( , , Karāchi) is the largest city, main seaport and the financial capital of Pakistan
, and the capital of the province of Sindh
. It is one of the largest cities in the world by population and the 20th largest metropolitan area in the world, in terms of metropolitan population. It is Pakistan's premier centre of banking, industry, and trade. Karachi is also home to Pakistan's largest corporations, including those that are involved in textiles, shipping, automotive industry, entertainment, the arts, fashion, advertising, publishing, software development and medical research. The city is also a major hub of higher education in South Asia and the wider Islamic World. Karachi has been ranked as a Beta world city, as of 2008.
Karachi enjoys its prominent position due to its geographical
location on a bay, making it the
financial capital of the country. It is
one of the fastest growing cities in the world.
It was the original
capital of Pakistan until the construction of Islamabad
and is the location of the Port of Karachi
and Port Bin
Qasim
, one of the region's largest and busiest
ports. The city's population increased dramatically
at the time of independence, when hundreds of thousands of refugees
from India
, Bangladesh
and other parts of South
Asia came to settle in the city.
Karachi
city is spread over in area, almost five times bigger than Singapore
. It is locally known as the "City of Lights"
(روشنين جو شهر) for its liveliness, and the "City of the Quaid"
(شهرِ قائد), having been the birth and burial place of Quaid-e-Azam
(
Muhammad Ali Jinnah), the
founder of Pakistan, who also made the city his home after
Pakistan's independence.
History

A view of Karachi city from 1890
The area
of Karachi was known to the ancient Greeks by many names: Krokola, the place where Alexander the Great camped to prepare a
fleet for Babylonia after his campaign in
the Indus
Valley
; 'Morontobara' (probably Manora island near Karachi harbour
), from where Alexander's admiral Nearchus set sail; and Barbarikon, a port of the Indo-Greek Bactrian
kingdom. It was later known to the
Arabs
as
Debal, the starting point for
Muhammad bin Qasim and his army in 712
AD. Karachi was founded as "Kolachi" by
Baloch tribes from
Balochistan and
Makran, who established a small fishing community in
the area. Descendants of the original community still live in the
area on the small island of Abdullah Goth, which is located near
the Karachi Port. The original name "Kolachi" also survives in the
name of a well-known Karachi locality named "Mai Kolachi". The city
was visited by
Ottoman Admiral
Seydi Ali Reis in 1550s and mentioned
in his book
Mirat ul
Memalik (The Mirror of Countries), 1557 AD. The present
city started life as a fishing settlement when a
Balochi fisherwoman called
Mai Kolachi took up residence and started a
family. The village that later grew out of this settlement was
known as
Kolachi-jo-Goth (Village of Kolachi in
Sindhi).
By the late 1700s, the village was trading
across the Arabian
Sea
with Muscat
and the
Persian
Gulf
region. A small fort was constructed for its
protection, armed with cannons imported from Muscat.
The fort had two main
gateways: one facing the sea, known as Kharra Darwaaza (Brackish
Gate) (Kharadar
) and the other facing the Lyari River
known as the Meet'ha Darwaaza (Sweet Gate)
(Mithadar). The location of these
gates correspond to the modern areas of Kharadar ( ) and Mithadar (
).

A view of saddar bazaar in 1900
After sending a couple of exploratory missions to the area, the
British East India
Company conquered the town when
HMS
Wellesley anchored off Manora island on 1 February
1839. Two days later, the little fort surrendered.
The town was later
annexed to the British Indian
Empire when Sindh
was
conquered by Charles James
Napier in Battle of Miani on 17
February 1843. On his departure in 1847, he is said to have
remarked, "
Would that I could come again to see you in your
grandeur!". Karachi was made the capital of Sindh in the
1840s. On Napier's departure, it was added along with the rest of
Sindh to the
Bombay Presidency, a
move that caused considerable resentment among the native Sindhis.
The
British realised the importance of the city as a military
cantonment and as a port for exporting the produce of the Indus River
basin, and rapidly developed its harbour for
shipping. The foundations of a city municipal government
were laid down and infrastructure development was undertaken. New
businesses started opening up and the population of the town began
rising rapidly. The arrival of the troops of the Kumpany Bahadur in
1839 spawned the foundation of the new section, the military
cantonment. The cantonment formed the basis of the 'white' city,
where the Indians were not allowed free access. The 'white' town
was modeled after English industrial parent-cities, where work and
residential spaces were separated, as were residential from
recreational places. Karachi was divided into two major poles. The
'black' town in the northwest, now enlarged to accommodate the
burgeoning Indian mercantile population. In 1857, the
First Indian War for Independence
broke out in South Asia and the 21st Native Infantry stationed in
Karachi declared allegiance to rebels, joining their cause on 10
September 1857. Nevertheless, the British were able to quickly
reassert control over Karachi and defeat the uprising.
