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ALTITUDE 510 Meters
AREA
150 Sq Km
POPULATION
1.5 MILLION
TELE CODE
051
POSTAL CODE
46000
Historical Overview of Rawalpindi:
RAWALPINDI, the commercial center of the Potowar plateau, is one of
the largest cities of Pakistan. It is a glamorous mixture of ancient
culture and modern traditions. In the past few years,Rawalpindi has
grown rapidly. Modern shopping complexes have sprung up through out
the city and it now boasts a collection of High-Rise buildings. It has
grown from a mere village to the largest city in the area.
Rawalpindi is ideally located in the foot of the Margalla. It
therefore holds the unique status of being the staging ground for
tourists from around the world.
Pindi Through the Ages:
Throughout the ages, Rawalpindi has been on the route of invaders. The
first muslim invader, Mahmood of Ghazni (979-1030 AD), gifted the city
to a Gakkhar chief, Kai Gohar. The town however, being on the invaders
route, could not prosper and remained deserted until Jhanda Khan,
restored it and gave it the name Rawalpindi after the villiage Rawal
in 1493 AD. Rawalpindi remained under the rule of the Gakkhars until
Muqarrab Khan, the last Gakkhar ruler was defeated by the Sikhs in
1765 AD. The Sikhs invited traders from other places to settle here.
This brought the city into prominence. Sikhs lost the city to the
British in 1849 AD. The British, seeing the strategic importance of
the city, turned it into a military garrison in 1849 and established a
military cantonment south of the old city. It soon became one of the
major centers of the British Indian army. In 1879, the Punjab Northern
Railway was extended to Rawalpindi but the train service was formally
inaugurated on January 01, 1886. After the partition of the
subcontinent, Rawalpindi was made the General Headquarters of the
Pakistan Army and began to grow rapidly. Today, it is one of the most
important cities of Pakistan, both politically and economically.
Ayub National Park is located beyond the old Presidency on Grand Trunk
(G.T) Road, It covers an area of about 2,300 acres and has a
play-land, lake with boating facility, an aquarium, a
garden-restaurant and an open air theater.
The vast expanse of greenery at the Ayub Park, which incidentally is
the largest park in Pakistan, attracts people from far.
Ayub Park is the most beautiful place in Rawalpindi and is full of
greenery. People enjoy visiting it. Here is a beautiful scene of one
of the lakes of Ayub Park in which water lilies are groomed.
Those who care for their health go to Ayub park for tracking and
exercising early in the morning and in evening.
The water lilly lake of Ayub park is known through out Pakistan. It is
a natural lake in which Water Lillies blossom through out the year.
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