Chirah the Valley of Islamabad. 4.38

It's a beautiful green valley. River soan and lush green mountains are it's main attractions. Islamabad is just thirty minutes drive away, Chirah village is located twenty five kilometer north east of Rawalpindi.
Pharwala Fort is also located near Chirah Village. It is naturally defended by one side by a small Himalayan range and the other by the Soan River. It is a Gakhar fort built in the 15th century on the ruins of a 10th century Fort. The Mughal Emperor Babur conquered the fort in 1519. Later, in 1825, Sikhs tookover this fort.
The ramshackle Pharwala Fort, once the capital of the Ghakkar state, stands tall despite the criminal neglect of the archaeological authorities.
The Hathi (Elephant) Gate of the fort towards north eastern corner persists with its grandeur, while the Begum Gate opening towards the south western end, though greatly damaged, stands tall at a sheer rock rising from the Soan River.
The north western gate is greatly damaged and its stones are falling rapidly. A smaller gate towards the south eastern end persists with its boundary walls and is used by the inmates as the main entrance. A proposed Chirah dam is to be constructed on river Soan. However, there were conflicting ideas about the project. Both the CDA and the Rawalpindi authorities are pushing for the project mainly because of the looming water crisis in the twin cities.

Though Chirah Dam was conceived in mid-1980s, progress on the project was stopped by the PML-N-led Punjab government after the 2008 general elections when the PPP was in power in the centre..