Sargodha (Punjabi / Urdu: سرگودھا; Punjabi pronunciation: [səɾˈɡoː˦d̪ˑä]; Urdu pronunciation: [ˈsəɾˌɡoːˈd̪ʱɑː]) is a city and capital of Sargodha Division, located in Punjab province, Pakistan. It is Pakistan’s 12th largest city by population [15] and one of the fastest-growing cities of the country.[16] Sargodha is also known as the City of Eagles on account of hosting the headquarters of the Pakistan Air Force.[2]
It is one of the few planned cities of Pakistan (others include Faisalabad, Islamabad and Gwadar).[17]
History
Sargodha was established by the British as a canal-colony in 1903, and was initially spelled Sargoda.[18] Sargodha was badly affected by an outbreak of the bubonic plague in 1903, and experienced a milder outbreak in 1904.[19] Although it was a small town in the beginning, the British Royal Air Force built an airport here due to its strategic location.[20] The term “Sargodha” has its origin in the words “Sar” (from “sarowar”) meaning “pond” and “Godha” meaning “Sadhu”, which means “Pond of Godha”. This city was founded by Lady Trooper by the supervision of Sir Charles Montgomery Rivaz KCSI (1845 – 7 October 1926), a colonial administrator in British India and Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab from 1902 to 1907.[17] Being the District Headquarters since 1940, Sargodha was given the status of Divisional Headquarters in 1960.[21]
Geography
Location
Location and distance of Sargodha with respect to five major cities of Pakistan is as follow:
1,202 km (747 mi) north of Karachi[22]
187 km (116 mi) west of Lahore[23]
241 km (150 mi) south of Islamabad[24]
91 km (57 mi) north-west of Faisalabad[25]
223 km (139 mi) south of Rawalpindi[26]
Sargodha is situated in Pakistani province of Punjab. It is located 187 kilometers (116 mi) northwest of Lahore, in Sargodha District.[23] It lies about 48 kilometers (30 mi) from the M-2 motorway, which connects Lahore and Islamabad. It is connected to the M-2 by several interchanges at different locations. Sargodha is roughly 91 km (57 mi) from Faisalabad, due southeast.[25] Directly east connected by the M-2 motorway are Lahore and the route to Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Due east is the city of Jhang; toward the west are the city of Mianwali and the Chashma Barrage.
Topography
Sargodha mainly comprises flat, fertile plains, although here are a few small hills along the Sargodha-Faisalabad Road. The River Jhelum flows on the western and northern sides, and the River Chenab on the eastern side of the city.[27] The city is located 190 metres above sea level.[28]
Climate
The city has a climate of extreme heat in the summers and moderate cold in the winters. The maximum temperature reaches 50 °C (122 °F) in the summer while the minimum temperature recorded is as low as freezing point in the winter.
Demographics
Historical population
Year Pop. ±%
1941 36,000 —
1951 78,000 +116.7%
1961 130,000 +66.7%
1972 200,000 +53.8%
1981 291,000 +45.5%
1998 458,440 +57.5%
2017 872,557 +90.3%
The total population of the city was 458,440[30] according to the 1998 census. The majority of the people in the city speak Punjabi with Shahpuri dialect.[20] According to the 2017 Census of Pakistan, the population of city was recorded as 872,557 with a rise of 43.94% from 1998. The population of the metropolitan area (City District) reached 3,903,588, in which around 1 million forms the urban population.[31] The population of Sargodha Division was recorded as 8,181,499 by the 2017 Census of Pakistan.