Dera Ismail Khan

Dera Ismail Khan
ڈیره اسماعیل خان
دېره اسماعيل خان
City
Indus River
Lal Mahra Tomb
Kafir Kott
Qureshi Morr
Kalma Chowk
Kalma Chowk
Noll Bagh
Clockwise from top: Indus River, Lal Mahra Tombs, Qureshi Morr, Kalma at Kachehri Chowk, Noll Bagh, Kalma Chowk, Kafir Kot ruins, State Life Building
Dera Ismail Khan is located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan is located in Pakistan
Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan
Coordinates: 31°49′53″N 70°54′7″E / 31.83139°N 70.90194°E / 31.83139; 70.90194
Country Pakistan
Province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
DistrictDera Ismail Khan
TehsilDera Ismail Khan
Government
 • TypeMayor-council
 • MayorUmer Amin Gandapur[1] (PTI)
 • Deputy CommissionerMansoor Arshad (BPS-18 PAS)
 • District Police OfficerAbdul Rauf Qaiserani (BPS-18 PSP)
Elevation
165 m (541 ft)
Population
 • Tehsil population763,195
 • Rank37th, Pakistan; 5th, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
 Dera Ismail Khan Municipal Committee: 211,760
Dera Ismail Khan Cantonment: 5,697
Time zoneUTC+05:00 (PKT)
 • Summer (DST)DST is not observed
ZIP Code
29111
NWD (area code)966
ISO 3166 codePK-KP
Number of union councils47
Websitedikhan.kp.gov.pk

Dera Ismail Khan (/drʌ-ɪsm.l-xɑːn/; Urdu and Saraiki: ڈیرہ اسماعیل خان, Pashto: ډېره اسماعيل خان), abbreviated as D.I. Khan,[3] is a city and capital of Dera Ismail Khan District, located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is the 37th largest city of Pakistan and fifth largest in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population. Dera Ismail Khan is situated on the west bank of the Indus River, at its junction with the Gomal River.

It is 300 kilometres (190 mi) south of the provincial capital Peshawar, and 230 kilometres (140 mi) northwest of Multan, Punjab.[4]

Etymology

[edit]

In the local language, the word ḍerā means "tent, encampment", and is commonly found in the name of towns in the Indus Valley such as Dera Ghazi Khan and Dera Bugti. It is named after Dodai mercenary Ismail Khan, son of Malik Sohrab Dodai, who founded the town.[5] "Dera Ismail Khan" so it means "Camp of Ismail Khan."

History

[edit]

Foundation

[edit]

Early history

[edit]
Map of D. I. Khan

The region around Dera Ismail Khan has been inhabited for millennia, as evidenced by the nearby site of Rehman Dheri — a pre-Harappan archaeological site dating back from 3300 BCE.[6] In the seventh century, the city had a large population of Brahmins and Buddhists.[7]

Medieval history

[edit]

D. I. Khan is located in the historical Derajat region, which was established in the 15th century, when Baloch people were invited to settle the region by Shah Husayn, of the Langah Sultanate of Multan.

Baloch settlers were assimilated through the, later waves of Pashtun settlement, although villagers along the alluvial plains are typically Baloch or Jat.[8]

Dera Ismail Khan region was part of Multan Subah of Mughal Empire, though D. I Khan never attained a station of great power or importance before the British period. D. I. Khan grew prosperous as a trading centre for Powindah nomads, during Nader Shah's invasion of the Mughal Empire.

D. I. Khan was ruled by nine generations of Baloch leaders descended directly from Ismail Khan. The last, Nusrat Khan, was removed from power after the city was captured by Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1750. In 1794, the city was granted to Nawab Muhammad Khan Sadozai by Shahzada Kamran Durrani.[8]

Re establishment of the city

[edit]

The original town was swept away by flooding on the Indus River in 1823. The present city was founded by Nawab Sher Muhammad Khan of the Saddozai clan in 1825, and now stands four miles (6  km) away from the permanent channel of the river, atop a small plateau.[9] Nawab Sadozai took into consideration the opinions of Diwan Lakhi Mal and Tej Bhan Nandwani for the city's reconstruction.[10] Architects were brought in from Punjab, who designed a city where Hindus would live south of the city center and Muslims north of it.[10]

