|
Rawalpindi (help�info)
(Urdu:
راولپنڈی) is a city in the
Potwar Plateau near
Pakistan's capital city of
Islamabad, in the province of
Punjab. It is the
military headquarters of the
Pakistan Armed Forces and also served as the nation's
capital while
Islamabad was being constructed in the 1960s. The city
is home to many industries and factories.
Islamabad International Airport is actually in
Rawalpindi, and it serves the city along with the capital.
Rawalpindi is located in the
Punjab province, 275 km (171 miles) to the north-west of
Lahore. It is the administrative seat of the
Rawalpindi District. The population of Rawalpindi is
approximately 3,039,550.
Rawalpindi, also known as Pindi, has a long history
spread over several millennia. Archaeologists believe that a
distinct culture flourished on this plateau as far back as
3000 years. The material remains found at the site prove the
existence of a
Buddhist establishment contemporary to
Taxila and the
Vedic civilisation (Hindu culture). Taxila has another
significance; according to Guinness Book of World Records it
has the worlds oldest university -
Takshashila University.
It appears that the ancient city went into oblivion as a
result of the
White Hun devastation. The first
Muslim invader,
Mahmud of
Ghazni (979-1030),
gave the ruined city to a
Gakhar Chief, Kai Gohar. The town, however, being on an
invasion route, could not prosper and remained deserted
until Jhanda Khan, another
Gakhar Chief, restored it and named it Rawalpindi after
the village Rawal in
1493. Rawalpindi remained under the rule of the
Gakkhars till Muqarrab Khan, the last
Gakkhar ruler, was defeated by the
Sikhs in
1765. The
Sikhs invited traders from other places to settle here.
This brought the city into prominence.
Following the
British conquest of the Sikhs and their occupation of
Rawalpindi in
1849, the city became a permanent garrison of the
British army in
1851. In the
1880s a railway line to Rawalpindi was laid, and train
service was inaugurated on January 1,
1886. The need for having a railway link arose after
Lord Dalhousie made Rawalpindi the headquarters of the
Northern Command and Rawalpindi became the largest
British military garrison in
British India.
In
1951, Rawalpindi saw the assassination of the first
elected
Prime Minister of Pakistan,
Liaquat Ali Khan, in Liaquat Garden. Today Rawalpindi is
the headquarters of the
Pakistani Army and
Air Force.
The famous
Murree Road has been a hot spot for various political
and social events. Nala Lai, famous for its floods, runs in
the middle of the city, dividing it into city area and
Cantonment area. History describes Nala Lai water as pure
enough for drinking but now it has become polluted with the
waste water from all sources including factories and houses.
content source for this page:
Wikipedia.org
|
