| Lodhran District | |
|---|---|
| — District — | |
| Map of Punjab with Lodhran District highlighted | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Punjab |
| Capital | Lodhran city |
| Established | |
| Government | |
| • District Nazim | Abdur Rahman Khan Kanju |
| • Member National Assembly | Akhtar Khan Kanju |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,790 km2 (691.1 sq mi) |
| Population (2009) | |
| • Total | 1,464,750 |
| • Density | 716/km2 (1,854.4/sq mi) |
| Time zone | PST (UTC+5) |
| District Council | |
| Number of Tehsils | 3 |
Lodhran (Urdu: ضلع لودھران) is a district in the Punjab, Pakistan, located on the northern side of River Sutlej. It is bounded to the north by the districts of Multan, Khanewal and Vehari, to the south by Bahawalpur District, to the east lie the districts of Vehari and Bahawalpur; while district Multan lies on the western side. It has the lowest Human Development Index of all districts in Punjab.
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Raja Lodhra was the son of Sikh Raja Raam Dyo Minhas and his family claimed to be descendants of Sooraj Hansi Rajput. Lodhra's family lived in Bahawalpur which later in the starting of 1743, populated in the valley of Sutluj and Bias rivers. This is why this area was known as Lodhar Wah.
In 1849, Multan joined together with East India Company which made Lodhran a tehsil on 5 May 1883. Malik Ghulam Hussain Lodhra 'zaildar' suggested the name "Lodhran" for this area. At that time, there were only 19 villages in Lodhran and it was a tehsil of district Multan. This area was situated in Kot Peer Sa-aadat and the tehsil office had been working there for three years. Later, a tehsil office was built within the city Lodhran. Munshi Abdul Wahid was the first superintendent of Lodhran.
In August 1873, Sadar Police Station was founded; in 1885, the Railway Station was founded. On 1 April 1909, the British Government opened a railway line from Lodhran to Karachi.
In 1924, the areas of Kehror Pacca and Dunyapur were separated from tehsil Mailsi and included in tehsil Lodhran. To educate the young generation and to spread the knowledge, there are uncountable institutions, schools and colleges in Lodhran. Many Government, Semi-Government and Non-Government girls and boys primary and high schools, Inter Commercial Institute, Vocational Institute and colleges are working to educate the people. Many hospitals are also here.
It is 32nd district of Punjab which is situated between the rivers Sutlej and Bias. These rivers make its borders. River Bias has now became a part of past but Sutlej river still flows. Lodhran city was first developed by English rulers in 18th century in the north side of Sutlaj rivers. The foundation of Lodhran was laid in 1830 when in 1849, the British Rule extended to Punjab. District Multan including the area of Lodhran also came under the sway of the British Rule. It is a famous railway junction, situated on the main route in the south Punjab. According go Punjab Gazetteer Multan 1901-02, there were five tehsils (Parganas) in Multan District.
Then a settlement operation was started in 1873, which concluded in April 1875. At that time tehsil Lodhran comprised the following villages: Omer Pur, Mochi Mohana, Beli, Lahori, Fateh Pur, Khan Pur, Khan Wah Ghalwan, Gogran, Motha, Kot Lal Shah, Karam Ali Wala, Lutaf Pur, Wighamal, Thath Ghalwan and Lodhran.
In 1881, a series of changes were made with the object of enlarging the Shujabad and decreasing the Mailsi charge: Under these arrangements 60 villages in the neighbourhood of Kahror Pakka were transferred from the Mailsi to Lodhrantehsil and further alterations were made in 1897, by which 46 villages were transferred from Lodhran to Shuja Abad while 104 villages to the East of Kahror Pakka were taken over from Mailsi in compensation.
