The Punjab plain comprises mainly the province of Punjab.
It is the gift of River Indus and its five eastern tributaries-
Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Beas. The plain spreads from
the south of Potohar plateau up to Mithankot, where Sulaiman
Range approaches river Indus. The Punjab plain is almost a
featureless plain with a gentle slope southward averaging
one foot to the mile. The only break in the alluvial monotony
is the little group of broken hills(100 ft-1,600ft.) near
Sangla and Irana on either side of the Chenab. The entire
plain is extensively irrigated by a network of canals. This
system has been greatly expanded and improved in recent years
by the construction of link-canals, dams and barrages as a
result of the Indus Water Treaty with India, which awarded
the three western rivers (Indus, Jhelum and Chenab) to Pakistan,
and the three eastern rivers (Ravi,Sutlej and Beas) to India.
Tarbela Dam on river Indus and Mangla Dam on River Jhelum,
which have water storage capacities of 11.1 million acre ft.
and 5.55 million acre ft. respectively, need a special mention.
Irrigation water is supplemented by summer and winter rains(15-20
inches) so that a variety of crops is raised, the major one
being wheat, rice, cotton and sugarcane. The region has earned
the name of granary of Pakistan. However, the blessings of
canal irrigation have not been without a curse, which render
about 100,000 acres of land unproductive every year through
water-logging and salinity. The menace has been greatly controlled
through salinity control and reclamation projects. Agricultural
development boosted urbanization and industrialization so
that the region has emerged as the most important economically
developed area of Pakistan, containing over 56 per cent of
the population and most of the commercial and industrial centres
of the country, such as Lahore (2,922,000), Faisalabad (1,092.000).
Multan (730,000), Gujranwala (596,000), Sialkot (297,000)
and Gujrat (154,000).
The south eastern section of the region
known as Cholistan is under-developed. This tract is parched
and thirsty. The summer temperature average 51.7oC and the
area remains under the grip of extremely hot winds. The
surface of this desert consists of a succession of sand
dunes rising in places to a height of 500 ft. with vegetation
peculiar to sandy tracts. There is no soil down to the lowest
depth except sand; bitter water is, however, sometimes found
at depth of about 80-100 ft.
The Potohar Upland, commonly called
the Potohar Plateau, lies to the south of northern mountains
and is flanked in the west by River Indus and in the east
by River Jhelum. This 1,000-2,000 ft.(305-610 m) upland
is a typical arid landscape with denuded and broken terrain
characterised by undulations and irregularities. These are
a few outlying spurs of Salt Range in the south, and those
of Khair Murad and Kala Chitta Range in the north. Two seasonal
streams-Rivers Haro and River Soan-flow from east to the
west and after crossing the region in the north and in the
middle respectively, fall in the Indus. River Kanshi traverses
the eastern part of the plateau from north to south and
drains into River Jhelum. These rivers and other hill torrents
have cut deep valleys and are of little use for irrigation.
Agriculture is thus almost entirely dependent on rainfall
of 15-20 inches and on the small dams built in the catchment
areas of the streams.
Fields of wheat, barley, jowar,
bajra and pulses are found in valley bottoms and on the
terraced slopes along river banks. A new economic factor
has been introduced by the establishment of a few factories
in Rawalpindi and Islamabad and a large industrial area
in the Taxila-Wah-Hassanabdal triangle, where a large cement
factory was already in existence. The region is particulary
known for its oilfields in Khaur-Dhulian neighbourhood,
the ancient civilization sites in Soan valley, the ruins
and the Buddhist University at Taxila and the new capital,
Islamabad, which stands north of the old city of Rawalpindi
(806,000) at the southern slops of Murree hills, the popular
Holiday resort of the country. Salt Range The ramparts of
the Salt Range stretching from east to west in the south
separate potohar upland from the Punjab plain. The average
height of the Salt Range is about 700 metres, but near Sakesar
in Sargodha district, it rises to 1,500 metres, making summer
pleasant. The southern face is remarkably steep, dissected
and intensely arid. But, the northern slope is gentle and
has sparse vegetation of oleanders and wild olives. The
top of the range is a narrow belt of isolated plateaus and
basins, where, sparse stunted trees and fields of wheat
and maize are found. However, the real importance of the
salt mines lies in the large deposits of pure salt at Khewra
and Kalabagh and the large seams of coal at Dandot and Makerwal. |
