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Ghaggar-Hakra River

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Intermittent , temporary or seasonal rivers or streams cease to flow every year or at least twice every five years. Such rivers drain large arid and semi-arid areas, covering approximately a third of the Earth's surface. The extent of temporary rivers is increasing, as many formerly perennial rivers are becoming temporary because of increasing water demand, particularly for irrigation . Despite inconsistent water flow, intermittent rivers are considered land-forming agents in arid regions, as they are agents of significant deposition and erosion during flood events. The combination of dry crusted soils and the highly erosive energy of the rain cause sediment resuspension and transport to the coastal areas. They are among the aquatic habitats most altered by human activities. During the summer even under no flow conditions the point sources are still active such as the wastewater effluents , resulting in nutrients and organic pollutants accumulating in the sediment. Sediment operates as a pollution inventory and pollutants are moved to the next basin with the first flush. Their vulnerability is intensified by the conflict between water use demand and aquatic ecosystem conservation . Advanced modelling tools have been developed to better describe intermittent flow dynamic changes such as the tempQsim model.

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116-636: 1 = ancient river 2 = today's river 3 = today's Thar Desert 4 = ancient shore 5 = today's shore 6 = today's town 7 = dried-up Hakra course, and pre-Harappan Sutlej paleochannels (Clift et al. (2012)) The Ghaggar-Hakra River is an intermittent river in India and Pakistan that flows only during the monsoon season . The river is known as Ghaggar before the Ottu barrage at 29°29′15″N 74°53′33″E  /  29.4875°N 74.8925°E  / 29.4875; 74.8925 , and as Hakra downstream of

232-516: A channel of the Sutlej may have flowed west some time between 47,000 BCE and 10,000 BCE, well before the beginnings of Indus Civilization. Analysis of sand grains using optically stimulated luminescence by Ajit Singh and others in 2017 indicated that the suggested paleochannel of the Ghaggar-Hakra is actually a former course of the Sutlej, which diverted to its present course before

348-575: A different source than the Indus, but this source stopped supplying sediments after ca. 10,000 years ago. Likewise, Dave et al. (2019) state that "[o]ur results disprove the proposed link between ancient settlements and large rivers from the Himalayas and indicate that the major palaeo-fluvial system traversing through this region ceased long before the establishment of the Harappan civilisation." During

464-411: A few are fully developed Harappan ones. Hetalben Sidhav notes that claims of a large number of Ghaggar-Hakra sites are politically motivated and exaggerated. While the Indus remained an active river, the Ghaggar-Hakra dried up, leaving many sites undisturbed, which explains why such a large number of sites has been found. Late in the 2nd millennium BCE the Ghaggar-Hakra fluvial system dried up , becoming

580-616: A food source for a variety of terrestrial animals, such as birds, mammals, and reptiles. Different types of fishes inhabit intermittent rivers. The Brassy minnow ( Hybognathus hankinsoni ) is native to the intermittent Niobrara River, Wyoming. Redband trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdneri ) is native to intermittent desert streams of southwestern Idaho. The West Fork Smith River provides vital habitat to different species, including coho salmon, returning to spawn in Oregon. Cobitis shikokuensis (Hina-ishi-dojo) in intermittent rivers move into

696-515: A harbour at the city of Patala in Sindh. Chandragupta Maurya fought Alexander's successor in the east, Seleucus I Nicator , when the latter invaded. In a peace treaty, Seleucus ceded all territories west of the Indus River and offered a marriage, including a portion of Bactria , while Chandragupta granted Seleucus 500 elephants. Following a century of Mauryan rule which ended by 180 BCE,

812-415: A high proportion of regional biodiversity. The riparian zone of intermittent rivers can provide habitat and resources for a variety of organisms, and may also be an important source of nutrients for habitats downstream. The dry period of intermittent streams is ended by what is called "rewetting" or a wetting front. Rewetting is defined as the resumption of waterflow through the stream. This happens when

928-531: A huge variety of animals and birds. The Kirthar National Park in the Kirthar range spreads over more than 3000 km of desert, stunted tree forests and a lake. The KNP supports Sindh ibex , wild sheep (urial) and black bear along with the rare leopard. There are also occasional sightings of The Sindhi phekari, ped lynx or Caracal cat. There is a project to introduce tigers and Asian elephants too in KNP near

1044-491: A large variety of marine fish, the plumbeous dolphin, the beaked dolphin, rorqual or blue whale and skates frequent the seas along the Sindh coast. The Pallo (Sable fish), a marine fish, ascends the Indus annually from February to April to spawn. The Indus river dolphin is among the most endangered species in Pakistan and is found in the part of the Indus river in northern Sindh. Hog deer and wild bear occur, particularly in

1160-580: A long history, starting with the capture of Sindh by Muhammad Bin Qasim in 712 CE. Over time, the majority of the population in Sindh converted to Islam, especially in rural areas. Today, Muslims make up 90% of the population, and are more dominant in urban than rural areas. Islam in Sindh has a strong Sufi ethos with numerous Muslim saints and mystics, such as the Sufi poet Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai , having lived in Sindh historically. One popular legend that highlights

1276-642: A major part of the Sindhi partition experience, unlike in Punjab. There were very few incidents of violence on Sindh, in part due to the Sufi-influenced culture of religious tolerance and in part that Sindh was not divided and was instead made part of Pakistan in its entirety. Sindhi Hindus who left generally did so out of a fear of persecution, rather than persecution itself, because of the arrival of Muslim refugees from India. Sindhi Hindus differentiated between

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1392-589: A small seasonal river. Nineteenth and early 20th century scholars, but also some more recent authors, have suggested that the Ghaggar-Hakra might be the defunct remains of the Sarasvati River mentioned in the Rig Veda , fed by Himalayan-fed rivers, despite the fact that the Ghaggar-Hakra had dried up by that time. The basin consists of two parts, Khadir and Bangar . Bangar are the higher banks that are not flooded in rainy season, while khadar refers to

