Battagram District

Battagram
ضلع بٹگرام
بټګرام ولسوالۍ
Shingli Bala village in Battagram tehsil
Shingli Bala village in Battagram tehsil
Battagram District (red) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Battagram District (red) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Coordinates: 34°25′N 73°06′E / 34.41°N 73.1°E / 34.41; 73.1
Country Pakistan
Province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
DivisionHazara
RegionHazara region
EstablishedJuly 1993
City HallBattagram
Government
 • TypeDistrict Administration
 • MNAPrince Nawaz Khan Swati (Pakistan Tehreek Insaf)
 • MPA Battagram-I Engr Zubair Khan Swati
 • MPA Battagram-IITaj Muhammad Khan Trand
Area
 • District
497 km2 (192 sq mi)
Elevation
1,038 m (3,406 ft)
Population
 (2023)[1]
 • District
335,984
 • Density676/km2 (1,750/sq mi)
 • Urban
0
 • Rural
335,984 (100%)
Literacy
 • Literacy rate
  • Total:
    (39.09%)
  • Male:
    (54.69%)
  • Female:
    (23.34%)
Time zoneUTC5 (PST)
Zip/Postal Code
21040
Area code0997
Number of Tehsils1
Websitebattagram.kp.gov.pk

Battagram (Pashto: بټګرام ولسوالۍ, Urdu: ضلع بٹگرام) is a tribal district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan.[3][4][5] The headquarter is Battagram, which is about 75 km from Mansehra city.[3] It was part of historic Yaghistan (Independent Territory) before 1955. Later in 1955, It was merged into Pakistan and made part of neighboring Mansehra District with the status of Tehsil. It was officially separated from Mansehra District in July 1993 and was given the status of district.

Geography

The district of Battagram is located at a latitude of 34.41 and longitude of 73.1. It is surrounded by Kohistan District to the north, Mansehra District to the east, (Torghar District) to the south, and Shangla District to the west.[3]

It has a land area of 1,301 square kilometres (502 sq mi). Battagram obtained the status of a district in July 1993, when it was upgraded from a Tehsil and separated from Mansehra District.[6]

Location and Altitude

  • Battagram is situated at 34°41'N 73°1'E and has an altitude of approximately 1,038 meters (3,408 feet) above sea level.
  • It is nestled amidst the picturesque mountains of northern Pakistan.
Thakot Bridge, Battagram

Climate

  • Battagram experiences a mild and generally warm climate.
  • The average temperature hovers around 18.5 °C (65.3 °F), and the annual precipitation averages about 1,427 millimeters (56.18 inches).
  • June is the hottest month, while January is the coldest.

Demographics

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1951...—    
196172,394—    
1972117,909+4.53%
1981204,164+6.29%
1998185,626−0.56%
2017296,247+2.49%
2023335,984+2.12%
Sources:[7]

As of the 2023 census, Batagram district has 51,366 households and a population of 335,984. The district has a sex ratio of 101.26 males to 100 females and a literacy rate of 39.09%: 54.69% for males and 23.34% for females. 103,719 (30.89% of the surveyed population) are under 10 years of age. The entire population lives in rural areas.[1] 799 (0.24%) people in the district are from religious minorities, mainly Christians.[8]

Social groups

Major ethnic groups in the districts are:

Language

Languages of Battagram district (2023)[10][11]
  1. Pashto (80.0%)
  2. Gujari (18.0%)
  3. Hindko & Kohistani (2.00%)

At the time of the 2023 census, 80% of the population spoke Pashto, 18% Gujari, and 2% speak Hindko & Kohistani languages.[11] 11.88% of the population spoke languages classified as 'Others', mainly other Kohistani languages.[10]

Administration

The district has geographical borders with the districts of Kohistan to the north, Mansehra to the east and southeast, Torghar to the south and Shangla to the west. The district consists of only one sub-division or Tehsil, containing 12 in total Union Councils:[12]

In 2022, Allai Tehsil was separated and upgraded to District status.

