Karachi

From Mw

Karachi
Image:Mazare Quaid.JPEG		-	General Information
Country	Pakistan
Province	Sindh
Location	24°51′36″N, 67°00′36″E	-	Altitude	8 metres AMSL	-	Area	3,527 km²	-	Calling code	021	-
Time zone	PST (UTC+5)
No. of Towns	18
Population	9,339,023 1998	-	Estimate	11,969,284 [1] 2006	-	density	3,394 persons/km²	-
Government
City Mayor (Nazim)	Syed Mustafa Kamal	-	No. of Union Councils	178
Emblem		-	Image:KarachiEmblem.jpg		-	Website		-	Karachi Government Website

Karachi (Urdu: كراچى, Sindhi: ڪراچي) is the capital of the province of Sindh, and the most populated city in Pakistan, sometimes known as the City of Quaid (شہرِ قائد), after Muhammad Ali Jinnah the founder of Pakistan. It is located on the coast of the Arabian Sea in southeastern Pakistan, northwest of the Indus Delta. The city is the financial and commercial centre as well as the largest port of Pakistan.

The site of an ancient community of fishing villages, the modern port-city of Karachi was developed by authorities of the British Raj in the 19th century. Upon the creation of Pakistan in 1947, the city was selected to become the national capital, and was exposed to a massive influx of immigrants from India, which radically expanded the city's population and transformed the demographics and economy. Karachi has faced major infrastructural and socio-economic challenges, but modern industries and businesses have developed in the city, and the population expanded even after the capital was moved to Islamabad in August 1960.

Karachi is ethnically and religiously a diverse city in the nation. In the 1980s and early 1990s, Karachi witnessed a major influx of refugees from the war in Afghanistan, and increasing political and sectarian violence between the Punjabi and Sindhi communities, and the Mohajirs (descendants of immigrants from India). The intervention of the Pakistani army and martial law scarred the city, but a national economic boom in the early 21st century has resulted in economic growth and prosperity for the city. As of 2006 Karachi has an estimated population of 11.5 million, making it the second largest city in the world.

Contents 1 History 2 Geography and climate 3 Government 4 Demographics 5 Economy 6 Development 7 Culture 8 Education 9 Sports 10 Sites of interest 11 Shopping 12 Transportation 13 Land ownership 14 Problems 15 City Partnership 16 External links 17 See also 18 Notes 19 References

[edit] History

Main article: History of Karachi

The history of Karachi prior to the nineteenth century is brief. Karachi was known as Barbarikon during the Indo-Greek Kingdom. According to legend, Krokola was settled when an old fisherwoman by the name of Mai Kolachi settled near the delta of the Indus River to start a community ^[2]. At Krokola, Alexander the Great camped and built a fleet for the voyage back to Babylonia. Alexander's admiral Nearchus sailed back to Mesopotamia from 'Morontobara' port, which is probably the modern Manora Island at Karachi harbor. When Muhammad bin Qasim conquered modern Pakistan in 712, the area was called Debal (or Debul) which may have been the ancestral village of present-day Karachi. According to the British historian Eliot, parts of city of Karachi and the island of Manora at port of Karachi constituted the city of Debal.

It was in 1772 that the village Kolachi-jo-Goth was changed from a fishing village to a trading post when it was selected as a port for trade with Muscat and Bahrain. In the following years, a fort was built and cannons brought in from Muscat were mounted on it. The fort had two doorways, one facing the sea called the Template:Unicode (in Sindhi), Template:Unicode (in Urdu) or Brackish Gate Kharadar and one facing the River Lyari called the Template:Unicode (in Sindhi), Template:Unicode (in Urdu) or Sweet Gate Mithadar. Currently, the site of those gates corresponds to the location of the neighborhoods of Kharodar and Mithodar. In 1795 the city passed from the Khan of Kalat to the rulers of Sindh.

