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Jhirk also spelled as Jerruck [1] is a small town on the right bank of River Indus, in district Thatta, province of Sindh, Pakistan.
In the 19th century, Jhirk was the busiest river port and centre of commercial activity in Sindh. It also served as the headquarters of the Indus flotilla, which used to be the most modern navigational system. Karachi Port near Karachi used to be connected to Jhirk. The headquarters of the Indus flotilla was in Jhirk, near Kotri, before moving to Mithankot in Rajanpur district and then to Makhad in Attock. This part of the Indus flotilla was called by both the Punjab flotilla and the Indus flotilla. The British Indus flotilla of steamboats which once plied the Indus river is described by Shaw 1998. Hassan Ali Effendi, the famous educationist who was instrumental in establishing Sindh Madrasatul Islam used to work at the Indus flotilla in his early years while learning English. Quaid-i-Azam was one of his students at the Sindh Madrasatul Islam in Karachi. The river Indus was an important artery of communication between Karachi and Jhirk, located near Kotri, was an important river port. The Indus flotilla used large quantities of firewood which was kept to fuel steamboats. Hassan Ali Effendi kept account of the incoming and outgoing wood and steamboats.
It was because of the commercial importance of the town that the Aga Khan I, constructed his palace in Jhirk. Jhirk has one of the oldest British era schools in Sindh, 15 years older than Karachi's Sindh Madrasatul Islam, which is still functioning.
The Biritsh Captain April, a spy of the British crown in the 1800s described the majesty and weather of the city. He was stationed here from 1832 to 1839 wrote that Jhirk was a great city consisting of a bazaar of 200 shops and that goods were available here at cheaper prices than Karachi.
Aga Khan I migrated from Iran to Herat after the First Afghan War of 1839, when the British were in Herat. After the British defeat at the hands of Dost Mohammed of Afghanistan, he settled himself in Jhirk in 1843 under British protection. Aga Khan I built his mahal or palace which still exists in a good condition. He and his followers which were at least one thousand strong settled with him in Jhirk. The British were there too to protect him.
Sir Charles Napier initially made Jhirk the headquarters for the British Army in Sindh when he came to Sindh which was part of the Bombay Presidency at that time.
The grandfather of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the first leader of Pakistan, came to visit Jhirk for Aga Khan I’s Deedar settled here for the rest of his life and is also buried in Jhirk where his grave can be found. His eldest son Jinnahbhai Poonja, father of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, was married to Sheeren Bai, the daughter of Moosa Jumo in 1874, who had also migrated along with the Agha Khan.
Some believe that Muhammad Ali Jinnah was born in Jhirk, "but most historians and biographers go along with the official line". [2] A maternity home built by the Agha Khan community was described by the Archaeology Department as the proper birthplace of Quaid e Azam and a blue plate remained fixed on the same with such information by the Department for over 2 decades after partition.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah was admitted to the primary school of the town established in 1870. The school's General Register is missing. Before the controversy, his birthplace was listed as Jhirk in the curriculum taught in Pakistan until 1962. It was then changed to Wazir Mansion in Karachi, which became listed as the Quaid-i-Azam Birth Place and controversy rose again about the birthplace of Quaid-e-Azam.
A Buddhist stupa on the other side of river Indus indicates the historical position of the city.
Jhirk's present situation is very critical. Very little income sources exist in Jhirk. People are dependent on special aid and grants from the government. Since the majority of the population is living below the poverty line as a result of the lack of water in the Kotri river, Jhirk has been deserted by people. All the sources of fishing and farming have been depleted. Many graduates and youth from the Mallah fishing community sell brambles or live on meager rural incomes.
Ghulam Ali Allana known as G. Allana was a friend and biographer of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. Mr. Allana entered politics at an early age and played an active part in the Pakistan movement. After Partition, he was instrumental in forming the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry. He was a member of the West Pakistan Legislative Assembly, besides being the mayor of Karachi. Internationally, Mr. Allana represented Pakistan at over 100 conferences, served on the governing body of the International Labour Organisation, and the president of the International Organisation of Employers, Brussels. At the United Nations he led a number of peace and diplomatic initiatives/working groups and went on to become chairman of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1975. For his contributions he was awarded the United Nations peace medal and was also a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977. He was also an English-language Pakistani poet and a counselor and friend to Fatima Jinnah, Muhammad Ali Jinnah's sister.
Wazir Mansion known officially as Quaid-i-Azam Birthplace Museum is a former family home in the Kharadar district of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan which is considered the birthplace of the country's founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Sindh Madressatul Islam University, also known as SMI University, is a university in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Founded in 1885, it is one of the oldest educational institutions in South Asia.
Fatima Jinnah, widely known as Māder-e Millat, was a Pakistani stateswoman, politician, dental surgeon and one of the leading founders of Pakistan. She was the younger sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father and the first Governor General of Pakistan. She was Leader of the Opposition of Pakistan from 1960 until her death in 1967.
Mazar-e-Quaid, also known as Jinnah Mausoleum or the National Mausoleum, is the final resting place of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. Designed in a 1960s modernist style, it was completed in 1971, and is an iconic symbol of Karachi as well as one of the most popular tourist sites in the city. The mausoleum complex also contains the tomb of Jinnah's sister, Māder-e Millat Fatima Jinnah, as well as those of Liaquat Ali Khan and Nurul Amin, the first and eighth Prime Ministers of Pakistan respectively. The tomb of Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar, a stalwart of the Muslim League from Peshawar, is also located there.
Events from the year 1947 in Pakistan.
Pir Ilahi Bux or Pir Ilahi Buksh was a Pakistani politician and activist who was a prominent member of the Pakistan Movement and who served as the Chief Minister of Sindh from 1948 to 1949.
Muhammad Ali Siddiqui was a noted scholar of Urdu literature, educationist, literary critic and a newspaper columnist from Pakistan. He was also widely known by his pen name Ariel in Pakistan.
Muhammad Yusuf Abdullah Haroon was a Pakistani businessman and politician who served as the 5th Governor of West Pakistan and 3rd Chief Minister of Sindh.
The Quaid-e-Azam House, also known as Flagstaff House, is a house museum dedicated to the personal life of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. Located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, it was designed by British architect Moses Somake.
Hassan Ali Effendi was an educationist in South Asia who is credited as the founder of one of the first Muslim schools in British India: the Sindh Madrasatul Islam, located in Karachi in modern-day Pakistan. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, became among the school's famous graduates.
Ahmed Saeed Nagi, was a noted Pakistani painter artist. He was known as the 'official artist' of the Pakistan freedom movement.
The Jinnah family was a political family of Pakistan. Jinnahs have played an important role in the Pakistan Movement for creation of Pakistan, a separate country for Muslims of India. The family held the leadership of All-India Muslim League, and its successor, Muslim League, until it dissolved in 1958 by martial law. Originally from a Gujarati Khoja background, they moved to Karachi from Kathiawar, Bombay Presidency in the 19th century.
Ghulam Muhammad Khan Bhurgri (Barrister),(1878-1924) was a Sindhi statesman.
Emibai Jinnah was the first cousin and the first wife of the founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah from 1892 until her death in 1893.
Sharif al Mujahid was a Pakistani journalist, historian, author, and professor.
