SUBJECT:

PAK-CHINA CULTURAL CORRIDOR : SILK ROUTE

Pakistan is a unique land! Strategically situated at the historical cross roads, it links
Southeast Asia with Middle East and Iran in the West, and provides an access to
landlocked Afghanistan and Central Asian States. This land is a witness to the
vicissitudes of history and civilization with profound effects on its people, their
language and culture. It was home to one of the world's earliest human settlements,
the great prehistoric Indus Valley Civilization, the crucible of ancient empires,
religions and cultures Mohenjodaro, Harappa and Taxila were the citadels of oldest
civilizations know to mankind. The Gandhara was home to the oldest Buddhist
centre of learning and the pilgrims and scholars traveled from all over South Asia
and Tibet to enlighten themselves with the Buddhist teachings. Pakistan enjoys
another unique feature that it is the Southern Gat-way to the historical Silk Route
which now we have rebuilt as an all weather road known as the Karakoram Highway
and which passes through Hazara Region. Hazara Region is located between
latitude 33-44' N and 35-10' E and longitude 72-33' N and 74-6'E. The division
is bounded by Azad Jammu and Kashmir on the eastern side, by Rawalpindi District
on the southern side, by the Districts of Swabi and Swat on the western side and by
Gilgit Agency on the northern side. After crossing through the Kohistan District of
this division the River Indus separates it from the districts of Swat and Mardan. The
division is also closely situated to the Islamabad Federal Territory. The division is
actually located at cross roads of Punjab, Kashmir, Gilgit and the rest of Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa. It is located very close to the main G.T. Road stretching from
Peshawar to Lahore and is connected to it at Hassan Abdal on G.T. Road through
the Silk Road or Shahrah-e-Resham and also known as Karakuram Highway (KKH)
passing for most of its length through Hazara Region and has provided
opportunities for opening the gates to Central Asia for those who wish to unravel the
mysteries of the hitherto closed lands.
The vast plains of Punjab end at Jehlum, which is located at the foot hills of a vast
mountain range. The Potohar plateau touches the Hazara region from where small
mountain ranges start growing into high mountain ranges. Therefore, the Hazara
region Division is comprised of both vast plain areas surrounded by hills and high
mountains with wide valleys. The southern part of the division is relatively flat and
the altitude increases as one moves towards north right in the Karakuram Range.
The plain of Abbottabad is actually located in between the River Jehlum and River
Indus. Other significant rivers of the region are River Kunhar, River Dor and River
Siran. There are other numerous channels and streams flowing within the region

which actually are tributaries of the big rivers.

These specific topography features make it an interesting area by virtue of its scenic
beauty, lofty mountains, green and dense forests and valleys and lakes of immense
beauty.
The lower district of Haripur, a comparatively plain area has an average altitude of
about 2,500 feet above the mean sea level, whereas Abbottabad district enjoys its
towering position because of its high hills. The town of Abbottabad itself is located
above 4,120 feet.

Further north of Abbottabad district is Mansehra where the

beautiful places known as Kaghan, Naran and Lake Saiful Muluk lie. The hills
around have high peaks somewhere up to 17,000 feet above the mean sea level.
The beauty of the narrow valley of Kaghan from Balakot to Naran is enhanced by
the meandering Kunhar river that flows over hard rocks splashing crystal clear water
and traverses southward to ultimately join with the river Jehlum.
The climate in the southern district of Haripur is hot in summer that varies with the
adjoining districts of Attock and Rawalpindi. In the central plateau the heat of
summer is materially less and the winter proportionally severe. The line of perpetual
snow is between 14000 and 15000 feet above sea level.The rainfall varies between
30" (750 mm) in the south to 50" (1250 mm) in the north.

The origin of the name Hazara is obscure. It has been identified with Abisari, the
country of Abisares, the chief of the Indian mountaineers at the time of Alexander's
invasion. Hazara-e-Karlugh, or the Karlugh legion is one more interpretation, which
was settled in this track by Timur after his invasion of India (Indo-Pakistan subcontinent).
The old name of Hazara was Pukhli Sarkar or Pukhli Walayat. Pukhli was actually
the name of the container to carry water and was made of goat skin. The name was
perhaps given because of the abundance of water available in the area from its
many springs and water channels. The name Pukhli was later changed to Hazara
Karlak and during the British regime was known as Hazara only. Pukhli Walayat
covered a vast area extending from Attock to Kaghan in between the River Jehlam
and River Indus and consisted of 84 settlements during the ancient times.

