Pakistan

Islamic Republic of Pakistan

‫اسلمی جم ہوری ۂ پاکستان‬
Islāmī Jamhūriya-i-Pākistān
Motto: Iman, Ittehad, Nazm
(English: Faith, Unity, Discipline)
Anthem: Pak sarzamin shad bad
(Blessed Be The Sacred Land)

Capital
Islamabad
33°40′ N 73°10′ E
Largest city
Karachi
Official language(s)
Urdu and English
Government
President
Prime Minister
Federal republic
Pervez Musharraf
Shaukat Aziz
Independence

- Declared
- Republic
From the United Kingdom
1947-08-14
1956-03-23
Area
- Total

- Water (%)

880,254 km² (34th)

{{{areami²}}} mi²
3.1
Population
- 2006 est.
- [[As of |]] census

- Density

163,985,373[1] (6th)
 186/km² (42nd)
{{{population_densitymi²}}}/mi²
GDP (PPP)
- Total
- Per capita
2005 estimate
$385.2 billion (26th)
$2,388 (135th)
HDI (2003)
0.527 (135th) – medium
Currency
Rupee (Rs.) (PKR)
Time zone
- Summer (DST)
PST (UTC+5:00)
not observed (UTC+5:00)
Internet TLD
.pk
Calling code
+92

The Islamic Republic of Pākistān (Urdu: ‫ )اسلمی جمہوریۂ پاکستان‬is a country located in
South Asia that overlaps with the Greater Middle East. It has a thousand-kilometre
coastline along the Arabian Sea in the south and borders Afghanistan and Iran to the
west, India to the east and the People's Republic of China in the far northeast.[2]

The name Pakistan (IPA:/pɑːkɪsðɑːn/) means Land of the Pure in Urdu and Persian and
was coined in 1933 by Choudhary Rahmat Ali, who published it in the pamphlet Now or
Never[3] as an acronym of the names of the "Muslim homelands" of western India — P
for Punjab, A for Afghania (the Afghan areas), K for Kashmir, S for Sindh and tan for
Baluchistan. An i was later added to the English rendition of the name to ease
pronunciation.

Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world and the second most populous
Muslim country. Pakistan was established as a modern state in 1947, but the region has a
long history of settlement and civilisation including some of the most ancient cultures.
The region was invaded by Greeks, Persians and Arabs, and incorporated into British
India in the nineteenth century. Since independence, Pakistan has seen both instability,
with the loss of East Pakistan, and significant military and economic growth. In 2005 the
economy was the second-fastest growing economy amongst the ten most populous
countries and the twenty-fifth largest economy in terms of purchasing power parity.
Pakistan has the seventh largest armed forces in the world and is one of eight declared
nuclear powers.
Contents

• 1 History
• 2 Government and politics
• 3 Provinces and territories
• 4 Geography and climate
• 5 Flora and fauna
• 6 Economy
• 7 Demographics
• 8 Society and culture
• 9 Holidays
• 10 Sports
• 11 See also
• 12 Notes
• 13 Further reading

• 14 External links

History

Main article: History of Pakistan

The modern state of Pakistan was created in 1947, but the region has an extensive ancient
history that overlaps with the history of India, Iran and Afghanistan. The region was a
crossroads of historic trade routes, including the Silk Road, and was settled over
thousands of years by many groups including Dravidians, Persians, Greeks, Kushans, and
Arabs. The earliest evidence of humans are pebble tools of the Soan Culture[4] in the
Punjab province between 500,000 to 100,000 years ago. The Indus region was the site of
several ancient cultures including Mehrgarh, one of the world's earliest towns, and the
Indus Valley Civilisation at Harrappa and Mohenjo-Daro.[5] The Indus Valley Civilisation
collapsed in the middle of the second millennium BCE and was followed by the Vedic
Civilisation which extended over much of northern India and Pakistan. Successive
empires and kingdoms ruled the region from the Achaemenid Persian empire[6] around
543 BCE, to Alexander the Great[7] in 326 BCE and the Mauryan empire. The Indo-Greek
Kingdom of Demetrius of Bactria included Gandhara and Punjab from 184 BCE,
establishing the Greco-Buddhist period with advances in trade and culture and the city of
Taxila (Takshashila) became a major centre of learning.

