Karachi Is Now The Largest City in the World

With rapid urbanization in Pakistan, Karachi has become the world's biggest city with a metro area population of 18 million people, according to Citymayors stats published recently.

Karachi (Urdu: کراچی, Sindhi: ڪراچي, Karāchi) is followed by Mumbai, Delhi, Buenos Aires, Seoul, Jakarta, Manila, Sao Paulo, Shanghai and Istanbul making up the top 10 list. Bangladesh capital Dhaka is at number 12, barely missing a top 10 slot. Of these, Mumbai, Dhaka and Delhi also have the dubious distinction of making Mercer's list of world's dirtiest cities. In another survey, Mercer has ranked Karachi as the fourth cheapest city for expatriates.

The list of the world’s largest cities, by land area, is headed by New York Metro, with a total area of 8,700 square kilometers. Tokyo/Yokohama is in second place with almost 7,000 square kilometers, followed by ten cities from the United States. Mumbai (Bombay), with a population density of almost 30,000 people per square kilometer, is the world’s most crowded city. Kolkata (Calcutta), Karachi and Lagos follow behind.



In 2008, the US based NPR radio did a series on Karachi titled "Karachi: The Urban Frontier". It highlighted the following facts about Karachi:

1. Karachi is built along a natural harbor facing the Arabian Sea, and this central location between the Middle East and India has made Karachi an important trading port for hundreds of years.

2. Karachi encompasses both its old seafront district and a sprawling web of commercial and residential development that covers almost 1,400 square miles. Its contemporary landscape spans skyscrapers, posh golf resorts, congested roadways and sprawling squatter colonies.

3. The Port of Karachi handles 60 percent of Pakistan's cargo, and the Karachi Stock Exchange is one of Asia's most active trading markets (The data for 1999-2009 shows that Karachi share market significantly outperformed Hong Kong, Mumbai and Shanghai markets). The city's main industries include shipping, trade, finance, banking, information technology, manufacturing, real estate, media and education.

4. Like any big city, it has its share of problems. Pollution, crime, corruption and political volatility are just some of the issues confronting the 12 million to 18 million "Karachiites" who call this overcrowded city home. Karachi is 60 times larger than it was when Pakistan was created in 1947. And with the population growing at an annual rate of 6 percent, one of the biggest challenges for city officials is managing the tensions and violence that often flare along ethnic and religious lines.

5. Karachi is growing so fast that estimates of its population range from 12 million to 18 million. The country's financial capital is also a city where about half the population lives in illegal houses.

Here are some figures for Karachi population I received from the editors of citymayors.com:

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 13,969,284
2007 14,500,000

Since Karachi population has been growing at about 4-6% a year recently, the 18 million figure for Karachi in 2009 makes sense.

The mayors of the world’s twenty largest cities are each responsible for more people than most national prime ministers. For example, London, ranked 20th in the world, has more residents than nations like Paraguay, Denmark, New Zealand or Ireland, and if Karachi, globally the largest city, was a country it would rank above Greece, Portugal or Hungary. The combined population of the world’s eight megacities - cities with more than 10 million inhabitants - comfortably exceeds that of Germany.



Urbanization is not just a side effect of economic growth; it is an integral part of the process, according to the World Bank. With the robust economic growth averaging 7 percent and availability of millions of new jobs created between 2000 and 2008, there has been increased rural to urban migration in Pakistan to fill the jobs in growing manufacturing and service sectors. The level of urbanization in Pakistan is now the highest in South Asia, and its urban population is likely to equal its rural population by 2030, according to a report titled ‘Life in the City: Pakistan in Focus’, released by the United Nations Population Fund. Pakistan ranks 163 and India at 174 on a list of over 200 countries compiled by Nationmaster. The urban population now contributes about three quarters of Pakistan's gross domestic product and almost all of the government revenue. The industrial sector contributes over 27% of the GDP, higher than the 19% contributed by agriculture, with services accounting for the rest of the GDP.



A 2008 report by UN Population Fund says the share of the urban population in Pakistan almost doubled from 17.4 percent in 1951 to 32.5 percent in 1998. The estimated data for 2005 shows the level of urbanization as 35 per cent, and CIA Factbook puts it at 36% in 2008. An expected positive consequence of the increasing urbanization of society in Pakistan will be the creation of over 100 million strong middle class by 2030, making Pakistan's grass roots democracy more viable and responsive to the needs of the people. This large urban population will not only create a domestic market for goods and services, but it can create a skilled work force that can be the engine of economic growth and source of innovation.

