Map of Baluchistan from The Imperial Gazetteer of India (1907-1909)

Las Bela () was a

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj, British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, ...

in a subsidiary alliance with British India (later a princely state of Pakistan) which existed until 1955. The state occupied an area of in the extreme southeast of the Balochistan region, with an extensive coastline on the Arabian Sea to the south. Las Bela was bordered by the princely states of Kalat and

Makran Makran ( fa, مكران), mentioned in some sources as Mecran and Mokrān, is the coastal region of Baluchistan. It is a semi-desert coastal strip in Balochistan, in Pakistan and Iran, along the coast of the Gulf of Oman. It extends westwards, ...

to the north and west. To the east lay the province of Sind and to the southeast lay the

Federal Capital Territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

around the city of Karachi.

History

The State of Las Bela was founded in 1742 by Jam Ali Khan I. His descendants ruled Las Bela until 1955 when the state became part of West Pakistan. The statement of Ghulam Qadir Khan the last Jam of Las Bela on signing the accession was: For a period of three years between 3 October 1952 and 14 October 1955, Las Bela was part of the Baluchistan States Union but retained internal autonomy. In 1955, Las Bela was incorporated into the new province of West Pakistan and became part of Kalat division. In 1960, the area of Las Bela was detached from Kalat division and merged with the former Federal Capital Territory to form the division of Karachi-Bela. When the provincial system was changed in 1970, Las Bela became part of the new province of Balochistan.

Demographics

The main ethnic groups in Las Bela were

Baloch Baloch, also spelled Baloch, Beluch and in other ways, may refer to: * Baloch people, an ethnic group of Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan * Baluch, a small itinerant community of Afghanistan * Balouch, Azad Kashmir, a town in Pakistan * Baloch (s ...

. The population was mainly

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

Balochs but there was a small population of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

s. There were also nomadic Lasi people near the Sindh border.

Geography and climate

Las Bela has a hot, dry tropical desert climate. It is only a few degrees north of the Tropic of Cancer. The sea breezes though make the weather less extreme than inland Balochistan, where temperatures can reach in the summer.

Rulers

The hereditary rulers of Las Bela were styled as Jam Sahib. The Samma Dynasty took the title of Jam, the local equivalent of "King" or "Sultan". Prominent members of the family after the end of the princely state included: *

Jam Ghulam Qadir Khan Jam Mir Ghulam Qadir Khan Korejo ( Urdu: جام غلام قادرخان عالياني) was the 11th Jam of Lasbela who also served as the 2nd Chief Minister of Balochistan. He belonged to Koreja Family of the Samma tribe who ruled over Sindh. ...

former Chief Minister of Balochistan province. * Jam Mohammad Yousaf former Chief Minister of Balochistan province. *

Jam Ali Akbar Jam Ali Akber ( Urdu) شهزاده جام علي اكبر خان belongs to the Lasbela royal house and is the former Provincial Minister of Balochistan Province. He has been a member of the Provincial Assembly of Balochistan twice. See also ...

former Provincial Minister of Balochistan province. *

Jam Kamal Khan Jam Mir Kamal Khan Alyani (; born 1 January 1970) is a Pakistani politician who served as the 16th Chief Minister of Balochistan, between August 2018 and October 2021. He has been a member of the Provincial Assembly of Balochistan since Augus ...

Former chief minister of Balochistan and speaker of provincial assembley of Balochistan.

References

External links

The Government of Balochistan
{{Princely states of Pakistan Balochistan Princely states of Pakistan Princely states of India Muslim princely states of India * Lasbela District 1742 establishments in India 1955 disestablishments in Pakistan