The Karoonjhar mountain range is a beautiful tourist place in the Nagarparkar area in Sindh’s Tharparkar district. A rocky area surrounded by sand dunes on three sides, it is spread over 30 square kilometers, at an average altitude of 1,000 feet.

After monsoon rains in the region, the mountain and sand dunes become lush green and attract thousands of tourists. Until a few years ago, however, when road infrastructure was not very good, it was very difficult for tourists to reach here. In the beginning, they mostly used camels as their mode of transport. More recently they’ve been using trucks and dumpers for transportation. Kekro, a mini-truck introduced almost fifty years ago, was the one used initially as it was especially made for the desert region.

The Karoonjhar Mountain has huge deposits of granite, china clay and precious stones of different colors and textures.

Locals say the mountain produces a kilogram of gold every day. Of course, that is not to be taken literally. They use plants and herbs produced on the mountain as medicines for many diseases. They collect these plants and herbs and sell them to the visitors and tourists.

Karoonjhar is not just a mountain, it represents a complete ecosystem. It holds traces of a thousand-year old civilisation, history and culture. Mashkoor Phulkari, a researcher, in his book titled Sarasvati Tehzeeb ain Achro Thar (Sarasvati civilisation and the white Thar desert), says that there are 109 hills in the Karoonjhar mountain range that house over 100 religiously and culturally sacred sites for various faiths. “The area has been very prosperous in the past when Haakro or Sarasvati River used to flow from Yamuna and Sutlej and ended in the Thar desert,” he writes.

Abdul Qadir Junejo mentions the river in his English novel, The Dead River. Citing historians, he says that it was one of the major rivers of the Vedic periods, which dried up around 1900 BC. “The river had played a major role in the nurturing of Indus civilisation,” says Junejo, who mentions many myths, folklore, and historical facts about Sarasvati/Haakro River in his book.

Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai and Shaikh Ayaz, the leading Sindhi poets, have also written many poems about Karoonjhar and Nagarparkar.

In the book Purano Parkar (Old Parkar), Mangha Ram Ojha writes that when the Pandavas, the five brothers namely, Yudhishthira (Or Dharmaraja), Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva – who are the main characters in the epic Mahabharata – were exiled by their cousin Kaurava for 13 years, they spent some period of their exile in Karoonjhar Mountains.

In the mountains, there are some places, including Bheem Pond, Bheem Court, and Arjun Ban, where water flowing from springs makes the mountain range appear magical. Two of those springs, Sardharo and Anchleshwar are well known because many folk stories and myths of Hindu and Jain religions are associated with them.

Karoonjhar is not just a mountain, it represents a complete ecosystem. It holds traces of a thousand-year old civilisation, history and culture.

Punraj Fort and Chandan Fort are named after Punraj Seendhal and Rana Chandan. Chandan Fort was destroyed by the English army in 1859 during the battle with Ranas of Parkar. Ropplo Kolhi, a freedom fighter who had fought against the British also used Karoonjhar Mountains against them.

There is also a 16th Century Jain temple along with the Bohdesdar Mosque, a small marble and limestone structure near the pond embankment built in 1436 AD.

The beauty of this mountain range is being affected by the illegal crushing and cutting of rocks that has been going on for several years.

For years, the government has been trying to extract granite, china clay and precious stones from Karoonjhar Mountain despite opposition from local residents, civil society and cultural rights activists.

It is feared that the mining will destroy some of the sites of historical, religious and cultural importance. It has been proposed that the place should be declared a world heritage site. Some residents of the area have approached Sindh High Court (SHC) for this purpose.

Since 2019, the Hyderabad bench of the court has twice ordered the provincial government to stop mining in the area, and take measures to protect the heritage. An order by SHC’s Justice Sahahudin Panhwar and Justice Amjad Ali Sahito, clearly stated that “we would take no exception to the point that every single heritage needs to be preserved because it is a reflection of our past.”

“Nagarparkar also has a number of religious historical places which have their own histories,” says the order. It concludes that “Life is never complete without culture and heritage because it is one’s identity.”

The court has that excavation at the cost of heritage needs to be stopped. It has directed the government to invite UNESCO experts for the enlistment of Karoonjhar Mountains in World Heritage Sites.

The Sindh government has submitted an initial report in the court, saying that “the Department of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities has already prepared a comprehensive report for the protection and preservation of 24 potential sites in the area of Karoonjhar Mountains.”

The government has not hired experts in archeology and history to study the unique features of the mountains and the sites. The UNESCO has not been contacted.

The government has recently formed a committee, headed by Minister for Mines and Minerals Shabbir Ali Bijarani to formulate a granite mining policy. In a media briefing, the minister said that the Karoonjhar mountains range holds 26 billion tonnes of granite, china clay and precious stones of various colours and types.

He also said that only underground mining will be allowed under the new policy and the landscape, including cultural, religious and historical sites shall be preserved.

Activists for cultural preservation and some local residents have voiced concerns regarding the new policy and demanded a complete ban on mining, including underground mining.

The writer is a   Karachi-based journalist. He tweets @fayaz_naich.