Depalpur Tehsil Depalpur Tehsil (), is an administrative subdivision (tehsil) of Okara District in the Punjab province of Pakistan, headquartered at the city of Depalpur. Administration * The tehsil is administratively subdivided into the following 55 Unio ...

Okara District Okara District ( Punjabi and ), is a district of Punjab, Pakistan. It became a separate district in 1982, prior to that it was part of Sahiwal District.Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

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# ...

Okara district Okara District ( Punjabi and ), is a district of Punjab, Pakistan. It became a separate district in 1982, prior to that it was part of Sahiwal District.Haveli Lakha, Hujra Shah Muqeem, Basir Pur, Depalpur &

Satghara Satghara (), is a town and union council of Okara District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is located at 30°55'0N 73°31'0E with an altitude of 164 metres (541 feet) and is also the location of the tomb of Baloch folk hero, Mir Chakar ...

among others. The 16th-century governor of

Multan Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...

, Fateh Jang Khan, named the town after the

Afghan Afghan or Afgan may refer to: Related to Afghanistan *Afghans, historically refers to the Pashtun people. It is both an ethnicity and nationality. Ethnicity wise, it refers to the Pashtuns. In modern terms, it means both the citizens of Afghanist ...

ruler of

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

,

Sher Shah Suri Sher Shah Suri (born Farid al-Din Khan; 1472 or 1486 – 22 May 1545), also known by his title Sultan Adil (), was the ruler of Bihar from 1530 to 1540, and Sultan of Hindustan from 1540 until his death in 1545. He defeated the Mughal Empire, ...

, who built a mud fort and had an encampment around the town. This is recorded in Abbas Khan Sarauni's book, "Tarikh-e

Sher Shah Suri Sher Shah Suri (born Farid al-Din Khan; 1472 or 1486 – 22 May 1545), also known by his title Sultan Adil (), was the ruler of Bihar from 1530 to 1540, and Sultan of Hindustan from 1540 until his death in 1545. He defeated the Mughal Empire, ...

" (History of

Sher Shah Suri Sher Shah Suri (born Farid al-Din Khan; 1472 or 1486 – 22 May 1545), also known by his title Sultan Adil (), was the ruler of Bihar from 1530 to 1540, and Sultan of Hindustan from 1540 until his death in 1545. He defeated the Mughal Empire, ...

). Ancient coins & artefacts have been found, proving that the town must have been inhabited in the time of the

Kushan Dynasty The Kushan Empire (– CE) was a Syncretism, syncretic empire formed by the Yuezhi in the Bactrian territories in the early 1st century. It spread to encompass much of what is now Afghanistan, Eastern Iran, India, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbe ...

. The town is well known all around the

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

, for a famous late-sixteenth century

Qadiriyyah The Qadiriyya () or the Qadiri order () is a Sunni Sufi order (''Tariqa'') founded by Abdul Qadir Gilani (1077–1166, also transliterated ''Jilani''), who was a Hanbali scholar from Gilan, Iran. The order, with its many sub-orders, is wides ...

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

saint, Daud Bandagi Kirmani, who lived and died in the town. He was born in Sitapur, village of modern-day

Muzaffargarh District Muzaffargarh District () is a district of the Punjab province of Pakistan. Its capital is Muzaffargarh city. It lies on the bank of the Chenab River. History Muzaffargarh () was founded by the Saddozai Nawab of Multan, Nawab Muzaffar Kha ...

.His family had migrated from

Kerman Province Kerman province () is the largest of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Kerman. The province is in the southeast of Iran. In 2014 it was placed in Region 5. Mentioned in ancient times as the Achaemenid satrapy of Carma ...

in

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 ...

, and claimed descent from

Prophet Mohammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, ...

.After receiving his formal religious and spiritual education from the ''pirs'' of

Uch Uch (; ), frequently referred to as Uch Sharīf (; ; ''"Noble Uch"''), is a historic city in the Pakistan's Punjab province. Uch may have been founded as Alexandria on the Indus, a town founded by Alexander the Great during his invasion of t ...

, he established himself in Shergarh, where he lived from then on until his death. He converted many tribes in the present-day districts of

Faisalabad Faisalabad, formerly known as Lyallpur, is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, second-largest city and primary List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, industrial center of the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan ...

,

Sialkot Sialkot (Punjabi language, Punjabi, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of the Sialkot District and the List of most populous cities in Pakistan, 12th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined ...

Sheikhupura Sheikhupura (Punjabi language, Punjabi / ; ) also known as Qila Sheikhupura, is a city and district in the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. Founded by the Mughal Empire, Mughal Emperor Jahangir in 1607, Sheikhupura is the List of ...

.

Hafizabad Hafizabad ( Punjabi / ; ; ) is a city and capital of Hafizabad District located in Punjab, Pakistan. Hafizabad is an old settlement. In 327 BC, during Alexander's invasion of Punjab, the territory of the Sandal Bar was reported to be a well popu ...

,

Sahiwal Sahiwal ( Punjabi / ; ; ), formerly known as Montgomery, is a city in central Punjab, Pakistan. It is the administrative capital of both Sahiwal District and Sahiwal Division. It is the 19th largest city of Pakistan by population accordin ...

