Khairpur
خيرپور | |
---|---|
City | |
![]() Khairpur's Faiz Mahal | |
Coordinates: 27°32′N 68°46′E / 27.533°N 68.767°ECoordinates: 27°32′N 68°46′E / 27.533°N 68.767°E | |
Country | ![]() |
Province | ![]() |
Division | Sukkur |
District | Khairpur |
Population | |
• City | 183,181 |
• Rank | 46th, Pakistan |
Time zone | UTC+5 (PST) |
Khairpur (Sindhi and Urdu: خيرپور) is a city and the capital of the Khairpur District, in Pakistan's Sindh province. It is the 46th largest city in Pakistan by population.[citation needed]
Etymology
The name Khairpur may derive from the Arabic word for "khair," kheir, in reference to the peacefull area that have historically been the point of the region. This may be an allusion to the relative prosperity of the region at the time. Others have suggested the name may derive from the word Khair, derived from a Sindhi word for "relax"
History
The Talpur dynasty was established in 1783 by Mir Fateh Ali Khan, who declared himself the first Rais, or ruler of Sindh, after defeating the Kalhoras at the Battle of Halani.[2] The nephew of Mir Fateh Ali Khan, Mir Sohrab Khan Talpur, established a branch of the Talpur dynasty in 1783 in Burahan, which was renamed Khairpur in 1783.[citation needed]
The death of Mir Sohrab Khan Talpur, founder of the Khairpur branch abdicated power to his eldest son Mir Rustam 'Ali Khan, in 1811.[2]
Rustam's youngest half brother, 'Ali Murad, strengthened his hand by signing a treaty with the British in 1832, in which he secured recognition as the independent ruler of Khairpur in exchange for surrendering control of foreign relations to the British in 1838, as well as use of Sindh's roads and the Indus River.[2] His position had been little more than that of a regent during his father's lifetime, and this was to remain unchanged until his youngest half brother, 'Ali Murad, came of age. Nevertheless, this did not save him from internal family disputes, in which the British initially refused to treat or take sides.[citation needed]
Rustam ruled until 1842, when abdicated in favor of his youngest brother Mir Ali Murad. Ali Murad helped the British in 1845-7 during the Turki campaign,[2] but was later accused of plotting against the British in 1851–2, and so was stripped of his lands in upper Sindh by the British East India Company. As a result, the remaining land under his control consisted mostly of Khairpur city, and its immediate environs. During the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny, Ali Murad sided which the British, and prevented rebels from seizing the Shikarpur jail and treasury.[2] He regained the favour of the British, and in 1866, the British promised to recognize any future successors as rightful rulers of Khairpur.[2] Ali Murad's rule went on uninterrupted until his death in 1894.[citation needed]
Ali Murad's eldest son had predeceased him, and so he was succeeded by his second son, Mir Faiz Muhammad Khan, who ruled until his death 1909.[2] He was in turn succeeded by his son, Mir Sir Imam Bakhsh Khan Talpur,[2] who aided the British war effort during World War I, and was thus awarded the honorary title Lieutenant-Colonel in 1918.[2] He passed in 1921, and was succeeded by His Highness Mir Ali Nawaz Khan. Under his rule, the feudal Cherr system of forced labour was abolished, while new canals were laid for irrigation.[2]
Mir Ali Nawaz Khan died in 1935, and was succeeded by Mir Faiz Muhammad Khan II, who had suffered from an unstable and nervous affliction, then became nominal leader. The Khairpur government instituted a council of regency under local ministers and ordered the Mir to live outside the state. After a period of twelve years, and shortly before the transfer of power, he abdicated in favour of his young son Mir George Ali Murad Khan in July 1947. The young Mir had reached his majority and received full ruling powers only four years earlier. The state was the first on the sub-continent to introduce full adult suffrage. His subjects enjoyed free education up to matriculation standard and free healthcare, there were no customs duties, property, income or wealth taxes. The crime rate remained negligible, and light industries flourished.
Khaipur state acceded to the Dominion of Pakistan in October that year, and merged into West Pakistan in 1955. Its last ruler, Mir George Ali Murad Khan, remains one of the few surviving first class rulers of the old British Indian Empire, still holding a public Majlis every Muharram at his sprawling palace, Faiz Mahal. He has long taken a keen interest in animal welfare and conservation, having established one of the largest private wildlife sanctuaries on the sub-continent. His younger son, Prince Mehdi Raza Khan, continues his father's passion and oversees his conservation interests since retirement.
Geography
Khairpur district is located in north-eastern Sindh and is bounded on the north by Shikarpur and Sukkur, on the east by India, on the south by Sanghar and Shaheed Benzeerabad and on the west by Larkana and Noshero Feroz. The district lies from 680 10’ to 700 10’ east longitude and 260 9’ to 270 42’ north Latitude.
