The administrative units of Pakistan comprise four provinces, one federal territory, and two disputed territories: the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan; the Islamabad Capital Territory; and the administrative territories of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit–Baltistan. As part of the Kashmir conflict with neighbouring India, Pakistan has also claimed sovereignty over the Indian-controlled territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh since the First Kashmir War of 1947–1948, but has never exercised administrative authority over either region. All of Pakistan's provinces and territories are subdivided into divisions, which are further subdivided into districts, and then tehsils, which are again further subdivided into union councils.
The Karakoram Highway is a 1,300 km (810 mi) national highway which extends from Hasan Abdal in the Punjab province of Pakistan to the Khunjerab Pass in Gilgit-Baltistan, where it crosses into China and becomes China National Highway 314. The highway connects the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa plus Gilgit-Baltistan with China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The highway is a popular tourist attraction and is one of the highest paved roads in the world, passing through the Karakoram mountain range, at 36°51′00″N75°25′40″E at maximum elevation of 4,714 m (15,466 ft) near Khunjerab Pass. Due to its high elevation and the difficult conditions under which it was constructed, it is often referred to as the Eighth Wonder of the World. The highway is also a part of the Asian Highway AH4.
Chitral District was the largest district in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, covering an area of 14,850 km², before splitting into Upper Chitral District and Lower Chitral District in 2018. Part of the Malakand Division, it is the northernmost district of Pakistan. It shares a border with Gilgit-Baltistan to the east, with Kunar, Badakshan and Nuristan provinces of Afghanistan to the north and west, and with the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa districts of Swat and Dir to the south. A narrow strip of Wakhan Corridor separates Chitral from Tajikistan in the north.
Abdul Hamid Khan is the chairman of the Balawaristan National Front (BNF-H), a sub-nationalist organisation. He founded the Balawaristan National Front Hameed Group (BNF-H), which sought autonomy for Gilgit-Baltistan and opposed the construction of hydroelectric dams there. BNF-H was founded in 1995 by Abdul Hamid. In 1999, Abdul Hameed Khan left Pakistan. He spent 20 years living in India and Belgium. However, after spending 20 years living abroad, Abdul Hamid unconditionally surrendered to Pakistani security officials on 8 February 2019. His organisation, BNF-H, was banned by National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA) on 26 February 2019.
The Hunza Valley is a mountainous valley in the northern part of the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan, formed by the Hunza River, bordering Ishkoman to the northwest, Shigar to the southeast, Afghanistan's Wakhan Corridor to the north, and the Xinjiang region of China to the northeast.
Lieutenant-General Nadeem Ahmad is a retired senior three-star ranking general officer who is famed and widely honored for planning and coordinating the relief and reconstruction non-combatant military operations after the devastating earthquake of October 2005. Securing the appointment as the director of Federal Relief Commission of Pakistan Army, his credentials secured him the directorship of the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA). After serving in the military for nearly 40 years, he was duly appointed as the chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA); his efforts included the successful disaster management and preparations to contain the nationwide 2010 floods and coordinate the rescue operations in the Hunza Valley, Attabad Lake, and the Airblue crash.
Gilgit-Baltistan, formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947, and between India and China from somewhat later. It borders Azad Kashmir to the south, the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the west, the Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan to the north, the Xinjiang region of China, to the east and northeast, and the Indian-administered union territories Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to the southeast.
The Special Communications Organization (SCO) is Pakistani public sector organization operated by MoIT&T. SCO plays a role in providing telecommunication services in Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan to almost 1.7 million people, a quarter of the total population.
The National Disaster Management Authority, is an autonomous and constitutionally established federal authority mandated to deal with the whole spectrum of disasters and their management in the country.
National Disaster Management Authority, abbreviated as NDMA, is an apex Body of Government of India, with a mandate to lay down policies for disaster management. NDMA was established through the Disaster Management Act enacted by the Government of India on 23 December 2005. NDMA is responsible for framing policies, laying down guidelines and best-practices for coordinating with the State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs) to ensure a holistic and distributed approach to disaster management.
The Gilgit−Baltistan Scouts, are a civil armed force of Pakistan, tasked with law enforcement in the nominally autonomous territory of Gilgit-Baltistan and border guard duties. The force was formed in 2003 under the control of the Interior Ministry of Pakistan, but it claims a tradition dating back to the Gilgit Scouts formed during the British Raj era. However, the earlier Scouts unit is now a full infantry regiment of the Pakistan Army (see Northern Light Infantry Regiment, which mostly operates in the same region as the current Scouts.
Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) is a Provincial government organization, which deals with natural or man-made disasters in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan. PDMA's mandate is to engage in activities concerning to all four stages of Disaster Management Spectrum.
National Disaster Management Act, 2010 was passed by Parliament of Pakistan in 2010, it received the assent of the President on 8 December 2010. The Act applies to whole Pakistan including tribal areas of FATA. The Act was passed in backdrop of 2010 Floods in Pakistan and strengthen Disaster Management system.
The Balawaristan National Front, more commonly known as the BNF, is a Pakistani political party of Gilgit-Baltistan. It was founded by Nawaz Khan Naji in 1989. The party calls for Gilgit-Baltistan to be given autonomy while still remaining a part of the federation of Pakistan.
The Supreme Appellate Court Gilgit-Baltistan is the highest court of appeal in the region of Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan. It consists of a Chief Justice and two other Judges. The Court was established in 2009 under Gilgit-Baltistan 2009 and has the similar jurisdiction equal to the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The Permanent Seat of the Court is at Gilgit, but the Court also sits from time to time at Skardu Branch Registry.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority is an agency of the Government of Balochistan to deal with disaster both natural and manmade. The Authority coordinates and collaborates to prevent and minimize damage to life, infrastructure, and environment.
The National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) was the principal body governing the policies and implementation of the national COVID-19 effort of Pakistan. It was formed in April 2020 on the orders of the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan to collate, analyze, and process information received from all provinces, AJK, Gilgit-Baltistan, and the Capital Territory. It also makes recommendations to the National Coordination Committee (NCC), which is headed by the Prime Minister for timely interventions relating to the national COVID-19 response effort.
In 2016 Pakistan experienced higher rainfall than normal (10-20%), especially in the pre-monsoon season. Heavy monsoon rains are common in the region. This led to multiple periods of flooding, landslides, and damage particularly in Northern Pakistan. The Swat River overflowed and multiple landslides occurred around Pakistan including in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu, and Kashmir.
The Civil Armed Forces (CAF) are a group of nine paramilitary, uniformed organisations, separate and distinct from the regular "military" Pakistan Armed Forces. They are responsible for maintaining internal security, helping law enforcement agencies, border control, counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism, riot control, and anti-smuggling under the Ministry of Interior. They frequently operate alongside the Pakistani military in response to natural disasters. They come under the direct command of the Ministry of Defence and the Pakistani military during wartime.
