Desert Thar Parkar

خالص چاہتوں کا مظھر عظیم صحرا

The district Thar Parkar accommodates a large part of Desert Thar while marshy areas and salty lakes are located in the south. Most of the people are residing in small villages. According to the 1998 census, 4.54 % of the population is living in cities.

The weather quite changes. It is hot in the daytime and the weather is windy cold at the night. Day times of April, May, and June are too much hot. And the night times of December, January, and February are famous for the freezing cold nights. August to September and December to February are the best tourist season.

Vegetables are cultivated without fertilizers and water. They are stored after drying them. They are edible for one year. One can relish the Mushroom’s curry, wheat tortilla, millet tortilla(bread), Kathia curry, and Singari curry prepared from rainwater with Desi Ghee (pure form of cooking oil obtained from milk and butter).

Key information of Tharparkar:

Famous Places of Tharparkar

NAUKOT Fort

NAUKOT has the status of desert’s gateway. 67 km from Hyderabad to Mir Pur Khas and 100km from there comes NAUKOT. The last station(city) of THARPARKAR, NAGAR PARKER, is at a distance of 197 km from Mirpur Khas.  The Barrage area ends at 6km from Naukot and the Desert starts here.

At the starting point of the desert, is the fort of Talpur era, which is still in good physical condition. Talpur family architectured forts in Islam Kot, Singharo, and, Mithi but they didn’t get the recognition as Naukot.

Mithi

The head office of district Mithi Tharparkar has located 50 km from Naukot. When the Talpur family came to Mithi, at the beginning of the last century, they built two forts there. Besides this, they also constructed spacious residential mansions regionally known as “Gaddi”.

A park, playland, restaurant, and a guest house has been built in Mithi on the traces of about 800 ft high Gaddi. It is famous for its embroidery work. Its better quality can be found in the market near “Gym Khana”. On the way to Mitti, there comes the place(home) of folk singer “Mai Bhaggi”. One can see Ubiquitous queues of camels there.

In the surrounding of Mitti, Golden hued Sand layer seems to be spread in miles. Jeeps are available for traveling in different areas beyond Mitti. Apart from these, truck-like lorries also run known as “Kakray”.

Every year, the “Thar Desert rally” is organized here. Mitti is the central point of the 200 km long jeep rally. A splendid ceremony is held at the end of this four-categorized jeep rally. Winners are awarded prizes and trophies. Spectacular fireworks are exhibited at the end of this rally.

Bhalwa and Umar Marvi

It is the hometown of Marvi, who is a symbol of patriotism, Chastity, and infallibility on this land. A girl, who never accepted any oppression. Instead of a crown, she preferred to live a life full of poverty and complications.

The chief of Umar Kot belonged to the nation of Umar Somro. The People of Sindh not only considered him as a chief but also as a spiritual leader.  One day he was resolving people’s issues in the court. A courtier came to him and told him about a gorgeous girl named Marvi.

She used to live in Maleer town. She was a daughter of a poor Shepherd. The chief got fascinated by the story of Marvi. He immediately took two camels and moved to Maleer Town with the courtier. This town was a few miles away from the Thar Desert.

Marvi was engaged to his First cousin, Khate. They also loved each other. But, the chief umar came between them and abducted her when she was fetching water from the well along with her friends. She kept mourning and sighing. The chief wanted to marry him. But she refused by saying “Your heaps of wealth and jewels are less than the dust of my lovers’ feet”. Umar ordered to keep her in prison until she agreed to marry him. However, her parents choose to pocket the insult and remained quiet. At last, khate stood up for his right. He pretended to be a beggar and managed to meet Marvi. They devised a plan to flee away. Marvi Started to meet him at the shrine outside the city. Marvi agreed to marry Chief Umar with certain Conditions. One of them was to visit the shrine with other females. In this way, she got a chance to meet Khate.

The Chief was pleased with the Marvi’s consent.  So, he lifted the ban. After a few days later, Khate and Marvi took to their heels. The chief tried his best but didn’t get a clue. This fable of Chastity, infallibility, and loyalty are a part of Sindhi Culture.

According to some narrators, his fiancé questioned her virginity. The king took the oath of the Quran e Pak to prove her purity. Some said that the king called her foster sister and married her from the palace.

The well from where the marvi was kidnapped is still present in Bhalwa town. These folk tales are transferred from one generation to the next generation so they are changed to some extent.