1508-552: A year, caused by the spring and summer melting of Himalayan snow and by rainfall in the monsoon season. Sindh is divided into three climatic regions: Siro (the upper region, centred on Jacobabad ), Wicholo (the middle region, centred on Hyderabad ), and Lar (the lower region, centred on Karachi ). The thermal equator passes through upper Sindh, where the air is generally very dry. Central Sindh's temperatures are generally lower than those of upper Sindh but higher than those of lower Sindh. Dry hot days and cool nights are typical during

1624-615: Is Sindh's most multiethnic city which hosts most of the province's Urdu-speaking population who form a plurality, along many other groups. Sindh is in the western corner of South Asia, bordering the Iranian plateau in the west. Geographically it is the third largest province of Pakistan, stretching about 579 kilometres (360 mi) from north to south and 442 kilometres (275 mi) (extreme) or 281 kilometres (175 mi) (average) from east to west, with an area of 140,915 square kilometres (54,408 sq mi) of Pakistani territory. Sindh

1740-579: Is a Persian derivative of the Sanskrit term Sindhu, meaning "river," a reference to the Indus River . Southworth suggests that the name Sindhu is in turn derived from Cintu , a Dravidian word for date palm , a tree commonly found in Sindh. The previous spelling Sind (from the Perso-Arabic سند ) was discontinued in 1988 by an amendment passed in the Sindh Assembly , and

1856-524: Is a province of Pakistan . Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province by population after Punjab . It is bordered by the Pakistani provinces of Balochistan to the west and north-west and Punjab to the north. It shares an International border with the Indian states of Gujarat and Rajasthan to

1972-660: Is bounded by the Thar Desert to the east, the Kirthar Mountains to the west and the Arabian Sea and Rann of Kutch to the south. In the centre is a fertile plain along the Indus River . Sindh is divided into three main geographical regions: Siro ("upper country"), aka Upper Sindh, which is above Sehwan ; Vicholo ("middle country"), or Middle Sindh, from Sehwan to Hyderabad ; and Lāṟu ("sloping, descending country"), or Lower Sindh, mostly consisting of

2088-466: Is currently threatened by erosion and improper restoration. A gradual drying of the region during the 3rd millennium BCE may have been the initial stimulus for its urbanisation. Eventually it also reduced the water supply enough to cause the civilisation's demise and to disperse its population to the east. During the Bronze Age , the territory of Sindh was known as Sindhu-Sauvīra , covering

2204-436: Is hot in the summer and mild to warm in winter. Temperatures frequently rise above 46  °C (115  °F ) between May and August, and the minimum average temperature of 2 °C (36 °F) occurs during December and January in the northern and higher elevated regions. The annual rainfall averages about seven inches, falling mainly during July and August. The southwest monsoon wind begins in mid-February and continues until

2320-551: Is not enough inputs to sustain surface water. Streams in more arid regions stop flowing due to the depletion of water storage in the surrounding aquifer and channel banks. The diversion of water and impoundment for human use, such as for flood control and irrigation storage, have caused intermittency in many rivers that used to be perennial. This was the case for several large rivers such as the Nile, Indus, Yellow, Amu and Syr Darya, Rio Grande, and Colorado, which became intermittent during

2436-467: Is received in the winters. The Provincial Assembly of Sindh is a unicameral and consists of 168 seats, of which 5% are reserved for non-Muslims and 17% for women. The provincial capital of Sindh is Karachi . The provincial government is led by Chief Minister who is directly elected by the popular and landslide votes ; the Governor serves as a ceremonial representative nominated and appointed by

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2552-635: Is said to have reported victory to the Governor General with a one-word telegram, namely " Peccavi " – or "I have sinned" ( Latin ). The British had two objectives in their rule of Sindh: the consolidation of British rule and the use of Sindh as a market for British products and a source of revenue and raw materials. With the appropriate infrastructure in place, the British hoped to utilise Sindh for its economic potential. The British incorporated Sindh, some years later after annexing it, into

2668-466: Is sometimes referred to as the Bab-ul Islam ( transl.  'Gateway of Islam ' ), as it was one of the first regions of the Indian subcontinent to fall under Islamic rule . The province is well known for its distinct culture , which is strongly influenced by Sufist Islam , an important marker of Sindhi identity for both Hindus and Muslims . Sindh is prominent for its history during

2784-457: Is the most populous city in the country as well as its main financial hub. Sindh is home to a large portion of Pakistan's industrial sector and contains two of the country's busiest commercial seaports: Port Qasim and the Port of Karachi . The remainder of Sindh consists of an agriculture -based economy and produces fruits, consumer items and vegetables for other parts of the country. Sindh

2900-816: Is the continuation of the Ghaggar River in India . The Hakra-channel is connected to paleochannels of the Sutlej and the Yamuna, which ended in the Nara River , a delta channel of the Indus River joining the sea via Sir Creek . The Sutlej changed its course about 8,000-10,000 years ago, leaving the Ghaggar-Hakra as a system of monsoon-fed rivers terminating in the Thar Desert. This Sutlej/Yamuna paleochannel streamed through Sindh , and its sign can be found in Sindh areas such as Khairpur , Nawabshah , Sanghar and Tharparkar . A large number of sites from

3016-622: Is the only river with hymns entirely dedicated to it: RV 6 .61, RV 7 .95 and RV 7 .96. It is mentioned as a divine and large river, which flows "from the mountains to the samudra," which some take as the Indian Ocean . The Rig Veda was composed during the latter part of the late Harappan period, and according to Shaffer, the reason for the predominance of the Sarasvati in the Rig Veda is the late Harappan (1900–1300 BCE) population shift eastwards to Haryana . The identification with

3132-689: The Battle of Camel and died fighting for Ali . Under the Umayyads (661–750 CE), many Shias sought asylum in the region of Sindh, to live in relative peace in the remote area. Ziyad Hindi is one of those refugees. The first clash with the Hindu kings of Sindh took place in 636 (15 A.H.) under Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab with the governor of Bahrain, Uthman ibn Abu-al-Aas , dispatching naval expeditions against Thane and Bharuch and Debal . Al-Baladhuri states they were victorious at Debal but doesn't mention