&

Gujranwala Gujranwala is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fourth most-populous city in the Pakistani province of Punjab. Located in northern-central Punjab's Rachna Doab, it serves as the headquarters of its Gujranwala District, epony ...

, and although he lived in Shergarh, he did not carry out much of his work in that area because most of the native tribes, such as the Wattu and Joiya had already previously been converted by

Baba Farid Farīduddīn Masūd Ganjshakar ( – 16 Oct 1265), commonly known as Bābā Farīd or Sheikh Farīd (also in Anglicised spelling Fareed, Fareed ud-Deen, Masood, etc.), was a 13th-century Punjabi Muslim mystic, poet and preacher. Revered by ...

of

Pakpattan Pakpattan (Punjabi language, Punjabi and ), often referred to as Pākpattan Sharīf (; ''"Noble Pakpattan"''), is an ancient, historic city in the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, serving as the headquarters of the Pakpattan Distr ...

. The tribes converted by Daud Bandagi Kirmani include mainly Arain,

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

&

Jat The Jat people (, ), also spelt Jaat and Jatt, are a traditionally agricultural community in Northern India and Pakistan. Originally pastoralists in the lower Indus river-valley of Sindh, many Jats migrated north into the Punjab region in l ...

clans of the above-mentioned areas. Some of these are Virks, Bajwas, Cheemas, Chatthas & Sahis.He is claimed to have converted 35,000 people to Islam, and 365 people to sainthood in all. Some of his prominent ''murids'' include Bala Pir, 'Abd al-Qadir Bada'uni, Wahab Chishti & Kamal Chishti. The saint died in 1575, after which his nephew and son-in law, Shah Abul Mu'aali, had a beautiful, large mausoleum erected for his grave. This mausoleum is visited by many "murids" in the month of March, when his ''urs'' is held. Apart from his ''murids'', the mausoleum attracts the attention of many curious travellers, artists & calligraphers all year round, as this mausoleum is one of the rare monuments in the country which has calligraphy and tile work in the "Naqashi style". The shrine used to be in the care of the local "Gaddi Nashin" (eldest direct descendant), but after the land reforms of

Ayub Khan Mohammad Ayub Khan (14 May 1907 – 19 April 1974) was a Pakistani military dictator who served as the second president of Pakistan from 1958 until his resignation on 1969. He was the first native commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Army, se ...

, it was turned to the Auqaf Deptt., Okara.

Language

Most of the people of Shergarh speak Punjabi.

Agriculture and surroundings

The town itself is located on the old river bed of the Beas, which extends south from

Kasur Kasur (Punjabi language, Punjabi / ; ; also Romanization, romanized as Qasūr; from pluralized Arabic word ''Qasr'' meaning "palaces" or "forts") is a city to the south of Lahore, in the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. The city s ...

, all the way to

Chunian Chunian (), is a historic city and the capital of Chunian Tehsil of Punjab, Pakistan. It is located at 30° 58' N 73° 51' E and at an elevation of 177 meters (583 feet), and lies about 70 km south of Lahore, the capital of Punjab. It is ...

, and then Shergarh, in

Okara District Okara District ( Punjabi and ), is a district of Punjab, Pakistan. It became a separate district in 1982, prior to that it was part of Sahiwal District.Okara City. The mounds of the riverbed also act as a natural border between Renala Khurd Tehsil &

Depalpur Tehsil Depalpur Tehsil (), is an administrative subdivision (tehsil) of Okara District in the Punjab province of Pakistan, headquartered at the city of Depalpur. Administration * The tehsil is administratively subdivided into the following 55 Unio ...

. The subsoil water of the town itself is brackish, as well as the area in the west of the river bed. Towards the east green fields of

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

,

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

,

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

and

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

, bordered on all sides by kikari and simbal are visible up to the horizon, as the area, below the riverbed, has subsoil water which is sweet, and rich in nutrients, unlike the brackish subsoil water on and west of the riverbed. when you go on chunian road, Hussain Garh the famous and historical village is there.this village has seven small village namely Hussain Garh, Tilawala, Landianwala, Kot Nawab Shah, Zameer Abad, Kot Khadim Hussain, ghurianwala.

Education and infrastructure

Shergarh has a majority of people who cannot afford education, which is why in 1992, S.M Mohsin set up an NGO called "AKRA" (Anjuman-e Khuddam-e Rasulallah). At that time the NGO responsibility was given to Mirza Aziz Ahmed Baig, who, with the support of S.M Moshin, remained in charge of the foundation for 28 years and spread education throughout the village. The organisation lays more stress on educating females. The main school is in Shergarh, called " Daud Bandagi High School". It also has many branches in the surrounding villages, whose mediums are usually mosques, but the main school is in Shergarh. The town consists of a NBP bank, a Jamia Mosque and a Government school. It has a small, non-functional dispensary, and the town is in dire need of a hospital. The district Nazim, Syed Sajjad Haider Kirmani, who is a native of the town, also got a sports stadium built just outside it, however since he has died, the project remains incomplete and is being used for anything but sports. The Jamia Mosque was a historical building built by Sher Shah Suri, but it was in bad condition and rebuilt by the Auqaf Department, Okara. As of 2015 Shergarh had more than 15 schools and a high literacy rate. Shergarh is connected by road to six towns, namely

Chunian Chunian (), is a historic city and the capital of Chunian Tehsil of Punjab, Pakistan. It is located at 30° 58' N 73° 51' E and at an elevation of 177 meters (583 feet), and lies about 70 km south of Lahore, the capital of Punjab. It is ...