Karachi gained in position as a port which led to its importance being recognized by the British, and consequently led to the conquering of the town on the February 3, 1839. Three years later, it was annexed into British India as a district. The British recognized the importance of Karachi as a natural harbor and port for the produce of the Indus basin, and the city was rapidly developed into a bustling port city. A famous quote about Karachi attributed to Charles Napier is: Would that I could come again to see you in your grandeur!. Napier's quote proved almost prophetic as it was under the British Raj that Karachi would grow rapidly as its harbor was developed. When the First Indian War for Independence broke out in 1857, the 21st Native Infantry stationed in Karachi declared allegiance to the rebellion and joined the cause of the war on September 10, 1857. The British quickly reasserted control over Karachi and defeated the uprising.

In 1876, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, was born in the city, and he would later be buried there. By this time Karachi was a developed city with railroads, churches, mosques, paved streets, courts and many commercial centers as well as a magnificent harbor built by the British. Many of the buildings were built in classical British colonial style, contrasting significantly with the "Mughal Gothic" of Lahore. Many of these old buildings exist today and provide interesting destinations for visitors. Karachi continued to grow in size as well as importance due to its position as a major port. A railroad connected Karachi to the rest of British India in the 1880s. Population grew from 73,500 (1881), to 105,199 (1891), to 115,407 (1901) (Britannica 1911 ed.). In 1899 Karachi was said to be the largest wheat exporting port in the East (Feldman 1970:57). In 1911 when the capital was shifted to Delhi, Karachi became closer to being a Gateway to India. Karachi was declared the capital of the newly formed Sindh province in 1936, chosen over the traditional capital city, Hyderabad.

In 1947, Karachi was made the capital of the new nation of Pakistan. At that time Karachi was a city of 400,000 people, and its growth accelerated as a result of its new status. Being the capital, Karachi became a focal point for the new nation and this added to its status as a cultural centre in this part of the world. Although the capital later moved to Rawalpindi and then Islamabad, Karachi remains the economic centre of Pakistan, accounting for a large portion of the GDP of the country and large chunk of the nation's white collar workers. In the 1960s, Karachi was seen as an economic role model around the area and there was much praise for the way its economy was progressing, but in the 1990s, the city was wracked with sectarian violence. In the last 20 years, Karachi has continued to grow, reaching the 12 million (estimated) mark. The current economic boom in Pakistan has created a growth spurt in Karachi.

[edit] Geography and climate

Main article: Climate of Karachi

Karachi is located in southern Pakistan, directly north of the Arabian Sea. The city covers an area of 3,527 square kilometers, which are comprised largely of flat or rolling plains with hills on the western and northern boundaries of the urban sprawl. Two rivers pass through the city: the Malir River from the north-east to the center, and the Lyari River, which flows from north to south. There are a number of other smaller rivers that pass through the city as well. The Karachi Harbor is a sheltered bay to the south-west of the city, and is protected from storms by Kemari and Manora Islands, as well as by Oyster Rocks. Together, these natural barriers block the greater part of the harbour entrance in the west. Karachi is delimited by the Arabian Sea towards the south by a chain of warm-water beaches.

Located on the coast, Karachi tends to have a relatively mild climate, with low average levels of precipitation (approximately 10 inches per annum), the bulk of which are contributed to by July-August monsoon rains. Although the city enjoys mild winters and suffers through hot summers, proximity to the sea maintains humidity levels at a near-constant high. Due to high summer temperatures high (the range runs from 30 to 44 degrees Celsius across the months of April through August), the winter months (November through 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 ranging from weddings to charity fundraisers frequently take place. Tourists and expatriates visit Karachi in these months.

Karachi temperatures	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Avg. high (in °C)	25	26	29	32	34	34	33	31	31	33	31	27
Avg. low (in °C)	13	14	19	23	26	28	27	26	25	22	18	14

[edit] Government

Main article: Mayors of Karachi

The City of Karachi Municipal Act was promulgated in 1933. Initially the Municipal Corporation comprised the mayor and deputy mayor as well as 57 councilors. In 1976, the Karachi Municipal Corporation was changed to a Metropolitan Corporation. In order to decentralize the political, administrative and financial resources and responsibilities, the government of Pakistan designed a new devolution plan in 2000. Prior to the implementation of the devolution plan in 2001, the administrative area of Karachi was a second-level division known as Karachi Division, which was subdivided into five districts: Karachi Central, Karachi East, Karachi South, Karachi West and Malir. When the second-level divisions were abolished in 2000, the five districts were merged into Karachi District, and officially became a City District in 2001. Karachi now has a three-tier federated system, formed by:

• The City District Government (CDG)
• Town Municipal Administrations
• Union Council Administrations

The City-District of Karachi is divided into eighteen towns 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 retained by the CDG.