Climate
Khairpur has a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh), characterised by extremely hot and hazy summers with warm winters. Khairpur is known for its extremely hot summers, and was described as the hottest city in British India.[3] Wind speed is low throughout the year, and sunshine is abundant. Summer temperatures regularly surpass 50 °C (122 °F). Dry heat is experienced starting April to early June until the Monsoon season starts to arrive. Monsoons in Khairpur are not very wet, but bring high dew points, resulting in high heat indices. Monsoons recede by September, but it is not until late October that the short lived autumn season is experienced before the onset of the region's cool winters.[4] The average annual rainfall of Khairpur is 87.6 mm (3.45 in) and mainly occurs in the monsoon season. The highest annual rainfall ever is 375 mm (14.8 in), recorded in 1978 and the lowest annual rainfall ever is 0 mm in 1941.
Climate data for Khairpur | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 31.0 (87.8) |
38.0 (100.4) |
45.0 (113.0) |
49.0 (120.2) |
50.5 (122.9) |
50.5 (122.9) |
46.5 (115.7) |
44.5 (112.1) |
43.5 (110.3) |
41.6 (106.9) |
37.2 (99.0) |
31.0 (87.8) |
50.5 (122.9) |
Average high °C (°F) | 24.8 (76.6) |
26.2 (79.2) |
32.4 (90.3) |
39.2 (102.6) |
43.3 (109.9) |
43.2 (109.8) |
41.0 (105.8) |
39.1 (102.4) |
37.9 (100.2) |
35.6 (96.1) |
30.3 (86.5) |
24.8 (76.6) |
34.8 (94.7) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 16.5 (61.7) |
18.2 (64.8) |
23.9 (75.0) |
30.1 (86.2) |
34.6 (94.3) |
35.7 (96.3) |
34.7 (94.5) |
33.2 (91.8) |
31.4 (88.5) |
27.8 (82.0) |
21.7 (71.1) |
16.5 (61.7) |
27.0 (80.7) |
Average low °C (°F) | 8.3 (46.9) |
10.2 (50.4) |
15.4 (59.7) |
21.1 (70.0) |
25.9 (78.6) |
28.3 (82.9) |
28.4 (83.1) |
27.3 (81.1) |
24.9 (76.8) |
20.0 (68.0) |
13.2 (55.8) |
8.3 (46.9) |
19.3 (66.7) |
Record low °C (°F) | 1.0 (33.8) |
0.5 (32.9) |
3.0 (37.4) |
9.5 (49.1) |
16.5 (61.7) |
19.5 (67.1) |
20.8 (69.4) |
17.5 (63.5) |
19.5 (67.1) |
12.4 (54.3) |
5.0 (41.0) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 3.5 (0.14) |
7.0 (0.28) |
6.8 (0.27) |
5.7 (0.22) |
5.0 (0.20) |
4.5 (0.18) |
20.8 (0.82) |
20.4 (0.80) |
0.9 (0.04) |
3.0 (0.12) |
0.6 (0.02) |
9.4 (0.37) |
87.6 (3.46) |
Average precipitation days | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 6.2 |
Average relative humidity (%) | 52 | 48 | 39 | 28 | 29 | 38 | 49 | 56 | 52 | 46 | 47 | 52 | 45 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 276 | 294 | 318 | 345 | 363 | 372 | 357 | 336 | 321 | 309 | 288 | 276 | 3,855 |
Source 1: PMD (1991–2020)[5] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: climate-data[6] |
Demographics
At the 1998 census, the population of the city of Khairpur was 102,188 having increased from 61,447 at the 1981 census. The city had an estimated population[1] of 127,857 in 2006. It is the 12th largest city in Sindh province.
Education
There are following Colleges and Universities in Khairpur
- Khairpur Medical College KMC, Khairpur Mirs
- Pir Abdul Qadir Shah Jeelani Institute of Medical Sciences, Khairpur Mirs
- Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur Mirs
- IBA-Institute of Emerging Technologies, SIBAU Campus Khairpur
- Mehran University College Of Engineering And Technology SZAB Campus Khairpur,
- The Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University of Technology & Skill Development, Khairpur Mirs,
- Khairpur College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology (KCAET) at Khairpur,
- Pak-Turk Maarif International Schools and Colleges Khairpur Campus ,
- IBA Community College Khairpur ,
- Superior Science College Khairpur Mirs ,
- Khairpur Women College Khairpur ,
See also
References
- ^ "PAKISTAN: Provinces and Major Cities". PAKISTAN: Provinces and Major Cities. citypopulation.de. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Solomon, R. V.; Bond, J. W. (2006). Indian States: A Biographical, Historical, and Administrative Survey. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 978-81-206-1965-4.
- ^ Hughes, Albert William (1876). A Gazetteer of the Province of Sind. G. Bell and Sons. p. 677. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
aror .
- ^ "Khairpur, Pakistan History". Weather Underground.
- ^ "Flood Forecasting Division Lahore". Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- ^ "Climate Khairpur (Pakistan)". Retrieved June 2, 2022.
Further reading
External links
Khairpur travel guide from Wikivoyage
- Khairpur diaries: Where women earn and women rule Archived 2016-04-21 at the Wayback Machine
- The golden harvest of Khairpur by Zofeen Ebrahim