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Bakhshali facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Bakhshali is a village and Union Council of Mardan District in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is at 34°17'0N 72°9'0E and has a height of 307 metres (1010 feet).

History

The village is famous for being the place where the Bakhshali manuscript was found. This is an ancient mathematical work written on birch bark and is the oldest surviving document in South Asia of Indian mathematics. It was discovered in 1881 during British rule by a tenant of Mian An-Wan-Udin, a police inspector. The tenant discovered it while he was digging in an abandoned building.

Bakhshali today

In August 2007 the people of Bakhshali observed a strike against power cuts. They blocked the main Mardan to Bakshali road in protest. The protectors said that the power cuts were harming business and their children's studies. The village has also been affected by violence between the Taliban and the government; on 24th January 2008 the militants attacked the vehicle of former Health minister Syed Kamal Shah injuring his guard. The rebels have also been pressuring local people to stop listening to music as well launching bomb attacks in the area.

On 15 August a meeting of elders in Mardan decided to set up anti-Taliban group similar to one that has been stated in neighbouring Buner District. According to Shakoor Khan, an elder from Bakhshali who attended the meeting, "Before the Taliban resorts to torching more schools, we have decided to resist them".

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