Top Ten Different Languages Spoken in Pakistan

Pakistan has a rich culture and many languages are spoken here by a diversified group of people. Language is a mode of communication through which people living in this world communicate with each other. The ancient languages were consisted mostly of symbols and gestures. With the passage of time, letter and alphabets got developed which gave rise to a lot of languages. Now thousands of languages are being spoken in various parts of the world including Pakistan. There are two official languages in Pakistan namely Urdu and English with various four main regional languages. The four languages that are spoken in the four provinces of Pakistan are Punjabi, Pashtu, Sindhi and Balochi. However, there are other regional languages also that are spoken in various areas of Pakistan. These languages include Kashmiri, Saraiki, Hindko and some others. It is important to note that the majority of population in Pakistan speaks regional or provincial languages other than Urdu. A list of the top ten languages spoken in Pakistan is given below:

1)      Punjabi Language spoken mostly in the province of Punjab

2)      Pashto Language frequently spoken in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa

3)      Sindhi Language predominantly spoken in Sindh province

4)      Seraiki Language mostly spoken in Punjab province

5)      Urdu Language frequently spoken all over Pakistan. Urdu is Pakistan’s national language.

6)      Balochi Language predominantly spoken in Balochistan province

7)      Hindko language spoken in hilly areas of Pakistan

8)      Kashmiri language spoken in Azad Kashmir and adjacent areas

9)      Brahui spoken in Southern suburbs of Pakistan

10)  Shina mostly spoken in Giglit-Baltistan

 

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.

Deserts of Pakistan – The Kharan Desert

This is also called the ‘Sandy Desert’ and is located in the Province of Balochistan. It covers an area of about 48,051 sq. km. It is basically covered with sand dunes, scrub vegetation and weathered rocks. Rainfall is very scarce in the desert leaving it with dry lakes. The largest dry lake of Balochistan is located in this desert called Hamun-i-Mashkel. The water of Kharan basin is entirely used for agriculture and domestic use and thus it is also called ‘closed basin’.

The desert consists of moving sand dunes reaching heights from 15 to 30 meters with an underlay of pebble floor. The areas between these dunes are hard when its dry and when it is wet it is sandy and treacherous. There is a huge barren area of this desert which comes in the territory of half of Iran with a continuation of waste land in Pakistan. This is a continous stretch of total barren land from the Alborz mountains in the northern direction to the plateau in Balochistan around 1200 kilometers to the southeast.

The altitude of this desert moves from about 1000 m in the north to approximately 250 m in the southwest. The average rainfall in the desert is about 100 mm annually. The entire area of the desert has inland drains and dry lakes. A lake basin in Iran called Gowd-e-Zereh gets excessive drainage and it is separated from the kharan desert in Pakistan by the hills of low Chaghai. It cause the river Mashkel to form a lake with the highlands which surrounds Koh-e-Tafta’n the great volcano. The 85 kilometer long and 35 kilometers wide  area of the surface of the Hamun-i-Mashkel is filled with sun cracked clay, salthy marshes, moving sand dunes and oxidized pebbles. This part is known for its sudden sand storms and constant mirage.

Mir Shahdad Rind and Mehnaz-Pakistani Folklore

Mir Shahdad Khan Rind belonged to a prominent family from Balochistan. He was a brave warrior who had helped the Moghul King Humayun regain his throne by defeating the Suris.

Mir Shahdad Khan was very fond of his second wife Mehnaz who loved him too. The couple was leading a happy life but their happiness was short lived. Mir Shahdad’s first wife was jealous of Mehnaz and was always thinking of ways to lower her in Shahdad’s eyes. One day she succeeded in her evil plan; she disguised herself as a man and somehow convinced Mir Shahdad that Mehnaz was involved with Umer, a shepherd. Mir Shahdad was furious and hurled accusations at Mehnaz. There was nothing Mehnaz could do to prove her innocence so she went back to her family.

Now as a custom in Balochistan, anyone who wants to prove his or her innocence has to undergo an extremely tough test. Mehnaz was asked to put her hand in a pot of boiling oil and recover a ring. Mehnaz did so without hurting herself.

Mir Shahdad’s joy knew no bounds and wished to take her back with him. Mehnaz on the other hand was deeply hurt by his accusations and refused to go with him. She asked him to divorce her and with a heavy heart, Mir Shahdad Rind had to comply. Mehnaz later married the shepherd Umer leaving Shahdad to spend the rest of his life in regret and remorse.

Top 20 Engineering Colleges in Pakistan

Engineering is one field where the professionals are constantly discovering ways to improve the standard of living by creating bold and innovative solutions that connect science with life. In Pakistan there are several engineering universities in various parts of the country providing high standard and up to date education to the students. PEC – Pakistan Engineering Council regulates the educational courses of these universities and is constantly striving to promote and improve the quality of education in the area of engineering and technology.

Some of these institutions are recognized throughout the world and they also attract foreign students. Given below is the list of the top engineering universities of Pakistan. Please note that it is not in any kind of order.

1. PIEAS-Pakistan Institute of Engineering & Applied Sciences (Islamabad)
2. NUST-National University of Science & Technology (Islamabad)
3. GIKI-Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering and Sciences (Topi)
4. NED-Nadirshaw Edulji Dinshaw,University of Engineering & Technology (Karachi)
5. UET-University of Engineering & Technology (Lahore)
6. SZABIST-Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science & Technology (Karachi)
7. Quaid-e-Awan University of Engineering Science & Technology(Nawabshah)
8. Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology
9. Center for Advance Studies in Engineering & technology (Islamabad & Quetta)
10. National University of Science (Islamabad)
11. University of Engineering & Technology (Peshawar)
12. National University of Science & Technology (Rawalpindi)
13. Mehran University Engineering & Technology(Jamshoro)
14. University of Engineering & Technology (Taxila)
15. National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences (Islamabad)
16. COMSATS Institute of Engineering & technology (Islamabad,Abbottabad)
17. NWFP University of Engineering & Technology (Peshawar)
18. Balochistan University of Engineering & Technology(Khuzdar)
19. Kohat University of Engineering & Technology (Kohat)
20. Pakistan Navy Engineering College (Karachi)