Gujranwala is a city
in Punjab, Pakistan
with a population of
more than 4 million.
It is located at
32.16° North, 74.18°
East and is 700 feet
above sea-level. The
division of
Gujranwala, with a
population of about
11 million has an
area of 3198 km˛.
Gujranwala is the
5th largest city in
Pakistan. It borders
with Ghakhar Mandi
and some small towns
and villages.
Punjabi is the local
language, however
English and Urdu are
also common,
particularly in
schools and offices,
as is the case in
almost all over
Pakistan. It's home
to the international
cricket stadium
called Jinnah
Stadium and has many
hospitals and
several colleges
affiliated with the
University of the
Punjab. Recently,
the University of
the Punjab's
Gujranwala campus
has also started
working. Rachna
Engineering
University
Gujranwala now
stands fourth best
public engineering
university in the
country.
The city is renowned
all over Pakistan
for its food,
especially Barbecue
meat dishes like
"Mutton Tikka" of "Haji
Allah Rakha".
Gujranwala has
always been famous
for its pehlwans
(wrestlers) which is
why it is also
called pehlwanoo ka
shehar (The City of
Wrestlers).
History
The city of
Gujranwala is about
500 years old. The
first name of the
settlement,
according to the
compilers of the
first edition of the
district Gazette,
was Khanpur Shansi
after an individual
of the Jat caste
called Khan Shansi
who founded 11
villages in the
region. Later, the
tribe "Gujjar"
occupied the land.
They reached such
dominance that the
town came to be
known as Gujranwala,
which means "Land of
the Gujars". In
present day too, the
Gujars form the
majority population
of the city. It
seems likely that
the district once
contained the
capital of the
Punjab at an epoch
when Lahore had not
begun to exist. The
famous Sikh leader
Maharaja Ranjit
Singh was born in
this city. The manor
in which he was born
still stands today
in the center of the
city. The city
contains a number of
important sites of
Sikh history
including the
birthplace of Ranjit
Singh, the "Samadhi"
(place of cremation)
of Ranjit Singh's
father Mahan Singh,
the haveli
(courtyard
residence) of Hari
Singh Nalwa and a
dilapidated baradari
(open house) of
Mahan Singh in
Sheranwala Bagh.
The city also
contains a large
number of Sikh and
Hindu places of
worship, all of
which are now
private residences
following the
partition of the
Punjab in 1947 and
the mass exodus of
Sikhs and Hindus to
East Punjab. After
the partition of
India in August
1947, Gujranwala
became the capital
of the district
1951.
Economy
The rural areas
around Gujranwala
produce a large
variety of
agricultural goods,
the main crops grown
here are wheat,
cotton, rice, barley
and millet. Today,
Gujranwala is
playing a major role
in supporting the
economy of Pakistan.
It is a large
industrial city with
numerous textile
mills, Cutlery
industry and large
agricultural
processing plants.
Gujranwala's major
exports are rice,
textiles, carpets,
transformers,
clothing, glass
goods, electric
fans, surgical
equipment, hosiery,
leather products,
metal utensils, auto
parts and sanitation
equipment.
Gujranwala's
hydro-electric
project provides
power from the
Chenab River.
Gujranwala is one
the most important
industrial cities of
Pakistan. Especially
Steel and Electric
products of
Gujranwala are
famous in all over
the world.
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