In 1864, the first telegraphic message was sent from India to
England, when a direct telegraph connection was laid between
Karachi and London. In 1878, the city was connected to the rest of
British India by rail. Public building projects, such as
Frere Hall (1865) and the
Empress Market (1890), were undertaken.
In 1876,
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder
of Pakistan
, was born in the city, which by now had become a
bustling city with mosques, churches, courthouses, kota, paved
streets and a magnificent harbour. By 1899, Karachi had
become the largest wheat exporting port in the East. The population
of the city was about 105,000 inhabitants by the end of the 19th
century, with a cosmopolitan mix of
Muslims,
Hindus,
Zoroastrians,
Christians and
Jews. There were also
various linguistic groups, such as
Urdu
speakers,
Punjabi as well as
Pashtun and
Balochi. The multi-ethnic mix can be
imagined from the fact that there are more
Pashtun in Karachi than in any city of the
North-West Frontier Province. In addition to local groups, there
were also immigrants of
Persian,
Lebanese, and
European backgrounds. By the turn of the century, the
city faced street congestion, which led to Southwest Asia's first
tramway system being laid down in 1900. British
colonialists embarked on a number of public works of sanitation and
transportation such as gravel paved streets, proper drains, street
sweepers, and a network of trams and horse-drawn trolleys. Colonial
administrators also set up military camps, a European inhabited
quarter, and organised marketplaces, of which the
Empress Market is most notable.
By the
time the new country of Pakistan
was formed in 1947, after which the majority of
Karachi's Hindu population was forced to flee to India, Karachi had
become a bustling metropolis with beautiful classical and colonial
European styled buildings, lining the city’s thoroughfares.
Karachi
was chosen as the capital of Pakistan, which at the time also
included modern day Bangladesh
, a region located more than away, and not
physically connected to Pakistan
. In 1947, Karachi was the focus for
settlement by
Muslim immigrants from India,
who drastically expanded the city's population and transformed the
demographics and economy.
In 1958, the capital of Pakistan was moved
from Karachi to Rawalpindi
and then in 1960, to the newly built Islamabad
. This marked the start of a long period of
decline in the city, marked by a lack of development. Karachi had
both a municipal corporation and a Karachi Divisional Council in
the 1960s, which developed plans for schools, colleges, roads,
municipal gardens, and parks. The Karachi Divisional Council had
separate working committees for education, roads, and residential
societies development and planning. During the 1960s, Karachi was
seen as an economic role model around the world.
Many countries sought
to emulate Pakistan's economic planning strategy and one of them,
South
Korea
, copied the city's second "Five-Year Plan" and
World Financial Centre in Seoul
is designed
and modeled after Karachi.
The 1970s saw major labour struggles in Karachi's industrial
estates, (see:
Karachi
labour unrest of 1972).
The 1980s and 1990s saw an influx of
refugees from the Soviet war
in Afghanistan into Karachi, they were followed in smaller
numbers by refugees escaping from Iran
.
Political tensions between the
Muhajir and other
native groups
(e.g.
Sindhis,
Punjabis,
Pashtuns, and others), also erupted and the
city was wracked with political and racial violence. The period
from 1992 to 1994 is regarded as the bloodiest period in the
history of the city, when the Army commenced its
Operation Clean-up against the
Muttahida Qaumi Movement. Most of
these tensions have now simmered down. Today, Karachi continues to
be an important
financial and
industrial centre and handles most of the overseas
trade of Pakistan and the other Central Asian countries. It
accounts for a lion's share of the
GDP of
Pakistan, and a large proportion of the country's white collar
workers.
Geography

Satellite view of Karachi
Karachi is located in the south of Pakistan, on the coast of the
Arabian Sea. Most of the land comprised largely of flat or rolling
plains, with hills on the western and
Manora
Island and the Oyster Rocks. The Arabian Sea beach lines the
southern coastline of Karachi. Mangroves and creeks of the Indus
delta can be found towards the south east side of the city.
Towards
the west and the north is Cape Monze
, locally known as Raas Muari, an area marked with
projecting sea cliffs and rocky sandstone promontories. Some
excellent beaches can also be found in this area.
Climate
Karachi features an
arid climate,
albeit a more moderate version of this climate. Located on the
coast, Karachi tends to have a relatively mild
climate with low levels of average precipitation
(approximately 250 mm per annum), the bulk of which occurs
during the July-August
monsoon season.
