Khewra Salt Mines-World’s second largest mine

The Khewra salt mines are the second largest in the world , behind the Sifto Canada, turning out 325,000 tons of salt per year, and an estimated 220 million tons over its lifetime.

Dimensions of the Mines.

The area of the mines is 110 sq. km, 228 meters or 748 feet deep with 11 separate stories, the massive mine has over 40 kilometers of tunnels running some 730 meters, or nearly half a mile into the mountain under which the salt deposits are found. To keep the huge space from collapsing in on itself, only fifty percent of the salt found is mined; the other half serves as support columns to hold up the mine. With such a massive area, a large workforce.

Some beautiful sights in the mines

Some interesting sights have been built within the salt mine to attract the tourists.Among the earliest structure built within the mine is

• The small Badshahi Mosque, complete with a small salt minaret. Built more recently,
• The small salt versions of the Great Wall of China
• The Mall road of Murree
• Lahore’s Shimla hill.
• The Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore.

These structures are built from salt bricks, which vary in color from red to pink to white, and when they are lighted electrically they radiate a beautiful warm glow. At times, the many colors of bricks  light give the mine a sort of disco-Yellow-Brick-Road look.

 

Other sights

There are many other sights include a

Assembly Hall,it is a 75 meter tall chamber with stairs spiraling up the walls.

Pul-saraat, it is a 25 foot long salt Bridge it is so called an allusion to the Islamic “Pul-e-Saraat,”

Brine Ponds, and beautiful salt crystal formations such as stalactites.

Electric Railway which was constructed in the 1930s, which once extracted salt from the mines and now brings tourists into them.

Postal Office, the Khewra salt mine even has its own fully functioning postal office , for use by the workers. The post office is built entirely from salt bricks and is the only post office built out of salt in the world.

How to reach?

By Motorway M2  It is the fastest way to reach Khewra mines. The mines are located 30km east of Lilla interchange towards Pind Dadan Khan. Road signs are quite visible.

By Highway N5 on GT road from Mandra, from Chakwal (63km), from Choa Saidan Shah (93km)

By Train, there are two trains daily between Malakwal Jn and Khewra which cover 27km distance in exact 1 hour. You have to change trains at Malakwal Jn which is connected to Lala Musa Jn on mainline at one end and Sargodha Jn at other. There are 6 daily trains on this Lala Musa – Malakwal – Sargodha route.