Plateau of Pakistan – Potowar Plateau

This is also called Pothohar Plateau and is located in the Province of Punjab and the western portion of Azad Kashmir. It is an undulated area between River Indus and Jehlum with Hazara hills on the north and Salt range on the south. The area is badly eroded. The elevation ranges from 1000 to 2000 feet. The most important rivers of the area are the Soan and Harrow rivers. The Kala Chitta range rises to an average height of 450 to 900 meters and the highest mountain here is Sakesar.

The area has a history of Soanian culture which is related to the discovery of remains of the old archaeology, fossils, coins, and tools. Potawari language is spoken by the locals. River Jhelum is on the east and River Indus on the west of this plateau, Kala chitta range is on the north and Salt range is on the south. The average height of Kala chitta range is about 450-900 metres or 3000 ft extending for almost 72 kilometres or 45 miles. The highest mountain of the area is Sakesar.

The river Swaan originates from Murree ending near Kalabagh in the River Indus. There is a diverse wildlife in the area including chinkara, hare, mongoose, porcupine, urial, yellow throated marten and wild boar etc. They all add to the attraction of the region. Low rain fall has and deforestation to an extensive level has decreased the beauty of the area. There is also oil, gas and coal exploration projects going on in the valley. The under water area include the internationally famous Ramsar site called Jhallar and three beautiful lakes namely Ucchali, Khabeki and Kallar Kahar. They are tourist attraction points for many years.

The twin cities Rawalpindi and Islamabad sit on the Potowar Plateau. Rohtas Fort is located in Potawar which is another heritage site of UNESCO, which was built in 1541 by Sher Shah Suri.

Plateaus of Pakistan – Balochistan Plateau

It is a vast plateau in the west of Kirthar and Sulaiman mountains. The average height in this area is between 600 to 900 meters. The mountains in the north eastern Balochistan is higher on the south than the ones on the west side. It is also dry area like Potowar plateau and the Toba Kakar and Xhagai ranges separate this plateau from Afghanistan. In the north western side of it is Kharan desert. There are many temporary lakes in this sandy area which have water only in the rainy season otherwise they remain dry and are called ‘Hamuns’. There are many minerals discovered in this region like coal, iron, natural gas, chromate and copper. The climate is severe cold in winters and extremely hot in summers with the exception of the high mountain areas.

In Balochistan there is a common shortage of water making the water reservoir and natural springs and very precious assets. The average altitude in this large plateau is 2,000 feet and there are many geographical features like mountains, dry lakes and basins. There are several mountain ranges in this area including: Toba Kakar, Central Brauli, Hala, Pab, Chagai, Makran coastal range and Raskot range. These ranges are eroded by seasonal streams formed after rainfall. Zhob Loralai basin is the most important ones among many basins present here. There are also many rivers carving Balochistan plateau land including Zhob Loralai, Hingol, Hub, Porali and Dasht. River Zhob in the area is a tributary to the River Gomal. The four rivers namely Hab, Poral, Hingol and the Dasht in the south of the plateau fall into the Arabian Sea. Many of these rivers flows in to the Indus and some drain into dry lakes and some in the land forming inland drainage system which is a unique feature of Balochistan plateau. The famous Bolan Pass which connects Quetta with Kachhi Sibbi plain is present in the Balochistan plateau.