Thakot or Takot (; ) is a tribal town on the
Indus River
The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayas, Himalayan river of South Asia, South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northw ...
in
Battagram District
Battagram (, ) is a tribal Districts of Pakistan, district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The headquarter is Battagram, which is about 75 km from Mansehra, Mansehra city. It was part of historic Yaghistan (In ...
of
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. It is also one of twenty
Union Councils of Battagram District, and one of twelve in Battagram Tehsil.
Thakot is located midway between
Battagram town in the south and
Besham town (
Shangla District
Shangla District (, ) is a Districts of Pakistan, district in Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The district's headquarters are located at Alpuri, while the largest city and commercial center is Besham. The district was establish ...
) in the north, at a distance of about 30 km from both .
Royal Khans of Thakot
The "Khans of Thakot" also known as "Chiefs of Thakot tribal state" belongs to the powerful Arghushal family of the influential
Swati tribe
Swatis () are people inhabiting the Hazara division in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Of Dardic origins, Swatis originally spoke Dardic languages such as Gibri and Yadri and were native inhabitants of Swat valley. They were Pash ...
. A large number of people from
Battagram district
Battagram (, ) is a tribal Districts of Pakistan, district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The headquarter is Battagram, which is about 75 km from Mansehra, Mansehra city. It was part of historic Yaghistan (In ...
came and wore the turban of being a
Khan to each of Chief of Thakot throughout the history. Initially, the rulers used the title of "
Shah
Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...
" or "Malak" which were later changed to "
Khan". The Khan family speaks Pashto as their mother tongue. Malak Abdul Qadir Khan Arghushal was the initially "Malak of Daot" but later took over his cousin's Khanate of Thakot. During the tenure of Khan Bradar Khan Arghushal, the state was expanded till 43 village councils of the present
Battagram District
Battagram (, ) is a tribal Districts of Pakistan, district in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The headquarter is Battagram, which is about 75 km from Mansehra, Mansehra city. It was part of historic Yaghistan (In ...
. The Khan of
Paimal Sharif and Khan of Shamrad also belongs to same family.
*Ruler I: Shah Zotai Khan Arghushal Swati (1649-1683)
*Ruler II: Shah Dara Khan Arghushal (1683-1722) bin Zotai Khan
*Ruler III: Shah Ghazi Khan Arghushal (1722-1758) bin Dara Shah
*Ruler IV: Shah Madam Khan Arghushal (1758-1793) bin Shah Ghazi
*Ruler V: Malak Ahmed Khan Arghushal (1793-1820s) bin Madam Khan
*Ruler VI: Malak Hamza Ullah Khan Arghushal (1820s - 1850s) bin Ahmed Khan
*Ruler VII: Malak Samundar Khan Arghushal (Nominal ruler) bin Hamza Ullah Khan
*Ruler VIII: Malak Abdul Qadir Khan Arghushal (1850s-1890s)
*Ruler IX: Khan Baradar Khan Arghushal (1890s-1930s) bin Abdul Qadir Khan
*Ruler X: Jan Muhammad Khan Arghushal (1930- 1977) bin Baradar Khan
*Ruler XI: Aurangzeb Khan Arghushal (1977- 2002) bin Jan Muhammad Khan
*Ruler XII + Political Founder Leader: Alam Zeb Khan Arghushal (2002- 2022) bin Jan Muhammad Khan
*Ruler XIII: Yaqoob Khan Arghushal (2022 - present)
● Political leader : Bakht Nawaz Khan Arghushal (2022 -Present) bin Alam Zeb Khan
Climate
With a mild and generally warm and temperate climate, Thakot features a
humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(''Cfa'') under the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
. The average temperature in Thakot is 21.1 °C, while the annual precipitation averages 896 mm. Even in the driest months, there is a lot of precipitation. November is the driest month with 19 mm of precipitation, while August, the wettest month, has an average precipitation of 157 mm.
June is the hottest month of the year with an average temperature of 31.1 °C. The coldest month January has an average temperature of 9.5 °C.
Demography
Most of the people living here belong to the
Swati tribe. Mangian families also live in Thakot. The people of Thakot speak
Pashto
Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...
natively as well as
Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
but the educated people also know English.
Hydro
The
Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) is building 2,800
MW Hydel Power Project Thakot at an estimated cost of $5 billion. The Pakistan government has proposed
Russian cooperation in the project.
Six power projects: Pakistan seeks Russian investment prior to Putin’s visit
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References
Union councils of Battagram District
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