1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Mianwali

MIANWALI, a town and district of India in the Multan division of the Punjab. The town is situated on the left bank of the Indus, 653 ft. above sea-level. Pop. (1901), 3591. The district was formed in 1901, after the creation of the North-West Frontier Province, out of the Cis-Indus portions of Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan districts. Area 7816 sq. m. Pop. (1901), 424,588, showing an increase of 6·1% in the decade. About three-quarters of the district lies to the east of the Indus. Along the river is a low fertile tract, liable to floods. The remaining upland, known as the Thal, is barren and sandy, cultivable only where irrigation is possible. In the north-east the district includes the western flank of the Salt Range. The part of the district west of the Indus is, a level and fairly fertile plain, enclosed by the Chichali and Maidani hills. The chief agricultural products are wheat and other grains and oil-seeds. Hides and wool are also exported, together with small quantities of alum (abundant in the Salt Range), salt (from the Salt and Maidani ranges), and coal of poor quality, which is found at several points. Petroleum has been discovered. The district is served by the Multan-Rawalpindi line of the North-Western railway.