Sialkot District

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Sialkot District
ضلع سیالکوٹ
Bab ay Sialkot.jpg
Kotli Noonan, Pakistan - panoramio (51).jpg
Top: Bab-e-Sialkot (Gate of Sialkot)
Bottom: Village of Kotli Noonan
Pakistan - Punjab - Sialkot.svg
Map of Sialkot District highlighted
CountryFlag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan
Province Flag of Punjab.svg Punjab
Division Gujranwala
Established1852;173 years ago (1852)
Capital Sialkot
Government
  TypeDistrict Administration
   Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Zulqarnain Langrial
  District Police OfficerAbdul Ghaffar Qaisrani
  CEO EducationMian Riaz Ahmed
Area
   District of Punjab
3,016 km2 (1,164 sq mi)
Population
   District of Punjab
4,499,394
  Density1,500/km2 (3,900/sq mi)
   Urban
1,481,968 (32.94%)
   Rural
3,017,426 (67.06%)
Language(s)
[2]
  Main language(s) Urdu, Punjabi
Literacy
[3]
  Literacy rate
  • Total:
    (78.37%)
  • Male:
    (80.24%)
  • Female:
    (76.50%)
Time zone UTC+5 (PST)
Area code 052
Number of Tehsils 4
Website sialkot.punjab.gov.pk

Sialkot District [a] is a district within the Gujranwala Division of Punjab, Pakistan. Located in northeastern Punjab, the city of Sialkot is the headquarters of the district. It houses the Sialkot Cantonment, established in 1852.

Contents

Administration

The district is administratively divided into the following four tehsils (subdivisions), which contain a total of 122 Union Councils: [4] [5]

#TehsilArea

(km²) [6]

Pop.

(2023)

Density

(ppl/km²)

(2023)

Lit. rate

(2023) [7]

Union Councils
1 Pasrur 975970,366995.2574.52%28
2 Daska 690980,5471,421.0879.19%42
3 Sambrial 450460,2801,022.8479.89%30
4 Sialkot 9012,088,2012,317.6579.42%52

History

Sialkot District was an agricultural region with forests during the Indus Valley Civilization. The Vedic period is characterized by Indo-Aryan culture that flourished in the Punjab region. The Kambojas, Daradas, Kaikayas, Madras, Pauravas, Yaudheyas, Malavas and Kurus invaded, settled and ruled the ancient Punjab region. After overrunning the Achaemenid Empire in 331 BCE, Alexander marched into the present-day Punjab region with an army of 50,000. The Sialkot was ruled by Maurya Empire, the Indo-Greek kingdom, Kushan Empire, Gupta Empire, White Huns, Kushano-Hephthalites, the Arabs and Hindu Shahi kingdoms.

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 CE and followed this by the conquests of the Punjab region. The Delhi Sultanate and later Mughal Empire ruled the region.

At an early date the District fell to the Mughal Empire, and under the Mughals formed the Rechna Doab sarkar of the Subah of Lahore. Under Shah Jahan the sarkar was entrusted to Ali Mardan Khan, the famous engineer, who dug a canal through it to bring water from the Chenab river to the imperial gardens in Lahore.

On the decline of the Mughal Empire Ranjit Singh Deo, a Rajput hill chief, extended his sway over the lowlands, owning a nominal allegiance to Delhi. In 1748 he transferred his allegiance to Ahmad Shah Durrani, who added Zafarwal and two other parganas to his fief. Before his death in 1773 Ranjit Deo had secured possession of the whole District, except the Sialkot town and its dependencies, which were held by a Pashtun family. [8] Sialkot district was annexed by the British from its former Sikh rulers after the Second Anglo-Sikh War of 1848–1849. [9]

During the Indian Rebellion of 1857 the station was denuded of British troops; and the Native regiments which were left behind the rose, and, after sacking the jail, treasury, and courthouse, and massacring several of the European inhabitants, marched off towards Delhi, only to be destroyed by Nicholson at Trimmu Ghat. The rest of the Europeans took refuge in the fort, and on the morning after the departure of the rebels order was restored. The only events of interest in the subsequent history of the District are the plague riots that occurred at the villages of Shahzada and Sankhatra in 1901. [8]

