Mandi Bahauddin District

Mandi-Bahauddin District ضلع منڈی بہاؤالدین
District
Map of Punjab with Mandi-Bahauddin District highlighted
Country	Pakistan
Province	Punjab
Headquarters	Mandi Bahauddin
Area
• Total	7,623 km2 (2,943 sq mi)
Population  (1998)
• Total	1,160,552
Time zone	UTC+5 (PST)
Number of Tehsils	3

Mandi Bahauddin (also spelled Mandi Baha ud Din) (Urdu: ضلع منڈی بہاؤالدین ) is a district of the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is located at 32°34'60N 73°30'0E and is bordered in the northwest by the Jhelum River, in the southeast by the Chenab River—which separates it from Gujranwala District and Gujrat District—and on the southwest by Sargodha District. The district has an area of 2673 km².

Administration

Mandi Bahauddin is subdivided into three tehsils and 65 Union Councils:

Name of Tehsil	Number of Union Councils
Malakwal	17
Mandi Bahauddin	27
Phalia	21
Total	65

History

The Battle of the Hydaspes River took place to the west of Mandi Bahauddin in 326 BCE, between Alexander the Great and the Raja Porus of India in 326 BCE. Raja Porus was situated nearby, in a portion of ancient India which is now part of Pakistan. The battle was the last major war fought by Alexander. Harry Roy, the son of Raja Porus, and Bucephalus, Alexander the Great's horse, both died on the first day of this battle. After the death of his son, Raja Porus, who had been stationed at Nazampur, came with elephants and fought Alexander the Great himself. As a result of this battle, Alexander founded two cities, Nicaea ("Victory") at the site of modern-day Mong, and Bucephala at the site (possibly) of Phalia in Pakistan.

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, and followed it by the conquests of Punjab region. The Delhi Sultanate and later Mughal Empire ruled the region. The Punjab region became predominantly Muslim due to missionary Sufi saints whose dargahs dot the landscape of Punjab region.

In 1506 CE,Hazrat Bahauddin,a Sufi Darvesh migrated to this area from Pindi Shah Jahanian, and established a settlement named Pindi Bahauddin which was later named Mandi Bahauddin.

The district forms a central portion of the Chaj Doab lying between the Jhelum and Chenab rivers. It lies between 300° 8' to 320° 40' N and 730° 36' to 370° 37' E. During British rule in the early twentieth century, the British established public services such as canals and irrigation facilities and the North-Western Railway to facilitate defence of their empire from the north; it is at this time that Mandi Bahauddin Railway Station was built. The district was a part of District Gujrat until 1993 when Tehsil Phalia of district Gujrat was separated to form a new district which was on the name of Tehsil Headquarters of Phalia, i.e. Mandi Bahauddin.

After the decline of the Mughal Empire, the Sikh invaded and occupied Mandi Bahauddin District. The Muslims never faced any restrictions during the Sikh rule. The Second Anglo-Sikh War of 1849 took place nearby; Lord Guff led the British forces against the Khalsa Sikh Army Chillianwala. A graveyard at Rakh Minar near Chillianwala has its own Ancient Memorandum, where many British Army soldiers and officers were buried. During the period of British rule, Mandi Bahauddin district increased in population and importance.

In 1920 the town name became official, and in 1924 Pindi-Bahauddin Railway station was officially granted its name. In 1937 the town of Mandi-Bahauddin was given the status of a town committee. In 1941 it was given the status of a municipal committee. In the 1923 master reconstruction plan, all the streets and roads were laid straight and wide. In 1946 nine gates and the wall surrounding the town was completed due to riots..

The predominantly Muslim population supported Muslim League and Pakistan Movement. After the independence of Pakistan in 1947, the minority Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India while the Muslim refugees from India settled in the Mandi Bahauddin District. In 1960, Phalia was granted the status of Sub-Division of District Gujrat and Mandi Bahauddin was named as its headquarters. In 1963 the Rasul Barrage and Rasul-Qadirabad link canal project, a component of the Indus Basin irrigation project, started. The project was managed by WAPDA, and a colony for government employees and foreign contractors was constructed a few kilometers from Mandi Bahauddin. The canal project was completed in 1968 by engineer Riazur Rahman Shariff as Project Director, highlighting the town and community and enabling it to expand commercially.

In 1993, Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo, Chief Minister of Punjab, declared this city a District H.Q., a new district of Mandi Bahauddin.

Geography

The tehsil headquarters towns of Phalia and Malikwal are 22.5 and 28.5 kilometres from Mandi Bahauddin, respectively. It is bounded on the north by the Jhelum river, which separates it from Jehlam district; on the west by Sargodha district; on the south by river Chenab (which separates it from the Gujranwala and Hafizabad districts); and on the east by Gujrat district. The total area of the district is 2,673 square kilometres. The district comprises the Mandi Bahauddin, Phalia, and Malikwal tehsils.

Demography and language

According to the 1998 census of Pakistan, the population of the district was 1,160,552 of which 14.93% lived in urban environments.

Punjabi is the most spoken language, Urdu is also widely spoken.

Climate

This district has a moderate climate, hot in summer and cold in winter. During the peak of summer, the temperature may rise to 45 °C during the day, but in the winter months the minimum temperature may fall below 2 °C. The average rainfall in the district is 50 mm.

Education

• District Jinnah Public School and College,Mandi Bahauddin
• Engineering University, Rasul
• Government Post Graduate College for Boys, Mandi Bahauddin
• Government Post Graduate College for Women, Mandi Bahauddin
• University of Sargodha, Mandi Bahauddin campus
• Government Vocational College for Women, Mandi Bahauddin
• Government Commerce College Mong, Mandi Bahauddin

Mandi Bahauddin is one of the most well educated district of Punjab, and it has the highest number of civil judges in the whole province if Punjab and may be the largest number of Law Graduates also.

Notable personalities

• Parvaiz Mehdi Qureshi
• Dewan Mushtaq Ahmed
• Chaudhry Muhammad Jaffar Iqbal Senator
• Mustansar Hussain Tarar
• Ch. Zaka Ashraf ex chairman PCB
• Mian Waheeduddin

Tribes and Clans

Main tribes and clans living in the district are Gondal, Gujjar, Baloch, Janjua, Ranjha, Mekan, Bhaun, Tarar, Jutt, Gujjar, Butt, Malik, Bhatti, Mughal, Dewan, Ghouri, Sayyed, Warraich,

Statistics

• Forest area: 13,377 (40,879 acres)
• Metalled roads: 655 km
• Grid stations: 3
• Telephone exchanges: 40
• Industrial units: 897