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The People Of Karachi
Karachi is home to about roughly around 30 million Pakistanis who belong to different religions, races, and ethnicities. Residents and those born in the city are called “Karachiites”. Karachi is a melting pot of many different flavors as many different cultures and people immigrated to the city giving it a very cosmopolitan touch. Before 1947, the city was inhabited mainly by Sindhis, Baluchis, Mekranis and Gujaratis from the areas near the city. In 1947 most of the city’s Hindu population left, and a large number of immigrants Mohajirs came from India. Most of these belonged to the Urdu Speaking parts of India. Along with them, Memons from Gujarat and small quantities of communities from other areas also arrived. After independence a steady stream of immigrants has been coming to the city from different parts of Pakistan and made large Punjabi, Pathan, Bengali and Hazara communities to grow in Karachi. In 1971 there was a large influx of mainly Urdu Speaking people from the former East Pakistan. In the 1980s a large number of Afghan refugees streamed into the city. With the blending of Middle Eastern, Central Asian, South Asian and Western influences, there is considerable diversity in culture, and this diversity has produced a unique cultural amalgam of its own type giving the city a status of being international business center.
Together, these people come to live together in a community system, help each other in the times of need and stand together when they are to face the music. This makes Karachi an eccentric mix of diverse cultures and traditions proving it to be a spectacular place to live in. The streets and neighborhoods are tightly knit together – joys and sorrows equally shared. The city that never sleeps! So much to do, so much to visit.. with so little time and resources. It is locally termed as the City of Lights for its liveliness and the City of The Quaid, for not only being both the birth and death place of Muhammad Ali Jinnah the founder of Pakistan but also his home after 1947. Karachi is the birth city of people like Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, Abdul Sattar Edhi, Mehdi Hassan, and Anwar Maqsood.
Millions of migrants from other provinces flock to Karachi to earn their living. Billions are remitted to their families based outside Karachi. These remittances make the difference between a family’s survival and a life of despondency due to no earning opportunities available to the migrants in their localities or cities. Everybody, from a coolie to an industrial baron, is engaged in utilising all his time to do something, to produce something that will enable him to maintain his family, augment his resources and climb higher in society. It is this urge that has enabled a large number of people, coming from various stocks and professing different faiths, to raise Karachi to what it today is. And this largely by the dint of their hard work, often in spite of the powers that be.
Karachi is a festive city and many religious and cultural festivities are observed across the city. Religious events such as Ramadan, Chaand Raat, Eid Milad un Nabi and Ashura are among the most prominent festivities of the city. Many rallies and parades are carried out during the events of Milaad un Nabi, Ashura, Jashn-e-Baharan and Nowruz by religious leaders and followers all across the city. Ethnic and religious minorities, like Christians, Hindus, etc. also celebrate their events, although not on as large a scale as Islamic events. The Sindh Cultural Day is also celebrated in the city in the month of December. People wear traditional Sindhi Topi & Ajrak, being the popular cloth of the area, and gather in different areas of the city where they play songs, dance, attend functions where artists come and perform. Other than that, Basant is also celebrated privately by the family clubs in the city.
The essence of this culture is the high value attached to time. Also Karachi is identified by its huge strides in the area of philanthropy and social service. Even before independence, Karachi was known for its public-spirited individuals and it had more institutions of public service than any other town in Pakistan.
Karachi helps Build Pakistan
Karachi is well-known to the world as the commercial and financial capital of Pakistan. The Karachi generates about 25% of the national GDP. It also has its share of 65% in generating the national revenue that includes federal and provincial taxes, customs and surcharges. .
The city has a very large and diverse economy. It is home for some of the largest and most dynamic industrial complexes in the country such as Sindh Industrial & Trading Estate (SITE), Korangi Industrial & Trade Estate, FB Area, North Karachi Industrial & Trade Estate, Dhabeji and Port Qasim etc. SITE Manghopir is the largest industrial park of the country comprising about 4000 factories. The areas like I.I. Chundrigar Road, Sharah-e-Faisal, Clifton and Defense are the main business hub of Karachi.
As the city offers an ideal location for the business, the industries produce a wide variety of goods, from textiles to chemicals, steel and machinery. The versatile industries of the city also produce cement, corn mills, shipbuilding, refined oil, shoes and food. Some major automobile manufacturing companies such as Toyota, Suzuki, Millat Tractors, Adam motors, HinoPak have their manufacturing plants in the city. The city is also home for plenty of cottage industries.
Karachi is a major sea transport centre and contains the country’s two major ports namely the port of Karachi and Port Mohammad Bin Qasim. The city is an important hub for fishery business in Pakistan. The major fish harbour in Karachi includes Karachi Fish Harbour and Korangi Fish Harbour. In Karachi, about 300,000 people are connected with the fishery business and some subsidiary industries provide employment to about 400,000 people.
Although IT industries, electronic media and call centers are playing a significant role in the current economy, the huge industrial base of the city provides the maximum strength to the economy of Pakistan.
Most of Pakistan's public and private banks, insurance companies have their head offices in Karachi. Many of Pakistan’s independent television and radio channels such as Geo, ARY, Hum and AAJ TV, KTN, Sindh TV are headquartered in Karachi. The city also offers the scope for expansion of tertiary sector and retail trade. The largest stock exchange of Pakistan is situated in Karachi. Jinnah International Airport situated in Karachi is the largest international airport in Pakistan.
Bring Karachi down - Bring Pakistan Down
The city remained largely safe from the worst kind of militancy, suicide attacks, bomb and blasts that wracked the country especial the northern parts during past decades. But the city has been be-devilled with targeted killings, ethic and secretarial clashes, turf war by different political and criminal groups, extortion activities, bank dacoities, robberies and other street crimes.
Embedded to its roots now, target killing has been seen as normal attribute to the city in past few years. Targeted killings in the city have been attributed to political, religious and ethnic reasons. The ethnic mix has resulted in political parties being affiliated with specific communities. For example, the MQM was founded for the political interests.Other social classes also formed their parties. Today, rivalry between groups has seen the rise of social and political chaos and a multiplication in target killings. Religious sectarian parties and Sunni-Shia conflict have also led to violence.
Tri-Services Operating Under Pakistani Flag - Only in Karachi
Karachi houses Pakistan Army Corps HQ, Air Force Base, Naval Base, Coast Guard Base, Rangers HQ and Pakistan Marines setup. The Only city of Pakistan where different forces of Pakistan Armed Forces and Ministry of Interior Operate as one Force !
PA's 5-Corps HQ was raised in 1975 to command Pakistani units in the entire of Sindh and some parts of southern Punjab and eastern Balochistan. The corps was heavily used in the Sindh anti-dacoity operations in the rural Sindh and the anti-terrorism operations in the urban Sindh during the late 1980s and the early 1990s. Corps commands three Regular Divisions including 25th Mechanised Division.
PAF has two main bases in Karachi - Masroor and Faisal. JF-17, Mirages and F-7's are based in Karachi. Southern Air Command HQ and PAF Air War College are based in Karachi. PAF's 32 Tactical Attack (TA) Wing which comprises four separate squadrons is in Karachi.
PN, although deployed along all Pakistani coast is majorly based in Karachi. Naval Air Arm at PNS Mehran Karachi has 6 Squadrons of P3C , ATR-72 , Fokker, Seaking, Z9EC and Alouette air assets. Air Engineering Department (AED) is also based here. PNA Karsaz, PNEC, PNS Iqbal, Navy Hydrography and other Major Naval installations are based in Karachi.
Pakistan Marines are based at PNS Qasim (also known as Marines Base Qasim) which is a major marines base that serves as the headquarter of the Pakistan Marines for their administrative, operational and logistic requirements.
Sindh Rangers HQ in Karachi consists of around 25,000 Rangers manning 29 Wings of 730 Rangers in each wing. The Sindh Rangers Provide security and under take Operations to keep peace and tranquility in Karachi.
The headquarters of the Pakistan Coast Guard (PCG) is established in Karachi. PCG has 4 Battalions which are led by commandants with the rank of lieutenant colonel, appointment coming from the Army. The Pakistan Coast Guard has in recent years, undertaken greater operations against drug & weapon and even human trafficking/smuggler networks operating in the coastal waters.
The Maritime Security Agency (MSA) Headquartered in Karachi, is the Navy-managed and Navy-controlled law enforcement agency whose mission is to provide protection to the Pakistan's maritime interests and enforcement of maritime law with jurisdiction over the domestic and international waters of Pakistan including the exclusive economic zone.
