Qila Sobha Singh ( Punjabi, ur, ) is a town in

Narowal District Narowal District ( Punjabi and ur, ), is a district in the province of Punjab of Pakistan. Narowal city is the capital of the district. During the British rule, Narowal was the town of Raya Khas tehsil of Sialkot District. Narowal District ...

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 ...

province of Pakistan. Before 1 July 1991 it was part of

Sialkot District Sialkot District ( Punjabi and ur, ), is one of the districts of Punjab province of Pakistan. It is located in the Majha region of Panjab, otherwise the northeast of the province. The city of Sialkot is the capital of the district. The Sialko ...

but after 1 July 1991 it was made part of

. It is part of

and is located at and has an altitude of .Location of Qila Sobha Singh – Falling Rain Genomics
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History

There are numerous sources which trace the origins of the town but the authenticity of many of these sources varies. The less-reliable historical sources about the origins of the city have been derived from the oral traditions based on ancient local beliefs which, most historians concur, are full of inaccuracies, concocted legends and erroneous facts and pertain to the

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...

scriptures Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual prac ...

which give a description of the ancient city. These are, nonetheless, stated here. More reliable and validated historical references relating to the city date back to centuries in which it has been stated that the city is of

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

and/or

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

origin. The evidences reveal that it was a bastion of

Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...

and the town was ruled by a

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

. The origin of the town is related to a

land owner called Sobha Singh. When Sobha Singh was married, his father gave him the lands surrounding the part of Qila Sobha Singh. The name Qila implies a fort; this name originates in the fact that Sobha Singh's family had a very large and tall mansion, which was surrounded by smaller houses. Because there was a wall surrounding the whole town with several gates, the town had the appearance of a

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. Also Sobha sing has three other brothers named as Mian singh, Deedar Singh, During the

Indian rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

, British troops while tracking down the rebels kept on scouring the area and arrived at the Qila and surrounded it, believing it to be a

. Representatives of the town people, however, managed to convince the troops that the town was not in fact a

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. In 1947, the year of Pakistan's independence from the

British Indian Empire The British Raj (; from Hindi language, Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Q ...

, Qila Sobha Singh was a very small town with mainly

and

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

population. Most of the

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

and

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

living in the town moved to the Indian part of the

and many

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

immigrants moved to the area from the East

and settled over there.

Climate

Lying between 31°30′ North latitude and 73°32′ East longitude at an altitude of above sea level, Qila Sobha Singh is bounded on the north by

Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...

, northwest by

Pasrur Pasrur (Punjabi and ur, ), is a city of Sialkot District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city is the capital of Pasrur Tehsil and is administratively subdivided into 26 wards of municipal committee Pasrur. It is located at 32°16'0N 74 ...

, and on the south by

Narowal Narowal ( ur, ) is a city located on the western bank of river Ravi in the northeast of the province Punjab, Pakistan. The city is the capital of district Narowal, and a part of the Gujranwala division. It is the 94th largest city of Pakistan. ...

. Qila Sobha Singh features a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

. Qila Sobha Singh is chilly during winters; and tepid, humid and sultry during summers. May and June are the hottest months. The temperature during winter may drop to . The land is, generally, plain and fertile. Most of the rain falls during the

Monsoon season The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...

in summer which often results in flooding and deluge.

Saga about construction of Qila

It is widely believed – and this yarn has been spun by the people of the town that when ever the

Maharaja thought of constructing the fort and started constructing the fort it kept on dilapidating intermittently. An eminent sorcerer told the

that when any

will be immolated at the threshold of the fort then it will not dilapidate any more. Meanwhile, a saint, Peer Syed Baba Balaq Shah Walli (R.H) told the

that if he will drop one drop of blood at the place of fort, instead of the immolation of a Muslim, then it will also not dilapidate. It was witnessed that when the saint dropped one drop of blood from his finger at the threshold of the fort, afterwards it never became dilapidated. A shrine of that saint was built near that fort. The duties of the shrine were on His Grandson's son "Peer Syed Saqlain Shah Bukhari" but on his death on 14 August 2001, his sons took the duties of the shrine under the leadership of "Peer Syed Raza Saqlain Bukhari". A large number of believers come to the shrine on every Thursday with firm belief and food called "Langar" is distributed among them with great respect. The

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 ...

of saint "Peer Syed Baba Balaq Shah Wali(RH)" is celebrated on "28 June" every year and "27 June" in leap years.

Geography

It is geographically located at the eastern side of Pakistan. It has one inundated canal which passes through the town. The town is from

, on Narowal's northern side by road and rail. from

on its southern side by road and rail. The town is from

and from

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

. It lies above sea level. The Nala Dek flows to the north west of Qila Sobha Singh.

Demography

The local population of this town belongs to different castes of which Kashmiri, Jutt, Rajput, Gujjar, Ansari etc. are prominent. There are also few homes of migrants from Jammu Kashmir who have permanently settled in Qila Sobha Singh. The main languages spoken in Qila Sobha Singh is Punjabi. According to the 1998 census, 97% of Qila Sobha Singh's population is

. Other religion is

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

2.40%. Qila Sobha Singh is a mishmash of posh urban and rustic rural environs.

