shahbaz, Anjum Sultan (september 2003) (urdu). Tareekh-e-Jhelum. history of Jhelum (2nd ed.). Book Corner, Main Bazar, Jhelum. p. 92.)

[edit]Administration

The River Jhelum below the bridge beside Jhelum City

As well as being district capital, Jhelum city is also the headquarters of Jhelum Tehsil, the city of Jhelum is administratively subdivided into 7 Union Councils[7], namely JHELUM-I, JHELUM-II, JHELUM-III, JHELUM-IV, JHELUM-V, JHELUM-VI, JEHLUM-VII, while Jhelum Tehsil is subdivided into Union Councils Badlot, Boken, Chak Khasa, Chotala,Darapur, Dhanyala, DINA-I, DINA-II, Garh Mahal, , Kala Gujran, Khukha, Kotla Faqir, Madu Kalas, Monan,Mughalabad, Nakka Khurd, Nara, Pandori, Sanghoi andSohan.

[edit]Demography

Jhelum is one of the oldest districts of Punjab. It was established on 23 March 1849[9]. Jhelum District has a diverse population of 1,103,000 (2006)[10] which mainly consists of Punjabis. The population of the Jhelum city (proper) is about 172,073 [11](2009) and it is the 35th largest city ofPakistan with respect to population. Population Density is 261/km. Population Growth Rate is 1.51[12]which is very low as compared to other urban areas of Pakistan. The majority of the population i.e. 98.47 percent is Muslim. Among the minorities Christians are in majority sharing 1.36 percent in the district.Punjabi is the dominant language (96.6 percent), while, other languages spoken in the district are Urdu(1.9 percent), Pushto (1.2 percent). Major clans are Awans, Akra, Bharat, Gakhars, Gujars, Janjua Rajputs , Jalaps, Jats (Cheema, Dhamial Jats, Gondal Jat, Ghuman, Sipra, Bakhar), Kashmiris,Khokhars,Lilla Tribe Qureshis, Phaphra Mughals, Rajputs ( Bhakral, Bhatti, Chib, Minhas, Narma,Sohlan, e.t.c), Maliar, Syed and Punjabi Shaikh.

Literacy rate of Jhelum is among the highest in Pakistan. The overall literacy rate for Jhelum is 63.9 percent[13], somewhat a higher literacy in Punjab province (46.6 percent). The literacy rate has remarkably increased from 38.9 percent in 1981. The female literacy rate is 50.5 percent as against male literacy of 77.7 percent. The rate is much higher in urban area when compared with rural areas both for males and females. The rural literacy for both sexes is 58.6 percent (male 74.3 percent and female 44.4 percent), while the urban literacy is 77.2 percent (male 84.9 percent and female 68.0 percent)[14]. 84% of the population have electricity and 96% have the water facility.[15]

[edit]City

Map of Jhelum City
Shabir plaza Shandar Chowk
Gumbad wali Masjid

In the past few years, the city has experienced rapid expansion and has become a vibrant economic and cultural center.

The main market area of the city is centered around "Shandar Chowk", "GTS Chowk", "Muhammadi Chowk" and includes "Main Bazaar", "Niya Bazaar", "Raja Bazaar", "Kinari Bazaar", "Sarafa Bazaar", "Chowk-Ehl-e-Hadith" andSoldier Arcade etc.

Some of the main roads of Jhelum City are Civil Line, Railway Road, Old GT Road, Kucheri Road, Iqbal Road and Rohtas Road.

A cantonment was built during the British rule, which has grown up into a strong Garrison, with an Infantry Division commanded by a Major General.

Estimated Population of Jhelum City in 2009 is 172,073[16] and Area of Jhelum City is about 22 km2. For more details see: List of Cities of Punjab, Pakistan by Area.

[edit]Geography and climate

Jhelum
Climate chart
JFMAMJJASOND
34
20
5
50
22
8
60
27
12
36
33
18
32
38
22
52
40
26
237
36
26
221
34
25
78
35
23
12
33
17
10
28
10
30
21
6
average max. and min. temperatures in °C
precipitation totals in mm
source: [1]

Lying at 32°56′ North latitude and 73°44′ East longitude, Jhelum is located just 1 hour and 30 minutes drive from the Capital of Pakistan Islamabad, and 3 Hours drive from the heart of Punjab Lahore. Jhelum is linked with these cities through the National Highway N-5. Few other cities which are as far as 1 to 2 hours drive are Gujrat popular for Fan industry[17] and Gujranwala Popular as Industrial City of Pakistan[18]. Chakwal was also a part of Jhelum until division of the Jhelum District into two districts. On the other side Jhelum is linked with MirPur Azad Kashmirpopular as mini England[19].

