Wah Cantonment Wah Cantonment ( Punjabi , Urdu : واہ کینٹ ) ( often abbreviated to Wah Cantt . ) is a military city located in the Punjab province of Pakistan , to the north west of Rawalpindi / Islamabad . History . Wah Cantt is adjacent to Taxila , a small town enriched with one of the most important archaeological sites of the world . The name ' Wah ' has its roots in the Mughal era with the Mughal emperor Jehangir reported to have coined the name when his army was stationed here en route from a mission . Emperor Jehangir was impressed by the scenery of this place , so he said " Wah " ( ' wow ' ) and this place was named ' Wah ' after that exclamation . It is said that Mughal emperor Jehangir ’ s army was coming back from a campaign in Kashmir , it was evening time , and they were tired and looking for a place to stay . After a little search they were successful in finding a place with a natural source of water . As soon as the Mughal King watched the natural beauty of the spring and surrounding mountains , he loudly exclaimed ” Wah ! ” . His words were written on the stone of history . Since that day , this territory is called Wah . The Mughal advent had a strong influence on the architecture of the city which is still visible to date with prominent Mughal sites like the Wah Gardens . After gaining Independence , Pakistan had no facilities capable of producing armaments and military goods so urgent plans were made for an ordnance factory in Wah , Punjab . The word Cantt was added to Wah in 1951 , when Prime Minister Khawaja Nazim - u - Din unveiled the foundation stone of Pakistan Ordnance Factories Wah Cantt . Chaudhry Sardar Khan was the founder and first Deputy Director General of Pakistan Ordnance Factories ( POF ) , Wah Cantt . POF is not one ammunition factory but it is a complex of 14 factories manufacturing arms and ammunition ranging from bullets , shells , assault rifles , missiles and bombs . Heavy Industries in neighboring Taxila produces tanks and other heavy arms . The nearby town of Kamra is the site of Pakistan Aeronautical Complex where aircraft are manufactured , assembled , repaired and overhauled for the Air Force . Geography . Wah Cantt is located 50 km ( appx . 30 miles ) north west of Islamabad . It is a valley , surrounded by hills in all directions . Mughal Emperor Zaheer - UD - Din Babur mentioned the Wah region in his book the Baburnama . Wah has a rich historical background . It was a favorite place of the great Mughal rulers . They built several gardens here such as the most famous “ Wah Garden ” . It is still present with its remains of Mughal architecture . It is located on the main G . T Road . Wah Garden has a historical value along with being a beautiful and attractive picnic spot . This park has the potential to attract people from different places . Sultan Sher Shah Suri , who built the famous Grand Trunk Road ( GT Road ) , built a ' bawley ' or watering place here . It is now called the Sher Shah Park and is situated near the Aslam Market . It is said that Sher Shah ' s horses used to drink water there . Wah is located in a fertile valley . It is suitable for growing every sort of crops , especially fruits . This area was not developed before the construction of the POF , but now it is one of the most advanced and developed places in Pakistan . Culture . Wah Cantt is a multicultural City . People with various ethnic backgrounds live and work here . People from different religious background live here . Culture from Karachi to Khyber can be observed in the city . People are skillful and educated and most of them are factory employees . The city is rather quiet in the morning , but all charm of the city is restored in the evening . The hustle bustle of people for evening walks , children and elders playing games in playing grounds and elderly sitting on grass gardens add to the beauty of city . The city is said to have one of the best civic amenities in the entire country with a solid health care and education system . Wah Cantt is divided into 27 sectors and some private housing colonies . The commonly known colonies are Chachi Mohallah , Officer ' s colony Basti / Lala Rukh Shahwali Colony , Lala Zar , Gulistan colony , Shadaman Town and AC Wah . Popular markets include Aslam market , Basti market , Anwaar chowk , Laiq Ali chowk Munirabad , Asifaabad , Ahmed Nagar and Nawab Abad . This city is distinguished because of a very high standard of education . Literacy rate is approximately 96 % . The Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said “ Wah Cantt possessed ideal education and health facilities and I am impressed with the 96 per cent literary rate in this city ” . 115 educational institutes serve over 50 , 000 students . Wah also has ' Senior Citizen Foundation of Pakistan - Wah Chapter ' office . The organization is devoted to the welfare of the senior citizens of Wah . The President Mr . Durrani and Secretary General Mr . Fazal Hussain Awan , and executive committee of the organization are providing dedicated services to the senior citizens of Wah . Some of their prominent contribution to the Senior Citizens in Wah are : - Besides the organization also holds quarterly and annual functions wherein the Chairman POF Board and other officials participate and encourage the activities of aging citizens . Sports . People of this city are highly interested in sports especially in cricket . There are a number of grounds , about 300 small and big ones where different games are in proceeding all the time . Even in Ramzan sometimes people old up to 50 are found engaged in playing while above 70 ' s watching them and rising appraisals . F . G Science Degree College ' s basketball team is champion of All Pakistan basketball championship last 9 times consecutively Wah has a hockey field laid with Astro Turf , one of the earliest examples of it in this once hockey - mad nation . The Hockey Stadium at Welfare Club ( near Anwar Chowk ) is a sad reminder of the glory days of Pakistani hockey when the country was an undisputed champion and a recognized super power in this game . Moreover , the CB Ground ( near Barrier 3 ) is also be used for cricket . Welfare Clubnow known as POF Sports Complex also has an indoor sports arena as well as a swimming pool . Another swimming facility is located at Ordnance Club near Aslam Market . Wah also has a Golf Course named " POF