Winters are mild and the summers are hot, however the proximity to
the sea maintains humidity levels at a near-constant high and cool
sea breezes relieve the heat of the summer months. Due to high
temperatures during the summer (ranging from 30 to 44 degrees
Celsius from April to August), the winter months (November to
February) are generally considered the best times to visit Karachi.
July, December and January have pleasing and cloudy weather when
most of the social events and tourism, ranging from weddings to
charity fundraisers, frequently take place.In 2003, 2006, 2007 and
2009 Karachi was affected by heavy to extremely heavy rainfall. On
June 23, 2007
Cyclone Yemyin lashed
the city with heavy downpours and strong windstorm. Also on July
18, 2009, there was
severe
flooding in which record breaking rain of 235mm occurred in
just 14 hours (highest rainfall of Karachi), killing 20 and
injuring 150 people. Then on August 31, 2009 147.5mm rain partially
submerged the city. Highest recorded temperature is and lowest is
.
Architecture

Jahangir Kothari, Karachi
Karachi has a rich collection of buildings and structures of
various
architectural styles and
many modern style high rise buildings are under construction.
The
downtown districts of Saddar
and Clifton
contain a rich collection of early 20th century architecture,
ranging in style from neo-classical KPT building to the Sindh High Court Building. During
the British rule, Britishers wanted to model their Empire along the
lines of ancient Rome and classical architecture was considered
most appropriate for built monuments of the Raj. Karachi acquired
its first neo-Gothic or Indo-Gothic building when
Frere Hall,
Empress
Market and
St.
Patrick's Cathedral were completed. English Tudor style was
introduced in Karachi Gymkhana and the Boat Club. Italian
Renaissance was very popular and was the language for St. Joseph's
Convent (1870) and the
Sind Club (1883).
Classical
style made a comeback in the late nineteenth century as seen in
Lady
Dufferin Hospital
(1898) and the Cantt. Railway Station. While
'Italianate' buildings remained poplar, an eclectic blend termed
Indo-Saracenic or Anglo-Mughal also began to emerge in some
locations.
The local mercantile community began acquiring impressive
mercantile structures.
Zaibunnisa Street in Saddar
area (known
as Elphinstone Street in British days) is an example where the
mercantile groups adopted the 'Italianate' and Indo-Saracenic style
to demonstrate their familiarity with western culture and their
own. The
Hindu Gymkhana (1925)
and
Mohatta Palace are the example of
Mughal revival buildings. The Sindh Wildlife Conservation Building,
located in Saddar, served as a Freemasonic Lodge until the time it
was taken over by the government. However, there are talks of it
being taken away from this custody and being renovated and the
Lodge being preserved with its original woodwork ad ornate wooden
staircase.
In recent years, a large number of architecturally distinctive,
even eccentric, buildings have sprung up throughout Karachi.
Notable examples of contemporary architecture include the
Pakistan State Oil Headquarters building
and the
Karachi Financial
Towers.
The city has numerous examples of modern
Islamic architecture, including the Aga Khan University
hospital, Masjid e
Tooba, Faran Mosque, Bait-ul Mukarram Mosque and Quaid's
Mausoleum. One of the unique cultural elements of Karachi is
that the residences, which are two- or three-story
townhouses, are built with the front yard
protected by a high brick wall.
Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar
Road displays a wide range of supertall buildings.
The most prominent
examples include the Habib Bank Plaza
, PRC Towers and the MCB Tower
which is the tallest skyscraper in Pakistan
. Perhaps one of the most spectacular
buildings of modern times, Port Tower
Complex, a supertall skyscraper is
proposed in the Clifton
District of the metropolis. At 593 metres,
the building will comprise a hotel, a shopping centre, an
exhibition centre and a
revolving
restaurant with a viewing gallery offering a panoramic view of
the coastline and the city..
In addition to that many more high rise buildings are
underconstruction such as Centre Point near Korangi Industrial
Area,
IT Tower, Sofitel Tower Karachi and
Emerald Tower.Recently Government of Sindh has approved the
construction of two high density zones, which will host the new
city skyline.
Culture
Karachi is home to some of Pakistan's important cultural
institutions. The
National Academy of
Performing Arts, located in the newly renovated
Hindu Gymkhana offers a two year diploma
course in performing arts that include classical music and
contemporary theatre.
The All Pakistan Music Conference,
linked to the 45-year old similar institution in Lahore
, has been
holding its Annual Music Festival since its inception in
2004. The Festival is now a well-established feature of the
city life of Karachi that is attended by more than 3000 citizens of
Karachi as well as people from other cities. The National Arts
Council (
Koocha-e-Saqafat) also has musical performances
and
Mushaira (poetry recitations). The
Kara Film Festival organized
annually showcases independent Pakistani and international films
and documentaries.