Gori

Outside the Gori village, situated in between Islam Kot and Nagar Parkar, A temple (Mandar) is located in good condition. It was constructed by a Jain broker about six hundred years ago. It is an important symbol of exceptional architectural style.

Virawah

This village is located about 24 km before Nagar Parkar. In the past, the ranger’s headquarter was there. Pari Nagar village is located near Virawah. It is narrated that it was established in the 5^th or 6^th century and ruined about 12 times. It was an extremely populated city. Now there are the remains and a temple. Some antiques are stored in Karachi Museum.

Bhodi Sar(بھودی سر)

It is located below the Karoonjhar mountains about 5 km from Nagar Parkar in the northwest. This ancient place was famous for its fine architecture and grand buildings. A few of them are present at this time. Formerly, it was named “Bodhi Sar Nagri”. It was the residence of Queen Bodhi.

She also constructed a pond of the metal base. According to historians, Sultan Mehmood Ghaznavi after conquering “Somnath” passed through this desert. He forgot the route and came to this pond for drinking water. Sodha and Khosa were the famous dacoits of this place. People complained about them in the court of Tughluq, Delhi.

In 1504, these dacoits looted the mother of Sultan Mehmood Bigra and other passengers. In 1505, they had a war with dacoits. The sultan won the war and constructed a mosque at that place. On the coast of the pond, the Samadhi (samadhi mandir is the Hindi name for a temple, shrine, or memorial commemorating the dead) of their wives.

Nagar Parkar

Thar pakar’s district Nagar Parkar is famous for its beautiful peacocks and venomous snakes. Makhan Bhagti, Sara Dhar, Yoni, Shiva, and Rampla Pir temples are phenomenal places. These buildings are considered the finest model of sub-continent masonry art.

The holy pond of Hindus of the sub-continent is located here. According to Hindu books, this pond contains the water of 74 pilgrims. About 1km in the south, a huge pilgrim Ganesh is present.

A waterfall falls from the height of forty feet cow-shaped mountain top.  A temple and a spring are present at some distance from this waterfall. Hindus consider this spring’s water as “Holy Water”. Here at this place, A tribe is mourning the death of their prince for 700 years. Interestingly, a Pakistani movie “Ram Chand Pakistani” was filmed there.  This route goes to Mir Pur Khas. One can travel to Umar Kot by path of Gori and Chachro.

Birth Place of Mughal emperor Shahanshah and Bara Darri

Humayun fled to his relatives Tarkhan Mughal after being defeated by Sher Shah Suri. In these inconvenient and tough times, his wife Hameeda Bano gave birth to Akbar Azam on 4^th Rajab. In the Umar kot, on the birth of a son, he sold diamonds and distributed the money among his servants.

After some days, Humayun moved to his maternal relatives in Iran. When Humayun occupied Delhi again, he made Bara Dari, the birthplace of Humayun. This Bara Dari is located two miles away from Umar Kot in the northwest.

Romantic Tales are also attributed to this place the Umar Kot city. One of them is about Momal Rano who’s archetypal is famous as “Momal G Mari”.

Umar Kot Fort

This fort was built in the 11^th century during the reign of Somro. The present structure was constructed by Noor Muhammad Kulhoro in 1746. Rajput, Mughal, Kulhoro, Talpur, and Britishers used this place.

On 16 February 1887, a function was organized for the celebration of Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee on the north ground of the city. A salute was given by the seven cannons mounted on the fort. A museum is also there which was established in 1968. Weapons, swords, spears, bows, arrows, royal coins, royal decree, handwritten letters, and shields are exhibited there.

Sindh Province

In terms of population, Sindh is considered the second largest province of Pakistan. Its total area is 141000 square kilometers. Its name is originated from the river Sindh

Sindh stretches from the Jacobabad district in the north to the vast Indus River delta wetlands abutting the Arabian Sea and India in the south, and from the thinly-populated Dadu district in the west to the Thar Desert and a militarized border with India to the east One-third of Pakistan’s 650-mile Arabian Sea coastline is in Sindh.

The economy of Sindh chiefly depends on The River Indus. It is famous not only in Pakistan but all across Pakistan. In beginning, it is Abaseen, Attock in the middle, and the last part is known as Mehran.

