From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ziarat's Minaret and the Juniper Forest

Ziarat is the capital of Ziarat District, Pakistan. It is a famous holiday resort of Balochistan and nearly every trip from Karachi to Quetta stops at Ziarat. Ziarat, literally [an Islamic] shrine, was the summer residence of the chief commissioner of Baluchistan, and sanatorium for the European troops at Quetta: 8850 ft. above the sea and 33 m. by cart-road from the railway. There is a good water supply, and the hills around are well-wooded and picturesque^[1]. Ziarat is also very famous for its juniper trees. The juniper forest in Ziarat is the world's second largest. The junipers are considered to be the real treasure of Ziarat. There are trees in the valley which are more than 7000 years old. In Ziarat a herb called Ephedra sinica is found in abundance from which a chemical called ephedrine is extracted, an important constituent of various medicines, especially cough syrups. When the snow falls in Ziarat's winter the juniper valley is at its most beautiful. In the winter season there is no business but with summer the charm returns. The local dish of Ziarat is "saji" although it is a cultural thing but it has a great taste for everyone. The common languages spoken in the valley are balochi and pashto. More tourists visit the place in summer.

Ziarat is most famous for The Residency where Muhammad Ali Jinnah spent the last days of his life.

The Residency was constructed in 1892. It is an important building, the whole building is actually a wooden structure beautifully designed and has great architectural importance. It was originally meant to be a sanatorium, and it was converted into the summer residence of the Agent of the Governor General. It is now a National Monument. The residency catches the tourists' attention due to its unique location and the wonderful hilly surroundings. The weather is really pleasant during summer time and the local people are hospitable, but in winter the weather is severe and it is more difficult to survive. During summer time the apple and cherry gardens provide a pleasant view for the tourists.

v • d • e Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Pakistan Movement	Fourteen Points of Jinnah  · Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar · Fatima Jinnah  · Lucknow Pact  · 11th August speech · Two-Nation Theory
Personal life	Fatima Jinnah  · Shireen Jinnah  · Rattanbai Petit  · Wazir Mansion  · Jinnah House  · Ziarat · Nusli Wadia  · Dina Wadia  · Ness Wadia  · Neville Wadia
Related	My Brother  · Bagh-e-Jinnah  · Jinnah - The Movie  · Cinnah Caddesi  · Mazar-e-Quaid  · Secular and Nationalist Jinnah  · Sindh-Madrasa-tul-Islam  · Quaid-i-Azam Academy  · Jinnah's People's Memorial Hall

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

This Balochistan location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.