Rawal Pindi
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Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's capital Islamabad, and the two are jointly known as the " twin cities" because of the social and economic links between them. Rawalpindi is on the Pothohar Plateau, known for its ancient
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 ...
and Buddhist heritage, especially in the neighbouring town of
Taxila Taxila or Takshashila (; sa, तक्षशिला; pi, ; , ; , ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. Located in the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, it lies approximately northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and ...
, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1765, the ruling Gakhars were defeated and the city came under Sikh rule, becoming an important city within the Sikh Empire based at Lahore. The city's ''Babu Mohallah'' neighbourhood was once home to a community of Jewish traders that had fled Mashhad, Persia, in the 1830s. The city was conquered by the British Raj in 1849, and in the late 19th century became the largest
garrison town A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...
of the
British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
's Northern command as its climate suited the British authorities. Britain's army elevated the city from a small town to the third largest city in Punjab by 1921. Following the partition of British India in 1947, the city became home to the
headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...
of the
Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...
, retaining its status as a major military city. In 1951, the Rawalpindi conspiracy took place in which leftist army officers conspired to depose the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, Liaquat Ali Khan. Rawalpindi later became the site of the Liaquat Ali Khan's assassination. On 27 December 2007, Rawalpindi was the site of the
assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...
of former Prime Minister
Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
. Construction of Pakistan's new purpose-built national capital city of Islamabad in 1961 led to greater investment in the city provided by
IMF The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...
and local banks, as well as a brief stint as the country's capital before the completion of Islamabad. Modern Rawalpindi is socially and economically intertwined with Islamabad, and the greater
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
. The city is also home to numerous suburban housing developments that serve as bedroom-communities for workers in Islamabad. As home to the GHQ of the
Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...
and the former Benazir Bhutto International Airport (now part of PAF Base Nur Khan), and with connections to the M-1 and M-2 motorways, Rawalpindi is a major logistics and transportation centre for northern Pakistan. The city is also home to historic havelis and temples, and serves as a hub for tourists visiting Rohtas Fort,
Azad Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (; ), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir, is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger Ka ...
,
Taxila Taxila or Takshashila (; sa, तक्षशिला; pi, ; , ; , ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. Located in the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, it lies approximately northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and ...
and
Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute bet ...
.


History


Origins

The region around Rawalpindi has been inhabited for thousands of years. It was founded as a village by Bappa Rawal, and remained a regional town of less importance up until late 18th century when it became an important city within Mughal empire. Rawalpindi falls within the ancient boundaries of
Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
, and is thus in a region containing many Buddhist ruins. In the region north-west of Rawalpindi, traces have been found of at least 55
stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circumamb ...
s, 28 Buddhist monasteries, 9 temples, and various artifacts in the Kharoshthi script. To the southeast are the ruins of the
Mankiala stupa The Manikyala Stupa ( ur, ) is a Buddhist stupa near the village of Tope Mankiala, in Pakistan's Punjab province. The stupa was built to commemorate the spot, where according to the Jataka tales, an incarnation of the Buddha called Prince Satt ...
– a second-century stupa where, according to the Jataka tales, a previous incarnation of the Buddha leapt off a cliff in order to offer his corpse to seven hungry tiger cubs. The nearby town of
Taxila Taxila or Takshashila (; sa, तक्षशिला; pi, ; , ; , ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. Located in the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, it lies approximately northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and ...
is thought to have been home to the world's first university. Sir Alexander Cunningham identified ruins on the site of the Rawalpindi Cantonment as the ancient city of Ganjipur (or Gajnipur), the capital of the
Bhatti tribe Bhati is a clan of Rajputs History The Bhatis reportedly originated in Mathura through a common ancestor named Bhati, who was a descendant of Pradyumn. According to the seventeenth-century Nainsi ri Khyat, the Bhatis after losing Mathura ...
in the ages preceding the Christian era.


Medieval

The first mention of Rawalpindi's earliest settlement dates from when
Mahmud of Ghazni Yamīn-ud-Dawla Abul-Qāṣim Maḥmūd ibn Sebüktegīn ( fa, ; 2 November 971 – 30 April 1030), usually known as Mahmud of Ghazni or Mahmud Ghaznavi ( fa, ), was the founder of the Turkic Ghaznavid dynasty, ruling from 998 to 1030. At th ...
destroyed Rawalpindi and the town was restored by '' Gakhar'' chief ''Kai Gohar'' in the early 11th century. The town fell into decay again after Mongol invasions in the 14th century. Situated along an invasion route, the settlement did not prosper and remained deserted until 1493, when ''Jhanda Khan'' re-established the ruined town, and named it ''Rawal''.


