Wadh

Wadh is a town in the Khuzdar District of Balochistan, Pakistan. The population of the town was 48.950 according to the 1998 census. Most of the inhabitants of the sub-district belong to the Mengal tribe. The majority of the people in the area are Muslims, with a small Hindu minority.GeographyWadh is in the mountainous region between the Kalat plateau and the plains of Sindh. The climate is semi-arid, although occasionally subject to flooding, with warm summers and mild winters. Agriculture is a major economic activity, followed by livestock farming.The area of Wadh is rich in mineral resources, with large deposits of barite, chromite, magnesite, manganite. The region where the town lies is also said to be rich in oil and gas, although the tense political situation has inhibited exploitation.Wadh was in Jhalawan state until 1 March 1974, when Wadh was re-defined as a sub-district within the Khuzdar..HistoryThe mountainous area of Khuzdar and particularly Wadh has a turbulent history from earliest times, which continues today.The Mengal people of Khuzdar speak Brahui, a Dravidian language, although most of their neighbors speak Iranian languages. They have retained their distinctive identity while being periodically subjugated to the Arab empire, Balochistan, India, Persia or Afghanistan. The British took control starting in 1839. In 1948 Balochistan became part of Pakistan.