In 712 CE, the Arab general Muhammad bin Qasim[8] conquered Sindh and Multan in
southern Punjab, setting the stage for several successive Muslim empires including the
Ghaznavid Empire, the Ghorid Kingdom, the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire.
During this period Sufi missionaries played a pivotal role in converting a majority of the
regional population to Islam. The gradual decline of the Mughal Empire in the early
eighteenth century provided opportunities for the Afghans, Balochis and Sikhs to exercise
control over large areas until the British East India Company[9] gained ascendancy over
the subcontinent.
Mughal-era Hazuri Bagh in Lahore.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah (left) with Mahatma Gandhi (right) in Bombay in 1944.
Pakistan from 1947 to 1971

The 1857 Indian War of Independence ("Sepoy Mutiny") was the region's last major
armed struggle against the British, but it laid the foundations for the generally unarmed
freedom struggle led by the Indian National Congress. However the All India Muslim
League rose to popularity in the late 1930's amid fears of under-representation and
neglect of Muslims in politics. In 1930 Allama Iqbal[10] called for a separate Muslim state
in northwest and eastern India. Muhammad Ali Jinnah espoused the Two Nation Theory
and led the Muslim League to adopt the Lahore Resolution[11] of 1940, which led to the
partition of India in 1947.

Pakistan was formed on August 14, 1947 with two Muslim-majority wings in the eastern
and northwestern regions, separated by Hindu-majority India, and comprising the
provinces of Baluchistan, East Bengal, the North-West Frontier Province, West Punjab
and Sindh. Partition resulted in communal riots[12] across India and Pakistan—millions of
Muslims moved to Pakistan and millions of Hindus and Sikhs moved to India. Disputes
arose over several princely states including Jammu and Kashmir which led to the First
Kashmir War (1948) ending with Pakistan and India each occupying large parts of the
state. From 1947 to 1956, Pakistan was a Dominion in the Commonwealth of Nations.
The republic declared in 1958 was stalled by a coup d'etat by Ayub Khan (1958–69), who
was president during a period of internal instability and a second war with India in 1965.
His successor, Yahya Khan (1969–71) had to deal with the cyclone which caused
500,000 deaths[13] in East Pakistan. Economic and political dissent in East Pakistan led to
violent political repression and tensions escalating into civil war[14] (Bangladesh
Liberation War) and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and ultimately the secession of East
Pakistan as the independent state of Bangladesh.[15]

Civilian rule resumed from 1972 to 1977 under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, but he was deposed
by General Zia-ul-Haq, who became the third military president. The secular policies of
the past were replaced by Zia's introduction of the Islamic Shariat legal code, and
increased religious influences on the civil service and the military. Muhammad Khan
Junejo was elected in 1985 as Prime Minister, but with the death of General Zia in a
plane crash in 1988, Benazir Bhutto, daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was elected as the
first female Prime Minister of Pakistan. Over the next decade, she alternated in power
with Nawaz Sharif as the political and economic situation worsened. Military tensions in
the Kargil conflict[16] with India in 1999 were followed by a military coup[17] in which
General Pervez Musharraf assumed executive powers. In 2001, he became President after
the resignation of Rafiq Tarar and after the 2002 parliamentary elections, transferred
executive powers to newly elected Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who was
succeeded in 2004 by Shaukat Aziz. On 8 October 2005, a powerful earthquake of
magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter scale struck the northern mountains of Pakistan and
neighbouring regions in India and Afghanistan with the official death toll on 8 November
standing at 87,350[18] and an estimated 3.3 million left homeless in Pakistan.
Government and politics

Parliament house in Islamabad

Main articles: Government of Pakistan, Politics of Pakistan, Foreign relations of

