Portal:Pakistan

The Pakistan Portal

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Introduction

Flag of Pakistan	State emblem of Pakistan

"The National Anthem"
Qaumī Tarānah
قَومی ترانہ

Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. Islamabad is the nation's capital, while Karachi is its largest city and financial centre. Pakistan is the 33rd-largest country by area and the ninth-largest in Asia. Bounded by the Arabian Sea on the south, the Gulf of Oman on the southwest, and the Sir Creek on the southeast, it shares land borders with India to the east; Afghanistan to the west; Iran to the southwest; and China to the northeast. It shares a maritime border with Oman in the Gulf of Oman, and is separated from Tajikistan in the northwest by Afghanistan's narrow Wakhan Corridor.

Pakistan is the site of several ancient cultures, including the 8,500-year-old Neolithic site of Mehrgarh in Balochistan, the Indus Valley civilisation of the Bronze Age, and the ancient Gandhara civilisation. The regions that comprise the modern state of Pakistan were the realm of multiple empires and dynasties, including the Achaemenid, the Maurya, the Kushan, the Gupta; the Umayyad Caliphate in its southern regions, the Samma, the Hindu Shahis, the Shah Miris, the Ghaznavids, the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughals, and most recently, the British Raj from 1858 to 1947. (Full article...)

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Mazar-e-Quaid

Karachi (/kəˈrɑːtʃi/; Urdu: کراچی; Sindhi: ڪراچي‎; IPA: [kəˈraːtʃi] ^ⓘ) is the capital city of the Pakistani province of Sindh. It is the largest city in Pakistan and the 12th largest in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast and formerly served as the capital of Pakistan. Ranked as a beta-global city, it is Pakistan's premier industrial and financial centre, with an estimated GDP of over $200 billion (PPP) . Karachi is a metropolitan city and is considered Pakistan's most cosmopolitan city, and among the country's most linguistically, ethnically-, and religiously-diverse regions, as well as one of the country's most progressive and socially liberal cities.

The region has been inhabited for millennia, but the city was formally founded as the fortified village of Kolachi as recently as 1729. The settlement greatly increased in importance with the arrival of the East India Company in the mid-19th century. British administrators embarked on substantial projects to transform the city into a major seaport, and connect it with the extensive railway network of the Indian subcontinent. At the time of Pakistan's independence in 1947, the city was the largest in Sindh with an estimated population of 400,000 people. Afterwards, the city experienced a dramatic shift in population and demography with the arrival of hundreds of thousands of Muslim immigrants (Muhajirs) from India, coupled with a substantial exodus of its Hindu residents. The city experienced rapid economic growth following Pakistan's independence, attracting migrants from throughout the country and other regions in South Asia. According to the 2023 Census of Pakistan, Karachi's total population was 20.3 million. Karachi is one of the world's fastest-growing cities, and has significant communities representing almost every ethnic group in Pakistan. Karachi holds more than two million Bengali immigrants, a million Afghan refugees, and up to 400,000 Rohingyas from Myanmar. (Full article...)

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The Tulip Lawn is a popular and well-known garden locale, situated adjacent to the magnificent Tulip Riverside Hotel located at the bank of Jhelum River in Jhelum.

