Page:The Imperial Gazetteer of India - Volume 2 (2nd edition).pdf/45

 BALUCHISTAN. is

almost entirely inhabited by Marn's,

plunderers, and

bounded on

is

Bugti's,

35

and other

tribes of Baliich

the north by the Province of Sewestdn

(Seistan). South of these ranges lies the desert country, which touches the Sind frontier in 28° 27' N. lat.

The

rivers of Baluchistan are the Bolan,

Miila in the north



Rodbat, Lora, Shirinab, and

the Habb, Sinamani, Marwar, Nari, Urnach, and

and Gashastan in and the Dasht, Rakshan, Bhado, Gwargo, Nihing, and Mashkhid in the west. The two principal water-courses which drain the Kohistdn portion of Baluchistdn east of Khelat are the rivers Bolan and Mula, the former rising about 60 miles north-east of Khelat, the Purali in the east; the Shadi, Mokula, Bhasul, Ghish,

the

south

Anjira

latter at

of that



city.

(lat.

They both discharge themselves

the former at Dadar, at

28° 19' N., long. 66° 29'

lat.

Kotra near Gandava,

at all seasons a plentiful

which

is

entirely used

They

plains.

e.),

about 45 miles south

into the plains of Kacchi,

29° 28' 51" n., long. 67° 26' lat.

e.,

28° 33' 47" N., long. 67° 26'

and the latter There is E.

supply of clear running water in these streams, for irrigation purposes on issuing into the

up

are subject to dangerous floods from sudden storms in

The two easiest from Central Asia into India take their names from these streams. {See Bolan and Mula.) South of the Mula, the Gaj river issues into the plains, and its waters are also absorbed in cultivation. The Nari issues into the plains near Kajjak, on the north-west of Kachh-Gandava, in lat. 29° 36' N., and long. 68° 2' E. ; ordinarily its water is utilized entirely for cultivation in its course through the Province of Sibi ; but at periods of heavy rains in the mountains it is liable the neighbouring mountains during the rainy season.

and

safest passes

to burst

its

banks, and then

it

inundates immense tracts in the Kachhi

desert to the south.

West of Khelat,

mountain ranges and are of the same nature as those to the eastward, but the ranges are much narrower, more defined, and of a lower altitude. The valleys between them vary from 5 to 15 miles in as far as about 65° 30' e. long., the

have much the same

breadth



strike,

they are quite devoid of trees.

The

water-courses generally

from north to south, and in some instances, during heavy rains, their waters reach the Arabian Sea; but as a general rule they are absorbed long before they reach the coast, partly in cultivation, but principally by the sandy arid nature of the soil and excessive dryness of the atmosphere, due probably to the proximity of the great desert on the north-west of Khardn, which extends to the confines of Persia. This desert is quite impassable in follow the direction of the

summer owing

hills,

to the sand-storms,

utterly to destroy

animal

when the wind

is

so scorching as

life.

Climate, Productions, etc

.

— The

climate of Baluchistan

is

various in the different Provinces, and runs to extremes.

extremely

The

cold