Shangla District
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shangla is a district in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan that contains the town of Alpuri the district headquarters and two tehsils : tehsil Puran and tehsil Alpuri. Shangla has the lowest Human Development Index in the province. Shangla, previously a subdivision of Swat district, was upgraded to the status of a district on July 1, 1995 by the then Chief Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao.
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[edit] Geography
Shangla hill (Shangla top), which separates the district from Swat, is the only way of communication between the two districts.
The district is bounded on the east by district Batagram and tribal area of Kala Dhaka along which the Indus River flows for about 75 kilometers, on the west by district Swat, on the south by district Buner and tribal area of Kala Dhaka and on the north by district Kohistan.
The total area of the district is 1586 square kilometers. Shangla district, consists of small valleys, is situated between the hillocks and surrounded by high mountains full of forests comprising Pindrow Fir, Morinda Spruce, Blue Pine (Kail), Chir Pine and Deodar Cedar trees. The general elevation of the district is 2000 to 3000 meters above sea level. There are beautiful isolated valleys most suitable for seed production of highly demanded cross pollinated vegetable crops. moreover Shangla has got a tremendous potential for hydel power generation... one of such projects is underway at shang on khan khwar.
[edit] Administrative divisions
Under the devolved local government system Shangla is divided into two tehsils, namely Alpurai and Puran. There are 28 Union Councils. Alpurai Tehsil consists of 19 Union Councils and Puran Tehsil consists of 9 Union Councils.
[edit] Population
Total population of the district is 512,000 with an annual average growth rate of 3.27% and population density of 274 persons per square kilometer. The total number of households is 64,391 with an average household size of 8.1.
[edit] Demographics
Most of the local inhabitants are agriculturists. Though the agricultural area of the district is fertile but the agricultural holdings are very small as compared to the number of owners. The total cultivated area of the district is 42,360 ha (104,674 acres) out of which only 3,075 ha (7,598 acres) is irrigated and the remaining 39,285 ha (97,075 acres) is non-irrigated. District Shangla is full of natural resources, having a vast scope for investment and development.
It was severely hit during the October 8, 2006 earthquake and many people are left homeless, without attracting any major sympathy from the international community.
[edit] Places to see
Shangla is also a historical place in South Asia: home to several Buddhist hermits, as well as a small but thriving Hindu community in the Chakesar region. The region used to be known as Ghorband and is mentioned historically as a place visited by Alexander the Great's Army in 326 B.C. where it fought a battle with the locals at the mount Pir Sar. Later on in Fifteen Century AD Shangla witnessed a population shift from neighboring Afghanistan (Pakhtun tribe Yousafzais) with locals migrating into Hazara.
