Rahim Yar Khanਰਹੀਮ ਯਾਰ ਖ਼ਾਨ

Rahim Yar Khan is a city in southern Punjab, Pakistan, home to 519,261 people (2023 census). Founded in 1751 as Noshehra and renamed in 1881 for a Bahawalpur prince, it stands on the eastern bank of the Indus near the Cholistan Desert, and runs on agriculture, agro-industry and trade.

Where is Rahim Yar Khan?

Rahim Yar Khan stands in the far south of Punjab, Pakistan, at 28.42° N, 70.30° E, on the eastern bank of the Indus River. It is the headquarters of Rahim Yar Khan District, with Bahawalpur district to its east, Rajanpur to its west and Sindh province to its south. About a quarter of the city area reaches into the Cholistan Desert, while the rest lies in canal-irrigated farmland.

History: from Noshehra to Rahim Yar Khan

People have lived around this land for thousands of years. The ancient tower of Pattan Minara stands 8 km east of the city centre and is believed to be the remains of a monastery nearly 5,000 years old, with the tower itself built during the Hakra valley civilisation of the Mauryan period, around 250 BC.

The present city was founded in 1751 as Noshehra, when its region was part of the Multan province of the Mughal Empire. Railway administrators later pressed for a name change because travellers confused it with Nowshera in the north. In 1881 Sadeq Mohammad Khan IV, the ruler of Bahawalpur, renamed the town Rahim Yar Khan in honour of his son.

The city stayed part of the Bahawalpur State until 1943, when Rahim Yar Khan became a separate district. After the Partition of 1947, Hindu and Sikh families left for India while Muslim refugees from across the border settled in the district, and the city grew steadily through the rest of the century.

Geography and people

Rahim Yar Khan has a hot, dry climate with long hot summers and mild winters. It sits 83 metres above sea level, with the riverain lands of the Indus on one side and the sand dunes of Cholistan on the other.

The 2023 census counted 519,261 people in the city, making it the 21st largest city in Pakistan and the 14th largest in Punjab. Punjabi is the first language of 52.9 percent of residents, Saraiki of 32.9 percent, Urdu of 9.5 percent and Pashto of 2 percent. Muslims form 97.44 percent of the population, with Hindus (1.33 percent) and Christians (1.18 percent) as the main minorities.

Economy: an agriculture and industry hub

Rahim Yar Khan is one of the leading agriculture and industrial centres of southern Punjab, and about 65 percent of its people work in agriculture. The district grows sugarcane, wheat, cotton and rice, and is known for high quality mangoes. Sugar mills, cotton ginning factories and other agro-based industries stand around the city.

Places of interest

The Bhong Mosque, in the district's countryside, is a much-photographed landmark famous for its intricate tilework, mosaic and carved woodwork, built over several decades in the 20th century. Pattan Minara, the ancient tower 8 km east of the city, draws visitors interested in the region's deep past. On the city's desert edge, the Cholistan landscape of dunes and scrub offers a different face of southern Punjab.

Notable people

Rahim Yar Khan has produced singer Aima Baig, actor Talha Chahour, screenwriter Saima Akram Chaudhry, social activist Muniba Mazari, Islamic scholar Abdullah Darkhawasti and former military officer Asim Saleem Bajwa.

Getting there

Rahim Yar Khan railway station is one of the main stations on the ML-1 line between Karachi and Peshawar. The M-5 motorway, also known as the Multan to Sukkur motorway, passes the city. Shaikh Zayed International Airport serves the city with daily flights to Karachi, twice-weekly flights to Lahore and a weekly flight to Islamabad, and its runway can take a Boeing 747.

Today

The city is an education centre for southern Punjab, with the Khawaja Fareed University of Engineering and Information Technology and a campus of the Islamia University of Bahawalpur. Its bazaars trade in mangoes, cotton and sugarcane products, and it remains the gateway between Punjab, Sindh and the Cholistan region.