Administrative Divisions of Pakistan

Pakistan is located in South Asia. It is located at a very important place from geographic and strategic point of view. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan comprises of 4 provinces Sindh, Punjab, Baluchistan and NWFP, one capital territory Islamabad, a federal territory FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) and two autonomous states Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit and Baltistan.

In 2000 the Pervez Musharraf government adopted a system of administration named “Local government system”, in which each province was sub-divided into districts, known as “zilas” locally). The districts form the topmost tier of the three tier local government and are further sub divided into tehsils (counties). Villages and municipalities come under tehsils. The City Districts are big metropolitan areas which comprise of towns and union councils. The tehsils and union councils are the 2 lower tiers of the local government.

The districts have the authority of carrying out certain functions independently. Each district is headed by a Nazim (Mayor). There are 105 provincial districts with 400 tehsils and over 6 thousand union councils. Over all there are five thousand local governments.

There are seven tribal agencies and six small frontier regions in FATA. Azad Kashmir has seven districts and Gilgit Baltistan comprises of six districts.

Federal capital Islamabad has been given the status of a district.

Sindh – Pakistan (Map Description)

• LOCATION: Southeast of Pakistan.
• CORDINATES: 24.52 DEGREES North, 67.03 degrees East.
• NEIGHBORS: West and North Balochistan Province

East: Rajhistan India.
North east: Punjab Province
South: Arabian Sea & Runn of Kutch

• CAPITAL: Karachi
• AREA: 140,914 km square
• POPULATION: 35,470,648
• DISTRICTS: 23

 

• CLIMATE: Sub Tropical with hot dry summers. Temperature can shoot up to more than 50 degrees C in some areas. The winters are cold with 2 degrees C recorded as the lowest temperature. The province receives 180mm of rainfall annually mostly during the months of July-August.

• TOPOGRAPHY: Sindh can be divided into 3 regions:

1. The Central Alluvial Region

Due to the presence of various water sources this area is fertile and is largely irrigated. The Riverine forest of Sindh exists in this region.

2. Eastern Sandy Region

The Thar Desert exists in the East of Sindh and is spread over 45,000square km.

3. Western Rocky Region

The Kirthar Range lies in the west. The area is mostly rocky and barren due to the absence of a water source.

• OOCUPATION:

Sindh lies in the Lower Indus Basin. People mostly practice farming in Upper Sindh. Interior Sindh is also known for its handicrafts. Fishing is the main occupation of the people living near the coastal belt.

• INDUSTRIES

Karachi and Hyderabad are two major industrialized cities. The cotton industry, Steel Mills, cement factories sugar mills are some industries worth mentioning.

• AGRICULTURE

Sindh is the biggest producer of Pakistan’s main cash crop, cotton. Wheat and rice are also grown here. High quality fruits such as mangoes, oranges, dates, bananas and guavas are also grown in Sindh for local consumption as well as export purposes.