Pakistan

The first Constitution of Pakistan was adopted in 1956, but was suspended in 1958 by
Ayub Khan. The Constitution of 1973, suspended in 1977 by Zia-ul-Haq, was re-instated
in 1991 and is the most important document laying the foundations of government in the
country. Pakistan is a federal republic with Islam as the state religion. The semi-
presidential system includes a bicameral legislature consisting of a 100-member Senate
and a 342-member National Assembly. The President is the Head of State and the
Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and is elected by an electoral college. The
prime minister is usually the leader of the largest party in the National Assembly. Each
province has a similar system of government with a directly elected Provincial Assembly
in which the leader of the largest party or alliance becomes Chief Minister. Provincial
Governors are selected by the Provincial Assemblies on the advice of the Chief Minister.

The Muslim League's leadership of Pakistani politics reduced significantly with the rise
of other political parties, especially the Awami League in East Bengal, which would lead
the creation of Bangladesh. The Pakistani military have played an influential role in
mainstream politics throughout Pakistan's history, with military presidents ruling from
1958–71, 1977–88 and from 1999 onwards. The leftist Pakistan People's Party, led by
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, emerged as a major political player during the 1970s. Under the
military rule of Zia-ul-Haq, Pakistan began a marked shift from the British-era secular
politics and policies, to the adoption of Shariat and other Islamic religious laws. During
the 1980s, the anti-feudal, pro-Mohajir Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) was started
by unorthodox and educated urban dwellers of Sindh and particularly Karachi. The 1990s
were characterized by coalition politics dominated by the PPP and a rejuvenated Muslim
League.

In the October 2002 general elections, the Pakistan Muslim League (Q) (PML-Q) won a
plurality of National Assembly seats with the second-largest group being the Pakistan
People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP), a sub-party of the PPP. Zafarullah Khan Jamali
of PML-Q emerged as Prime Minister but resigned on June 26, 2004 and was replaced by
PML-Q leader Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain as interim Prime Minister. On August 27, 2004
the National Assembly voted 191 to 151 to elect the Finance Minister and former
Citibank Vice President Shaukat Aziz as Prime Minister. A coalition of Islamic religious
parties also gained control of the North-West Frontier Province, and increased their
representation on the National Assembly.

Pakistan is an active member of the United Nations (UN) and the Organisation of the
Islamic Conference (OIC), the latter of which Pakistan has used as a forum for
Enlightened Moderation,[19] a plan to promote a renaissance and enlightenment in the
Muslim world. Pakistan is also a member of the major regional organisations of the South
Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the Economic Cooperation
Organisation (ECO). In the past, Pakistan has had mixed relations with the United States
especially in the early 1950s when Pakistan was the United States' "most allied ally in
Asia"[20] and a member of both the Central Treaty Organisation (CENTO) and the
Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO). During the Soviet-Afghan war in the
1980s Pakistan was a crucial US ally, but relations soured in the 1990s, when sanctions
were applied by the US over suspicions of Pakistan's nuclear activities. The September
11 attacks and the war on terror have seen an improvement in US–Pakistan ties,
especially after Pakistan ended its support of the Taliban regime in Kabul.

Pakistan has had difficult relations with neighbouring India, including a long-running
dispute over Kashmir which resulted in the 1947 and 1965 wars. The civil war of 1971
flared into the simultaneous Bangladeshi Liberation War and the Indo-Pakistani War of
1971. India's nuclear tests of 1998 resulted in Pakistan's conducting of its own tests and
becoming the only declared Muslim nuclear power. Pakistan maintains close economic,
military and political relationships with the People's Republic of China.

Provinces and territories

Main article: Subdivisions of Pakistan

Pakistan is officially a federation[21] of four provinces, a capital territory and federally

administered tribal areas. Pakistan exercises de facto jurisdiction over the western parts
of the Kashmir region, organised as two separate political entities (Azad Kashmir and
Northern Areas), which are also claimed by India. In 2001 the federal government
abolished the third tier of government (administrative divisions) in favour of the former
fourth tier districts. The provinces and the capital territory are subdivided into a total of
107 districts which contain numerous tehsils and local governments. The tribal areas
comprise seven tribal agencies and six small frontier regions detached from neighbouring
districts whilst Azad Kashmir comprises seven districts and Northern Areas comprises
six districts.

