Geography Important Facts Revision: Pakistan and World

Geography questions appear in almost every government job test, from Punjab Police and FIA to PPSC, FPSC and NTS. This revision sheet collects the facts that are asked again and again, in short lists and tables you can read in one sitting. After reading, test yourself with our Geography MCQs and the Daily Quiz.

Pakistan at a Glance

Pakistan has four provinces, two administrative regions (Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu & Kashmir) and the Islamabad Capital Territory. It shares borders with four countries: Afghanistan, China, India and Iran. In the south it has a coastline on the Arabian Sea.

Province / Region	Capital
Punjab	Lahore
Sindh	Karachi
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Peshawar
Balochistan	Quetta
Gilgit-Baltistan	Gilgit
Azad Jammu & Kashmir	Muzaffarabad

• Balochistan is the largest province by area.
• Punjab is the largest province by population.
• Pakistan's border with China is crossed at the Khunjerab Pass.
• Pakistan's border with Afghanistan is called the Durand Line.

Mountains and Peaks

Three great mountain systems meet in northern Pakistan: the Himalayas, the Karakoram and the Hindu Kush.

Peak	Height (approx.)	Note
K2	8,611 m	Highest in Pakistan, second highest in the world
Nanga Parbat	8,126 m	Called the "Killer Mountain"
Gasherbrum I	8,080 m	Karakoram
Broad Peak	8,051 m	Karakoram
Gasherbrum II	8,035 m	Karakoram

Pakistan is home to five of the world's fourteen peaks above 8,000 metres. The highest mountain in the world is Mount Everest, which lies in the Himalayas on the Nepal-China border.

Rivers and Dams

• The Indus is the longest river of Pakistan and flows from the Tibetan plateau to the Arabian Sea.
• The main eastern and central rivers are the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej. The Kabul River joins the Indus from the west.
• Tarbela Dam is on the Indus and Mangla Dam is on the Jhelum.
• Sukkur Barrage is on the Indus in Sindh.
• Manchar Lake in Sindh is known as the largest freshwater lake of Pakistan.

Deserts, Passes and Lakes

• Thar Desert: south-eastern Sindh, extending into India.
• Cholistan Desert: southern Punjab near Bahawalpur.
• Kharan Desert: Balochistan.
• Khyber Pass: connects Peshawar with Afghanistan.
• Bolan Pass: near Quetta, a historic route to Afghanistan.
• Khunjerab Pass: at about 4,700 metres, the border crossing on the Karakoram Highway to China.
• Deosai Plains: a high plateau in Gilgit-Baltistan.
• Saif-ul-Malook: a famous lake in the Kaghan Valley.

Ports and Coast

Pakistan's main seaports are Karachi, Port Qasim and Gwadar. Gwadar, in Balochistan, is a deep-sea port linked with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

World Geography: High-Yield Facts

Topic	Answer
Largest continent	Asia
Smallest continent	Australia
Largest ocean	Pacific Ocean
Smallest ocean	Arctic Ocean
Longest river of the world	Nile
River with the largest volume of water	Amazon
Largest hot desert	Sahara
Largest country by area	Russia
Largest island	Greenland
Deepest lake	Lake Baikal
Deepest point of the oceans	Mariana Trench

Some more useful points:

• The Equator is at 0° latitude and divides the Earth into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
• The Tropic of Cancer is at about 23.5° North and the Tropic of Capricorn at about 23.5° South.
• The Prime Meridian (0° longitude) passes through Greenwich, London.
• The International Date Line lies roughly along 180° longitude.

Important Straits and Canals

Water passage	Connects
Strait of Hormuz	Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman
Strait of Gibraltar	Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea
Bosphorus	Black Sea and Sea of Marmara (Turkey)
Suez Canal	Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea (Egypt)
Panama Canal	Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean
Bering Strait	Separates Asia and North America

Exam Tips

• Learn "first, largest, longest, highest" lists; they give the most direct questions.
• Link each landmark to a country and a river or sea, for example Baghdad with the Tigris.
• Do not mix up the longest river (Nile) and the river with the largest volume (Amazon).
• Revise this sheet together with Largest, Longest and Highest in Pakistan and Pakistan Studies MCQs.
• Take a few timed mock questions every day on the Daily Quiz to check retention.

Geography is one of the easiest sections to score full marks in, because the question pool is limited and the facts do not change often. Revise this page every few days and the answers will stay with you.