3248-565: The Bombay Presidency . Distance from the provincial capital, Bombay, led to grievances that Sindh was neglected in contrast to other parts of the Presidency. The merger of Sindh into Punjab province was considered from time to time but was turned down because of British disagreement and Sindhi opposition, both from Muslims and Hindus, to being annexed to Punjab. Later, desire for a separate administrative status for Sindh grew. At

3364-615: The British at the Battle of Miani and Battle of Dubbo . The northern Khairpur branch of the Talpur dynasty, however, continued to maintain a degree of sovereignty during British rule as the princely state of Khairpur , whose ruler elected to join the new Dominion of Pakistan in October 1947 as an autonomous region, before being fully amalgamated into West Pakistan in 1955. The British conquered Sindh in 1843. General Charles Napier

3480-597: The Bronze Age under the Indus Valley civilization , and is home to two UNESCO -designated World Heritage Sites : the Makli Necropolis and Mohenjo-daro . The Greeks who conquered Sindh in 325 BCE under the command of Alexander the Great referred to the Indus River as Indós , hence the modern Indus . The ancient Iranians referred to everything east of the river Indus as hind . The word Sind

3596-649: The Indus Delta below Hyderabad. The province is mostly arid with scant vegetation except for the irrigated Indus Valley. The dwarf palm, Acacia rupestris (kher), and Tecomella undulata ( lohirro ) trees are typical of the western hill region. In the Indus valley, the Acacia nilotica (babul) (babbur) is the most dominant and occurs in thick forests along the Indus banks. The Azadirachta indica (neem) (nim), Zizyphys vulgaris (bir) (ber), Tamarix orientalis (jujuba lai) and Capparis aphylla (kirir) are among

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3712-655: The Nara river . Clift et al . (2012), using dating of zircon sand grains, have shown that subsurface river channels near the Indus Valley Civilisation sites in Cholistan immediately below the dry Ghaggar-Hakra bed show sediment affinity with the Beas River in the western sites and the Sutlej and the Yamuna in the eastern ones, suggesting that the Yamuna itself, or a channel of the Yamuna, along with

3828-648: The President of Pakistan . The administrative boss of the province who is in charge of the bureaucracy is the Chief Secretary Sindh , who is appointed by the Prime Minister of Pakistan . Most of the influential Sindhi tribes in the province are involved in Pakistan's politics . In addition, Sindh's politics leans towards the left-wing and its political culture serves as a dominant place for

3944-576: The Rajputana kingdom in Umerkot in Sindh. Mughal rule from their provincial capital of Thatta was to last in lower Sindh until the early 18th century, while upper Sindh was ruled by the indigenous Kalhora dynasty holding power, consolidating their rule from their capital of Khudabad , before shifting to Hyderabad from 1768 onwards. The Talpurs succeeded the Kalhoras and four branches of

4060-516: The Rig Vedic descriptions because "the snow-fed Satluj and Yamuna would strengthen [only the] lower Ghaggar. [The] upper Ghaggar would still be as puny as it is today." According to Rajesh Kocchar there are two Sarasvati rivers mentioned in the Rigveda. The older one described in the family books of the Rigveda, which he calls Naditama Sarasvati , drains into a samudra . The newer one described in

4176-476: The Sarasvati River is based on the mentions in Vedic texts, e.g. in the enumeration of the rivers in Rigveda 10.75 .05; the order is Ganga , Yamuna , Sarasvati, Sutudri , Parusni . Later Vedic texts record the river as disappearing at Vinasana (literally, "the disappearing") or Upamajjana, and in post-Vedic texts as joining both the Yamuna and Ganges as an invisible river at Prayaga (Allahabad). Some claim that

4292-510: The Striped hyena (charakh), jackal , fox , porcupine , common gray mongoose and hedgehog . The Sindhi phekari, red lynx or Caracal cat, is found in some areas. Phartho (hog deer) and wild bear occur, particularly in the central inundation belt. There are bats, lizards and reptiles, including the cobra, lundi (viper) and the mysterious Sindh krait of the Thar region, which is supposed to suck

4408-696: The Sultan of Delhi , and was allowed to continue on as a vassal. The Sammas overthrew the Soomras soon after 1335 and established the Sindh Sultanate. The last Soomra ruler took shelter with the governor of Gujarat , under the protection of Muhammad bin Tughluq , the sultan of Delhi . Mohammad bin Tughlaq made an expedition against Sindh in 1351 and died at Sondha, possibly in an attempt to restore

4524-644: The left-wing spectrum in the country. The province's trend towards the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and away from the Pakistan Muslim League (N) can be seen in nationwide general elections , in which Sindh is a stronghold of the PPP. The PML(N) has a limited support due to its centre-right agenda . In metropolitan cities such as Karachi and Hyderabad , the MQM (another party of

4640-605: The 1920s by the growing importance of Karachi and the Khilafat Movement. A number of Sindhi pirs, descendants of Sufi saints who had proselytised in Sindh, joined the Khilafat Movement, which propagated the protection of the Ottoman Caliphate, and those pirs who did not join the movement found a decline in their following. The pirs generated huge support for the Khilafat cause in Sindh. Sindh came to be at

4756-830: The 2023 census indicated a population of 5,182 Sikhs. Languages of Sindh (2023) According to the 2023 census , the most widely spoken language in the province is Sindhi , the first language of 33,462,299 60% of the population. It is followed by Urdu 12,409,745 (22%), Pashto 2,955,893 (5.3%), Punjabi 2,265,471 (4.1%), Balochi 1,208,147 (2.2%), Saraiki 913,418 (1.6%), and Hindko 830,581 (1.5), Brahui 265,769, Mewati 57,059, Kashmiri 53,249, Balti 27,193, Shina 22,273, Koshistani 14,885, 777 Kalasha and others are 1,151,650, Other minority languages include Kutchi , Gujarati , Aer , Bagri , Bhaya , Brahui , Dhatki , Ghera , Goaria , Gurgula , Jadgali , Jandavra , Jogi , Kabutra , Kachi Koli , Parkari Koli , Wadiyari Koli , Loarki , Marwari , Sansi , and Vaghri . Karachi city

