The Soan River ( ur, ), also referred to as the Swan, Sawan, or Sohan, is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Location and geography

The Soan River is a stream in the

Pothohar The Pothohar Plateau ( ur, ) is a plateau in north-eastern Pakistan, located between Indus River and the Jhelum River, forming the northern part of Punjab. Geography Potohar Plateau is bounded on the east by the Jhelum River, on the west by the ...

or North Punjab region of Pakistan, and drains much of the water of

. It starts near the small village of Bun in the foothills of

Patriata Patriata also known as New Murree is a hill station in northern Punjab, Pakistan. It is situated south-east of Murree hill. Patriata is located in Murree Tehsil which is a subdivision of Murree District. It is the highest point in the area and ...

and

Murree Murree ( Punjabi, Urdu: مری) is a mountain resort city, located in the Galyat region of the Pir Panjal Range, within the Muree District of Punjab, Pakistan. It forms the outskirts of the Islamabad-Rawalpindi metropolitan area, and is about ...

and provides water to the

Simly Dam Simly Dam is an high earthen embankment dam on the Soan River, east of Islamabad and Rawalpindi in Rawalpindi District, Punjab, Pakistan. It is the largest reservoir of drinking water to people living in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. Th ...

, which is a water reservoir for

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...

. Near

Pharwala Pharwala Fort ( ur, ) is a 15th-century fort located about 40 km from Rawalpindi in Punjab, Pakistan. The fort is naturally defended by one side by a small Himalayan range and the other by the Swaan River. History The fort was originally ...

Fort, it cuts through a high mountain range at a location called Soan Cut. As streams do not typically form across mountains of this height, it is likely that the Soan was there before the formation of this range. Ling stream, following a relatively long course through Lehtrar and

Kahuta Kahuta ( Punjabi, Urdu: کہوٹہ) is a census-designated city and tehsil in the Rawalpindi District of Punjab Province, Pakistan. The population of the Kahuta Tehsil is approximately 220,576 at the 2017 census. Kahuta is the home to the Kahut ...

, joins the Soan near

Sihala Sihala is a town and union council located in Islamabad Capital Territory, Pakistan, with a population of just over 25000. It is geographically situated on Kahuta Road and Islamabad Expressway. Sihala connects Rawalpindi, Punjab to Azad Kashmir ...

on the southern side of Village

Gagri Gagri is a village in the Sihala union council of the Islamabad Capital Territory in Pakistan. The village is divided into eight : Gagri Mirzian, Gagri Jatal, Dhoke Shian, Pind Gagri, Dhoke Rajput, Hussain Abad (Dhoke Andya). The biggest of these ...

. The

Islamabad Highway The Islamabad Expressway ( ur, ), sometimes Islamabad Highway) is a major north-south expressway in Islamabad, Capital Territory, Pakistan. The expressway provides quick access between Islamabad and Rawalpindi, connecting the national capital wi ...

crosses this stream near

at the

Kak Pul The Kak Pul (Urdu: کاک پل) (preferred), Kaak Pul or Kaak bridge is a bridge in Islamabad, Pakistan. Location and geography It is built on the Soan River at Islamabad Highway. Soan River is an important stream of the Pothohar region of Pakis ...

bridge. The Ling Stream joins the Soan river just before the Kak Pul. Two other streams, the

Korang River The Korang River is a stream in Punjab, Pakistan. It originates from Murree Hills and flows towards Islamabad. Korang Stream along with some other small streams coming from Margalla Hills have been set to form the artificial Rawal Lake in Islama ...

and the Lai stream, join the Soan just before and after the Soan Bridge, respectively. After following a path along a big curve, the stream reaches the

Kalabagh Kalabagh ( ur, ) is a town and union council of Mianwali District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is part of Isakhel Tehsil. It is located on the western bank of the Indus River. It was the seat of the ''nawab'' of Kalabagh, who lived in ...

proposed Dam Site close to Pirpiyahi where it falls into the

Indus river The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

. There is a railway station by the name of Sohan and a railway bridge close by. The Soan river is more than long. Due to its mountainous course and shallow bed, it is rarely used for irrigation purposes. Chinese rahu,

mahseer Mahseer is the common name used for the genera ''Tor'', ''Neolissochilus'', '' Naziritor'' and '' Parator'' in the family Cyprinidae (carps). The name is, however, more often restricted to members of the genus ''Tor''.Sen TK, Jayaram KC, 1982. Th ...

, snakehead, balm, and

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

species are the main inhabitants of the river, including many species of turtles and tortoises.

History

The oldest evidence of life in Pakistan has been found in the Soan River valley ruled by the Sainswal tribe. It was here that some of the earliest signs of humans have been discovered during the excavations of prehistoric mounds. Some relics found in the Soan valley area during the excavation process are believed to have originated over 500,000 years ago, during the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with t ...

Conservation status

The excavation sites have been minimally conserved, leading to their risk of being damaged by both human activities and environmental causes. The marine life of the river are currently endangered due to drainage of chemicals of the Sihala Industrial State and effluent water of

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

city into it.

References

External links

Photo of fossils found in Soan valley
{{Coord, 33, 01, 19, N, 71, 43, 19, E, display=title, region:PK_type:river Rivers of Punjab (Pakistan) Rigvedic rivers Tributaries of the Indus River Rivers of Pakistan

Location and geography

History

Conservation status

See also

References

External links