Pir-piai or Pirpiai is a town in the District of Nowshera in

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ...

, Pakistan. Its population is around 35,000. Pirpiai has a high

literacy rate Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...

of 92%, compared with Pakistan's average literacy rate of 55%. The village is on GT Road, 8 km from Nowshera Cantonment towards Peshawar. Most of the villagers are working-folk, adding to the work-pool through government service, and self-employment. Substantial number of people from the village are working abroad and adding to national exchequer. The village is rich in producing educated and professional class like engineers, doctors, officers of armed forces, civil servants, professors and so on.

History

Pirpiai is said to have been named after Pir Muhammad Khan of Pirpiai. Pir muhammad khan an Afghan who migrated from Afghanistan and settled in the area. History says that Pir Muhammad Khan was the son of Daulat Khan. Daulat Khan was a commander and confidant of

Nadir Shah Afshar Nader Shah Afshar ( fa, نادر شاه افشار; also known as ''Nader Qoli Beyg'' or ''Tahmāsp Qoli Khan'' ) (August 1688 – 19 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian ...

, the ruler of Iran. Nadir Shah Afshar, having defeated the

Pushtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

Hotaki ruler Mir Hussain Hotaki in

Herat Herāt (; Persian: ) is an oasis city and the third-largest city of Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Selseleh-ye Safēd ...

and

Ghazni Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...

in 1738, attempted to invade India. After his defeat, Mir Hussain Hotaki agreed to send Pushtun forces with the army of Nadir Shah. There were 12,000 Abdali (Durrani) and 4,000 Pushtun Khilji soldiers in this army. A hamlet of the Dalazak tribe was on the south bank of the Kabul River near present-day Pirpiai. The area along the river was forested at that time. When the Shah's forces reached this area they asked the Dalazak tribe to join their army, but they refused. Nadir Shah then ordered his army to destroy and burn the village, causing the Dalazaks to flee from the area. Nadir Shah awarded the area to Daulat Khan, his confidant. Daulat Khan belonged to the Gumoriani also known as the Zmaryani tribe, which is a branch of the

Kasi (Pashtun tribe) Kasi or Kassi ( ps, کاسي) is a Pashtun tribe from the Sarbani tribal confederacy, primarily found in Quetta, Pakistan and Nangarhar, Afghanistan. Other sub tribes such as Sherani, Kehthran and Hassani in Zhob and Barkan also belong to the Kasi ...

. Daulat Khan rebuilt the village, but it was later destroyed by flood of River Kabul. Pir Muhammad Khan moved some two and a half miles south and settled with family. According to the Tareekh-e-Peshawar by Rai Bahadur Munshi Gopal Das, in 1874 there were 52 Hindus and 1502 Muslims living in the village. Originally Pirpiai acted as a merchant town for passing travelers. It is situated beside the original

Sher Shah Suri Sher Shah Suri ( ps, شیرشاه سوری) (1472, or 1486 – 22 May 1545), born Farīd Khān ( ps, فرید خان) , was the founder of the Sur Empire in India, with its capital in Sasaram in modern-day Bihar. He standardized the silver coin ...

's Highway, known in modern times as the

Grand Trunk Road The Grand Trunk Road (formerly known as Uttarapath, Sarak-e-Azam, Shah Rah-e-Azam, Badshahi Sarak, and Long Walk) is one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads. For at least 2,500 years it has linked Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent. ...

. The

Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

and their armies often used this route. Men from the village were recruited by the passing armies. Bahadur Baba was a famous soldier recruited at that time, an older man who fought fiercely and with great skill. When he died fighting for the Mughal armies, the Mughal Emperor sent him back to be buried in his native village of Pirpiai, Baba's last wish.

Education, health and recreation

Besides many private educational institutions from primary to Intermediate, the village has six Government Primary Schools and three High Schools for both girls and boys. The village owns two Boys Colleges and one Girls College. Basic healthcare and medical facilities are available 24/7, both at private clinics and at Government hospitals closer to village. CMH and other Govt hospitals are within reach of the village. Cricket, Soccer, Volleyball and Badminton are popular sports in Pirpiai. The village has a park with lakes 1 km away on the

Miscellany A miscellany is a collection of various pieces of writing by different authors. Meaning a mixture, medley, or assortment, a miscellany can include pieces on many subjects and in a variety of different forms. In contrast to anthologies, whose aim ...

Pirpiai, for so long, was known as Small England (chotta wilayat) due to its high rate of literacy and development. The village is divided into smaller sectors known as " Mohallah", a few of which are: Miskeen Khail, Qamar khail, Baba Khail, Sadri Khail, Tapu Khail, Jan abad, Babar, New Miskeen Khail, Zar Muhammad Khail, Mandoori etc. Pirpiai has more than 35 mosques within its own ''Mohallahs''. Each ''Mohallah'' has at least two mosques. The village has a bank, a post office, a railway station and a sanctioned dry port. Facilities such as electricity, gas, water, sewage, landline telephone, and internet are available along with cellular mobile phone services. All five mobile operators of Pakistan have their towers installed in the village. Notable British generals including General Sir

Douglas Gracey General Sir Douglas David Gracey & Bar (3 September 1894 – 5 June 1964) was a British Indian Army officer who fought in both the First and Second World Wars. He also fought in French Indochina and was the second Commander-in-Chief of the Paki ...

, Sir

George Roos-Keppel Sir George Olaf Roos-Keppel, (7 September 1866 – 11 December 1921) was a British military officer who served in the capacities of Political Agent to the Governor-General in Kurram and Khyber, and later as Chief Commissioner, North West Fron ...

are said to have visited the village, invited by one of the known villager named Col. Mir Haider Khan Urdu by Syed Bahadur Shah Zafar Kaka Khel University Book Agency. Peshawar 2007. 78 people from Pirpiai took part in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

as soldiers in the Indian Army. Pirpiai is one of the few villages in Pakistan that has an official plaque commemorating its First World War contribution.

References

{{Reflist Populated places in Nowshera District