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4872-668: The American Southwest during precipitation events. Many incised arroyos that are destructive to stream beds and adjacent man-made structures were formed as a result of drainage channelization and overgrazing during the late nineteenth century along with the influx of American settlers in the Southwestern United States. Glacial streams are considered intermittent streams as the flow intermittence fluctuates with solar energy input. Most glacial streams are alpine headwater streams that receive water from

4988-561: The Arab expansion towards the east reached the Sindh region beyond Persia . The connection between the Sindh and Islam was established by the initial Muslim invasions during the Rashidun Caliphate . Al-Hakim ibn Jabalah al-Abdi, who attacked Makran in the year 649 CE, was an early partisan of Ali ibn Abu Talib . During the caliphate of Ali, many Jats of Sindh had come under the influence of Shi'ism and some even participated in

5104-610: The Colorado River delta to drop to near zero. Effects of climate change such as higher air temperatures are predicted to accelerate drying and cause more intermittency in rivers. Intermittent rivers are found on every continent, and may even be more common than perennial rivers. More than 30% of the total length and discharge of the global river network is estimated to be intermittent rivers. However, due to some low-order streams being difficult to categorize or track, this total could be over 50% when taking those into account. In

5220-600: The Eurasian steppes, leading to a change of vegetation, triggering "higher mobility and transition to nomadic cattle breeding," These migrations eventually resulted in the Indo-Aryan migrations into South Asia. Most of the Harappan sites along the Ghaggar-Hakra are presently found in desert country, and have remained undisturbed since the end of the Indus Civilization. This contrasts with the heavy alluvium of

5336-587: The Ghaggar are the Kaushalya river , Markanda , Sarsuti , Tangri and Chautang . The Kaushalya river is a tributary of Ghaggar river on the left side of Ghaggar-Hakra, it flows in the Panchkula district of Haryana state of India and converges with Ghaggar river near Pinjore just downstream of Kaushalya Dam . The Hakra is the dried-out channel of a river near Fort Abbas City in Pakistan that

5452-464: The Ghaggar-Hakra might be the defunct remains of a river, the Sarasvati , invoked in the orally transmitted collection of ancient Sanskrit hymns, the Rig Veda composed c.  1500 BCE to 1200 BCE. More recently, but writing before Giosan's 2012 publication and supposing a late Harappan diversion of the Sutlej and the Yamuna, several scholars have identified the old Ghaggar-Hakra River with

5568-405: The Ghaggar-Hakra river and its tributaries and not on the Indus river, some Indian archaeologists, such as S.P. Gupta, have proposed to use the term "Indus Sarasvati Civilization" to refer to the Harappan culture which is named, as is common in archaeology, after the first place where the culture was discovered. Romila Thapar terms the identification "controversial" and dismisses it, noticing that

5684-459: The Ghaggar-Hakra was fed by Himalayan sources has also been contradicted by recent geophysical research, which shows that the Ghaggar-Hakra system, although having greater discharge in Harappan times which was enough to sustain human habitation, was not sourced by the glaciers and snows of the Himalayas , but rather by a system of perennial monsoon-fed rivers. In contrast to all Himalayan rivers in

5800-658: The IVC, the Ghaggar-Hakra fluvial system was not a large glacier-fed Himalayan river, but a monsoonal-fed river. The Indus Valley Civilisation prospered when the monsoons that fed the rivers diminished around 5,000 years ago, and a large number of sites from the Mature Indus Valley Civilisation (2600-1900 BCE) are found along the middle course of the (dried-up) Hakra in Pakistan. Around 4,000 the Indus Valley Civilisation declined when

5916-426: The Indus and other large Panjab rivers that have obscured Harappan sites, including part of Mohenjo Daro . Painted Grey Ware sites ( c.  1000–600 BCE) have been found at former IVC-sites at the middle and upper Ghaggar-Hakra channel, and have also been found in the bed and not on the banks of the Ghaggar-Hakra river, which suggests that river was certainly dried up by this period. The sparse distribution of

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6032-514: The Mature Indus Valley Civilisation (2600-1900 BCE) are found along the middle course of the (dried-up) Hakra in Pakistan. IVC-sites have not been found further south than the middle of Bahawalpur district , and it has been assumed that the Hakra ended there in a series of terminal lakes. While there is general agreement that the river courses in the Indus Basin have frequently changed course,

6148-439: The Painted Gray Ware sites in the Ghaggar river valley indicates that during this period the Ghaggar river had already dried up. Since the 19th century, proposals have been made to identify the mythological Sarasvati River with the Ghaggar-Hakra River. The Sarasvati is often mentioned in the Rig Veda, which describes it as a mighty river located between the Indus and the Ganges, while later Vedic texts describe it as disappearing in

6264-481: The Soomras. With this, the Sammas became independent. The next sultan, Firuz Shah Tughlaq attacked Sindh in 1365 and 1367, unsuccessfully, but with reinforcements from Delhi he later obtained Banbhiniyo's surrender. For a period the Sammas were therefore subject to Delhi again. Later, as the Sultanate of Delhi collapsed they became fully independent. Jam Unar was the founder of Samma dynasty mentioned by Ibn Battuta . The Samma civilization contributed significantly to

6380-430: The Thar Desert. The Indus Valley Civilisation prospered when the monsoons that fed the rivers diminished around 5,000 years ago, and a large number of sites from the Mature Indus Valley Civilisation (2600-1900 BCE) are found along the middle course of the (dried-up) Hakra in Pakistan. Around 4,000 years ago, the Indus Valley Civilisation declined when the monsoons further diminished, and the Ghaggar-Hakra dried up, becoming