The towns are sub-divided into 178 localities governed by elected union councils (UC's), which are the core element of the local government system. Each UC is a body 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.

In the local body elections of 2005, Syed Mustafa Kamal was elected City Nazim of Karachi to succeed Naimatullah Khan & Nasreen Jalil was elected as the City Naib Nazim. Mustafa Kamal was the provincial minister for information technology in Sindh before assuming office as the city's mayor. His predecessor, Naimatullah Khan was chosen as one of the best mayors of 2004-05 in Asia.^[3] Mustafa Kamal is advancing the development trail left by Naimatullah Khan, and has been actively involved in maintaining care of the city's municipal systems.^[4]

Baldia Town Bin Qasim Town Gadap Town Gulberg Town Gulshan Town Jamshed Town

Kiamari Town Korangi Town Landhi Town Liaquatabad Town Lyari Town Malir Town

New Karachi Town North Nazimabad Town Orangi Town Saddar Town Shah Faisal Town SITE Town

• Note: Defense Housing Society Karachi is located in Karachi but is not a town of Karachi nor part of any town of Karachi. It is administered by the Defence Housing Authority, Karachi of Pakistan Army.

[edit] Demographics

Year	Urban Population
1856	56,875
1872	56,753
1881	73,560
1891	105,199
1901	136,297
1911	186,771
1921	244,162
1931	300,799
1941	435,887
1951	1,068,459
1961	1,912,598
1972	3,426,310
1981	5,208,132
1998	9,269,265
2006[1]	11,969,284

The population and demographic distribution of Karachi during last 150 years have greatly changed. Non-governmental and international sources report that Karachi's current population is estimated to be 20 to 25 millionCitation needed — a thirty-seven-fold increase over its population in 1947 (400,000). 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.^[5] Karachi is the one of the largest megacities in the world.

Karachi is a multi-ethnic, cosmopolitan city. Atleast 94.04% of the population were urban in 1998. [1] It is thus the most advanced district in Sindh.

The dominant ethnic group in Karachi is the Urdu speaking Muhajirs who migrated to Pakistan from different parts of the Indian subcontinent after independence in 1947.The Indian Muslim refugees with the help of the newly established government of Pakistan Muslim League were allotted most of the property leftover by the departing Hindus, Sikhs and other groups. The vagaries of mass migration of populations between the two newly independent countries gave rise to ethnic tension which continues to date. The power shifted to the Muhajirs who had the claim to the creation of Pakistan.

The other large groups include the Sindhis, Balochis, Punjabis, Pashtuns,Gujarati, Kashmiris, Seraikis and more than one million Afghan refugees who have permanently settled in Karachi after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. The refugees include several ethnic groups: Pakhtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, and Turkmen, who have raised the number of Afghans to about 3 million. There are also hundreds of thousands of Bengalis, Arabs, Iranians, Arakani Muslim refugees (from Rakhine State in Myanmar) and African immigrants who are also settled in Karachi. A large community of Zoroastrian-Persian Parsis also existed in Karachi prior to independence in 1947. The Parsis of Karachi have played an important role in the history of the city serving in key government positions, undertaking large philanthropic projects and conducting business in the city. Since independence however, most of them migrated to western nations and currently, the Parsi population of the city numbers about 5000. There is also a large community of Goan Catholic Christians who settled in Karachi during the British era. Most refugee minorities of the city live in slum areas.

