Mardan is a renowned city known for its hospitable people and having Asia’s biggest sugar mill within it. The region is also famous for its growing agriculture industry area. Wheat, sugarcane, corn, sugar beets, tobacco, and fruits like peaches, apples, pears, apricot, and plums are some of the chief crops of the region. People in Mardan use ancient Pashtun dresses inspired by Iran, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan though there is a significant difference in the dressing of middle-class people and upper-class inhabitants.
Geography
The word “Mardan” means the land of brave men. The town lies in the north of the Kalpani River and the southwest of provincial capital Peshawar. Mardan was once a part of the Peshawar district. With a total area of 1632 square kilometers, the city has its borders extended till the north of the Kabul River, comprising a large portion of the Yusufzai plain.
The region of Mardan has two parts, such as the southwestern plain and northeastern hilly area. The northern side comprises hills with some highest points like Sakra, Garo, and Pajja in the surrounding. The southwest side of the district composes fertile plain and low hills spread across it.
Climate
Mardan is hot in summers, where temperatures rise to 43.5 °C. Dust storms are frequent in the city, especially at night. Winters in the metropolis remain chilled with occasional hail storms and thunderstorms. It sees a significant decrease in the temperature in December and January, dropping down till 0.5 °C. The city receives rainfall in July and August in summers and December and January in winter.
Get in
Mardan is accessible by road and train. The city has Mardan Junction Railway where rails make a shortstop. However, the M1 motorway and National Highway are some of the most common ways to get to the town from different cities in Pakistan.
Shopping & Eating
Mardan boasts many shopping plazas, including Ocean Mall, Khobsurat Mall, the Mega Mart, and The Mall of Mardan. Restaurants in the town offer local and international cuisines at affordable prices. The Badayoni Paira is the famous delight of the Mardan district. You can enjoy coffee and tea in winter and cold drinks in summer.
Explore
This second-largest city in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has significant archaeological importance, especially when it comes to the Buddhist stupas of Takht-e-Bahi and sites like Sawal Dher and Jamal Garhi. Mardan was once a part of the Gandhara kingdom. It has ruins scattered across the region.
The valley saw the revival of Brahmanism during the time of King Mehanda and the empowerment of the Buddhist kingdom, which is visible from many different sites of the district. Mardan has rivers and streams flowing from north to south and drains into the Kabul River.
The two noteworthy watercourses in the settlement are Muqam Khawaar and Baghiari Khawar, which join Kalpani at some stage. The metropolis has an exotic range of flora of the deluged areas. Trees of ber and mesquite species of jand and acacia, and articulata, akk, spera, tarnariaxm, pohli chaulai, and drab grass are commonly found in Mardan.