Golf Course " . Currently the number one ranked Player on this course is Mr Rehan Akhtar from Rawalpindi . The savior of Pakistan hockey who brought home a gold in 68 Olympics , Zakir Hussain , belonged to Wah Cantt . . . " Zakir Hussain ( born 1934 , Lahore ) is a Pakistani field hockey player . He was born in Lahore . He won a gold medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City , and a silver medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne " Defense . The Pakistan Ordnance Factories ( POF ) , is responsible for conventional weapons production and is located in Wah Cantonment . POF is a government organization operating under the defense Production Division in Pakistan ’ s Ministry of defense . POF is a complex of arms and ammunition manufacturing factories employing more than 40 , 000 personnel . POF has provided weapons and ammunition to the Pakistan Army and all their foreign clients . However , since POF can not produce the complete inventory of the Pakistani Army ' s armament needs , a high content of the Armed Force requirements are imported . POF produces approximately 70 major products for supply to Army , Navy and Air Force . The main products include automatic rifle ; light medium and heavy machine guns , complete range of mortar and artillery ammunition , aircraft ammunition and anti - aircraft ammunition , tank ammunition and anti - tank ammunition , bombs , grenades , land mines , pyrotechnics and signal stores etc . It also has a clothing factory which supplies uniforms to the armed personnel . Education . Wah has a remarkably high literacy rate . This small city has two chartered universities , one medical college , one engineering college and a large number of schools . Wah Cantt has the highest literacy rate in all of Pakistan . Students from Wah Cantt can be found studying at all the institutes of Pakistan and most major universities of the world . Wah Cantt also has the largest number of bi - cycles than any city in Pakistan . This links the city with its past as , historically , the neighboring town of Taxila had been a seat of learning for thousands of years . In the very beginning , the administration of Wah Cantt made one decision : NO STUDENT WILL BE LEFT OUT OF SCHOOL DUE TO CAPACITY LIMITATIONS . One of the stalwarts from early days , an icon , Mr . Qadeer Khan still lives in Wah Cantt and continues to be a source of inspiration for the citizens . Having an area of no more than 30 square kilometres ( approx . ) , Wah Cantt has the highest number of educational institutes per square kilometer in the country . Apart from a large number of private and government schools / colleges , foundations of professional universities have been laid down in past 5 years . F . G Degree College For Men , Apex Institute of Skills Wah Cantt Sir Syed College Wah Cantt Wah Medical College , University of Wah - which includes Wah Engineering College & Mishal College for Women , COMSATS Institute of Information and Technology are among the big institutes in Wah Cantt . In the private sector , Wah Swedish Institute of Technology , Rawalpindi College of Commerce and Rawalpindi Institute of Technology are popular technical education institutes . Zarghoona College for Women and F . G Post Graduate College For Women are some prominent women colleges . In government sector there is Technical Training Institute ( TTI ) , a center of technical training . People qualified from this college serve not only in the POFs but also work in the Middle East and send valuable foreign exchange . Some important Institutes : There is a high competition to get admission at HSSC level in pre - medical and pre - engineering groups in F . G . and F . G Science Degree College for both men and women : Two for men and one post graduate college for women , as they are the most well established government colleges in Wah Cantt . Being a student of these colleges is thought of as an honour in the city . Then , there are other schools like St . Paul High School , Margalla Grammar School , Wah Grammar school , Lahore Grammar School , Organon , Wah City School , PICS Model School and also BSS ( Beacon House School System ) and numerous other schools from Montessori to " O " and " A " levels . Commerce learning was introduced by Sir Ayub Khattak in Wah Cantt , an institution in himself , reputed to be a humble human being and a great sports lover . He had done remarkable development in commerce and finance studies in Wah Cantt . On 20 July 2010 he passed away in a tragic accident near Khanpur dam . ( May Allah bless his soul ) . He will remain in our hearts and thoughts forever because of his contributions towards promotion of commerce studies in Wah Cantt . F . G . Boys Public High school is considered as one of the best High Schools in Wah Cantt . In 2012 A student named Abdul Wasay Iklaq of this institution got 517 marks in SSC - 1 examination which is a record of Federal Board examination marks . The chalice for best seat of learning stays with Sir Syed High School / Sir Syed College ; the graduates from this institution are serving humanity in every respect throughout the world . The bonds established in the schools of Wah Cantt still continue to be strengthened though some graduates left the area some 3 to 4 decades ago . Squash . The 1st POF WISPA Squash Tournament was hosted at Jahangir Khan Squash Complex Wah Cantt from 28 August to 2 September 2005 . The tournament carried a prize purse of US $ 7 , 000 / - and players from Pakistan , England , Korea , Denmark and Malaysia took part in it . Top seeded Carla Khan of Pakistan won the championship beating No 2 seeded Sharon Wee of Malaysia in the final . President World Squash Federation , Mr Jahangir Khan graced the concluding ceremony as the chief guest . Transport . Wah Cantt offers a unique type of transport to its residents . The transport network is called The POF Welfare Transport and it runs buses and coaches ( about 200 in number ) on 7 different routes all over the city . And for the first time in Pakistan , this welfare transport service recruited women bus conductors for its ladies customers . Dental Health . Due to high literacy , people are well aware of their dental health in wah cantt . People are being facilitated by private and public Dental clinics . HAPPY TEETH Dental Clinic is the one besides other good dental clinics in wah cantt .