Jhelum is hot in summer, and dry and mild in winter. The maximum mean temperature in summer, in June, is recorded as 45.7 °C, where in winter, in January; the minimum temperature as recorded is 1.8 °C respectively. Average annual rainfall is about 900 mm (about 35 inches) which is much below the required quantity but in the rainy season the water torrents flow from North to the river Jhelum with a very fast speed and cause damages to the crops, bridges, roads and are responsible for the soil erosion in the District.[20]

[edit]Important sites

Front view of Melange super Market

Rohtas Fort is a garrison fort built by the great Afghan king Sher Shah Suri. This fort is about 4 km in circumference and the first example of the successful amalgamation of Pukhtun and Hindu architecture in the sub-continent. Qila Rohtas is situated in a gorge approximately 16 km NW of Jhelum and 7 km from Dina.

Akram Shaheed Library

The old city has a fascinating labyrinth of narrow streets and crowded bazaars. Opposite to the CMH Jhelum Cantt is located the beautiful mosque of the city, CMH Masjid Jhelum.

Located in the cantonment area is the famous St. John's Church Jhelum which was built in 1860. There was a local stadium near Gul Afshan Colony which is now transformed to a Cricket stadium named Zamir Jaffri Cricket Stadium. Close to Zamir Jaffri Cricket Stadium is located the famous Altaf Park which was constructed in 1994-95. Nearly at a distance of 100m from Shandar Chowk, in the center of city is located Major Akram Shaheed Memorial Park. Major Muhammad Akram Memorial Library is also present in this park. On the 6th of September at the occasion of Defence Day, Parade also took place over here.

Mangla Dam Water Reservoir

Lehri Nature Park is almost 30 kilometers from Jhelum and 90 kilometres on GT Road in the hilly Pothohar region fromIslamabad. It is 10 kilometres from GT Road.

The Mangla Dam is located on the Jhelum River about 30 km from Jhelum City, it is the twelfth largest dam in the world. It was constructed in 1967 across the Jhelum River. There is the Mangla view resort[21] that is the first planned resort development in Pakistan to offer residences, villas, townhouses, hotels, serviced apartments & retail outlets. The resort is located on a 340-acre (1.4 km2) site on the Mangla Dam area.

[edit]Transportation

[edit]Within city

Auto Rickshaws are very popular mode of transport for short routes within the city. Many of the new rickshaws in the city use Compressed natural gas (CNG) instead of the petrol engines as CNG is environmentally clean and cheaper compared petrol. QuingQui is also a famous an important mode of transportation.

[edit]Out of city

Bus Stand Jhelum

There is a regular bus/Hiace service available running from early hours of the morning to late night. Daily routes includesRawalpindi, Islamabad, Lahore, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Sialkot,Mandi Bahauddin, Sargodha, Chakwal, Mirpur andFaisalabad.

Regular Bus/Van service is also available with in Jhelum District, It include some of the important towns and villages such as: Buses from Jhelum to Pind Dadan Khan, Dina,Sohawa, Lillah, Nakka Khurd, Pind Sawika, Nagyal, Sanghoi,Mangla Cantt, Nara, Domeli, Darapur, Jalalpur Sharif and many more, while Vans from Jhelum to sanghoi, Dina,Kharian, Sarai Alamgir, Chak Jamal. Chak Doulat, Mughalabad, Boken, Dhanyala and many other destinations as well.

[edit]Railway

Jhelum Railway Station

The Jhelum Railway Station was built in 1928 during British rule before the independence of Pakistan. It was connected by the North-Western Railway to other cities in the Indian empire. Jhelum is on main line of Pakistan Railways, and linked to whole country through Railway line across the Pakistan.

[edit]Air

The nearest airport is the Islamabad International Airport, which is approximately 110 km by road from Jhelum City. A small airport called Mangla Airport, located near Dina, is in use of the aviation wing of the Pakistan Army.

