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Era of General Ayub Khan

Ayub Khan was born on May 14, 1907, in Haripur British India, in the village of Rehana near the Haripur
District of North-West Frontier Province. He was a Pashtun Pathan of the Tareen tribe. He was the first
child of the second wife of Mir Dad Khan Tareen

Military career:
Ayub Khan was given an officer's commission in the British Indian Army on 2 February, 1928 l. During
World War II, he served as a captain and later as a major on the Burma front. He was promoted to
Brigadier and commanded a brigade in Waziristan and then in 1948 was sent with the local rank of Major
General to East Pakistan ,for which non-combatant service he was awarded the Hilal-i-Jurat. He returned
to West Pakistan in November 1949 as Adjutant General of the Army and then was briefly Deputy
Commander-in-Chief.

Ayub Khan was made Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army on January 17, 1951

Martial Law administrator:


On October 7, 1958, President Iskander Mirza abrogated the Constitution and declared Martial Law in
the country. This was the first of many military regimes to mar Pakistan's history. With this step, the
Constitution of 1956 was abrogated, ministers were dismissed, Central and Provincial Assemblies were
dissolved and all political activities were banned.
General Muhammad Ayub Khan, the then Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, became the Chief
Martial Law Administrator. The parliamentary system in Pakistan came to end.

He removed the post of governor general and announced the new post as president of Pakistan.

President of Pakistan:
Within three weeks of assuming charge on October 27, 1958, General Ayub khan forced Sikander mirza
to resign with the post of Governor General and then he became the first president of Pakistan.

Ayub Kahn’s Initial Reforms:


1: He Improved law and order.
2: He made new capital of Pakistan (Islamabad).
3: He made Price control list.
4: He took steps to eradicate the smuggling.
5: He asked to return black money.
Ayub’s Land reforms:
Ayub khan announced Land reforms: "no person to hold more than 500 acres of irrigated or 1000 acres
of unirrigated, with minor exceptions relating to existing land-owners, and the land thus released would
be distributed to tenants and other deserving claimants

Ayub’s industrial reforms:


Soi Nadran Gas company started in 1963 that cause development in Punjab and KPK.
Chemical Fertilizer’s factory was came into existan ce in the era of general Ayub Khan.
Artificial Thread (Nilon) Factory was also made in the era of ayub khan.
Mangla Dam was completed in the era of ayub khan.
Terbaila dam construction was started in 1968 that was the biggest dam of world at that time and now
most of the power uses in pak is came from that dam.

Ayub’s Educational reforms:


He banned student unions, he offers to build many technical, agricultural and commercial schools.
He made scholarship programs for students, he made student laws.
He established training centers for teachers etc

Indus Water treaty:


After Independence, problems between the two countries arose over the distribution of water. Rivers
flow into Pakistan territory from across India. In 1947, when Punjab was divided between the two
countries, many of the canal head-works remained with India. The division of Punjab thus created major
problems for irrigation in Pakistan.

On April 1, 1948, India stopped the supply of water to Pakistan from every canal flowing from India to
Pakistan. It was finally in Ayub Khan's regime that an agreement was signed between India and Pakistan
in September 1960. This agreement is known as the Indus Water Treaty.

This treaty divided the use of rivers and canals between the two countries. Pakistan obtained exclusive
rights for the three western rivers, namely Indus, Jhelum and Chenab. And India retained rights to the
three eastern rivers, namely Ravi, Beas and Sutluj.

Pakistani space program:


President Ayub Khan, who was very close to Dr. Abdus Salam, established Pakistan's National Space
Agency, Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) on September 16, 1961. Ayub
Khan also appointed Dr. Abdus Salam as its head.
Second Presidential election (1965) against Fatima Jinnah:
Despite Jinnah's considerable popularity and public disaffection with Ayub's government, Ayub won with
64% of the vote in a bitterly contested election on January 2, 1965.

Indo-Pak War 1965:


At 3:00 AM on September 6, 1965, without a formal declaration of war, Indians crossed the international
border of West Pakistan and launched a three-pronged offensive against Lahore, Sialkot and Rajasthan.
There was a fierce tank battle on the plains of Punjab. The domestic Indo-Pak conflict transformed into an
international conflict and raised Super Power concerns.

Historical address of Ayub khan (6 sep 1965):


"My dear countrymen, in this hour of trial you have to remain absolutely calm. You must know that each
one of you has to perform a supreme duty which demands complete dedication and devotion… Be
prepared to strike and to strike hard; for the evil which has raised its head against your borders is doomed
to destruction. Go forward and meet the enemy. God is with you..."

He died in 1974.

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