Chak ( Sindhi: چڪ) is a town situated on the west bank of the

Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

Shikarpur District Shikarpur district ( sd, شڪارپور ضلعو, ur, ), is a district in Sindh province in Pakistan. The city of Shikarpur is the district headquarters. There are 4 talukas: Lakhi Ghulam Shah, Garhi Yasin, Khanpur and Shikarpur itself. It is ...

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. It is an economic, educational, social and transport hub of the adjoining towns and villages of the region. It is home to a population of more than 40,000 people and is a fast-growing town with good literacy rate and improving infrastructure. It is home to Mahar and many other tribes linked to the nearby kacha area. Chak also has an important place in Shikarpur District politically, socially and economically. Historically, Chak had been part of

Sukkur District Sukkur District ( sd, سکر ضلعو, ur, ) is a district in Sindh Province in Pakistan. It is divided into 5 administrative townships (''tehsils'', also called "talukas"), namely: Sukkur City, New Sukkur, Rohri, Saleh Pat and Pano Aqil. Amon ...

, but in the late 1970s it was made part of Shikarpur District. Chak shares strong economic and social ties with

Sukkur Sukkur (; ) is a city in the Pakistani province of Sindh along the western bank of the Indus River, directly across from the historic city of Rohri. Sukkur is the third largest city in Sindh after Karachi and Hyderabad, and 14th largest ci ...

because of the natural geographic and trade route proximity.

Etymology

''Chak'' is said to be derived from a

Sindhi language Sindhi ( ; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by about 30 million people in the Pakistani province of Sindh, where it has official status. It is also spoken by a further 1.7 million people in India, where it is a Scheduled languages of India ...

word ''chakki'', meaning 'pot wheel', which is used to make pottery from clay. The clay used to be obtained from the ''cheeki matti'', the mud from inside the nearby 'Kacha' area, which is the area between two levees of the

bordering the town. It is said that there used to live many potters in the area and the town got its name from the ''chakki'' (pot wheel) used by these people.

Climate

The climate of Chak is hot and misty during summer days while cold and dry in winter. Generally the summer season commences in March–April and ends before October. January in winter chills from 7 to 22 °C. The summer temperature averages 35 °C though it often shoots up to 45 °C.

Economy

Agriculture, retailer shops, jobs in government and private organisations are the main way of living. Wholesale market is also growing up. The Bhitai Bazar & Bazar-e-Raza running through the heart of the town are the main artery of business of this small but bustling town of the locality, attracting many visitors and customers from nearby towns and villages as well. Many short bazars have also sprung up in the outskirts of the town.

Transport

Chak serves as a transport hub for the other towns of the locality. It is connected to

, Shikarpur and other towns via link roads leading to the National Highway (known as N-65). It is also connected to the

Indus Highway The Indus Highway ( ur, ), also known as National Highway 55 (N-55) ( ur, ), is a 1264 km long two to four-lane national highway that runs along the Indus River in Pakistan connecting the port city of Karachi with the northwestern city ...

(known as N-55) via Rustam town. A large number of businessmen, workers, employees, students and other people commute to Sukkur daily through designated travel services of dozens of buses and more than 60 vans to Sukkur and adjoining areas. Sukkur Airport is at a distance of around 20 kilometres south-east.

Education

Despite meager resources and poor infrastructure, many students from this small town have made it to the top colleges and universities in the country. Also many people are working in good positions in government and private organisations. There are primary and high schools for girls and boys separately. Few years back the high school for boys was upgraded to higher-secondary school. However, the quality of teaching and infrastructure to cater to the higher-secondary level have yet to be improved. Therefore, a sizeable proportion of students still commutes to

for higher-secondary education. Following are the main educational schools and centres in Chak: *Government Higher Secondary School *Government Girls High School *Government Primary School for Boys *Government Primary School for Girls *Ideal Public School *Shah Latif Public School *Al-Mustafa Public School

Libraries

The Shah Latif Library, established in 1979 by local people on self-help basis, was the town's only library until recently. The library is named after the great

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

scholar and saint

Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai ( sd, شاھ عبداللطيف ڀٽائي, ur, ; 1689/1690 – 21 December 1752), commonly known by the honorifics ''Lakhino Latif'', ''Latif Ghot'', ''Bhittai'', and ''Bhit Jo Shah'', was a Sindhi Sufi mystic, an ...

(1689–1752), who is considered as the greatest poet of the Sindhi language. The library has a repository of thousands of books mainly donated by local people. Unfortunately, now it is in a deplorable condition as it is housed in a rented old tattered building. The town very badly needs a new library with state-of-the-art facilities. Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Library, established in 2004, is a welcome addition as it was the long-standing demand of the town. The library still does not have the basic information technology and

e-learning Educational technology (commonly abbreviated as edutech, or edtech) is the combined use of computer hardware, software, and Education sciences, educational theory and practice to facilitate learning. When referred to with its abbreviation, edt ...

infrastructure and needs to be upgraded so that the growing student population of the town can be connected to other national and international libraries electronically and be part of the increasingly knowledge-based and connected society. Sathi library, also established on self-help basis in 2004, is based at the Humbah locality of the town. Despite its limited capacity, it is providing much needed services to a large number of students.

Sufi soul of the town

Chak had been largely immune from the religious extremism and intolerance, as has been the case with

in general. There have been many

saints in the area, whose shrines are located mainly in Hazrat Humbah, Chak. People from all religious affiliations pay homage to these saints year-round, especially during the annual Urs. Apart from The Shah Latif Library and Bhitai Bazar, there are many shops, retailers and a school named after

in town, which shows the attachment of the local folk with the great Sufi saint and Sufism. Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai's message of ''peace and prosperity not only at home but all the world'', which is even more relevant today than ever before, is beautifully portrayed by his most famous verses translated below: Oh God! May ever You on Sindh
bestow abundance rare;
Beloved! All the world let share
Thy grace, and fruitful be.

Places of interest

Shrines of

saints in Hazrat Humbah – especially during the annual

Urs Urs (from ''‘Urs'') or ''Urus'' (literal meaning wedding), is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, usually held at the saint's dargah (shrine or tomb). In most Sufi orders such as Naqshbandiyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya, Qadiriyya, etc ...

, the death anniversary of a Sufi saint held at the saint's shrine. The

is a grand affair in town, where people from all walks of life from Chak and surrounding villages make a determined effort to attend. The

lasts for three days. The musical gatherings are the central event of the Urs, where disciples and singers gather around and sing passages from verses of the saints. The anniversary is also marked by food fairs, open-air markets selling traditional Sindhi ware, and entertaining and competitive sports.