List of Indian States that share border with Pakistan

After the partition of India in 1947, a new country was formed with the name Pakistan. Since 1947, the borders of Pakistan and India have always been a topic of friction and contradiction leading to disputes and the exchange of powerful retaliations. Pakistan shares the western border of India. A few states fall in this area sharing their border with the country. In this article, we will discuss how the Indian states share boundaries with Pakistan in detail.

This Indo-Pak border is one of the most disputed and talked over topics in world politics. Both countries maintained harmony after acquiring independence from the colonial reign of the British Empire. Keep reading to find the latest information regarding this Indo-Pak border and find out the states sharing this border.

States in India sharing Indo-Pak border:

There are three states and two union territories that contribute to the Indo-Pak border. Let us discuss the length and other features of these state borders elaborately.

1.  Jammu and Kashmir (J&K)

Jammu and Kashmir, known as the heaven on earth, is the northernmost state of India. The topographical features of this state are almost hilly as it homes the westernmost part of the Himalayan Ranges and Karakoram Ranges. J&K is also one of the biggest princely states in the Indian subcontinent.

The southwestern border of this union territory falls on the Indo-Pak line of control (LOC). To its east, it is the neighbour China-occupied Tibet. In fact, a part of Kashmir also falls within the Chinese boundaries. To its south, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh lie. The northwestern part of its border is right beside Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

This state has two capitals. Srinagar is considered to be the summer capital of this state whereas Jammu is the winter capital. The total area of this state is 222,236 square km. As per the Census 2011, the population of J&K is 12,541,302. The vastly-used languages of this state are Kashmiri, Pahari, Urdu, Dogri, Gojri, Ladakhi, Balti, and Dari. The literacy rate of this union territory is 67.1%.

The locals rely on agriculture the most. As tourism is concentrated in a few regions of this union territory, the natives focus on agriculture and animal husbandry as the prime professions.

After banning Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, the special autonomy of this union territory has been removed creating a new union territory called Ladakh.

2. Ladakh

Ladakh is the latest union territory of India taking shape after the abrogation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. Since 1947, this section of the northernmost part of India has always been subjected to disputes between China, Pakistan, and India. The length of the border shared by Pakistan is 857 km.

This newly formed union territory lies right beside the Gilgit-Baltistan border of the Pakistan-administered area. It took 27 years for the Government of India to initiate tourism in this union territory as it falls under a disputed location due to shared trade routes before the independence of India.

The name is derived from the Tibetan word ‘La Dwags’ which means the land of high altitude passes between the mountains. This union territory’s western border is shared with Pakistan.

3. Rajasthan

Rajasthan is one of the largest states in India. It lies in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent. This state covers most of the Indo-Pak border in the northwestern part of our country. To its southwestern extremity, you will find Gujarat. The eastern portion of the state is guarded by Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The Indo-Pak border of this state lies right beside Pakistan-occupied Punjab and Sindh. The length of the border of Rajasthan with Pakistan is 1048 km.

Jaipur is the capital city. It is also known as the Pink City. As it was the prime ruling area of the Rajas and Maharajas, it is called Rajasthan. After India got its independence, the princely states merged one by one and formed a large state called Rajasthan. The total area of this state is 342,239 square km. As per the Census 2011, the total population of this state is 68,548,437. The literacy rate of the natives here is 66.1%.

4. Punjab

The line of segregation of India and Pakistan ran right between Punjab delivering one half to the Indian Territory and the other half to Pakistan. This state is located in the northwestern section of India. To its north, we find Jammu and Kashmir. It is guarded by Himachal Pradesh on the northeastern side. The south and southeastern part of this state is guarded by Haryana. The southwestern portion of this state shares the border with Rajasthan. The western part of this state is entirely bordered by Pakistan-administered Punjab.

This state got its statehood on 1st November 1966. The name of this state is derived from the Persian word ‘Panj’ which means five and ‘ab’ meaning water. As this state is irrigated by the five tributaries of Indus that are Rabi, Beas, Chenab, Jhelum, and Sutlej, it got its name. The area of this state is 50,362 square km. The literacy rate of this state is 75.84%. The languages spoken in this state are Urdu, English, Hindi, and Punjabi. The length of the Punjab-Pakistan border is 425 km.

5. Gujarat

Gujarat is the westernmost state of India. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea. This state covers the Kathiawar Peninsula and the surrounding mainland. The northwestern border of this state is guarded by Pakistan. The northern part is guarded by Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh in the east. The southwestern border of this state lies above Maharashtra. The southeastern part of this state is bounded by Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman, and Diu. The entire south and southwestern part of this state is bordered by the Arabian Sea.

The entire coastline of Gujarat spans around 1596 km. The state of Bombay was segregated into two states, Gujarat and Maharashtra in the year 1960. The total area of this state is 196,024 square km. As per the Census 2011, the total population is 60,383,628. The literacy rate of this state is 79.31%. You can now answer the question of which states of India share boundaries with Pakistan.

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•  Integrated check posts

The border has integrated check posts for customs and immigration facilities. This enables easy movement and trading between the two nations. These posts are present in Munabao and Attari, Wagah.

• Wagah Beating the Retreat ceremony

A show is conducted at the international border, where natives of two countries visit to witness the ceremony or ritual of retreat between the soldiers of two countries.

• Floodlights

There are more than 50,000 poles installed in the line of control between India and Pakistan. In fact, this border has 150,000 floodlights installed to focus on this international ground. This is done to check whether any suspicious activities are going on or not. The border security forces of both countries are always on high alert to protect their individual grounds.

• Disputed borderland

The Indo-Pak border is considered to be one of the most disputed borderlands in the world, raising concerns over national security. Disputes surface now and then since 1947 and the emergence of Pakistan as a sovereign country.

• Total length of the Indo-Pak border

The total length of the Indo-Pak border is 3323 km. It is stretched from Ladakh in the north and Gujarat in the south. The lowest point on this border is Zero Point in Gujarat. This border is also called the International Border and is guarded by the Border Security Force (BSF) of India.

The harmony and balance in this Indo-Pak border are sometimes threatened by illicit activities. The border security forces of both countries play their part to maintain the harmony between the two countries.

Keep this article handy for gathering proper information regarding the Indo-Pak border. The information available in this article regarding the Indian states and Indo-Pak border will be useful to answer the GK questions asked in the government selection exams.