Numerous mounds are scattered about the District, which marks the sites of ancient villages and towns. None of them, except that on which the Sialkot fort stood, has been excavated, but silver and copper utensils and coins have been dug up from time to time by villagers. Most of the coins are those of Indo-Bactrian kings. The excavations in Sialkot revealed the existence of some old baths, with hot-water pipes of solid masonry. The fort itself, of which very little now remains, is not more than 1,000 years old and is said to have been rebuilt by Shahab-ud-din Ghori at the end of the twelfth century. [8]

In 1859, Gurdaspur, Amritsar and Sialkot were placed in the new division of Sialkot. But in 1884, Gurdaspur along with Amritsar again became a part of the Lahore Division.

According to the 1901 census, the district had a population of 1,083,909 and contained 7 towns and 2,348 villages. The population at the previous three enumerations was: 1,004,695 (1868), 1,012,148 (1881) and 1,119,847 (1891). The population decreased between 1891 and 1901 by 3.2, [8] the decrease being greatest in the Raya tahsil and least in the Daska tahsil. The Chenab Colony was responsible for this fall in population, with no less than 103,000 persons having left to take land in the newly irrigated tracts. [10]

The district was subdivided into five tehsils, namely: Sialkot, Pasrur, Zafarwal, Raya and Daska, the headquarters of each being at the place from which it is named. The chief towns of the district were Sialkot, Daska, Jamki, Pasrur, Kila Sobha Singh, Zafarwal and Narowal. [10]

TehsilArea (sq mi)TownsVillagesPopulation (1901)Population per sq miPopulation variation 1891–1901Number of literate people
Sialkot4281637312,668730.5+3.212,101
Pasrur3942443193,746491.7−5.05,601
Sambrial4851456192,440396.8+10.45,586
Daska3602332206,148572.6−0.64,103
Total1,99172,3481,083,909544.4−3.231,341

In 1930, the tehsils of Raya, Daska and Pasrur were split up and parts of these were amalgamated into Gujranwala District. In 1991, the tehsils of Narowal and Shakar Garh (which was tehsil Shankar Garh of Gurdaspur district before the independence of Pakistan in 1947) were split up and formed into the new Narowal District.

Geography

Sialkot District lies southeast of Gujrat District, southwest of Jammu district (in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir), while Narowal District is to the southeast and Gujranwala District is situated to the west.

Sialkot district is spread over an area of 3,016 square kilometers.

Sunset at Head Marala Sunset at Head Marala.jpg
Sunset at Head Marala

Sialkot is hot and humid during the summer and cold during the winter. June and July are the hottest months. The maximum temperature during winter may drop to −2 °C (28 °F). The land is generally plain and fertile. The average annual rainfall is about 1000 mm. Over 25.82% of the population of the district is urban.

Demographics

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1951 961,721    
1961 1,045,958+0.84%
1972 1,509,424+3.39%
1981 1,802,505+1.99%
1998 2,723,481+2.46%
2017 3,894,938+1.90%
2023 4,499,394+2.43%
Sources: [11]

As of the 2023 census, Sialkot district has 671,320 households and a population of 4,499,394. The district has a sex ratio of 102.58 males to 100 females and a literacy rate of 78.37%: 80.24% for males and 76.50% for females. [12] [13] 1,116,259 (24.96% of the surveyed population) are under 10 years of age. [14] 1,481,968 (32.94%) live in urban areas. [12]

Religion

Religion in Sialkot district (2023) [15]
ReligionPercent
Islam
96.19%
Christianity
3.46%
Others
0.35%

Muslims are the majority community making up 96.19% of the population, while Christians (descendants of Hindu Dalits who converted during the British Colonial period) are the principal minority. [15]

