Mangla, Migration and the Families Who Stayed: An NGO in Mirpur for Those Still in Need

Mirpur, on the shores of the Mangla reservoir in southern Azad Kashmir, is known far beyond Pakistan. So many of its families settled in Britain from the 1960s onwards that the town is lined with large houses built with money earned in Bradford, Birmingham and Luton. Yet behind the new buildings are households that never had anyone abroad, or whose support from overseas has stopped. People like them search for an NGO in Mirpur when the money runs out.

Peace and Humanity Welfare Organization (PHWO) welcomes their requests, while being honest that it has no office, centre or worker in Mirpur or anywhere else in AJK. The organisation has a single office, in Larkana, Sindh. Mirpur residents get in touch over the internet, through Message PHWO in a free PHWO account, or via a volunteer, and every service is free. Each request is read and checked, and help is provided where a genuine need is confirmed and can be met; no specific outcome is ever promised.

Mirpur's population: a district that is not growing

The 2023 Census recorded 441,784 people in Mirpur District, about 169,000 of them in urban areas, according to AJK at a Glance 2025 from the AJ&K Planning and Development Department. Unusually, that is slightly fewer than the roughly 457,000 counted in 2017; the same publication shows a small negative growth rate, the only one among AJK’s ten districts. Continued emigration is the likely reason.

Pahari-Pothwari, often called Mirpuri, is the language of most homes, and many families also speak English because of their links with Britain.

The Mangla story and life after the 2019 earthquake

When the Mangla Dam was built in the 1960s, its lake swallowed old Mirpur town and many surrounding villages. Thousands of displaced people moved to Britain, beginning the migration that still shapes the district. The Water and Power Development Authority runs the dam today.

On 24 September 2019, an earthquake centred near Mirpur killed dozens of people, cracked roads and damaged thousands of homes in the district and nearby Jhelum (ReliefWeb: Pakistan earthquake, September 2019). Some families are still paying off loans taken to repair their houses.

Remittances do not reach everyone. Widows, elderly people whose relatives abroad have stopped sending money, labourers and tenant farmers can struggle just as much as anywhere else, while prices in Mirpur are often higher because of the money flowing in from overseas.

Needs PHWO hears about, and how to apply to an NGO in Mirpur

All over Pakistan, the most frequent requests PHWO receives concern food ration, clearing debts, and getting a laptop or smartphone for study or employment. In Mirpur, a young person enrolled at the local university who cannot afford a device, or a family that borrowed heavily for a wedding or after the earthquake, fits this pattern closely.

Applying starts at Request help; you can also message PHWO from your free PHWO account. Explain your household, its income and whether anyone abroad supports you. Add a live photo of yourself, plus pictures of any bills or loan papers. A volunteer may call to check some details. You will never be asked to pay, and nobody is allowed to take money from you in PHWO’s name.

Family disputes across two countries

Because so many marriages link Mirpur with the United Kingdom, family cases here often have an overseas side: a husband living abroad who has stopped supporting his wife, a disagreement about where children should live, or a divorce recognised in one country but not the other. The district courts in Mirpur hear family matters for the district, and appeals go to the AJ&K High Court.

Through PHWO’s Free legal aid, volunteer advocates read your documents and explain the law as it applies in AJK. Most requests concern khula, dower, maintenance or custody. There is no need for an FIR. Where the question is who keeps the children, or the next court date is close, the case is read ahead of others. A volunteer’s appearance in court for you cannot be assured.

Local services in Mirpur

• Divisional Headquarters Hospital Mirpur, the teaching hospital linked to Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Medical College.
• 15 for the police.
• The BISP office Mirpur for Kafaalat and stipends; send your CNIC to 8171, and read more on bisp.gov.pk.
• Mirpur University of Science and Technology (MUST) for scholarship and fee questions (must.edu.pk).
• The district zakat committee in Mirpur for state zakat.
• The District Bar Association Mirpur.

For Mirpuris in Britain and around the world

Mirpur’s diaspora is one of the largest of any district in Pakistan, and many overseas families already send zakat home every Ramadan. If you want your giving to reach verified households you do not personally know, whether in Mirpur or elsewhere in Pakistan, use Donate. Money and goods are both accepted, and Zakat and Sadaqah pass to eligible people in full. With Sponsor a case, you can pay for the needs of one particular household after it has been verified.

PHWO already has volunteers living overseas, and fundraisers abroad are among the people it needs most, along with lawyers in Pakistan. Register through Volunteer; you will receive a certificate, a letter of appreciation and an experience letter. Parents on either side of the migration route, hoping to settle a son’s or daughter’s marriage, can try the free Rishta Desk, which is open to all faiths and checks each profile with a live selfie and a PHWO staff review, leaving every decision to the families.

Public services in Mirpur you can also use

• District Courts Mirpur (family court)Khula, maintenance and custody
• District Bar Association MirpurReferral to advocates
• Divisional Headquarters Hospital MirpurTeaching hospital
• PoliceDial 15
• BISP office MirpurSMS CNIC to 8171
• Mirpur University of Science and TechnologyScholarships and fee concessions
• District Zakat Committee MirpurGovernment zakat

These are public or independent services, listed to help you. They are not part of PHWO.

Frequently asked questions