Lower Dir District
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Lower Dir District
ضلع دیرِ زیریں | |
|---|---|
  Top: Katora Lake Bottom: Rock formation near Abid | |
.svg) Location of Lower Dir District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province | |
| Coordinates: 34°51′N 71°51′E / 34.850°N 71.850°E | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
| Division | Malakand |
| Headquarters | Timergara |
| Government | |
| • Type | District Administration |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,583 km2 (611 sq mi) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 1,436,082 |
| • Density | 910/km2 (2,300/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 40,314 |
| • Rural | 1,395,768 |
| Time zone | PST |
| Number of Tehsils | 5 |
| Website | dirlower |
Lower Dir District (Pashto: لر / کوز دير ولسوالۍ, Urdu: ضلع دیر زیریں) is a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Timergara city is the district's headquarter. This district was formed in 1996, when Dir District was divided into Upper Dir and Lower Dir districts. Recently, On 22 January 2023, both Lower Dir and Upper Dir districts further bifurcated to create a new Central Dir District.
Lower Dir district borders with Swat District on its east, Afghanistan on its west, Upper Dir on its north and Malakand and Bajaur District on its south.
Recent History[edit]
At the time of independence of Pakistan, Dir was a princely state ruled by Nawab Shah Jehan Khan. Until 1969, it was separated from Pakistan. However, in 1969, it was annexed with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.
Demographics[edit]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 277,481 | — |
| 1981 | 404,844 | +4.29% |
| 1998 | 717,649 | +3.42% |
| 2017 | 1,436,082 | +3.72% |
| Sources:[2] | ||
At the time of the 2017 census, the district had 153,788 households and a population of 1,436,082. Lower Dir had a sex ratio of 1023 females per 1000 males and a literacy rate of 61.83% - 74.45% for males and 49.45% for females. 40,314 (2.81%) lived in urban areas. 33.42% of the population was under 10 years of age. 471 (0.03%) people in the district were from religious minorities. Pashto was the predominant language, spoken by 99.30% of the population.[3]
Education[edit]
- University of Malakand is a public university located in Chakdara.
- University of Dir is a newly established university located in Timergara.
Administration[edit]
National Assembly[edit]
NA-6 (Lower Dir-I) and NA-7 (Lower Dir-II) are constituencies of the National Assembly of Pakistan from Lower Dir district. These areas were formerly part of NA-34 (Lower Dir) constituency from 1977 to 2018. The delimitation in 2018 split Lower Dir into two separate constituencies, NA-6 (Lower Dir-I) and NA-7 (Lower Dir-II).
NA-34 constituency (2002-2018)[edit]
| Member of National Assembly | Party Affiliation | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Qazi Hussain Ahmad | Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal | 2002 |
| Maulana Ahmad Ghafoor Ghawas | Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal | 2003 |
| Malak Azmat Khan | Pakistan Peoples Party | 2008 |
| Shahib Zada Muhammad Yaqub | Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan | 2013 |
Since 2018: NA-6 (Lower Dir-I) and NA-7 (Lower Dir-II)[edit]
| Member of National Assembly | Party Affiliation | Constituency | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mehboob Shah | PTI | NA-6 (Lower Dir-I) | 2018 |
| Muhammad Bashir Khan | PTI | NA-7 (Lower Dir-II) | 2018 |
Provincial Assembly[edit]
| Member of Provincial Assembly | Party Affiliation | Constituency | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muhammad Azam Khan | Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf | PK-13 (Lower Dir-I) | 2018 |
| Humayun Khan | Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf | PK-14 (Lower Dir-II) | 2018 |
| Shafi ullah | Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf | PK-15 (Lower Dir-III) | 2018 |
| Bahdur Khan | Awami National Party | PK-16 (Lower Dir-IV) | 2018 |
| Liaqat Ali Khan | Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf | PK-17 (Lower Dir-V) | 2018 |
Notable people[edit]
- Nawabzada Shahabuddin Khan, Former Ruler of Lower Dir[4][5]
- Siraj ul Haq, politician
- Muhammad Bashir Khan, politician
- Naseem Shah, cricketer
- Zahid Khan, Ex-Senator
- Abaseen Yousafzai, Pashto pote
- Sudais khan Millionaire
See also[edit]
- Constituency NA-6 (Lower Dir-I)
- Constituency NA-7 (Lower Dir-II)
- Education in Lower Dir District
- Upper Dir District
References[edit]
- ^ a b "District Wise Results / Tables (Census - 2017)". www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
- ^ "Population by administrative units 1951-1998" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
- ^ "District Wise Results / Tables (Census - 2017)". www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
- ^ "Tribe seeks ban on sale, purchase of shared land". www.thenews.com.pk.
- ^ High Court, Peshawar. (PDF) https://www.peshawarhighcourt.gov.pk/PHCCMS//judgments/R.F.A.--No.--53-M-of-2016--Govt-of-KPK-Vs--Nawabzada-M.-Shahabuddin.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help)
https://senate.gov.pk/en/profile.php?uid=804
External links[edit]
- Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Government website section on Lower Dir
- Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa news website section on Lower Dir
Administrative divisions of Lower Dir District | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tehsils | Union Councils |  |
| Adenzai | ||
| Balambat | ||
| Lal Qilla | ||
| Munda | ||
| Samar Bagh | ||
| Timergara | ||