[edit]Sports

Cricket Stadium Jhelum

The city also boasts a golf course called the River-View Golf Club[22], where national golf tournaments are held regularly.[23]

Also there is a Cricket Stadium named Zamir Jaffri Cricket Stadiumwhere District lavel tournaments are held regularly. In October 2008,Pakistan Cricket Board has upraised this stadium for Regional events.[24]

There are variety of sports facilities available within the Jhelum Cantonment which include Cricket fields Hockey Fileds, Football fields, Tennis Courts, Squash courts and Swimming Pools.

[edit]Journalism in Jhelum[25]

  • First Newspaper from Jhelum was published in 1885 by scholer Molvi Faqir Mohammad from maidan-e-Pakistan under name of SIRAJ UL AKHBAR.He was Baba-e-Sahafat of Jhelum and this newspaper ceased publication in in 1920.He was author of many books.
  • Weekly NAI ZINDGI started its publication prior to independence under editor ship of maulana Ghulam Azam of Gharmala. Later Khadim Hussain Hyderi took editorship till his death in 1960. He was a spokesman of Muslim League.
  • Weekly Khudi started publication in 1958 and after few years it disappeared.
  • Mohammad Ehsan Butt who was neighbourer of Sraj ul Akhbar in Chappa khana Mohalla played a vital role in promotion of journalism in Jhelum.He was affiliated to Zamidar,Kohistan and Jang Rawalpindi. In 1951 he started fortnightly AMMAL which is being published till now by his sons Pervez Butt and javed Butt.
  • In 1952 Ishaq Naqashbandi started weekly NASEEM. This first ABC weekly is being published till now under editorship of Mohammad Hanif Rai.
  • Voice of Muslim a weekly started publication in 1970 under editorship of Mahmood Mirza Jhelumi and later became spokesman of Pakistan Peoples Party.
  • In 1971 Abdul Rahman Muslim from Jamaat-e-Islami started publication of AWAZ till 1998.After 1998 Mr.A.R. Saleem started KHAIR UL AMUR which is being published till now.
  • From 1989 to 1994 fortnightly SAFAT was issued and Mr.Ijaz Choudhary, Sajid Moodi and Pervez Asim were its editors.
  • Riaz Nizami started GUREZ in 1990 and is being published till now.
  • HARAMAIN a spokeman of Ahel-e-Hadith started publication since 1990 by maulana Madni & Hafiz Abdul hameed Ammer.
  • A tri-monthly mag under the name USHA started in 1996 from Kala Gujran and was closed after a few issues.
  • Since 1997 JHELUM POST is being published by Sajid Moodi[26].
  • Weekly ISLAMI NOOR was published in 1996 by Arshad Minhas.
  • Since 1997 fortnightly PRESS GALARY is being published by Raja Nobahar.
  • Leopards International a spokeman of Homeo physicians ceased publication in 1999 after 2 years of his life.
  • In 1998 AKHBAR-e-JHELUM started and after departure of its editor Hawe Nizami to USA it ceased publication. Mr.Nizami also published monthly HAZOOR HAQ for sometimes.
  • Weekly JIRGA started publication from Dina by Hakim akbar Ali Rana for sometimes and now in Jhelum it is being Published by Yunus Badnam.
  • Business News a spokeman of Jhelum chamber of commerce and Industry[27] is being published under editorship of Qazi Habib ur Rehman.
  • Apnajhelum (Print Edition) is now published by Shahzad Khan, from Logic Computers Mohammadi Chowk Jhelum to increase number of Journalism professionals.

The Prominent Journalist worth mentioning from Jhelum are Khaliq Kamran, Jameel Hashmi, Hakim Mohammad Afghan, Riaz Mirza, Dr.Noor Mohammad Nafir, Hameed Jhelumi of daily Amroz, Saif ud Din Hussam of Ansari sara(Monthly GUBAR), Syed Hassan Jaffery, monthly Wasta by Gul Nawaz Ahmed, Crime and Law by Sheikh Khalid Pervez Akhbar Meherban by Haji Meher ban.

Three colleges are also issuing a yearly magazine while PTC has published a few books in name of SATHI which Fikar & fun is a magazine of National Hobby Friends Society.