Karachi has many museums including the
Mohatta Palace that regularly has exhibitions
as well as the
National
Museum of Pakistan.
Karachi Expo Centre
hosts many regional and international
exhibitions.
The everyday lifestyle of Karachi differs substantially from that
of other Pakistani cities/towns.
The culture of
Karachi is characterized by the blending of South Asian particularly from India
and Bangladesh
, Middle Eastern,
Central Asian and Western influences, as well as the status of
the city as a major international business centre. After
partition of Indian subcontinent, Karachi, received large number of
refugees from all over India, which is very much evident in the
form of different sub-cultures prevailing in the city. Karachi also
hosts the largest
middle class stratum
of the country.
Sports

Karachi Gymkhana Ground, overlooking
downtown Karachi
Cricket is the most popular sport of the
city and is usually played in many small grounds around the city.
Gully cricket is played in the narrow
by-lanes of the city . Night time cricket, popularly called 'night
match' can be seen at weekends when people play brightly lit night
matches on less traversed city streets and the game continues till
dawn.
Karachi has also produced one of the best
cricketers in the world such as Javed
Miandad, Rashid Latif and Basit Ali.The major venue for cricket matches is
the National
Stadium
but matches are also hosted at the UBL Sports
Complex, The A.O. Cricket Stadium, the KCCA Cricket Ground,
the Karachi Gymkhana Field and the DHA Cricket Stadium. A popular
local game is Malh (Sindhi: ملهه). All Sindh Malh ُOrganization
hosts All Sindh Malakhirro every year in Karachi.

Rugby team of Karachi, in 1934
popular sports in the city are
hockey,
boxing,
association football,
golf,
table tennis,
snooker,
squash, and
horse
racing. Sports like
badminton,
volleyball and
basketball are also popular in schools and
colleges. Football is especially popular in
Lyari Town which has a large Afro-Pakistani
community and always been a football-mad locality in Karachi.
The
Peoples
Football Stadium
is perhaps the largest football stadium in Pakistan
with respect to capacity, easily accommodating around 40,000
people. In 2005, the city hosted the
SAFF Championship at this ground, as well
as the
Geo Super Football
League 2007 which attracted capacity crowds during the
games.
The city also has facilities for hockey (the Hockey Stadium of
Pakistan, UBL Hockey Ground), boxing (KPT Sports Complex), squash
(
Jehangir Jani Squash Complex) and
polo. Marinas and Boating Clubs also add to the diverse sporting
activities in Karachi. Karachi has a number of sporting clubs that
provide sporting facilities to their members, including tennis,
badminton and squash courts, swimming pools, jogging tracks,
gymnasiums, billiards and much more. There are two world class
golf clubs, at DHA and Karsaz.
Fashion, Shopping & Entertainment

The Forum Mall in Clifton,
Karachi
Karachi has always been proactive is organizing mega events but
because of the political and economic crisis in the country,
activities have been slowed down. However, Karachi has been hosting
many different cultural and fashion shows even now. Recently
four-day long fashion show was organized in the luxury Marriott
hotel, Karachi.Karachi also has many glitzy shopping malls in
Clifton area, Tariq road and Hyderi Shopping area such as Park
Towers, The Forum, Dolmen Mall, Millenium Mall just to name a few.
Besides that Zamzama boulevard is famous for its designer stores
and many cafes.
Media
Many of Pakistan’s independent television and radio channels are
based in Karachi including world popular
Business Plus,
Geo TV,
CNBC Pakistan,
Hum TV,
TV
ONE,
AAJ TV,
ARY
Digital,
Express News,
Indus Television Network, K.T.N, Kawish
Television Network, Sindh TV and
Dawn News
as well as several local stations. Local channels include Metro
One.
Pakistan's premier news television networks are also based in
Karachi, including The Geo News, ARY One World and AAJ News. AAG
and MTV Pakistan are the main music television channels and
Business Plus and CNBC Pakistan are the main business television
channels based in the city. The bulk of Pakistan's periodical
publishing industry is centred in Karachi including magazines such
as Spider, Herald, Humsay, Cricketer, Moorad, and The
Internet.
Economy

Aerial View of KPT Building in
downtown Karachi
Karachi is the financial and commercial capital of Pakistan. In
line with its status as a major port and the country's largest
metropolis, it accounts for a lion's share of Pakistan's revenue.
