HISTORY OF PAKISTAN:

Pakistan is an Islamic Republic. Pakistan is situated between latitude 24 and 37 degrees North and longitude 62 and 75 degrees East. The country borders Iran on the west, India in the east, Afghanistan in the north-west, China in the north and the Arabian Sea on the south. It has four Provinces; Balochistan, North West, Frontier (NWFP), Punjab and Sindh. In addition to provinces, are the Federally Administered Northern Areas (FANA) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The great mountain ranges of the Himalayas, the Karakorams and the Hindukush form Pakistan’s northern highlands of North West Frontier Province and the Northern Area. Punjab province is a flat, alluvial plain with five major rivers dominating the upper region eventually joining the Indus River flowing south to the Arabian Sea. Sindh is bounded on the east by the Thar Desert and the Rann of Kutch and on the west by the Kirthar range and the Balochistan Plateau is an arid tableland, encircled by dry mountains. Pakistan has a federal structure. Parliament consists of the National Assembly and the Senate. Members of the National Assembly are directly elected on adult franchise basis and their term of office is 05 years. The National Assembly determines the major policy issues and passes annual budget and legislation. It elects the Prime Minister from among its members. The Prime Minister forms his/her cabinet from among members of the National Assembly and the Senate. Provinces have their own elected legislative assemblies and Chief Ministers. Majority of the members of the Senate are elected by the Provincial Assemblies. Note Please: For the current Government Structure. For more about government structure visit Government Official Web Site.

 History in brief:

Pakistan traces its history back to 2,500 years B.C., when a highly developed civilization flourished in the Indus Valley. Excavations at Harrappa, Moenjodaro, Kot Diji and Mehr Garh have brought to light, the evidence of an advanced civilization existing even in more ancient times. Around 1,500 B.C., the Aryans overwhelmed this region and influenced the Hindu civilization, whose centre moved to Ganges valley, further east. Later, the Persians occupied the northern region in the 5th century B.C. up to the 2nd century AD. The Greeks came in 327 B.C., under Alexander of Macedonia, and passed away like a meteor. In 712 AD, the Arabs, led by Muhammad Bin Qasim, landed somewhere near modern Karachi and ruled the lower half of Pakistan for 200 years. During this time, Islam took roots in the soil and influenced the life, culture and traditions of the people. In the 10th century AD, began the systematic conquest of South Asia by the Muslims from Central Asia, who ruled here up to the 18th century. Then the British came and ruled for nearly 100 years over what is Pakistan now.

 Independence movement:

The Muslim revival began towards the end of the last century when Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, a renowned Muslim leader and educationist, launched a movement for intellectual renaissance of the Muslims of South Asia. In 1930, the well-known poet-philosopher, Allama Muhammad Iqbal, conceived the idea of a separate state for the Muslims of South Asia. In 1940, a resolution was adopted by the All-India Muslim League, demanding a separate independent home land for the Muslims. After 07 years of un-tiring struggle under the brilliant leadership of Quaid-e-Azam (the great leader) Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Pakistan emerged on the world map as a sovereign state, on 14th August, 1947.

 Ancient Empires:

This is the summary of important historical events of the subcontinent.

 Coming of Islam:

 711 Arab Muslims in Sindh
 998-1030 Mahmud of Ghazni raids into the subcontinent from Afghanistan
 1192 Muhammad of Ghor defeats Rajputs
 1206 Establishment of Delhi Sultanate
 1398 Destruction of Delhi by Timur

 Mughal period:

 1526 Babur victorious in first Battle of Paniput
 1530-1556 Wars of succession
 1556 Akbar victorious in second Battle of Paniput
 1556-1605 Reign of Akbar the Great
 1605-1627 Reign of Jahangir; in 1612 East India Company opens first trading center
 1628-1658 Reign of Shah Jahan
 1658-1707 Reign of Aurangzeb
 1761 Third Battle of Panipat; an Afghan victory over a Maratha army
 1707-1858 Decline of the Mughal Empire

 British India:

