HISTORY OF WAH CANTT
Wah Cantt is adjacent to Taxila, a small City enriched with one of the most important archaeological sites of the world. The name “Wah” has i ts roots in the Mughal era with the Mughal emperor Jehangir. It is said that Jahangir’s army was coming back from Kashmir mission, it was evening time, and they were tired and looking for a place to stay. They started to search an appropriate place among Barren Mountains. After a little search they were successful to find a place, where there was natural source of water. When the Mughal King watched the natural spring, he loudly said “Wah” ('wow'). His words were as it is jotted down on the stones of history. After that day, this place is called Wah. The Mughal advent had a strong influence on the architecture of the village and whole area which is still visible to date with prominent Mughal sites like the Wah Garden.
After gaining independence, Pakistan had no facilities capable of producing armaments and ammunition so urgent plans were made for an ordnance factory near Wah village, Punjab. Thus, the Wah Cantonment (or Cantt) came into being in 1951, when Prime Minister Khawaja Nizim-
Wah Cantt is a multicultural city. People with various ethnic backgrounds live and work here. People from different religious background live here. Culture from Karachi to Khyber can be observed in the city. People are skillful and educated and most of them are factory employees. The city is rather quit in the morning, but all charm of the city is restored in evening. The hustle bustle of people for evening walks, children and elders playing games in playing grounds and elderly sitting on grass gardens add to the beauty of city. The city is said to have one of the best civic amenities in the entire country with a solid h ealth care and education system.
Wah Cantt is divided into 27 Sectors and some private Housing Colonies. The commonly known colonies are Officers’ Colony, Labour Colony, PMHS, Shahwali Colony, Lalazar Colony, Gulistan Colony, Lala Rukh Colony, Wah Modal Town, Gulburg Town, Nawababad, Gadwal, Saadat Colony, Gulshan Colony, Chachi Mohallah, Shadman Town, Gulshan-
Popular Markets include Aslam Market, Basti Market, Anwaar Chowk, Laiq Ali Chowk, Nawababad, Asifabad, Munirabad.
This city is distinguished because of a very high standard of education. Literacy rate is approximately 96%. The Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said “Wah Cantt possessed ideal education and health facilities and I am impressed with the 96% literary rate in the city. It was also title as the “The Island of excellence” 120 educational institutes serve over 50,000 students.