Balakot Tehsil

Balakot Tehsil (Urdu: تحصیل بالاکوٹ) is an administrative subdivision (tehsil) of Mansehra District in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan ^[2] Balakot is the main city of the tehsil. It was one of the towns that was devastated in the 2005 Kashmir earthquake^[3] with around 80% of the buildings there destroyed. Villages were badly affected and landslides cut off thousands of people from Balakot where relief workers had been helping the survivors.^[4]

Its population as of 2017 was 273,000,^[1] the main language of the tehsil is Hindko.

Balakot Tehsil consists of 12 Union Councils:^[5]

• Attershisha
• Balakot
• Garhi Habibullah Khan
• Garlat
• Ghanool
• Hangrai
• Kaghan
• Karnol
• Kiwai
• Mahandri
• Satbani
• Shohal Mazullah
• Talhataa

• Khan Wasil Khan Swati(Khan of Balakot during Sikh rule who helped and gave refuge to Syed Ahmed Shaheed in his Haveli)
• Jageerdar Lal Khan Swati (Khan of Balakot during British Rule)
• Haji Rustam Khan Swati (Ex-Tehsil Nazim Balakot)
• Shams Khan Lughmani Swati (Chairman DRC Tehsil Balakot)
• Mazullah Khan Lughmani Swati (Founder and Khan of Shohal Mazullah Khan
• Najaf Khan Dodal Swati (Founder of Shohal Najaf Khan and Khan of Mahandri)
• Syed Qasim Shah (MNA)
• Syed Ahmed Hussain Shah(MPA)
• Haji Saleem Khan Dhodyari Swati (Current Chief of Balakot city)
• Haider Khan Bejori Swati (Current Chairman Balakot city)
• Mian Wali Ur Rehman (MPA)
• Munir Lughmani Swati (MPA, Advocate Supreme Court)
• Babar Naseem Khankhel Swati (Ex-Food Minister KPK)
• Mian Zia Ur Rehman (MPA)
• Wajid Hamayun Khan Swati(Politician)