Mughal

During the Mughal era, Rawalpindi remained under the rule of the
Ghakhar Ghakhar Mandi ( pa, ) is a city in the Gujranwala District of Pakistan, located between Wazirabad to the northwest and Gujranwala to the southeast. It is central to 33 villages, and the home of Pakistan's second-largest electrical grid. Ghakhar ...
clan, who in turn pledged allegiance to the Mughal Empire. The city was developed as an important outpost in order to guard the frontiers of the Mughal realm. Gakhars fortified a nearby
caravanserai A caravanserai (or caravansary; ) was a roadside inn where travelers ( caravaners) could rest and recover from the day's journey. Caravanserais supported the flow of commerce, information and people across the network of trade routes covering ...
, in the 16th century, transforming it into the Rawat Fort in order to defend the Pothohar plateau from Sher Shah Suri's forces. Construction of the Attock Fort in 1581 after Akbar led a campaign against his brother Mirza Muhammad Hakim, further securing Rawalpindi's environs. In December 1585, the Emperor
Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...
arrived in Rawalpindi, and remained in and around Rawalpindi for 13 years as he extended the frontiers of the empire, in an era described as a "glorious period" in his career as Emperor. With the onset of chaos and rivalry between Gakhar chiefs after the death of Kamal Khan in 1559, Rawalpindi was awarded to Said Khan by the Mughal Emperor. The Emperor Jehangir visited the royal camp in Rawalpindi in 1622, where he first learned of Shah Abbas I of Persia's plan to invade Kandahar.


Sikh Misl

Rawalpindi declined in importance as
Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...
power declined, until the town was captured in the mid-1760s from Muqarrab Khan by 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 ...
under Sardar Gujjar Singh and his son Sahib Singh. The city's administration was handed to Sardar Milkha Singh, who then invited traders from the neighbouring commercial centers of
Jhelum Jhelum ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a city on the east bank of the Jhelum River, which is located in the district of Jhelum in the north of Punjab province, Pakistan. It is the 44th largest city of Pakistan by population. Jhelum is known for p ...
and Shahpur to settle in the territory in 1766. The city then began to prosper, although the population in 1770 is estimated to have been only about 300 families. Rawalpindi became for a time the refuge of
Shah Shuja Shāh Shujā' ( fa, شاه شجاع, meaning: ''brave king'') may refer to the following: *Shah Shoja Mozaffari, the 14th-century Muzaffarid ruler of Southern Iran *Shah Shuja (Mughal prince) (1616-1661), the second son of Shah Jahan *Shah Shujah D ...
, the exiled king of Afghanistan, and of his brother Shah Zaman in the early 19th century.


Sikh Empire

Sikh ruler Maharaja Ranjit Singh allowed the son of Sardar Milkha Singh to continue as Governor of Rawalpindi, after Ranjit Singh seized the district in 1810. Sikh rule over Rawalpindi was consolidated by defeat of the Afghans at Haidaran in July 1813. The Sikh rulers allied themselves with some of the local Gakhar tribes, and jointly defeated Syed Ahmad Barelvi at Akora Khattak in 1827, and again in 1831 in Balakot. Jews first arrived in Rawalpindi's ''Babu Mohallah'' neighbourhood from
Mashhad Mashhad ( fa, مشهد, Mašhad ), also spelled Mashad, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. It serves as the capital of R ...
, Persia in 1839, in order to flee from anti-Jewish laws instituted by the Qajar dynasty. In 1841, Diwan Kishan Kaur was appointed ''Sardar'' of Rawalpindi. On 14 March 1849, Sardar Chattar Singh and Raja Sher Singh of the Sikh Empire surrendered to General Gilbert near Rawalpindi, ceding the city to the British. The Sikh Empire then came to an end on 29 March 1849.


