Infrastructure

Mianwali city is the economic and commercial hub of the district. There are several educational institutions up to post-graduate level, affiliated with the University of Punjab. The city has an airport built near the old World War II aerodrome. This is presently called PAF Base Mianwali. It is one of the major operational bases of the country.The No.1 Fighter Conversion Unit of the PAF is stationed here. There is also a railway connecting the city with Kundian and Multan to the south and Attock and Rawalpindi to the north. The railways were a part of the now obsolete "North Western Railways" (NWR), which was operational during British colonial rule in the subcontinent. After the partition of India in 1947 it was renamed "Pakistan Western Railways" and was again renamed after December 1971 as Pakistan Railways.The main highways connecting the city to the other parts of the country include the Sargodha-Lahore road, Multan road, Talagang-Rawalpindi road, and the Kalabagh- Bannu road. The Balkassar interchange connects Mianwali to the M2 motorway. The Thal canal traverses the city and makes the surroundings a picturesque place.The city is famous for the shrine of Syed Mian Sultan Zakria Gilani whose father Syed Mian Ali founded Mianwali village, in the 16th century. The son is said to have exhibited supernatural powers from an early age and many miraculous deeds are ascribed to him. His name is frequently taken as an oath , and his shrine is not uncommonly the scene of settlement of civil disputes, in which one party has bound himself to abide by any statement made at shrine by the other party.The Mianas of Mianwali are descendants of this holy man.The city has its own FM Radio Station, a municipal library, a sports complex, a hockey stadium (the Tariq Niazi Hockey Stadium), and a couple of parks for recreation.Area of Mianwali City is about 25 square kilometers.There is a pre-partition central jail which is notorious for imprisoning many state rebels and politicians such as Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. one third area of Mianwali district is comprises of thal desert. the biggest towns of arraid thal are mari shah sakhira and noor pur thal.