Karachi being the provincial capital and central port has prospered a lot. That’s why it is ranked as a “Metropolitan city”. In addition to Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkar, Larkana, Dadu, Khair pur, Desert Thar, Thatta and Badeen are also famous for their Tourist spots.

History of Sindh

Sindh takes its name from the Sindhu River, today known as the Indus. Pakistan’s largest river, the Indus runs nearly 2,000 miles from its origin on the Tibetan Plateau to a 16,000-sq. mi. delta at the Arabian Sea near Karachi, modern Sindh’s capital, major seaport, and Pakistan’s business center. On its way, From Hazara to Gilgit Baltistan, it accrues the water of different stream lakes aquifers, and springs. Here at this point, besides the river, Kabul, The River Kurrum and Bolan from the western side also connected into it. In the Province Punjab, it mixes with the river Satluj, Bayas Ravi, Chenab, and Jhelum at the point of Punjnad.

In the province Sindh, its delta (wetlands that form as rivers empty their water and sediment into another body of water) surrounds almost 125 miles of the coastal area. While the area of its Delta is about three thousand square miles.

Evidence of an advanced urban civilization at Kot Diji, in central Sindh, dates to 3300 BCE and is considered the forerunner of the Indus Valley Civilization that flourished in the region for the next 2,000 years. Arab invaders brought Islam to the region during the 8th century CE, and the Sindhi language developed in Arabic’s distinctive Nakshi script.

Mohenjo-Daro, Amri, Kot DG have been discovered in this three thousand years old historic place. From 1750 B.C to 5000 B.C, history is still mystified about the era. In 500 B.C, Iranian ruler King Dara-I conquered it. It was included in Iran. After two decades, The Great Alexander came here but moved on without occupying it. Later, Morya Khan ruled it and promoted Buddhism. A large population of Sindh started practicing Buddhism. Thenceforth, Pharteheen, Kashan, and hunn came there. About 40 km from Karachi, Archeology gave the signs of Setheen and Partheen culture in the southeast.

Much of the region came into the orbit of the Mughal Empire during the 17th century—Muslim emperors ruled first through the local Kalhora. From the third to the seventh century, Sindh was under Iranian rule. In 712 AD, Muhammad Bin Qasim introduced Islam to this area. in the tenth century, Muslim rule ended here. Subsequently, Mehmood Ghaznavi invaded and ruled it.

For some time, it was subjugated to Delhi’s dominion. From 1783 A.D to 1843 A.D, Talpurs Commanded it.  Tughluq also influenced Sindh. After the declination of the Mughal sultanate, different Governors ruled its different parts, until two major British military victories in 1843, and Sindh’s subsequent rule by the Bombay Presidency, an administrative division of British India.

In 1843, Sir Charles Napier defeated Talpurs near Hyderabad and encompassed Sindh to British India. It became to be a part of the province of Bombay. In 1943, British rulers made it a separate province, and Karachi was declared its Capital. When Pakistan came into being, Karachi became the first capital of Pakistan. Karachi was brought under the Federal Government Administration and, Therefore, Hyderabad was designated as the new Capital of Sindh. It remained the capital of Sindh during Talpurs’ Reign.

In 1955, Sindh was integrated with Western Pakistan (one unit). On 1st January 1955, after the split of one unit, it became a complete province again. According to the Sindh government’s official history, the British conquest was “inhumane,” and “their supporters were Hindus,” resulting in “a constant policy to subdue the Muslim majority and to lionize the Hindu minority in Sindh.

“Father of the Nation” Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who would become the first leader of an independent Pakistan, issued his famous Fourteen Points in 1929; these included a call for Sindh’s separation from the Bombay Presidency. This was accomplished in 1936 when Sindh became a separate province with its own legislature. Many Sindhis were leading supporters of the “two-nation theory” that identified South Asia’s Muslims as a distinct nation deserving of its own state, and the Sindh Assembly was the first in British India to endorse the 1940 Lahore Declaration calling for that independent Muslim state.

At independence in 1947, Pakistan comprised five major ethnolinguistic groups: Bengalis—an absolute majority of the original country’s entire population in then-East Pakistan—and Punjabis, Sindhis, Pashtuns, and Baloch, each a majority within the four respective provinces of then-West Pakistan.