, Wan Radha Ram, Depalpur, Renala Khurd, Akhtarabad & Hujra Shah Muqeem. The road leading to Renala Khurd is the best maintained road leading into Shergarh, it was built when Syed Sajjad Haider Kirmani was nazim of the district. The road leading to the town of Hujra Shah Muqeem, is 7.5 miles long and is also in a good condition, but quite narrow. In historic times, the ''pirs'' of Shergarh and

Hujra A mehmaan khana (Hindustani language, Hindustani مہمان خانہ, मेहमान ख़ाना, ) is a drawing room where guests are entertained in many houses in North India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Alternative names include hujra and ...

, did not get along very well, so when they'd refer to each other's towns, they'd use the derogatory name of the time, ''panjkoa'' (7 miles away), instead of using the proper names. The other roads are very dangerous as most of them have deep depressions making it very difficult to drive. The road leading to the town of Akhtarabad is famous for robberies and killings that occur mostly after sun- Shergarh consist of Govt boys higher secondary school and Govt girls higher secondary in sher garh gives the education all over villages and town sher garh and no available the any collage but very important requirement the boys and girls collage at city.

Famous Personalities

One of the most famous people born in Shergarh was Syed Jaffar Kirmani, a hockey player who represented the united Indian field hockey team in 1932 and 1936 and won two gold medals.

Main tribes

* Dhudhi *

khokhar Khokhar () is a historical Punjabi clan primarily native to the Salt Range of Pakistani Punjab. Khokhars are also found in the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana. Khokhars predominantly follow Islam, having converted to Islam from Hinduism ...

*

Akhund Akhund () is a Persian language, Persian title or surname for Islamic scholars, common in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Azerbaijan. Other names for similar Muslim Scholar include Sheikh and Mullah. The Standard Chin ...

*

Arain Arain (also known as Raeen) are a large Punjabi Muslim agricultural community with a strong political identity and level of organisation. At the beginning of the last century, they numbered around 1 million and were mainly rural cultivator ...

* Bhutto * Ensari * Hashmi * Baloch *

Bhatti Bhatti is a Punjabis, Punjabi and Sindhis, Sindhi caste of Rajputs. They are linked to the Bhatia caste, Bhatias and Bhutto (clan), Bhuttos, all of whom claim to originate from the Hindus, Hindu Bhati Rajputs. They claim descent from the Lun ...

* Chauhan * Daula * Jappa * Jurrera * Joiya * Kasai *

Kirmani Kirmani or Kermani () is a locational surname of Persian origin, which originally meant a person from the city of Kerman, Iran. Notable people with the surname include: *Abu al-Hakam al-Kirmani (died 1066), Andalus philosopher * Afdhal al-Din abu H ...

*

Kumhar Kumhar or Kumbhar is a Indian caste system, caste or community in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Kumhars have historically been associated with the art of pottery. Etymology The Kumhars derive their name from the Sanskrit word ''Kum ...

* Lohar *

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 ...

* Machhi *

Mirasi The Mirasi (; ; ) are a community found in North India and Pakistan. They are folklore tellers and traditional singers and dancers of a number of communities. The word "mirasi" is derived from the Arabic word (ميراث) ''mīrās'', which mea ...

*

Mochi A mochi ( ; Japanese ) is a Japanese rice cake made of , a short-grain Japonica rice, japonica glutinous rice, and sometimes other ingredients such as water, sugar, and cornstarch. The steamed rice is pounded into paste and molded into the ...

* Nai *

Pathan Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

*

Qazi Qazi may refer to: * Qadi A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History ...

*

Ranghar Ranghar are a community of Muslim Rajputs in the Indian states of Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh; and in Sindh ( Muhajirs) and Punjab in Pakistan. History and origin The Ranghar were classified as an "agricultura ...

*

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

* Shaikh *

Sial In geology, sial is an antiquated blended term for the composition of the upper layer of Earth's crust, namely rocks rich in aluminium silicate minerals. It is sometimes equated with the continental crust because it is absent in the wide ocea ...

*

Tarkhan Tarkhan (, or ; ; zh, c=達干/達爾罕/答剌罕; ; ; alternative spellings ''Tarkan'', ''Tarkhaan'', ''Tarqan'', ''Tarchan'', ''Turxan'', ''Tarcan'', ''Turgan, Tárkány, Tarján, Tarxan'') is an ancient Central Asian title used by various ...

* Wattu * Khakhra * Jut * Bhutta بھٹہ

References

{{Okara District Union councils of Okara District

Location

Language

Agriculture and surroundings

Education and infrastructure

Famous Personalities

Main tribes

See also

References