British

Following Rawalpindi's capture by the British East India company, 53rd Regiment of the company army took quarters in the newly captured city. The decision to man a permanent military cantonment in the city was made in 1851 by the
Marquess of Dalhousie A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...
. The city saw its first telegraph office in the early 1850s. The city's Garrison Church was built shortly after in 1854, and is the site where Robert Milman, Bishop of Calcutta, was buried following his death in Rawalpindi in 1876. The city was home to 15,913 people in the 1855 census. During the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny, the area's Gakhars and Janjua tribes remained loyal to the British. Numerous civil and military buildings were built during the British era, and the Municipality of Rawalpindi was constituted in 1867, while the city's population as per the 1868 census was 19,228, with another 9,358 people residing in the city's cantonment. The city was also connected to railways that offered connection to India and the northwest frontier in Peshawar in the 1880s. The Commissariat Steam Flour Mills were the first such mills in Punjab, and supplied most of the needs of British cantonments throughout Punjab. Rawalpindi's cantonment served as a feeder to other cantonments throughout the region. Rawalpindi flourished as a commercial centre, though the city remained largely devoid of an industrial base during the British era. A large portion of Kashmir's external trade passing through the city; in 1885, 14% of Kashmir's exports, and 27% of its imports passed through the city. A large market was opened in central Rawalpindi in 1883 by Sardar Sujan Singh, while the British further developed a shopping district for the city's elite known as ''Saddar'' with an archway built to commemorate Brigadier General Massey. Rawalpindi's cantonment became a major centre of military power of the Raj after an arsenal was established in 1883. Britain's army elevated the city from a small town, to the third largest city in Punjab by 1921. In 1868, 9,358 people lived in the city's cantonment – by 1891, the number rose to 37,870. In 1891, the city's population excluding the Cantonment was 34,153. The city was considered to be a favourite first posting for newly arrived soldiers from England, owing to the city's agreeable climate, and the nearby
hill station A hill station is a town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The term was used mostly in colonial Asia (particularly in India), but also in Africa (albeit rarely), for towns founded by European colonialists as refuges ...
of Murree. In 1901, Rawalpindi was made the winter headquarters of the Northern Command and of the Rawalpindi military division. Riots broke out against British rule in 1905, following a famine in Punjab that peasants were led to believe was a deliberate act. During World War I,
Rawalpindi District Rawalpindi District ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a district located in the northernmost part of the Punjab province of Pakistan. Parts of the district form part of the Islamabad Rawalpindi metropolitan area. Rawalpindi city is the district capi ...
"stood first" among districts in recruiting for the British war effort, with greater financial assistance from the British government channeled into the area in return. By 1921, Rawalpindi's cantonment had overshadowed the city - Rawalpindi was one of seven cities of Punjab in which over half the population lived in the cantonment district. Communal riots erupted between Rawalpindi's Sikh and Muslim communities in 1926 after Sikhs refused to silence music from a procession that was passing in front of a mosque. was launched as an
ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...
in 1925 by Harland and Wolff, the same company which built . The ship was converted into an armed vessel, and was sunk in October 1939. The British government carried out poison gas testing on Indian troops during the
Rawalpindi experiments The Rawalpindi experiments were experiments involving use of mustard gas carried out by British scientists from Porton Down on hundreds of soldiers from the British Indian Army. These experiments were carried out before and during the Second Worl ...
over the course of more than a decade beginning in the 1930s.


Partition

On 5 March 1947, members of Rawalpindi's Hindu and Sikh communities took out a procession against the formation of a Muslim ministry within the Government of Punjab. Policemen fired upon protestors, while Hindus and Sikhs fought against weaker Muslim counter-protestors. The area's first Partition riots erupted the next day on 6 March 1947, when the city's Muslims, angered by the actions of Hindus and Sikhs and encouraged by the Pir of Golra Sharif, raided nearby villages after they were unable to do so in the city on account of Rawalpindi's heavily armed Sikhs. At the dawn of Pakistan's independence in 1947 following the success of the Pakistan Movement, Rawalpindi was a 43.79% Muslim, while Rawalpindi District as a whole was 80% Muslim. The region, on account of its large Muslim majority, was thus awarded to Pakistan. Rawalpindi's
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 ...
and
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 ...
population, who had made up 33.72% and 17.32% of the city, migrated ''en masse'' to the newly independent Dominion of India after anti-Hindu and anti-Sikh pogroms in western Punjab, while Muslim refugees from India settled in the city following anti-Muslim pogroms in eastern Punjab and northern India.


