TEXT: If one was to travel through the landscape of Pakistan and start from the beautiful beaches of Sindh and Balochistan, the sights would include deserts, rivers, lakes, mountains, forests and the extended list will include all that a nation could ever desire. Pakistan has an extraordinary and magnificent variety of landscapes ranging from five of the highest mountain peaks in the world to some of the largest and unique plateausand an awe-inspiring flat Indus plain. Pakistan in other words is a kaleidoscope of some of the most diverse natural beauty in the world; it’s a cradle of ancient civilizations and a ‘melting pot’ of cultures and religions with beautifully built churches, temples, gurdwaras and mosques.With shining deserts and some of the world’s highest peaks, the country has countless attractions for visitors, sightseers, skiers, trekkers and mountaineers alike.From the precipitous peaks of the Karakoram range to the fertile Indus River plain, Pakistan is home to a diversity of stunning landscapes. While its rich cultural heritage, ancient Grand Trunk and Silk Road, ruins of Mohenjo-Daro and Taxila continue to enchant tourists, they can further venture and discover a lesser-known, wilder Pakistan. Situated just east of the historic Khyber Pass, close to the border with Afghanistan is the broad valley of Peshawar. Peshawar’s recorded history dates to at least 539BC, making it the oldest city in Pakistan and one of the oldest cities in South Asia.
Places that would captivate minds include, but not limited toare Baltoro Glacier, Neelum Valley, Hingol National Park, Trango Towers, DeosaiNational Park, Thar Desert, Saiful Muluk, Hunza Valley, Attabad Lake and the list continues with many achieving global recognition. Khewra Salt Mine being the second largest in the world, Gwadar port being the largest deep seaport, K-2 (Chagori) being the second highest mountain peak in the world, Mehrgarh, (6000 B.C.) being counted amongst the oldest civilizations of the world, Chitral having the world’s highest Polo ground at 3,700 meters, Tarbela Dam being the largest earth-filled dam in the world, Shah Faisal Mosque accommodating 100,000 worshipers at a time and the Karakoram Highway as the highest paved international road in the world.
Pakistan is blessed with abundant natural resources which, besides ample virgin land, has copper fields, salt ranges, coal mines, cost line stretching over 1100 Km, gas reserves and the like and consequently has well established industrial base for textiles, cement, fertilizer, steel, sugar, engineering goods, leather and the list continues with industrial units providing value added goods which is fast finding its way to markets globally. Pakistan has the second largest gold and copper reserves, third largest coal reserves, fourth largest cotton producer, fifth largest producer of milk, sixth largest rice producer, seventh largest wheat producer in the world. Major exports from Pakistan include cotton and textile goods, sea food, rice, spices, leather, sporting and surgical goods, carpets, fruits and vegetables not to mention information technology which is fast becoming the single most source of exports. This unique factor is on account of successive governments encouraging youth with their own startups. Pakistan human resource constitutes 220 million of which over 50 percent is under the age of 30; thus, considered among the youngest countries in the world producing diversified talent catering to the much-needed professionals and skilled workers.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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