Ziarat (
and ps, ) is a city in the
Ziarat District situated in the
Balochistan
Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastl ...
. It is
from the capital city of Eastern Balochistan
Quetta
Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه) is the tenth most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in south-west of the country close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is the capital of the ...
.
It was established as a district on 1st July 1986, before then it was part of
Sibi
Sibi ( Sindhi: سيوي ur, ) is a city situated in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. The city is the headquarters of the district and tehsil of the same name.
Etymology
The origin of the town's name is attributed to Rani Sewi, a Hindu ...
district. The
Quaid-e-Azam Residency is in the valley, where
Quaid-e-Azam
Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
(the founder of Pakistan) spent a few of his most memorable days.
History
On 29 October 2008, at around 4 am, Ziarat and surrounding areas were struck by an
earthquake doublet. The first tremor, 6.2
magnitude, lasted a couple of seconds, and was followed by a magnitude-6.4 tremor that lasted almost 30 seconds, destroying many mud houses and several government buildings. Neighbouring villages were also badly affected by the earthquake. More than 200 people were killed, and over 50,000 were left homeless.
Landslide
Landslides, also known as landslips, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, deep-seated slope failures, mudflows, and debris flows. Landslides occur in a variety of environments, ...
s cut off many roads, making the area less accessible to emergency responders. Pakistani military helicopters were used to reach mountainous and remote locations.
Geography
Ziarat is surrounded by the lush green
Ziarat Junip