Tehsil Urdu name Pashto name Area

(km²)[13]

Pop.

(2023)

Density

(ppl/km²)

(2023)

Literacy rate

(2023)[14]

No. of Unions Name of Unions
Battagram Tehsil تحصیل بٹگرام بټګرام تحصیل 497 335,984 676.02 41.20% 12 Ajmera, Banian, Battagram, Batamori, Gijbori, Kuza Banda, Paimal Sharif, Peshora, Rajdhari, Shumlai, Thakot and Trand

Provincial Assembly

Member of Provincial Assembly Party affiliation Constituency Year
Zubair Khan Swati (Allai Khan) Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf PK-34 Battagram-I 2024
Taj Muhammad Khan Swati (Trand Khan) Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf PK-35 Battagram-II 2024

Education

  • Several schools and colleges contribute to improving the literacy rate in the area but majority of Private schools are miss leading children as they provide Copy/Paste Answers to students during exam.
  • NGOs and foreign funds have played a role in building schools to enhance education.
Govt Degree College Chappargram, Battagram

2005 earthquake

Battagram was one of the areas affected by the Pakistan earthquake of October 8, 2005 when more than 4,500 people were killed and approximately 35,000 were injured.[3][15] Many residents of the area were rendered homeless and without shelter. Since October 8, 2005, the NGOs and the governmental organization Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority have been engaged in reconstruction work but as of 2009, the reconstruction work is not completed. In some cases residents have rebuilt houses themselves.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results: Table 1" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-07-26. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  2. ^ "Literacy rate, enrolments, and out-of-school population by sex and rural/urban, CENSUS-2023, KPK" (PDF).
  3. ^ a b c d "District Profile BATTAGRAM (PDF)" (PDF). www.erra.pk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-30. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  4. ^ "Hazara varsity campus sought in Battagram". DAWN.COM. 2017-09-29. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  5. ^ "Abaseen division to be approved after population census: Hoti". The Nation. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  6. ^ PCO 1998, p. 18.
  7. ^ "Population by administrative units 1951-1998" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
  8. ^ "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results: Table 9" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-08-19. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  9. ^ a b c d Bergen, Peter; Tiedemann, Katherine (2013-01-04). Talibanistan: Negotiating the Borders Between Terror, Politics, and Religion. Oxford University Press. p. 279. ISBN 978-0-19-998677-4. Battagram District: The major ethnic groups of the district are Gujjar, Swati, Akhunkhel, and Medakhel.
  10. ^ a b "Pakistan Census 2023" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-08-19. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  11. ^ a b "Battagaram District". Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Battagaram District: 80% population speak Pashto,18% Gujri. 2% population speak Hindko and Kohistani About 100 population of Hindu community also living in village Batagram and Shamlai.
  12. ^ Tehsils & Unions in the District of Battagram – Government of Pakistan, NRB, archived from the original on 9 February 2012, retrieved 19 March 2012
  13. ^ "TABLE 1 : AREA, POPULATION BY SEX, SEX RATIO, POPULATION DENSITY, URBAN POPULATION, HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND ANNUAL GROWTH RATE, CENSUS-2023, KPK" (PDF).
  14. ^ "LITERACY RATE, ENROLMENT AND OUT OF SCHOOL POPULATION BY SEX AND RURAL/URBAN, CENSUS-2023, KPK" (PDF).
  15. ^ "Aftermath: What if a killer earthquake were to strike Karachi - The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  16. ^ "NRC PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE SITUATION REPORT – WEEK ENDING 5TH FEB 2006" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-08. Retrieved 2017-12-02.

Bibliography

  • 1981 District Census report of Mansehra. District Census Report. Vol. 23. Islamabad: Population Census Organization, Statistics Division, Government of Pakistan. 1983.
  • 1998 District Census report of Batagram. Census publication. Vol. 18. Islamabad: Population Census Organization, Statistics Division, Government of Pakistan. 1999.