Modern

In the years following independence, Rawalpindi saw an influx of Muhajir, Pashtun and
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Barua ...
settlers. Having been the largest British Cantonment in the region at the dawn of Pakistan's independence, Rawalpindi was chosen as headquarters for the Pakistani Army, despite the fact that Karachi had been selected as the first capital. In 1951, the Rawalpindi conspiracy took place in which leftist army officers conspired to depose the first elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, Liaquat Ali Khan. Rawalpindi later became the site of the Liaquat Ali Khan's assassination, in what is now known as Liaquat Bagh Park. In 1958, Field Marshal
Ayub Khan Ayub Khan is a compound masculine name; Ayub is the Arabic version of the name of the Biblical figure Job, while Khan or Khaan is taken from the title used first by the Mongol rulers and then, in particular, their Islamic and Persian-influenced s ...
launched his '' coup d'etat'' from Rawalpindi. In 1959, the city became the interim capital of the country under Ayub Khan, who had sought the creation of a new planned capital of Islamabad in the vicinity of Rawalpindi. As a result, Rawalpindi saw most major central government offices and institutions relocate to nearby territory, and its population rapidly expand. Construction of Pakistan's new capital city of Islamabad in 1961 led to greater investment in Rawalpindi. Rawalpindi remained the headquarters of the Pakistani Army after the capital shifted to Islamabad in 1969, while the Pakistan Air Force continues to maintain an airbase in the Chaklala district of Rawalpindi. The military dictatorship of General Zia ul Haq hanged Pakistan's deposed Prime Minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, in Rawalpindi in 1979. In 1980, tens of thousands of Shia protestors led by Mufti Jaffar Hussain marched on Rawalpindi to protest a provision of Zia ul Haqs Islamization programme. A spate of bombings in September 1987 took place in the city killing 5 people, in attacks that are believed to have been orchestrated by agents of Afghanistan's communist government. On 10 April 1988, Rawalpindi's Ojhri Camp, an ammunition depot for Afghan
mujahideen ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term th ...
fighting against Soviet forces in Afghanistan, exploded and killed many in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. At the time, the New York Times reported more than 93 were killed and another 1,100 wounded; many believe that the toll was much higher. Riots erupted in Rawalpindi in 1992 as mobs attacked Hindu temples in retaliation for the destruction of the
Babri Masjid Babri Masjid (IAST: Bābarī Masjid; meaning ''Mosque of Babur'') was a mosque in Ayodhya, India, at a site believed by many Hindus to be the birthplace of Hindu deity Rama. It has been a focus of dispute between the Hindu and Muslim communi ...
in India . On 27 December 2007, Rawalpindi was the site of the
assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...
of former Prime Minister
Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
. Modern Rawalpindi is socially and economically intertwined with Islamabad, and the greater
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
. The city is also home to numerous suburban housing developments that serve as bedroom-communities for workers in Islamabad. In June 2015, the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metrobus, a new
bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...
line with various points in Islamabad, opened for service.


Geography


Climate

Rawalpindi 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° ...
( Köppen: Cwa) with hot and wet summers, a cooler and drier winter. Rawalpindi and its twin city Islamabad, during the year experiences an average of 91 thunderstorms, which is the highest frequency of any plain elevation city in the country. Strong windstorms are frequent in the summer during which wind gusts have been reported by Pakistan Meteorological Department to have reached . In such thunder/wind storms, which results in some damage of infrastructure. The weather is highly variable due to the proximity of the city to the foothills of Himalayas. The average annual rainfall is , most of which falls in the summer monsoon season. However, westerly disturbances also bring quite significant rainfall in the winter. In summer, the record maximum temperature has soared to recorded in June 1954, while it has dropped to a minimum of several occasions, though the last of which was in January 1967.


Cityscape

Social structures in Rawalpindi's historic core centre around neighbourhoods, each known as a ''Mohallah''. Each neighbourhood is served by a nearby bazaar and mosque, which in turn serve as a place where people can gather for trade and manufacturing.Hull, M. S. (2013). "Government of Paper: The Materiality of Bureaucracy in Urban Pakistan", University of California Press. Each ''Mohallah'' has narrow ''gallies'', and the grouping of houses around short lanes and cul-de-sacs lends a sense of privacy and security to residents of each neighbourhood. Major intersections in the neighbourhood are each referred to as a ''chowk''. Rawalpindi is relatively a new city contrasted with Pakistan's millennia-old cities such as Lahore, Multan, and Peshawar. South of Rawalpindi's historic core, and across the Lai Nullah, are the wide lanes of the Rawalpindi Cantonment. With tree-lined avenues and historic architecture, the cantonment was the main European area developed during British colonial rule. British colonialists also built the Saddar Bazaar south of the historic core, which served as a retail center geared towards Europeans in the city. Beyond the cantonment are the large suburban housing developments that serve as bedroom communities for Islamabad's commuter population.


Demographics

The population of Rawalpindi is 2,098,231 in 2017. 84% of the population is
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
, 9% is Pashtun, and 7% is from other ethnic groups.


