Chitral

This article is about the town of Chitral. For the former princely state, see Chitral (princely state). For the district, see Chitral District.
Chitral
چترا ل
کاشکر
State
Chitral

Chitral Location in Pakistan

Coordinates: 35°50′46″N 71°47′09″E / 35.84611°N 71.78583°ECoordinates: 35°50′46″N 71°47′09″E / 35.84611°N 71.78583°E
Country Pakistan
State Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
District Chitral District
Established 1969
Government
 • Type Municipal corporation
Area
 • Total 14,850 km2 (5,730 sq mi)
Elevation 1,100 m (3,600 ft)
Population (2003)
 • Total 600,000
Languages
 • Official language Chitrali, Urdu, English
Time zone PST (UTC+5)
Post Codes 1720 - 0xx[1]
Area code(s) +943-7
Website Official Website
Qaqlasht, a picnic point at Booni, Chitral

Chitral (Urdu: چترال‎, Khowar: چھترار also spelled as "Kashkar" or Chetrar, translated as field), is the capital of the Chitral District, situated on the western bank of the Chitral River (also called Kunar River), in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It also served as the capital of the princely state of Chitral until 1969.[2] The town is at the foot of Tirich Mir, the highest peak of the Hindu Kush, which is 25,289 ft (7,708 m) high. It has a population of 20,000. The elevation of the valley is 3,700 ft (1,100 m).

Geography and access

The easiest land access to Chitral, other than by air, is in the southwest along the Kunar Valley. However the Afghan-Pakistan border (Durand Line) and cross border tensions prevent this from being used as an internal route to the rest of the parts of Pakistan. The other routes are over high mountain passes. To the south, the 3,200 metres (10,500 ft) Lowari Pass leads 365 kilometres (227 mi) to Peshawar. In the north, the easiest route during summer runs over the 3,798 metres (12,461 ft) Broghol pass. To the east, there is a 405 kilometres (252 mi) route to Gilgit over the 3,719 metres (12,201 ft) Shandur Pass. The territory is cut off by snow from the rest of the country for up to six months a year, a problem soon to be relieved by the completion of the Lowari Tunnel.

History

Nothing definitive is recorded about the town’s first settlers. In the 3rd century AD, Kanishka, the Buddhist ruler of the Kushan empire, occupied Chitral. In the 4th century AD, the Chinese overran the valley. Raees rule over Chitral began in 1320 and came to an end in the 15th century. From 1571 onwards Chitral was the capital of the princely state of Chitral.[3]

Climate

In contrast to more southerly areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the town of Chitral has a dry Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa) with almost no rainfall during summers. Precipitation occurs mainly from spring thunderstorms brought about by western frontal systems. In the winter the night time temperature occasionally drops to −10 C. Winter snowfall in the town can be quite heavy with an accumulation of up to two feet being quite common, at higher elevations snowfall can reach as high as 20 metres (70 ft).The weather is very cold during the winter .

Climate data for Chitral
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 16.9
(62.4)		 21.0
(69.8)		 28.0
(82.4)		 34.3
(93.7)		 38.3
(100.9)		 42.5
(108.5)		 44.4
(111.9)		 42.2
(108)		 39.8
(103.6)		 34.4
(93.9)		 27.0
(80.6)		 20.7
(69.3)		 44.4
(111.9)
Average high °C (°F) 8.8
(47.8)		 9.9
(49.8)		 15.1
(59.2)		 22.5
(72.5)		 28.2
(82.8)		 34.4
(93.9)		 35.9
(96.6)		 34.4
(93.9)		 31.1
(88)		 25.1
(77.2)		 18.7
(65.7)		 11.6
(52.9)		 23.0
(73.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) 4.1
(39.4)		 5.3
(41.5)		 9.6
(49.3)		 15.5
(59.9)		 20.3
(68.5)		 26.1
(79)		 28.0
(82.4)		 26.5
(79.7)		 22.1
(71.8)		 16.2
(61.2)		 10.8
(51.4)		 5.9
(42.6)		 15.9
(60.6)
Average low °C (°F) −0.6
(30.9)		 0.6
(33.1)		 4.2
(39.6)		 8.5
(47.3)		 12.5
(54.5)		 17.8
(64)		 20.2
(68.4)		 18.7
(65.7)		 13.1
(55.6)		 7.2
(45)		 2.9
(37.2)		 0.2
(32.4)		 8.8
(47.8)
Record low °C (°F) −11.0
(12.2)		 −11.0
(12.2)		 −3.7
(25.3)		 0.0
(32)		 4.4
(39.9)		 8.9
(48)		 11.1
(52)		 10.6
(51.1)		 5.6
(42.1)		 1.1
(34)		 −3.0
(26.6)		 −12.2
(10)		 −12.2
(10)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 38.4
(1.512)		 63.8
(2.512)		 97.3
(3.831)		 71.7
(2.823)		 43.9
(1.728)		 5.1
(0.201)		 4.9
(0.193)		 8.0
(0.315)		 7.3
(0.287)		 15.6
(0.614)		 20.4
(0.803)		 38.5
(1.516)		 414.9
(16.335)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 134.0 133.7 150.4 188.6 247.0 286.3 285.4 258.6 231.0 214.0 182.5 130.7 2,442.2
Source: NOAA (1971-1990) [4]

Demographics

Khowar is the most widely spoken language, while English and Urdu are understood and spoken. And has a great Chitrali influence as it was the bastion of the 52.3% of Chitral's population is in the 15–59 years age category. Around 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Educational institutions

Administration

Chitral is represented in the National Assembly[5] and Provincial Assembly by one elected MNA and two elected MPAs.[6]

Population

As of July 2014, the Chitral population is above one million.

Sport

Unlike the rest of Pakistan where cricket dominates, polo and soccer are more popular in Chitral. A number of sport festivals and tournaments are held throughout the year. Chitral has also produced some national players such as Muhammad Rasool who plays for the national football team.

Newspapers

A few number of newspapers are published by Chitral Press

Notes

  1. ↑ "Post Codes". Pakistan Post Office. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  2. ↑ Gupta, Om. Town location&hl=en&sa=X&ei=ajdrUqqdGbCB7QbZn4DYAw&ved=0CDcQ6AEwAzgK#v=onepage&q=Chitral%20Town%20location&f=false Encyclopaedia of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
  3. ↑ "Chitral, a Study in Statecraft". IUCN.
  4. ↑ "Chitral Climate Normals 1971-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  5. ↑ http://www2.ecp.gov.pk/vsite/ElectionResult/AllResults.aspx?assemblyid=NA
  6. ↑ Constituencies and MPAs - Website of the Provincial Assembly of the NWFP

References

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Chitral.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chitral.