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Introduction :: |
The
Sindh plain comprises mainly the province of Sindh and stretches
between the Punjab plain and the Arabian Sea. River Indus
flows here as a single river and the plain comprises a vast
fertile tract stretching westward from the narrow strip of
flood plain on the right bank of River Indus, and a vast expanse
of desert stretching eastward from the left bank. The desert
area is dry and desolate like Cholistan in the Punjab plain.
But, the plain area right of River Indus is green with a vast
stretches of vegetation lined everywhere with avenues of trees.
It is the heart of the Indus Valley Civilization dating back
to 3rd millennium B.C. Thousands of tourists from all over
the world are attracted every year to visit the ruins of Moenjodaro
near Larkana. An elaborate canal system taken from Sukkur
Barrage at Sukkur, Upper Sindh Barrage north of Sukkur at
Guddu, and Lower Sindh Barrage (Ghulam Muhammad Barrage) at
Hyderabad, irrigate together in this area over 10,000,0000
acres and account for about 40 per cent of Pakistan's irrigated
land. The fertile area yields abundant crops of rice, wheat
and cotton and contains the bulk of the population and most
of the major commercial and industrial centres of Sindh such
as Hyderabad(795,000), Sukkur (193,000), Larkana (123,000),
Nawabshah (102,000), Shikarpur (88,000) and Dadu (39,000).
However, its southern part is one of the worst areas of Pakistan
for waterlogging and salinity. There are many lakes in Sindh,which
attract thousands of migratory birds during the winter season
from Central Asia. Manchhar lake with its highly pulsating
expanse of about 200 sq. miles of area is the largest lake.
With its foliage of towering grasses, its meadows of floating
lotus, its inhabitants in their floating habitations, the
lake presents an attractive look. Further south, stretches
the Indus Delta, which is a savage waste. An important feature
is the Kinjhar Lake near Thatta, which acts as a great reservoir
for feeding canals in the adjacent areas. During winter, it
is an ideal spot for fishing and duck shooting. South of the
Kinjhar Lake, the surface is broken and littered with abandoned
channels of distributries, sandy beaches, ridges and mangrove
swamps, all merging into the dead creeks, grate and salt water
of the coast of Rann of Kutch. At the extreme north-western
end of the delta stands Karachi, the largest city and the
industrial and commercial hub of Pakistan. It is also the
port for Pakistan and terminal of Pakistan's railway system
and the site of the country's principal international airport.
Climate and Seasons As Pakistan is located on a great landmass
north of Tropic of Cancer, between latitudes 24 and 37 N,
it has a continental type of climate, characterized by extreme
variations of temperature. The areas closer to the snow-covered
northern mountains are cold. Temperatures on the Balochistan
Plateau are comparatively high. Along the coastal strop, the
climate is modified by sea breezes. In the rest of the country,
temperature rises steeply in the summer and hot winds, called
"loo", blow across the plains during the day, dust storms
and thunder storms occasionally lower the temperature. The
diurnal variation in temperature may be as much as 11 to 17oC.
Winters are cold with minimum temperature of about 4oC in
January. Rainfall Pakistan experiences a general deficiency
of rainfall. |
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