Musakhel District, Pakistan

Musakhel (Pashto: ضلع موسی خیل‎) is a district in the northeast of the Balochistan province of Pakistan. It became a separate district in 1992, prior to which it was a tehsil within Loralai District.

Musakhel

موسىٰ خيل
District of Balochistan
Map of Balochistan with Musakhel District highlighted
Country Pakistan
RegionBalochistan
DistrictMusakhel District
Union Councils17
Mauzas71
Government
 • NA263
 • MPA[Deputy Speaker Balochistan Assembly Sardar Babar Khan Musakhail]
 • Political PartyPTI
Area
 • Total5,728 km2 (2,212 sq mi)
Population
 (2017)[1]
 • Total167,017
 • Density29/km2 (76/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+5 (PST)
Area code(s)Post Code : 84700

History

After the first phase of the Afghan war of 1878-79 AD, the British took control of the northern areas of Balochistan under the Treaty of Gandamak. During 1879-84 AD, efforts were made to extend the British influence over the Khetrans and Musakhels of the, now Musakhel, territory. The Musakhels took part in outrages committed by the Kakars under Shah Jahan in 1884, but surrendered to the British government on the conclusion of the expedition in the same year. On 1 November 1887, the whole area was declared part of British India. Zhob agency was formed in 1890 and Musakhel territory was annexed to it. Musakhel was made a tehsil in 1892 and was transferred to Loralai district in October 1903.

In 1905, the Musakhel tehsil comprised 61 villages and the total population, according to 1901 census, was 15,537 (8,374 males and 7,163 females). The principal tribes represented were: Isot (1,941); Jafar (1,026); Panri (10,144) including the Musakhel clan (9,748) the principal divisions of which were the Belkhel (7,662) and Laharzai (2,086); and Syed (271). The chief language spoken was Pushto. Musakhel remained a tehsil of Loralai district till 1 January 1992 when it was notified as a district as a result of splitting Loralai district into 3 districts, Loralai, Musakhel, and Barkhan.[2] Although Musakhel is an old human settlement there is no remarkable archaeological site.There are 3 tehsils of Musakhel...Kingri, Darug and Musakhel bazar which is also the district headquarter.

Geography

District Musakhel is located in north-eastern border of Balochistan and bordering to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Dera Ghazi Khan, Punjab. The district comprises 5728 km².[2] The headquarters of the district is Musa Khel.

Climate

The climate of Musakhel, located 1,200–2,400 metres above sea level, is semi-arid. It can be placed in the "warm summer and mild winter" temperature region. The summer is hot with mean temperatures ranging from 21°C to 32°C. June is the hottest month when maximum temperature does exceed 32°C and occasionally rises above 38°C. Summer is longer than winter and lasts for about 7 months (April–October). In winter the temperature drops below 21°C, but in the coolest month (January) the mean monthly temperature drops below 10°C. The mercury may touch the freezing point during cold spells.Some areas of Musakhel also receives snowfall in winter like Kingri and Rarasham.

Administrative divisions

The district of Musakhel is divided into four tehsils:

Demography

The population in 1998 was 134,060, 8.7% of which was urban.[3] The main tribes of the district are the Musakhels.

According to the 1988 census, the major first languages[4] spoken were Pashto (79%) and Balochi (14%).[5] There are also speakers of Khetrani.[6]

Education

District Musakhel is ranked at the 81st position in the education score index of the Pakistan District Education Rankings 2017 published by Alif Ailaan. The education score is composed of the learning score, retention score and gender parity score. Retention is one of the biggest concerns in this district, with the relevant score being only 43.79 out of a potential 100. While, gender parity and learning scores lying a little above average. There has been only a slight improvement in the provision of post primary school infrastructure, with government primary schools still accounting for over 80% of the total number of government schools in the province, with a score of 27.87.

In percentage terms, the allocations for education in Baluchistan have seen the highest growth compared to all other provinces during the 2013–2018 tenure, including district Musakhel. According to the National Education Management Information System data 2016–2017, the structural and governance reforms have yet to create an impact in terms of better provision of school infrastructure to students and teachers of all districts in Baluchistan.[7]

Issues reported by the residents via the Taleem Do! App complain of the lack or absenteeism of teachers.

See also

Notes
  1. "DISTRICT WISE CENSUS RESULTS CENSUS 2017" (PDF). www.pbscensus.gov.pk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-08-29.
  2. PCO 1998, p. 1.
  3. PCO 1998, p. 15.
  4. "Mother tongue": defined as the language of communication between parents and children, and recorded of each individual.
  5. PCO 1998, p. 19.
  6. Birmani, Ali H.; Ahmed, Fasih (2017). "Language of the Khetrans of Barkhan of Pakistani Balochistan: A preliminary description". Lingua. 191–192: 3–21. doi:10.1016/j.lingua.2016.12.003. ISSN 0024-3841.
  7. Alif Ailaan 2018. 2013-2018 Five Years of Education Reforms in Balochistan. Wins, Losses and challenges for 2018–2023. Islamabad: Alif Ailaan. vi-33 pp. ISBN 978-969-7624-11-9 https://elections.alifailaan.pk/wp-includes/file/BalochistanEducationReport18.pdf


Bibliography
  • 1998 District Census report of Musakhel. Census publication. 81. Islamabad: Population Census Organization, Statistics Division, Government of Pakistan. 2000.

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