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
Chetrar

View of valley and river
Chitral

Location in Pakistan

Coordinates: 35°50′46″N 71°47′09″E / 35.84611°N 71.78583°E / 35.84611; 71.78583Coordinates: 35°50′46″N 71°47′09″E / 35.84611°N 71.78583°E / 35.84611; 71.78583
Country Pakistan
Province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
District Chitral District
First mention 325 BC
Government
 • Type MPA
 • Body Shahzada Iftikharuddin
Area
 • Total 57 km2 (22 sq mi)
Elevation[1] 1,517 m (4,977 ft)
Population (2003)
 • Total 20,000
 • Density 350/km2 (910/sq mi)
Languages
 • Official Urdu, Khowar[2]
Time zone PST (UTC+5)
PIN 1720 – 0xx[3]
Area code(s) +943-7
Website chitral.gov.pk

Chitral (Urdu: چترال‎, Khowar: چھترار), also spelled Chetrar, translated as field, is the capital of the Chitral District, situated on the western bank of the Chitral River (also called Kunar River), Now in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It also served as the capital of the princely state of Chitral until 1969. 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).

History

The entire region that now forms the Chitral District was a fully independent monarchy until 1895, when the British negotiated a subsidiary alliance with its hereditary ruler, the Mehtar, under which Chitral became a princely state, still sovereign but subject to the suzerainty of the British Raj. Chitral retained a similar status even after its accession to Pakistan in 1969, but was completely incorporated into Pakistan and became an administrative district of Pakistan in 1969.[4]

Nothing definitive is recorded about the town's first settlers. In the 3rd century, Kanishka, the Buddhist ruler of the Kushan empire, occupied Chitral. In the 4th century, 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 dominion of the Kator Dynasty until 1969.[5]

Geography and access

The City has an average elevation of 1,500 m (4,921 ft). The easiest access to Chitral, other than by air, is from 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 Pakistan. There are other routes are over high mountain passes; to the south, the 3,200-metre (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-metre (12,461 ft) Broghol pass. To the east, there is a 405 kilometres (252 mi) route to Gilgit over the 3,719-metre (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.

Climate

The climate is considered to be a local steppe climate. During the year there is little rainfall. This climate is considered to be BSK according to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification. The average annual temperature in Chitral is 15.6 °C. About 418 mm of precipitation falls annually.

Climate data for Chitral
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 8.3
(46.9)		 9.5
(49.1)		 14.9
(58.8)		 21.0
(69.8)		 25.6
(78.1)		 31.8
(89.2)		 32.8
(91)		 32.0
(89.6)		 28.7
(83.7)		 23.7
(74.7)		 17.4
(63.3)		 10.9
(51.6)		 32.8
(91)
Daily mean °C (°F) 4.1
(39.4)		 5.0
(41)		 9.8
(49.6)		 15.3
(59.5)		 19.4
(66.9)		 24.9
(76.8)		 26.1
(79)		 25.4
(77.7)		 21.9
(71.4)		 17.0
(62.6)		 11.5
(52.7)		 6.5
(43.7)		 26.1
(79)
Average low °C (°F) 0.0
(32)		 0.6
(33.1)		 4.8
(40.6)		 9.7
(49.5)		 13.3
(55.9)		 18.0
(64.4)		 19.5
(67.1)		 18.8
(65.8)		 15.2
(59.4)		 10.3
(50.5)		 5.6
(42.1)		 2.1
(35.8)		 11.4
(52.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 69
(2.72)		 99
(3.9)		 146
(5.75)		 139
(5.47)		 69
(2.72)		 22
(0.87)		 52
(2.05)		 56
(2.2)		 40
(1.57)		 31
(1.22)		 26
(1.02)		 51
(2.01)		 800
(31.5)
Source: Climate-Data.org[6]

Demographics

As of July 2011, the population of the city is above 19,700.

Kohwari, is the most widely spoken language. Other seven spoken languages are; Burushaski, Shina, Yidgha, Tajiki, Pashayi, Pashto, Yidgha, Gojri.

English. Urdu and Pushto, are also spoken.

Educational institutions

Administration

Chitral is represented in the National Assembly[7] and Provincial Assembly by one elected MNA and two elected MPAs.[8]

Sports

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

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Geography of Chitral". Chitralnews.com. Retrieved 2015-11-06.
  2. ↑ "INDO-IRANIAN FRONTIER LANGUAGES". Encyclopaedia Iranica. 15 November 2006. Retrieved 2015-11-06.
  3. ↑ "Post Codes". Pakistan Post Office. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  4. ↑ Osella, Filippo; Soares, Benjamin (2010). Islam, Politics, Anthropology. John Wiley & Sons. p. 58. ISBN 978-1-4443-2441-9.
  5. ↑ "Chitral, a Study in Statecraft" (PDF). IUCN. Retrieved 2015-11-06.
  6. ↑ "Climate: Chitral". Climate-Data.org.
  7. ↑ Archived 17 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ Archived 17 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine

External links

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