Provinces:

1. Balochistan
2. North-West Frontier Province (NWFP)
3. Punjab
4. Sindh

• Balochistan and NWFP also have Provincially Administered Tribal

[22]
Areas (PATA) which are being developed into regular districts.

Territories:

5. Islamabad Capital Territory

6. Federally Administered Tribal Areas
Pakistani-administered portions of the Kashmir region:

7. Azad Kashmir[23]
8. Northern Areas[23]

[edit]

Geography and climate

Main article: Geography of Pakistan

The world's second-highest mountain, K2

Pakistan covers 880,254 square kilometres (340,022 square miles), approximately the
combined land areas of France and the United Kingdom, with its eastern regions located
on the Indian tectonic plate and the western and northern regions on the Iranian plateau
and Eurasian landplate. Apart from the 1,046 kilometre (650 mi) Arabian Sea coastline,
Pakistan's land borders total 6,774 kilometres—2,430 km (1,510 mi) with Afghanistan to
the northwest, 523 km (325 mi) with China to the northeast, 2,912 km (1,809 mi) with
India to the east and 909 km (565 mi) with Iran to the southwest.

The different types of natural features range from the sandy beaches, lagoons, and
mangrove swamps of the southern coast to preserved moist temperate forests and the icy
peaks of the Himalaya, Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountains in the north. Many of the
mountains, including K2 and Nanga Parbat (in Pakistan occupied Kashmir) are over
7,000 metres (23,000 ft) high and covered in snow and glaciers. Linking the two areas
and running the length of the country is the Indus River and its many tributaries. To the
west of the Indus are the dry, hilly deserts of Balochistan; to the east are the rolling sand
dunes of the Thar Desert. Most areas of Punjab and parts of Sindh are fertile plains where
agriculture is of great importance.

The climate varies as much as the scenery with very cold winters and hot summers in the
north and a mild maritime-influenced climate in the south. The central parts have
extremely hot summers with temperatures rising to 45 ºC (113 ºF), followed by very cold
winters, often falling below freezing. There is very little rainfall ranging from less than
250 millimetres to more than 1,250 millimetres (9.8–49.2 in), mostly brought by the
unreliable south-westerly monsoon winds during the late summer. Water shortages have
been eased by the construction of dams on the rivers and the sinking of water wells in
many drier areas.

Flora and fauna

The Valley of Hunza in Pakistan. — Agricultural and scenic

The wide variety of landscapes and climates in Pakistan allows for a wide variety of wild
animals and birds. The forests range from coniferous alpine and subalpine trees such as
spruce, pine, and deodar cedar in the northern mountains to deciduous trees such as the
mulberry-type shisham in the Sulaiman range in the south. The western hills have juniper
and tamarisk as well as coarse grasses and scrub plants. Along the coast are mangrove
forests which form much of the coastal wetlands.

In the south, there are crocodiles in the murky waters at the mouth of the Indus River
whilst on the banks of the river, there are boars, deer, porcupines, and small rodents. In
the sandy scrublands of central Pakistan are found jackals, hyenas, wild cats, panthers,
and leopards while the clear blue skies abound with hawks, falcons, and eagles. In the
northern mountains are a variety of endangered animals including Marco Polo sheep,
Urial sheep, Markhor and Ibex goats, black and brown Himalayan bears, and the very
rare Snow Leopard. Another rare species is the blind Indus River Dolphin of which there
are believed to be about 1,000 remaining, protected in two major sanctuaries. In recent
years the number of wild animals being killed for fur and leather trading led to a new law
banning the hunting of wild animals and birds and the establishment of several wildlife
sanctuaries and game reserves.[24]

