November 10, 2005

It claims to be the largest fort in the world and so far, no other fort (or country) has disputed that claim. Its walls stretch some 24 km across rough and stunning terrain. Some walls are not man-made; they are natural rock formations. Looking at them, one can easily imagine that these rocks were made to complement the fort. Welcome to Ranikot, which is so immense that within its walls it has two smaller forts, the Miri and the Shehrgarh forts.

Ranikot is located about 30 km from the small town of Sann. Contrary to the general belief, this fort is not part of the Kirthar Mountains (Balochistan). The mountains of Ranikot are called Tora Mountains, forming one of the boundaries of the fort, as mentioned earlier.

To get there one has to travel in one’s own vehicle. The roads are in good condition, and remain so till you reach the Miri fort inside Ranikot. The remaining distance must be covered by foot.

Another way to travel to this place is by bus or train. In both cases, you will be dropped off on Indus Highway at Sann. From there, you can book a wagon or a chinchi (motorcycle rickshaw) for the whole day or two. I was charged Rs500 for a two-way ride by a chinchi.

Ranikot has four main entrances: Mohan gate (west side), Amri gate (north-west side), Shehpar gate (south side) and Sann gate (Sann side). But there are no gates, only wide open spaces, and on both sides are huge blocks of stones that mark them.

The history of the fort is quite enigmatic. Local legend passed down through generations, claims that the Talpurs built this fort. This can be traced back to the court historians at Talpur palaces who, perhaps to glorify their rulers, wrote that the Talpur kings built it. However, no known written architectural records exist to confirm this. But then there are no precise records for many Mughul buildings, either.

On the other hand, foreign scholars believe that this fort was built much earlier by the warring tribes who settled here, before the Muslims arrived and that the two forts inside (Shehrgarh and Miri) were built much later, possibly by the Talpurs themselves. However, I found the stonework of Ranikot and Miri quite similar. This can be accounted for by the indigenous stones that are found there.

And what about the strange name, 'Ranikot'? People offer two different answers. One local claims that 'rani' is a place where water from its source flows underground and reaches some other place. I found this plausible, as there is a stream at Ranikot (only during the rainy season), whose water is used by villagers to grow crops. Another possible explanation for the name is that Ranikot, according to many locals, belonged to the Talpurs. When the British took over the fort from them, through betrayal, the locals started calling the fort 'Rankot' (a deviation of Ranikot), which in Sindhi refers to a woman whose husband has been killed.

You can camp here (in fact, there is no use going there if you can't camp), the fort being quite safe. The best plan is to take your own camping gear and a considerable amount of food. You can take water with you, and also try the local stream water which is very pure. The only precaution that you should take while camping is against the foxes in the plains. I saw two at night (but had no time to photograph them!), and they were quite wonderful creatures.

Another option is to go to the small fort, Miri. There is a ramshackle 'government house' built by the British who stayed here when they ruled India. The caretaker, who is an employee of the Govt. of Pakistan, can provide the keys.

And if you think you might be alone there, you are as mistaken as I was when I first went there. There is a village of around 500 people who live within the boundaries of the fort, and whose major occupation is herding and farming. They are extremely poor but they don't beg.

Surprisingly, this largest fort on earth is not on the list of Unesco's World Heritage Sites. Why this injustice?

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