Geography of Pakistan: A Quick Revision Guide
Pakistan's mountain ranges, highest peaks, passes, rivers, dams, deserts and lakes in quick revision tables, with the facts most often asked in tests.
By the World MCQ Forum Editorial Team · 27 October 2026 · 2 min read
Geography of Pakistan questions are almost entirely factual: which range, which river, which province. Organizing the facts into a few tables makes them much quicker to learn and revise.
Mountain ranges and peaks
| Peak | Height | Range | Remember |
|---|---|---|---|
| K2 | 8,611 m | Karakoram | Highest in Pakistan, second in the world |
| Nanga Parbat | 8,126 m | Himalayas | “Killer Mountain”; western end of the Himalayas |
| Tirich Mir | about 7,700 m | Hindu Kush | Highest peak of the Hindu Kush, in Chitral |
Other ranges often asked about: the Salt Range (home to the Khewra Salt Mine), the Sulaiman Range and the Kirthar Range in the west and south.
Mountain passes
| Pass | Connects |
|---|---|
| Khyber Pass | Pakistan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) with Afghanistan |
| Khunjerab Pass | Gilgit-Baltistan with China, on the Karakoram Highway |
| Bolan Pass | Sibi plains with Quetta, in Balochistan |
| Lowari Pass | Chitral with Dir |
Rivers
- The Indus is Pakistan’s longest river. It rises in Tibet near Lake Mansarovar and enters the Arabian Sea near Thatta.
- “Punjab” means land of five waters: Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Beas. The Indus is not one of the five.
- Under the Indus Waters Treaty (1960), brokered by the World Bank, Pakistan received the western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) and India the eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej).
Dams
| Dam | River |
|---|---|
| Tarbela | Indus |
| Mangla | Jhelum |
| Warsak | Kabul River |
Deserts
| Desert | Province |
|---|---|
| Thar | Sindh (Tharparkar; also the Thar coalfield) |
| Cholistan | Punjab (Bahawalpur division) |
| Kharan | Balochistan |
Lakes and plateaus
- Manchar Lake (Sindh) is Pakistan’s largest freshwater lake; Keenjhar Lake is second and supplies water to Karachi.
- Saiful Muluk is in the Kaghan Valley; Attabad Lake in Hunza formed after a 2010 landslide.
- The Deosai Plains in Gilgit-Baltistan are among the highest plateaus in the world.
Provinces and borders
- Balochistan is the largest province by area (about 44%); Punjab is the most populous.
- The Durand Line is the border with Afghanistan; the Radcliffe Line (1947) divided Punjab and Bengal at partition.
- Pakistan Standard Time is UTC+5.
Revision tip
Draw a rough outline map of Pakistan from memory and mark the peaks, passes, rivers and deserts on it. Then check against a real map. Placing facts on a map links them together, and it is far more memorable than reading lists.
When you are ready, test yourself with our Geography of Pakistan MCQs.