Niat Qabool Hayat Kakakhel

Niat Qabool Hayat
Personal Details
Title	Numberdar-e-Aala
Born	September 5, 1905
Died	October 18, 1986
Religion	Islam
Jurisprudence	Ismailism
Main interest(s)	Islamic theology, Islamic jurisprudence, Islamic law
Influenced Rashid-al-Din Hamadani, Kia Bozorg Omid
Signature

Niat Qabool Hayat Kakakhel or Niat Qabool Hayat Kakakhail (US ⁱ/niːət kəbuːl həiːɑːt kɑːkɑːˈxeɪl/ September 5, 1905 – October 18, 1986) was a Gilgit-Baltistani politician and, after 1973, assistant to the Governor of Gupis. Kakakhel was a member of the Central Asia Supreme Council and previously served for years as a senior member of Aga Khan Council. He was a ruling official during the Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR) period of the early 1970s.

Early life

Niat Qabool Hayat Kakakhel was born on September 5, 1905, in Golaghmuli Valley Ghizer District, Gilgit-Baltistan. His father, who was a shepherd, disappeared several months before Hayat was born. A few months later, Hayat's elder brother died in an accident. He belonged to a ruling Syed family, and at age 21 he was sent to Gilgit to live with the raja of that time. Years later, Hayat returned to his village and became the successor of his uncle, Zumbool Hayat. He was the assistant of Raja Gupis, Maqpoon Hussain Ali Khan. He was later entitled as Numberdar-i-Aala.

Construction of Shandur polo ground

In 1935, the UK administrator of Gilgit-Baltistan, E.H. Cobb, ordered Kakakhel to construct a polo ground in Shandur Top. With the help of villagers from his hometown, the project was carried out.^[1] The completed polo ground was approximately 56 meters wide and 200 meters long, somewhat smaller than a standard field of 150 meters by 270 meters.^[2] After construction, the polo ground was named Mas Junali. This name is derived from the Khowar language, in which mas means "moon" and junali means "polo ground". Cobb was fond of playing polo by moonlight.^[1]

Having impressed Cobb with his efficiency in constructing the polo ground, Kakakhel was offered a reward, but he refused any personal honours. Instead, since the local villagers had done most of the construction work, Kakakhel requested Cobb stock local waterways with fish. Cobb imported trout from England to fulfill this request, introducing them to the River Ghizer. As a result of this new fish population, the Directorate of Fisheries came into being, providing hundreds of jobs. In recent times, the trout population reached 24 kg in Hundrap Lake and 45 kg in Baha Khukush Lake.^[1]

Mas Junali became a meeting place for residents of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral.^[1] The Shandur Polo Festival, held annually since 1936, has highlighted matches between teams from Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan. Because Mas Junali is the highest polo ground in the world, the festival has become a tourist attraction.^[2]

Malan Shal Issue

In 1959, residents of (Balim and Laspur) Chitral from the tribes Ukilay and Bojoky didn’t pay their taxes. Due to this nonpayment, a group from Golaghmuli Valley Ghizer went to Malan Shal and seized 40 sheep from Chitrali. Another group, from Chitrali, reacted by seizing 9 yaks from Ghizer. In order to recover the yaks, Niat Qabool Hayat met with the governor of Mestuj and was able to get 7 yaks. After this incident, Chitrali people had been expelled from Malan Shal and Shandur but as per the governor's request, they were allowed to return. However, the Chitrali tribesmen again ignored a decision of Koh-e-Ghizer's ruler, by collecting fuelwood from Khukush; they were expelled from Shandur once again. In 1961, another fuelwood collecting violation occurred in Shandur Ghizer, and those tribesmen returned to Shandur. The Government of Gilgit Baltistan has not taken any action in response.

Struggle for the primary education system in Upper Ghizer

In 1951, Kakakhel established a private primary school in Gulaghmuli, Ghizer. For many years, he devoted his services to primary education in remote areas of Ghizer.^[3] After five years, the Gulaghmuli school got affiliated with Aga Khan Education Services.^[4] As a result, the literacy rate surpassed by 85%,^[5] gaining Hayat. The title Numberdar-e-Aala, as awarded by the first Muslim Political Agent of Gilgit-Baltistan, Sardar Mohammad Alam Khan.

References