By Dr. Abdul Razak Shaikh,
It’s not every day that you find places in the wilderness that help you make peace with your existence. It is this very yearning for internal calm which makes people, like myself, pack our bags and hit the road.
I believe that with each journey I have undertaken, there is a part of my soul which awaits me at a place I have never visited before. For me, traveling is a way of reconnecting with nature and, most importantly, myself.
My most recent destination, Gorakh Hill was one of the most sublime travel experiences I have had so far.
At an altitude of 5,690 ft in the Kirthar Mountain Range, which is 94 kilometers away from Dadu city, the Gorakh Hill Station is situated on the highest plateau of Sindh. These plateaus are only capable of sustaining nomadic lifestyles, as wildlife here is not very common.
You really want to go on trip but when you look up your schedule you realize there is not much time to spare. And your budget is not looking really good either. Well, there is an answer that is a perfect fit for your situation, a trip to Gorakh Hills.
They dissect the Baluchistan and Sindh provinces. The name of the place Gorakh is derived from the Brahvi language in which, word “Gurgh” means wolf. Regarding this, it is said that Gorakh Hill and its surroundings were the abode of wolves, so for it is called Gurkh and afterword its pronunciation was changed as Gorakh.
Join us on A Fantastic Road Expedition as we Travel to Gorakh Hill Station, one of the Most Beautiful & Coldest Places to be found in Sindh. Hosts Lofty Peaks, Breathtakingly Beautiful Sights, Soothing and Cold Weather, Ample Wildlife and Fresh Water River called Gaaj Nai. The Trip Features Visits to All Significant Places of Gorakh, Hiking, Trekking, BBQ, Folk Music Program, and Accommodation,
It is very attractive to nature-lovers owing to its temperate weather and beautiful surroundings. Gorakh’s elevation gives it a special climate, with sub-zero temperatures during winter and generally below 20 °C in summer, with about 120 mm of average annual rainfall and snowfall in winters.
Gorakh Hill is spread over 2,500 acres (10 km2) but still neglected by the government of Sindh, very slow development of work and needed full attention to make the MUREE of Sindh province. Complete road facility is made and the Tourism department must be activated.
Currently, the Gorakh Hills summit can only be reached with 4×4 vehicles. The last small town before the Gorakh Hill is Wahi Pandi, settled in the foot of the Kirthar range. The road takes mountain turns and ascends slowly at the milestone of 53 km when one enters the Yaroo Pass (In Sindhi: Yaroo Sain Jo Luck).
After crossing this pass 2,500 ft (760 m) above sea level, the journey continues in the mountains and at the milestone 76 km one reaches the base camp of another highest pass of the Kirthar range. It is known as Khanwal Pass (KP) on the elevation of 3,000 ft (910 m) and at the top of the KP, the elevation is 5,000 ft (1,500 m) above sea level. The distance between the KP base camp and the KP top is four kilometers. The four-kilometer journey is too zigzag. After reaching the top of KP, the drive continues to the Gorakh Hilltop, which is the 13 km ahead. At the top of the hill, there is a small rest-house, the only facility so far made available.
Shaddan Shah, as the discoverer of the exact location and height of the highest mountains peak in Sindh, over 7056 feet (2,151 m) high in paying his tribute named it Koh-i-Benazir honoring Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.
Some local folklore says that a Hindu saint of medieval periods, Sri Gorakhnath ji extensively wandered in these hills and region, he had great yogic powers and people followed him, while other lores define him as a Buddhist Yogi, having a following in all the locals, Muslims, and non-Muslim tribes. These are the reason why many places are named after him. There are many other stories about the name Gorakh hill and that it is derived from Sindhi.
Since Gorakh is a Pasturing area, with the difficult track, curvy and dangerous ways, too difficult to reach. The Hill station receives winter snowfall and is among one of the only places in Sindh to have a snowfall in winters. The mountains are completely covered with the blanket of snow in this year also. That is why the government has decided to upgrade this place into a Hill station so that people from the whole province could see snowfall without going far-flung area of other provinces.
The local shepherds, fearing wolves, therefore would have named it, Gorakh, within the background and meaning of the shepherds used Sindhi term of expression. Thus we are correct, in our thinking that Gorakh hill was indeed named within the background and meaning of a definitive term of Sindhi, defining a Sindhi word Gorakh.
Tourism is one of the best sources of revenue for a country and God has blessed Pakistan with such exotic and rare natural beauty, but unfortunately, our government has failed to develop such beautiful places. The Government should take interest and take initiatives to develop Goarakh hill station completely to attract foreign and local tourists by providing fundamental needs and facilities such as wide and straight roads, public transport, 5 Star hotels, motels, chair lifts, zoos, and parks, etc. There is an utmost need for a market like Murree’s Mall Road, a residential area, an educational institute, and a mountain safari. A website containing comprehensive information about the hill is essential. In this way, we can develop our tourism industry and can generate an income of millions of rupees annually.
The Goarakh Hill Development Authority was made in 2013 by passing the bill from Sindh assembly and MNA of the area is the Chairman but still, Goarakh is on the same way and people of the province are waiting for the fully developed. The precious area of Sindh needs the full attention of the PPP government.