According to the Federal Board of Revenue's 2006-2007 year book,
tax and customs units in Karachi were responsible for 46.75% of
direct taxes, 33.65% of federal excise tax, and 23.38% of domestic
sales tax. Karachi also accounts for 75.14% of customs duty and 79%
of sales tax on imports. Therefore, Karachi collects a significant
53.38% of the total collections of the Federal Board of Revenue
(since renamed as the Central Board of Revenue), out of which
53.33% are customs duty and sales tax on imports. (Note: Revenue
collected from Karachi includes revenue from some other areas since
the Large Tax Unit (LTU) Karachi and Regional Tax Offices (RTOs)
Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur & Quetta cover the entire province
of Sindh and Balochistan). Karachi's indigenous contribution to
national revenue is 25%.
Karachi produces about 30 percent of value added in large scale
manufacturing A substantial chunk of Sindh’s GDP is attributed to
Karachi (the GDP of Sindh as a percentage of Pakistan’s total GDP
has traditionally hovered around 28%/30%). Karachi’s GDP is around
20% of the total GDP of Pakistan. A PricewaterhouseCoopers study
released in 2007, that surveyed the GDP (2005) of the top cities in
the world, calculated Karachi’s GDP(PPP) to be $55 billion
(projected to be $127 billion in 2020 at a growth rate of 5.8%). It
confirmed Karachi’s status as Pakistan’s largest economy, well
ahead of the next two biggest cities Lahore and Faisalabad having a
reported GDP(PPP) of $28 billion and $10 billion, respectively.
Karachi's high GDP is based on its mega industrial base, with a
high dependency also on the financial sector. Textile, Cement,
Steel, Heavy machinery, chemicals, food, Banking, Insurance are the
major segments contributing to Karachi's GDP. In February 2007, the
World Bank identified Karachi as the most
business-friendly city in Pakistan. Karachi is the nerve center of
Pakistan's economy. The economic stagnation due to political
anarchy, ethnic strife and resultant military operation during late
80s and 90s led to efflux of industry from Karachi. Most of
Pakistan's public and private banks are headquartered on Karachi's
I.I. Chundrigar Road, while most
major foreign
multinational
corporations operating in Pakistan have their headquarters in
Karachi. The
Karachi Stock
Exchange is the largest stock exchange in Pakistan, and is
considered by many economists to be one of the prime reasons for
Pakistan's 8% GDP growth across 2005.. Recent report by
Credit Suisse on Pakistan's stock market is a
testimonial to the strong fundamentals, which estimates Pakistan’s
relative return on equities at 26.7 percent compares to Asia’s 11
percent.
Recently, Karachi has seen an expansion of
information and communications
technology and
electronic media
and has become the software outsourcing hub of Pakistan.
Call centres for foreign companies have been
targeted as a significant area of growth, with the government
making efforts to reduce taxes by as much as 10% in order to gain
foreign investments in the IT sector. Many of Pakistan’s
independent
television and
radio channels are based in Karachi including
world popular
Business
Plus,
AAJ News,
Geo
TV, KTN, Sindh TV,
CNBC Pakistan,
TV ONE,
ARY
Digital,
Indus Television
NetworkSamaa tv and
Dawn News as well as several local stations.
Karachi has several large industrial zones such as Karachi Export
Processing Zone, SITE, Korangi, Northern Bypass Industrial Zone,
Bin Qasim and North Karachi located on the fringes of the main
city. The primary areas are textiles, pharmaceuticals, steel, and
automobiles. In addition, Karachi has a vibrant cottage industry
and there is a rapidly flourishing Free Zone with an annual growth
rate of nearly 6.5%.
The Karachi Expo Centre
hosts many regional and international
exhibitions. There are many development projects proposed,
approved and under construction in Karachi. Among projects of note,
Emaar Properties is proposing to
invest $43bn (£22.8bn) in Karachi to develop
Bundal Island, which is a 12,000 acre
(49 km²) island just off the coast of Karachi. The
Karachi Port Trust is planning a Rs. 20
billion, high
Port Tower Complex
on the Clifton shoreline. It will comprise a hotel, a shopping
center, an exhibition center and a
revolving restaurant with a viewing
gallery offering a panoramic view of the coastline and the
city.
Demographics

Trend of population growth (in
millions) in Karachi
The population and demographic distribution in Karachi has
undergone numerous changes over the past 150 years.
Non-governmental and international sources have estimated that
Karachi's current population is about 12 to 18 million a huge
increase over its population in 1947 (400,000). It is estimated
that over 90% of its population are migrants from different
backgrounds. The city's population is currently growing at about 5%
per year (mainly on account of rural-urban internal
migration), including an estimated 45,000
migrant workers coming to the city every month from different parts
of Pakistan.
Before 1947, Karachi had communities of
Sindhis,
Balochs,
Parsis,
Hindus,
Christian,
Jews,
Goans,
Armenians,
Chinese,
British,
Lebanese and
Gujaratis.
