Sargodhaਸਰਗੋਧਾ

Where is Sargodha?

Sargodha stands in central Punjab, Pakistan, along the Kirana Hills at about 32.08 degrees north and 72.67 degrees east. It is the headquarters of both its district and its division, sitting 187 km west of Lahore and 91 km northwest of Faisalabad, about 48 km from the M-2 motorway that links Lahore with Islamabad. The River Jhelum flows along its western and northern sides, and the Chenab along its east. With 975,886 residents in the 2023 census, it is the 6th largest city of Punjab and the 11th of Pakistan.

History: a canal colony becomes a city

Sargodha was established by the British as a canal colony in 1903, when it was a tehsil of Shahpur district, and it marks its founding on 22 February 1903. Its name comes from the words Sar, meaning pond, and Godha, a holy man: the Pond of Godha. A bad outbreak of plague struck the new settlement in 1903, but the town grew around its strategic site, where the British built an airport. Sargodha became the district headquarters in 1940 and the divisional headquarters in 1960.

Sargodha is one of the few planned cities of Pakistan, built on a grid like Faisalabad, Islamabad and Gwadar. The 1965 war brought the city honour: along with Lahore and Sialkot, its citizens received the Hilal-i-Istaqlal in 1966 for their courage.

Citrus capital of Pakistan

Sargodha is considered the best citrus-producing area of Pakistan and is also known as the California of Pakistan. Its district is the largest kinnow-producing district in the world, and the region grows about 80% of the country's kinnow mandarins, prized for their sweetness, thick peel and long shelf life. Kinnows from here reach markets in Russia and the Middle East, and farmers are being pushed toward export-quality varieties like the seedless kinnow.

The industry has faced a serious setback: a virus outbreak cut the area under citrus from 4.5 lakh acres to 3.5 lakh acres, and growers say restoring the lost ground needs some 2.5 crore new plants. Alongside citrus, Sargodha produces large amounts of wheat, cotton, rice and vegetables, and its mills, juice factories and a dry port under construction point to an industrial future.

The City of Eagles

Sargodha is also known as the City of Eagles, a name it earns as a major centre of the Pakistan Air Force. PAF Base Mushaf, one of the country's most important air bases, sits near the city, and the PAF Public School is among its well-known institutions. The city's military character, its fifteen bazaars each known for its own trade, and its role as the educational hub of the division give it a distinct identity beyond its orchards.

Places of interest

The Kirana Hills rise along the Sargodha-Faisalabad road, a small range in an otherwise flat and fertile plain. The University of Sargodha anchors the city's education scene, and the Sargodha Cricket Stadium hosts the region's cricket. The city's fifteen historic bazaars, from the Model Bazaar to the Sarafa Bazaar for gold, remain the main trading zones, and the Central Library and PAF Public School are local landmarks.

Notable people

Mohammad Hafeez, the Pakistan cricketer, is from Sargodha, as is fellow cricketer Aizaz Cheema. Air Commodore Sajad Haider, a hero of the 1965 war, and Hameed Gul, the former chief of Pakistan's intelligence service, are both linked to the city, as are the Urdu scholar Wazir Agha and Feroz Khan Noon, a former prime minister of Pakistan.

Getting there and Sargodha today

Sargodha lies about 48 km from the M-2 motorway, which connects Lahore and Islamabad through several interchanges near the city. By road it is 187 km west of Lahore and 91 km northwest of Faisalabad, and Jhang lies directly east. The city is well connected by road to the surrounding districts of central Punjab.

Sargodha is one of Pakistan's fastest-growing cities, and its municipal committee was upgraded to a metropolitan corporation in 2019. Punjabi is the mother tongue of about 79.6% of the city, with Urdu spoken by 18.5%. Beyond citrus, textile mills, rice processing plants and juice factories line its industrial areas, and the new Safe City project is bringing thousands of CCTV cameras to its main roads.