Religion

96.8% of Rawalpindi's population is Muslim, 2.47% is Christian, 0.73% belong to other religious groups. The city's ''Kohaati Bazaar'' is site of large Shia mourning-processions for
Ashura Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. Among Shia Muslims, Ashura is observed through large demonstrations of high-scale mourning as it marks the ...
. The neighbourhoods of ''Waris Shah Mohallah'' and ''Pir Harra Mohallah'' form the core of Muslim settlement in Rawalpindi's old city. Rawalpindi was a majority
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 ...
and
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 ...
city prior to the
Partition of India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...
in 1947, while Muslims made up 43.79% of the population. The Baba Dyal Singh Gurdwara in Rawalpindi was where the reformist Nirankari movement of Sikhism originated. The city still has a small Sikh population, but has been bolstered by the arrival of Sikhs fleeing political instability in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The city is still home to a few hundred Hindu families. Despite the fact that the vast majority of the city's Hindus fled ''en masse'' to India after Partition, most Hindu temples in the old city remain standing, although in disrepair and often abandoned. Many of the old city's neighbourhoods continue to bear Hindu and Sikh names, such as Krishanpura, Arya Mohallah, Akaal Garh, Mohanpura, Amarpura, Kartarpura, Bagh Sardaraan, Angatpura. The Shri Krishna Mandir is the only functional Hindu temple in Rawalpindi. It was built in the Kabarri Bazaar in 1897. Other temples are abandoned or were repurposed. Rawalpindi's large Kalyan Das Temple from 1880 has been used as the "Gov't. Qandeel Secondary School for the Blind" since 1973. The Ram Leela Temple in ''Kanak Mandi'', and the Kaanji Mal Ujagar Mal Ram Richpal Temple in the Kabarri Bazaar, are both currently used to house Kashmiri refugees. Mohan Temple in the ''Lunda Bazaar'' remains standing, but is abandoned and the building no longer used for any purpose. The city's "Shamshan Ghat" serves as the city's cremation grounds, and was partly renovated in 2012. The city's ''Babu Mohallah'' neighbourhood was once home to a community of Jewish traders that had fled
Mashhad Mashhad ( fa, مشهد, Mašhad ), also spelled Mashad, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. It serves as the capital of R ...
, Persia in the 1830s. The community had entirely emigrated to Israel by the 1960s. In the British era many churches were built for the British soldiers to come to the churches for Sunday prayer because Rawalpindi Cantonment was the home for the British Army.


Transportation


Public transportation

The Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metrobus is a
bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...
system operating in the Islamabad-Rawalpindi metropolitan area. The Metrobus network's first phase was opened on 4 June 2015, and stretches 22.5 kilometres between Pak Secretariat, in Islamabad, and Saddar in Rawalpindi. The second stage stretches 25.6 kilometres between the Peshawar Morr Interchange and
New Islamabad International Airport Islamabad International Airport () is the international airport serving Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan. It is located south-west of the city, and is accessed via Srinagar Highway. The airport commenced full operations in 6 May 2018 ...
and was inaugurated on 18 April 2022. The system uses e-ticketing and an Intelligent Transportation System and is managed by the Punjab Mass Transit Authority.


Road

Rawalpindi is situated along the historic Grand Trunk Road that connects Peshawar to Islamabad and Lahore. The road is roughly paralleled by the M-1 Motorway between Peshawar and Rawalpindi, while the M-2 Motorway provides an alternate route to Lahore via the Salt Range. The Grand Trunk Road also provides access to the Afghan border via the
Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing pa ...
, with onwards connections to Kabul and Central Asia via the Salang Pass. The Karakoram Highway provides access between Islamabad and western China, and an alternate route to Central Asia via
Kashgar Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan ...
in the Chinese region of Xinjiang. The Islamabad Expressway connects Rawalpindi's eastern portions with the Rawal Lake and heart of Islamabad. The IJP Road separates Rawalpindi's northern edge from Islamabad.


Motorways

Rawalpindi is connected to Peshawar by the M-1 Motorway. The motorway also links Rawalpindi to major cities in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, such as Charsadda and Mardan. The M-2 motorway offers high speed access to Lahore via the
Potohar Plateau The Pothohar Plateau ( ur, ) is a plateau in north-eastern Pakistan, located between Indus River and the Jhelum River, forming the northern part of Punjab. Geography Potohar Plateau is bounded on the east by the Jhelum River, on the west by ...
and Salt Range. The M-3 Motorway branches off from the M-2 at the city of Pindi Bhattian, where the M-3 offers onward connections to Faisalabad, and connects to the M-4 Motorway which continues onward to Multan. A new motorway network is under construction to connect Multan and Karachi as part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor. The Hazara Motorway is also under construction as part of CPEC, and will provide control-access motorway travel all the way to Mansehra via the M-1 or Grand Trunk Road.


