History Made Of

Modern issues The Indus is a strategically vital resource for Pakistan's economy and society. After India became independent in 1947 and Pakistan came into existence in 1947, the use of the waters of the  Indus  and its five eastern tributaries became a major dispute between India and Pakistan. The irrigation canals of the  Sutlej  valley and the  Bari Doab  were split - with the canals lying primarily in Pakistan and the headwork dams in India disrupting supply in some parts of Pakistan. The concern over India building large dams over various  Punjab  rivers that could undercut the supply flowing to Pakistan, as well as the possibility that India could divert rivers in the time of war, caused political consternation in Pakistan. Holding diplomatic talks brokered by the World Bank , India and Pakistan signed the  Indus Waters Treaty  in 1960. The treaty gave India control of the three easternmost rivers of the Punjab, the Sutlej ,...

People The inhabitants of the regions through which the Indus river passes and forms a major natural feature and resource are diverse in ethnicity, religion, national and linguistic backgrounds. On the northern course of the river in the state of  Jammu and Kashmir  in India, live the  Buddhist  people of  Ladakh , of  Tibetan  stock, and the  Dards  of  Indo-Aryan  or  Dardic  stock and practising  Buddhism  and  Islam . Then it descends into Baltistan, northern Pakistan passing the main Balti city of  Skardu . On its course river from Dubair Bala also drains into it at Dubair Bazar. People living at this area are mainly Kohistani and speak Kohistani language. Major areas through which Indus river pass through in  Kohistan  are  Dasu ,  Pattan  and  Dubair . As it continues through Pakistan, the  Indus  river forms a distinctive boundary of ethnicity and...

Economy The Indus is the most important supplier of water resources to the Punjab and Sindh plains - it forms the backbone of agriculture and food production in Pakistan. The river is especially critical since rainfall is meager in the lower Indus valley. Irrigation canals were first built by the people of the  Indus valley civilization , and later by the engineers of the  Kushan Empire  and the  Mughal Empire . Modern irrigation was introduced by the  British East India Company  in 1850 - the construction of modern canals accompanied with the restoration of old canals. The British supervised the construction of one of the most complex irrigation networks in the world. The  Guddu Barrage  is 1,350 m (4,430 ft) long - irrigating  Sukkur ,  Jacobabad ,  Larkana  and  Kalat . The  Sukkur Barrage  serves over 20,000 km 2  (7,700 sq mi). After Pakistan came into existence, a wat...

Geology The Indus river feeds the Indus submarine fan, which is the second largest sediment body on the Earth at around 5 million cubic kilometres of material eroded from the mountains. Studies of the sediment in the modern river indicate that the  Karakoram Mountains  in northern Pakistan and India are the single most important source of material, with the Himalayas providing the next largest contribution, mostly via the large rivers of the Punjab (Jhelum, Ravi, Chenab, Beas and Sutlej). Analysis of sediments from the Arabian Sea has demonstrated that prior to five million years ago the Indus was not connected to these  Punjab  rivers which instead flowed east into the  Ganges  and were captured after that time. [7]  Earlier work showed that sand and silt from western Tibet was reaching the Arabian Sea by 45 million years ago, implying the existence of an ancient Indus River by that time. [8]  The delta of this proto-Indus river...

Geography Tributaries Nagar River Astor River Balram River Dras River Gar River Ghizar River Gilgit River Gomal River Kabul River Kurram River Panjnad River Shigar River Shyok River Soan River Tanubal River Zanskar River

History Paleolithic  sites have been discovered in  Pothohar  near Pakistan's capital  Islamabad , with the stone tools of the  Soan Culture . In ancient  Gandhara , near  Islamabad , evidence of cave dwellers dated 15,000 years ago has been discovered at Mardan . [ citation needed ] The major cities of the  Indus Valley Civilization , such as  Harappa  and  Mohenjo-daro , date back to around 3300 BC, and represent some of the largest human habitations of the ancient world. The Indus Valley Civilization extended from across Pakistan and northwest India, with an upward reach from east of Jhelum River to  Ropar  on the upper Sutlej. The coastal settlements extended from Sutkagan Dor  at the Pakistan,  Iran  border to  Kutch  in modern  Gujarat , India. There is an Indus site on the  Amu Darya  at Shortughai in northern Afghanistan, and the Indus site  Alamgirpu...

Description The Indus River provides key water resources for the  economy of Pakistan  - especially the  Breadbasket  of  Punjab province , which accounts for most of the nation's agricultural production, and Sindh. The word Punjab means "water of five rivers" and the five rivers are  Jhelum ,  Chenab ,  Ravi ,  Beas  and Sutlej , all of which finally merge in Indus. The Indus also supports many heavy industries and provides the main supply of  potable water  in Pakistan. The ultimate source of the Indus is in  Tibet ; it begins at the confluence of the  Sengge  and Gar rivers that drain the Nganglong Kangri and Gangdise Shan mountain ranges. The Indus then flows northwest through  Ladakh  and  Baltistan  into  Gilgit , just south of the  Karakoram  range. The  Shyok ,  Shigar and  Gilgit  rivers carry glacial waters into the main river. It graduall...