All five of these Muslim-majority communities had long self-identified as a distinct people or culture, and all experienced active secessionist or nationalist movements in the wake of independence. Each of these movements itself had vital transborder aspects, with Sindh’s spanning eastward to India. These links grew primarily from more than one million, relatively wealthy, mostly Muslim, Urdu-speaking, “Mohajirs” who settled in major Sindhi urban centers such as Karachi Hyderabad, and Sukkur after migrating from central and southern India during the 1947 Partition.

Population of Sindh

Official government population statistics continue to be based on the most recent national census in 1998, which put Sindh’s population at 30.4 million out of Pakistan’s then-total 132 million, with 52% living in rural areas. Yet Pakistan’s population has grown rapidly in the current century and is now at or near 200 million.

A provincial government department website reports a Sindh population of 44.2 million, but a 2012 press report citing government sources stated that Sindh’s population increased by more than 80% from 1998-2011 to above 55 million. Other estimates reach as high as 60 million.  About one in four Pakistanis live in Sindh, and about one-third of Sindh’s population lives in the Karachi metropolitan area.

According to current stats, Sindh with its 47.9 million population is the most urbanized and industrialized province of Pakistan.

The province is notably more urban than is Pakistan overall. Estimates show that about half of Sindh’s residents live in urban areas, while only 33%-38% of the entire country’s population live in rural areas. According to the CIA World Fact Book, about 14% of Pakistanis are ethnic Sindhis, and 12% speak Sindhi as their mother tongue. If correct, this indicates that about half of Sindh’s population is comprised of ethnic Sindhis.

Decentralization and Separatism

Pakistan’s 1971 bifurcation into two states left a “rump” (West) Pakistan dominated both politically and demographically by Punjabis but contained three other major ethnonationalism communities: Sindhis, Pashtuns, and Baloch.

Support for the two-state approach had always been tepid among these smaller groups—the overarching logic of South Asian Muslim unity did little to incorporate the region’s narrower separatist and autonomist movements—and the success of Bengali separatism led national leaders to pursue a tough state-centric policy that sought to suppress ethno-lingual movements such as those of the Baloch, Mohajirs, and Sindhis.

Increased Punjabi dominance elicited considerable resentment among the country’s ethnic minorities. Sindhi nationalism predated the loss of East Pakistan, beginning soon after 1947 independence with opposition to Punjabi settlers in rural areas and efforts to suppress the Sindhi language (Urdu was declared Pakistan’s official language, thus empowering Urdu-speaking Mohajirs from India).

Many Sindhis also saw themselves acting in opposition to a “Mohajir-Punjabi nexus.” Within four years of independence, the proportion of Sindhi-speakers in the province had dropped from 87% to 67%, and Sindhis became a minority in their own capital city, where about 57% were Mohajirs by the early 1950s.

The 1955 imposition of the “One-Unit” scheme, which had combined West Pakistan’s four provinces into a single political unit, presented another grievance. Soon after, newly irrigated Sindhi land began being granted to retired military officers and bureaucrats (mostly Punjabis), in a practice that continues today.

By one account, up to 40% of Sindh’s best farmland came to be owned by non-Sindhis. Moreover, Sindh, as the lower riparian of the Indus River, continues to have water disputes with Punjab, and Sindhis also found themselves significantly underrepresented in the powerful Pakistani military and civil bureaucracy.

In the 1970s, with Sindhi and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)-founder Z.A. Bhutto as Prime Minister, Sindhi nationalists sought to change laws so as to strengthen Sindhi identity and potentially lead to a separate or autonomous “Sindhudesh” (“Land of the Sindhis”). This movement was weakened by a mixture of concessions and suppression by the federal government.

The PPP was a national, rather than Sindhi party, banned by General Zia ul-Haq after he took power in a 1977 military coup, and thus did not provide a vehicle for separatism. Although Sindh has always possessed most of the characteristics required for a viable independent state—and some nationalist sentiments persist to this day—its role as Punjab’s conduit to the sea may well be the ultimate reason that successful Sindhi separatism faced long odds.

Sindh’s Mohajirs had their own autonomist movement from the mid-1980s until the early 2000s. This was rooted in that community’s loss of pre-eminence in provincial politics, bureaucracy, and industry, its lack of meaningful representation in the army, and its loss of identity following migration, among other factors. After the 1970 election elevated a Sindhi to the prime ministership, Mohajir student organizations began efforts to consolidate community identity, and in 1984 the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM or United National Movement) political party was founded, one with an early “penchant for torture, kidnapping, and murder.”