Kahror Pakka and Dunya Pur were a part of tehsil Mailsi and were annexed with Lodhran in 1924. Lodhran was a desolate place but a cultivatable, level tract of land. In 1920, the British Government made a plan to populate the region. Therefore, different landed estates were divided in to the people of other areas. The Fauji grant and Tube well scheme increased the population of the region as well. Hence, the population of this region swiftly increased.[1]
Lodhran is spread over an area of 1,790 square kilometres and is subdivided into three tehsils (Lodhran, Kahror Pacca, Dunya pur) which contain a total of 73 Union Councils:[2]
| Tehsil | No. of Unions |
|---|---|
| Dunya Pur | 22 |
| Kahror Pacca | 23 |
| Lodhran | 28 |
| Total | 73 |
The main towns of the district are Alipur Kanju, Bahawal Garh, Bela Wahga, Sui Wala, Basti Pakka, Amirpur Station, Rukanpur, Qadirpur Chimna, Layyalpur, Chelawahin, Adamwahim, Khanwah Ghallwan, Malik Pur, Qureshi Wala, Qutabpur, Gogran, Dhanot, Danwran, Rajapur, Dakhano Gharo, Choki Masti Khan, Borhanpur, Amirpur Sadat, 358/W.B, 359/W.B, Fatehpur, Makhdoom Ali, and Jallah Arain. The total area of forest is 1,843 acres (7.46 km2).
The entire district is situated on a smooth plain. The sub-soil water in Dunyapur sub-division is brackish, while that in Kahror Pakka and Lodhran sub-divisions is sweet. The average rainfall in the district is 71 mm.
The main ethnic groups of the district are the, Abbasi, Kanju, Sayyed, Warraich, Dogar, Gujjar, Niazi Pathan, Utra Jats, Jam, Sameja, Lodhra, Metala, Chaner, Rajput, Awan, Baloch, Mughal, Arain, Uttera Bhatti Rajputs, Bhatti, Meo, Joiya, Wanjara, Noon, Tareen, Ghallu.
Saraiki, is the major language of Lodhran district, 95% people speak Saraiki, Punjabi and Haryanvi are also spoken by settlers and migrants of India.
The main crops are cotton and wheat, others includes rice, sunflower, and sugar cane. The main fruit that are cultivated are citrus, mango and guava, while the main vegetables are onion, tomato, potato and cauliflower. But due to lake of agricultural water all crops are effected.
The climate of the district is hot and dry in summer and cold in winter. The maximum and minimum temperature ranges between 42 °C and 28 °C in summer. During winter, the temperature fluctuates between 21 °C and 5 °C.
Presently Lodhran is moving towards prosperity. Lodhran has become the first city of Pakistan exporting high quality cotton seed and their processing products to China.
The district has a total metaled road-length of 853 kilometres. The district is linked with Multan, Bahawalpur, Vehari and Khanewal districts through metaled roads. It also connects to jalal pur pir wala.
The main Peshawar-Karachi railway line passes through Lodhran district. The district is linked with Khanewal, Bahawalpur and Vehari districts through the railway network.
There are three grid stations in the district (ranging in capacity from 66 KV to 132 KV). There are eight telephone exchanges operating in the district (ranging in capacity from 300 lines to 2,132 lines). Cellular phone services are available in the district.
Lodhran Tehsil: There are 325 schools, 9 colleges, 30 hospitals, 10 police stations, 11 railway stations, 52 post offices,one radio station and 20 banks in Lodhran.
Kahror Pakka Tehsil: There are 199 schools, 1 college, no hopital, 3 police stations, 1 railway station, 16 post offices and 10 banks.
Dunyapur Tehsil: There are 354 schools, 1 college, no hospital, 3 police stations, 1 railway station, 18 post offices and 6 banks.[3]
Lodhran Tehsil: There are 325 schools, 9 colleges, 30 hospitals, 10 police stations, 1 railway stations, 52 post offices, one radio station and 20 banks in Lodhran Tehsil. There are two parks the district. There is also a famous "Bright Home" building.
Kahror Pakka Tehsil: There are 199 schools, 1 college, hospital, 3 police stations, 1 railway station, 16 post offices and 10 banks in Kahror Pakka Tehsil.Umar kanju S/O M.Siddique ksnju is a famous personality of bahadiwahin kehrorpacca.
Dunyapur: There are 354 schools, 1 college, 05 hospital, 3 police stations, 1 railway station, 18 post offices and 6 banks in Dunyapur Tehsil.
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