Sukkur

Sukkur (Urdu:سکھر, Sindhi:سکر) is the third largest city of Sindh province, situated on the west bank of Indus River (Pakistan) in Sukkur District. When Arabs invaded Sukkur (Sindh) in the 10th century, they found an extreme climate (hot and cold), and called it Saqar, which means intense. Sukkur is nicknamed Darya Dino (درياءَ ڏنو ,meaning the gift of river), as without the Indus the would be a desert.

Geography & climate

The district of Sukkur (whose name is derived from its head quarter Sukkur city) covers an area of 5,165 square kilometres. Geographically it is spanned from 27°05' to 28°02' north latitudes and from 68°47' to 69°43' east longitudes. The city of Sukkur is located at an altitude of 220 feet (67 m) from sea level, having terrestrial coordinates 68°52' east and 27°42' north. It is also the narrowest point of the lower Indus course.

Sukkur district shares northern border with Shikarpur and (recently constituted) Kashmore districts. Ghotki is located on the north-eastern side while Khairpur on the south. Sukkur also shares its border with India (Jaisalmer, Rajasthan). Sukkur is also connected by road air with all major cities of Pakistan.>>>More Details

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Tunnel found in Jahaz Haveli

A tunnel has been found in the Jahaz Haveli of Diwan Todar Mal here. The tunnel runs from ruins of the haveli to a well in fields nearby.

SGPC president Avtar Singh said the tunnel was found recently and after taking the haveli from the Punjab Virasat Charitable Trust, barbed wire had been put around it.

Pictures from a book were being matched with the haveli after which restoration would start, he added. SGPC members, scholars and persons associated with the restoration work would meet on May 23, said Avtar Singh.

A four-member committee formed to look after the restoration has been expanded to eight members.>>>More Details

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 Once upon a time Legends and ruins of Rawalpindi

Ancient buildings have been made commercial plazas and those left are in dilapidated condition as no serious attempt was ever made to preserve this cultural heritage.

Haveli of the Raja of Poonch in Namakmandi was pulled down a few years ago for construction of new shops. Nirankari sect of the Sikhs originated in Rawalpindi, but unfortunately upper storey of the Nirankari Darbar, their headquarters, has been without a roof for years.

Once upon a time, Bagh Sardaran housed Hardit Sigh Library and a “Janj Ghar” to accommodate marriages of Sikh community. Today, office of a special branch of the Intelligence Bureau, Punjab, and many other shabby structures have occupied historical grounds of this Bagh.

In the narrow streets of Bhabra Bazaar stands once majestic haveli of Rai Bahadur Sujan Singh. Built in 1893, walls of this haveli have started developing cracks. It was residence and a museum of art objects belonging to Sujan Singh family. All that is left of the building are empty rooms, in which various government offices have been set. It has been a camp for Kashmiri refugees.

There was a plan to transform it into Dr AQ Khan Science College for Girls, but it was changed for various reasons. Physical condition of the haveli is bad while its all electric fittings and decorative items were pulled out and sold by the Kashmiri refugees..>>>More Detail

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 Today History - Pope pleads for Muslim, Christian forgiveness

DAMASCUS, Syria -- Pope John Paul II has become the first pontiff to enter a mosque during his groundbreaking pilgrimage to Syria.

He marked the historic event by issuing a plea for Christians and Muslims to forgive each other for the past.

Speaking inside the Great Omayyad mosque in Damascus, he also said religious conviction was never a justification for violence.

"For all the times that Muslims and Christians have offended one another, we need to seek forgiveness from the Almighty and to offer each other forgiveness," he said in his address to Muslim leaders, including the Grand Mufti of Syria.

Better mutual understanding will surely lead...to a new way of presenting our two religions, not in opposition as has happened too often in the past, but in partnership for the good of the human family."

"Never more communities in conflict," he said in the mosque, which contains a memorial to St John the Baptist. Outside lies the tomb of Saladin, who drove out the Crusaders.

But despite the Pope's appeal, Syria and Israel attacked each other in statements surrounding the Pope's.>>>More Detail