Political violence in Karachi grew to such a scale that, by the early-1990s, it had caught the attention of the army, which launched a crackdown that sent MQM leader Altaf Hussein into apparently permanent exile in London. Yet the party remains a major player in the province (and nationally) and has continued to be dominant in Karachi proper. Sindhi-Mohajir frictions remain unresolved, especially given widespread perceptions among Mohajirs that the provincial government is fundamentally unable to serve the needs of the Mohajir community.

Government and Politics

Sindh provides a core vote bank for the national PPP. Rural Sindhis tend to overwhelmingly support that party, and the city of Lakarna is the base of the powerful Bhutto dynasty (Z.A. Bhutto’s daughter, Benazir, served twice as prime minister, from 1988-90 and again from 1993-1996; her widower, Asif Zardari, took the party reins after her 2009 assassination and ruled Pakistan as its president from 2008-2013; their 26- year-old son is now party chairman).

Meanwhile, the MQM plays a significant role in both national and provincial politics and has for decades dominated municipal governance in Karachi. Sindh sends 75 representatives to Pakistan’s 342-seat National Assembly (NA), or 22% of the chamber’s total.

The 2013 national election saw the PPP again account for a majority (55%) of Sindh’s representation at the federal level, with 41 seats. The MQM won 23 seats (31% of Sindh’s total), demonstrating that these two parties dominate provincial politics. Of the remaining 11 Sindhi seats in the NA, 8 are held by parties affiliated with the Pakistan Muslim League. The Lahore-based branch led by current and thrice Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif (PML-Nawaz) nearly swept Punjab in the 2013 elections and now enjoys an outright majority at the federal level.

The Provincial Assembly of Sindh houses 168 seats for the province’s 28 administrative districts. At present, 92 (55%) of these are held by the PPP, providing that party with an absolute majority. Another 51 seats (30%) are held by the MQM, thus nearly perfectly reflecting the relative proportions found in the NA. The MQM leads an opposition alliance that includes the PML-N, which holds eight PA seats.

Total Sindh government expenditures for FY2013/14 were $5.75 billion, nearly 7% higher than total revenue (and up from a 2% deficit the previous year). By comparison, Punjab’s provincial government spent $8.8 billion in the last fiscal year, and Baluchistan’s spent $1.6 billion. Sindh’s provincial government expenditure was nearly identical to that of the North Dakota state government’s ($5.8 billion) in 2013, but for a population more than 50 times as large.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Quam Ali Shah is also the provincial president of the Pakistan People’s Party and holds a parliamentary seat from the north-central Sindhi city of Khairpur. He was trained as a lawyer and, having been born in the 1920s, is among the most senior of living PPP members. With the exception of a six-week hiatus for the 2013 national elections, he has served as provincial chief minister since April 2008. He also served a 14-month stint in the same office for the government of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and as industries minister in the federal cabinet of her father and PPP founder, Prime Minister Z.A. Bhutto, during the 1970s.

At present, Shah’s office comprises 24 cabinet ministers, 13 special assistants, 5 parliamentary secretaries, 4 coordinators, 3 advisers with portfolios, and a political secretary. Sindh Governor Ishratul Ebad, in an appointed office that represents and reports to the federal government in Islamabad, was seated in 2002, when he became the youngest-ever Sindhi governor at age 39. He began his political life as an MQM student activist during his training as a physician in Karachi and later held ministerial posts in the provincial government.

Upon the 1992 launch of the Pakistan Army’s operations against the MQM (see below), Ebad sought and was granted political asylum in Britain, along with many other MQM leaders, party chief Altaf Hussein among them.

He reportedly remained close to Hussein until he was appointed to the governorship by then-Chief of Army Staff Pervez Musharraf, himself a Mohajir, who had declared himself President of Pakistan following a bloodless 1999 military coup (Musharraf’s party had made a power-sharing arrangement with the MQM following 2002 national elections).

With the MQM chief remaining in apparently permanent exile overseas, Ebad has been able to amass considerable influence over the party apparatus during more than 12 years as governor, even as Pakistan’s Constitution requires that governors are formally and officially nonpartisan.

