Risalpur is Calling and I Must Go

7/29/2019 Risalpur is Calling and I Must Go

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RISALPUR ISCALLING AND IMUST GO!

Travel is the only thing you buy, thatmakes you richer

13th 14th October 2012Risalpur, District Nowshera, KPK

Shaikh Muhammed Ali


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Risalpur is calling and I must go! pg. 2

Introduction:

Risalpur(Urdu: ) is a city inNowshera District,Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa,Pakistan, ontheNowshera-Mardan Road. It is nearly 45 km fromPeshawarand 15 km fromMardanand islocated at 344'52N 7158'21E. In a basin some 1,014 feet above sea level, it is bounded on the

south and west by the Kabul and Kalapani rivers, respectively. The famous Khyber Pass lies 90

kilometers to the north.

Risalpur is known as the "Home of Eagles" and "Home of Sappers". It has several importanteducational institutions and industrial plants. The Risalpur Export Processing Zone is on themainNowshera-Mardan road. The Risalpur cantonment itself lies on high ground, some 30 feet

above the surrounding area, with the oldest building dating from 1913 or 1914.

Pakistan Army's Risalpur Cantonment andMilitary College of Engineering,Pakistan ArmyEngineers centerandMilitary Engineering Services Schoolare at Risalpur. ThePakistan Air

Force Academyis also in the city, as is thePakistan Railways' Pakistan Locomotive Factory. 1

13th October 2012:

As we all know that I do not leave an opportunity to visit a new place and

Risalpurwas no exception. I had been waiting to visit this famous Military

cantonment for some time now when I was invited by one of my older scholars

and a good family friend now Lt. Colonel Nasim Baig who had been promoted

as Dean of theMilitary College of Engineeringto come visit this nicely tucked

sleepy little cantonment in the whereabouts ofNowsheraDistrict.

We thus chose Saturday 13th October 2012 to visit Risalpur and got up early as

usual and after offering our Fajr prayers and a sumptuous breakfast; we started

preparing for the trip. We huddle NorthWest while leavingIslamabad, the

beautiful; at 8:30 a.m. sharp. Within six minutes of driving, we were on the M-1.

(On the M-1 motorway heading towards Risalpur)

1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risalpur
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber-Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber-Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber-Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nowshera-Mardan_Road&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nowshera-Mardan_Road&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nowshera-Mardan_Road&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mardanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mardanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mardanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Armyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Armyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineeringhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineeringhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineeringhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pakistan_Army_Engineers_center&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pakistan_Army_Engineers_center&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pakistan_Army_Engineers_center&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pakistan_Army_Engineers_center&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Military_Engineering_Services_School&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Military_Engineering_Services_School&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Military_Engineering_Services_School&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Railwayshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Railwayshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Railwayshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risalpurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risalpurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineering_(Pakistan)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineering_(Pakistan)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineering_(Pakistan)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamabadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamabadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamabadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamabadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineering_(Pakistan)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risalpurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Railwayshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Military_Engineering_Services_School&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pakistan_Army_Engineers_center&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pakistan_Army_Engineers_center&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_College_of_Engineeringhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Armyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mardanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nowshera-Mardan_Road&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber-Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urdu


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One of the appreciable things thatNawaz Sharif(our current Prime Minister) did

in his previous tenure was to develop the Motorway fromLahoreto Islamabad

and later the PresidentGeneral Pervez Musharrafcontinued the Islamabad

Peshawarextension.

(Off to Risalpur on the M-1)

Within 27 minutes of driving, we had reached the following spot:

(We are heading towards Burhan, the first exit on the M-1)

The M-1 is 155 km long, with 67 km in Punjab and the remaining 108 km in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. It has become a vital link toAfghanistanandCentral Asiaand is expected to take

much traffic off the highly usedN52

2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1_motorway_(Pakistan)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nawaz_Sharifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nawaz_Sharifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nawaz_Sharifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahorehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahorehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahorehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Pervez_Musharrafhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Pervez_Musharrafhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Pervez_Musharrafhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-5_National_Highwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-5_National_Highwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-5_National_Highwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N-5_National_Highwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Pervez_Musharrafhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahorehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nawaz_Sharif


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(We also pass this exit)

Within an hour and nine minutes of driving, we pass through this point where we

see Radio based stations (RBS) of all the five telcos in the country. It is a proof

that communication whether road network or the mobile network is so veryimportant for the development of the economy. The voice clarity of the cell

phone lines is truly amazing at this junction.

(Radio based stations of 5 telcos)

We finally take this exit at 9:48 a.m. and thus left the Motorway.


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(Now we are heading towards Nowshera)

This is the introduction of Nowshera on the Wikipedia page:

Nowshera(Pashto: ) (Urdu: ) - known locally as Nowkhaar orNowshaar in thePashtodialects is the chief city ofNowshera Districtin theKhyber PakhtunkhwaProvince of

Pakistan. It is also one of the largest cities of the province[1]and lies on theGrand Trunk Road27

miles due east of Peshawar[2]at 340'55N 7158'29E. 3

And finally after driving for precisely 1:57 minutes, we see this board and thus took the turn.

(Risalpur here we come)

In the next five minutes, we reached the Risalpur cantonment where Col.

Naseem Baig was waiting to greet us personally. He escorted us to the Officers

mess guest house of the Military College of Engineering where we were lodged.

We freshened up while the children went around the place and acclimatized

themselves to the surroundings.

