Mangochar Tehsil

Mangochar, also spelled Mangocher and Manguchar, is an administrative subdivision of Kalat District, in central-eastern Balochistan, Pakistan. As of the 2023 national census, the tehsil has a population of 80,138 residents spread across 222 rural settlements. The town of Mangocher is serving as the administrative centre.
Located at an elevation of over, the tehsil experiences a predominantly arid highland climate with four distinct seasons, shaped by low and variable rainfall and significant temperature variations between summer and winter.

Geography

Mangochar spans approximately. It borders Kalat and Johan tehsils to the south and east, and the tehsils of Kirdgap, Khad Koocha, and Dasht to the northwest, north, and northeast, respectively. The landscape is largely mountainous, with altitudes ranging from to over, and is characterised by arid terrain, seasonal streams, and xerophytic vegetation. The dominant plant life includes Artemisia-Haloxylon shrub steppe, scattered drought-resistant trees, and seasonal ground cover.

Climate

As part of highland Balochistan, Mangochar has an arid to semi arid climate, with low and unpredictable rainfall. Droughts occur frequently, roughly every three to four years. The area falls within a semi-arid continental Mediterranean zone, with precipitation increasing from around in the southern areas to over in the north. Rainfall occurs during both summer and winter, though winter precipitation is more significant, especially in the northwestern areas.
Rainfall occurs during both summer and winter, though winter precipitation is more significant, especially in the northwestern areas. Summers vary from hot in lower elevations to mild in the highlands, while winters are cold, with temperatures occasionally falling below. One of the most severe droughts in recent history occurred in 2009, with annual rainfall reduced to as little as to for several consecutive years.

Demographics

According to 2023 census, Tehsils had a population of 80,138 living in 9,217 households, overwhelmingly in rural areas. The overall literacy rate stands at 35.22%, with a significant gender gap: 44.78% for males and only 25.44% for females. These figures reflect ongoing challenges in education access, particularly for women and girls.

Economy

The economy is primarily rural and relies on agriculture, livestock, and some local resources. Agriculture, as a main employer, relies, outside the canal-irrigated zones, primarily on tube-wells, followed by traditional systems such as karezes and natural springs. However, the unchecked proliferation of tube-wells, both authorised and unauthorised, over the past five decades has resulted in severe over-extraction of groundwater, causing water tables to decline by more than two metres annually. Consequently, groundwater resources have been critically depleted, leaving virtually no exploitable reserves. The majority of cultivated land is dedicated to dryland agriculture, which typically yields low productivity due to limited water availability. Predominant dry-farming methods include sailaba farming, bundat farming, ephemeral stream cultivation, and khushkaba farming, all of which rely on seasonal runoff and moisture conservation techniques.

Insurgency

Several areas within the tehsil have experienced unrest linked to the broader conflict between insurgent groups and state security forces in Balochistan. Armed groups, including the Balochistan Liberation Army and others, have voiced demands for greater political autonomy and local control over natural resources. These tensions are further compounded by persistent socio-economic challenges, such as poverty, limited access to education and healthcare, and infrastructural underdevelopment.