Battagram District

Battagram District ضلع بټګرام
—  District & Town  —
ضلع بٹگرام
Location of Battagram District (highlighted in yellow) in the Abaseen Division.
Coordinates: 34.41°N 73.1°E / 34.41; 73.1
Country	Pakistan
Province	Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Capital	Battagram
Established	July 1993
Area
• Total	1,301 km2 (502.3 sq mi)
Elevation	1,038 m (3,406 ft)
Population (1998)
• Total	307,278
• Density	236/km2 (611.2/sq mi)
Time zone	PST (UTC+5)
Area code(s)	0997
District Council
Number of Tehsils	2

Battagram (Urdu: ضلع بٹگرام , Pashto: ضلع بټګرام) is a district of Hazara in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It has a total land area of 1301 square kilometres and the estimated population of Battagram District in 2004-2005 was 361,000. The main language of the district is pashto.

Etymology

Battagram in Sanskrit means Village of the Brahmins. Many other small villages in district Battagram are also named after Sanskrit words or their old Hindu residents e.g. Chohan, Ajmera, Rashmera, Chapargram, Banian and Shalkhay etc.

Administration

Battagram obtained the status of district in July 1993 when it was upgraded from a Tehsil and separated from Mansehra District. Before Battagram obtained the status of district, it was a Tehsil of the Mansehra District. It has geographical borders with Kohistan District, the Tribal Area of Kala Dhaka (Black Mountain of Hazara), Shangla District and Malakand Division. The district consists of two sub-divisions or Tehsils, containing 20 in total. Union Councils:

Tehsil	No. of Unions
Allai Tehsil	8
Batagram Tehsil	12

The district is represented in the provincial assembly by two MPAs from its constituencies PF-59 (Battagram-1) and PF-60 (Battagram-2).

Earthquake 2005

Battagram was one of the areas affected by the Pakistan Earthquake of October 8, 2005 when more than 4,500 people were killed and approximately 35,000 were injured. Many residents of the area were rendered homeless and without shelter. Since October 8, 2005, the NGOs and the Governmental organization ERRA have been engaged in re-construction work but as of 2009,the reconstruction work is not completed. In some cases residents have rebuilt houses themselves.

Scenery

This district is noted for its scenic mountain scenery, thick forests, fertile lands and enchanting streams. Most of the population is rural and depends upon agriculture for their day to day living. As a recent phenomenon, fishing has also become a mode of earning due to some modern scientific techniques. Another distinctive feature of this district is the notable presence of Shahrah-e-Resham (Karakoram Highway) or Silk route and hence which is helping the infant industrial base to thrive.

A village of Battagram

See also

• Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
• Hazara Division

Gallery

• 

  Back view of Govt. High School Battagram

• 

  A side view of Chappargram (Battagram) Before 2005 Quake

• 

  A Portion of Battagram City

External links

• BATTAGRAM-District Profile ERRA
• "List of polling stations" - The Gazette of Pakistan
• "NRC PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE SITUATION REPORT – WEEK ENDING 5TH FEB 2006" - Norwegian Refugee Council