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Wah Cantonment

Cantonment in Punjab, Pakistan From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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The Wah Cantonment (Punjabi: واہ چھاونی; Urdu: واہ کینٹ) (often abbreviated to Wah Cantt) is a Class I Civilian Cantonment in Punjab, Pakistan.[2] It is the 17th most populous city in Punjab and 24th most populous city in Pakistan with a population of 400,733 people[3][4] It is located on the historic Grand Trunk Road. It has one of the highest literacy rates in Pakistan, likely exceeding 99%.[5] It spans over 14,433 Acres or 58 square kilometers.[2] It was termed as a "Model Education City" by Shaukat Aziz, former Prime Mnister of Pakistan.[6] The cantonment headquarters Pakistan Ordinance Factories (POF). It is located 30 km (19 mi) northwest of the capital city of Islamabad.

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Toponymy

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Previously known as Jalal Sar, Mughal Emperor Jahangir coined the term 'Wah' which translates to 'Wow' (Urdu: واہ). In his biography, Tuzk-e-Jahangiri, Mughal Emperor Jahangir recounts while returning from an expedition on 29th April 1607 he visited the natural springs at Mughal Gardens Wah and uttered the words 'Wah' as admiration. Subsequently, people begain referring to the area as 'Wah'.[7][8] Jahangir wrote the following in Tuzk-e-Jahangiri.

On Wednesday the 12th (of 1607) the camp was at Bābā Ḥasan Abdāl. One kos (Approx. 3.2 KM) to the east of this station there is a waterfall over which the stream rushes with great force. There is no fall like it on the way to Kabul. On the road to Kashmir there are two or three like it. In the middle of the basin, in which is the source of the stream, Rāja Mān Singh has erected a small building. There are many fish in the basin of the length of a quarter guz (Approx. 9 Inches). I halted three days at this enchanting place, drinking wine with those who were intimate with me and employing myself in catching fish. Until now I had never thrown a sufra net, which is a famous kind of net, and which in Hindi they call bhanwar jāl. It is not easy to throw. I threw it with my own hand and caught twelve fish, and putting pearls into their noses, let them loose in the water.[9][10][11]

The word 'Cantonment' (shortened as Cantt) was added in December of 1951 when Pakistan's second Prime Minister, Khawaja Nazimuddin, inaugurated the first four workshops of POF.[12][13]

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History

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Wah Cantonment is situated along the historic Grand Trunk Road, one of the oldest trade corridor in South-Asia dating back to 2500 years that connected the Central Asia to South Asia.

The region surrounding Wah has been a cradle of history for millennia, lying close to the heartland of the Gandhara Civilisation, famed for its Buddhist art, culture, and scholarship between the 1st millennium BCE and the early centuries CE. Archaeological remains, stupas, and relics from Gandhara still exist in the wider Taxila–Wah area.

Mughal Rule

The Mughal invasion of this area had a significant impact on the architecture of the village and surrounding areas which is visible in historic landmarks such as Wah Gardens. Which has hosted multiple mughal emperors and other notable mughal figures such as Jahangir, Shah jahan, Aurangzeb and Raja Man Singh I.

British Rule

In 1849, as the aftermath of the Sikh Empire's deafeat in the Second Anglo-Sikh war, the region was brought under British rule.[14]

Pre-partition Refugee Camp

As a result of the 1947 Rawalpindi Massacares, multiple Sikhs & Hindus were left homeless and destitute.[15] Refugee camp was set-up at Wah Cantonment.[16] Plausibly at the Askari Cement Wah Plant (erstwhile Associated Cement Company) that was established in 1921.[17][18] Historical accounts suggest that the numbers of Refugees hosted by Wah Cantonment were up to 12,000. [19]

Post-partition Industrialization

At the time of partition in 1947, the Indian sub-continent had 16 ordinance factories. All those sixteen factories fell to Indian share during partition since none of them were located in Pakistan's territory. Newly created Pakistan with fragile state apparatus and fragmented Armed Forces, had absolutely no arms & ammunition manufacturing facility to meet the security challenges to its sovereignty.

Liaqat Ali Khan, who was the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, immediately realized this imbalance and issued a directive within four months of creation of Pakistan to establish an ordnance factory in collaboration with UK's Royal Ordnance factories to manufacture .303 in. calibre rifles and its ammunition in Rawalpindi. The second Prime Minister, Khawaja Nazim-ud-Din, later performed the groundbreaking ceremony on 28th December, 1951 for four workshops at Wah Cantonment[20]

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Jamia Mosque
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Wah Gardens in Wah cantt
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Demographics

Population

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According to 2023 census, Wah Cantt had a population of 400,733. [22]

Administration

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Cantonment Board Wah, under ML&C, oversees the management and organization of a city's affairs, encompassing the provision of public services, sanitation, infrastructure and overall civic beautification.[2]

Wah Cantonment is organized into a grid of 27 sectors.[23] These sectors are classified based on the size of the residential quarters located within them. The housing types range from A-type, which are the largest, to H-type quarters, which are the smallest.[24] Each sector is primarily designated according to the predominant type of housing it contains.

