Potha Sharif (پوٹھہ شریف) is a village and union council of
Murree Tehsil
Murree Tehsil ( ur, تحصیل مری) is one of the two Tehsils (i.e. sub-divisions) of Murree District in the Punjab province of Pakistan.
Murree Tehsil is located in the northernmost part of Punjab province where it borders Khyber Pakhtunkhw ...
in the
Murree District
Murree District (Urdu, ) is a district in the northernmost part of Punjab province of Pakistan, with it being headquartered in Murree city. It is a relatively new district established on 14 October 2022, and is a tourist district of Pakistan. I ...
of
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
,
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 located in the north-east of the
tehsil
A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...
at 33°57'0N 73°30'0E, and is bounded to the north by Phagwari, to the south by
Sehr Bagla
Sehr Bagla (سہر بگلہ) is a Village and Union Council of Murree Tehsil in the Murree District of Punjab, Pakistan. It is located in the north-east of the Tehsil and is bounded to the north by Potha Sharif, to the south by Ghel, to the west b ...
Kashmir
Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
. The village contains the
mazar Mazar of Al-Mazar may refer to:
*Mazar (mausoleum); often but not always Muslim mausoleum or shrine.
Places
*Mazar (toponymy), a component of Arabic toponyms literally meaning shrine, grave, tomb, etc.
*Mazar, Afghanistan, a village in Balkh Pro ...
of the
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, ...
saint Hazarat Dada Malik Suraj Abbasi, forefather of the Potha Shareef people. He had seven sons and their descendants are currently present in Potha Shareef. People visit the mazar from different areas of the country to offer tribute.
The hub of the UC Potha Sharif is
Aliot
Louis Aliot (; born 4 September 1969) is a French politician, a lawyer by profession, and the vice president of the National Rally (previously named National Front) since 16 January 2011. A member of the FN Executive Office, Executive Committee ...
(علیوٹ) located on the Lower Topa - Kohala (AJK) GT Road. It has a big main market with nearly 500 shops.
Market
The main market of Aliot has many attractions and services. Available facilities are:
*Private free dispensary founded and aided by Raja Shahid Abbasi. Private hospitals and clinics, optical, dentist, physicians, X-ray clinic, spiritual healer, pharmacy.
*Photo studio, photocopier, scanner, stationary
*Mobile shops and repairing, computer repairing, electrician
*Gold and jewellery
*Shoes, garments, cloth, tailoring, cosmetics, crockery, barber, pallar
*Vegetables, fruits, bakeries, grocery, poultry, boucher
*Restaurants, marriage hall, catering
*Auto technician, petrol, diesel, carpenter, cylinder gas refilling, steel fixer, electronics, furniture, sanitary, blacksmith
Caste and language
95% of the population belongs to
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
family. The Abbasid dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib.
The primary spoken language is Pahari (Hindko), and
Read Foundation
The Rural Education and Development (READ) Foundation is a non-profit educational network in North Pakistan.
It runs a network of 390 schools across Pakistan (Sialkot, Jhelum, Gujrat, Kharian), Azad Kashmir (All Districts), Murree, Gilgit-B ...
, which runs a network of 344 schools in eight districts of Pakistan. It is governed under the supervision of
Jamaat-e-Islami
Jamaat-e-Islami ( ur, ) () is an Islamic movement founded in 1941 in British India by the Islamic theologian and socio-political philosopher, Syed Abul Ala Maududi.van der Veer P. and Munshi S. (eds.''Media, War, and Terrorism: Responses fro ...
representatives with the contribution of
Read Foundation
The Rural Education and Development (READ) Foundation is a non-profit educational network in North Pakistan.
It runs a network of 390 schools across Pakistan (Sialkot, Jhelum, Gujrat, Kharian), Azad Kashmir (All Districts), Murree, Gilgit-B ...
. Madni public school in Sehanna has also been in operation since 1995. Institutions in the village include:
*Malik Suraj Higher Secondary School (Potha)
*Read Foundation School (Potha)
*Read Foundation College (Aliot)
*Govt Boys High School (Potha)
*Govt Girls High School (Upper Aliot)
*Govt Vocational Training Centre for Women (Aliot)
*Mahawiya School of Islamic studies (Aliot)
*Madni Public School (Sihanna)
Religion & spiritual schools
The area is populated by Sunni Muslims. Prominent Mosques includes Jamia Masjid Faridia (upper Aliot), Jamia Masjid Ayesha Sadeeq (main Aliot).
Qari Irfan Abbasi is one of the leading masters in Aliot spreading religious education since 1965. Seminaries in the area include:
*Masjid Usman Ghani (Jabra Aliot)
*Jamia Faridia (Upper Aliot)
*Jamia Masjid Ayesha Sadeeq (Aliot)
*Abdullah Ibn-e-abbas (Dara دڑہ)
*Masjid Abdullah Khan Potha Sharif
*Jamia Masjid Abu Baker Sadeeq (Sihanna)
Population
According to the
2017 census of Pakistan
The 2017 Census of Pakistan was a detailed enumeration of the Pakistani population which began on 15 March 2017 and ended on 25 May 2017. It was the first census taken in the country in the 21st century, nineteen years after 1998 Census of Pakist ...