Religion in contemporary Sialkot District
Religious
group
1941 [16] :422017 [17] 2023 [18]
Pop. %Pop.%Pop.%
Islam Star and Crescent.svg 592,2363,740,50796.04%4,302,06796.19%
Hinduism Om.svg 176,9892,8700.07%3,195
Sikhism Khanda.svg 92,715260~0%
Christianity Christian cross.svg 54,498136,2543.50%154,8843.46%
Ahmadi 14,7710.38%11,3860.25%
Others6,4615360.01%668
Total Population922,8993,894,938100%4,472,462
Note: 1941 census data is for Sialkot, Daska and Pasrur tehsils of Sialkot district, which roughly corresponds to contemporary Sialkot district. District and tehsil borders have changed since 1941.
Religious groups in Sialkot District (British Punjab province era)
Religious
group
1881 [19] [20] [21] 1891 [22] 1901 [23] 1911 [24] [25] 1921 [26] 1931 [27] 1941 [28]
Pop. %Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%
Islam Star and Crescent.svg 669,712685,342716,953604,801580,532609,633739,218
Hinduism Om.svg [b] 299,311371,265302,012242,325217,912206,421231,319
Sikhism Khanda.svg 40,19549,87250,98281,76174,93994,955139,409
Christianity Christian cross.svg 1,53511,66811,93948,62062,26666,36575,831
Jainism Jain Prateek Chihna.svg 1,3881,6962,0082,0292,1472,2363,250
Zoroastrianism Faravahar.svg 7491727714
Buddhism Dharma Wheel (2).svg 0060003
Judaism Star of David.svg 000000
Others0000001,453
Total population1,012,1481,119,8471,083,909979,553937,823979,6171,190,497
Note1: British Punjab province era district borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to district borders — which since created new districts — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases.

Note2: Population decrease between 1901 and 1921 census due to large population migrations south to newly created tehsils and districts in the Chenab Canal Colony.
Religion in the Tehsils of Sialkot District (1921) [26]
Tehsil Islam Star and Crescent.svg Hinduism Om.svg Sikhism Khanda.svg Christianity Christian cross.svg Jainism Jain Prateek Chihna.svg Others [c] Total
Pop. %Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%
Sialkot Tehsil175,38585,71111,67916,1951,47227290,469
Pasrur Tehsil89,06726,61513,36011,3953510140,788
Zafarwal Tehsil97,30350,3616,1925,000800158,936
Raya Tehsil119,70529,84729,29317,9191720196,936
Daska Tehsil99,07225,37814,41511,757720150,694
Note: British Punjab province era tehsil borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to tehsil borders — which since created new tehsils — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases.
Religion in the Tehsils of Sialkot District (1941) [28]
Tehsil Islam Star and Crescent.svg Hinduism Om.svg [b] Sikhism Khanda.svg Christianity Christian cross.svg Jainism Jain Prateek Chihna.svg Others [d] Total
Pop. %Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%Pop.%
Sialkot Tehsil241,505104,09025,30617,0802,7971,986392,764
Pasrur Tehsil166,51944,05926,03113,2501101,455251,424
Narowal Tehsil146,98254,33046,69419,3482404267,598
Daska Tehsil184,21228,84041,37824,16810310278,711
Note1: British Punjab province era tehsil borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to tehsil borders — which since created new tehsils — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases.

Note2: Tehsil religious breakdown figures for Christianity only includes local Christians, labeled as "Indian Christians" on census. Does not include Anglo-Indian Christians or British Christians, who were classified under "Other" category.

Language

Languages of Sialkot district (2023) [29]
  1. Punjabi (92.0%)
  2. Urdu (4.86%)
  3. Mewati (1.27%)
  4. Pashto (1.22%)
  5. Others (0.64%)

