Governance Reforms in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan: The Past and Present
FATA of Pakistan: A Brief IntroductionFederally Administered Tribal Areas extending over 27220 sq. km along Pak-Afghan border covers 3.4 per cent of Pakistan's land area. This mountainous land is inhabited by a majority of pakhtun population. It is surrounded by the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the north and east, the province of Balochistan in the south, the province of Punjab in the south-east and in the west by the state of Afghanistan (IPRI Factfile, 2008, p. 15). It is thus connected in the north with the district of Lower Dir of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, whereas in the east with the districts of Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Karak, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Malakand, Nowshera, Charsadda and Peshawar. In the southeast, FATA is physically linked with the district of Dera Ghazi Khan in the Punjab province, while in the south it joins the districts of Zhob and Musa Khel of Balochistan province (Ibid, p. 21). Pak-Afghan border also known as Durand Line lies to the west of FATA.FATA is consisted of seven political agencies and six tribal pockets called 'Frontier Regions'. The political agencies are, Bajaur, Khyber, Kurram, Mohmand, North Waziristan, Orakzai and South Waziristan agency. Whereas Frontier Regions are in the district of Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Peshawar and Tank. With a minor exception of Orakzai agency, the rest the political agencies have common border with the state of Afghanistan (GOP, 2006, p. 3). To the north and west, FATA and the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa collectively join a chain of nine provinces in Afghanistan from north to south i.e. Nuristan, Kunar, Nangarhar, Khost, Paktika, Zabol, Kandahar, Helmand and Nimruz, which are predominantly inhabited by pakhtun ethnic group (Shuja, 2009, p. 2). The census report of Pakistan 1998 demonstrates 3.138 million population of these areas which makes 2.4 per cent of the total population of the country. But the current estimate shows its population almost 3.5 million. FATA is inhabited by majority of pakhtun tribes with a limited number of other religious groups such as Sikhs and Hindus (Sarfraz: 2008, pp. 8-9).Origin of the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR)The British government strengthened their basis of power by establishing a strategic and effective judicial system and an archive of legal record of the necessary documents which ultimately assisted them in tax collection and maintaining public order during the mid of 19th century in British India. The government was mostly cautious against collective criminal activities and considered it as a direct menace to the empire rather than individual crimes (Nichols, 2013, p. x). The colonial authorities after thorough visualization drafted and executed a comprehensive system of legal and formal codes in the form of Indian Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure in order to rule British India effectively. In the like manner, Criminal Tribes Act was also designed from 1871 through which the government watched, registered and controlled certain tribes. However, the British official authorities realized within a short span of time that these formal codes, laws, rules of evidence and fact-finding potentials were insufficient to control lofty velocity of crimes in Peshawar valley in general and in the Afghan border regions set a part as tribal agencies in particular. The colonial authorities quickly differentiated between the peaceful agriculturists residing in the valleys and wild tribesmen of the frontier border. The only distinction of the settled district was that surveys of formal tax revenue and settlement had been completed while the rest of the situation and general environ of settled district and tribal belt was almost alike. When the government observed high rate of killings, robberies and violence across Peshawar valley, the government eventually developed the Punjab Frontier Crimes Regulation and implemented it in early 1872 (Ibid, pp. x-xi). After the establishment of North West Frontier Province, the government executed the same Regulation with some minor modifications which was called Frontier Crimes Regulation 1901 (Ibid, p. …
THE MERGER OF FATA: BREAKING THE CLUTCHES OF BRITISH COLONIAL FRONTIER CRIMES REGULATIONS (FCR)
Purpose of the study: The present study aimed to find the association between frontier crime regulations (FCR) abolishment (independent variable) in the context of the merger of FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (dependent variable). 
Methodology: The study follows a crossectional research design. Primary data were collected from 384 randomly selected respondents of the two newly merged districts, Khyber and Kurram of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The association and strength of the relationship were obtained by the application of Chi-Square (χ2) and Kandel Tau b (Tb) test statistics. 
Main Findings: Based on the obtained statistics, the FCR law was against fundamental rights, favoring the local elites, a hurdle to development, a source of corruption, outdated and inefficient in counter militancy, unpopular, and the tribals ready to welcome the modern governance system. The background variables gender and age yielded spurious relationships. At the same time, socio-economic status resulted in a non-spurious relationship between the variables above. 
Applications of this study: The research results can be applied to such studies that focus on the indigenous culture, governance, and fundamental human rights. 
Novelty/Originality of this study: This study's unique feature is that it is the first-ever attempt to investigate such kinds of topics in Pakistan's tribal regions. Besides, it also provides an outlook of the inhuman and unjustified state-sponsored FCR. 
Fieldwork in geography teaching: A critical review of the literature and approaches
Abstract Virtually all lecturers in geography recognise the importance of fieldwork as a vital mode of teaching in the subject. This paper draws on material produced as part of a HEFCE review of teaching and learning in the field and assesses the implications of recent changes in higher education for field studies in geography. The literature on the development of, and recent changes in, fieldwork practice is reviewed and assumptions about appropriate forms of teaching and assessment are challenged. The need for carefully integrated preparation of project‐orientated fieldwork is stressed and the importance of debriefing and feedback after field visits is emphasised. Various suggestions for guidelines on good practice are presented. Finally, a range of future issues and problems in fieldwork is identified and discussed.