Toba Tek Singh District | |
|---|---|
  | |
 Map of Toba Tek Singh District. | |
| Country |  Pakistan |
| Province |  Punjab |
| Division | Faisalabad |
| Headquarters | Toba Tek Singh |
| Government | |
| • Type | District Administration |
| • Deputy Commissioner | N/A |
| • District Police Officer | N/A |
| • District Health Officer | N/A |
| Area | |
| 4,364 km2 (1,685 sq mi) | |
| Population | |
| 2,524,044 | |
| • Density | 578.4/km2 (1,498/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 563,525 |
| • Rural | 1,960,519 |
| Literacy | |
| • Literacy rate |
|
| Time zone | UTC+5 (PST) |
| Area code | 046 |
| Number ofTehsils | 4 |
| Website | tobateksingh |
Toba Tek Singh District (Punjabi:ضلع ٹوبھا ٹیک سنگھ,Urdu:ضلع ٹوبہ ٹیک سنگھ),Punjabi:ضلع ٹوبھا ٹیک سنگھ) is adistrict ofFaisalabad division in thePunjabprovince ofPakistan. It is located between 30°33' to 31°2' Degree north latitudes and 72°08' to 72°48' Degree longitudes.[3] It became a separate district in 1982.[4]
The city and district is named after a sikh figureTek Singh. Legend has it that Tek Singh, a kind-hearted man served water and provided shelter to the worn out and thirsty travelers passing by a small pond (Toba inPunjabi) which eventually was called Toba Tek Singh, and the surrounding settlement acquired the same name.[3] There is also a park here named after Singh.[5]
Toba Tek Singh was developed by the British toward the end of the 19th Century when a canal system was built. People from all over thePunjab (from the current Pakistani and Indian Punjab) moved there as farmlands were allotted to them. Most of the people who migrated there belonged toLahore, Jalandhar ,Hoshiarpur and Sialkot districts.
The Imperial Gazetteer of India described the tehsil of Toba Tek Singh as follows:
Tehsil of the new Lyallpur District, Punjab, lying between 30°50' and 31°23' N. and 72° 20' and 72°54' E., with an area of 865 square miles (2,240 km2). The population in 1906 was 148,984. It contains 342 villages, including Toba Tek Singh (population, 1,874), the headquarters, and Gojra (2,589), an importantgrain market on theWazirabad-Khanewal branch of theNorth-Western Railway. The land revenue in 1905-6 amounted to Rupees 470,000. The tehsil consists of a level plain, wholly irrigated by theChenab Canal. The soil, which is very fertile in the east of the tehsil, becomes sandy towards the west. The boundaries of the tehsil were somewhat modified at the time of the formation of the new District of Faisalabad (formerly calledLyallpur).[6]
The predominantly Muslim population supportedMuslim League andPakistan Movement. After thecreation ofPakistan in 1947, the minorityHindus and Sikhs migrated to India while theMuslim refugees from eastern Punjab settled in the Toba Tek Singh District.
During the 1970s, when many Pakistani cities were renamed to change names given after British Rulers to their original or native names, or to names more acceptable to the local population (for example,Montgomery was renamed to its old original nameSahiwal), Toba Tek Singh remained one of the very few cities to maintain its original name mainly because of noble reputation of Tek Singh. In 1982, Toba Tek Singh, formerly a subdivision, was separated fromFaisalabad District and became a separate district.[3]
in 1970, the historical Kisan Conference saw 200,000 Kisans (peasants) and progressive people from the whole country gathered in Toba Tek Singh. The conference had a great impact on the political history of Pakistan.