 1757 Battle of Plessey - British victory over Mughal forces in Bengal; conventional date for
   beginning of British rule in India
 1784 William Pitt's India Act
 1799-1839 Sikh kingdom in the Punjab under Maharaja Ranjit Singh
 1830s Institution of British education and other reform measures
 1838-1842 First Afghan war
 1843 British annex Sindh, Hyderabad and Khairpur
 1845-49 Sikh Wars; British annex the Punjab and sell Kashmir, Gilgit, and Ladakh "Package,"
   known as Kashmir
 1857-1858 Uprising, variously known as the first war of independence, the Mutiny, and the
   Sepoy Rebellion
 1858 British Raj begins
 1878-1880 Second Afghan War
 1885 Indian National Congress formed
 1893 Durand Line established as boundary between Afghanistan and British India
 1905 Partition of Bengal
 1906 All-India Muslim League founded
 1911 Partition of Bengal annulled
 1919 Montague-Chelmsford Reforms; Third Afghan War
 1935 Government of India Act of 1935
 March 23, 1940 Muslim League adopts Pakistan Resolution

 Pakistan:

The Muslim-majority state of Pakistan occupies an area which was home to some of the earliest human settlements and two of the world's major religions, Hinduism and Buddhism. The modern state was born out of the partition of the Indian sub-continent in 1947 and has faced both domestic political upheavals and regional confrontations. Created to meet the demands of Indian Muslims for their own homeland, Pakistan was originally in two parts. The east wing - Present day Bangladesh - is on the Bay of Bengal bordering India and Burma and the west wing - Present-day Pakistan - stretches from the Himalayas down to the Arabian Sea. War with India over the disputed northern territory of Kashmir came shortly after independence the two countries fought again in 1965. The break-up of the two wings came in 1971 when the predominantly Bengali-speaking east wing seceded with help from India. Civilian politics in Pakistan in the last few decades has been tarnished by corruption, inefficiency and confrontations between various institutions. Alternating periods of civilian and military rule have not helped to establish stability. During the 1980s, Pakistan received large amounts of outside aid in the struggle against Soviet forces in neighboring Afghanistan. But with the end of the Cold War, that assistance is not so generous and Pakistan now hosts a large Afghan refugee population. Pakistan came under military rule again in October 1999 after the ousting of a civilian government which had lost a great deal of public support. The coup leader, General Musharraf, has pledged to revive the country's fortunes - but must overcome economic backwardness, corruption, and law and order problems. The latter are a major concern in the southern province of Sindh, beset by ethnic and sectarian strife. Tension also persists with India over Kashmir. This has fuelled international fears of a regional arms race because both Pakistan and India have a nuclear capability.

 August 14, 1947 Partition and independence
   Mohammad Ali Jinnah becomes Governor General
   Liaqat Ali Khan becomes Prime Minister

 September 11, 1948 Jinnah dies; Khwaja Nazimuddin becomes Governor General
 October 1951 Liaqath Ali Khan assassinated; Ghulam Mohammad becomes Governor General
 August 1955 Ghulam Mohammad dies; succeeded by Iskander Mirza
 October 1955 One Unit established, incorporating the four provinces of West Pakistan
 March 23, 1956 Constitution adopted; Mirza becomes President
 October 7, 1958 President Mirza abrogates constitution, declares martial law
 October 27, 1958 Mirza sent into exile; General Mohammad Ayub Khan begins rule
 September 1965 War with India over KASHMIR ISSUE.
 March 25, 1969 Ayub resigns as result of public pressure; General Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan
  assumes power.
 July 1, 1970 One unit abolished, four provinces reestablished in West Pakistan
 December 1970 First general elections; Awami League secures majority in East Pakistam &
   People’s Party in West Pakistan.
 March 25, 1971 East Pakistan attempts to secede; civil war begins
 December 1971 Indo-Pakistani War; East Pakistan becomes the independent state of
   Bangladesh; Yahya resigns; President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto takes charge as the Civilian Martial Law
   Administrator.
 July 2, 1972 Bhutto and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi conclude Simla Agreement
 August 14, 1973 New Constitution goes into effect with Bhutto as Prime Minister
 February 22-25, 1974 Islam Summit Conference held in Lahore
 March 1977 General elections; massive victory by Bhutto's party evokes widespread rioting and
   protest
 July 5, 1977 Marial law proclaimed
 September 1978 Mohammad Zia ul Haq becomes President
 April 4, 1979 Bhutto hanged
 March 4, 1981 Provisional Constitutional Order, which in effect suspended 1973 Constitution
 August 12, 1983 President Zia announces that martial law will be lifted in 1985,
 August 17, 1988 Zia ul Haq died in a air plane crash.
 1988 Ghulam Ishaq Khan elected to be president.

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