Poonch District, Pakistan
Poonch District
ضلع پونچھ | |
|---|---|
District of Azad Kashmir administered by Pakistan | |
top: Poonch Valley bottom:Tolipir | |
Interactive map of Poonch district | |
A map showing Poonch district shaded in Yellow along with Sudhanoti district | |
| Coordinates (Rawalakot): 33°51′12″N 73°45′5″E / 33.85333°N 73.75139°E | |
| Administering Country | Pakistan |
| Territory | Azad Kashmir |
| Division | Poonch Division |
| Headquarters | Rawalakot |
| Government | |
| • Type | District Administration |
| • Deputy Commissioner | N/A |
| • District Police Officer | N/A |
| • District Health Officer | N/A |
| Area | |
• Total | 855 km2 (330 sq mi) |
| Population (2017) | |
• Total | 500,571 |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Urdu |
| • Spoken | Pahari-Pothwari |
| Number of Tehsils | 4 |
Poonch District (Urdu: ضلع پونچھ ) is a district of Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region. It is one of the 10 districts of this Pakistan-administered territory. It is bounded on the north by Bagh District, on the north-east by Haveli District, on the south-east by the Poonch District of Indian-administered Kashmir, on the south by Azad Kashmir's Sudhanoti and Kotli districts, and on the west by Rawalpindi District of Pakistan's Punjab Province. The Poonch District is part of the greater Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. The district headquarters is the city of Rawalakot. It is the third most populous district of Azad Kashmir.
The main language is Pahari, native to an estimated 95% of the population, but there are also speakers of Gujari, while Urdu has official status.