Baghlān

City in northeastern Afghanistan, 550 m/1,804 ft above sea level; population (2001 est) 114,200. The surrounding area is semi-arid but irrigation from the Kondoz River enables substantial crops of cereals, cotton, and sugar beet to be produced. Baghlān is linked by major roads to Kabul, which lies 210 km/130 mi to the south, and to other leading centres of the country. Industries include cotton textile manufacture and sugar refining.

At Ateshkadeh-ye Sorkh Kowtal, 32 km/20 mi to the southwest, lie the ruins of a Zoroastrian fire temple, reputed to date from the 1st century AD.