Pakistan

Pakistan book cover — CHANGING WORLD PAKISTAN David Abbott

Pakistan — page 1 — CHAPTER 1 Introduction The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is wedged between central Asia and the Indian subcontinent It is flanked by Afghanistan and Iran on the west and China and India on the east This large country occupies what has always been strategically important land controlling access through the mountains between central Asia and the Indian subcontinent For hundreds of years the history of this region has been shaped by waves of foreign invaders Ever since the modern state of Pakistan was founded in 1947 it has had to make alliances with its neighbors and other powerful nations This history has had a big impact on Pakistan It has made it a country with many diverse ethnic groups with their own religious beliefs languages and ways of life All these factors and recent economic growth make Pakistan a land of sharp contrasts and social tensions Landscape The north and west of Pakistan are dominated by the Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountain ranges One of the most famous peaks is K2 the world’s second-highest mountain at 28,244 feet 8,611 metres m More mountain ranges lie to the southwest in Balochistan In the central area of the country the mountain ranges end and the fertile Indus plain is the key feature of the landscape Farther to the east lie three areas of 6 COMPARING COUNTRIES HOW BIG IS PAKISTAN Pakistan is roughly four times larger than the United Kingdom UK and only 8 percent the size of the US It has the world’s sixth-largest population and the second biggest Muslim population Country Land area in square miles 3,832,386 1,282,160 313,537 213,330 139,230 95,480 US India Pakistan France Germany UK Note 1 square mile 2 60 square kilometers Source CIA World Factbook Population in millions 307 1,148 166 65 82 60 desert the Thar Desert in Sindh and the Thal and Cholistan deserts in Punjab The Indus River flows into the Arabian Sea south of Karachi forming a swampy delta and floodplain Climate Pakistan’s climate is generally dry and arid but there are big differences between the north and south of the country More than 75 percent of Pakistan has less than 9 8 inches 25 centimeters cm of rainfall per year which means irrigation is needed for agriculture Summer

Pakistan — page 2 — INTRODUCTION TURKMENISTAN UZBEKISTAN TAJIKISTAN H I M KARAKORAM A RANGE A Administered L Pakistan Kashmir CHINA Y A S Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Swat Valley Khyber Pass Peshawar Islamabad capital Administered Indian Kashmir Rawalpindi AFGHANISTAN FATA Quetta PUNJAB Gujranwala Lahore Faisalabad Multan THAL DESERT PAKISTAN IRAN BALOCHISTAN ive r r s u d n I CHOLISTAN DESERT THAR DESERT INDIA MAKRAN RANGE ARABIAN SEA Hyderabad SINDH Karachi Key Cities over 1 million people Cities between 500,000 and 1 million people Disputed borders 0 0 miles 300 kilometers 300 temperatures in the southern plains are usually 95 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit ºF 35 to 40 degrees Celsius ºC but can reach 122 ºF 50ºC Between June and October much of the country undergoes the rainy monsoon season In winter temperatures in the south are around 84ºF 29ºC Pakistan is made up of four main provinces Balochistan in the south Sindh to the southeast Punjab to the east and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the north In the mountains it is very cold and the temperature can drop to 20ºF 29 ºC 7

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