The mountain passes of Waziristan and the Gomal river valley represent some of the oldest trans-Eurasian trade channels connecting the Iranian plateau and Central Asia with the fertile plains of the Punjab and Sindh.
Known as the Powindahs (predominantly Ghilji clans including the Nasirs, Kharotis, and Sulemankhels), these armed merchant communities migrated seasonally each autumn. Passing through the tribal territories of the Wazirs and Mahsuds required negotiated transit fees (badragga escorts) and established camping depots at Dera Ismail Khan and Tank.
British settlement reports from the nineteenth century record the volume of merchandise: silk from Bukhara, pomegranates from Kandahar, wool and madder dyes, exchanged for British manufactured cotton and Indian tea.
Sources
- 1.Gazetteer of the Dera Ismail Khan District, 1883–84Punjab Government Press
- 2.Report on the Internal Trade of the Punjab, 1890–91India Office Records