Rail

Rawalpindi railway station in the Saddar neighbourhood serves as a stop along Pakistan's -long Main Line-1 railway that connects the city to the port city of Karachi to Peshawar. The stations is served by the
Awam Express ''Awam Express'' ( ur, ) is a passenger train operated daily by Pakistan Railways between Karachi and Peshawar. It is one of the longest continuous running passenger trains in Pakistan. The trip takes approximately 33 hours and 30 minutes to c ...
, Hazara Express, Islamabad Express,
Jaffar Express ''Gaffar Express'' ( ur, ) is a passenger train operated daily by Pakistan Railways between Quetta and Peshawar. The trip takes approximately 34 hours, 10 minutes to cover a published distance of , traveling along a stretch of the Rohri– ...
, Khyber Mail trains, and serves as the terminus for the
Margalla Express Margalla Express ( ur, ) is a passenger train operated daily by Pakistan Railways between Lahore and Rawalpindi. The trip takes approximately 4 hours, 50 minutes to cover a published distance of , traveling along a stretch of the Karachi–P ...
, Mehr Express, Rawal Express, Pakistan Express, Subak Raftar Express, Green Line Express,
Sir Syed Express ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...
, Subak Kharam Express and Tezgam trains. The entire Main Line-1 railway track between Karachi and Peshawar is to be overhauled at a cost of $3.65 billion for the first phase of the project, with completion by 2021. Upgrading of the railway line will permit train travel at speeds of 160 kilometres per hour, versus the average 60 to 105 km per hour speed currently possible on existing track.


Air

Rawalpindi is served by the Islamabad International Airport. The airport is located 21 km west of the city. It offers non-stop flights throughout Pakistan, as well as to the Middle East, Europe, North America, Central Asia, East Asia and Southeast Asia.


Administrative divisions

The City-District of Rawalpindi is sub-divided into one Municipal Corporation Two Cantonment Board and Seven tehsils: * Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation Rawalpindi Cit

* Rawalpindi Cantonment, Rawalpindi Cantonment Board Rawalpindi Cant

* Chaklala Cantonment, Chaklala Cantonment Board Chaklala Cant

Rawalpindi also holds many private colonies that have developed themselves rapidly, e.g. Gulraiz Housing Society, Korang Town, Agochs Town, Ghori Town, Pakistan Town, Judicial Town, Bahria Town which is the Asia's largest private colony, Kashmir Housing Society, Danial Town, Al-Haram City, Education City, Gul Afshan Colony, Allama Iqbal Colony.


Parks

Ayub National Park Ayub National Park, commonly known as Ayub Park or, historically, Topi Rakh Park (''Rakh'' lit. ''reserve'' in Potwari), is a national park located on the Grand Trunk Road, not far away from the old presidency in Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan ...
is located beyond the old Presidency on
Jhelum Jhelum ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a city on the east bank of the Jhelum River, which is located in the district of Jhelum in the north of Punjab province, Pakistan. It is the 44th largest city of Pakistan by population. Jhelum is known for p ...
Road. It covers an area of about and has a playland, lake with boating facility, an aquarium and a garden-restaurant. Rawalpindi Public Park is on
Murree Road Murree Road (), alternatively known as Benazir Bhutto Road, is a major road that runs from Islamabad and Rawalpindi to Murree in Pakistan. It passes through Rawalpindi's downtown area, and has been a hotspot for various political and social ev ...
near Shamsabad. The Park was opened to the public in 1991. It has a playland for children, grassy lawns, fountains and flower beds. In 2008 Jinnah Park was inaugurated at the heart of Rawalpindi and has since become a hotspot of activity for the city. It houses a state-of-the-art cinema, Cinepax, a
Metro Cash and Carry Metro AG is a German multinational company based in Düsseldorf which operates business membership only cash and carry stores primarily under the Metro brand. Until 2020 it was also active in general retail business through Real division, wh ...
supermart, an outlet of McDonald's, gaming lounges,
Motion Rides Simulator rides are a type of amusement park or fairground ride, where the audience is shown a movie while their seats move to correspond to the action on screen. There are many types but they fall into the heading of entertainment unlike the on ...
and other recreational facilities. The vast lawns also provide an adequate picnic spot. Rawalpindi is situated near the ''
Ayub National Park Ayub National Park, commonly known as Ayub Park or, historically, Topi Rakh Park (''Rakh'' lit. ''reserve'' in Potwari), is a national park located on the Grand Trunk Road, not far away from the old presidency in Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan ...
'' formerly known as 'Topi Rakh' (keep the hat on) is by the old Presidency, between the Murree Brewery Co. and Grand Trunk Road. It covers an area of about and has a play area, lake with boating facility, an aquarium, a garden-restaurant and an open-air theater. This park hosts " The Jungle Kingdom" which is particularly popular among young residents. * Liaquat Bagh, formerly known as the "company bagh" (East India Company's Garden), is of great historical interest. The first prime minister of Pakistan, Liaquat Ali Khan, was assassinated here in 1950. Pakistan's Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated here on 27 December 2007. She was the youngest and the only woman to be elected as Prime Minister of Pakistan. *Rawalpindi Public Park (previously Nawaz Sharif Park, renamed Iqbal Park in 2019) is located on Murree Road just opposite to the Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi. The park was opened in 1991. It has a play area for children, lawns, fountains and flower beds. A
cricket stadium One hundred and twenty-one grounds have hosted Test cricket since the first officially recognised Test match between Australia and England in Melbourne in March 1877. The grounds are listed in the order in which they were first used as a venue f ...
was built in 1992 opposite the public park. Several matches in the 1996 World Cup were held on this cricket ground.