After independence of Pakistan
, a large number of Sindhi Hindus and Sindhi Sikhs
left the city for Gujarat
, Rajasthan
, and Punjab
and were
replaced by Muslim refugees also known as Muhajirs. The
Muhajirs migrated from different parts of
India however the majority of them spoke
Urdu.
Currently, Karachi has a cosmopolitan mix of
many ethno-linguistic groups from all over Pakistan
and refugees from neighboring countries. The
Sheedi, the local name for Afro-Pakistanis,
trace their roots to African slaves.
After
Pakistan's civil war in 1971, thousands of Biharis and Bengalis from
Bangladesh
arrived in the city followed by the refugees from
Burma
and Uganda. Since
1979, due to the
Soviet war in
Afghanistan and continued upheavals in their country, a steady
stream of
Afghan refugees have also
taken up permanent residence in and around Karachi. These refugees
now number more than one and a half million and comprise a number
of ethnic groups, Mostly
Pashtuns,and
some
Tajiks,
Hazaras,
Uzbeks,
Nuristani and
Turkmen.
Many other refugees from Iran
, Tajikistan
and Afghanistan
nations have also settled permanently in the
city. With an estimated 4 million ethnic Pashtuns, Karachi
hosts one of the largest Pashtun populations in the world.
According to the census of Pakistan 1998, the religious breakdown
of the city is as follows: shia and sunni
Muslim (96.45%),
Christian
(2.42%),
Hindu (0.86%),
Ahmadi muslim (0.17%) and Other (0.10%).
(
Other religious groups include Parsis,
Sikhs, Bahai, Jews and
Buddhists).
The most commonly spoken language in Karachi is
Urdu, the national language. However Gujrati,
Sindhi,
Punjabi,
Pashto and
Balochi are also widely spoken in the city.
As per the census of Pakistan 1998, linguistic distribution of the
city is:
Urdu (48.52%),
Punjabi (13.42%),
Pashto (11.94%) ,
Sindhi (7.22%),
Balochi (4.34%),
Saraiki (2.11%) and Other (12.44%).
(
Other languages mainly include Gujarati and Memoni with smaller populations of Dari, Brahui, Makrani,
Hindko, Khowar, Burushaski, Arabic
and Persian ).
Government

Civic Centre.
Head Office of the City District Government, Karachi
The City of Karachi Municipal Act was promulgated in 1933.
Initially the Municipal Corporation comprised the mayor, the deputy
mayor and 57 councillors. The Karachi Municipal Corporation was
changed to a Metropolitan Corporation in 1976. The administrative
area of Karachi was a second-level subdivision known as Karachi
Division, which was subdivided into five districts: Karachi
Central, Karachi East, Karachi South, Karachi West and Malir. In
2000, the
national government
implemented a new devolution plan which abolished the second-tier
divisions and merged the five
districts of Karachi into a new City District, structured as a
three-tiered federation, with the two lower tiers composed of 18
towns and 178
union
councils (UC).
The towns are governed by elected municipal administrations
responsible for infrastructure and spatial planning, development
facilitation, and municipal services (water, sanitation, solid
waste, repairing roads, parks, street lights, and traffic
engineering), with some functions being retained by the
City-District Government (CDG). The third-tier 178 union councils
are each composed of thirteen directly elected members including a
Nazim (
mayor) and a Naib
Nazim (
deputy mayor). The UC Nazim
heads the union administration and is responsible for facilitating
the CDG to plan and execute municipal services, as well as for
informing higher authorities about public concerns and complaints.
Naimatullah Khan was the first Nazim of Karachi and
Shafiq-Ur-Rehman Paracha was the
first DCO of Karachi, Paracha even served as the last Commissioner
of Karachi.
In the elections of 2005,
Mustafa
Kamal, a visionary leader, was elected City Nazim of Karachi to
succeed
Naimatullah Khan, and
Nasreen Jalil was elected as the City
Naib Nazim. Mustafa Kamal was previously the provincial minister
for
information technology in
Sindh. Mustafa Kamal is advancing the development trail and has
been actively involved in maintaining care of the city's municipal
systems. Mustafa Kamal has completely changed the face of karachi
city and started many development projects since than karachi has
been converted into a real modern city his aim of making Karachi a
new Dubai is up there. Recently Foreign Policy announced top three
mayor of the world and one of them is Mustafa kamal as Mayor of the
moment There are also six military
cantonments administered by the
Pakistan Army which do not form part of the
City District Government of Karachi.
Education
The education in Karachi is divided into five levels:
primary (grades one through five);
middle (grades six through eight);
high (grades nine and ten,
leading to the
Secondary
School Certificate);
intermediate (grades eleven and twelve,
leading to a Higher Secondary School Certificate); and
university programs leading to
graduate and
advanced degrees. Karachi has both public
and private educational institutions from
primary to
university level. Most educational institutions
are gender-based, from primary to university level. Pakistan's most
prestigious school,
Karachi
Grammar School, is located in Karachi. It is the oldest school
in Pakistan and has educated many Pakistani businessman and
politicians.
