A fascinating account of British reporter Willem Marx's travels in Balochistan, a largely forgotten province of Pakistan, along with some spectacular images captured by French photojournalist Marc Wattrelot.

Three thousand years ago, a group of Indo-Iranic tribes (called Balaschik at that time) settled in the northwestern Caspian region of Balashagan. Circumstances forced them to disperse and migrate towards south and eastern parts of Iranian plateau. In medieval times, they finally settled in present Balochistan where they became known as the Baloch. During their long and tortuous journey from Balashagan to Balochistan, the Baloch faced persecutions, deportations, and genocidal acts of various Persian, Arab and other regional powers. During 17th century, after dominating Balochistan culturally and politically, the Baloch carved out a nation state (the Khanate of Kalat). In 1839, the British occupied Balochistan and subsequently it was divided into various parts. In the wake of the British withdrawal from India in 1947, Balochistan regained its sovereignty but soon Pakistan occupied it in 1948. The historical account of the Baloch is the story of a pastoralist nomadic people from ancient times to mid-twentieth century. The author outlines the origin of the Baloch state and its variegated history of survival against powerful neighbors such as the Persians, the British and finally, Pakistan. This fascinating research work discovers the background of the long drawn-out conflict between the Baloch and Pakistan and Iranian states.

Balochistan, Pakistan's largest province, is a complex region fraught with conflict and hostility, ranging from an enduring insurgency and sectarian violence to terror strikes and appalling human rights violations. In his third book on Pakistan, Tilak Devasher analyses why Balochistan is such a festering sore for Pakistan. With his keen understanding of the region, he traces the roots of the deep-seated Baloch alienation to the princely state of Kalat's forced accession to Pakistan in 1948. This alienation has been further solidified by the state's rampant exploitation of the province, leading to massive socio-economic deprivation. Is the Baloch insurgency threatening the integrity of Pakistan? What is the likelihood of an independent Balochistan? Has the situation in the province become irretrievable for Pakistan? Is there a meeting ground between the mutually opposing narratives of the Pakistan state and the Baloch nationalists?Devasher examines these issues with a clear and objective mind backed by meticulous research that goes to the heart of the Baloch conundrum.

Remotely Colonial is a monograph that examines tribalism and nationalism as historical processes in Kalat, which is today incorporated in the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Kalat was 'remotely colonial' in two ways. It was located on the far reaches of the Indian Empire, and British interests were geostrategic rather than economic. The British designated Kalat a native state, but proceeded to marginalize the ruler in favour of sardars (chiefs) and tribal governance through jirga (tribal court) deliberations. This led to tensions between local officials dealing with events on the ground and the central government, which was determined that the facade of Kalat State be maintained. Colonial subject status - tribal, client or British Protected Subject - determined rights and obligations. The fragmentation of subjecthood produced a situation in which Kalat State became a polity with situationally defined subjects. Although Kalat State ceased to exist in 1955, its colonial structures persist today. Sardars and jirgas have become signifiers of entrenched tradition, a tribal 'other' of the national state. This is a convenient image for the Pakistani government, enabling blame for present conditions to be pinned on the tribal sector, deflecting attention away from the state's failure to provide basic services.

The Great Game for Central Asia led to British involvement in Balochistan, a sparsely-populated area in Pakistan, mostly desert and mountain, and containing the Bolan Pass, the southern counter- part of the more famous Khyber. It occupies a position of great strategic importance between Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and the Arabian Sea. Heathcote's book is a history of the Khanate of Kalat and of British operations against the Baloch hill tribes who raided frontier settlements and the Bolan caravans. Its themes include rivalry between British officials in Sind and the Punjab, high profile disputes between British politicians over frontier policy and organization, and the British occupation of Quetta, guardian city of the Bolan, in the run-up to the Second Afghan War. Among the many strong characters in this story is Sir Robert Sandeman, hitherto hailed as "the peaceful conqueror of Balochistan," now revealed as a ruthless careerist, whose personal ambitions led to the fragmentation of the country under British domination. The closing chapter summarizes subsequent events up to modern times, in which the Baloch have maintained a long-running struggle for greater autonomy within Pakistan.

Greater Balochistan region was remotely located far away from Kingdom of the Persia in the west and equally at a distance from Indian princely states in the east. In present time Balochistan, a part of Greater Balochistan is now disputed remote territory, illegally annexed by Pakistan, lies between Sindh province of Pakistan and the western international border of Iran. The whole region was populated most heavily by ethnic Baloch people and thus named this region Balochistan. Geopolitical developments in the area, divided Greater Balochistan into three separate countries. This book is mainly focusing on present Balochistan, the region under the occupation of Pakistan. Book describes the history, culture, and Baloch people’s suffering from the last seven decades pain, atrocity and oppressions that Pakistan has given them to suppress their voice. A voice which wants to save the Baloch culture, people and homeland from Pakistan’s army and its leadership.

Travels in Beloochistan and Sinde is a first-hand account of a journey taken in 1810-11 through parts of present-day India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and Iraq. The author, Henry Pottinger (1789-1856), was a lieutenant in the East India Company who, along with a friend and fellow officer, Captain Charles Christie, volunteered to undertake a mission to the region between India and Persia (present-day Iran), about which the East India Company at that time had little knowledge. The two men journeyed from Bombay (present-day Mumbai) to Sind (present-day southeast Pakistan) from where, disguised as Indians, they traveled overland to Kalat. They were quickly recognized as Europeans, but they were able to continue their journey to Nushki, near the present-day border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. There the men separated. Pottinger continued westward to Persia, through Kerman to Shiraz and Isfahan. Christie traveled north from Nushki into Afghanistan, through Helmand to Herat and from there into Persia to Yazd and Isfahan, where he rejoined Pottinger. Christie was directed to remain in Persia, where in 1812 he was killed in a Russian attack. Pottinger returned to Bombay via Baghdad and Basra. The book is in two parts. The first is a detailed account of Pottinger's journey, with observations on climate, terrain, soil, plants and animals, peoples and tribes, customs, religion, and popular beliefs. The second is an introduction to the history and geography of the provinces of Baluchistan and Sind. An appendix reproduces part of the journal kept by Christie on his travels through Afghanistan. The book contains one colored illustration at the front and a large fold-out map after the end of the text. Pottinger went on to have a distinguished career with the East India Company and the British government. In April 1843 he was appointed the first British governor of Hong Kong.