6496-532: The Umayyad Caliphate . This marked the beginning of Islam in the Indian subcontinent. The Habbari dynasty ruled much of Greater Sindh, as a semi-independent emirate from 854 to 1024. Beginning with the rule of 'Umar bin Abdul Aziz al-Habbari in 854 CE, the region became semi-independent from the Abbasid Caliphate in 861, while continuing to nominally pledge allegiance to the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad . The Habbaris ruled Sindh until they were defeated by Sultan Mahmud Ghaznavi in 1026, who then went on to destroy

6612-455: The Vedic Sarasvati River and the Chautang with the Drishadvati River . Gregory Possehl and Jane McIntosh refer to the Ghaggar-Hakra River as "Sarasvati" throughout their respective 2002 and 2008 books on the Indus Civilisation, and Gregory Possehl states "Linguistic, archaeological, and historical data show that the Sarasvati of the Vedas is the modern Ghaggar or Hakra." Because most of the Indus Valley sites known so far are actually located on

6728-405: The annual session of the Indian National Congress in 1913, a Sindhi Hindu put forward the demand for Sindh's separation from the Bombay Presidency on the grounds of Sindh's unique cultural character. This reflected the desire of Sindh's predominantly Hindu commercial class to free itself from competing with the more powerful Bombay's business interests. Meanwhile, Sindhi politics was characterised in

6844-425: The area covering the lower and central Indus basin (present day Sindh and the southern Punjab regions of Pakistan). Alternatively, some authors consider that Hindush may have been located in the Punjab area. These areas remained under Persian control until the invasion by Alexander . Alexander conquered parts of Sindh after Punjab for few years and appointed his general Peithon as governor. He constructed

6960-482: The argument of Hafif being the last Habbarid. The Soomras appear to have established themselves as a regional power in this power vacuum. The Ghurids and Ghaznavids continued to rule parts of Sindh, across the eleventh and early twelfth century, alongside Soomrus. The precise delineations are not yet known but Sommrus were probably centered in lower Sindh. Some of them were adherents of Isma'ilism . One of their kings Shimuddin Chamisar had submitted to Iltutmish ,

7076-435: The barrage in the Thar Desert . In pre-Harappan times the Ghaggar was a tributary of the Sutlej. It is still connected to this paleochannel of the Sutlej, and possibly the Yamuna, which ended in the Nara River , presently a delta channel of the Indus River joining the sea via Sir Creek . The Sutlej changed its course about 8,000-10,000 years ago, leaving the Ghaggar-Hakra as a system of monsoon-fed rivers terminating in

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7192-563: The biological, hydrological, and physical characteristics of a continuous or intermittent stream. Opinions on the Clean Water Act (CWA) from the Supreme Court have classified intermittent streams as non-jurisdictional and thus outside of legal protection. Prior to 2001, virtually all bodies of water in the United States were considered jurisdictional because of their potential to function as a habitat for migratory birds. Following this 2001 Supreme Court ruling on US waters, Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County vs. US Army Corps of Engineers ,

7308-429: The capital. The Brahmin dynasty of Sindh succeeded the Rai dynasty . Most of the information about its existence comes from the Chach Nama , a historical account of the Chach-Brahmin dynasty. After the empire's fall in 712, though the empire had ended, its dynasty's members administered parts of Sindh under the Umayyad Caliphate's Caliphal province of Sind . After the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad ,

7424-513: The central inundation belt. Although Sindh has a semi arid climate, through its coastal and riverine forests, its huge fresh water lakes and mountains and deserts, Sindh supports a large amount of varied wildlife. Due to the semi-arid climate of Sindh the left out forests support an average population of jackals and snakes. The national parks established by the Government of Pakistan in collaboration with many organizations such as World Wide Fund for Nature and Sindh Wildlife Department support

7540-404: The court went on to see two cases in 2006 further involving this matter. Rapanos vs. United States and Carabell vs. United States , after being combined into one decision, added new analytical thresholds to be met for protection but ultimately left the determination of what were to be protected U.S. waters up to the EPA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and further court cases. Recent litigation

7656-434: The descriptions of Sarasvati flowing through the "high mountains" does not tally with Ghaggar's course and suggests that Sarasvati is Haraxvati of Afghanistan which is also known as the Helmand river . Wilke suggests that the identification is problematic since the Ghaggar-Hakra river was already dried up at the time of the composition of the Vedas, let alone the migration of the Vedic people into northern India. The idea that

7772-399: The desert. Arguments have been made that the Ghaggar-Hakra was such a mighty river, due to tributaries which were supposed to receive snow melt waters from the Himalayas. Yet, more recent research shows that the Ghaggar-Hakra was monsoon-fed during Harappan times, and had already dried-up during Vedic times. The Sarasvati River is mentioned in all books of the Rigveda except the fourth . It

7888-411: The development of the Harappan Civilisation. The abandonment of this older course by the Sutlej started 15,000 years ago, and was complete by 8,000 years ago. Ajit Singh et al. conclude that the urban populations settled not along a perennial river, but a monsoon-fed seasonal river that was not subject to devastating floods. Khonde et al. (2017) confirm that the Great Rann of Kutch received sediments from

8004-466: The dynasty were established. One ruled lower Sindh from the city of Hyderabad , another ruled over upper Sindh from the city of Khairpur , a third ruled around the eastern city of Mirpur Khas , and a fourth was based in Tando Muhammad Khan . They were ethnically Baloch , and for most of their rule, they were subordinate to the Durrani Empire and were forced to pay tribute to them. They ruled from 1783, until 1843, when they were in turn defeated by

8120-448: The east; it is also bounded by the Arabian Sea to the south. Sindh's landscape consists mostly of alluvial plains flanking the Indus River , the Thar Desert of Sindh in the eastern portion of the province along the international border with India , and the Kirthar Mountains in the western portion of the province. The economy of Sindh is the second largest in Pakistan after the province of Punjab ; its provincial capital Karachi

