PUNJAB, pfin-jith', or PANJAB (Hind., five rivers: the Thelain, Chenah, Ravi, Sutlej, Beas). A northwestern province of British India (q.v.), bounded on the north by the Northwest Frontier Province and Kashmir, on the east by Tibet and the United Provinces of Agra, on the south by Rajputana and Sindh, and on the west by the Northwest Frontier Province (Map: India B 2). The last was in great part included in the Punjab until 1901, when it was constituted a separate province. thereby reducing the area of the Punjab to 133.741 square miles. Of this area 97,209 square miles are directly under British admin istration, the remaining 36.532 square miles being occupied by a number of feudatory native States, of which the largest is Bahawalpur. The ex treme northern part of the province lies among the foothills and projecting spurs of the Hima layas, but the greater portion consists of an almost perfectly level plain sloping gently from an elevation of 1600 feet at the base of the mountains to less than 200 feet in the extreme southwest. This plain is traversed by the Indus (which flows on o• near the western boundary), and its great tributaries, the Jhelam, Chenab. Ravi, and (Mara, o• Sutlej (the chief affluent of which is the Peas), which all unite into the Pani nad before they enter the main stream near the southwestern boundary. The climate of the plains is excessively hot and dry in summer, the teln perature sometimes rising to 120°. The win ters are cool, with occasional frosts at night. The rainfall ranges from 36 inches in the north to only 4 inches in the south, being in the greater portion insufficient for the needs of agriculture. Healthy vegetation is accordingly confined to narrow lands along the river courses, and the great interfiuvial tracts, known as dabs, are covered only with a scanty jungle of scrub, here and there affording pasturage.
As in all parts of India, most of the inhab itants are engaged in agriculture. The soil as a rule is highly fertile and only lacks an adequate water supply. In the south there is practically a barren desert. In the extreme north good crops are usually raised and without irrigation. There is a larger irrigated area in this province —0,375,000 acres—than in any of the other gov ernmental divisions. This area has been greatly extended in recent years. owing to the large irri gating enterprises of the British Government.
the Government canals supplying an area of 4.243.000 acres. An area almost equal to this amount is watered from wells. but reservoirs or 'tanks' are almost NVIAIIV wanting. In the south the canal system of irrigation prevails and the irrigated areas fringe the river courses. In the northern half of the country wells are common, and the cultivated area is not limited to the prox imity of the rivers. The Punjab has become noted for its wheat crops. It produces more wheat than any other province. The wheat growing area, however, has not increased for some time. Rice, on the contrary, receives much less attention than in most of the sections of the country, less than 500,000 acres being devoted to it. Large quantities of pulse. millet, and other food grains are grown, and sugar-cane, cotton, and oil seeds are also important products. The general desert conditions are of course a serious disadvantage to pastoral pursuits, yet this in dustry receives considerable attention, and the cattle for 1000 were estimated at 8,197.000 head, the buffaloes at 2,495.000, and sheep and goats at 9,901,000. The horses, mules, and donkeys together numbered less than 1,000,000. In the drier portions of the country camels are the most serviceable animals, and the province con tains twice as many of them-271.000—as any British Indian Province. See INDIA.
Some manufacturing is engaged in. the Ori ental domestic methods being most common. In 1899 there were 106 factories, employing 12.054 hands. Among the chief products are muslins and other cotton goods, manufactures of camel's hair, and glazed tiles and pottery. The potter's, art es pecially has degenerated under foreign influence. The province now has railroad connection with the three principal trade centres of India—Cal cutta, Bombay, and Karachi. The Indus River affords water transportation, but railway compe tition has reduced this to a minimum. The im ports into the Punjab from other parts of India average about 835,640,000 annually, the largest items being cotton goods (mostly European), sugar, rice, and iron. The exports average about $29,160,000 annually, the principal articles being' wheat, raw cotton, hides. grain and pulse, rape and mustard seed. Over 90 per cent. of the wheat passes through the port of Karachi.