According to 1998 census the linguistic distribution of population, is as follows. Urdu speaking 48.52%; Punjabi 13.94%; Sindhi 7.22%; Pushto 11.42%; Balochi 4.34%; Seraiki 2.11%; others 12.4%. The others include Gujarati, Dawoodi Bohra, Memon, Ghanchi, Brahui, Makrani, Khowar, Burushaski, Arabic, Persian and Bengali. The religious breakup of the city is as follows: Muslim 96.49%; Christian 2.35%; Hindu 0.83%; Ahmadi 0.17%; others 0.13%. The others include Parsi, Jews and Buddhist.Citation needed

[edit] Economy

Main article: Economy of Karachi

Karachi is the financial capital of Pakistan; it accounts for the lion's share of GDP and generates approximately 65% percent of the national revenue. Most of Pakistan's public and private banks have their head offices in Karachi. Nearly all of these are located on I.I Chundrigar Road (Pakistan's Wall Street).

Emaar Properties is investing $43bn (£22.8bn) in Karachi to develop Bundal Island, which is a 12,000 acre island just off the coast of Karachi. The Karachi Port Trust is taking on a Rs. 20 billion project, the Port Tower Complex, which will be 1,947 feet high, the height indicating the Independance of Pakistan (14th August 1947), and is slated for completion within six years.^[6][7] It will comprise a hotel, a shopping center, and an exhibition center. The main feature of the venture is supposed to be a revolving restaurant, which will also contain a viewing gallery offering a panoramic view of the coastline and the city. The Tower is planned to be located at the Clifton shoreline.

Besides being the banking and finance capital of the country, Karachi also hosts the offices of almost every major foreign multinational corporation as well as corporations based in Pakistan. It is home to the largest stock exchange in Pakistan: the Karachi Stock Exchange, which was considered by many economists to be one of the prime reasons for Pakistan's 7% GDP growth across 2005.

The recent trends involving ICTs (Information & Communications Technology), electronic media and call centers have become a significant part of Karachi's business hierarchy. Call centers for foreign companies have been targeted as a significant area of growth, with the government making efforts to reduce taxes by as much as 80% in order to gain foreign investments in the IT sector. Karachi is also the software outsourcing hub of Pakistan. Many of Pakistan’s independent television and radio channels are headquartered in Karachi. Geo, ARY, Hum and AAJ TV are the most popular ones; some of the local stations include KTN, Sindh TV, and Kashish TV .

Karachi has a huge industrial base, with several large industrial zones 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%. Karachi has an expo center which hosts many regional and international exhibitions.

Toyota and Suzuki Motor Company are located in Karachi. Among others, Millat Tractors, Adam Motor Company, HinoPak Buses and Trucks manufacturing plants are also located in Karachi. The automobile manufacturing sector is one of the fastest growing industries in Pakistan, and a large vendor industry associated with it is also located principally in Karachi.

The Port of Karachi and nearby Port Qasim are the two main seaports of Pakistan, and Jinnah International Airport is the largest airport in Pakistan.

During the 1960s, Karachi was seen as an economic role model around the developing world, and there was much praise for the way its economy was progressing. Many countries sought to emulate Pakistan's economic planning strategy and one of them, South Korea, copied the city's second "Five-Year Plan, 1960-65".Citation needed

[edit] Development

There are many development projects proposed, approved and under construction in Karachi city. Some mega schemes that are proposed or under construction include:

• Port tower complex (proposed}
• Crescent Bay, Karachi (approved)
• Karachi Creek Marina (under construction)
• Dolmen Towers (under construction)
• I.T Tower (approved)
• Bundal Island (approved)
• Square One Towers (under construction)
• Sign Tower (approved)
• Karachi Mass Transit System
• Enshaa Towers (approved)
• Karachi FPCCI Tower (proposed)

[edit] Culture

Karachi is home to some of Pakistan's important cultural institutions. The National Academy of Performing Arts, ^[8] 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 Musical 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 awaited anxiously and attended by more than 3000 citizens of Karachi as well as people from other cities.Citation needed

The National Arts Council (Koocha-e-Saqafat) also has musical performances and Mushaira (poetry recitations). Karachi has a few museums including the Mohatta Palace museum that regularly has exhibitions as well as the National Museum of Pakistan. The Kara Film Festival organized annually showcases independent Pakistani and international films and documentaries. The everyday lifestyle of Karachi differs substantially from that of other Pakistani towns. The culture of Karachi is characterized by the blending of Middle Eastern, South Asian and Western influences, as well as the status of the city as a major international business centre. As a whole, there is considerable diversity in culture, and this diversity has produced unique cultural amalgam of its own type. Karachi also hosts the largest middle class stratum of the country. Karachi is the provincial capital of Sindh Provincial region.

