Chapter 8 - Khanashin

Khanashin district, previously known as Reg district, is in the Registan desert, a very arid plateau shared by both Helmand and Kandahar provinces. Khanashin district is mostly covered with sand dunes, sandy plains, and open rocky and clay areas. The sand dunes are about 50-80 feet high. Due to their crescent-like shape they are known as Barchan dunes. Khanashin is also the name of the key village or town which also serves as the district headquarters. The word Khanashin means a place where Khans or landlords live, and it is still true for Khanashin. Most of the land in the area belongs to a few landlords or Khans and majority of the farmers are tenants or having a very small land holding. Khanashin is a historical area. One can see remains of old structures throughout the district. Khanashin Castle is a historical monument. District Center and its associated offices are located inside the castle. An ISAF combat outpost was also established in the castle.

Occasionally camels can be seen wandering in the desert but vegetation in the desert is very sparse. Plants which help to stabilize desert sand and provide forage for animals, are disappearing quickly, due to the indiscriminate harvesting of plants for firewood. Even tractors were used to pull plants along with their roots. One time while travelling from COP Castle to FOB Payne we helped a tree poacher to pull his tractor which was stuck in the sand while pulling a very deep-rooted plant. Lack of any effort for re-plantation in the desert for decades and removal of existing plants has greatly increased the desertification of arable lands in the area.

In Khanashin life revolved around poppy cultivation. Due to poor soil, high cost of inputs, land rents and lack of market for agriculture produce, licit crops were not considered economical. On the other hand, poppy fetches a great price, can be sold at a farm gate, and does not require a lot of space or special storage conditions. It was also easy to get loans against poppy crops. In 2011 when the district government loudly sent the message that poppy cultivation will not be tolerated, many families moved to Dishu, a district next to Khanashin, where there were plenty of chances to evade government restrictions.

Due to the abundance of vegetation on the riverbank, the district is also known as the green district. There is a long strip of jungle on the northwest bank of the river, which is a state property and is a source of fuel wood for the area inhabitants. Since 2009 some influential Khans had burnt patches of the jungle and grabbed the land for poppy cultivation.

Most of the villages were located close to the river on its northwest bank. The irrigation canals originated from the loose masonry dams from the river Helmand and were the main source of water. These dams and canals were community built, and each village was responsible for the repair and maintenance of its respective dams and canals. Every year villagers volunteer hundreds of man hours to repair these structures, an impressive example of community cooperation. Irrigation water is managed by a water watch man locally known as “Mirab” in each village. Mirabs were appointed and paid for by the villagers. Water pumps are also used in many areas to raise water from the river or a canal for irrigation purposes. As the soil is sandy, a large proportion of water seeped through these canals before irrigating their designated lands. This seepage caused water logging and had turned large areas of cultivable land into swamps which could be seen in almost every village. Many times farmers prepared their land for cultivation and suddenly the water level rose, destroying the existing crop, and deprived the farmers from all their investments. The only available solution to reclaim the waterlogged land was to dig drainage canals (locally known as Zaber) to direct seeped water back to the river. Due to the high cost of excavation very few farmers can afford to dig drainage canals. There are five major irrigation canals that originated from the loose masonry dams in the district: Dewalak, Khanashin, Kila-i-Now, Khairabad and Taghaz.These canals are named after the villages these canals intended to irrigate.

There was no paved road in the district except a three-kilometer road, which was built in 2011 and passed through the Khanashin bazaar. A new school was also constructed to replace the old structure. Until 2012, the school was offering education from first to fifth grades with a total of 40 enrolled students. As only one teacher was teaching all the classes. Therefore, grades one to three were combined in one class for the morning session and grades four and five were combined for the afternoon session. The teacher also had a tailoring shop in the bazaar. The district government made a lot of effort to hire more teachers but due to low pay and insecurity in the area no teacher from other areas was willing to teach in this school. In 2011, the Khanashin clinic was started in a newly constructed building, staffed with a qualified doctor and two nurses. All these construction projects were made possible with the US reconstruction efforts. Many local people were not in favor of a new school building due to a very high cost (about 7 million dollars) and ignoring other pressing needs of the area.

Khanashin is mainly populated with Pashtun and Baluch tribes and many of them were nomads. Baluch tribes are concentrated in the areas across the river which is bordering with Baluchistan province of Pakistan. Due to the negligible influence of the district government in the border area, smuggling is an important source of income for the area people.

The area across the river is extremely arid, almost without any arable land. There is no bridge on the river. Boats are the only way to cross the river when the water level is high, otherwise at certain points a vehicle can cross the river during winter season.

The Khanashin people are very friendly and hospitable. Although poverty is widespread and living conditions are harsh, people are generous. Many times, when we patrolled distant villages, they offered food and tea to Marines. Although they were not appreciative of our visit because we used to search their homes against their will.

Detailed research needed to be undertaken to find out ways to help make licit agricultural crop production a profitable activity. The US Geological Survey has reported the presence of various mineral deposits including Light Rare Earth Elements (LREE) in Khanashin. Exploitation of these mineral resources can provide off-farm job opportunities, thus alternative livelihood for the area farmers.