Economy

Main article: Economy of Pakistan

View of Shahrah-e-Faisal, heart of the financial district of Karachi

Pakistan is a rapidly developing country which has faced a number of challenges on the
political and economic fronts. Despite being a very poor country in 1947, Pakistan's
economic growth rate was better than the global average during the subsequent four
decades, but imprudent policies led to a slowdown in the late 1990s.[25] Recently, wide-
ranging economic reforms have resulted in a stronger economic outlook and accelerated
growth especially in the manufacturing and financial services sectors. There has been a
great improvement in the foreign exchange position and a rapid growth in hard currency
reserves in recent years. The 2005 estimate of foreign debt was close to US$40 billion.
However, this has decreased in recent years with assistance from the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and debt-relief from the United States.[26] Pakistan's gross domestic
product (GDP) in 2005 was estimated at US$385.2 billion and its per capita GDP was
US$2,400. In the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2005, Pakistan's GDP growth rate was
8.4%, the second-highest after China, among the ten most populous countries in the
world.[27] The growth of non-agricultural sectors has changed the structure of the
economy, and agriculture now only accounts for roughly 20% of the GDP. The service
sector accounts for 53% of the country's GDP with wholesale and retail trade forming
30% of this sector.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Pakistan

Major Ethnic Groups in Pakistan and surrounding areas, 1980
Pakistan has the world's sixth largest population, more than Russia, but less than Brazil;
because of Pakistan's high growth rate, it is expected to surpass Brazil in population in
the year 2020. Population projections for Pakistan are relatively difficult because of the
apparent differences in the accuracy of each census and the inconsistencies between
various surveys related to fertility rate, but it is likely that the rate of growth peaked in
1980s.[28] The population was estimated at 162,400,000[29] on July 1, 2005, with a fertility
rate of 34 per thousand, a death rate of 10 per thousand and the rate of natural increase
was 2.4%. Pakistan also had a high infant mortality rate of 85 per thousand births.

Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan but English is the official
language used in the Constitution and widely used by corporate businesses, the educated
urban elite and most universities. The population comprises several main ethnic groups,
most of whom speak mutually intelligible regional Indo-Iranian languages - Punjabis
(44.15% of the population), Pakhtuns (15.42%), Sindhis (14.1%), Seraikis (10.53%),
Muhajirs (7.57%), Balochis (3.57%) and others (4.66%).

Census data[30] indicates that 96% of the population are Muslims of whom nearly 80% are
Sunni Muslims and 20% are Shi'a Muslims. The non-Muslim population mainly
comprises of Christians (1.6% of the population) and Hindus (1.6%), Ahmadis,
Buddhists, Jews, Sikhs, Zoroastrians, and Animists (mainly the Kalash in Chitral). The
demographics of Pakistan were significantly influenced in 1947 by the movement of
Muslims to Pakistan, and Hindus and Sikhs to India. More recently about four million
refugees have settled permanently in Pakistan as a result of the wars in Afghanistan, but
the census does not yet include them in official figures.

Society and culture

Main article: Culture of Pakistan

King Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, one of the largest in the world.

Shalimar Gardens of Lahore.

Pakistan has a rich and unique culture that has preserved established traditions throughout
history. Prior to the Islamic invasion, many Punjabis and Sindhis were Hindu and
Buddhist but this changed during the expansion of Islam by the Ummayad General
Muhammad bin Qasim, Mahmud of Ghazni and others. Many cultural practices, foods,
monuments, and shrines were inherited from the rule of Muslim Mughal and Afghan
emperors including the national dress of shalwar kameez. Women wear brightly coloured
shalwar kameez, while men often wear solid-coloured shalwar kameez, usually with a
sherwani (coat) that goes over the shalwar kameez.

