Attock

Attock is a district of the province of Punjab, Pakistan. The headquarters and the capital of the district are Attock City and considered to be the 61st populated city of Pakistan. The district covers an area of 6,857sq kilometers.

It is bordered by the districts of Haripur and Sawabi in the north, Rawalpindi in the east, Chakwal in the south, Mianwali in the southwest, Kohat in the west, and Nowshera in the northwest.

The Indus River is flowing on the border of the district, at a distance of 130 kilometers, which divides it from the other 3 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This article has all the information about the district, including Attock History.

Attock History

Alexander the Great

Early history goes back to Alexander the Great, who came to the region in 327 BC and built a ship in Karachi’s region for their traveling purpose. Before Alexander, the region was ruled by different rulers, including Malavas, Kambojas, Kaikayas, Yaudheyas, Kurus, Pauravas, Daradas, and Madras.

Ruled By Mehmood Ghaznavi

After the decline of the Achaemenid Empire, the region was ruled by the empires of Kushan, Turks, Maurya, Gupta, Indo Greek, and Shahis. Rajpoots took hold of the region in the 7th century. After Rajpoots’ decline, Sultan Mehmood Ghaznavi came to the region and defeated the Hindu Shahis in 1005.

The city is famous for its ancient history and developed during the Mughal Empire. Emperor Akbar built a fort complex in 1581 after recognizing the importance of the region. After the decline of the Mughal Empire, two different empires came into power, Sikhs in east Punjab and Afghan Durranis in the West.

British Power

Thus it became the battleground of two powers. British came to power after the empires of Durrani and Sikhs. The region was more developed in British Raj as a Railway Line, and a bridge on the Indus River was constructed for public use.

The first name of the district was Campbellpur and was named after Sir Campbell, who founded the region in 1908. The district was renamed Attock in 1978. The district contained Sikh and Hindu populations who migrated to India after the partition of the Subcontinent.

Administration

The district is administratively divided into six tehsils and 72 union councils. The names of tehsils are given below.

• Attock
• Jand
• Hazro
• Fateh Jang
• Hassan Abdal
• Pindi Gheb

Population

According to the census of 2017, the district had a population of 1,883,556.

Language

The dominant and first language of the district is Punjabi, spoken by 90 percent of the population. Other languages contain Pashto, spoken by 5 percent of people, and Urdu, spoken by 5 percent of the entire population.

Religion

According to the 1998 census of Pakistan, the most dominant religion of the district is Islam, followed by 98 percent of the entire population, while 2 percent of the population contained Christians.

Attock Climate

Attock has a hot and dry climate in the summer seasons. The average temperature of the region varies from 27 to 34 degrees centigrade, while the highest recorded temperature of the region is 45 degrees centigrade. The season of winter is dry and cold, and the lowest recorded temperature of the district is 3 degrees centigrade.

Agriculture

The district has agricultural land, and the economy of people is generally based on crops. The major crops are peanut, maize, grams, wheat, millets, pulses, and corns. Peanuts are grown in large quantities and consumed in the country as well as exported abroad.

About 90 percent of water in the district is used for agricultural purposes, which do not fulfill the requirements of irrigation. Thus the region depends on rainfall to meet the irrigation requirements.

Education

Attock is ranked 16th for its highest literacy rate among all other cities of Pakistan. The people of urban areas in Attock are mostly educated, while the education system in rural areas is also developing. Some of the notable educational institutions are given below.

Universities

• Virtual University
• Comsats Institute of Information Technology
• Education University

Colleges

• Fizaia Degree College F6 – RF, Attock
• Attock Degree College
• Fizaia Degree College MRF, Attock

Higher Secondary Schools

• Cadet College Hassanabdal
• Army Public College
• Cadet College Fateh Jang

Industry

The district is home to industries containing many oil refineries, textile mills, and cement factories. Some of the industries of the district are given below. 

• Pakistan oil field LTD
• Attock Petroleum
• Attock Information Technologies
• Cement Factory
• Attock Gen Limited
• National Oil Refinery
• Lawrence Pore Textile Mill

Sports

The people of Attock are very fond of sports and play different games like cricket, hockey, football, volleyball, snooker, and gymnastics. The district has produced many national and international cricket players, among which some of them are given below.

• Khurram Shehzad
• Sohail Tanvir
• Zohaib Ahmad
• Babar Naeem
• Mohammad Rameez
• Abdul Manan
• Ameer Khan
• Imran Ali
• Nauman Aman
• Alamgir Khan

Interesting Places

There are many tourists and attractive places in a district containing Indus River, Attock Fort, Haro River, and many others. The people all over the country come to see these interesting places in the district. Some of the interesting places in the region are given below.

• Attock Fort
• Haro River
• POF Sanjwal
• Lawrence Pore Textile Mill
• Ghazi Barotha Electricity Project
• Indus River
• Kala Chita Pahar
• Kamra Air Base
• Attock Oil Refinery
• Dakhni Natural Gas Field

Notable People

Some of the notable people are given below.

• Malik Nur Khan (Air Marshal)
• Javed Ashraf Qazi (Lt. General)
• Shaukat Hayat Khan (Army Major)
• Malik Ata Mohammad Khan (Landlord)
• Malik Hakemmen Khan (Politician)
• Sheikh Aftab Ahmad (Politician)
• Shuja Khanzada (Politician)
• Tahir Sadiq Khan (Politician)
• Malik Allah Yar Khan (Politician)
• Sahaban Latif (Female Cricketer)