[edit] Education

Main articles: List of educational institutions in Karachi and List of universities in Karachi

Karachi has the highest literacy rate in Pakistan along with the most universities and colleges. The city is well-known for its young student population who flock there from all parts of Pakistan. Most universities of Karachi are considered to be amongst the premier educational institutions of Pakistan with competitive admissions processes.

[edit] Sports

Popular sports in Karachi include cricket, hockey, boxing, football and horse racing. 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. The city also has facilities for hockey (the Hockey Stadium of Pakistan, UBL Hockey Ground), boxing (KPT Sports Complex), squash (Jehangir Khan Squash Complex) and football (Peoples Football Stadium and the Polo Grounds). In 2005, the city hosted the SAFF Cup Football Tournament at the People's Football Stadium. Marinas and Boating Clubs also add to the diverse sporting activities in Karachi.

Karachi has a number of sporting clubs such as the Karachi Gymkhana, the Sindh Club, the Karachi Club, the Muslim Gymkhana, the Creek Club and the DHA Club 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. Informal sporting activities are also popular, such as night-time cricket which can be seen at weekends when people play brightly-lit night matches on less traversed city streets.

[edit] Sites of interest

TheKarachi.com Community of Karachi

• General
  • Mazar-e-Quaid (Mausoleum of the founder of Pakistan - Muhammad Ali Jinnah)
  • Koocha-e-Saqafat (National Arts Council)
  • Masjid e Tooba (Largest single-domed mosque in the world)
  • Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar Road (Karachi's Wall Street)
  • Aga Khan University Hospital

• Beaches and Waterfront
  • Manora Beach
  • Clifton beach and the Jehangir Kothari Parade
  • Seaview, Clifton beach
  • Hawke's Bay Beach (breeding ground for endangered turtles)
  • Paradise Point (a rock promontory in the sea with a natural arch)
  • Sandspit Beach
  • French Beach
  • Russian Beach
  • Port Fountain Jet (600 ft high pressure water fountain)
  • Zamzama Commercial Area (famous for its designer outlets and cafes)
  • Abdullah Shah Ghazi Mausoleum (Ummayad general and Karachi's patron Sufi saint)

• Museums
  • Pakistan Air Force Museum
  • Pakistan Maritime Museum
  • National Museum of Pakistan
  • The Mohatta Palace Museum of Karachi and regional history
  • Karachi Expo Centre

• Colonial Buildings
  • Merewether Tower
  • Frere Hall
  • Khaliq Deena Hall
  • Jehangir Kothari Parade
  • Governor's House
  • St. Patrick's Cathedral
  • Sindh High Court
  • Former Victoria Museum (later used by the Supreme Court)
  • Hindu Gymkhana (now National Academy of Performing Arts)
  • Empress Market
  • Sind Club

• Islands
  • Clifton Oyster Rocks
  • Manora Island
  • Bundal Island
  • Bhit Shah

• Amusement Parks
  • Bin Qasim Park (Old Clifton)
  • Safari Park (University Road)
  • Aladdin Park (Rashid Minhas Road)
  • Sindbad
  • Karachi Zoological Gardens‎ (Gandhi Garden)
  • Sea View's Park
  • Aziz Bhatti Park
  • Old Sabzi Mandi Park (University Road)
  • Hill Park

• Farm Houses
  • Memon Farm House

• Resorts
  • Dream World Resort

• Race Course
  • Race Course of University Road

• Cinema
  • Capri Cinema
  • Nishat Cinema
  • Prince Cinema
  • Lyric Cinema
  • Universe Cineplex (Clifton)

• Food
  • Hyderabad Colony
  • Burns Road^[9]
  • Many other places like Clifton, DHA, Shahrah-e-Faisal, North Nazimabad, Karimabad, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, etc.

