On March 23, 1940, thousands of people gathered in Lahore, a city in what is now Pakistan. Their leaders passed a resolution calling for a new country where Muslims could govern themselves. Seven years later, in 1947, British India was divided into two nations: India and Pakistan. Pakistan itself was split into two parts separated by over a thousand miles of Indian territory. West Pakistan had the capital city. East Pakistan was on the other side of India. The geography of Pakistan is diverse. In the north, the Karakoram Mountains contain K2, the second-tallest mountain in the world at 28,251 feet. The Indus River flows from these mountains through the entire length of the country, providing water for agriculture in the otherwise dry plains. The southern coast borders the Arabian Sea. Pakistan's population is over 230 million people, making it the fifth most populous country in the world. Most people live along the Indus River valley, where the soil is fertile enough for farming.