Upper Chitral District | |
Native Name: | Urdu: {{nq|ضلع چترال بالا {{script/Arabic|توری ݯھیترارو ضلع Pushto; Pashto: {{script/Arabic|پورتنۍ چترال ولسوالۍ |
Native Name Lang: | Khowar |
Settlement Type: | District |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | Pakistan |
Subdivision Type1: | Province |
Subdivision Type2: | Division |
Subdivision Name2: | Malakand |
Established Title: | Established |
Established Date: | 2018 |
Seat Type: | Headquarters |
Seat: | Buni |
Government Type: | District Administration |
Leader Title: | Deputy Commissioner |
Leader Name: | Mr. Muhammad Irfan Uddin PMS (BPS-18)[1] |
Leader Title1: | District Police Officer |
Leader Name1: | Shah Jahan (BPS-18 PSP) |
Leader Title2: | District Health Officer |
Leader Name2: | N/A |
Area Total Km2: | 8392 |
Population Footnotes: | [2] |
Population As Of: | 2023 |
Population Total: | 195528 |
Population Density Km2: | auto |
Timezone1: | PST |
Utc Offset1: | +5 |
Blank Name Sec1: | Numbers of Tehsils |
Blank Info Sec1: | 2 |
Demographics1 Title1: | Main language(s) |
Demographics1 Info1: | Urdu, English, Pashto, Khowar and Kalash |
Upper Chitral District (Urdu: {{nq|ضلع چترال بالا)({{script/Arabic|توری ݯھیترارو ضلع)(Pushto; Pashto: {{script/Arabic|پورتنۍ چترال ولسوالۍ) is a district in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Chitral River flows across the length of the district. Upper Chitral District along with Lower Chitral District were part of the erstwhile Chitral District which was the largest district in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, covering an area of 14,850 km2. Previously, it served as the Chitral princely state that encompassed the region until its incorporation into the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan in 14 August 1947.[3] The erstwhile Chitral District was bifurcated into Upper Chitral District and Lower Chitral District in November, 2018.[4]
The town of Buni is the headquarters of the Chitral Upper District. It shares a border with Gilgit-Baltistan to the east, with Badakshan province of Afghanistan to the north and with the Upper Dir District to the southwest and with Swat District to the southeast. A narrow strip of Wakhan Corridor separates Chitral from Tajikistan in the north.
Chitral has a warm steppe climate influenced by the Hindu Kush mountain range. Summers are pleasantly warm without ever getting too hot. Winters are extremely cold; longer periods with subzero temperatures are not uncommon. Precipitation figures here are higher than in other regions in Pakistan.
In the 2023 census, 782 (0.4%) people were from religious minorities, mainly Christians.[5]
99.84% of the population spoke languages recorded as 'Other' on the census. The main language is Khowar, sometimes called Chitrali, spoken by the Dardi Kho. Wakhi is spoken in the northern regions along the Afghan border.[6]
The district along with Lower Chitral District is represented by one elected MNA (Member of National Assembly) in Pakistan National Assembly. Its constituency is NA-1.
The district along with Lower Chitral District is represented by one elected MPA in the provincial assembly who represent the following constituencies:PK-1