Four bazaars were laid in each of the cardinal directions, with all four converging in the town's central Chowgalla.[10] The rebuilt city contained a large bazaar for Afghan traders, and the city prospered from trade via the Gomal Pass.[11] An eight foot mud wall with nine gates was built around the city during this time as well,[10] some of which such as the Kaneran Wala and Sakki survive until today. All existing buildings date from no earlier than the 19th century.[4]

Sikh rule (1821–1849)

[edit]

D. I. Khan remained under Sadozai rule from the nearby town of Mankera until it was annexed by Bhatti Jatsikh ruler Maharaja Nau Nihal Singh of the Sikh Empire in 1836.[10] Diwan Lakhi Mal appointed city's Kardar ruler, though the Nawabs of the city from the Durrani order were allowed to maintain their title and some income.[10] The city suffered under punitive taxes that lead to frequent complaints in the Sikh Darbar at Lahore, resulting in several changes of Kardar.[10]

Colonial British India era

[edit]

D. I. Khan's first deputy commissioner under British Indian Empire was General Henry Charles Van Cortland, who arrived in February 1848, before departing later that year to quell a revolt in nearby Multan. Following the defeat of rebels at Multan, Lieutenant Butler was made the next deputy commissioner of D. I. Khan and Bannu.[10] Under his rule, city's infrastructure and colonial administration system were established in which top posts were exclusively occupied by the British.[10] The city was on the edge of the Tribal Areas — lands that were frequently in rebellion against British Indian Empire. The town did not rise up in revolt against British Indian Empire during the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny.[10] In 1861, D. I. Khan was made into the Divisional Capital of the new Dera Ismail Khan Division: analogous to a British county.[10]

The municipality was constituted in 1867, while the Dera Ismail Khan Cantonment was established in 1894.[11] By 1881 the city's population was 22,164. The military cantonment area, which lies southeast of the town, had an area of 44 square miles (110 km2), excluding the portion known as Fort Akalgarh on the northwest side.

The Dera Ismail Brigade had its winter headquarters at Dera Ismail Khan, and the garrison consisted of a mountain battery, a regiment of Native cavalry, and three regiments of Native infantry. Detachments from these regiments helped to garrison the outposts of Drazinda, Jandola, and Jatta. The "Civil Lines" neighborhood was built to the south.[4]

The town possessed a civil hospital; its chief educational institutions were two aided Anglo-vernacular high schools, one maintained by the Church Missionary Society and the other by the Bharatri Sabha, and an Anglo-vernacular middle school maintained by the municipality.[4]

According to the 1901 census, the population of Dera Ismail Khan was 31,737, of whom 18,662 were Muslims, 11,486 Hindus, and 1,420 Sikhs. Of the total, 3,450 lived in the cantonment.[12]

The predominantly Muslim population (which accounted for more than 80 % of the local population of Dera Ismail Khan) supported the Muslim League and the Pakistan Movement. After the Partition of India and independence of Pakistan in 1947, the minority Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India, while the Muslim migrants from India settled in Dera Ismail Khan. In India, Model Town, Vijay Nagar and Derawal Nagar colony in Delhi absorbed many Hindu former residents of D. I. Khan.[13]

After Independence of 1947

[edit]

Following an influx of refugees following the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, D. I. Khan's population tripled.[11]

During the November 2008 Dera Ismail Khan bombing, Shia religious leader Allama Nazir Hussain Shah was shot dead in a sectarian killing with Shah Iqbal Hussain. During his funeral prayers, a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing nine people and injuring 39. In the January 2009 bombings, 52 people were injured while 16 were killed as three explosions took place in the city.

In May 2009, three explosions caused the deaths of five people while nine were injured. On 14 June 2009, eight people were killed while 27 injured in an explosion in Pir Market near a bus stand.[14] On 29 July 2009, two people were killed and four injured when a bomb planted in car detonated near the district court.[15] On May 18, 2010, a bomb planted on a motorcycle exploded near a police van killing 13 people while injuring 14.[16] On 25 June 2011, between 10 and 12 militants of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan attacked a police station in the nearby town of Kulachi, killing 10 police officers.[17] The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed the responsibility of these attacks.[18][19]

In 2014, the wide-scale Operation Zarb-e-Azb was launched against militants throughout Pakistan, which resulted in a greatly improved security environment by 2016, although on January 4, 2017 15 people including five policemen were killed when a remote control planted bomb exploded on Bannu Road.[20] On 17 February 2017, another five people, including four police officers, were killed after unidentified suspects opened fire on a police van near Mission Mor.[21]

