North West Frontier Province: Rising Nationalism

Their preservation and protection before they disappear forever. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the northwestern region of the country. It was formerly known as North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) and commonly called Sarhad, which in Urdu means “frontier.” Its provincial capital and largest city is Peshawar, followed by Mardan. It shares borders with the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to the west; Gilgit–Baltistan to the northeast; Azad Kashmir, Islamabad and Punjab to the east and southeast. The NWFP was later incorporated as a part of Pakistan through a referendum. After its incorporation, the aspiration of provincial autonomy still loomed large on the minds of the elites in this region who had almost reconciled to the fact that an independent Pushtunistan1 consisting of the Pushtun dominated area is virtually impossible This work is essentially useful for scholars researchers social activists academics government functionaries and the general reader alike.