Nurkot
{{Short description|Pakistani town}}
{{Use Pakistani English|date=September 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name = Nurkot
|name =
|settlement_type = Town
|nickname =
|motto =
|image_skyline =
|image_flag =
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|image_map =
|map_caption =
|pushpin_map =Pakistan
|pushpin_mapsize =300
|subdivision_type =Country
|subdivision_name ={{flag|Pakistan}}
|subdivision_type1 =Province
|subdivision_name1 =Punjab
|subdivision_type2 =District
|subdivision_name2 =Narowal
|subdivision_type3 =Tehsil
|subdivision_name3 =Shakargarh
|subdivision_type4 =Union Council
|subdivision_name4 = UC No.95 Maingri
|unit_pref = Metric
|area_magnitude =
|area_total_km2 = 1.01171
|area_metro_km2 =
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|population_as_of = 2011
|population_total = 12876
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|timezone = PST
|utc_offset = +5
|postal_code_type = Postal code span
|postal_code = 51770
|area_code = 0542
|coordinates = {{coord|32|12|6|N|75|7|7|E|region:PK|display=inline,title}}
}}
Nurkot (also spelled Noorkot or Noor Kot, {{langx|ur|{{Nastaliq|نورکوٹ}}}}) is a town located on the western bank of the Nullah Baein torrent around 5 km southwest of Shakargarh city in Shakargarh Tehsil, Narowal District, Punjab, Pakistan, at an elevation of 258 meters,{{cite web|url=http://elevationmap.net/nurkot-pakistan?latlngs=(32.2015765,75.12388959999998)|title=Elevation Map}}
History
The sixteenth century document Ain-i-Akbari mentions Maingri Pargana of the Rachna Sarkar in the Lahore Subah of Mughal Empire, inhabited by Gujjars and Silhariya, as comprising 62,293 Bigha of agricultural land generating a revenue of 1.475 million Dams, and the local forces consisting of 20 cavalry and 1,000 infantry.{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/ainiakbarivolum00mubgoog/page/n344 |title=The Ain I Akbari by Abū al-Faz̤l ibn Mubārak, 1551-1602; Blochmann, H. (Henry), 1873, p. 321|year=1873}} The area was later annexed by the Jammu Rajas in early eighteenth century, in 1778 Kanhaiya Sardars took it and in the early nineteenth century it was annexed by Ranjit Singh.{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.35264/page/n31|title=Gazetteers Of Gurdaspur District, 1883-84, p. 20|year=1884}} The area was then annexed by the British after the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849. Later on, Maingri became a Zail of Shakargarh Tehsil.{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.35264/page/n55|title=Gazetteers Of Gurdaspur District, 1883-84, p. 46|year=1884}}
In 1853, Shakargarh Tehsil of Sialkot District was transferred to Gurdaspur District{{cite web|url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/pager.html?objectid=DS405.1.I34_V12_400.gif|title=Imperial Gazetteer2 of India, Volume 12, page 394 -- Imperial Gazetteer of India -- Digital South Asia Library}} and it remained an administrative subdivision of Gurdaspur District until Partition in 1947. Under Radcliffe Award, three of the four tehsils of Gurdaspur district on the eastern bank of the Ujh river (which joined the Ravi a little further down) – the tahsils of Gurdaspur, Batala and Pathankot – were awarded to India and only one, Shakargarh, was assigned to Pakistan.{{cite web|url=https://www.thefridaytimes.com/tft/splitting-india-vii/|title=Splitting India VII|date=November 2013}} After the creation of Pakistan, Shakargarh became a part of Sialkot District once again. In July 1991, two tehsils (Narowal and Shakargarh) were split off from Sialkot District{{cite web|url=https://www.punjab.gov.pk/narowal|title=Narowal - Punjab Portal|publisher=|accessdate=15 December 2016}} and Shakargarh became a tehsil of the newly formed Narowal District.