Kabul River

The Kabul River enters Pakistan at Durand Line, Thorkham, and flows through Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the regions of Peshawar Valley. It passes through the regions of Shenmaan, Warsak, Mechni, Charsadda, and Nowshehra. It is one of the largest rivers of Pakistan with a total length of 7 hundred kilometers.

The river is a tributary of many other rivers including Kunar River and Bashgal River which flows from the glaciers of China and Chitral.  Swat and Panjkora Rivers are also the tributaries of the Kabul River.

Furthermore, there are a number of dams constructed on the Kabul River in Afghanistan and Pakistan including the dams of Darunta, Surubi, and Naghlu in Afghanistan and Warsak Dam in District Mohmand, Ex-FATA. The article carries all the information about the river including Kabul River Origin.

Kabul River Origin

The water of the river originates from the melting of glaciers of Hindu – Kush, and Sanglakh ranges in the province of Maidan Wardak, Afghanistan. The pass of Unai separates the Kabul River from the Helmand River. Furthermore, the river flows through Kabul where it is called the Kabul River and flows through Jalabad while entering Pakistan in Torkham, Pak – Afghan border.

Moreover, after entering Pakistan, it flows through District Mohmand, Warsak where Warsak Dam is constructed and a Hydro Power Plant of 525 Megawatts is installed. Further, it flows through Mechni which lies at a distance of 15 kilometers from Peshawar followed by Charsadda, Noshehra, and finally joins River Indus in Attock, Punjab.

The etymology of the River

Kubha (Sanskrit Word) is considered to be the old name of this River which is later changed to Kabul. During the campaign of Alexander, the river was called Cophen which is a Latin word that means Coffin while Al – Beruni named the river Ghorwand’s River. The name is given to the river due to its region, Kabul.

Tributaries

Glaciers of the Hindu Kush range in Afghanistan and Chiantar, Chitral melts and form small streams which flow the Valleys of Kunar and Chitral. The streams of Kumar are huge contributors to the river as it forms Kunar River which joins the Kabul River in Jalalabad.

The river of Kunar is formed due to the glaciers of Chitral which melts and forms the river of Mastuj and joins River Bashgal and finally meets river Kabul. Other tributaries of the river are Swat River, Kunar River, Logar River, Alingar River, Bara River, Surkhab River, and Panjsher River which makes it one of the largest rivers of Pakistan.

Hydro-Electric Power Plants

There are a total of 3 dams constructed on the river among which 2 dams are constructed in Afghanistan and one dam is constructed in District Mohmand of KPK, Pakistan. Two Dams of the river Kabul in Afghanistan are given below.

Naghlo Dam

Naghlo Dam is located in district Surobi, Afghanistan which has the capacity to produce 100 Megawatts of electricity.

Darunta Dam

The dam of Darunta is constructed in 1964, in the region of Darunta which is situated at a distance of 7 kilometers from Jalalabad. The total production of the hydroelectric power plant which is made on the river is 11.55 Megawatts.

Kabul River Transportation

There is a huge, road transportation system due to its length of 700 kilometers. There are a number of roads and bridges along the river which facilitates the locals to pass through the river. One of the super bridges made on the river is the Kabul River Bridge constructed on the M-1 Motorway Road which links Peshawar and Charsadda and many other areas near these two regions.

Another bridge is made on the river in Sardaryab which links the regions of Naguman, Daudzai, and Sardheri with District Peshawar. Other bridges include Haji Zai Bridge on River Kabul which links Shabqaddar, Mian Qilla, and other nearest regions with Naguman and then Peshawar.

In addition to that, a bridge near Warsak Dam is constructed which is named as Mechni Pull (Mechni Bridge on Kabul River) which links the regions of Mechni including Kas Kor, Bhai Kor, Dab Kor, Zarif Kor, Kado Kor (Nazuk Kor) and many other areas with district Peshawar.

Kabul River Tourism

There are a number of small attractive sites constructed on the banks of the river in Pakistan, among which Sardaryab is the most famous visiting place. Sardaryab provides fishing, boating, camel-riding, and food facilities.

The cooked fishes are one of the main reason of the people’s visit as there is a huge weight of fishes cooked in the hotel along the bank of the river. Furthermore, Sardaryab also offers Family Park and other entertainment areas where the visitors enjoy every moment.

Sardaryab is one of the economic zones as well as it is considered to be one of the biggest fishing areas on Kabul River which is consumed in the region and sent abroad while adding to the economy of Pakistan.

Floods

The river has become a big reason for flooding during July and August as the temperature reaches its high point and the melting of the glaciers starts melting rapidly which results in flood. In 2005, the river damaged the homes of Bela Mohmanda, Mechni, and other regions including Charsadda and Swabi.

The flood resulted in a huge disaster while killing thousands of people including kids, women, and old people. Furthermore, the cities of Charsadda and Mardan were fully damaged by the flood which resulted in the migration of the peoples of affected areas.

Incidents

There are many incidents recorded by the history among which the flowing and killing of the people are most important as there are hundreds of visitors flown by the river each year while swimming.

One of the attractive sites is near Warsak Dam where thousands of visitors go every year among which hundreds of visitors are flown and killed by the river due to the fast-flowing water of the sea.

Recently, a total of 7 people including a woman and young boys were flown which resulted in the deaths during June – July 2021. The rescue teams founded all of the dead bodies while one of the dead bodies is still missing.

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