Kasur is one of the oldest cities of Pakistan. In ancient times, it was just a small settlement with Katcha houses on the northern bank of the older river Beas. According to an estimate Kasur was a big village in 1 AD. In 553 Ad this was occupied by Khaweshgan. In 1020 AD, Kasur was included in the territory of Lahore, which was the capital of the state under Raja Jaipal. When Emperor Baber captured the whole of India in 1526AD, he gave this city to the Afghans as a token of their service towards his victory. During the reign of Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb, Kasur was glorified and every rich man constructed his own palace in Kasur. In 1830 AD Maharaja Ranjeet Singh captured Kasur and it was under Sikh role by the year 1847 when the British took over control of Isndia.
The city Kasur is famous for its very spicy fish, Kasuri Falooda, sweet dishes "Andrassa and Dhoda (sohan halwa) and Kasuri methi. Apart from that, it is also the birthplace of Noor Jehan, the famous Pakistani singer and actress who gained popularity in the 1950's. It is also famous for saint Baba Bullay Shah whose tomb is in this city. According to some historians, the name Kasur is derived from Kasha war, the same way Lahore is said to be taken from Lahawar.Kush, the son of Ram Chander or Rama, is said to have founded Kasur like his brother Loh or Lav is said to have founded Lahore. However, some historians opine that Kasur is a Persian word and a plural of “Kasr” or “Qasr” (meaning palace), which was the name given during the times Kasur was a remarkable colony of Pathans, perhaps the most remarkable on this side of Indus. There is said to be seven tribes of Pathan who settled here sometimesduring the reign of Moghal king Baber but more probably in 1560, during the times of his grandson Akbar. At that time the town is said to have a population of about 3,500. Among the Pathans who settled here were certain Hasanzais, whose descendents became the chiefs of the town and founded a considerable principality, including territory on both banks of the Sutlej River.
History of the area is often endorsed as being very ancient by quoting the mud filled town near it (1/2 km away from District Headquarters), which was called Rohay Wal. A tomb of a Muslim mystic Baba Kamal Chishti and some other graves are still found at the top of these teelas, who was of mughal era and disciple of Baba Fareed-ud-Din Ganj Shakar and Nizam-ud-Din Aulia. Many of these teelas has been dug up and has been leveled to ground for encroachments and roads etc. It is said that Rohay Wal (the lost town) was once the main city and the current city was a suburb of that. The city is built upon the high bank which marks the termination of the Majha and looks down upon the lowlands of the Satluj hither. It is a place of great antiquity and is identified by the historians as one of the place visited by the Chinese pilgrim, Howang Tsang in the 7th century BC but it does no appear in history until late in the Muslim period when it was established as a Pashtun colony near the northern/western bank of the Sutlej. These migrants entered the town either in the reign of Babar or in that of his grandson Akbar and founded a considerable principality with territory on both sides of the Satluj. When the Sikhs rose to power, they met great opposition from the Pashtuns of Kasur. The chiefs of the Bhangi confederacy stormed the town in the 1763 and again in 1770 and although they succeeded in holding the entire principality for a while, the Pashtun leaders re-established their independence in 1794 and resisted many subsequent attacks. The town of Kasur was incorporated in the Kingdom of Lahore by Ranjit Singh in 1807 and had been a municipality since 1885. There is said to be seven tribes of Pathan who settled here sometimes during the reign of Moghal king Baber but more probably in 1560, during the times of his grandson Akbar. At that time the town is said to have a population of about 3,500. Among the Pathans who settled here were certain Hasanzais, whose descendents became the chiefs of the town and founded a considerable principality, including territory on both banks of the Sutlej River. When the Sikhs rose to power, they experienced great resistance from Kasur. In 1763 and again in 1790, a large number of Pathans embraced martyrdom while defending their territory. In 1794, two Pathan brothers, Nizam ud Din and Kutab ud Din expelled the Sikhs from Kasur and reestablished the Pathan rule until 1807 when at last, Kutab ud Din was forced to give way to Ranjit Singh and retire to his territory at Mamdot, beyond the Sutlej River. The town of Kasur was then incorporated into the dominion of Ranjit Singh. After the Sikhs, this area was taken over by the British. In 1867, the British constituted the Municipality of Kasur. It remained a tehsil of Lahore District with an Extra Assistant Commissioner in-charge of the sub division until 1st July 1976 when it was made a district. Initially, the district comprised two sub divisions namely Kasur and Chunian. Later on in 1992, the Government of Punjab created a third sub division called Pattoki. While in 2008 another town Kot Radha Kishan was notified as fourth tehsil (sub-division) of the district.
History of Name
Historically the city of Kasur was named by ancient Aryan tribe of Kambojas who migrated from Mittani and Kussara and belonged to Ancient King Pithana of Mesopotamian Kussara. This fact is also endorsed by renowned folk Baba Bulay Shah that all Pathans of Kasur would become weavers very soon. The town of Khudian was built by ancient Aryan Iranian Kambojas of Kasur who claim descent from Saman Khuda. A village Khoda nearKhudian is also inhabited by Kambojah Clan. The same clan Kambojas also claims to be offsprings of Kumbakarna and Rama. Ancient town of Rajowal of Kambojas is also related to Kambojas of Khemkaran. According to a traditional belief, Kasur was founded by Prince Kusha, the son of Lord Rama, while Lahore, called Lavapuri in ancient times, was founded by his brother Prince Lava. Kasur had been allotted by the Mughals to Pashtuns or Afghans of Kabul and still contains a colony of Pashtuns. However the site was occupied by a Rajput town long before the period of Muslim rule. According to some historians, the name Kasur is derived from Kashawar, the same way Lahore is said to be taken from Lahawar. Kush, the son of Ram Chander or Rama, is said to have founded Kasur like his brother Loh or Lav is said to have founded Lahore. However, some historians opine that Kasur is a Persian word and a plural of “Kasar” or “Qasar” (meaning palace), which the name was given during the times Kasur was a remarkable colony of Pathans, perhaps the most remarkable on this side of Indus.