8236-402: The ecology of intermittent rivers. Disturbances caused by humans can result in short-term (pulse) and long-term (press) effects on intermittent stream habitats. Sindh Europe North America Oceania Sindh ( / ˈ s ɪ n d / SIND ; Sindhi : سِنْڌ ‎ ; Urdu : سِنْدھ , pronounced [sɪndʱə] ; abbr. SD , historically romanized as Sind )

8352-522: The end of September, whereas the cool northerly wind blows during the winter months from October to January. Sindh lies between the two monsoons —the southwest monsoon from the Indian Ocean and the northeast or retreating monsoon, deflected towards it by the Himalayan mountains —and escapes the influence of both. The region's scarcity of rainfall is compensated by the inundation of the Indus twice

8468-734: The evolution of the Indo-Islamic architectural style. Thatta is famous for its necropolis, which covers 10 square km on the Makli Hill . It has left its mark in Sindh with magnificent structures including the Makli Necropolis of its royals in Thatta. They were later overthrown by the Turkic Arghuns in the late 15th century. In the late 16th century, Sindh was brought into the Mughal Empire by Akbar , himself born in

8584-409: The exact sequence of these changes and their dating have been problematic. Older publications have suggested that the Sutlej and the Yamuna drained into the Hakra well into Mature Harappan times, providing ample volume to the supply provided by the monsoon-fed Ghaggar. The Sutlej and Yamuna then changed course between 2500 BCE and 1900 BCE, due to either tectonic events or "slightly altered gradients on

8700-527: The extremely flat plains," resulting in the drying-up of the Hakra in the Thar Desert . More recent publications have shown that the Sutlej and the Yamuna shifted course well before Harappan times, leaving the monsoon-fed Ghaggar-Hakra which dried-up during late Harappan times. The paleo-channel of the Sutlej was active until the end of the Ice Age, some 10,000-8,000 years ago, emptying into the Rann of Kutch via

8816-423: The face of global climate change, this total is further increasing, as many of the world's rivers that were once perennial are now intermittent in regions suffering from severe climatic drying or water appropriation. Intermittent streams can be found in many different climate regions. For example, arroyos are intermittent streams that erode deep vertical channels through fine sediment in arid and semiarid regions in

8932-428: The flowing, contraction/fragmentation, and dry phases. Intermittent streams tend to have a food web based heavily on detritus and follow the bottom-up trophic model. Both the ratios of predator to prey and the number of trophic levels depend on the size of the intermittent stream. Intermittent rivers face many threats. Diversion of river water for large-scale consumption, such as industrial use or for farming, can alter

9048-475: The forefront of the Khilafat Movement . Although Sindh had a cleaner record of communal harmony than other parts of India, the province's Muslim elite and emerging Muslim middle class demanded separation of Sindh from Bombay Presidency as a safeguard for their own interests. In this campaign, local Sindhi Muslims identified 'Hindu' with Bombay instead of Sindh. Sindhi Hindus were seen as representing

9164-598: The gain of the water is higher than the loss of it into the pores of the substrate/soil, also known as infiltration. Rewetting causes changes both in the dissolved nutrients in the stream, and in species compositions. During dry periods of intermittent rivers, terrestrial animals can gain access to resources and areas that were otherwise inaccessible, either due to natural or man-made obstructions. Additionally, when drying, these riverbeds often leave behind organisms, such as fish, which were unable to relocate in response to lowering water levels. These organisms are often used as

9280-417: The glacial meltwater. The streams become dry or freeze starting from autumn and last until early spring; the flow of the glacial streams is highest during summer. The intermittency of the glacial streams also fluctuates at different times of the day. The inhabitants of intermittent rivers can change with the water level. As a result of contrasting conditions throughout the year, invertebrate assemblages of

9396-610: The government restored the mosque to Muslims. The separation of Sindh from Bombay Presidency triggered Sindhi Muslim nationalists to support the Pakistan Movement. Even while the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province were ruled by parties hostile to the Muslim League, Sindh remained loyal to Jinnah. Although the prominent Sindhi Muslim nationalist G. M. Syed left the All India Muslim League in

9512-480: The huge Hub Dam Lake. Between July and November when the monsoon winds blow onshore from the ocean, giant olive ridley turtles lay their eggs along the seaward side. The turtles are protected species. After the mothers lay and leave them buried under the sands the SWD and WWF officials take the eggs and protect them until they are hatched to keep them from predators. Sindh lies in a tropical to subtropical region; it

9628-441: The hyporheic zone when water flows are low. When the water returns, C. shikokuensis emerge out of the hyporheic zone to recolonize the flowing river system. During stream drying, Campostoma spadiceum ( Highland stoneroller ) move into pool habitats when riffle areas become too shallow for survival. The food web of intermittent streams differs from perennial streams in that species number and abundance change drastically among

9744-545: The interests of Bombay instead of the majority of Sindhi Muslims. Sindhi Hindus, for the most part, opposed the separation of Sindh from Bombay. Although Sindh had a culture of religious syncretism, communal harmony and tolerance due to Sindh's strong Sufi culture in which both Sindhi Muslims and Sindhi Hindus partook, both the Muslim landed elite, waderas , and the Hindu commercial elements, banias , collaborated in oppressing

9860-423: The last census conducted prior to the partition of India, the total population of Sindh was 4,840,795 out of which 3,462,015 (71.5%) were Muslims, 1,279,530 (26.4%) were Hindus and the remaining were Tribals, Sikhs, Christians, Parsis, Jains, Jews, and Buddhists. Sindh also has Pakistan's highest percentage of Hindus overall, accounting for 8.8% of the population, roughly around 4.9 million people, and 13.3% of

9976-626: The left with the support of Muhajirs ) has a considerable vote bank and support. Minor leftist parties such as the People's Movement also found support in rural areas of the province. In 2008, after the public elections, the new government decided to restore the structure of Divisions of all provinces. In Sindh after the lapse of the Local Governments Bodies term in 2010 the Divisional Commissioners system