Economy, Demographics, and Employment

According to the Sindh Board of Investment, provincial economic activity accounts for 33% of the national GDP with only 23% of the country’s population. It also collects fully 70% of the country’s income taxes and 62% of its sales taxes. Nearly half (45%) of Sindh’s employed labor force is engaged in agricultural work. The poultry sector alone employs some 1.5 million people.

The province is home to 54% of the country’s textile units and 45% of its sugar mills. Textiles are Pakistan’s leading export, both globally and to the United States. Sindh also accounts for about half of Pakistan’s total seafood exports, up to one-third of its rice, sugar cane, mango, and vegetable crop production, and 25% of its cotton. Granite and marble are major provincial mineral resources.

About 60% of Pakistan’s oil fields and 44% of its gas fields are located in Sindh, and these contribute 56% of the nation’s oil and 55% of its gas production. Sindh government sources also claim that Sindh is the site of one of the world’s largest coal reserves of 185 billion tons, which would account for one-fifth of the world’s total reserves. However, these claims are not supported by independent assessments, which generally find Pakistan as a whole possessing just above 2 billion tons of reserves, the vast majority of these in Sindh. At 5.0% in 2012-13, Sindh’s official unemployment rate was fully 1.2% lower than the country’s overall rate and also bucked a nationwide trend by decreasing slightly over the previous year. (see Table 1)

Unemployment Rate by Percentage: –

Table 1 source:  Pakistan Economic Survey

Sindh’s primary school enrollment rate (for ages 5-9) was 52% in 2014, 5 points lower than the national rate and 10 points lower than Punjab’s. Less than half of the province’s girl children (48%) attend primary school. Female disadvantage also is illuminated in literacy rates: for ages 10 and above, Sindh’s was 60% last year, the same as the national rate and only 2 points below Punjab’s. However, Sindh’s female literacy rate trailed Punjab’s by 7 points (see Table 2).

Data also show that, while overall education rates among Sindh’s urban residents track almost perfectly with those of urban Pakistan overall, the province’s rural populace is notably less likely to ever enroll in school, 22% of Sindh’s rural female population has ever attended school, as compared to 37% of rural Pakistani women overall (see Table 3).

Sindh, along with the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, has been singled out for faring poorly in official assessments of primary education performance, with one study finding less than one-third of its 5th-year students able to perform 3rd-year-level math and one-quarter able to read at the 2nd-year level.

More than one-third of the Sindh government’s expenditures for the fiscal year ending March 2015 (38%) were devoted to “education affairs and services,” up from 36% the previous year. In absolute terms, such spending increased by 21%, from $975 million to about $1.2 billion in the most recent fiscal year.

Table 2. Literacy Rate (10 years and above, by percentage)

Table 3. Percent of Population That Has Ever Attended School

2012-2013

Some statistics suggest that Sindhis’ general health is slightly poorer than is Pakistan’s overall (see Table

4). About 11% of the Sindh government’s expenditures for the fiscal year ending March 2015 were

devoted to health services, down from 12% the previous year. In absolute terms, such spending was

essentially static, from $341 million to $347 million in the most recent fiscal year.

Table 4. Percentage Distribution of Population Under 5 Years Fallen Sick or Injured

Conclusion: –

Sindh has a deep history. Sindh is one of Pakistan’s four provinces, accounting for roughly one-quarter of the country’s population in less than 18% of its land area. The vast majority of Sindh’s residents live at or near the final few hundred miles of the river Indus’s coastline.

It holds remarkable significance as Sindh valley from one of the ancient Human Civilizations. Sindh has lots of cultural and modern spots for tourists.  Ancient Monuments at Makli, Thatta, and  Archaeological Ruins of Moenjodaro are included in the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

According to current stats, Sindh with its 47.9 million population is the most urbanized and industrialized province of Pakistan. The macro survey revealed that Sindh has the highest GDP per capita in Pakistan, both in rural and urban areas. In brief, Sindh is the hub of Education, Economy, Culture, Tradition, and tourism.

Thatta

Thatta is an exceptional site that holds a splendid history in it. Bhambhore, Keenjhar lake, Shah Jahani mosque, Haleji lake, Shahjahani mosque, and Makli Graveyard are the assets of this area. The folk tale of Sassi Punnuah attracts the listeners and their place. UNESCO has ranked these places as “the World Heritage Sites”.

