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"The Land of the Five Rivers" that once extended from the Indus to the Jamuna and now ends about 20 miles east of Lahore, is regarded both the granary of Pakistan and its sword arm.
The peasants of the Punjab had been engaged in campaigns against the invading hordes of Aryans from 1600 BC to the Moghul conquest in 1526 AD. They are a hardy and martial race. The two World Wars of this century found the Punjab peasant equally capable of enduring the winter in the mud of Flanders and the summer in the sands of North Africa. Besides soldiers, Punjab has produced poets and literates (Dr. Mohammad Iqbal) artists (Abdur Rehman Chughtai) and is known as the cultural heart of Pakistan. it is the most prosperous Province and its agricultural wealth depends on one of the finest irrigation systems in the world.
Historically beside, bearing the brunt of every conqueror, Punjab has become the repository of many cultures and civilizations. Their fascinating remains extend from the Gandhara civilization in the North, West to the marvelous Moghul monuments, in Lahore and beautiful architecture of the pre-Moghuls in Multan the oldest living city in the sub-continent.
Geographically' the Indus Basin can be divided into two parts. In the upper basin, the Indus is also fed by other tributaries, the Jhelum, the Chenab, the Ravi and the Sutlej, making up the land of the five rivers; the Punjab.
in the North of the Province are the Low Siwalik Hills and the Potohar Plateau, in which its premier hill station, Murree, is located as is the Federal Capital, Islamabad. To the south of the Potohar Plateau is the Salt Range, rich in salt mines and other minerals. In the South West, there is a sandy waste known as Thal, now being retrieved through irrigation canals. In the South East, there is another desert, the Cholistan.
In between the hills and the deserts, the vast plains of Punjab are divided into Doabs - land between two rivers. The Sindh-Sagar Doab is between the Indus and the Jhelum, the Chaj Doab between the Jhelum and the Chenab, the Rachna Doab between the Chenab and the Ravi and the Bari Doab between the Ravi and the Sutlej.
Before the development of the Punjab irrigation system one of the best in the world, these Doabs must have been sandy wastes. Now they are green fields studded with villages and growing towns.
The Punjabi men are hardy peasants, healthy, strong and robust. The women are fair complexioned, cypress statured and good looking. The people live in the plains and therefore are plain and straight-forward people- broad minded, liberal, hospitable and progressive.
Punjab is characterized by extreme climate - hot summers and cold winters. The monsoon reaches the area exhausted and therefore the rainfall is quite meager. There is also occasional rain during the winters. Occasionally there are dust storms. The summer may be somehow discomforting but for the greater part of the year the climate is ideal and invigorating. The best part of the year is from the middle of February to the middle of April which is the spring in the Punjab. It is neither cold nor hot but simply pleasant and enjoyable. The entire country-side becomes a vast stretch of greenery. The mustard fields are covered with yellow flowers, trees put on new leaves, fruits begin to blossom and there are flowers every where.
The spring is also a time of merriment by care-free village girls, who giggle and burst into laughter, as they move with water pitchers resting on their heads or poised against their hips.
This is also the season for festivals which start with kite flying, reaching its crescendo in Basant, in mid-February. There are competitions in kite flying both in open places and on the roofs of cluttered houses, the streets of which might never have seen the sun-shine. This is also the time for several spring festivals. including Mela Chiraghan and the National Horse and Cattle Show, in Lahore. There are similar cattle shows all over the country.