As part of the 2015 China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, it was announced that D. I. Khan would be the terminus of the Hakla–Dera Ismail Khan Motorway — a four-lane controlled access motorway, 280 km in length, that is to begin at the M1 near Islamabad and serve as part of the Western Alignment of the economic corridor.[22]

On 3 November 2023, a bomb blast occurred in Dera Ismail Khan, in which a number of people were killed and injured.[23]

Geography

[edit]

Climate

[edit]

Dera Ismail Khan has a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh), bordering on a hot steppe climate (Koppen: BSh), with sweltering summers and warm winters. Rain mainly falls in two distinct periods: in the late winter and early spring from February to April, and in the monsoon in July and September.[citation needed]

D. I Khan is situated at an altitude of 177 metres above sea level.[citation needed]

Climate data for Dera Ismail Khan
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 28.9
(84.0)
30.6
(87.1)
37.2
(99.0)
43.3
(109.9)
47.9
(118.2)
51
(124)
47.0
(116.6)
44.5
(112.1)
42.4
(108.3)
40.5
(104.9)
35.0
(95.0)
30.6
(87.1)
51
(124)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 20.3
(68.5)
22.1
(71.8)
26.9
(80.4)
33.5
(92.3)
38.7
(101.7)
41.5
(106.7)
38.5
(101.3)
37.4
(99.3)
36.7
(98.1)
33.4
(92.1)
27.7
(81.9)
21.9
(71.4)
31.5
(88.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) 12.2
(54.0)
14.7
(58.5)
19.9
(67.8)
26.0
(78.8)
30.9
(87.6)
34.2
(93.6)
32.7
(90.9)
31.9
(89.4)
30.2
(86.4)
25.3
(77.5)
19.1
(66.4)
13.6
(56.5)
24.2
(75.6)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 4.2
(39.6)
7.3
(45.1)
12.9
(55.2)
18.5
(65.3)
23.1
(73.6)
26.8
(80.2)
26.9
(80.4)
26.4
(79.5)
23.8
(74.8)
17.3
(63.1)
10.5
(50.9)
5.3
(41.5)
16.9
(62.4)
Record low °C (°F) −2.2
(28.0)
−2.0
(28.4)
4.0
(39.2)
9.5
(49.1)
14.4
(57.9)
17.5
(63.5)
18.6
(65.5)
19.5
(67.1)
15.8
(60.4)
8.0
(46.4)
2.2
(36.0)
−2.8
(27.0)
−2.8
(27.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 10.0
(0.39)
17.5
(0.69)
34.8
(1.37)
21.7
(0.85)
17.2
(0.68)
24.4
(0.96)
69.8
(2.75)
67.5
(2.66)
37.6
(1.48)
4.8
(0.19)
2.1
(0.08)
10.4
(0.41)
317.8
(12.51)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 222.2 206.8 234.3 259.2 290.1 247.7 241.3 261.1 271.1 283.2 249.7 220.4 2,987.1
Source: NOAA (1961-1990) [24]
Climate data for Dera Ismail Khan (1991–2020)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 19.5
(67.1)
22.6
(72.7)
27.3
(81.1)
34.0
(93.2)
39.6
(103.3)
41.0
(105.8)
38.5
(101.3)
37.5
(99.5)
36.5
(97.7)
33.5
(92.3)
27.7
(81.9)
22.4
(72.3)
31.7
(89.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) 12.1
(53.8)
15.3
(59.5)
20.3
(68.5)
26.4
(79.5)
31.6
(88.9)
33.4
(92.1)
32.5
(90.5)
31.8
(89.2)
30.1
(86.2)
25.7
(78.3)
19.4
(66.9)
14.2
(57.6)
24.4
(75.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 4.6
(40.3)
8.0
(46.4)
13.4
(56.1)
18.9
(66.0)
23.7
(74.7)
25.9
(78.6)
26.5
(79.7)
26.0
(78.8)
23.8
(74.8)
17.9
(64.2)
11.1
(52.0)
5.8
(42.4)
17.1
(62.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 12.6
(0.50)
24.0
(0.94)
37.4
(1.47)
29.1
(1.15)
9.1
(0.36)
38.3
(1.51)
71.5
(2.81)
72.4
(2.85)
37.8
(1.49)
19.6
(0.77)
3.4
(0.13)
4.4
(0.17)
369.6
(14.55)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 2.1 3.5 5.0 3.8 1.8 2.6 4.1 3.8 1.9 1.0 0.7 0.9 31.2
Mean monthly sunshine hours 193.4 196.5 229.3 265.8 279.1 265.5 247.7 260.5 262.7 263.4 215.5 218.3 2,897.7
Source: NOAA[25]

Demographics

[edit]

Saraiki are main ethnic groups in Dera Ismail Khan District in simple majority. Total population of DI Khan District is 1,822,916 consists of Males 956,098 & females 866,667 as of 2023 Pakistani census.