Key Information About Famous Historical Places of Thatta

Famous Historical Places of Thatta

Bhambhore

64 km east of Karachi and 38 km from Chaukhandi a sub road near Gharo 2 km south leads to Bhambore Archaeological Site. Bhambore was actually Debel seaport, where Great triumpher Muhammad Bin Qasim took down the armies. The excavation process of this Historic archaeological site began in 1956. After the completion of proper research, three different periods were confirmed here.

The era of the oldest inhabitants of this place goes from the first century B.C. to the second century A.D. Hindu and Buddhist people were the residents of this place from the second century A.D to the eighth century A.D. In the eighth century, Muslims came here and they used to live there till the 13^th century. When the river Indus changed its path, the city was desolated slowly and gradually.

The houses were collapsed and became a heap of remnants. An archaeological museum and rest house are also located near these remnants. The weather becomes more pleasant here after rain.

Keti Bandar

After crossing Gharo, a road on the right side goes towards the south.  You will reach Kati Bandar after crossing “ Ghumbad walay Qabrustan” (گنبد والا قبرستان) domed- graveyard.

At this stunning and unique place, you will always remember the worth-watching sight of the mixing of the Indus River into the sea.  But keep in mind that, you can only enjoy this sight from June to August. It is because, after these months, the water level drops and the Indus River water doesn’t reach there.

Sassi Punnuh Tale 

Besides, Bhutta Wahan Rahim Yar Khan, it was also the city of Sassi. A character of a famous romantic parable of Bhambore is remembered as “Sassi Punnuah”.

According to local folk tales,

Sassi was born to a rich family. Jutish designed her horoscope and told her that she will fall in love with a Muslim guy at a young age. His parents did not want to be ashamed so they locked her in a box with money and jewels. They throw the box into the sea. An infertile and poor couple found that box. They were extremely happy as they were over the moon. She was named Sassi as she was too gorgeous. The chief of Bhambore awarded her for her beauty. And the revenue of area was given to the girl.

They brought up the girl with great care. She was an apple of her father’s eye. She was drop-dead gorgeous. Her beauty was matchless in the area. A lot of proposals came but she rejected them. One day a Caravan of Makran stopped at the excise duty office. The leader of the Katch caravan had a son named Punnuh. Sassi and Punnuh met there and they fell in love at the first sight. At last, they married each other. But the separation of father and son was unbearable for the leader of Makran. He sent the brothers of Punnuh  Cheezay, Noti, and Dhoti to take the Punnuh back. They fainted with him and kidnapped him.

When the Sassi came to know about Punnuh, she went to Makran in search of Punnuh. The hurdles of the route had an adverse effect on her. On her way, a shepherd named Panwar met her.  He was attracted to her with an evil intention. She prayed and the Earth split into parts. She had gone under the Earth. When the shepherd realized his mistake, he made a grave of her.

On the way to Makran, when the Punnuh woke up, he quarreled with his brothers and moved towards Bhombore again. When he was on the track to Bhombore, he saw a new grave. He stopped there for a while. He saw the green scarf(dupatta) of Sassi there. The shepherd told him about the whole incident. He prayed for Sassi’s closeness. The earth split for the second time and Punnah was also immersed into the sand. In this way, they became close to each other forever. (it’s a folk tale. No one knows about its authenticity).

Haleji Lake ھا لیچی جھیل

It is 82 km from Karachi and 23 km from Bhombore, the route from Gojo goes Haleji lake. It is the biggest place for the birds to migrate to Asia (during winter season). In the early ages, it was a small lake.

During the second world war-II, the British government emerged a canal from the river Indus and enlarged this lake. During the war, thousands of Americans and Britishers shifted to Karachi. The Haleji lake used to serve water for them. It was completed in 24 months. This place is a heaven for the birds’ lovers. PTDC rest house is available for night stay.

Thatta City

Turning back from Highway and moving forward, you will reach the two thousand years old city of Sindh named Thatta. It is 100 km in the east of Karachi and 90 km away from Hyderabad. In the 14^th century A.D., it was the center of Islamic art and the capital of Sindh.

Antique things have been discovered during the excavation in the surroundings of Thatta which belonged to the time before Christ. A lot of places and antiques of this historic place are declared as World Heritage by UNESCO.