Places of visit

There is only one major place of visit in the town that is the fort (Qila) which used to be occupied by the

ruler. Now this historical place has considerably vandalised and a government primary school is working at that place. This place is in the centre of the town and overlooks the whole town like the

Cidade de Deus, Rio de Janeiro The Cidade de Deus (, ''City of God'') is a West Zone neighborhood of the city of Rio de Janeiro. It is also known as CDD among its inhabitants. The neighborhood was founded in 1960, planned and executed by the government of Guanabara State as p ...

in Brazil. The worship place of saint (Sufi) Balaq Shah Wali also adjacent to its back. There is also a famous tomb in Ali Pur Sayyadan which is from Qila Sobha Singh, there is held a mammoth Urs in the month of May or June; a lot of people throng there from various cities and areas.

Transportation

Public Transport is available from all sides of the town. One can reach the town through train and bus as well. If you are coming from Lahore you can take train which departs at 03:45 PM daily and takes approximately 3 hours to reach the town. There is only one daily train service which serves the town directly, 3 trains from Lahore to Narowal and you can reach town by bus from Narowal to town. You can also travel to the town through public bus and hiace, but you might have to change the bus from

if you are coming from

. If you are coming from

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...

then you have to change the bus at Sialkot. There is also direct bus service from Rawalpindi Pir Wadahai Bus Stop but it runs after 1 hour. There is no proper schedule of bus service from Islamabad. At night time one might face problem of public transport. The fare from Lahore to the town is 200PKR and from Islamabad 450PKR. The fare of bus is relatively low as compared with the hiace. At 3:15PM a Hiace departs daily from Pir Wadhai, Rawalpindi bus stop the last terminus of this hiace is Talwandi Bhindran but it passes through the town.

Medical facility

There is one basic health unit situated near the

Train Station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing suc ...

, on Thana Road. There are two Medical Officers in the hospital and one lady health visitor. This hospital was visited by the then

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

, Mr.

Shehbaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi: , ; born 23 September 1951) is a Pakistani politician and businessman who is currently serving as the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan, in office since 11 April 2022. He is the current president of ...

, in 1997 and it presented wonky and desolate look to the C.M.

Economy

The main crops of the town are rice, wheat and vegetables. The poor people of the town also visit the adjacent city,

, for work in factories. The people also sew footballs in order to be the breadwinners of their family. There are shops at minuscule level which cater the needs of the town inhabitants. Harbans lal chairman International Group Ludhiana is the most notable person born and brought up at Qila Sobha Singh, He started as a labourer in a mechanical workshop and by sheer hardwork and sincerity he established industrial group in Ludhiana.

Religious places

There is a shrine of an illustrious saint (Sufi) Balaq Shah Wali. He belongs to the genealogy of saints. That is revealed in the book of

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies migh ...

. He converted many non-believers to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. There are also few religious schisms which remain busy in proselytising the dwellers of the town to Islamic teachings ordained by the prophet

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...

. Pir Syed

Jamaat Ali Shah Jamaat Ali Shah (1834–1951) was a Sufi of the Naqshbandi order and an author. He was President of All India Sunni Conference and the leader of the Shaheed Ganj Mosque. He was an influential leader of the Pakistan Movement.THE RELIGIOUS AND REFO ...

Naqsbandi-Mujaddidi (c.1840 -1951) belonged to Ali Pur Syedan a village near Qila Sobha Singh. He came from

Shiraz Shiraz (; fa, شیراز, Širâz ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, Fars Province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As o ...

, a city in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, and belonged to genealogy of saints. Plenty of people visit the

shrine A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy sacred space, space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor worship, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, Daemon (mythology), daem ...

of Jamat Ali Shah annually as a religious fervour. Qila Sobha Singh is surrounded by the shrines of different saints.

Culture

The native language of the town is Punjabi. The culture of the town dwellers is hotchpotch of different cultures the young generation is clad in western style but those who love to observe shibboleths mostly wear

Shalwar kameez Shalwar kameez (also salwar kameez and less commonly shalwar qameez) is a traditional combination dress worn by women, and in some regions by men, in South Asia, and Central Asia. ''Shalwars'' are trousers which are atypically wide at the wa ...

Areas in vicinity

The adjacent areas or villages to Qila Sobha Singh are Bhagh,

Lalla Lalla ( 720–790 CE) was an Indian mathematician, astronomer, and astrologer who belonged to a family of astronomers. Lalla was the son of Trivikrama Bhatta and the grandson of Śâmba."Lalla." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. He liv ...

, Kotli Sanghay, Maan, and Dhamthal on south east side. On east side, khemonwali, Noonar, Muslmanian and Badocheeda villages lie. On south west Sojowali, Ali Pur Syedan Sharif, Baanghy, Osaaha(Wsaya), Puhla and Takhtpur lie. On west side ''Dera Sulehrian'' is the famous dera in town. This dera attach two districts Narowal and Sialkot. Qila Ahmad has different mahalas, but mahala Badhai is a mahala of Qila Ahmad Abad near the railway station. This does not exist on google maps I want to try ad this mahala on google maps.

References

{{Reflist Populated places in Narowal District Narowal District