3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-IGI-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-IGI-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-IGI-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-IGI-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera,_Khyber_Pakhtunkhwa#cite_note-1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khyber_Pakhtunkhwahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowshera_Districthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashto


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Around 10:30 a.m. we went to the house of Col. Naseem Baig and we had a

lavish brunch which was more of a Princes breakfast. We ate to our hearts

content and enjoyed the love and hospitality of our hosts family.

Later, I gave a presentation to the faculty members of the Military College of

Engineering (MCE) on the latest developments atHECaround 12:00 p.m. which

was thoroughly appreciated. I also addressed some of the queries raised by thefaculty members there. The presentation was also attended by Wing Cdr. Dr.

Hamidullah Khan Niazi who was from thePakistan Air Force Academy. Later,

Col. Baig, Wing Cdr and I took a group picture.

(L-R: Lt. Col. Naseem Baig, I and Wing Cdr. Hamidullah Niazi)

I came back to the lodging site around 3:30 p.m. collected the family and offwe went again to Col. Sahibs house. We then together went to the Company

Bridge Camp 249 where an entire Company was posted. Our host had

arranged for a boating trip in the Kabul River.

(By 4:05 p.m., we had reached the Company Bridge Camp)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Education_Commission_of_Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Education_Commission_of_Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Education_Commission_of_Pakistanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Air_Force_Academyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Education_Commission_of_Pakistan


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As per Fauji protocol, ladies and gents were seated separately. Laughter.

(The first ladies enjoying the complimentary drinks)

We are about getting ready to go on the boating trip.

(Mohsin with his usual antics)


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As per protocol, we were all required to wear life jackets which I thought was a

wise decision. Accidents do happen thus why take the risk especially when

none of the kids knew how to swim and the Kabul river is quite deep and moves

at a fast pace.

By 4:24 p.m., we boarded the motor boats and off we went boating.

(This was the first time that we were ever riding Military boats)

I was riding with the ladies while Col. Baig took the kids with him under his

supervision.


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(The kids riding with Col. Nasim Baig)

For a good 20 minutes we rode the boats and went on an on in the Kabul river.

The children just did not want to stop but we somehow tried and called it a day.

Since it was a strategic location and lately the Armed forces had come underbomb attacks thus the entire area was being monitored by Fauji jawans.

(Our family pic after the boating trip)


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(A group photo after the boating trip)

(A soldier guarding our entourage)

(This is the make-shift wash room for the guests)


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Once we came off the boats, a sumptuous lunch of barbeque chicken and fish

was awaiting us. We dined by the river and again enjoyed a good meal with our

hospitable host.

By the next 1.5 hours we headed back to the cantonment and went back to

rest at our lodging site.

(The children resting in their room)

We rested till 8:45 p.m. and later took a few pictures at the guest house.

(We are almost ready to go for dinner)


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(The children with their mother)

After having a good rest, we then left for Col. Baigs house around 9:00 p.m.

who accompanied us to the Station Officers Mess where a dinner was awaiting

us. It seemed, we were here to eat only. A lavish brunch, a late lunch by the

river and now a brilliant dinner at the Officers mess; what else in the worldwould you need?

While we enjoyed the dinner, the children were treated to an animated cartoon

movie titled Rio. We returned to the guest house after a long, excitingly fun

filled day around 11:00 p.m. and retired.

14th October 2012:

The next morning we woke up at 5:00 a.m. and offered our Fajr prayers. I went

out for a little walk around 7:00 a.m. and enjoyed the peace and serenity in thequiet of the morning. While I came back and sat outside reading a book,

strangely 3 sparrows flew in from somewhere and knocked themselves down on

our guest room window around 8:00 a.m.

(One of the sparrows in my hand lying semi-conscious)


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Sabeen who had just walked outside to catch the morning breeze was shocked

to see this happen. As a mother she almost started crying and thought that the

little birds were dead due to the impact of the collision on the glass.

(One of the sparrow before she took a flight)

We had faith and we both continuously prayed to God to give life back to

these three little creatures. Very soon, one of the little ones fluttered and flew

away while the other two took a few minutes to regain their consciousness and

posture and after giving me a good look as if they were thanking me for this

gesture, flew away too!

All day long, we kept on thinking about these beautiful little birds. Since the

children were asleep, they were not able to see this episode while Ayesha wasannoyed at me as to why did I not wake her up so that she could have played

with these lovely little birds.

(All set and ready to leave)


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We had our breakfast around 8:30 a.m. Shortly after wards we started to pack

and left the guest house around 10:30 a.m. and visited Col. Nasims house to say

good bye but they insisted that we stayed a little longer and had another

breakfast with his family.

(The parting picture from the guest house)

We finally left his house around 12:45 p.m. and had reached the Motorway entry

point atRashakai.

(At the M-1 entry point)

We stopped around 2:30 p.m. at the Tarnol intersection on the Motorway for

snacks and Zuhr prayers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashakaihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashakaihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashakaihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashakai


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(Snacks at the Tarnol intersection on M-1)

On the way back, we ended up visiting a friends house inRawalpindito offer

condolences on his fathers demise and took theGrand Trunk(GT) Road

reaching his house around 4:30 p.m. Adil (my older son) noticed an interestingplaque on the intersection and thus captured this picture.

(An interesting road marker on the G. T. Road)

And finally we reached home around 7:30 p.m. after traversing a total distance

of 327 kilometers. But this journey was not about completion, it was about the

Way, the process, the refilling of the heart, and we certainly have done thattoday.

Shaikh Muhammed AliThe Wandering DervishE-mail: [email protected]

Cell: +00-92-321-5072996

Tuesday, 10th September 2013, 16:45 p.m. (PST)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rawalpindihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rawalpindihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rawalpindihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Trunk_Roadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rawalpindi

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Risalpur is Calling and I Must Go