O-LevelPakistan StudiesThe environment of PakistanOct/Nov 2025 · Q125 Marks

Study Fig. 1.1, a map showing selected rivers in southern and western Pakistan. [Figure 1.1]

(a)(i)Name the rivers labelled W and X on Fig. 1.1.[2]
(a)(ii)Using Fig. 1.1 only, describe the location of the River Dasht.[2]
(a)(iii)Rivers are used for fishing. State three other ways rivers are used by people in Pakistan.[3]
(b)(i)Study Fig. 1.2, a bar graph showing the amount of fish caught in different provinces in Pakistan in 2019. [Figure 1.2] Using Fig. 1.2 only, complete the table. fish caught (thousand tonnes) province | inland | marine ---|---|--- Punjab | 110 | Sindh | 180 | KPK | | 0 Balochistan | 0 | 190[2]
(b)(ii)Calculate the difference in the amount of inland fish caught in Punjab and Sindh.[1]
(b)(iii)Identify two fish species typically found in inland waters in Pakistan. Tick (✔) two boxes in the table. fish species | tick (✔) ---|--- croaker | herring | palla | skate | tilapia |[1]
(c)(i)Name two fishing ports on the coast of Balochistan.[2]
(c)(ii)Describe one advantage of improving fish processing techniques.[2]
(c)(iii)Explain two ways that subsistence fishing methods are different from commercial fishing methods. You should develop your answer.[4]
(d)Read the following two views about Pakistan's fishing industry and economic development: A Expanding marine fishing is the best way to support economic development in Pakistan. B Expanding fish farming is the best way to support economic development in Pakistan. Which view do you agree with more? Give reasons to support your answer and refer to examples you have studied. You should consider view A and view B in your answer.[6]

This question uses a diagram from the original paper, which isn't shown here. Open the full paper from the past papers archive to see it.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Oct/Nov 2025). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

[2] W: Hab/Hub
X: Sutlej
[2] in Balochistan
starts 300-400 km from the coast
200-500 km from river W
mouth at Arabian sea/is close to the coast/near the Arabian sea/north of Arabian Sea/drains into Arabian sea/connects to Arabian sea
near Iran/east of Iran/40-150 km from Iran
west of river Indus/Sindh/river W
[3] domestic use/washing/drinking/bathing
industry/specific industrial process
fish farms/aquaculture
farming/irrigation/livestock/animals
transport/port/unload cargo
fertilising soil during floods/provide alluvium
dams/to generate power/HEP power
tourism/scenic beauty/recreation/swimming
gold mining
[2] Punjab marine: 0
Sindh marine: 340
KPK inland: 10
Balochistan inland: 0
[1] 70 (180-110)
[1] Palla
Tilapia
[2] Damb
Gadani
Gwadar
Jiwani
Ormara
Pasni
Pishukan
Sonmiani
[2] more value-added goods/higher quality goods; have a wider market/lead to more (international) demand/attract investors
make it last longer/gives a longer shelf life/improves quality; by canning/chilling/curing/drying/freezing/salting/preserving/packaging
increase exports; leads to increased profits/foreign exchange/income
creates employment/jobs; to run the factories/processing plants
less fish wasted; because of on board refrigeration
efficient processes in factories/more skilled labour
[4] subsistence fishing methods would usually use a fishing rod/small net/cotton nets; compared (large) trawl nets/gillnets/nylon nets
subsistence fishing tends to use small wooden sail boats/has a small crew; compared to large motorised boats/gillnetters/trawlers
small sail boats can only fish close to the coastline; whereas mechanised boats can fish up to 50–60 km from the shoreline
subsistence fishing boats tend to only go out fishing for a day/only use ice buckets for storage/lack of cold storage; commercial boats can stay out 5-20 days/have refrigeration facilities
subsistence fishing uses local knowledge/family experience; whereas commercial boats have sonar/radar devices for finding fish/checking weather conditions
subsistence fishing methods generally have a lower environmental impact such as smaller engines used by fishing boats; rather than motorised boats that lead to water pollution/disturb habitats
subsistence fishing tends not to waste any fish; whereas commercial fishing leads to a lot of bycatch/fish caught that are too small
subsistence fishing could be inland on rivers; compared to commercial fishing which takes place at sea
[6] Pakistan has invested and improved harbours and fish processing facilities which has increased capacity for exports which could increase GDP
potential for more jobs in fishing/fish processing
higher volumes of fish could be caught by newer boats
value of fish is relatively low compared to other manufactured products
fish are vulnerable to climate change which may affect the sustainability of the industry
there is a limited supply of fish so there are limited growth opportunities for the economy
many small fish farms could be expanded, waste can be used to support poultry farming
allows production of fish inland so greater employment opportunities throughout the country
avoids bycatch/can ensure fish can be grown to full size
species can escape fish farms harming local ecosystems
fish given antibiotics which can leak into water systems
fish are susceptible to diseases so investment may be wasted