The Ancient Geography of India. I. The Buddhist Period, including the Campaigns of Alexander, and the Travels of Hwen-Thsang c6.s1.t8.4

c6.s1.t8.4

Nirunkot was situated on a hill, and there was a lake in its neighbourhood of sufficient size to receive the fleet of Muhammad Kâsim. Sir Henry Elliot identifies the former with the hill of Jarak, to the west of the Indus, and the latter with the Kinjur lake, near Helai, to the south of Jarak. But the Kinjur lake has no communication with the Indus, and therefore could not have been used for the reception of the fleet, which at once disposes of the only special advantage that Jarak was supposed to possess over Haidarâbâd as the representative of Nirunkot. Sir Henry‡ admits “that the establishment of its locality depends chiefly upon the sites which are assigned to other disputed cities, more especially to Debal and Mansura.” The former he identifies with Karâchi, and the latter with Haidarâbâd; and consistently with these emplacements he is obliged to fix Nirunkot at Jarak. But since he wrote his ‘Appendix to the Arabs in Sindh,’ the ancient city of *Bambhra-ka-Thúl* has been found by Mr. Bellasis in the very position that was long ago pointed out by M‘Murdo as the site of Brâhmanâbâd. Its identification as the site of the famous cities of Mansura and Brâhmanâbâd leaves Haidarâbâd, or the ancient Nirankot, available as the true representative of the Nirunkot of Biladuri and the Chach-nâma. Its distance of 47 miles from Bambhra-ka-tul, and of 85 miles from Lâri-bandar, agree almost exactly with the 15 and 25 parasangs of Abulfeda. It is also situated on a hill, so that it corresponds in position, as well as in name, with Nirunkot. The hill, called Ganja, is 1½ mile long, and 700 yards broad, with a height of 80 feet.* The present fort was built by Mir Ghulâm Shâh in A.H. 1182, or A.D. 1768.† About one-third of the hill, at the southern end, is occupied by the fort, the middle portion by the main street and straggling houses of the city, and the northern end by tombs.