| Haripur | |
|---|---|
| — District — | |
| Haripur Hazara | |
| Location of Haripur District (highlighted in red) within Hazara. | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
| Capital | Haripur |
| Established | |
| Government | |
| • District Nazim | |
| • District Naib Nazim | |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,725 km2 (666 sq mi) |
| Population (2005) | |
| • Total | 803,000 |
| • Density | 466/km2 (1,206.9/sq mi) |
| Time zone | PST (UTC+5) |
| District Council | x seats |
| Number of Tehsils | 3 |
| Website | http://www.Hazara.gov.pk/ |
Haripur (Urdu: ہری پور) is a district in the Hazara region of Pakistan with an altitude of around 610 metres (2,000 ft) above sea level. Haripur District has the highest Human Development Index of all the districts in the Hazara.
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The Haripur district is situated at the heart of the ancient Gandhara civilization. At the time of Alexander the region including Taxila was known as "Eastern Gandhara", with its boundaries reaching as far as Kashmir. Geographically it lies on either side of the Sindu River,(Indus the River Goddess of Rigveda), near the Tarbela Reservoir. Most historians believe that the Aryans must have composed a number of Vedic hymns on the banks of Indus. During the kingship of his father Bindusara, the Maharaja Ashoka ruled this region as governor and, according to Tibetan Buddhist traditional stories,he is died here.
The Sikhs annexed Hazara in two stages. Upper Hazara suffered a similar fate when the Sikhs took Kashmir from the Barakzai Afghans in 1819.[1] The town of Haripur (meaning 'Hari's town') was founded in 1822 by Hari Singh Nalwa the Commander-in-Chief of Ranjit Singh's army following advice from Mukkadam Musharaf of Kot Najibullah. On the successful completion of his tenure as Governor of Kashmir in 1821, Pakhli and Damtaur were bestowed upon Nalwa as a jagir in 1822. As soon as Hari Singh Nalwa received this grant, he built the walled town of Haripur in the heart of the Haripur plain with the fort of Harkishan Garh encircled by a deep trench. The site selected by Hari Singh had previously seen some of the fiercest encounters between Sikhs and the local tribes.
Hari Singh's name and the presence of his fort at Harkishangarh eventually brought a feeling of security to the region. In 1835, Baron Heugel, a German traveller found only remnants of the four-yard thick and 16 yard high wall built to initially protect the town.[2]
The sole example of a planned town in this region until the British built Abbottabad many years later, Haripur continued to grow and flourish to eventually became a city and later a district.
Haripur once bore the official name of Haripur Hazara and was the capital of Hazara until 1853 when the new capital Abbottabad was built, named after Indian Army officer James Abbott, the first deputy commissioner of Hazara (1849–1853). In March 1849, the Punjab was annexed by the British Empire. In Abbott's time as under former Sikh domination, Haripur was the district headquarters of Hazara, but soon after he departed, Abbottabad took its place. Abbott later painted a noted picture of the town of Haripur and its commanding fort of Harkishangarh.[3]
The District of Haripur was a Tehsil, or sub-division of Abbottabad District, until 1992 when it separated and became a district in its own right. The district is presently (2010–2011) represented in the provincial assembly by four elected MPAs. One Member is elected to the National/Federal Assembly from the district.
Haripur District is divided into two tehsils, further subdivided into 44 Union Councils of which 15 are urban Union Councils.
Ghazi Tehsil is divided into eight Union Councils:[4]
Tehsil Haripur comprises the Maidan-e-Hazara and Panjkatha areas. The Hazara Plain, once called Hazara, is bounded by the Gandghar Range in the north west, the Haro River in the west, Siri Bang, Sarara and the Margalla Ranges in the south, the Haro River and its tributary Nilan Stream in the south east, the Jahngra and Chamba villages of Tehsil Havelian in the East and the upper Tanawal on the left bank of the Indus on its northern limits.