Clifton beach recently suffered a recent oil spill disaster, the beach has been partly cleaned and has floodlights installed for nighttime visitors. The government has embarked on the beautification of Karachi's coastline by building a Beach park in Clifton that will eventually be connected to the Jehangir Kothari parade and Bagh Ibn- Qasim. There are other beaches near the city such as Sandspit, Hawke's Bay, the French Beach, Russian beach and Paradise Point (a sandstone rock promontory with a natural arch) that are frequented by visitors every day.

[edit] Shopping

Karachi is dotted with many shopping areas, large and small, all across the city. Karachiites are avid shoppers, as can be seen from the crowds of people these markets attract every evening. Saddar, Gulf Shopping Mall, Bahadurabad, Tariq Road, Zamzama, Zaib-un-nissa Street (Elphinestone Street) and Hyderi are the most famous shopping areas in the city. One can find all sorts of clothing, garments, and fabrics in Karachi's bazaars, as well as a number of other items. The Saddar area in downtown Karachi is also home to countless large and small markets dealing from everyday household items to clothing and fabrics to electronics. Empress Market in Saddar is a large Victorian-era market, home to wholesalers of spices and other items. Saddar is also home to the Rainbow Center, one of the largest hubs of pirated CDs in the world. Some other notable shopping areas include Paposh Market and Hydari. Every Sunday, a weekly birds and animals market and a nursery is also held in Liaquatabad.

Karachi also has a number of large modern shopping malls, among which the Park Towers, The Forum, Millennium Mall and Dolmen Mall are notable. More of these malls are currently being built, including the Atrium Mall, Jumeira Mall, IT Tower and the Dolmen City Mall.

[edit] Transportation

The city has a modern international airport called the Jinnah International Airport, Pakistan's busiest. The city's old airport terminals are now used for Hajj flights, cargo facilities, and ceremonial visits from heads of state. U.S. Coalition forces used the old terminals for their logistic supply operations as well. Apart from this, the city also has two other airstrips used primarily by the armed forces. Karachi has the largest shipping ports in Pakistan at the Port of Karachi and 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 Karachi Port. Karachi is linked via railway to the rest of the country by the Pakistan Railways. The Karachi City Station and Karachi Cantonment 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 travelling up country. There are plans to extend the circular railway system to play a part in the city's mass transit. Currently, primarily motorists and minibuses handle commuter traffic, but there are plans to construct a light-rail based mass transit system in the city to decongest the roads and provide quick service to commuters.

[edit] Land ownership

Karachi is located in semi-arid coastal desert area with very limited agriculture land along the two small seasonal rivers, Lyari River and Malir River that pass through the city. Before independence, the area around Karachi had sparse nomadic population and most of the land was state owned. At the time of independence, Karachi was chosen as the first capital of Pakistan and the land area came under tight state control. According to the data prepared by the Master Plan and Environmental Control Unit of the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) in 1988, nearly 400,000 acres (1600 km²) of the 425,529 acres (1722 km²) that make up Karachi's metropolitan area is in some form of public ownership. Government of Sindh owns 137,687 acres (557 km²), KDA 124,676 acres, Karachi Port Trust (KPT) 25,259 acres, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) 24,189 acres, Army Cantonment Board 18,596 acres, Pakistan Steel Mills 19,461 acres, Defense Housing Society 16,567 acres, Port Qasim 12,961 acres, Government of Pakistan 4,051 acres and Pakistan Railways 3,119 acres. In late 1990s the undeveloped land belonging to KDA was transferred to the Malir Development Authority (MDA) and Lyari Development Authority (LDA).^[10]

The Defence Housing Authority has purchased 12,000 acres (49 km²) of land from the Sindh government along the Super Highway and will build Phase II of Defense Housing Society.^[11]

[edit] Problems

Here i would like to introduce an online community of Karachi. [Http://www.thekarachi.com] (Non-Official) which is the place for the people of Karachi to discuss all the problems and all the good and improveable things in Karachi. Even tourists around the world who would like to visit Karachi can get information from this website.

As one of the most rapidly growing cities in the world, Karachi faces problems that are central to many developing metropolises including overpopulation, overcrowding, traffic, pollution, poverty, terrorism and crime.