The rich variety of Pakistani music ranges from diverse provincial folk music and
traditional styles such as Qawwali and Ghazal Gayaki to modern forms fusing traditional
and western music, such as the synchronisation of Qawwali and western music by the
renowned Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Other major Ghazal singers include Mehdi Hassan,
Ghulam Ali, Farida Khanum, Abida Parveen and Iqbal Bano. The arrival of Afghan
refugees in the western provinces has rekindled Pashto and Persian music and established
Peshawar as a hub for Afghan musicians and a distribution centre for Afghan music
abroad. Until the 1990s, the state-owned Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) and
Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (Radio Pakistan) were the dominant media outlets,
but there are now numerous private television channels such as Geo TV, Indus TV,
Mashriq, Hum and ARY with a strong focus on plays or soap operas - some of them
critically acclaimed. Various American, European, and Asian television channels and
movies are available to a majority of the population via cable and satellite television.
There are also small indigenous movie industries based in Lahore and Peshawar (often
referred to as Lollywood and Pollywood). Although Bollywood movies are banned,
pirated discs are easily available, so Indian film stars are popular in Pakistan as well.

Pakistani society is largely multilingual and predominantly Muslim, with high regard for
traditional family values, although urban families have grown into a nuclear family
system due to the socio-economic constraints imposed by the traditional joint family
system. Recent decades have seen the emergence of a middle class in cities like Karachi,
Lahore, Rawalpindi, Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Sukkur and Peshawar that wish to move in a
liberal and secular direction,[31] as opposed to the northwestern regions bordering
Afghanistan that remain highly conservative and dominated by centuries-old regional
tribal customs. Increasing globalization has increased the influence of "Western culture"
with Pakistan ranking 46th on the Kearney/FP Globalization Index.[32] There are an
approximated four million Pakistanis living abroad,[33] with close to a half-million
expatriates living in the United States[34] and around a million living in Saudi Arabia.[35]

Tourism is a growing industry in Pakistan based on the diverse cultures, peoples and
landscapes ranging from ancient ruins such as Mohenjodaro, Harappa and Taxila to the
Himalayan hill stations that attract those interested in field sports, winter sports and
mountaineering[36], which attracts adventurers from the around the world, especially to
K2. The northern parts of Pakistan have many old fortresses, towers and other
architecture as well as the Hunza and Chitral valleys, the latter being home to the small
pre-Islamic animist Kalasha community who claim descent from the army of Alexander
the Great. Punjab is the site of Alexander's battle on the Jhelum River and historic
Lahore, Pakistan's cultural capital with many examples of Mughal architecture such as
the Badshahi Masjid and the Shalimar Gardens.

Holidays

Main article: Holidays in Pakistan

17th Century Badshahi Masjid of Aurangzeb in Lahore is the place where thousands of
Muslims gather each Friday and on Islamic observances to worship.

There are many holidays and festivals celebrated annually in Pakistan. While Pakistan is
an Islamic nation, there are also several secular holidays including Pakistan Day (March
23), Independence Day (August 14), Defence of Pakistan Day (September 6), the
anniversaries of the birth (December 25) and death (September 11) of Quaid-e-Azam
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and Allama Iqbal Day (November 9). Labour Day (also known
as May Day) is also observed in Pakistan on May 1.

Several important festivals are celebrated by Pakistani Muslims during the year,
dependent on moon sightings. Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, is
characterised by daytime fasting for 29 or 30 days and is followed by the festival of Eid
ul-Fitr. In a second festival, Eid ul-Adha, an animal is sacrificed in remembrance of the
actions of Abraham and the meat is shared with friends, family, and the less fortunate.
Both Eid festivals are public holidays, when people visit family and friends, and children
receive new clothes, presents, and sweets. Some sects celebrate the birthday of the
prophet Muhammad in the third Islamic month (Rabi' al-Awwal) with Eid-e-Milad-un-
Nabi. Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Christians of Pakistan also celebrate their own
festivals and saints' days. Sikhs come from across the world to visit several holy sites
including the shrine of Guru Nanak at Hassan Abdal in the Attock District, and the
birthplace of Guru Nanak at Nankana Sahib. There are also several regional and local
festivals, such as the Punjabi festival of Basant, which marks the start of spring and is
celebrated by kite flying.