Originally, the historical GT Road passed through the cantonment that was rerouted outside the cantonment and the section of historical GT Road was renamed Quaid Avenue or Mall Road. The Quaid Avenue or Mall Road (erstwhile historical GT Road) runs through cantonment from the East to the West, bisecting the cantonment into two halfs. The southern part contains housing sectors 1 to 24 that are numbered from the east to the west. While the Nothren Part contains sector 25 to 27 numbered in the same manner.

Besides, state-owned housing, Wah Cantonment also has multiple private housing socitiies as well as that also fall within the jurisdiction of Cantonment Board. Notable mentions include, but are not limited to

  • Kohistan Enclave [25]
  • New City Phase 1
  • New City Phase 2
  • Wah Model Town Phase 1
  • Wah Model Town Phase 2
  • Officers Colony
  • Chairman Colony

The administration by Cantonment Board is overlooked by elected individuals. The entire cantonment is divided into Wards with residents of each ward electing a member in the local bodies elections. [26]

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Education

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On an Official Visit on 10th January 2005 the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shaukat Aziz, while speaking to the Pakistan Ordinance Factories (POF) employees, said Wah Cantt possessed ideal education and health facilities and that he was impressed with the literacy rate of the city.[6]

Owing to this prestigious distinction in the education sector, I declare Wah Cantt as model education city of the country - Shaukat Aziz [6]

Wah Cantt boasts one of the highest literacy rates in Pakistan, reportedly exceeding 99.99%.[27][28] The city is home to a wide range of educational institutions, including universities, medical colleges, and technical institutes. Prominent establishments include the

POF Central Library

Established by the Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF) as a social welfare initiative. The library was inagurated on 9th October 1984 by Maj. Gen. Talat Masood, HI(M), Sbt. (Later Lt. Gen.). The POF Central Library is a repository boasting books and periodicals in excess of 58,000 and is located on Quaid Avenue.[29] The library also maintains 5 reading rooms throughout various parks in the city. [30]

Federal Government Educational Institutions (FGEI C/G)

The Federal Government Educational Institutions Directorate maintains its second-largest regional education network in Wah Cantt. Established in 1984, the Regional Office Wah oversees FGEI's institutions in Wah Cantt, Taxila Cantt, Kamra Cantt and Havelian Cantt. The region comprises 42 schools and 4 colleges serving a student population of over 33,000 with approximately 1,400 faculty members. [31] Prominent instituions of the FGEI (C/G) network are as follows

F.G. Degree College for Men, Wah Cantt [32]

The college was established as C.B. Intermediate College in 1964 and subsequently raised to the Degree level in 1978. Its administrative control was entrusted to the Federal Ministry of Education after Nationalization of Cantt Boards Educational Institutions in 1975. Subsequently the institute was given under the Army Education Directorate in 1977. All the Federal Government Educational Institutions have been handed over to the Ministry of Defence since 1992 and are controlled by the Directorate of Federal Government Educational Institutions, GHQ, Rawalpindi.[32]

Federal Government Public School No.1 (Boys), Wah Cantt

The school was initially established under Cantonment Board as Junior Public School in 1952. Later, It was upgraded as Secondary Public School in 1958. Due to nationalization, in 1975, this school was taken over by Federal Government Educational Institutions, Islamabad. Finally, it was handed over to Federal Government Educational Institutions (C/G) Directorate under GHQ (Rawalpindi).[33] In 1981 this Public School was bifurcated in augurated as FG Public High School Wah Cantt and FG Junior Public School Wah Cantt.[34] The school was offering co-education since its inception. In the year 1999, a board was constituted at Regional Level to assess the feasibility of a separate Girl's High School. Consequently, the bifurcated Junior Public School portion was transformed into FG Public School No. 6 (Girls), Wah Cantt.[33][34]

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Landmarks

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Mughal Gardens Wah

Wah Gardens (Urdu: واہ باغ), also known as Mughal Garden Wah (Urdu: مغل گارڈن واہ), is a garden-complex dating created by Raja Man Singh, brother-in-law and court chief of Emperor Jahangir. These gardens have hosted multiple Mughal Emperors including Jahangir (1607), Shah Jahan (1639, 1646, 1647, 1649, 1654) and Aurangzeb (1676).