The area is rich in natural resources and contains two important reservoirs, the Tarbela Dam and Khanpur Dam. Geographically, it is the gateway to Hazara, the Hazara, and the Pakistani capital Islamabad.
Geographically, the significance of the district is due to its boundaries that border Mardan District, centre of the ancient Gandhara civilization in the north west, Abbottabad District in the north east, Mansehra District in the north, the Margallah hills of Islamabad in the south east, the Swat valley in the north-west as well as the Buner and Swabi districts in the west. Moreover, the Swabi, Mansehra and Abbottabad districts of Hazara, two districts of Punjab province i.e. Attock and Rawalpindi, lie to the southwest and southeast respectively of Haripur district. The Federal Capital Islamabad is also adjacent to the district in the south.
As of the 1998 census, Haripur's population was 692,228, but was estimated to have increased to 803,000 in 2005. Of these people, 12.0% live in urban districts with the remaining 88.0% resident in rural areas.
The population is spread over an area of 1,725 square kilometres (666 sq mi), with a population density of 401.3 persons per km²,[5] this compares to an average population density of 233 persons per km², in the Hazara as whole. The average household size of the district is 6.6 persons compared to 8 at the provincial level. Agriculture is the predominant livelihood of the rural population while the total arable area is 77,370 acres (313.1 km²).
According to the 1998 District Census Report, Hindko and Urdu are the predominant languages of the district and are spoken by more than 70% of the total population. Other languages spoken include Gojri, Potohari, Pashto and Pahaari.
The overall literacy rate in the Haripur district is 53.7%, substantially higher than the provincial literacy rate in Hazara (35.2%) as a whole. The female literacy rate is only 37.4% compared to male literacy of 63.6%. The urban/rural break down shows that rural literacy is lower (51.4%) than urban literacy (69.7%).
Haripur District has a government funded post graduate college, which provides higher level education, as well as two colleges for girls which are also funded by the government to provide higher education for girls coming from all over the city.
In 2000–2001, Haripur had 907 government primary schools, including 656 for boys and 251 for girls. In addition to government primary schools, 166 mosque schools were also functional in the district during this period.
The 907 government primary schools cater a primary school age population (5–9 years) of 101,670, out of which 52,240 (51.38%) were boys and 49,430 (48.61%) were girls. The ratio of the primary schools with the primary school going age population indicates that there is limited access to primary education. The district had 83 middle schools (56 for boys and 27 for girls), during 2001.
Mosque schools were introduced under the National Education Policy in 1979 at the time of Fifth Five-Year Plan (1978–83). Such establishments are organized on the basis of 20–30 students, normally under one PTC teacher and an Imam of the mosque as staff members. They have a shorter teaching programme (about four hours a day), the same curriculum as primary schools and also teach Quran-e-Nazira (recitation of the Quran). Students qualifying from such schools are eligible for admission to formal schools for higher education.
During 2000–2001, 166 mosque schools (15.47% of the total primary schools) were oprational in the district, while in 1997–1998, this number had increased to 180. Details about the number of teachers and students, curricular activities and performance of these schools are not available. The school age population catered for by the mosque schools is also not available.
Other educational establishments include: Telecom Boy's Public School & College, Hazara Public School & College Haripur, Janah Jamia Public School and college, the Government Higher Secondary School Kakotri, Polytechic College, government commerce college, Progressive International Academy, Khalabat townshp, Quid-e-Azam public School and College, KTS (Haripur), Foundation Public High School, Kangra Colony, Haripur Progressive International Academy, Khalabat township.Shaheen Public School Sikandarpur, The Educators Haripur campus.
Furthermore, many different size factories exist on the Hatar Industrial Estate. Because of these industries, the district plays an important role in national economic development.
Since Haripur has developed medium and large scale industries, its role in the agricultural field is also important. The district provides fruit and vegetables not only to Peshawar but also to Islamabad and the Punjab.
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