Economy


Education

Rawalpindi District is home to 2,463 government public schools, out of which 1706 are primary schools, 306 middle schools, 334 are high schools, while 117 are higher education colleges. 97.4% of children ages 6–16 in urban areas of
Rawalpindi District Rawalpindi District ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a district located in the northernmost part of the Punjab province of Pakistan. Parts of the district form part of the Islamabad Rawalpindi metropolitan area. Rawalpindi city is the district capi ...
are enrolled in school – the third highest percentage in Pakistan after Islamabad and Karachi. 77.1% of Rawalpindi's students in Class 5 are able to read sentences in English. 27% of children in Rawalpindi attend paid private schools. * Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Rawalpindi, established in 1978 to conduct SSC and HSSC examinations. * Pir Mehr Ali Shah, Arid Agriculture University (also known as Barani University) is a renowned public university offering research and education in a number of fields and specializing in agriculture. It is on the Murree Road and is placed near other landmarks of the city including the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi Public Park,
Rawalpindi Arts Council Rawalpindi Arts Council (RAC) is an art gallery and art institution located at Stadium road, Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore an ...
etc. Arid University is the only university providing agriculture related degrees in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. * Army Medical College is also known as the College of Medical Sciences and is on Abid Majid Road in Rawalpindi. Separate computer labs are available for post-graduate and undergraduate students. Other facilities in the campus include a library, cafeteria, college mosque, swimming pool, gym, squash court, and auditorium. There are seven hostels for male and female students near the college campus. * College of Electrical & Mechanical Engineering is located on Grand Trunk Road in Rawalpindi, EME is the largest constituent college of NUST. The campus includes all on-campus facilities, auditorium and conference hall, accommodation and mess facilities. The library is fully computerized, with a collection of 70,000 volumes. *
Rawalpindi University Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...
is on Hamayun Road in Rawalpindi Cantt; it is the oldest constituent college of NUST before, founded in 2022 after the Pakistani Khan government to train the members of Pakistan Armed Forces. The College of Telecommunication Engineering is located on this campus. The MCS library is computerized, with over 55,000 volumes. *
Rawalpindi Medical University Rawalpindi Medical University () is a public university located in Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan. It is affiliated with three public sector teaching hospitals (Holy Family Hospital, Benazir Bhutto Hospital & DHQ Hospital- Rawalpindi) for undergr ...
provides education in health care. It is a comprehensive, state-assisted institution. It was established in March 1974.It has the highest enrollment of 350 students among medical colleges in Pakistan. *The Rawalpindi Public Library was one of the earliest private public libraries organized after separation from India. The building was donated for a public library by the then-Deputy Commissioner Major Davis on the initiative of philanthropist Khurshid Anwar Jilani, an attorney, writer and social worker. However, the building was confiscated for election and political campaigning during the last days of Field Marshal Ayub Khan's reign, and rare manuscripts and artifacts were taken away by the influential. *
Fatima Jinnah Women University Fatima Jinnah Women University ( ur, ) or FJWU is a public university in the neighborhood of Mall Road of Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan. Recognized university Regarded as the first women's university in Pakistan, it is ranked at number 18 in g ...
The first ever Women University of Pakistan * Gordon College Rawalpindi is one of the oldest colleges located in the heart of the city. It was established in 1872. College offers Graduate and master's degree program. Historically the college has been known for its cultural activities as it has one of the largest auditorium in which stage dramas and other programs were regularly conducted. College remained co-education until the early 1970s but after Zia-ul-Haq regime it was converted to boys only. * Foundation University RWP Campus located in new Lalazar alongside FFCB. They offer mainly IT and Biotech related courses like Phd in Computer Science etc. *
Rawalpindi Women University The Rawalpindi Women University (RWU) is a public university funded by the Government of Punjab, Pakistan in Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan. The university has been running 15 BS Honors,16 Masters and 1 M.Phil. program successfully. The university ...
The Rawalpindi Women University is a public university funded by the Government of Punjab. The university has been running 15 BS Honors,16 Masters and 1 M.Phil. program successfully.