Karachi faces a very severe problem of excessive traffic. According to official statistics, 550 people are killed annually in road traffic accidents. The number of cars is more than the existing road infrastructure was designed for. This makes driving considerably dangerous and causes loss of time due to traffic congestion. A number of projects are underway in Karachi to battle these problems. These include construction of flyovers and underpasses at various chokepoints.

The excess of traffic and lack of control on vehicular smoke inevitably creates a home to numerous air pollutants. The level of air pollution in Karachi is estimated to be 20 times higher than World Health Organization standards. Other than that the common practice of burning debris and the lack of discipline in general has also given way to soot and pollutants.

To further worsen matters, recently many trees have been cleared in the city to expand the roads, with no arrangement for restoration. In response to many citizens' and naturalists' complains concerning the further deterioration of air quality that the ongoing activity may cause, the city government has announced a tree-planting in the September of 2006 that would last for the upcoming three months.^[12]

Recently Karachi has faced a slew of new problems. Water shortages are very common, and most of the city can only obtain water from private sources. Power is the second major problem, during the heat of the summer in 2006 power went out almost everyday, often for several hours. While the government promises improvement it is not clear where the money will come from as even though Karachi produces a majority of Pakistan's GDP the majority is siphoned off by the federal government.^{[citation needed]}

However, Karachi has received a notable economic boom in recent years and it should be noticed that since the Pervez Musharraf era the city has been steadily advancing towards improvements in most categories.

[edit] City Partnership

Karachi has city partnerships with:

• Template:Flagicon Shanghai, China: Since 1984

[edit] External links

Template:Sisterlinks

Official

• Karachi City-District Government
• Community of Karachi
• Karachi Stock Exchange
• Jinnah International Airport (new website)
• Quaid-e-Azam International Airport (old website)
• Karachi Port Trust

Unofficial

• Template:Wikimaplink
• UrbanPakistan: Projecting Pakistan's Image
• Historic Karachi- An exploration of the history of the Karachi city with old photographs
• Urban Resource Centre, Karachi - A discussion of Karachi's urban development issues
• Karachi Photo Album - Photographs of Karachi by Ali Adnan Qazalbash
• Ansar Burney Trust - A human rights organization based in Karachi
• Template:Ru icon Old Soviet map at Czech Technical University website
• The KaraFilm Festival
• Karachi and Pakistani News
• Online Community for Karachiites
• Website for Karachiites
• Website for Karachiites Students
• The Mysteries of Manghopir - an article by Owais Mughal
• wikipedia

[edit] See also

Template:KarachiTopics

[edit] Notes

1. ↑ ^1.0 1.1 Stefan Helders, World Gazetteer. "Karachi". Retrieved on 2006-04-17.
2. ↑ Official website, Urban Resource Centre. "Urban Resource Centre". Retrieved on 2006-05-12.
3. ↑ World Mayor project, CityMayors.com. "Comments in support of Naimatullah Khan". Retrieved on 2006-04-17.
4. ↑ Mustafa Kamal info, Dawn.com. "Mustafa Kamal announces city reinforcement projects". Retrieved on 2006-10-10.
5. ↑ Letters to the editor, Dawn Newspaper. "Karachi turning into a ghetto". Retrieved on 2006-04-20.
6. ↑ Official website, Karachi Port Trust. "K.P.T. Projects". Retrieved on 2006-04-17.
7. ↑ Article, 12th October 2004, Dawn Newspaper. "KPT to build Rs20bn tower complex". Retrieved on 2006-04-20.
8. ↑ Official website, National Academy of Performing Arts. "Welcome to National Academy of Performing Arts". Retrieved on 2006-04-17.
9. ↑ Karachi News: Online Edition, Daily Jang. "Hyderabad Colony maintains reputation for culinary delights. Retrieved on 2006-04-18.
10. ↑ Urban Resource Centre, Karachi. "Land as an Issue". Retrieved on 2006-04-18.
11. ↑ Site Edition, Daily Times. "12,000-acre DHA II to be city’s new kid on the block". Retrieved on 2006-05-06.
12. ↑ "Tree-planting campaign in the city"

[edit] References

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