Mohmand Agency
Encyclopedia
The Mohmand Agency is a district in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas
of Pakistan
created in 1951. Before that, the Mohmand Tribes were administered by the Deputy Commissioner based in Peshawar
, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan
. However it was not until 1973 that the headquarters of the Mohmand agency were moved from Peshawar to Ekkagund. Now, the permanent agency headquarters is at Ghalanai
, deep in the Mohmand agency. There is scant rainfall and little irrigated land, a factor responsible for the large demographic movements of the Mohmands to the fertile lands of Charsadda
and Mardan
districts to the east.
Amjad Ali Khan is the "political agent" of Mohmand Agency
to the south, Malakand and Charsadda districts to the east and Peshawer district to the south east.
Total Population of Mohmand Agency is about 600,000.
, Tarak Zai, and Utman Khel. They all fought against the British and British called them as a Stone. The Safis, because of their association with the Mohmand, are also called Safi Mohmands but actually they are not Mohmand in Legacy. The tribe has been divided in upper Mohmand and lower Mohmand. The central bazaar of Mohmand is Ghalanai.
Mohmand Agency is divided into four Clans, the Baizai, Halimzai, Khwaizai and Tarakzai.
tribe. Some Baizai live in Salala which was the site of a 2011 NATO attack in Pakistan
.
Halimzai was the son of Mohmand from a British lady who was captured by Mohmand in a battle with British forces. Later he married her.
g
The one-story, 110-bed hospital in Ghalanai was nearly empty when a New York Times reporter visited in July 2007. According to the reporter, three beds were in use; transportation to the hospital was so difficult that only women who could walk there would show up; doctors quit because of low pay and lack of security; the hospital lacked equipment. Water was trucked in every other day. Women who come to the hospital are "very much anemic", without money, illiterate and ignorant about family planning. An $11 million project funded by the United States government and run by Save the Children
trains Pakistani doctors to in turn train health care workers who will go into the field and train traditional health assistants on more modern health-care methods. For security reasons, the training is done in Peshawar, beyond the agency's borders. The program was expected to do some work in the hospital as well.
On September 16, 2011, Security forces had cleared ninety percent of Mohmand Agency from the militants, normal life restored and development activities have been launched. The Pakistan Army maintains an 8,200 man presence in Mohmand Agency following military operations to clear the region of militants.
However, despite this NATO helicopters killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and injured 15 in an 'unprovoked attack' on a border checkpost in Mohmand tribal region near the Afghan border on November 26, 2011.
References:
Federally Administered Tribal Areas
The Federally Administered Tribal Areas are a semi-autonomous tribal region in the northwest of Pakistan, lying between the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and the neighboring country of Afghanistan. The FATA comprise seven Agencies and six FRs...
of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
created in 1951. Before that, the Mohmand Tribes were administered by the Deputy Commissioner based in Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. However it was not until 1973 that the headquarters of the Mohmand agency were moved from Peshawar to Ekkagund. Now, the permanent agency headquarters is at Ghalanai
Ghalanai
Ghalanai is a town in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. It is located at 34°19'16N 71°24'0E with an altitude of 651 metres . It is currently the administrative capital and main town of the Mohmand Agency. In December 2010, the city came under attention when it was struck by two...
, deep in the Mohmand agency. There is scant rainfall and little irrigated land, a factor responsible for the large demographic movements of the Mohmands to the fertile lands of Charsadda
Charsadda District
Charsadda is a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan that contains the town of Charsadda. The town was part of the Peshawar ex-metropolitan region...
and Mardan
Mardan District
Mardan is a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The city of Mardan is the headquarters of the district. The district also contains the famous archaeological site of Takht Bhai, Jamal Ghari and Sawal Dher.-Administration:...
districts to the east.
Amjad Ali Khan is the "political agent" of Mohmand Agency
Population
- According to the 1998 census the population was 334,453 - with a population density of 171 persons per square kilometre
Location
Mohmand is bounded by Bajaur Agency to the north, Khyber AgencyKhyber agency
Khyber is a tribal area in the FATA region of Pakistan. It is one of the eight tribal areas, better known as agencies in Pakistan. It ranges from the Tirah valley down to Peshawar...
to the south, Malakand and Charsadda districts to the east and Peshawer district to the south east.
Total Population of Mohmand Agency is about 600,000.
Tribes
The agency is inhabited by many tribes, mostly the Mohmands, the Clans, Baizai, Khwaizai, HalimzaiHalimzai
The Halimzai are the largest sub-tribe or clan of the Mohmand Sarbanri Pashtun tribe. They live primarily in the Mohmand Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and also in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan...
