Indus River
The 3,180 kilometer–long Indus River, anciently called the Sindhu (whence our word Hindu) and mentioned as such by Greek writers, is the major river of Pakistan, running throughout the length of the country. It begins in Tibet in the glaciers of the Kailas Range (where it is known as the Xiquan He), passing through Ladakh, Kashmir, Punjab, and Sind before emptying into the Arabian Sea in a level, muddy delta near Karachi. Although this delta is little cultivated, the broad river plain was the locus of the Indus Valley civilization (also called the Harappan or Mohenjo Daro civilization). Geological research has shown that the lower course of the river has changed often; such a change is one possible explanation for the end of that civilization.
The Himalayan sections of the river's course present some of the most impressive scenery in the world,particularly where it cuts through the Ladakh Range about 160 kilometers above Leh. In this region the Indus derives from three tributaries coming out of the Kailas glaciers. The northernmost of these tributaries forms the road from Leh to the Jhalung goldfields, and the southern one forms the ancient trade route from Ladakh to Lhasa and on to China.
The river is navigable by small craft as far as Hyderabad in Pakistan. A modern dam at Sukkur supplies irrigation and electric power. Another vast dam is under construction at Tarbela, near Gilgit in the disputed area of Azad Kashmir. The drainage basin of the Indus has been computed at 963,400 square kilometers.
Further Reading
Meadows, Azra, and Peter Meadows, eds. (1999) The Indus River: Biodiversity, Resources, Humankind. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.
Moorhouse, Geoffrey. (1984) To the Frontier. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Murphy, Dervla. (1977) Where the Indus Is Young: A Winter in Baltistan. London: Century Hutchinson Ltd.
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