A blessed country.

• Author: Shaikh, Nazir Ahmed
• Position: Islamic Republic of Pakistan - Country overview

Byline: Nazir Ahmed Shaikh

"We have undoubtedly achieved Pakistan, and that too without bloody war, practically peacefully, by moral and intellectual force, and with the power of the pen, which is no less mighty than that of the sword and so our righteous cause has triumphed.

Are we now going to besmear and tarnish this greatest achievement for which there is no parallel in the history of the world? Pakistan is now a fait accompli and it can never be undone, besides, it was the only just, honourable, and practical solution of the most complex constitutional problem of this great subcontinent. Let us now plan to build and reconstruct and regenerate our great nation..."a Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Pakistan is a blessed country. It has enormous feathers in its cap; which many countries of the world just wish to have. Though the total area of Pakistan is only 796,095 square kilometers (which includes 25,220 sq km of sea), it has everything from rivers, plains, mountains, forests and even sea. There are many countries quite bigger in size than Pakistan, they don't have these blessings of Allah.

Kazakhstan's total area is 2,724,900 sq km, sixth largest is the world but doesn't have any sea. Likewise, Mongolia which has an area 1,566,500 km, does not have accessibility to sea. Denmark, Latvia, Belarus, Lithuania, Kuwait and many others don't have mountain. Whereas Pakistan has mountains as high as 8,611 meters.

This is Allah's blessing that Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the world's sixth-most populous country with a population of more than 212 million people now. It is the 36th-largest country in the world in terms of area, covering 796,095 sq km (307,374 sq mi.) slightly greater than France and the United Kingdom put together.

Following are some interesting facts, which are unique with our beloved motherland:

* Pakistan is the world's first Islamic country to attain nuclear power.

* Pakistan has the highest paved international road - The Karakoram Highway (KKH).

* Pakistan has the largest canal-based irrigation system in the world.

* Islamabad, Pakistan is ranked the second most beautiful capital in the world.

* Pakistan has the world's largest ambulance network. Pakistan's Edhi Foundation, which is also listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, operates the network.

* The highest batting partnership formed by two players playing in their first Test matches in the sport of cricket is 249 runs by Khalid...