Media

Rawalpindi, being so close to the capital, has an active media and newspaper climate. There are over a dozen of newspaper companies based in the city including '' Daily Nawa-i-Waqt,
Daily Jang The ''Daily Jang'' ( ur, ) is an Urdu newspaper headquartered in Karachi, Pakistan. It is the oldest newspaper of Pakistan in continuous publication since its foundation in 1939, first published during World War II, hence the name (Jang) translat ...
, Daily Asas, The Daily Sada-e-Haq,
Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...
,
Daily Din Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
, Daily Aajkal Rawalpindi, Daily Islam,'' and ''
Daily Pakistan The ''Daily Pakistan'' ( ur, ) is a daily newspaper in Pakistan, published both in Urdu language and in English. Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami is its chief editor.Urdu and '' Dawn,
Express Tribune ''The Express Tribune'' is a daily English-language newspaper based in Pakistan. It is the flagship publication of the '' Daily Express'' media group. It is Pakistan's only internationally affiliated newspaper in a partnership with the ''Intern ...
,
Daily Times ''Daily Times'' may refer to the following national newspapers: * ''Daily Times'' (Nigeria), newspaper published in Nigeria * ''Daily Times'' (Pakistan), newspaper published in Pakistan ''The Daily Times'' may refer to the following newspapers: * ...
, The News International'' and '' The Nation'' in English. There are a large number of Cable TV service providers in the city such as Nayatel, PTCL, SA Cable Network and DWN. Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation has a centre in Rawalpindi Television channels based in Rawalpindi include: *
ATV ATV may refer to: Broadcasting * Amateur television *Analog television Television stations and companies * Ràdio i Televisió d'Andorra * ATV (Armenia) * ATV (Aruba), NBC affiliate * ATV (Australian TV station), Melbourne * ATV (Austria) * AT ...
*Lights Asia *Aapna Channel * Pothohari TV (Regional language channel) *City 51 *Pahariwood Network (Regional language channel) * K2 TV *Oxygene TV *Samaa News


Recreation

In mid-2012 3D cinema, The Arena, started its operations in Bahria Town Phase-4 in Rawalpindi. *Rawalpindi Golf Course was completed in 1926 by Rawalpindi Golf Club, one of the oldest golf clubs of Pakistan. The facility was initially developed as a nine-hole course. After several phases of development, it is now a 27-hole course and the biggest in Pakistan. From the clubhouse, there is a panoramic view of Faisal Mosque, the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi. Major domestic golf tournaments are regularly held here. *Playland is another public park parallel to Ayub Park *In 2019, after the Army Heritage Foundation took over Ayub park from Chaklala Cantonment Board, a new amusement park called JoyLand was opened on the site of a previously failed project. This newly developed park has a number of rides and activities for visitors, from the relaxing Ferris wheel to the daring Discovery. All rides are imported and meet safety standards. JoyLand is the only amusement park in Pakistan that is ISO 9001:2008 certified.


See also

* Bappa Rawal * Central Jail Rawalpindi * Christ Church Rawalpindi * Dhamial * General Headquarters (Pakistan Army) * Lal Haveli *
Mewar Mewar or Mewad is a region in the south-central part of Rajasthan state of India. It includes the present-day districts of Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Pratapgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Pirawa Tehsil of Jhalawar District of Rajasthan, Neemuch and Man ...
* Military Hospital Rawalpindi *
Murree Road Murree Road (), alternatively known as Benazir Bhutto Road, is a major road that runs from Islamabad and Rawalpindi to Murree in Pakistan. It passes through Rawalpindi's downtown area, and has been a hotspot for various political and social ev ...
*
Pakhral Pakhral Rajputis are a sub clan of Minhas Rajput. The founders of the city and the state of Jammu and its governors from ancient times until 1948. The ancestors of Pakhral Rajputs are mostly Hindu. In the early 18th and 19th centuries mostly Pak ...
* Rawalpindi Gazetteer


References


Bibliography

*


External links


City District Government Rawalpindi, Official Website, archived at 13 March 2008Rawalpindi (Pakistan) – Britannica Online Encyclopedia
* *

{{Authority control Populated places in Rawalpindi District, Metropolitan areas of Pakistan Populated places established in the 1490s 1493 establishments in Asia Former national capitals Populated places in Punjab, Pakistan