In 1699, a British caption told in his office that Thatta is larger than London. The wooden art in the old homes of Thatta is worth watching. Buy the handmade printed clothes, glass bangles, Sindhi embroidery, decorations items, and handcrafts. These accessories are loved everywhere. Rabbri (ربڑی) eatable of this place is very renowned.

Shahjahani Mosque

Established in 1647, this mosque was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. It has an area of 6346 square yards and was Completed in almost three years. Nine lacs Shah Jahani rupees were used for its construction.

Its foundations are 12 to 15 feet deep and made from hilly rocks. Comprising of five doors, it has 94 pillars,6 large and 94 small domes. Its design has the unique ability to travel the sound of Azan without speakers. The air passage (flow) is such that no one feels suffocation. About twenty thousand people can offer prayer at one time.

It is narrated that Shah Jahan had a dream one night. He was ordered to build a mosque from Allah subhanahu wa ta-ala. He built this grand mosque in a short duration. After being defeated by Sher Shah Suri, and moving towards Iran he stayed at this place to complete the mosque. He completed it with a well-known architect, Mir Abdullah. Blue glazed tiles were imported from Hala. They were mixed with red bricks before construction.

This Muslim architect of Crafty tile work is a supreme example of cultural heritage and traditional masterpiece. Since 1993, this mosque is temporarily included in the UNISCO world cultural heritage. Mosque Dubgheer near Shajahan is also prodigious.

Shah Jahan: 5^th Mughal Emperor

Abul Muzaffar Shah-ub-din Muhammad Shah Jahan was born on 5^th January 1592. Renowned as “Prince Khurrum” Shah Jahan became the King in Agra on 11 February 1628, after the demise of his father. He gave the title of “Mumtaz Mahal” to his wife Arjumand. His beloved wife died on 7^th June 1631 during giving birth to a child.

Fond of art and architect, Shah Jahan built a splendid building in Agra in remembrance of his favorite wife named “Taj Mahal”.  Its construction started in 1632 and was completed in 1647. According to some narrators, Ustad Amad Memar Lahori and another one says that ustad Esa Iranian architect completed its design.

Lal Qila Delhi, Jamiya Masjid, Shalimar Bhag Lahore, The Tomb of Jahangir, Masjid Wazir Khan, Shahi Masjid Thatta, and other numerous buildings are the example of Shah Jahan’s great taste in art and architecture. In the reign of Shah Jahan, the Mughals sultanate had extended and stable.

In the war of power and authority, Aurangzaib overtook the Agra and jailed his father. He remained in prison for seven years.  On 23^rd January 1666, Shah Jahan died in jail at the age of 74.

Tomb of Essa Khan Tarkhan

He built this tomb in his life and was died in 1644. After the completion of this tomb, he cut the hands of the skilled people so that no one can copy the design of the tomb. In addition to this, the tombs of Tughrul Baig, Jani Baig, and Dewan e Shurfa are magnificent pieces of architecture.

Makli Graveyard

Come back to high way from Haleji lake, at some distance, you will see the world’s largest necropolis. Consisting of thousands of graves, it surrounds about 8 km. In these graves, about 120,000 scholars, Philosophers, saints, Kings, Queens, savants, and Generals are buried.

The specialty of these graves is their unique designs and eye-catching features. These designs are living examples of the culture, traditions, and versatility of that time. They are masterpieces of Iranian, Turks, and Sub-continent architecture. Shrine-typed buildings are also constructed on some cemeteries.  The structure of these buildings is quite strong and they are made of high-quality construction material. Complex and beautiful Qur’anic Ayahs are engraved on these graves.

About one lac and eighty thousand tiles are used for the construction of one tomb. Every design is different from the other one. This burial ground is about 97 km from Karachi. According to the supervisor of this graveyard, Mai Makli’s grave is located in the north part. That’s why it is known as “Makli Graveyard.”

Keenjhar Lake

It is an artificially created lake. This lake has facilities for Sailing and fishing. Therefore, it is considered the best picnic point. This lake connects the Sunehri lake ( Golden lake) and Keenjhar lake. It is located about 24 km from Thatta in the North. . PTDC hotel is established near the bank of the lake for a night’s stay.

Shonda Graveyard

It is located on “Quomi Highway”, about 36 km on the right from Thatta. The graves are similar to the Chaunkandi graveyard. Rather, the designs are more beautiful than Chaukandi Graveyard. Sindh highway rest house is also located here.