Photo credit: Talha

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General images

The following are images from various Pakistan-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Srinagar Highway, Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 2The Lahore Fort, a landmark built during the Mughal era, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 3A sitar workshop in Islamabad, Pakistan. (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 4Monument in F-9 Park (from Islamabad)
Image 5The caves at Shah Allah Ditta, on Islamabad's outskirts, were part of an ancient Buddhist monastic community (from Islamabad)
Image 6The Shrine of Meher Ali Shah was completed immediately before construction began on the future capital city just east of the shrine (from Islamabad)
Image 7Dust storm over Pakistan and surrounding countries, 7 April 2005 (from Geography of Pakistan)
Image 8Islamabad population pyramid in 2017 (from Islamabad)
Image 9Islamabad Golf Club (from Islamabad)
Image 10Pakistan map of climate classification zones (from Geography of Pakistan)
Image 1115th-century Pharwala Fort beside the Swaan River (from Islamabad)
Image 12The shrine of Bari Imam in Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 13Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (from Islamabad)
Image 14K2, at 8,611 metres (28,251 ft), is the world's second highest peak (from Geography of Pakistan)
Image 15The Tomb of Shah Rukn-e-Alam is part of Pakistan's Sufi heritage. (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 16Islamabad Metro Bus (from Islamabad)
Image 17Islamabad Zones (from Islamabad)
Image 18F-9 Fatima Jinnah Park (from Islamabad)
Image 19The five zones and sectors of Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 20The Pakistan Monument (from Islamabad)
Image 21Faisal Mosque (from Islamabad)
Image 22Jinnah Sports Stadium, the largest stadium in Pakistan (from Islamabad)
Image 23Dewan Masjid Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 24Men dressed in shalwar kameez in a general store on the road to Kalash, Pakistan (from Pakistanis)
Image 25Islamabad's annual precipitation allows for the growth of lush forests in the city's hills. (from Islamabad)
Image 26The restored village of Saidpur predates the surrounding city of Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 27The Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metrobus was built in 2015 to connect Islamabad with neighbouring Rawalpindi. (from Islamabad)
Image 28Schoolgirls in Abbottabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, in shalwars with cuffed hems, and kameez with western-style collars. (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 29Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore is the third-largest cricket stadium in Pakistan with a seating capacity of 27,000 spectators. (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 30Distribution of Pakistani diaspora
  Pakistan
  + 1,000,000
  + 100,000
  + 10,000
  + 1,000
(from Pakistanis)
Image 31Faisal Mosque (from Islamabad)
Image 32Quaid-i-Azam University (from Islamabad)
Image 33Truck art is a distinctive feature of Pakistani culture. (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 34Muhammad Iqbal, Pakistan's national poet who conceived the idea of Pakistan (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 35Pakistan Monument Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 36A traditional cup of black tea (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 37Pakistan is the fifteenth most water stressed country in the world. (from Geography of Pakistan)
Image 38Satellite image of the Sulaiman Range (from Geography of Pakistan)
Image 39Trail 3 Islamabad (from Islamabad)
Image 40Topography of Pakistan (from Geography of Pakistan)
Image 41Located on the bank of Arabian Sea in Karachi, Port Grand is one of the largest food streets of Asia. (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 42Artistic depiction of Sindhi soldiers during medieval times (from Culture of Pakistan)
Image 43National University of Sciences and Technology (from Islamabad)
Image 44Islamabad skyline (from Islamabad)

This week in history

8 October 2005: The Kashmir earthquake (also known as the South Asia earthquake or the Great Pakistan earthquake) of 2005, was a major earthquake, of which the epicentre was the Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The earthquake occurred at 08:50:38 Pakistan Standard Time (03:50:38 UTC) on 8 October 2005. It registered 7.6 on the richter scale making it a major earthquake similar in intensity to the 1935 Quetta earthquake, the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. The Pakistani government's official death toll was 73,276, while officials say nearly 1,400 people died in Jammu and Kashmir and fourteen people in Afghanistan. Most of the affected people lived in mountainous regions with access impeded by landslides that blocked the roads, leaving an estimated 3.3 million homeless in Pakistan.

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Provinces and Territories

Clickable map of the four provinces and three federal territories of Pakistan.

Provinces:

Balochistan and KPK also have Provincially Administered Tribal Areas(PATA) which are being developed into regular districts.

Territories:

Pakistani-administered portions of the Kashmir:

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Cleanup: Niaz Stadium, Hyderabad District, Pakistan

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Ahmad Hassan Dani (Urdu: احمد حسن دانی) FRAS, SI, HI (20 June 1920 – 26 January 2009) was a well known Pakistani archaeologist, historian, and linguist. He was among the foremost authorities on Central Asian and South Asian archaeology and history. He introduced archaeology as a discipline in higher education in Pakistan and Bangladesh. Throughout his career, Dani held various academic positions and international fellowships, apart from conducting archaeological excavations and research. He is particularly known for archaeological work on pre-Indus civilization and Gandhara sites in northern Pakistan. (Full article...)

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Did you know?

