Shandur Pass() is a pass located on the boundary of district Chitral,

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

and

Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative units of Pakistan, administrative territory and consists of the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has b ...

, a disputed territory within the larger region of

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, 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 P ...

. Historically part of Gilgit-Baltistan; however, recent Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments have made claims for the Shandur. It is often referred to as 'The Roof of the World. The pass hosts the annual Shandur Polo Festival, an event that features polo matches between teams representing the

Chitral District Chitral District (; ) was a district in the Malakand Division of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, from 14 August 1947 to 2018. It was the largest district in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, covering an area of 14,850 km2, before spl ...

and

(disputed territory within the larger Kashmir region). These matches are held at the Shandur Polo Ground, located on Shandur Top. The festival typically spans three days, taking place from July 7 to July 9 each year. Approximately seven polo matches are played during this festival.

Geography

Shandur Pass, which is considered one of the most serene areas of Pakistan, is at an elevation of around 12,500 feet. It connects these two

regions of Pakistan The administrative units of Pakistan comprise four provinces, one federal territory, and two disputed territories: the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan; the Islamabad Capital Territory; and the administra ...

via a

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

. It is 212 km away from

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina language, Shina: ; ) is a city in Pakistani-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, Gilgit–Baltistan in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kas ...

History

In the early 1930s, Major Evelyn Hey Cobb, who served as Britain's appointed political agent, issued an order to Niat Qabool Hayat Kakakhel, the Nambardar (local leader) of Ghizer, to establish a large polo ground in Shandur. This polo ground was subsequently named "Mas Junali," which translates to 'moonlit polo ground' in the

Khowar language Khowar (, ''Khōwār'', ), also known by its common exonym Chitrali, is an Indo-Aryan language of the Dardic group, primarily spoken by the Kho (Chitrali) people, native to the Chitral region and surrounding areas of Pakistan. Khowar is th ...

. Major Cobb had a strong affinity for playing polo under the moonlight. Shandoor

Ali Sher Khan Anchan Maqpoun was known to play polo in Shandur during the time when Chitral was part of the Maqpoun empire. Historically, the sport was played between the small kingdom and rival groups of the Gilgit Agency. Starting in 1936, annual polo tournaments began to be held at Shandur under the patronage of the British. Over the years, the three-day Shandur Polo Festival has evolved and grown into the grand celebration of mountain polo that it is today. The British rulers were impressed by the unprecedented constructional works of the people of Koh-e-Ghizer. In recognition of their achievements, a prize was offered to Niat Qabool Hayat. He requested the British representatives to stock the local water streams with trout, and as a result, a significant quantity of trout was introduced to the streams of Koh-e-Ghizer, contributing to the region's environmental and economic development. Many people from all over the world come to watch polo matches between Chitral and Ghizer At first it was a training game for cavalry or other

elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (, from , to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful or wealthy people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. Defined by the ...

units. To the warlike tribesmen who played polo with as many as 100 players to a side, it was a miniature battle. It became a Persian national game in the 6th century AD. From

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, the game spread to

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

, then to

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. In

, in the year 910, the death of a favourite relative in a game prompted Emperor

Apaochi Abaoji (872 – 6 September 926), posthumously known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Liao, was a Khitan leader and the founding emperor of the Liao dynasty of China, ruling from 916 to 926. He had a sinicised name, Yelü Yi; some so ...

to order the beheading of all players. Ali Sher Khan Anchan played polo at Shandoor when be briefly occupied Chitral. The princes and political agents of Chitral also enjoyed playing polo in Shandur. From 1936 onwards polo tournaments were held annually at Shandur at the patronage of the British. The three-day Shandur Polo Festival has developed steadily in recent years into the massive celebration of mountain polo that it is today. Since 1982 the matches are being arranged by Chitral administration , levies, Chitral scout and police. GB teams participated as guests team .

Cultural events

During the annual Shandur Polo Festival, there are polo matches played at the Shandur Polo Ground on Shandur Top, between the teams of

and

. Approximately seven matches are played in the three days of the festival usually held on 7 to 9 July every year. The final match is played on 9 July between Teams A of

and

Chitral Chitral () is a city situated on the Kunar River, Chitral River in northern area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Lower Chitral District, and was previously the capital of Chitral District, and before ...

. Mas Junali (moonlighted polo) became a source of relation between the people of Chitral District and Gupis-Yasin/Ghizer districts. Many of the people from entire world come here to watch polo match played between Chitral and Ghizer.

References

Books

*''The Gilgit Game'' by John Keay (1985) *''The Kafirs of the Hindukush'' (1896) Sir George Scott Robertson. *''To the Frontier'' (1984) Geoffrey Moorehouse, pp. 267–270. Hodder and Stoughton Ltd., Great Britain. Reprint: Sceptre edition 1988. *''Shandur, Durand's Boundary Line Violation'' (2014) by Rai Sarfaraz Shah, Ex-MNA LC Gilgit-Baltistan

External links