222. D.A.V. High School Shahpur City. (Govt. High School, Shahpur).

It was one of those rare, lucky days when everything goes according to plan, or even better. It was 25^th March, 2026, and I was in Sargodha. I checked the map of my intended explorations and decided to visit Shahpur. It was the closest place, and all the sites were clearly marked. I had marked three historic schools for my visit, and you probably have already read the details of my first two visits to O’Brien Islamia High School in Shahpur Saddar and Bhai Ram Kishan Gurmat School, Shahpur City. In almost three hours, I was back after completing my tour.

The third destination was a school built by the Hindu community of the area before Partition, called D.A.V. High School, Shahpur City.

Location of the School:

The school is located on the outskirts of Shahpur City, in the southeast direction, on the Shahpur–Sahiwal Road. Shahpur, a tehsil of Sargodha district, is located about 30 kilometers to the west of Sargodha city, towards Khushab. The school is located at 32°16’46.87″N, 72°26’9.08″E. For the history and demographics of the area, please visit my previous two posts.

History of the School:

Fortunately, the history of the school is well preserved in the shape of many plaques, which I found on the building. I found thirteen plaques that provide invaluable information about the history of the school and different phases of its construction, including the names of persons who played a role in its establishment or donated amounts for its construction.

The first plaque gives the name of the school as D.A.V. High School Shahpur City. D.A.V. stands for Dayanand Anglo Vedic. The foundation stone was laid by Shriman Mahatma Hans Raj ji on 10th January, 1918. The piece of land, which was definitely considerable, was donated by Lala Thakar Das and Lala Karam Narain and their brothers. At present, the school covers an area of 3 acres.

The second plaque informs us about the construction work starting in 1919, with a donation by Lala Ditta Mal and Lala Chaman Lal; interestingly, both were engineers, most probably civil engineers. The next two plaques are dated 1925, and the subsequent plaques are dated one in 1929 and two in 1932. Six plaques carry no date or year. However, we can make a fair timeline of its construction: it started in 1918 and continued until 1932. It was a private school, being built with the help of donations made by the community; that could be the reason for the long time it took to complete.

Shriman Mahatma Hans Raj:

Swami Dayanand Saraswati was a Hindu reformist who established a reform movement in 1875 in Bombay. One of the goals of the movement was the promotion of education among the Hindu masses. Mahatma Hans Raj was one of his prominent disciples.

Hans Raj was born in Bajwara, district Hoshiarpur, in 1864. He completed his graduation in Lahore and dedicated his life to promoting education. He founded the Dayanand Anglo-Vedic School System in Lahore on 1 June 1886. He served as the principal of DAV College Lahore for 25 years. This organization established many educational institutions in Punjab and other parts of India. Today, it is still running hundreds of schools and other educational institutions in India. He died in Lahore in 1938.

The DAV College was later moved to Ambala city, and in its building in Lahore, Islamia College Civil Lines was established, which is still functioning and is one of the prominent educational institutions of Lahore.

*S.D.O. Sub Divisional Officer

Architecture and Layout:

The building of this school is large and imposing, with a big hall in the centre and six rooms on each side. Of these, two rooms on each side are larger than the other four. Each room is provided with wooden doors and ventilators. To keep the rooms airy and well-lit, the roofs are kept quite high, which helps in coping with the hot weather of this region. The walls are also very thick, which again helps in keeping the interior cool. The façade is largely symmetrical, with a projecting central block that emphasizes the main entrance. The central portion features arched openings, while tall, narrow windows above provide light and ventilation.

However, this building is quite different from other buildings of that time. The most important feature that I found missing is a veranda. A veranda with arches was almost an integral part of public or private buildings of that period, and I found this unusual. Instead, the structure relies on its solid brick construction, simple cornices, and repetitive openings to create a sense of balance and rhythm. Nevertheless, it looks imposing in its style and is a very large building. Unfortunately, its present condition is not good, and it is deteriorating rapidly. The roofs of some rooms have already collapsed. It also covers a large area. I checked on Google Earth and found that it covers an area of over 3 acres.

In the huge compound of the school, a new additional block has already been constructed, and classes are held in this section. The old building has been abandoned and left to gradually fall apart. However, I feel that it can still be repaired and utilized for the expansion of the school. I request the concerned authorities that at least there should be some mechanism to preserve the plaques, so that this history and heritage are not lost.

My visit to the school was very fruitful and informative, for which I am very thankful to the Principal, Mr Muhammad Anwar, and his colleague, Mr Rana Ahmad Nawaz. Both were extremely cooperative and provided valuable guidance throughout my visit.

Tariq Amir

May 3, 2026.
Islamabad