Dera Ghazi Khan is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The district covers an area of 5,306 m and it is a long narrow strip of country, 198 m. in length, sloping gradually from the hills which form its western boundary to the river Indus on the east.

Below the hills the country is high and arid, generally level, but sometimes rolling in sandy undulations, and much intersected by hill torrents, 201 in number. With the exceptions of two, these streams dry up after the rains, and their influence is only felt for a few miles below the hills.

The eastern portion of the district is at a level sufficiently low to benefit by the floods of the Indus. A barren tract intervenes between these zones, and is beyond the reach of the hill streams on the one hand and of the Indus on the other. Although liable to great extremes of temperature, and to a very scanty rainfall, the district is not unhealthy.

The Sulaiman Mountains rise to a height of 10,000 feet (3,000 m) in the north of the district.

How to get in Dera Ghazi Khan?

• By plane: Dera Ghazi Khan International Airport is about 15 km from the city. Pakistan’s flag carrier PIA operates here directly from Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Quetta, Bahawalpur, Dubai and Jeddah. Shaheen Air and Air Indus also operate here from Karachi.

  

• By train: Khushhal Khan Khattak Express, a daily express train service between Karachi and Peshawar briefly stop at Dera Ghazi Khan Cantt.Dera Ghazi Khan Railway Station
• By road: The city is well connected with whole country by road. Daewoo, Faisal Movers, Baloch, Ghazi and Adil Shah are the buses which connect Dera Ghazi Khan to other major cities.

History

The city was founded at the close of the 15th century and named after Nawab Ghazi Khan Mirrani, son of Nawab Haji Khan Mirrani, a Balochi chieftain, who had declared independence from the Langhi Dynasty Sultans of Multan. Together with two other Deras i.e. settlements, Dera Ismail Khan and Dera Fateh Khan, it gave its name to Derajat. Derajat eventually came into the possession of the British after the Sikh War in 1849 and was divided into two districts: Dera Ghazi Khan and Dera Ismail Khan. After the partition of India, many of the city’s Hindu residents settled in Derawal Nagar colony of Delhi, India. The district of Rajanpur was later carved out of the Dera Ghazi Khan district. Some of them also settled in various part of India, including Bhiwani, Delhi, Jhansi, Ranchi, Ambala and Haridwar.

Dera Ghazi Khan was founded in 15th century by Amar a Tribal Sardar of Mirani tribe. The old city of Dera Ghazi Khan was situated at the distance of 10 miles (16 km) towards east of the present city. In 1908, the old city of Dera Ghazi Khan was abolished due to heavy flood in the river Indus. Resultantly the existing city of Dera Ghazi Khan was came into being in the year 1910. The city is divided into different blocks. The British ruler established colonial system in the continent and declared D.G.Khan as district in the year 1849. General Court Land was appointed as first Deputy Commissioner of this District. Keeping in view the rapidly increasing population of the area and deteriorating law and order situation district D.G.Khan was divided in two districts i.e. D.G.Khan and Rajanpur. Presently there are two revenue sub division of the District. A tribal belt/political area spread along with western side of the District. Mirani tribe has been extinct three centuries ago. The so-called ‘shahzada Zulqarnain’ has nothing to do with that tribe. The self-made ‘shahzada’ is a well-known homosexual partner of a prominent local shia leader. The ‘shahzada’ belongs to a low-class dhobi (washermen) cast and lives in the dhobi district of the city. The population according to the 1901 census of India (then a British colony) was 471,149 – the great majority being Baloch Muslims. The frontier tribes on the Dera Ghazi Khan border include the LASHARIJarwar, Qaisrani, Bozdar, Khosa, Leghari, Khetran, Gurchani, Mazari, Marri,mirani,Bugti,and Malghani tribes.

There are petroleum and gas reservoirs in district Dera Ghazi Khan at sites rodho, zindapir, afiband, Dhodhak etc. The Koh-e-Sulaiman Range constitutes a major part of this area, This range is full of naturl deposits like Marble & Lime Stone. A big cement plant DG Cement is also situated in Kofla Sattai Tehsil Dera Ghazi Khan.

Geography and Climate

Dera Ghazi Khan is located at 30’03” N and 70’38” E. The overall climate of the city is dry with little rainfall. The winter is mild, but it is very hot in summer. The average high temperature during summer is about 107 °F (42 °C), while during winter the average low is 40 °F (4 °C). The prevailing wind direction is north–south. Due to the barren mountains of Koh-Suleman (Sulaiman Mountains) and the sandy soil of the area, windstorms are common in the summer. During summer, the temperatures are generally amongst the highest in Pakistan. Fort Munro, located on the edge of Punjab Province, has relatively cooler weather. In winter, scattered snowfall has been reported.

Notable areas:

• Fort Munro is a hill station in Dera Ghazi Khan which lies on the Quetta Road at 85 km from Dera Ghazi Khan city in the Sulaiman Mountains Range. Its altitude is 1800 meters (6,470 feet) above sea level and attracts many people for short stays during the summer.