Languages of Dera Ismail Khan District (2023 Pakistani census)

  Saraiki (65.76%)
  Pashto (31.96%)
  Urdu (1.70%)
  Balochi (0.04%)
  Others (0.51%)

There are 1,198,862 Saraiki, 582,703 Pashto, 31,152 Urdu, 4,765 Punjabi, 863 Sindhi, 791 Balochi, 490 Kashmiri, 2,738 Hindko, 5 Brahui, 18 Shina, 2 Balti, 3 Kalasha & 524 others of total 1,822,916 [26]


Religious groups in Dera Ismail Khan City (1881−2017)[a]
Religious
group
1881[28][29][30] 1901[31][32][33] 1911[34][35] 1921[36][37] 1931[38] 1941[27] 2017[39]
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Islam 12,440 56.13% 18,662 58.8% 21,759 61.94% 21,056 53.52% 22,321 55.34% 26,424 51.5% 215,348 98.78%
Hinduism [b] 8,862 39.98% 11,486 36.19% 11,716 33.35% 17,077 43.41% 16,761 41.56% 22,815 44.47% 438 0.2%
Sikhism 680 3.07% 1,420 4.47% 1,331 3.79% 724 1.84% 708 1.76% 1,412 2.75%
Jainism 2 0.01% 15 0.05% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Christianity 154 0.49% 325 0.93% 484 1.23% 541 1.34% 195 0.38% 2,166 0.99%
Judaism 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 1 0%
Zoroastrianism 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Buddhism 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Ahmadiyya 32 0.01%
Others 180 0.81% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% 459 0.89% 34 0.02%
Total population 22,164 100% 31,737 100% 35,131 100% 39,341 100% 40,331 100% 51,306 100% 218,018 100%

Transportation

[edit]

Road

[edit]
Yarik Toll Plaza of Islamabad-Dera Ismail Khan Motorway that serves as south terminal of the motorway

.[citation needed]

The city is connected to Bannu via the highway, which further connects it to the provincial capital of Peshawar via Kohat and Darra Adam Khel. Another road connects D. I. Khan to Mianwali through Chashma Barrage, and another connects the city to Zhob.[citation needed] The third major road connects it to Bhakkar in Punjab, situated on the eastern bank of the Indus River. A bridge on the Indus River was constructed in the early 1980s, before which the approach to Bhakkar was made through a boat bridge. Another road connect it to district Tank which further leads towards Jandola-AngoorAdda areas of South South Waziristan district at North west and Pezu on eastern side.[citation needed]

D. I. Khan is at the terminus of the Hakla–Dera Ismail Khan Motorway — a 280-km, four-lane controlled access motorway that is to extend from the Hakla Interchange on the M1 Motorway, near Islamabad to D. I. Khan.[22]

Air

[edit]

The city is served by Dera Ismail Khan Airport, though no commercial flights operate to the airport.

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ 1881-1941: Data for the entirety of the town of Dera Ismail Khan, which included Dera Ismail Khan Municipality and Dera Ismail Khan Cantonment.[27]: 19 
  2. ^ 1931-1941: Including Ad-Dharmis