... that Rehri Goth, one of the poor neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Karachi, is one of the oldest settlements dating back to the 13th century? (31 March 2024)

... that Burushaski, a predominantly in northern Gilgit-Baltistan spoken rather than written language, has not more than 120,000 native speakers? (9 July 2023)

... that the MagnifiScience Centre in Karachi is the only science center in the country, and, unlike a museum, visitors are encouraged to touch and learn from the interaction with the exhibits? (11 June 2023)

... that Ruth Katherina Martha Pfau, the famous German–Pakistani Catholic nun who devoted more than 55 years of her life to fighting leprosy was the first Christian and first non-Muslim to have a state funeral in Pakistan? (2 September 2021)

... that Lahore Metrobus open in 2013, was modelled after the Istanbul Bus Rapid Transit System. Plans were developed in the last quarter of 2011 by both local and Turkish experts.^[1] (31 August 2021)

... that Lahore Knowledge Park is an actualization of Triple Helix configuration; a framework to create synergies between government, academia and industry to operate into an interactive rather than linear model for the establishment of social formats and entities to promote commercial innovation and R&D. ^[2] (27 January 2017)

... that Karachi Kings is the most expensive franchise team of Pakistan Super League? (04 December 2015)

... that Sialkot is the world's largest producer of hand-sewed footballs, with local factories manufacturing 40~60 million footballs a year, amounting to roughly 60% of world production. (4 December 2017)

... that Hafiz Muhammad Fazal Azim Taha, the famous living Pakistani poet said about Iqbal's work that "He not only dreamed for Pakistan but also got the nation up for their rights". This famous saying is regarded as Iqbal's definition. (14 July 2014)

... that Tajammul Hussain Malik headed an unsuccessful coup attempt against Pakistani dictator General Zia-ul-Haq in 1980? (22 September 2009)

... that the Legal Framework Order, 1970, issued by Gen. Yahya Khan, set the rules for the first direct popular elections in the history of Pakistan? (14 September 2009)

... that in 1881 in the village of Bakhshali in northern Pakistan, the Bakhshali manuscript, the oldest surviving example of Indian mathematics, was discovered written on birch bark? (1 September 2008)

... that the original images of Lord Swaminarayan at the Shri Swaminarayan Temple in Karachi, Pakistan were removed and taken to India during the turbulent times of its partition? (1 September 2008)

... that Saudi Arabia promised to supply 50,000 barrels of free oil per day to help Pakistan if economic sanctions were imposed after its 1998 nuclear tests? (1 September 2008)

... that in a major improvement in bilateral relations in 2008, Pakistan proposed sharing nuclear technology with Bangladesh? (31 August 2008)

... that Abdur Rashid Kardar, a pioneer of the Pakistani film industry in Lahore, was a calligraphist who prepared posters for foreign-made films? (11 July 2008)

... that the Nigar Awards are the oldest awards of merit in the Pakistani film industry? (10 July 2008)

... that Syed Wajid Ali was the longest serving President of the Pakistan Olympic Association with a tenure of 26 years? (7 July 2008)

... that the 1948 film Teri Yaad was the first feature film to be released in Pakistan after the partition of India? (6 July 2008)

... that The Edhi Foundation, founded by Edhi, runs the world's largest volunteer ambulance service operating 1,800 of them with upto 6,000 a day in Karachi alone. (4 December 2017)

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Pakistan news

Today is May 14, 2024

For up to date, in depth news coverage on Pakistan, see Wikinews:Portal:Pakistan. Wikinews is a sister project of Wikipedia, which deals with journalism of current events. They are both operated by the Wikimedia Foundation.

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Current events on Wikinews

12 May 2024 – 2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods: The death toll from the ongoing flooding in northern Afghanistan increases to 315, with more than 1,600 people injured, and more than 1,000 houses destroyed. (Reuters)
11 May 2024 – 2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods: The death toll from the ongoing flooding in northern Afghanistan increases to 300, with more than 1,000 houses destroyed. (AP)
10 May 2024 – 2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods: Over 200 people are killed by floods in Baghlan Province, Afghanistan. (NDTV)
3 May 2024 –: A bus plunges into a ravine in Diamer District, Pakistan, killing 15 people and seriously injuring more than 20 others. (AP)
15 April 2024 –: Lightning and heavy rains have killed at least 49 people across Pakistan in the past three days, mainly farmers in the eastern Punjab province. (AP)
13 April 2024 – Insurgency in Balochistan: Gunmen abduct and kill nine people from a bus in Nushki District, Balochistan, Pakistan. All victims, whose bodies were found under a bridge, appear to have been shot at close range. (Reuters)

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“

Pakistan not only means freedom and independence but the Muslim Ideology which has to be preserved, which has come to us as a precious gift and treasure and which, we hope other will share with us.

”

— Muhammad Ali Jinnah (Founder of Pakistan)

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