The
Narayan Jagannath High
School in Karachi, which opened in October 1855, was the first
government school established in Sindh. Karachi has well-known
educational institutions of international standards. Most of
Karachi's universities are considered to be among the premier
educational institutions of Pakistan.
In 2008-09, the
city's literacy rate was estimated at 65.26%, the highest in
Pakistan, with a gross enrolment
ratio of 111%, the highest in Sindh
.Other
well-known schools include Little Folks Secondary School, Habib
Public School, Mama Parsi Girl School, Civilizations Public School,
Ladybird Grammar School, The City School, Beaconhouse School
System, Shahwilayat School, St. Patricks School, St. Josephs
Convent School, St. Lawrences, and St. Michaels Convent.
The
University
of Karachi
, also known simply as KU, is Pakistan's largest
university, with a student population of 24,000 and one of the
largest faculties in the world. It is located next to
the NED University of Engineering and
Technology
, the country's oldest engineering institute.
The
Plastics Technology
Center (PTC), located in Karachi's Korangi Industrial Area, is
at present Pakistan's only educational institution providing
training in the field of polymer engineering and plastics testing
services. The
Institute of
Business Administration , founded in 1955, is the oldest
business school outside of North America. Alumni of IBA include
former Prime Minister
Shaukat Aziz. The
Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology
SZABIST, founded in 1995 by
Benazir Bhutto, is also located in Karachi,
with its other campuses in Islamabad, Larkana and Dubai.
Pakistan Navy Engineering
College (PNEC) is a part of NUST (
National
University of Sciences and Technology), offering a wide range
of engineering programs, including Electrical Engineering and
Mechanical Engineering. Also located in Karachi is Hamdard
University, which is the largest private university of Pakistan
with an internationally known name. Karachi is also home of Head
Office of
Institute of
Chartered Accountants of Pakistan, which is the most
prestigious institute in the country producing chartered
accountants who are leading the corporate sector of the country.
The Institute was established in 1961 and has since produced over
5,000 members.
Leading medical schools of Pakistan like The
Aga Khan
University
and Dow University of Health
Sciences have their campuses in Karachi. NUCES-FAST (National University of Computer &
Emerging Sciences) formerly
FAST-ICS, the
leader in computer education in Pakistan, operates two campuses in
Karachi.
Infrastructure
Health and medicine
Karachi district is a centre of research in biomedicine. The City
is home to at least 30 public hospitals and more than 80 private
hospitals, including Institute for Heart diseases, Spencer eye
Hospital, Civil Hospital, PNS Rahat, Abbassi Shaheed Hospital, Aga
Khan University hospital, Holy family hospital and Liaqat National
Hospital, as well as Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center.Tabba
Cardiac Medical Center,Patel Hospital, Layton Benovelant Eye
Trust,Lady Dufferin Hospital,National Medical Center.
Transportation

CNG Buses in Karachi

Native Jetty Overhead Bridge
The
Jinnah
International Airport
is located in Karachi.
It is the largest and busiest
airport of
Pakistan. It handles 10 million
passengers
a year. The airport also receives the largest number of foreign
airlines, a total of 35 airlines and
cargo operators fly to Jinnah International
predominantly from the
Middle East and
Southeast Asia. All of Pakistan's
airlines use Karachi as their primary
transport hub including PIA -
Pakistan International
Airlines,
Airblue, and
Shaheen Air International.
The city's old
airport terminals
are now used for
Hajj flights,
offices, cargo facilities, and ceremonial visits from
heads of state. U.S. Coalition forces
used the old terminals for their
logistic supply operations as well. The
city also has two other
airstrips used
primarily by the
armed forces.
The
largest shipping ports in Pakistan are the Port of
Karachi
and the nearby Port Qasim
. These seaports have modern facilities and
not only handle trade for Pakistan, but also serve as ports for
Afghanistan and the land-locked Central Asian countries. Plans have
been announced for new passenger facilities at the Port of
Karachi.
Karachi is linked by rail to the rest of the country by
Pakistan Railways. The Karachi City
Station and
Karachi
Cantonment Railway Station are the city's two major railway
stations. The railway system handles a large amount of freight to
and from the Karachi port apart from providing passenger services
to people traveling up country.
Project to transform the existing, but non-operational
Karachi Circular Railway into
modern mass transit system has recently been approved by
government. The $1.6 Billion project will be financed by Japan Bank
for International Cooperation and will be completed by 2013. City
Government Karachi has also taken an initiative to alleviate the
transport pains by introducing new CNG buses.