[edit]Education

Govt. College GT Road Jhelum

Jhelum has a fairly well-developed educational infrastructure. The overall literacy rate forJhelum is 63.9 percent, somewhat a higher literacy in Punjab province (46.6 percent)[28].

Jhelum has 6 Degree Colleges for Women, 6Degree Colleges for Men, 6 Co-education Colleges, 6 Commerece Colleges, one Law College, with numerous Higher Secondary Schools and over 150 High Schools[29].

[edit]Higher/technical education

In technical education Jhelum has two technical colleges, famous Govt. Institute of Technology, Chak Daulat, Jhelum and Govt. Technical Training Institute, Jhelum.[30] Jhelum also has two sub-campuses of the Virtual University of Pakistan namely Wings Instt. of Learning and Punjab College For Women.[31] University of the Punjab is also establishing a sub-campus at Jhelum. Governament ofPunjab has allocated 65 kanals of land for this purpose.[32]

[edit]Colleges

Main article: List of colleges in Jhelum
FG College

Some of the famous and important colleges of Jhelum City[33]are:

  • Army Public School and College Jhelum Cantt.
  • FG Intermediat College Jhelum Cantt.
  • Fauji Foundation Model School & College, Jhelum Cantt.
  • Bahria Foundation College, GT Road, Jhelum.
  • Govt. Degree College, Jhelum.[34]
  • Govt. College. G.T. Road, Jhelum.[35]
  • Govt. College for Women, Jhelum.
  • Govt. College of Commerce, Bilal Town, Jhelum.
  • National Foundation School and College, Jhelum.
  • Govt. Islamia Girls Higher Secondary School and College, Jhelum.
  • Jinnah Law College Near Kutcheri, Jhelum.
  • M.A. Jinnah College of Commerce & Computer Science, Jhelum.
  • PICS, Bilal town Jhelum.
  • City College for Girls, Jhelum
  • UIML College

[edit]Major organizations

Major organizations working in Jhelum[36] are:

[edit]Hospitals

DHQ Jhelum
AlKhadim Memorial Hospital

Jhelum has some of the largest hospitals[40] in the area which include the hospital in cantonment area of the city managed by thePakistan Army or sub organisations[41].

  • District Headquarter Hospital, Jada
  • Combined Military Hospital Jhelum
  • Fauji Foundation Hospital, GT Road[42]
  • Khadam Ali Memorial Hospital, Machine Mohalla No. 1
  • Khan Muhammad Hospital, AlAsria Road.
  • Sughra Hospital, Jhelum Cantt
  • Shahid memorial trust hospital Jhelum
  • AlKaram Hospital, Civil Lines
  • Afzal Hospital, Machine Mohalla No.3
  • Noor-un-Nisa Hospital
  • Fazal Hospital, Civil Lines
  • Azeem Hospital, Jhelum Cantt
  • Umair Children Hospital, Machine Mohalla No.3
  • Capt.Moazzam Shaheed Hospital
  • Mirza Hospital, Shandar Chowk

[edit]Major industries

Pakistan Tobacco Company Jhelum

Some of the major Industries are:[43]

[edit]Famous people

Major Muhammad Akram
General Asif Nawaz

People with origins in Jhelum[49] are listed below:

[edit]Jhelum pictures gallery

Map of Tehsil Jhelum

Jhelum Railway Station

Major Akram Shaheed Memorial

A Fort in Jhelum City

Jhelum Railway Station

Front view of Melange Super Market

Melange super

Shabir plaza Shandar Chowk

Railway Road

JJ Shop

Stylo and Hush Puppies, Civil Line

Saleem center, Civil Lines

Ladi's mart, MM#3

Cantonament Square, Jhelum

Mahfooz plaza,Kazim Kamal Road

KFC Jhelum Cantt

View of a match

Zamir Jafri Cricket Stadium

Tulip lawn Jhelum

Tulip lawn Jhelum

Tulip lawn Jhelum

Tulip lawn Jhelum

Kazim Kamal Park

Major Akram Shaheed Library

A view of Old GT Road from Shabir Plaza

A view of Railway Road

Old GT Road

Passport Office

CMH Mosque

Sh. Qaym Din Masjid

Masjid Afghan

Shandar Chowk Jhelum

Jhelum River near Bela

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