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It wasformerly known as Lyallpur. Faisalabad is the third largest city in Pakistan afterKarachi and Lahore. Before the foundation of the city in 1880, the area was very thinly
populated. The population has risen from 9,171 in 1901 to 979,000 in 1951 and to
1,977,246 in 1998. The larger Faisalabad district had a population of 5,429,547 million
in 1998.[2]It is an important industrial centre west of Lahore. Thecity-district of Faisalabad
is bound on the north by the districts of Hafizabad and Chiniot, on the east byNankana Sahib, on the south by Sahiwal, and Toba Tek Singh and on the west by Jhang. It is 1,135 km (705 mi) from Karachi, 128 km (80 mi) from Lahore, 350 km (220 mi) from Islamabad/Rawalpindi, 280 km (170 mi) from Multan, 187 km (116 mi) fromBurewala, and 70 km (43 mi) from Jhang.
The city is at a road and railway junction, which has played an influential role in the development of Faisalabad's trade and economy. The surrounding countryside, irrigated by the Lower Chenab River, has seen expanded production of cotton, wheat,sugarcane, vegetables, and fruits, which form 55% of Pakistan's exports. The city is an industrial centrewith major railway repair yards, engineering works, and mills that process sugar, flour, and oil seed. Produce includes superphosphates, cotton and silktextiles, hosiery, dyes, industrial chemicals,beverages, apparels, pulp and paper, printing, agricultural equipment, and ghee (clarified butter). Faisalabad is the site of the prestigious University of Agriculture, founded in 1909.