Hazara is an ancient land whose history dates back to the Aryan Era some 1500 B.C
to 200 B.C. Great Iranian ruler, Cyrus-I and Dara also ruled the area for more than
250 years from 500 B.C to 250 B.C. It was conquered by Alexander the Great in the
year 1326 B.C. The famous king of the ancient times Chandar Gupt Muria defeated
the Greeks and established a vast empire. Another famous ruler Ashoka who died in
the year 232 B.C. also ruled the area. Ashoka's inscribed stones left near Mansehra
date back to this period. It remained the center of Gandhara Civilization for may
centuries. Maharaja Jai Pal and Raja Risalo are well known rulers of that times.
Hazara has also been ruled in the past by locals tribes of Ghakars, Gujars, Kharals,
Sikhs and finally the British before the establishment of Pakistan. Being located on
the Road to Kashmir, the area has attracted many invaders.
Archaeological sites scattered in and around Hazara reveal that the area was once
the center of first Hindu civilization and later Buddhist civilization. Islam came to the
area with Mahmood Ghaznavi in 1192 A.D. Amir Taimur invaded and ruled this area
in 1398. A significant event in its history is the establishment of an independent state
of Hazara in 1490 by Shahabud Din Babar, the cousin of Mughal Emperor Zahirud
Din Babar. Guli Bagh in Tehsil Mansehra was the capital of this new kingdom. The
Feroza Fort and the Tomb of Hazrat Dewan Raja Baba Sahib are the ancient
buildings of Guli Bagh. After the British took over the rule of India from Mughals,
Captain Abbott was sent from Delhi as first Deputy Commissioner of Hazara in 1848.
The old tribes of the region include Gujars, Awans, Dalazak, Tanoli, Swati, Tareen ,
Kharal and Ghakar
The total area of Hazara region is 17103 sq.kms comprising of five districts of
Haripur, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Batagram and Kohistan. Previously Haripur was a
part of Abbottabad, and Batagram was included in the Mansehra District. Both of
them have been established as new districts during the past few years. Every district
has its headquarter located at the city of the same name except Kohistan district
whose headquarter is located at Dassu.
The great mountain ranges of Karakorams, Himalays and Hindukush are home to
more than 700 peaks rising above 6000 metres, and over 160 peaks above over
7000 metres high including K-2, Nanga Parbat, Gahserbrum I & II and Broad peak.
The breathtaking ocean of glaciers and snow covered mountains, the beauty of
which can only be appreciated by those who have been to these areas and have
trekked or attempted to climb. Amongst these ranges are found the lush green

meadows and captivating valleys like Swat and Kaghan which abound in scenic
beauty with pine forests which are accessible through the SilK Road or KKH. Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa is proud to treasure these natural wealth. These valleys are adorned
with the crystal clear water streams and lakes whose scenic value can only be
described in the superlatives.
A mountain water sport is another area, Besides mountaineering and rock climbing
whose potentials need to be exploited. We have rich resources for the water based
adventure sports. Our roaring and turbulent rivers provide large playing fields for
white water rafting, canoeing and kayaking. There has been very few attempts for
water rafting in the upper reaches of the Indus River. Our lakes of the Northern
Pakistan provide ideal sites to relax and engage in angling and trout fishing.
Provision of adequate facilities has been ensured by the PTDC but a lot more is
required in order to faciltate the visiting tourists to make their visit most enjoyable
including law and order. This can only be done by further simplifying procedures for
issue of visa to the visitors and their travelling within the country, especially to the
Northern Pakistan including Northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Adequate transportation
means and lodging facilities is another area which need to be given more
consideration. The visitors look for convenience and not luxuries. Camping areas
and low cost, but clean lodging facilities needs to be increased besides improving
sanitation facilities in the camps and along the trails.
The increased influx of tourists do effect the ecology and environments of the
frequented areas. The gates to wider tourism be opened with preservation and
protection of the environments of the areas and the sites. The awareness of the
local population as well as their participation in the know how to promote
sustainable Tourism and Cultural heritage in the mountains is of prime importance in
order to stop the sell out of culture and safe disposal of garbage dumps by the
visiting expeditions and the trekkers. Tourism is a multisectoral activity and therefore
care Is to be taken to preserve the already fragile local ecology and the
environments of these unique areas through observation of the rules for the
environmental protection.