GILGIT is an administrative territory of Pakistan – the northern larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and between India and China since 1959. It borders Azad Kashmir to the south, the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the west, the Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan to the north, the Xinjiang region of China to the east and northeast, and the Indian-administered union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to the southeast.
Area 72,971 km2 and highly mountainous. Population 1.8 million in 2015. Its capital city is Gilgit (pop 216,760). The economy is dominated by agriculture and tourism. Home to five of the 14 eight-thousanders, including K2, and fifty mountain peaks above 7,000 metres (23,000 ft). Three of the world’s longest glaciers outside of Earth’s polar regions are found in Gilgit-Baltistan. The main tourism activities are trekking and mountaineering,
HISTORY
Ancient Buddhist rock carvings are everywhere, especially in the Passu village of Hunza. Tibetans preceded the Balti people of Baltistan. Today Baltistan bears similarity to Ladakh physically and culturally (although not in religion). Dards are found mainly in the western areas and are the Shina-speaking peoples of Gilgit, Chilas, Astore and Diamir, while in Hunza, Burushaski and Khowar speakers predominate.
Between 399 and 414, the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Faxian visited Gilgit-Baltistan, and between 627 and 645, the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Xuanzang travelled through on his pilgrimage to India.
The region was contested by Islamic caliphates Chinese and Tibetan forces. By at least 719/720 Buddhism was practised in Baltistan, and Sanskrit was the written language.
In the 14th century, Islam was introduced in Baltistan. Mughal architecture, literature. The population in Gilgit perceived itself as ethnically different from Kashmiris.
After Pakistan’s independence, Jammu and Kashmir initially remained independent. In 1947, tribal militias backed by Pakistan crossed the border. Pro-Pakistan sentiments were intense and their anti-Kashmiri sentiments were also clear. The people of Gilgit, Chilas, Koh Ghizr, Ishkoman, Yasin, Punial, Hunza and Nagar joined Pakistan by choice. Captured Skardu in 1948. Gilgit-Baltistan, along with the western districts that came to be called Azad Kashmir, has remained under the control of Pakistan ever since.
From then until the 1990s, Gilgit-Baltistan was governed by colonial-era who treated tribal people as “barbaric and uncivilized,” levying collective fines and punishments. People had no right to legal representation or appeal. Had to obtain prior permission from the police to travel anywhere. The people of Gilgit-Baltistan were deprived of rights enjoyed by citizens of Pakistan and Azad Kashmir.
In 1984 the territory’s importance increased with the Karakoram Highway. Facilitated education and political activity.
1988 Gilgit Massacre, groups of Islamist Sunnis slaughtered hundreds of local Shias. The people of Gilgit-Baltistan finally merged into Pakistan in 2020.
Currently, Gilgit-Baltistan is neither a province nor a state. Divided into Baltistan, Diamer and Gilgit. The principal administrative centers are the towns of Gilgit and Skardu.
GEOGRAPHY & CLIMATE
The region is home to some of the world’s highest mountain ranges. The main ranges are the Karakoram and the western Himalayas. The Pamir Mountains are to the north, and the Hindu Kush lies to the west. Gilgit-Baltistan is home to all five of Pakistan’s “eight-thousanders” including K2 (Mount Godwin-Austen) and Nanga Parbat, the latter being one of the most feared mountains in the world. Also more than fifty peaks above 7,000 metres (23,000 ft). Gilgit and Skardu are the two main hubs for expeditions to those mountains.
Three of the world’s longest glaciers outside the polar regions are found in Gilgit-Baltistan: the Biafo Glacier, the Baltoro Glacier, and the Batura Glacier. There are, in addition, several high-altitude lakes.