  

• Fort Munro Steel BridgeFort Munro Steel Bridge

  

• Tomb of Hazrat Sakhi Sarwar, Village Muqam (35 kilometres from Dera Ghazi Khan city):  Tomb of Hazrat Sakhi Sarwar Syed Ahmed Sultan, built in the 13th century in a unique style of Mughal architecture. Thousands of people from all over the subcontinent come here for the birth celebrations of Sakhi Sarwar in March every year.

  

• Tomb of Ghazi Khan

  

• Damas Lake, Fort Munro

  

• Dera Ghazi Khan Zoo

  

• Ghazi Park

  

Colleges and Universities in Dera Ghazi Khan

• College of Agriculture, DG Khan Sub-Campus University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. (CADGK)
• Indus International Institute: It is affiliated with National College of Business Administration and Economics has been established by private sector. For the needs of remote area students, the institute has its own buses to facilitate the transport availability for the students. Indus has a library and Computer Lab as well.
• The College of Education: It was established in 1989 under the affiliation of Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan. The college became a constituent institution of the University of Education in 2002 and is in its new building adjacent to the Shah Faisal (Bihari) Colony. The campus has a hostel for boys and onel for girls. The campus offers teacher education programs like BEd Secondary, MEd, M.A. Education and B.A. BEd’s several private sector colleges also exist in this city.
• Ghazi Khan Medical College: The government decided to establish a medical college in Dera Ghazi Khan to improve the facilities in southern part of the province. Ghazi Khan Medical College classes were started in 2010 in Q.M.C Bahawapur. The foundation stone for Ghazi University and Dera Ghazi Khan Medical College was laid in December 2011. Classes shifted from Q.M.C Bahawalpur to Ghazi Khan Medical College in March 2012. Niaz Ahmed Baloch was appointed as a first principal of the Medical College. The Medical and Dental College has been developed as a state-of-the-art medical institution imparting accredited and approved medical education and research. The D.H. Hospital and Research Institute, which will be a research-oriented teaching hospital, will fulfill the requirement of training and research of medical students. The curriculum of the Medical and Dental College will be in line with the PM&DC regulations and international health standards.

  

• UAF College of Agriculture, Dera Ghazi Khan: It is a constituent college of the University of Agriculture Faisalabad located near the airport imparts training in the degree of BSc (Hons.) Agriculture. The college consists of teaching sections of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Horticulture, Agronomy, Soil and Forestry Range Management and Wildlife, Agricultural Entomology, Plant Pathology, Animal Production and Health, Agricultural Engineering and Technology, and Social Sciences and Rural Development. It aims to develop as a university.
• Govt. Institute of Technology: It is situated at airport road, and is one of the biggest institutes in the region offering diploma and BTech classes in more than ten technologies in morning and evening shifts. Diploma courses in technologies are Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, Auto-mechanical, Petroleum, Chemical, Petrochemical, I.T. and Computer etc.
• Ghazi University: The government has established a state-of-the-art Ghazi University in Dera Ghazi Khan since 2011 near airport. For this purpose 1000 acres of land has been acquired for the next 50 years requirement of the university. The foundation stone for Ghazi University and Ghazi Medical College was laid in December 2011. The Govt. Postgraduate College, FAU Agriculture College and Ghazi Medical College will work under this university. Vice Chancellor of Islamia University Bahawalpur Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed has given additional charge of Ghazi University v.c since 11.06.2014. The Virtual University of Pakistan has established its campus here since 2004 which is providing both campus based and distance learning education primarily based on IT tools and technology. Another prominent educational organisation is the Allama Iqbal Open University campus. The government has approved Akhuwat University of Engineering and Technology in Dera Ghazi Khan since 2012.

  

• Mir chakar khan rind university of technology

Demographics

The majority of the population is poor but they have been ruled by the rich landlords and chiefs of Baloch tribes which played a significant role in the national and provincial politics. Some of these feudals use the title Sardar for themselves, including the Chief Minister of Punjab Usman Buzdar, former President of Pakistan Farooq Leghari, Governors of the Punjab Zulfiqar Ali Khosa and Latif Khosa, Mir Badshah Qaisrani, Sardar of the Malghani Balouch tribe, Chief Minister of Punjab Dost Muhammad Khosa, Chief Secretary of Punjab, Nasir Mehmood Khosa, Former Inspector General Police of Punjab, Tariq Khosa, and Supreme Court Judge Asif Khosa. The city is one of the oldest districts in South Asia. Dera Ghazi Khan did not develop like other cities in Punjab. Based on the surveys of 2004–2005, Dera Ghazi Khan district is considered one of the twenty poorest districts of Pakistan with about 51% of its population living below the poverty line.

Fairs and Festivals in Dera Ghazi Khan

Sangh Mela, is a Vaisakhi fair during March and April, and has been celebrated in Sakhi Sarwar by people coming from Jhang and Faisalabad for centuries. This festival is celebrated by Hindus and Muslims, especially at the time of wheat harvesting. In some places it is known as Basant. Throughout history, a large number of followers coming from different religions became the followers of Sakhi Sarwar. Max Arthur Macauliffe, a colonial office appointed in Punjab, observed in 1875 that not only Muslims but Hindus also visited the shrines during the [urs]. In the 1911 census of India, 79,085 Sikhs reported to be followers of Sakhi Sarwar.