Challenges of rapid expansion
As one of the most rapidly growing cities in the world, Karachi
faces challenges that are central to many developing metropolises
including traffic congestion, pollution, poverty and street crimes.
These problems continue to earn Karachi low rankings in livability
comparisons:
The Economist ranked
Karachi fourth least livable city amongst the 132 cities surveyed
and
BusinessWeek ranked it 175 out of
215 in livability in 2007, down from 170 in 2006.
Traffic problems and pollution is a major challenge for Karachi.
The level of air pollution in Karachi is estimated to be 20 times
higher than
World Health
Organization standards. A number of new parks have been
developed and new trees are being planted in the city to improve
the environment and reduce the pollution.
Image gallery
Sister cities
A twin
city partnership with Chicago
, Illinois
, United
States
, was contemplated and initiated in 2000, but was
never implemented.
See also
References
- UN world Urbanization Prospects estimate for 2007
- Pakistan City Karachi Online Information
- R Asif (2002) Lyari
Expressway: woes of displaced families. Dawn . 8 August.
Retrieved on 10 January 2008
- Mirat ul Memalik
- History of Karachi
- Christina P Harris (1969) The Persian Gulf Submarine Telegraph
of 1864. The Geographical Journal. vol. 135(2). June. pp.
169-190
- [Herbert Feldman [1970]: Karachi through a hundred years: the
centenary history of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry
1860-1960. 2. ed. Karachi: Oxford UP (1960).]
- - History of Karachi
- Government archives, Sindh for Municipality and divisional
administration
- Planning Commission, The Second Five Year Plan: 1960-65,
Karachi: Govt. Printing Press, 1960, p. 393
- Planning Commission, Pakistan Economic Survey, 1964-65,
Rawalpindi: Govt. Printing Press, 1965, p. 212.
- Afghan refugees population in Pakistan - Cambridge
Journal
- Economy and development - City District Government,
Karachi
- - Colonial style buildings of Karachi
- Lady Dufferin Hospital
- - Historic buildings of Karachi
- MCB Tower, the current tallest skyscraper of
Karachi
- Port Tower
Complex, Karachi
- The All Pakistan Music Conference History of festival Retrieved on 1 January
2008
- [DHA golf Club, Karachi]
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8345177.stm
- Business Week magazine (22 April 2005) Pakistan: After the Crash Retrieved on 1
January 2008
-
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=conewsstory&tkr=ENGRO%3APA&sid=afU5S7jTdEl4
- Board of Investment, Pakistan IT Sector Overview Retrieved on 1 January 2008
- United Nations INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY POLICY OF PAKISTAN
–PROVIDING AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR IT DEVELOPMENT. Retrieved on
1 January 2008
- Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry
Industrial Zones In PakistanRetrieved on 1 January
2008
- Trade Development Authority of Pakistan Karachi Expo
Center Retrieved on 1 January 2007
- BBC News Pakistan agrees $43bn development Retrieved on 1
January, Al-Nakheel (Dubai Based Company) has prepared a masterplan
for devloping Hawks Bay with a cost of $68bn, Limiless (Dubai Based
Company) will also invest in Karachi Waterfront Project by
investing $20bn for developing 2000acre land of 20000 acre,
2008
- Series Overview: The Urban Frontier — Karachi,
NPR.org, 2 June 2008
- KARACHI: Karachi population to hit 27.5 million in
2020, DAWN - Local; 10 July 2007
- Note: The 1998 census showed a population of about 9 million
and the City Government estimates "more than 15 million
inhabitants". Reasons for the discrepancy include workers living in
Karachi but registered as living elsewhere in Pakistan by NADRA
(the National
Database and Registration Authority); and Afghan refugees,
Iranians
and others (Indians, Nepalis, Burmese, Bangladeshis etc..) were not
counted in the 1998 census.
- " In a city of ethnic friction, more tinder". The
National. August 24, 2009.
- Geography and demography of Karachi
- ‘Sheedis have been hurt most by attitudes’,
Dawn ,
June 23, 2008
- UN Refugee Agency Case Study: Afghans in Pakistan Retrieved on 1
January 2008
- " Spate of shootings kill 29 in Karachi".
Guardian.co.uk. April 30, 2009.
- All Pakistan Ranking Of Districts by Literacy Rates
and Illiterates
- Ranking of districts by literacy rates and
illiterates (By 10+ and 15+ Years Age Groups)
- Federal Bureau of Statistics
- http://www.ptc.org.pk/
- Business Week, Karachi Livable Cities Guide.
Retrieved 2008.
Further reading
External links