Notable people

Allama Iqbal Iqbal.jpg
Allama Iqbal

Historical figures

Military

Journalists and poets

Politicians

Businesspersons

Scholars

Artists

Sportsmen

Others

See also

Notes and references

Notes


References

  1. "TABLE 1 : HOUSEHOLDS, POPULATION, HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND ANNUAL GROWTH RATE" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. 2023.
  2. "TABLE 11 : POPULATION BY MOTHER TONGUE, SEX AND RURAL/URBAN, CENSUS-2023" (PDF).
  3. "Literacy rate, enrolments, and out-of-school population by sex and rural/urban, CENSUS-2023" (PDF).
  4. "Map of Sialkot – Government site" . Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  5. "Tehsils & Unions in the District of Sialkot". National Reconstruction Bureau, Government of Pakistan website. Archived from the original on 9 February 2012. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  6. "TABLE 1 : AREA, POPULATION BY SEX, SEX RATIO, POPULATION DENSITY, URBAN POPULATION, HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND ANNUAL GROWTH RATE, CENSUS-2023, PUNJAB" (PDF).
  7. "LITERACY RATE, ENROLMENT AND OUT OF SCHOOL POPULATION BY SEX AND RURAL/URBAN, CENSUS-2023" (PDF).
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Sialkot District". Imperial Gazetteer2 of India, Volume 22, page 328 – Digital South Asia Library. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  9. Banerjee, Abhijit; Iyer, Lakshmi (January 2003). "Appendix Table 1: Districts of British India, With Dates and Mode of Acquisition by the British". History, Institutions and Economic Performance: The Legacy of Colonial Land Tenure Systems in India (BREAD Working Paper No. 003) (PDF). Bureau for Research in Economic Analysis of Development. p. 39.
  10. 1 2 "Sialkot District". Imperial Gazetteer2 of India, Volume 22, page 329 – Imperial Gazetteer of India – Digital South Asia Library. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  11. "Population by administrative units 1951-1998" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
  12. 1 2 "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results: Table 1" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics .
  13. "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results: Table 12" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics .
  14. "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results: Table 5" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics .
  15. 1 2 "District Wise Results / Tables (Census - 2023)" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
  16. "CENSUS OF INDIA, 1941 VOLUME VI PUNJAB PROVINCE". JSTOR website. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  17. "Final Results (Census-2017)" . Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  18. "District Wise Results / Tables (Census - 2023)" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
  19. "Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881, vol. I." 1881. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25057656 . Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  20. "Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881, vol. II". 1881. p. 14. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25057657 . Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  21. "Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881, vol. III". 1881. p. 14. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25057658 . Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  22. Edward Maclagan, Sir (1891). "The Punjab and its feudatories, part II--Imperial Tables and Supplementary Returns for the British Territory". p. 14. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25318669 . Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  23. "Census of India 1901. [Vol. 17A]. Imperial tables, I-VIII, X-XV, XVII and XVIII for the Punjab, with the native states under the political control of the Punjab Government, and for the North-west Frontier Province". 1901. p. 34. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25363739 . Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  24. "Census of India 1911. Vol. 14, Punjab. Pt. 2, Tables". 1911. p. 27. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25393788 . Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  25. Kaul, Harikishan (1911). "Census Of India 1911 Punjab Vol XIV Part II". p. 27. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  26. 1 2 "Census of India 1921. Vol. 15, Punjab and Delhi. Pt. 2, Tables". 1921. p. 29. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25430165 . Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  27. "Census of India 1931. Vol. 17, Punjab. Pt. 2, Tables". 1931. p. 277. JSTOR   saoa.crl.25793242 . Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  28. 1 2 India Census Commissioner (1941). "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 6, Punjab". p. 42. JSTOR   saoa.crl.28215541 . Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  29. 1 2 "Population by Mother Tongue, Sex and Rural/Urban, Census-2023" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  30. Talbot, Ian (16 December 2013). Khizr Tiwana, the Punjab Unionist Party and the Partition of India. Routledge. ISBN   9781136790294 . Retrieved 20 March 2018 via Google Books.
  1. Punjabi and Urdu: ضلع سیالکوٹ
  2. 1 2 1931-1941: Including Ad-Dharmis
  3. Including Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Tribals, others, or not stated
  4. Including Anglo-Indian Christians, British Christians, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Tribals, others, or not stated

    32°31′12″N74°33′00″E / 32.52000°N 74.55000°E / 32.52000; 74.55000