In 1867, the British constituted the Municipality of Kasur. It remained a tehsil of Lahore District with an Extra Assistant Commissioner in-charge of the sub division until 1st July 1976 when it was made a district. Initially, the district comprised of two sub divisions namely Kasur and Chunian. Later on in 1992, the Government of Punjab created a third sub division called Pattoki.
According to some historians, its name is corrupted from of Kashawar, in the same way as Lahore is said to be a shortened from of Lahawar. Tradition refers the foundation of the town to Kush, a Brother of Loh or Lav, son of Rama, who is said to have founded Lahore. Some historians opine that Kasur is the Persian word and is plural from of “Kasr” or “Qasr” (Kot). However this may be, Kasur does not appear in history until far on in the Muhammad period. The colony of Pathans was located at some time during the reign of Baber, but more probably in 1560BC, during the reign of his grandson Akbar-e- Azam. At that time the town is said to have numbered 3500 souls. Among the Pathans who settled here were certain Hasanzais, whose descendents became the chiefs of the town and founded a considerable principality, including territory on both banks of the Sutluj.
When the Sikhs rose to power, they experienced great resistance from the brave Sikhs of Kasur, in 1763 and again in 1770. However, later, they were able to subdue the territory. Large numbers of Pathans embraced martyrdom on these occasions. In 1794, two Pathan brothers, Nizam ud Din and Kutab ud Din again expelled the Sikhs from Kasur and re-established the Pathan rule, held their own against the repeated attacks of Sikhs until 1807, when at last Kutab ud Din was forced to give way before Ranjit Singh and retire to his territory at Mamdot beyond Sutluj. The town of Kasur was then incorporated in the dominion f Ranjit Singh. After the Sikhs the area was taken over by British.
In 1867 the Kasur Municipality was constituted. At that time, Kasur was given the status of Sub-division and included in Lahore Civil Division. The Raiwind-Ganda Singhwala Railway line was laid in 1883 whereas the Kasur-Lodhran Railway line was completed in 1910, thereby connecting the town with the rail network. During this period, Kasur served as an important commercial as well as industrial center of the area. After independence in 1947, industrial and commercial activities were re-established and Kasur contributed more and more towards the national economy. Kasur remained a Tehsil of Lahore District, during the times of the British, and Extra Assistant Commissioner used to be the in charge of the Sub-Division. In 1976, Kasur was given the status of District Headquarters and subsequently a number of local offices were established.
Initially, the District comprised to Sub-Divisions namely Kasur&Chunian. Later on, in 1992, the Government of Punjab created another Sub Division with it does headquarter at Pattoki. At present Kasur consists of Three Sub-Divisions; namely Kasur, Chunian and Pattoki.
Kasur the city of Bulleh Shah, located 55 km southeast of Lahore, is one of the oldest cities in Pakistan. It is adjacent to the Indo-Pak Border which is famous for its guard changing ceremony.
District Kasur came into existence on July 1, 1967 after being detached from Lahore district. Kasur is not though as old as Lahore, is a brother town of Lahore. There are different traditions about the name of Kasur. One is that the town was founded by Kasur/ Kasu the son of Ram chander and named after him as Kasur pur .The other tradition tells us that the town was founded by Pathatn families of Kandhar during the period of Akbar. The Pathans constructed some small forts known as Kot. There were about twelve Kots named after the heads of various families. These names still exist. In Arabic, Kot or fort is known as Kaser (Qaser) and plural of Kaser is kasur.
Kasur has a glorious past set in spiritual and cultural traditions, nurtured by Sufi Saints like Baba Bulleh Shah, Baba Kamal Chishti, Shah Inayat Qadiri, Imam Shah Bukhari, on one hand and by musicians, singers like Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Ustad Barkat Ali Khan, Ustad Amanat Ali Khan, Malka-e-Tarrannam Noor Jehan etc. on the other hand. The important cultural events in the district are the Urs of Baba Bulleh Shah and Urs of Baba Imam Shah Bukhari.
The total population of the district is 2375875. Total register voters are 1173524. A large number of non-Muslim voters also reside in the District. The city of Kasur is a town of considerable antiquity. It is situated upon the north bank of the old bed of the Beas upon the Ferozpur Road 53 Kilometer south-east of Lahore. It is built upon the high bank which marks the termination of the Majha, and looks down upon the lowlands of the Sutlej and Beas.
The city of Kasur is an aggregation of fortified hamlets, called kots, small in themselves, but together forming a considerable town. In 1592 Originally there were 12 principal residential colonies which were built under the rule of Mogul Chapatti Genghis Khan's descendant Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar in promulgation with the grace extended from Moguls to Pathans. The names of 12 Kots are as fallows:
Kot Pacca Qila
Kot Nawan Qila
Kot Azam Khan
Kot Ghulam Mohyyulddin Khan
Kot Murad Khan
Kot Haleem Khan
Kot Peeraan
Kot Fateh Din Khan
Kot Usman Khan
Kot Badar-ud-Din Khan
Kot Ruken Din Khan
Kot Nawab Hussain Khan