The Deosai Plains above the tree line is the second-highest plateau in the world after Tibet, at 4,115 metres (13,501 ft). The plateau lies east of Astore, south of Skardu and west of Ladakh. Between September and May, Deosai is snow-bound
Rock art and petroglyphs. There are more than 50,000 pieces of rock art (petroglyphs) and inscriptions all along the Karakoram Highway, concentrated at ten major sites between Hunza and Shatial. The carvings were left by invaders, traders, and pilgrims who passed along the trade route, as well as by locals. The earliest date back to between 5000 and 1000 BCE, showing single animals, triangular men and hunting scenes in which the animals are larger than the hunters. Produced with stone tools and are covered with a thick patina. Many of these carvings and inscriptions will be inundated and/or destroyed when the planned Basha-Diamir dam is built and the Karakoram Highway is widened.
Climate. varies from region to region. Eastern is moist and going to the west toward Karakoram and Hindu Kush is drier. Gilgit and Chilas are very hot and in the valleys of Astore, Khaplu, Yasin, Hunza and Nagar are cold even in the summer. Floods are common in August.
ECONOMY. A traditional trade route, the historic Silk Road. Agricultural products are wheat, corn (maize), barley, and fruits. Tourism is mostly in trekking and mountaineering.
2009 7,000-megawatt dam in Gilgit-Baltisan at Bunji in the Astore District.
Mountaineering. More than 20 peaks over 6,100 metres (20,000 ft), including K-2 the second highest mountain on Earth, Masherbrum (K1), Broad Peak, Hidden Peak, Gasherbrum II, Gasherbrum IV, and Chogolisa, situated in Khaplu Valley.
Tourism. Gilgit Baltistan is the capital of tourism in Pakistan – mountains, lakes, glaciers and valleys, landmarks, culture, history and people. K2 Basecamp, Deosai, Naltar, Fairy Meadows Bagrot Valley and Hushe Valley are common places to visit.
Transport
Karakoram Highway (KKH) was completed in 1978. Rawalpindi / Islamabad to Gilgit 20-24 hours.
Northern Areas Transport Corporation (NATCO) bus service to the two hubs and several other popular destinations, lakes, and glaciers in the area. Landslides on the Karakoram Highway are very common.
The Karakoram Highway connects Gilgit to Tashkurgan Town, Kashgar, China via Sust, the customs and health-inspection post on the Gilgit-Baltistan side, and the Khunjerab Pass, the highest paved international border crossing in the world at 4,693 metres (15,397 ft).
In 2006, a thrice-weekly bus service began across the boundary from Gilgit to Kashgar and road-widening work would begin at 600 kilometres (370 mi) of the Karakoram Highway. There would also be one daily bus in each direction between the Sust and Taxkorgan border areas.
Pakistan International Airlines PIA to Gilgit, Skardu and Islamabad.
DEMOGRAPHY
Population 1,492,924 (2017). 14% urban. The fertility rate is 4.7 children per woman, which is the highest in Pakistan.
The population has many diverse linguistic, ethnic, and religious sects, due in part to the many isolated valleys separated by some of the world’s highest mountains. The ethnic groups include Shins, Yashkuns, Kashmiris, Kashgaris, Pamiris, Pathans, and Kohistanis. Many live in Punjab and Karachi. The literacy rate 72%. Gilgit District – 330,000 and Hunza District – 50,000.
Languages – multilingual with Urdu as the national and official language. English is co-official and also used in education.
Religion. 100% Muslim. Only Shia-plurality area in an otherwise Sunni-dominant Pakistan. Skardu is Shia, and Diamir and Astore are Sunni. Gilgit, Hunza and Nagar districts are a mix of all of these sects. Shia Ismaili women have high rates of contraceptive usage and low fertility rates; Sunni women in rural areas, have low rates of contraceptive usage and high fertility rates.
Sports – Polo, football, cricket, volleyball Samina Baig from Hunza Valley is the only Pakistani woman and the third Pakistani to climb Mount Everest and also the youngest Muslim woman to climb Everest. Hassan Sadpara from Skardu climbed six eight-thousanders.