Sports

The Rawalpindi cricket stadium

Main article: Sports In Pakistan

The official sport of Pakistan is field hockey, although cricket and squash are also
popular. The national cricket team has won the Cricket World Cup once (1992) and co-
hosted the games twice (1987 and 1996). The team has also won the Australasia Cup in
1986, 1990, and 1994. At an international level, Pakistan has competed many times at the
Summer Olympics in field hockey, boxing, athletics, swimming, and shooting. At the
2006 Winter Olympics, Pakistan sent two participants in alpine skiing to the Winter
Olympics for the first time. Hockey is the sport that Pakistan has been most successful at
the Olympiads, with three gold medals (1960, 1968, 1984). Pakistan has also won the
Hockey World Cup four times (1971, 1978, 1982, 1994).[37] Pakistan has also hosted
several international competitions, including the South Asian Federation Games in 1989
and 2004. A1 Grand Prix racing is also becoming popular with the entry of a Pakistani
team in the 2005 season. The Tour de Pakistan, modelled after the Tour de France, is an
annual cycling competition that covers the length and breadth of Pakistan.

See also

Topics related to Pakistan

History

14 Points of Jinnah, Achaemenid dynasty, Alexander the Great, Anglo-Afghan wars,

Anglo-Sikh wars, Ashoka the Great, Babur, Baghdad Pact, Bangladesh Liberation War,
Caliph, Delhi Sultanate, Durrani Empire, Ghaznavid Empire, Greco-Bactrian Kingdom,
Greco-Buddhism, History of Baluchistan, Independence, Indo-Greek Kingdom, Indo-
Pakistani War of 1947, Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Indus Valley Civilization, Islamic
empires in India, Khalji, Kushan Empire, Lahore Resolution, Lodhi, Mahmud Ghaznavi,
Mauryan Empire, Menander I, Mughal Empire, Muhammad bin Qasim, Muhammad of
Ghor, Muslim League, Nadir Shah, Partition of India, Pashtuns, Qutb-ud-din Aybak,
Ranjit Singh, Sayyid, Solanki, Vedic civilization, Waziristan conflict.

Politics

Chief Justices, Constitution, Demographics, Districts, Government of Sindh, Government

of Balochistan, Elections, Flag, Foreign Relations, Government, Jirga, Line of Succession
to President, Political parties, Mayors, National Assembly, Senate, Parliament, President,
Prime Minister, Subdivisions, Supreme Court, Terrorism.

Geography

Arabian Sea, Baltoro Glacier, Baroghil, Broghol, Clifton beach, Demographics, Dorah
Pass, Durand line, Guddu Barrage, Gumal Pass, Hawk's Bay, Himalayas, Indus River,
Indian Ocean, Indo-Gangetic plain, Indus River Delta, Indus Water Treaty, K2, Kalabagh
Dam, Karakoram, Khyber Pass, Lowarai Pass, Lowari, Cities, Mountains, Mazar-e-
Quaid, National Parks, Nanga Parbat, Rann of Kutch, Salt Range, Sandspit Beach, Sarpo
Laggo Glacier, Shandur, Siachen Glacier, Sukkur barrage.

Economy

Airblue, Airlines of Pakistan, Communications, Islamabad Stock Exchange, Karachi

Stock Exchange, Lahore Stock Exchange, Companies, Low cost housing, Pakistan
International Airlines, Railways, Pakistani rupee, Port of Karachi, Port Qasim, Transport.

Culture

A1 Grand Prix, A1 Team Pakistan, Basant, Chand Raat, Cuisine, Holidays, Islam, Kara
Film Festival, Languages, Musicians, TV and radio Channels, Lollywood, Murree Beer,
Music, Pakistani black metal, Literature, Pollywood, Religion, Sari, Sherwani, Sports,
Sufi rock.

Education

Lahore Museum, Universities. National Library of Pakistan, Literature, Poetry.

Other

2004 in Pakistan, Inter-Services Intelligence, List of Pakistanis, Military, Pakistan Air

Force.

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