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Wah Cantonment

Coordinates: 33°46′17″N 72°45′06″E / 33.7714°N 72.7518°E / 33.7714; 72.7518
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For the city, see Wah (city).

Wah Cantonment
  • واہ چھاونی
  • واہ کینٹ
Cantonment
Central Mosque
Central Mosque
Wah Cantonment is located in Punjab, Pakistan
Wah Cantonment
Wah Cantonment
Wah Cantt
Wah Cantonment is located in Pakistan
Wah Cantonment
Wah Cantonment
Wah Cantonment (Pakistan)
Coordinates: 33°46′17″N 72°45′06″E / 33.7714°N 72.7518°E / 33.7714; 72.7518
Country Pakistan
ProvincePunjab, Pakistan Punjab
DistrictRawalpindi
TehsilTaxila Tehsil
Established1949
Area
 • City
58.27 km2 (22.50 sq mi)
 • Land5,841 ha (14,433 acres)
Elevation
471 m (1,545 ft)
Population
 (2023)[1]
 • City
400,733
 • Rank24th, Pakistan
 • Density6,900/km2 (18,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+5 (PST)
Postal code
47040
Area code0514
Literacy rate99%

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.

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]

History

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Wah Cantt is located near the ancient city of Taxila, a small town enriched with one of the most important archaeological sites in the world and the “First University of the World”.[14]

Mughal Rule

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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.

British Rule

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In 1849, as the aftermath of the Sikh Empire's deafeat in the Second Anglo-Sikh war, the region was brought under British rule.[15]

Pre-partition Refugee Camp

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As a result of the 1947 Rawalpindi Massacares, multiple Sikhs & Hindus were left homeless and destitute.[16] Refugee camp was set-up at Wah Cantonment.[17] Plausibly at the Askari Cement Wah Plant (erstwhile Associated Cement Company) that was established in 1921.[18][19] Historical accounts suggest that the numbers of Refugees hosted by Wah Cantonment were up to 12,000. [20]

Post-partition Industrialization

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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[21]

Jamia Mosque
Wah Gardens in Wah cantt

Demographics

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Population

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Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
195132,823—    
196137,035+1.21%
1972107,510+10.17%
1981122,335+1.45%
1998198,891+2.90%
2017380,103+3.47%
2023400,733+0.88%
Sources:[22]

According to 2023 census, Wah Cantt had a population of 400,733. [23]

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.[24] 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.[25] Each sector is primarily designated according to the predominant type of housing it contains, reflecting a structured and hierarchical urban planning model commonly found in cantonment areas.

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]

Education

[edit]

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

[edit]

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)

[edit]

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]

[edit]

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

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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]

Landmarks

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Mughal Gardens Wah

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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

[edit]

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

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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.

Incidents

[edit]

2008 Wah Bombings

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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

[edit]

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

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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

[edit]

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]

Notable people

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

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "PAKISTAN: Provinces and Major Cities". PAKISTAN: Provinces and Major Cities. Citypopulation.de website. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "ML&C - Wah Cantt".
  3. ^ "Statistics of Population".
  4. ^ "Pakistan City & Town Population List". Tageo.com website. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  5. ^ "Wah Cantt primary school: a picture of neglect".
  6. ^ a b c "PM announces labour colony for Wah". 11 January 2005.
  7. ^ "History of WahCantt".
  8. ^ "Wah Cantonment".
  9. ^ Tūzuk-i-Jahāngīrī [Memoirs of Jahāngīr]. 1909. p. 99.
  10. ^ "Tūzuk-i-Jahāngīrī (Memoirs of Jahāngīr) Translated by Alexander Rogers". Gutenberg.org.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ "Tuzuk-i-jahangiri (Memoris Of Jahangir) Vol.1".
  12. ^ "Wah Cantonment". Archived from the original on 3 June 2015.
  13. ^ "Wah Cantonment".
  14. ^ History of Wah Cantt Wahcantt.com website, Retrieved 25 September 2021
  15. ^ "Rawalpindi History".
  16. ^ "Remembering Rawalpindi".
  17. ^ Ishtiaq Ahmed The Punjab Bloodied, Partitioned And Cleansed Rupa & Co. p. 997. This is a big problem. we are planning eventually to form camps to take the whole number at wah and Kala (near jhelum).
  18. ^ "The 1947 Partition Archive". Facebook. We stayed at Wah camp for almost two months.
  19. ^ "The 1947 Partition Archive". Some families took refuge in Wah Camp in a cement factory, while others went to Kala Camp in Jhelum district.
  20. ^ "Refugee camp, Rawalpindi district, March 1947".
  21. ^ "Pakistan Ordinance Factories - Our History". Archived from the original on 9 December 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  22. ^ "Population by administrative units 1951-1998" (PDF). Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
  23. ^ "Wah Cantonment". GlobalSecurity.org website. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
  24. ^ "Children As Scavengers: A Case Study Of Wah Cantt" (PDF).
  25. ^ "Wah Cantonment".
  26. ^ "Taxila Wah Cantonments, PML-N's clean sweep".
  27. ^ "Global Security org - Wah Cantonment".
  28. ^ "Federal Government Educational Institutions - Wah Region".
  29. ^ "Introduction - POF library".
  30. ^ "Reading Rooms - POF Central Library".
  31. ^ "Federal Government Educational Institutions - Wah region".
  32. ^ a b "FG Degree College for Men, Wah Cantt".
  33. ^ a b "FGPS1B-Home".
  34. ^ a b "Our History".
  35. ^ "Wah Cantonment".
  36. ^ a b "Taliban claim 'credit' for Wah carnage: At least 70 killed, 67 injured in twin suicide blasts".
  37. ^ "Death toll in Wah blasts climbs to 70". Archived from the original on 4 September 2008.
  38. ^ ""Taliban backed by RAW trained Wah bombers"".
  39. ^ "Three injured in suicide blast near Wah picket".
  40. ^ "Suicide bomber blows himself up in Wah".
  41. ^ "Vigilant school boys help foil terror bid".
  42. ^ "Locally-made explosive device defused near Wah school".
  43. ^ "Three killed, two wounded in accidental explosion at POF in Wah Cantt: ISPR".
  44. ^ ""3 employees dead, 2 injured in accidental explosion in POF's Wah factory: ISPR"".
  45. ^ a b "Historical Old Houses of Pakistan".
  46. ^ "Olympian Zakir Hussain passes away".
  47. ^ "Malik Taimoor Masood - Punjab Assembly".
  48. ^ "Malik Fahad Masood".
  49. ^ "Naat khawan dies".
  50. ^ "Syed Zabeeb Masood Shah".
  51. ^ "Baadshah Pehalwan Khan".
  52. ^ "Pakistan's first professional wrestler sets his eyes on WWE".
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