Zhob District ( ps, ږوب ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

in the north west of

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

province of

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 ...

. The population of Zhob District is estimated to 310,544 in 2017.

Zhob River Zhob River ( ps, ږوب سيند; ) is located in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The total length of the Zhob River is 410 km, and it flows on a generally northeasterly course. Etymology In the Pashto language, ''Zhob'' means ...

is used for irrigation in the Zhob District.

Administration

The 1998 census report lists two sub-divisions: Lower Zhob (comprising

Zhob tehsil Zhob (; ) or Zhobak (), formerly known as Appozai or Fort Sandeman, is a city and district capital of Zhob District in Balochistan province of Pakistan. Zhob is located on the banks of Zhob River 337 km from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan. T ...

and

Sambaza Sambaza is a populated-place within the Zhob District of Balochistan, Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous countr ...

sub-tehsil) and Kakar Khurasan (encompassing the tehsil of Qamar Din Karez and the subtehsil of Ashewat). A government webpage lists these as Ashwat, Qamar Din Karez, Sambaza and Zhob, without indicating if any of them are sub-tehsils."List of Tehsils/Talukas with respect to their Districts" Federal Bureau of Statistics, Pakistan

Demography

At the time of the 2017 census the district had a population of 310,354, of which 168,239 were males and 142,114 females. Rural population was 264,190 (85.12%) while the urban population was 46,164 (14.87%). The literacy rate was 33.44% - the male literacy rate was 43.12% while the female literacy rate was 22.01%. 1,107 people in the district were from religious minorities. At the time of the 2017 census, 96.03% of the population spoke

Pashto Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani (). Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...

and 1.71% Saraiki as their first language. The majority of the population of Zhob district is

Pashtun 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 ...

. The tribes of Zhob district include the Mandokhail, Khosti, Sherani,

Kakar The Kakar (Pashto: کاکړ) is a Gharghashti Pashtun tribe, based mostly in Northern Balochistan, Pakistan and Loy Kandahar in Afghanistan. Legendary origin Kakars are sons of Gharghashti who was the son of Qais Abdul Rashid. In Herat, the Ka ...

,Sulaimankhel,

Harifal The Harifal (Urdu حریفال حریف ال) are a Pashtun people, Pashtun tribe inhabiting the Sherani District in the Balochistan, Pakistan, Balochistan province of Pakistan, and, to a lesser extent, the surrounding districts of Afghanistan ...

, Lawoon and Babar. Currently a large number of

IDPs An internally displaced person (IDP) is someone who is forced displacement, forced to leave their home but who remains within their country's borders. They are often referred to as refugees, although they do not fall within the Refugee#Definition ...

and have been settled within the confines of the District as part of the evacuation from

Operation Zarb-e-Azb Operation Zarb-e-Azb (Pashto/ ur, ALA-LC: ) was a joint military offensive conducted by the Pakistan Armed Forces against various militant groups, including the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the ...

taking place to the north of Zhob.

Administration

Demography

References

Bibliography

External links