Table of Contents – Mountain Ranges of Pakistan
The topic “Mountain Ranges of Pakistan” is categorized into three sections.
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Northern Mountain Ranges of Pakistan
There are two types of mountains located in northern mountains.
- Himalayas
- Karakoram
First Type of Northern Mountains are Himalayas
Himalayas are to the south of Karakoram range.
Siwaliks
The Siwaliks are the low altitude (600 – 1200m) hills located near Attock.
Lesser Himalayas
The Pir Panjal Ranges (Lesser or Lower Himalayas) are of medium altitude (1800 – 4500m) and famous for some popular hill stations e.g. Murree, Nathia Gali and Ghora Gali.
Greater Himalayas
The mountain range which is located between the Pir Panjal and Karakoram Range is called Central Himalayas. This part is mostly lies in Kashmir. The average altitude here is 6000m and highest peak is Nanga Parbat (8126m) which is also the ninth highest peak in the world.
Second Type of Northern Mountains are Karakoram
The Karakoram meaning “BLACK GRAVEL” is a mass of rock and ice, extending for more than 400 km from Hunza to Shyok River.
The Second highest peak in the work K-2 (also known as Mount Godwin Austen) is locAted here (8611m).
The construction of Karakoram Highway N – 35 has opened a new era in the cultural and economic progress of the region. It is also called the eighth wonders of the world due to its high elevation and the difficult conditions in which it was constructed and took 20 years to complete as construction started in 1966 and completed in 1979 but open to the public in 1986. Its length is 1300km (887km in Paksitan and 413km in China).
North – Western Mountain Ranges of Pakistan
The Hindu Kush Range lies where the border of Afghanistan and China meet on Pakistan’s north and north-west border. The highest peak of this range is Tirich Mir (7690m) and resembles Karakoram Range.
Hindu Kush
Through the centuries, the passes across the Hindu Kush have been immense historic and military significance. Many invades e.g. Alexander the Great, Mahmud of Ghazni, the Ghauris, Tamerlane and the founder of Mughal Dynasty (Babur) crossed the Hindu Kush through these passes.
Rice is cultivated on terraced fields of the Hindu Kush mountains in areas of Swat, Chitral and Dir.
Western Mountain Ranges of Pakistan
There are four types of mountain ranges are located in western mountains.
- Safed Koh Ranges
- Waziristan Hills
- Sulaiman Range
- Kirther Range
Safed Koh Range
It is located to the south of Kabul River. Its highest peak is Mount Sikaram (4712m). It provides a route to Afghanistan through Kurram Pass. They are called Safed Koh (White Mountains) because their peaks are often covered with snow.
Waziristan Hills
It is located between Kurram and Goaml Rivers and considered as highly mineralised. The highest point here is 3513m high and Bannu is an important town and military centre.
Sulaiman Range
Takht-i-Sulaiman (3383m) is the highest mountain peak.
It is located west of River Indus of Souther Punjab. It separates the Balochistan Plateau from the Indus Plain and also blocks Western Depressions from reaching Central Pakistan.
Kirthar Range
Zardak (2174m) is the highest peak of Kirthar Range.
It is located west of River Indus in Sindh and drained by Hub and Lyari River. It also forms a border between Sindh Plain and Balochistan Plateau.
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