10092-414: The local Sindhi Muslims and the migrant Muslims from India. A large number of Sindhi Hindus travelled to India by sea, to the ports of Bombay, Porbandar, Veraval and Okha. Sindh has the second highest Human Development Index out of all of Pakistan's provinces at 0.628. The 2023 Census of Pakistan indicated a population of 55.7 million. Religion in Sindh according to 2023 census Islam in Sindh has

10208-452: The lower Indus Valley, with its southern border being the Indian Ocean and its northern border being the Pañjāb around Multān . The capital of Sindhu-Sauvīra was named Roruka and Vītabhaya or Vītībhaya, and corresponds to the mediaeval Arohṛ and the modern-day Rohṛī . The Achaemenids conquered the region and established the satrapy of Hindush . The territory may have corresponded to

10324-508: The lower Sindh region. Among the wild animals, the Sindh ibex (sareh), blackbuck , wild sheep ( Urial or gadh) and wild bear are found in the western rocky range. The leopard is now rare and the Asiatic cheetah extinct. The Pirrang (large tiger cat or fishing cat) of the eastern desert region is also disappearing. Deer occur in the lower rocky plains and in the eastern region, as do

10440-675: The lower flood-prone area. The Ghaggar is an intermittent river in India , flowing during the monsoon rains . It originates in the village of Dagshai in the Shivalik Hills of Himachal Pradesh at an elevation of 1,927 metres (6,322 ft) above mean sea level and flows through Punjab and Haryana states into Rajasthan ; just southwest of Sirsa, Haryana and by the side of Talwara Lake in Rajasthan. Dammed at Ottu barrage near Sirsa, Ghaggar feeds two irrigation canals that extend into Rajasthan. The main tributaries of

10556-507: The mid-1940s and his relationship with Jinnah never improved, the overwhelming majority of Sindhi Muslims supported the creation of Pakistan, seeing in it their deliverance. Sindhi support for the Pakistan Movement arose from the desire of the Sindhi Muslim business class to drive out their Hindu competitors. The Muslim League's rise to becoming the party with the strongest support in Sindh was in large part linked to its winning over of

10672-531: The monsoons further diminished, and the Ghaggar-Hakra dried-up, becoming a small seasonal river. According to archaeologist Rita Wright, the large number of documented sites may be due to the ephemeral nature of the settlements, with the inhabitants frequently moving around in pursuit of water. According to archaeologist Shereen Ratnagar, many Ghaggar-Hakra sites in India are actually those of local cultures; some sites display contact with Harappan civilisation, but only

10788-428: The more common trees. Mango, date palms and the more recently introduced banana, guava, orange and chiku are the typical fruit-bearing trees. The coastal strip and the creeks abound in semi-aquatic and aquatic plants and the inshore Indus delta islands have forests of Avicennia tomentosa (timmer) and Ceriops candolleana (chaunir) trees. Water lilies grow in abundance in the numerous lake and ponds, particularly in

10904-505: The name is now spelt Sindh . Sindh and surrounding areas contain the ruins of the Indus Valley Civilization . There are remnants of thousand-year-old cities and structures, with a notable example in Sindh being that of Mohenjo Daro . Built around 2500 BCE, it was one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus civilization, with features such as standardized bricks, street grids, and covered sewerage systems. It

11020-570: The number of late Harappan sites in the middle Ghaggar-Hakra channel and in the Indus valley diminished, while it expanded in the upper Ghaggar-Sutlej channels and in Saurashtra. The IVC-people migrated east toward the more humid regions of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, where the decentralised late Harappan phase took place. The same widespread aridification in the third millennium BCE also led to water shortages and ecological changes in

11136-476: The old Habbari capital of Mansura, and annex the region to the Ghaznavid Empire , thereby ending Arab rule of Sindh. The Soomra dynasty was a local Sindhi Muslim dynasty that ruled between early 11th century and the 14th century. Later chroniclers like Ali ibn al-Athir (c. late 12th c.) and Ibn Khaldun (c. late 14th c.) attributed the fall of Habbarids to Mahmud of Ghazni, lending credence to

11252-582: The past 50 years due to human interference. In arid and semiarid regions of North America, most formerly perennial rivers are now intermittent. This is a direct consequence of the extensive networks of dams and aqueducts that were built for human withdrawal of water that used to flow into wetlands, deltas, and inland sinks. This phenomenon can be observed in the Colorado River, whose flow has decreased significantly since 1905. In recent years, several U.S. states and Mexico have used significant amounts of water for agricultural and urban uses, which caused flows reaching

11368-493: The predominantly Muslim peasantry of Sindh who were economically exploited. Sindhi Muslims eventually demanded the separation of Sindh from the Bombay Presidency, a move opposed by Sindhi Hindus. In Sindh's first provincial election after its separation from Bombay in 1936, economic interests were an essential factor of politics informed by religious and cultural issues. Due to British policies, much land in Sindh

11484-510: The province's rural population as per 2023 Pakistani census report. These numbers also include the scheduled caste population, which stands at 1.7% of the total in Sindh (or 3.1% in rural areas), and is believed to have been under-reported, with some community members instead counted under the main Hindu category. Although, Pakistan Hindu Council claimed that there are 6,842,526 Hindus living in Sindh Province covering around 14.29% of

11600-586: The region came under the Indo-Greeks , followed by the Indo Scythians , who ruled with their capital at Minnagara . Later on, Sasanian rulers from the reign of Shapur I claimed control of the Sindh area in their inscriptions, known as Hind . The local Rai dynasty emerged from Sindh and reigned for a period of 144 years, concurrent with the Huna invasions of North India. Aror was noted to be

11716-515: The region that dug out wide valleys in their own sediments as the monsoon declined, no such valley exists between the Sutlej and the Yamuna , demonstrating that neither the Ghaggar-Hakra nor any other Sarasvati candidate in that region had a Himalayan source. Rajesh Kocchar further notes that, even if the Sutlej and the Yamuna had drained into the Ghaggar during Vedic period , it still would not fit