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "PTI's Umar Amin Gandapur wins Dera Ismail Khan mayor seat". Business Recorder (newspaper). 19 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  2. ^ "POPULATION AND HOUSEHOLD DETAIL FROM BLOCK TO DISTRICT LEVEL: KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA (DERA ISMAIL KHAN DISTRICT)" (PDF). Pakistan BUreau of Statistics. 2018-01-03. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-02-03. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
  3. ^ Tehsils & Unions in the District of D.I. Khan – Government of Pakistan Archived February 9, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Nrb.gov.pk. Retrieved on 2012-06-01.
  4. ^ a b c d Dera Ismail Khān Town – Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 11, p. 269. Dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved on 2012-06-01.
  5. ^ "Baloch tribes of the Saraiki Waseb – by Farooq Miana". April 20, 2010.
  6. ^ Saira Naseem, Zakirullah Jan (2016), The Emerging Tochi-Gomal Cultural Phase in the Gomal Plain, Northwest Pakistan. Ancient Pakistan, Vol. XXVII (2016) 191
  7. ^ Meister, Michael W. (26 July 2010). Temples of the Indus: Studies in the Hindu Architecture of Ancient Pakistan. BRILL. p. 12. ISBN 978-90-04-19011-5.
  8. ^ a b Tolbort, T (1871). The District of Dera Ismail Khan, Trans-Indus. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  9. ^  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Dera Ismail Khan". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 64.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Dera Ismail Khan - An Overview of History and Indigenous People". Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  11. ^ a b c "Dera Ismail Khan Cantonment". Global Security. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  12. ^ Dera Ismail Khān Town – Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 11, p. 268. Dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved on 2012-06-01.
  13. ^ "Colonies, posh and model in name only!". NCR Tribune. Retrieved 2007-12-16.
  14. ^ "At least 8 killed, 27 injured in Dera Ismail Khan bomb blast". The Nation. 14 June 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
  15. ^ "2 killed, several injured in Dera Ismail Khan court blast". The Nation. 29 July 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
  16. ^ "Bike bomb kills DSP, 12 others in DI Khan". The Nation. 19 May 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  17. ^ "Militants attack police station in DI Khan, 10 personnel killed". The Express Tribune. 25 June 2011. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  18. ^ Leading News Resource of Pakistan Archived January 12, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Daily Times (2009-02-21). Retrieved on 2012-06-01.
  19. ^ JPG image (2009-2-20)
  20. ^ "D.I Khan: Five police officers, 10 civilians injured in bomb blast". Dunes News. 4 January 2017. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  21. ^ "Four policemen killed in Dera Ismail Khan". Geo News. 17 February 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  22. ^ a b "PM Nawaz performs groundbreaking of Motorway in D.I Khan". The News. 17 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  23. ^ "Blast targeting police van kills 6, injures 22 in DI Khan". www.thenews.com.pk.
  24. ^ "Dera Ismail Khan Climate Normals 1961-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  25. ^ "World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Dera Ismail Khan". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  26. ^ "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results: Table 11" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
  27. ^ a b India Census Commissioner (1942). Census of India, 1941. Vol. 10, North-West Frontier Province. p. 19. JSTOR saoa.crl.28215543.
  28. ^ Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881. Vol. I. 1881. JSTOR saoa.crl.25057656.
  29. ^ Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881. Vol. II. 1881. p. 520. JSTOR saoa.crl.25057657.
  30. ^ Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881. Vol. III. 1881. p. 250. JSTOR saoa.crl.25057658.
  31. ^ Census of India 1901. Vol. 1A, India. Pt. 2, Tables. 1901. p. 44. JSTOR saoa.crl.25352838.
  32. ^ Census of India 1901. Vol. 17A: Imperial tables, I–VIII, X–XV, XVII and XVIII for the Punjab, with the native states under the political control of the Punjab Government, and for the North-west Frontier Province. 1901. p. 26. JSTOR saoa.crl.25363739.
  33. ^ Census of India 1901. Vol. 17A: Imperial tables, I–VIII, X–XV, XVII and XVIII for the Punjab, with the native states under the political control of the Punjab Government, and for the North-west Frontier Province. JSTOR saoa.crl.25363739.
  34. ^ Edward Albert Gait (1913). Census of India, 1911. Vol. 1, Pt. 2, Tables. Calcutta: Supt. Govt. Print., India. p. 23. JSTOR saoa.crl.25393779.
  35. ^ Census of India 1911. Vol. 13, North-west Frontier Province: part I, Report, part II, Tables. 1911. p. 302. JSTOR saoa.crl.25394102.
  36. ^ Census of India 1921. Vol. 1, India. Pt. 2, Tables. 1921. p. 25. JSTOR saoa.crl.25394121.
  37. ^ Census of India 1921. Vol. 14, North-west Frontier Province: part I, Report, part II, Tables. 1921. p. 340. JSTOR saoa.crl.25430163.
  38. ^ Mallam, G. L.; Dundas, A. D. F. (1933). Census of India, 1931. Vol. XV. North-west frontier province. Peshawar: Government stationery and printing. p. 257. JSTOR saoa.crl.25793233.
  39. ^ "Final Results (Census-2017)". Retrieved 31 March 2024.
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