, Tarak Zai, and Utman Khel. They all fought against the British and British called them as a Stone. The Safis, because of their association with the Mohmand, are also called Safi Mohmands but actually they are not Mohmand in Legacy. The tribe has been divided in upper Mohmand and lower Mohmand. The central bazaar of Mohmand is Ghalanai.
Mohmand Agency is divided into four Clans, the Baizai, Halimzai, Khwaizai and Tarakzai.
Baizai
The Baizai are a sub-tribe of the BangashBangash
Bangash is the name of a Pashtun clan. The Bangash clan inhabit regions within the Federally Administered Tribal Areas , the Kurram Agency, the Miranzai Valley bordering the Samana Range, Naryab, Tirah, Kohat and Peshawar within the Sarhad province...
tribe. Some Baizai live in Salala which was the site of a 2011 NATO attack in Pakistan
2011 NATO attack in Pakistan
The 2011 NATO attack in Pakistan occurred when U.S.-led NATO forces fired on at Pakistani forces at two Pakistani checkposts along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border on Saturday, 26 November 2011...
.
Halimzai
The Halimzai are Pakhtun living in Gallanai, Gandhab,Mohmandara and in Halimzai village of Rudat district. An educated people, they depend on what little annual rainfall it receives, due to a scant water supply. Gandhab is divided into Upper and Lower Gandhab.Halimzai was the son of Mohmand from a British lady who was captured by Mohmand in a battle with British forces. Later he married her.
Tarakzai
The Tarakzai are a Pashtun tribe concentrated in the lower Mohmand from Ekka Ghund to Michanai up to Daudzai. They are a well educated tribe settled at the gate of the Mohmand Agency. The sub-tribes of the Tarak Zai are Dado Khel, Qasim Khel, Bran Khel and Issa Khel.Total area
887 square miles (2,297 km²) which is mostly hilly and mountainous with little flat land. The reported area of agricultural land is 5,670 acres (2,296 hectares) out of which 48 acres (19.6 hectares) have been brought under cultivation. The irrigated area is 16 acres (6.6 hectares) and forests cover over 20 acres (8.0 hectares). Most of the agricultural land is rain fed, having insufficient rainfall; the agriculture product is very low, in lower Mohmand area of Michanai of Tarakzai near the Kabul river there are areas of good agriculture. The famous land lords are Malik Haji Dalel Khan Tarakzai and Major Haji Hajam Tarakzai.g
Hospital
Hospitals in the area may be poorly equiped and international aid has had a limited effect on bettering the healthcare situation.The one-story, 110-bed hospital in Ghalanai was nearly empty when a New York Times reporter visited in July 2007. According to the reporter, three beds were in use; transportation to the hospital was so difficult that only women who could walk there would show up; doctors quit because of low pay and lack of security; the hospital lacked equipment. Water was trucked in every other day. Women who come to the hospital are "very much anemic", without money, illiterate and ignorant about family planning. An $11 million project funded by the United States government and run by Save the Children
Save the Children
Save the Children is an internationally active non-governmental organization that enforces children's rights, provides relief and helps support children in developing countries...
trains Pakistani doctors to in turn train health care workers who will go into the field and train traditional health assistants on more modern health-care methods. For security reasons, the training is done in Peshawar, beyond the agency's borders. The program was expected to do some work in the hospital as well.
Place of interest
- Warsak dam is situated on the river Kabul about 32.2 km (20 mi) from Peshawar. The construction of the project was started in 1955 and the power station was commissioned in 1960. Before the commissioning of the Mangla DamMangla DamThe Mangla Dam is located on the Jhelum River in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. It is the sixteenth largest dam in the world. It was built from 1961 to 1967 with funding from the World Bank. The project was designed and supervised by Binnie & Partners of London, and it was built...
, it was one of the major sources of power. - Munda dam is being constructed on Swat River to the east of the agency.
- Shabqadar fort at shabqadar bazar is an interesting place to see which is the Headquarter of FC forces now adays. The fort has a history of about 90 years.
War on Terror
Despite it's attraction to tourists, Mohmand Agency has been area of conflict between Pakistan Army and some militant groups. In a recent exchange of fire between the two, media reported that at least 18 militants were killed and 25 others were injured.On September 16, 2011, Security forces had cleared ninety percent of Mohmand Agency from the militants, normal life restored and development activities have been launched. The Pakistan Army maintains an 8,200 man presence in Mohmand Agency following military operations to clear the region of militants.
However, despite this NATO helicopters killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and injured 15 in an 'unprovoked attack' on a border checkpost in Mohmand tribal region near the Afghan border on November 26, 2011.
References: