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 whence Alexander’s admiral Nearchus set sail; and Barbarikon, a port of the Bactrian kingdom. It was later known to the Arabs as Debal from where Muhammad bin Qasim led his conquering force into South Asia in 712 AD[10]
Karachi was founded as “Kolachi” by Sindhi and Baloch tribes from Balochistan and Makran, who established a small fishing community in the area.[11] 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” survives in the name of a well-known Karachi locality named “Mai Kolachi” in Sindhi. Mirza Ghazi Beg, the Mughal administrator of Sindh, is among the first historical figures credited for the development of Coastal Sindh (consisting of regions such as the Makran Coast and the Mehran Delta), including the cities of Thatta, Bhambore and Karachi.
During the rule of the Mughal administrator of Sindh, Mirza Ghazi Beg the city was well fortified against Portuguese colonial incursions in Sindh. During the reign of the Kalhora Dynasty the present city started life as a fishing settlement when a Sindhi Balochi fisher-woman called Mai Kolachi took up residence and started a family. The city was an integral part of the Talpur dynasty in 1720.
The village that later grew out of this settlement was known as Kolachi-jo-Goth (Village of Kolachi in Sindhi). By the late 1720s, the village was trading across the Arabian Sea with Muscat and the Persian Gulf region. The local Sindhi populace built a small fort was constructed for the protection of the city, armed with cannons imported by Sindhi sailors from Muscat, Oman. 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 (Khārā Dar) and Mithadar (Mīṭhā Dar).
British rule
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.[12] The town was later annexed to the British Indian Empire when Sindh was conquered by Major-General 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. When the Indian Rebellion of 1857 broke out in South Asia, the 21st Native Infantry, then stationed in Karachi, declared allegiance to rebels and joining their numbers 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.[13] 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, brothels, paved streets and a magnificent harbour. By 1899, Karachi had become the largest wheat exporting port in the East.[14] Before the year 1880 the majority of the population in Karachi consisted of the indigenous Sindhis and Balochis (who spoke Sindhi as their mother tongue). Karachi was a small port town and part of Talpur dynasty in Sindh. The British East India Company conquered Karachi on February 3, 1839 and started developing it as a major port. As a result of British rule[citation needed] the local Hindu population established a massive presence in the city.
These developments in Karachi resulted in large influx of economic migrants: Parsis, Hindus, Christians, Jews, Marathis, Goans, Armenians, Chinese, British, Lebanese and Gujaratis. The population of the city was about 105,000 inhabitants by the end of the 19th century, with a cosmopolitan mix of different nationalities. 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
Independent Pakistan
By the time of independence of Pakistan in 1947, 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 included modern day Bangladesh, a region located more than 1,000 km (620 mi) away, and not physically connected to Pakistan. In 1947, Karachi was the focus for settlement by Muslim migrants from India, who drastically expanded the city’s population and transformed its 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.[15] 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.[16] 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.[17][18]
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.[19] Severe ethnic tensions between the Muhajir and other native groups (e.g. Sindhis, Punjabis, Pashtuns and others) erupted and the city was wracked with political and ethnic violence.
Today, Karachi continues to be an important financial and industrial centre and handles most of the overseas trade of Pakistan and the world, mainly the Asian countries. It accounts for a lion’s share of the GDP of Pakistan,[20] and a large proportion of the country’s white collar workers.[21]
Geography
Karachi is located in the south of Pakistan, on the coast of the Arabian Sea. Its geographic coordinates are 24°51′ N 67°02′ E. Most of the land consisted 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 toward the southeast side of the city. Toward the west and the north is Cape Monze, locally known as Raas Muari, an area marked by projecting sea cliffs and rocky sandstone promontories. Some excellent beaches can be found in this area. Khasa Hills lie in the northwest and form the border between North Nazimabad Town and Orangi Town. The Manghopir mountain range lies northwest of Karachi, between Hub River and Manghopir.
Located on the coast, Karachi has an arid climate with low average precipitation levels (approx. 250 mm (9.8 in) per annum), the bulk of which occurs during the July–August monsoon season. Winters are warm and dry, while the summers are hot and humid; the proximity to the sea maintains humidity levels at a near-constant high and cool sea breezes relieve the heat of the summer months. Because of high temperatures during the summer (ranging from 30–44 °C (86–111 °F) from April to August), the winter months (November to February) are generally considered the best times to visit Karachi. December and January are dry and pleasant as compared to the hot and steamy summers that dominate through the late spring (March) to the pre-monsoon season (June). The city’s highest monthly rainfall, 429.3 mm (16.90 in), occurred in July 1967.[22] The city’s highest rainfall in 24 hours occurred on 7 August 1953, when about 278.1 millimetres (10.95 in) of rain lashed the city, resulting in major flooding.[23] Karachi’s highest recorded temperature is 47 °C (117 °F), which was recorded on June 18, 1979,[22] and the lowest is 0.0 °C (32.0 °F), recorded on 21 January 1934.[22]
Civic administration
The city-district of Karachi is structured as a three-tier federation, with the two lower tiers composed of 18 towns and 178 union councils,[48] with each tier focussed on elected councils with some common members to provide “vertical linkage” within the federation.[49] Each union council comprises thirteen members elected from specified electorates: four men and two women elected directly by the general population; two men and two women elected by peasants and workers; one member for minority communities; two members are elected jointly as the union mayor (nazim) and deputy union mayor (naib nazim).[50] Each town council comprises all of the deputy union mayors in the town as well as elected representatives for women, peasants and workers, and minorities.[51] The district council comprises all of the union mayors in the district as well as elected representatives for women, peasants and workers, and minorities.[52] Each council also includes up to three council secretaries and a number of other civil servants. The main purpose of all of the councils is to provide municipal services, with specific responsibilities allocated to the district council,[53] the town councils,[54] and the union councils.[55] There are also six military cantonments which are administered by the Pakistan Army and do not form part of the City District Government.
The current system of government was brought into existence by the Local Government Ordinance of 14 August 2001, the latest in a series of administrative setups for Karachi. The first form of government was a conservancy board established in 1846 to control the spread of cholera in the city.[56] The board became a municipal commission in 1852, and a municipal committee the following year.[56] The City of Karachi Municipal Act of 1933 transformed the city administration into a municipal corporation with a mayor, a deputy mayor and 57 councillors.[56] In 1948, the Federal Capital Territory of Pakistan was created, comprising approximately 2,103 km2 (812 sq mi) of Karachi and surrounding areas, but this was merged into the province of West Pakistan in 1961.[57] However, the municipal corporation remained in existence and in 1976 became a metropolitan corporation, followed by the creation of zonal municipal committees, which lasted until 1994.[56] Two years later the metropolitan area was divided into five districts, each with a municipal corporation.[56]
Naimatullah Khan was the first Nazim of Karachi and Shafiq-Ur-Rehman Paracha was the first district coordination officer (DCO) of Karachi, Paracha even served as the last Commissioner of Karachi. Naimatullah Khan focused on building new parks, providing entertainment outlets to the youth (to celebrate events like Valentine’s Day) and families (to celebrate events like Eid). In the elections of 2005, Syed Mustafa Kamal 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. In 2010, Fazlur Rahman became caretaker administrator of the CDGK, replacing the Mustafa Kamal.[58]
Demographics
Karachi’s inhabitants, locally known as Karachiites, are a cosmopolitan population composed of many ethno-linguistic groups from other parts of Pakistan and migrants from several countries.[61] The population and demographic distribution of the city has undergone considerable changes over the past 150 years. At the end of the 19th century, the population of the city was about 105,000, with a gradual increase over the next few decades, reaching more than 400,000 on the eve of independence. Current estimates of the population range from 12 to 18 million,[60][62] of which an estimated 90% are migrants from different backgrounds. The city’s population is estimated to be growing at about 5% per year (mainly as a result of internal rural-urban migration), including an estimated 45,000 migrant workers coming to the city every month from different parts of Pakistan.[63]
The earlist inhabitants of the area that became Karachi included Baloch in the west, and Sindhi tribes such as the Jokhio, Mallaah and Jath in the east. Before the partition of India, the population of the city included large numbers of Hindus and Sikhs, and although communal riots in 1947 caused many of them to leave for India, there is still a significant Hindu community in Karachi that numbers around 250,000 residents.[64] The city was, and still is home to a large community of Gujarati Muslims, who were one of the earliest settlers in the city, and still form the majority in Saddar Town. Important Gujarati Muslim communities in the city include the Memon, Chhipa, Ghanchi, Khoja, Bohra and Tai. Other early settlers included the Parsis, also originally from Gujarat, Konkani Muslims from Mumbai (settled in Kokan Town), Goan Catholics and Anglo-Indians. The city was also home to small communities of Armenians and Bene Israel Jews. Most Jews and Armenians left the city in the 1950s, after independence, but there are still small communities of Parsis, Goan Catholics and Anglo-Indians in the city.
The partition of India saw the settlement of the what is now the largest ethnic community in the city, the Muhajirs.[65] Most properties vacated by fleeing Hindus were granted to Urdu-speaking Muslim migrants who had fled India. Known as Muhajirs, their descendants now form the majority of Karachi’s residents. Partition also saw the settlement of a large number of Punjabi Muslims from East Punjab, Kashmiri Muslims from the Kashmir Valley, and further immigration of Gujarati Muslims and Konkani Muslims from India. There are some Hindkowans and Seraikis who migrated much later. Within the Muhajirs, there is also a sizeable community of Malayali Muslims in Karachi (the Mappila), originally from Kerala in South India.[66]
The Pashtuns, originally from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, FATA and northern Baluchistan, are now the city’s second-largest ethnic group.[61][67] With an estimated 7 million Pashtuns, including approximately 50,000 registered Afghan refugees,[68] Karachi hosts the largest Pashtun population in the world, far outnumbering the cities in the Pashtun heartlands like Kandahar, Peshawar and Quetta. Many of these Pashtuns have been resident in Karachi for decades, and as a result, some no longer speak Pashto fluently, and instead primarily speak Urdu or English — especially those from wealthier communities. In addition, a small number of the Muhajir community (such as the Rohilla community) in Karachi claim to be by origin ethnic Pashtuns.
After the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, thousands of Biharis and Bengalis from Bangladesh arrived in the city, and today Karachi is home to 1 to 2 million ethnic Bengalis from Bangladesh,[69][70] many of whom migrated in the 1980s and 1990s and now work as fishermen. They were followed by Rohingya refugees from Burma,[71] other Burmese Muslims and Asian refugees from Uganda. One under-privileged ethnic group are the Siddis (Negro – Sheedi) who trace their roots to African slaves from earlier centuries.[72] Many other refugees from Iran and the Central Asian countries constituting the former Soviet Union have also settled in the city as economic migrants. There also exists a small Nepali population, some Arabs, Filipinos and an economic elite of Sinhalese from Sri Lanka.[73] Expatriates from China have a history going back to the 1940s; today, many of the Chinese are second-generation children of immigrants who came to the city and worked as dentists, chefs and shoemakers.[74][73]
Karachi is furthermore host to a large number of western expatriates in Pakistan. During World War II, about 30,000 Polish refugees migrated to Karachi, at that time a part of British India. Many of these Polish families settled permanently in the city.[75] There are also well-established communities of American[76] and British expatriates.
According to the census of 1998, the religious breakdown of the city is as follows: Muslim (96.45%); Christian (2.42%); Hindu (0.86%); Ahmadi (0.17%) and others (Parsis, Sikhs, Bahá’ís, Jews and Buddhists) (0.10%).[77]
According to the census of 1998, the linguistic distribution of the city was : Urdu: 48.52%; Punjabi: 13.94%; Pashto: 11.42%; Sindhi: 7.22%; Balochi: 4.34%; Saraiki: 2.11%; others: 12.4%. The others include Dari, Gujarati, Dawoodi Bohra, Memon, Marwari, Brahui, Makrani, Khowar, Burushaski.[78] Non-Pakistani languages, such as Bengali, Farsi, and Arabic, are not included in the Pakistani census.
Read More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karachi
Karachi founded by Balochs and Sindhi’s, Why the Baloch and Sindhi’s becomes minorities in to their own city?!