Losar Baoli

Sultan Sher Shah Suri, who built the famous Grand Trunk Road (GT Road), built a 'Baoli' or stepwell along side the historic Grank Trunk road. It is said that the 'Baoli' was built for Sher Shah's horses used to drink water. Currently, the Baoli stands preserved as a remanent of the Suri Empire in a park named Sher Shah Suri park in honour of the Suri Emperor. [35]

Jamia Masjid Wah Cantt

Jamia Masjid Wah Cantt (also known as Markazi Jamia Masjid Wah Cantt) is the principal congregational mosque of Wah Cantt, located on Quaid Avenue. The mosque was inagurated by the then President of Pakistan, General Muhammad Ayub Khan (later Field Marshal), on 5th of April 1959.

The mosque draws heavy inspiration from Mughal architecture, particularly resembling Lahore’s iconic Badshahi Mosque. The mosque features a traditional Mughal layout with a large rectangular courtyard, a triple-dome prayer hall, and two prominent minarets flanking the structure. The mosque also acts as a seminary and offers Hifz-ul-Qur’an programs to students.

During special occasions like Eid Milad-un-Nabi (12 Rabi‑ul‑Awal) and Independence Day (14 August), the mosque is illuminated with decorative lighting, drawing large crowds of local residents each year.

Commemorative Displays

Wah Cantt features several commemorative displays. One notable exhibit is an F-7P Skybolt. This particular aircraft, bearing tail no 89-536, belonged to the No. 18 Squadron “Sharp shooters” of Pakistan Airforce that was deployed on PAF Base M.M. Alam, Mianwali. Upon phasing out F-7P Skybolts, on account of the induction of JF-17B's in the squadron, Pakistan Airforce gifted this plane to Pakistan Ordinance Factories that installed it in fron of the Ordinance Club.

Another significant monument is the Aérospatiale SA 315B Lama helicopter, bearing the number 675, which was presented by Pakistan Army Aviation to Pakistan Ordinance Factories. This display is located at the very site where a memorial was originally erected to honor the workers who lost their lives in the 2008 Wah bombing.

A life-size 7.62x39 mm round stands at the entrance of Wah Cantonment at Barrier Number One. A 125 mm anti-tank penetrator round is displayed at the center of Wah Cantt’s Uppal Chowk. In addition, Wah Cantt once hosted multiple displays of Machine Guns produced by Pakistan Ordinance Factories, including MG-3 and HMG PK-16 (DShk), which were installed at various intersections along Quaid Avenue. However, these have since been removed.

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Incidents

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2008 Wah Bombings

On 21st August, 2008, two suicide bombers blew themselves up at the gates of the Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF) killing 70 people and injuring more than 100. [36] The bombers blew themselves up outside factory at 2.35 PM when hundreds of workers were leaving after a shift change. Most of the victims were civilian workers.[37]

The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan of Baitullah Mehsud claimed responsibility for the attack. Maulvi Omar, a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, said his group the Tehrik-e-Taliban had carried out the attacks, which he said were in response to military operations against militants in the Bajaur region

The first explosion took place outside the gate and it was followed by an equally powerful blast at gatee located close to a bustling market. Witnesses said the bombers were on foot and they exploded themselves within a minute of each other. Another terrorist, Hameedullah, was arrested while trying to flee from the scene of the blasts in a taxi. Soon after the incident, law-enforcement agencies seized an explosive-vest that, hameedullah, had left in a toilet at a mosque located close to the POF.[38][36]

2015 Gernade attack on Police Pickets

During a routine checking of passenger vehicles, near Mughal Gardens Wah, by Police coming from Peshawar on the GT Road, a 25-year-old man tried to sneak out from a passenger van coming from the KP and tried to board a Rawalpindi-bound passenger bus. As policemen tried to search the man, he shouted “get away from me” and hurled a hand-grenade on the policemen, but it missed the target and exploded a few metres away, injuring three members of a family. As the bomber made a dash for nearby fields, policemen fired warning shots to stop him, but he ignored the shots and then ran towards Jhatla village. As policemen closed in on him, he blew himself up with a hand grenade.[39][40]

2015 Students help foil terror bid

A locally made explosive, carrying half kilogram of explosive,ball bearings, metal pieces, a circuit and fire crackers was spotted by students at a bus stop near their school at around 7:30 AM. The Students swiftly reported the "bag" to their teacher who contacted local administration and police. Military officials arrived soon after and shifted the suspicious bag to a nearby ground. The bomb disposal squad personnel who were called from Rawalpindi reached the scene at around 10 AM and discovered explosives inside it which they managed to defuse.[41][42]

2021 Accidental Factory Blast

on 12th August, 2021, Pakistan Army Public Relations, ISPR, confirmed that an accident had occurred at the POF plant due to a "technical fault", that killed three employees and two others injured were shifted to a hospital. [43][44]

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Notable people

Following is the list of Notable people that are either born in, associated with, or died in Wah cantonment

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References

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