Thatha shamsa

Thatha Shamsa Chattha ٹھٹھہ شمسہ چٹھہ
Village
Country	Pakistan
Province	Punjab
Government
• None	None
Area
• Total	20 km2 (8 sq mi)
Elevation	700 m (2,300 ft)
Population
• Estimate  (2023)	2,500
Time zone	UTC+5 (PST)
Calling code	0547
Number of Union Councils	1

Thatha Shamsa Chattha (Urdu (ٹھٹھہ شمسہ چٹھہ) is a small village in Hafizabad District of Punjab, Pakistan. It is located at 32° 15' 50N,73° 41' 40E with an altitude of 206 meters (679 feet). It is the oldest village which is believed to pre-dated prior to Mughal era.

The village consists of approximately 200-250 homes, and total population of approximately 2500 odds as of 2023. It is situated on the bank of a canal which originates from the Barrage Qadirabad Colony. Most of the land suffers from seepage, higher water bed, which makes it unsuitable for conventional crops and cultivation. This is the main reason that many residents have been driven away from village to either big cities for better opportunities of work or converted their lands into fish farms. Presently, the village is being surrounded on all sides by fish farms, metaphorically an artificial island.

Thatha Shamsa is bounded by rivers and canals. The major canal that originates from Chenab River at Qadirabad barragein the west of the village. The River Chenab is a few miles away from the village, and during Monsoon weather the village often faces a threat of flooding. The weather is usually intemperate in summer and winter but autumn and spring are mild. The weather is usually dry and humid during Monsoons, summer also create a good level of humidity as surrounded by fish farms. Sometimes there prolong rains spell during the winter, which in local language is called "Jarri", winter depression. The village looks very beautiful at the beginning of the spring weather, but this fascinating beauty only long over a few weeks.

Geography and Climate

Thatha Shamsa (Chattha) is bounded approximately by the river and a canal. The canal, which runs parallel to Thatha Shamasa comes from Qadirabad barrage and is in west of Thatha Shamsa. The land is plain and good for agriculture and Fish Farming with plenty of water supply. Farmers have dug many tube wells, to pump out the water, due to the undependable climate.

Transport

There are no scheduled modes of transport in this village. Most of the time, the people have to travel towards Sooianwala or Hara Kote or Qadirabad Colony to get the access to transport that travel to bigger cities of Punjab, Pakistan; i.e., Lahore, Islamabad, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Ali Pure Chattha etc. Recently the transport system has been improved considerably, as some special routes towards big cities of Punjab start operating. For casual works, the villagers use motorcycle and bicycle as the most convenient and fast transport system.

Recreational Activities

People of village have a limited choices for their recreational activities. Most of the time, the people go to Qadirabad Colony, Sooianwala and Hara Kote to enjoy the restaurants foods and for other miscellaneous activities. The villagers usually play football, crickets and Kabadi. In this regards Thatha Shamsa team has won many cricket tournaments which were held in that region. But the lack of good playing grounds drive them to travel sometime 2-5 km to have their games.

Educational Institutes

There are two primary schools which are funded and governed by Government of Punjab. Government Primary School for Boys and Government Primary School for Girls which is under consideration to be upgraded to middle school in the near future. As most of the villagers are poor, so they send their children into these public schools. A few families in this village are richer, and they send their children to Private English medium School. Most children, after completing their primary education, move to Sooianwala town to have higher education.

Prominent Personalities & Scholars

• Dr M Iqbal Chattha (PhD from Imperial College London, Ex Federal Govt Officer Grade 18, CEO of a High Tech Business)
• Dr M Usman Chattha (MBBS, Bureaucrat)
• Dr M Salman Chattha (MBBS, Physician)
• Ch M Aslam Chattha (SDO Provincial GOVT)

Statistics Location

• 32.25°N, 73.70°E
• Calling Code: 0547
• Union Council: Vanike Tarrar
• Major Crops: Rice, Wheat, Sugarcane
• Major Industries: Farming, Fish farming, Animal breeding, Milk Processing
• Banks: No Bank
• Mosques: 1 Mosque

Telephone Networks

• Pakistan Telecommunication Company (PTCL)
• Pakistan Telenor HSPA
• Paktel GSM
• Pakistan Mobilink GSM Pakistan
• Pakistan Warid GSM Company

References

• http://uet.edu.pk/
• http://www.citymaphq.com/pakistan/punjab/thatta_shamsa.html
• http://wikimapia.org/11013355/Thatha-Shamsa-Chattha
• http://sthweb.bu.edu/shaw/anna-howard-shaw-center/biography?view=mediawiki&article=Thatha_shamsa
• http://www.aepam.edu.pk/Download/schools%20directory/Punjab(Hafizabad).pdf
• http://www.fallingrain.com/world/PK/4/Thatta_Shamsa.html
• http://www.ecp.gov.pk/content/punjb/Hafizabad.pdf
• http://www.hafizabad.gov.pk District of Hafizabad - Official Site
• https://web.archive.org/web/20080705220929/http://www.lgdsindh.com.pk/khairpur2.htm Local Govt. department of Punjab - District of Hafizabad
• http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/109176/Chenab-River - 44k

External references

• District of Hafizabad - Official Site
• Thatha_Shamsa Heritage & Welfare NGO
• Local Govt. department of Punjab - District of Hafizabad