Bahawalnagar

Bahawalnagar (Punjabi, Urdu: بہاول نگر), is the capital city of Bahawalnagar District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city of Bahawalnagar is the headquarter of the district and tehsil as well.[4] It is the 54th largest city of Pakistan by population according to the 2017 census. Old name of Bahawalnagar was Rojanwali/Ubbha. It was named Bahawalnagar in 1904 after Bahawal Khan V, the ruler of the Bahawalpur state comprising the present districts of Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar and Rahim Yar Khan.[5] It is 262 km (163 mi) south of Lahore and about 175 km (109 mi) miles east of Bahawalpur. It is 65 km (40 mi) far from District Pakpattan. River Sutlej passes on the northern side at a distance of about 6 miles.[6] Bahawalnagar originally known as Rojhanwali[7] was a small settlement consisting of few huts and shacks. This village Rojhanwali is still in existence at a distance of about 1.5 miles north of the Railway Station. Bahawalnagar is located at the historic Delhi–Multan road constructed by Indian Muslim Emperor Sher Shah Suri.[8] The region around Bahawalnagar was part of Multan province of Mughal Empire.[9] In the year 1895, a railway station was established and was named as Rojhanwali Railway Station. It was a junction between Bahawalnagar and Bhatinda at distance of 113 miles, now linking branch lines Amrooka and Fort Abbas. Before partition it was very busy junction. Trains used to run from Karachi to Delhi and vice versa via Bahawalnagar. Passenger trains also used to run from Bahawalnagar to Fazilka, Ferozpur. There was a loco shed and two institutes meant for recreation.[6]