Toba Tek Singh is located in center ofPunjab and occupies 3252 square kilometers and is made up of large areas of lowlands that flood frequently during the rainy season; the floods originate from theRavi River that runs along the southern and southeastern borders. During theBritish Raj, Toba Tek Singh had a sizeable Hindu and Sikh population, much of which migrated to India after the partition in 1947, while many Muslim refugees from present-day India settled in the Toba Tek Singh District.[4]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 615,582 | — |
| 1961 | 706,800 | +1.39% |
| 1972 | 1,084,442 | +3.97% |
| 1981 | 1,134,572 | +0.50% |
| 1998 | 1,621,593 | +2.12% |
| 2017 | 2,191,495 | +1.60% |
| 2023 | 2,524,044 | +2.38% |
| Sources:[7] | ||
As of the2023 census, Toba Tek Singh district has 393,896 households and a population of 2,524,044. The district has a sex ratio of 105.49 males to 100 females and a literacy rate of 71.38%: 76.37% for males and 66.13% for females.[1][8] 621,491 (24.62% of the surveyed population) are under 10 years of age.[9] 563,525 (22.33%) live in urban areas.[1]
| Religion | Percent | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Islam | 96.68% | |||
| Christianity | 3.22% | |||
| Other | 0.1% | |||
| Religious group | 1941[11] | 2017[12] | 2023[10] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
Islam | 271,144 | 68.40% | 2,122,084 | 96.83% | 2,440,350 | 96.68% |
Hinduism | 55,575 | 14.02% | 123 | 0.01% | 279 | 0.01% |
Sikhism | 53,233 | 13.43% | — | — | 19 | ~0% |
Christianity | 16,353 | 4.13% | 66,839 | 3.05% | 81,259 | 3.22% |
| Ahmadi | — | — | 2,419 | 0.11% | 1,980 | 0.08% |
| Others | 100 | 0.02% | 30 | ~0% | 157 | 0.01% |
| Total Population | 396,405 | 100% | 2,191,495 | 100% | 2,524,044 | 100% |
| Note: 1941 census data is for Toba Tek Singh tehsil of erstwhile Lyallpur district, which roughly corresponds to contemporary Toba Tek Singh District. District and tehsil borders have changed since 1941. | ||||||
At the time of the 2023 census, 96.20% of the population spokePunjabi and 2.48%Urdu as their first language.[13]
As perUniversity of Agriculture, Faisalabad research, after Karachi, Toba Tek Singh is the second hub of poultry products in Pakistan. Farmers grow orange (kinoo) gardens and have a major role in the export of oranges from Pakistan. Many Toba people are overseas Pakistanis and these make a major contribution to the Pakistani economy.[14][15]
The district of Toba Tek Singh is administratively subdivided into fourtehsils and 82Union Council.
| Tehsil[16] | Area (km²)[17] | Pop. (2023) | Density (ppl/km²) (2023) | Literacy rate (2023)[18] | Union Councils |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kamalia[4] | 486 | 422,477 | 869.29 | 63.55% | 13 |
| Gojra[4] | 851 | 755,579 | 887.87 | 74.22% | 24 |
| Pirmahal | 774 | 496,636 | 641.65 | 68.39% | 15 |
| Toba Tek Singh[4] | 1,141 | 849,352 | 744.39 | 74.45% | 30 |
The district is represented in theNational Assembly by three electedMNAs who represent the following constituencies:[19][20]
| Constituency | MNA | Party |
|---|---|---|
| NA-111 | Chaudhry Khalid Javaid Warraich | Pakistan Muslim League (N) |
| NA-112 | Muhammad Junaid Anwaar Chaudhry | Pakistan Muslim League (N) |
| NA-113 | Riaz Fatyna | Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf |
The district is represented in theprovincial assembly by seven electedMPAs who represent the following constituencies:
| Constituency | MPA | Party |
|---|---|---|
| PP-84 | Bilal Asghar Warraich | Pakistan Muslim League (Q) |
| PP-85 | Abdul Qadeer Alvi | Pakistan Muslim League (N) |
| PP-86 | Saeed Ahmed Saeedi | Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf |
| PP-87 | Lieutenant Colonel (R) Sardar Muhammad Ayub Khan Gadhi | Pakistan Muslim League (N) |
| PP-88 | Nazia Raheel | Pakistan Muslim League (N) |
| PP-89 | Makhdoom Syed Ali Baba | Pakistan Muslim League (N) |
Until the year 2000, when theDivisions of Pakistan were abolished, Toba Tek Singh andJhang districts were part ofFaisalabad Division (this included Faisalabad District).
Major towns in Toba Tek Singh District are:
Provincial capital:Lahore | ||
| Bahawalpur |  | |
| Dera Ghazi Khan | ||
| Faisalabad | ||
| Gujranwala | ||
| Gujrat | ||
| Lahore | ||
| Mianwali | ||
| Multan | ||
| Rawalpindi | ||
| Sahiwal | ||
| Sargodha | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