11832-562: The region's population. Umerkot district in the Thar Desert is Pakistan's only Hindu-majority district. The Shri Ramapir Temple in Tandoallahyar whose annual festival is the second largest Hindu pilgrimage in Pakistan is in Sindh. Sindh is also the only province in Pakistan to have a separate law for governing Hindu marriages . 2020 community estimates indicated the Sikh population in Sindh stood at approximately 10,000 persons, while

11948-427: The religious pir families. Although the Muslim League had previously fared poorly in the 1937 elections in Sindh, when local Sindhi Muslim parties won more seats, the Muslim League's cultivation of support from local pirs in 1946 helped it gain a foothold in the province, it didn't take long for the overwhelming majority of Sindhi Muslims to campaign for the creation of Pakistan. In 1947, violence did not constitute

12064-512: The results of other two raids. However, the Chach Nama states that the raid of Debal was defeated and its governor killed the leader of the raids. These raids were thought to be triggered by a later pirate attack on Umayyad ships. Baladhuri adds that this stopped any more incursions until the reign of Uthman . In 712, Mohammed Bin Qasim defeated the Brahmin dynasty and annexed it to

12180-503: The same intermittent stream can be notably distinct from one another. How biodiversity of these habitats changes with conditions has been debated in literature. Current findings suggest that while lotic biodiversity generally decreases with increasing flow intermittence, increased lentic and terrestrial biodiversity during those periods can compensate. Thus, when lotic (flowing water), lentic (lake), and terrestrial communities are considered together, intermittent rivers can account for

12296-564: The sanctity of the modern Ganges is directly related to its assumption of the holy, life-giving waters of the ancient Saraswati River. The Mahabharata says that the Sarasvati River dried up in a desert (at a place named Vinasana or Adarsana). Nineteenth and early 20th century scholars, such as orientalist Christian Lassen (1800–1876), philologist and Indologist Max Müller (1823–1900), archaeologist Aurel Stein (1862–1943), and geologist R. D. Oldham (1858–1936), had considered that

12412-401: The small seasonal river it is today, which affected the Harappan civilisation. Paleobotanical information documents the aridity that developed after the drying up of the river. The diminishing of the monsoons particular affected the Ghaggar-Hakra system, which became ephemeral and was largely abandoned, with the IVC reorganizing in local settlements some 4000 years ago. In the late Harappan period

12528-415: The strong Sufi presence in Sindh is that 125,000 Sufi saints and mystics are buried on Makli Hill near Thatta . The development of Sufism in Sindh was similar to the development of Sufism in other parts of the Muslim world. In the 16th century two Sufi tareeqat (orders) – Qadria and Naqshbandia – were introduced in Sindh. Sufism continues to play an important role in the daily lives of Sindhis. In 1941,

12644-595: The summer. Central Sindh's maximum temperature typically reaches 43–44 °C (109–111 °F). Lower Sindh has a damper and humid maritime climate affected by the southwestern winds in summer and northeastern winds in winter, with lower rainfall than Central Sindh. Lower Sindh's maximum temperature reaches about 35–38 °C (95–100 °F). In the Kirthar range at 1,800 m (5,900 ft) and higher at Gorakh Hill and other peaks in Dadu District , temperatures near freezing have been recorded and brief snowfall

12760-654: The tenth book of Rigveda as well as later Vedic texts, which he calls Vinasana Sarasvati , disappears in the sands. The Vinasana Sarasvati has been "accepted by all" to be the same as the Ghaggar-Hakra river. The description of the Naditama Sarasvati in the Rigveda matches the physical features of the Helmand River in Afghanistan, more precisely its tributary the Harut River , whose older name

12876-458: The victim's breath in his sleep. Some unusual sightings of Asian cheetah occurred in 2003 near the Balochistan border in Kirthar Mountains . The rare Houbara bustard finds Sindh's warm climate suitable to rest and mate. Unfortunately, it is hunted by locals and foreigners. Crocodiles are rare and inhabit only the backwaters of the Indus, eastern Nara channel and Karachi backwater. Besides

12992-424: The year, and may not have any flowing surface water during the dry season. Intermittent rivers do not rely on, but may be supplemented, by stormwaters or other runoff from upstream sources. Their channels are well-defined, as compared to ephemeral streams, which may or may not have a defined channel, and rely mainly on storm runoff, as their aquatic bed is above the water table . An ephemeral stream does not have

13108-488: Was Haraxatī in Avestan. Ganga and Yamuna, he takes to be small streams in its vicinity. When the Vedic people moved east into Punjab, they named the new rivers they encountered after the old rivers they knew from Helmand. Intermittent river According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency definition, an intermittent river, or intermittent stream, is any river or stream that only flows during certain times of

13224-704: Was brought by eighteen states' attorneys general because of a change to the interpretation of what is to be considered by the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers as "waters of the United States" during May 2020. Intermittent streams contain water during periods when groundwater levels are above or at the level of stream's channel, allowing for surface flow. The mechanisms which control surface flow of intermittent streams are climatically and geographically specific. For example, intermittent streams fed by snowmelt and glacial meltwater cease to flow when they either freeze or there

13340-523: Was one of the world's earliest major cities , contemporaneous with the civilizations of ancient Egypt , Mesopotamia , Minoan Crete , and Caral-Supe . Mohenjo-daro was abandoned in the 19th century BCE as the Indus Valley Civilization declined, and the site was not rediscovered until the 1920s. Significant excavation has since been conducted at the site of the city, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. The site

13456-491: Was transferred from Muslim to Hindu hands over the decades. Religious tensions rose in Sindh over the Sukkur Manzilgah issue where Muslims and Hindus disputed over an abandoned mosque in proximity to an area sacred to Hindus. The Sindh Muslim League exploited the issue and agitated for the return of the mosque to Muslims. Consequentially, a thousand members of the Muslim League were imprisoned. Eventually, due to panic

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