Makran (Persian: ﻥﺍﺮﮑﻣ ) is the southern region of Balochistan, in Iran and Pakistan along the coast of the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman. The Persian phrase Mahi khoran, (Fish eaters and Ichthyophagoi i.e. Fish eaters in Greek)
which has become the modern word Makran [1]. The narrow coastal plain rises very rapidly into several mountain ranges. The area possesses a very dry climate with very low rainfall. Makran is very sparsely inhabited, with much of the population being concentrated in a string of small ports including Chah Bahar, Gwatar, Jiwani, Gwadar (not to be confused with Gwatar), Pasni, Ormara and many smaller fishing villages. The total length of the coastline is about 1,000 km (of which 750 km is in Pakistan).
The Pakistani government is currently
developing Ormara as a major new naval base and Gwadar as a major new commercial port as well as a new
highway along the entire length of the
coast. These projects have been prompted by the commercial and military bottleneck at Karachi. The new naval base at Ormara
will host about half of the Pakistani Navy, whilst Gwadar is planned to reduce the pressure on the two international ports at
Karachi. The Iranian government did plan to develop Chah Bahar in the 1970's, but the toppling of the Shah put an end to those plans. One of the earliest historical references
to the area is the crossing by the army of Alexander the Great during its return from South Asia, as recorded in the journals of Nearchos. According to
Nearchos, Alexander had wanted to surpass the achievements of Queen
Semiramis and Cyrus the Great, whose
attempts to cross the desert with armieshad ended in disaster. However it has also been suggested it was necessary to take this route to travel in support of the Greek fleet. According to Plutarch, only one quarter of the Alexander's army survived
the journey. From the 15th century onward, the area was ruled by indigenous Zikri families
and sometimes by the Iranian
government. In the late 18th century, the Khan of Kalat is said to have granted sanctuary at Gwadar to one of the claimants for the throne of Muscat. When that claimant became Sultan, he kepthold of Gwadar, installing a governor, who eventually led an army to conquer the city of Chah Bahar some 200 kilometres to the west. The sultanate held onto the Makran coast
throughout the period of British pre-
eminence in South Asia, but eventually
only Gwadar was left in the hands of the sultan. On the formation of Pakistan, Makran became a district within the province of Balochistan, minus an area of 800 km² around Gwadar. The enclave was
finally transferred in 1958 to Pakistani
control as part of the district of Makran.
The entire region has been subdivided
into new smaller districts over the years. The coast of Makran possesses only one island, Astola Island, near Pasni, and several insignificant islets. The coastline
can be divided into an eastern lagoon
coastline and a western embayed
coastline. The main lagoons are Miani Hor and Kalamat Hor. The main bays of the embayed coast are Gwadar West Bay and Gwadar Bay. This latter bay shelters a large mangrove forest and the nesting grounds of endangered turtle species.