According to the 1998 census, Sindh is the most urbanized province with 49 percent percent of the population living in urban centers. NWFP is the least urbanized province with only 17 percent of its population living in urban areas.

With Pakistan already the most urbanized country in South Asia, Karachi's population has been growing at a rate of over 4 percent a year for decades, according to the editors at Citymayors.com. Karachi now accounts for about 12 percent of the nation's population, and Mustafa Kamal as its mayor is accountable to a larger population than the presidents or prime ministers of many nations of the world. As the nation continues to experience increasing rural-to-urban migration, the jobs of the big city mayors in Pakistan, particularly Karachi and Lahore, are becoming significantly more important and challenging than generally recognized. How these mayors deal with these challenges will largely determine the fate of the nation, in terms of education, health care, housing, transportation, industrial and service sectors' growth, job growth and overall economic activities, as well as the future of democracy.

When visitors see a squatter city in India or Pakistan or Bangladesh, they observe overwhelming desperation: rickety shelters, little kids working or begging, absence of sanitation, filthy water and air. However, there are many benefits of rural to urban migration for migrants' lives, including reduction in abject poverty, empowerment of women, increased access to healthcare and education and other services. Historically, cities have been driving forces in economic and social development. As centers of industry and commerce, cities have long been centers of wealth and power. They also account for a disproportionate share of national income. The World Bank estimates that in the developing world, as much as 80 percent of future economic growth will occur in towns and cities. Nor are the benefits of urbanization solely economic. Urbanization is associated with higher incomes, improved health, higher literacy, and improved quality of life. Other benefits of urban life are less tangible but no less real: access to information, diversity, creativity, and innovation.

In a recent interview published by Wired Magazine, Stewart Brand, "the pioneering environmentalist, technology thinker", and founder of the Whole Earth Catalog focused on the positive aspects of urban slums. Brand also made a counterintuitive case that the booming slums and squatter cities around the major urban centers in the developing world are net positives for poor people and the environment. Brand's arguments make a lot of sense, as long as there are representative city governments responsive to the growing needs of the new and old city residents.

Riaz Haq - http://www.riazhaq.com

Swine flu 'lands' in Pakistan tomorrow

Civil Aviation Authority officials have been intimated by a multinational IT company that three of their officials with symptoms of swine flu will land at Allama Iqbal International Airport at 3:00 am by Emirates Airline on Friday (tomorrow).
Health Department sources disclosed that after the intimation of arrival of swine flu patients, the CAA had arranged three rooms at Sheikh Zayed Hospital for their treatment.
According to the sources, CAA officials were informed by the multinational company that its three employees who had been sent to Mexico for the training purpose were somehow affected by the swine flu and now they were coming back by Emirates Airline from Mexico via Dubai. The company requested the CAA authorities to make full arrangements for their isolation and treatment.
On contact, a CAA officer seeking anonymity said that they had talked to Sheikh Zayed Hospital management for the reservation of three rooms in this respect and rooms had been quarantined.
It is worth mentioning here that on Wednesday there was a rumour in the city that some swine flu-affected passengers were arriving by a Toronto return flight PK-790. In the meanwhile, media people gathered at the airport and sought such passengers and all the 230 passengers on board had to go trough medical examination but no one was found affected with the swine flu.
Spokesman of the CAA, when contacted, said that no patient was traced by the Health Department and CAA affected by the swine flu.
The spokesman claimed that CAA was in contact with Health Department at all of its international airports and as per SOP the passengers having symptoms of swine flu would be kept alone at the airport for six hours after passing him through tests to wait for the results of their examinations.
Meanwhile, in view of the spread of swine flu in USA, Canada and other affected regions, the PIA has activated its Emergency Response Centre (ERC) to help control the viral infection among PIA passengers, in case any infected passenger comes on board.
Facemasks are being provided for preventing spread of this communicable disease as a proactive measure.
PIA is also actively involved in checking/screening the passengers arriving by flights from USA, Canada, Dubai and other hubs.

By: Amraiz Khan

How a jilted Karachi woman saved Pak N-programme

As the nation celebrates the eleventh anniversary of Pakistan’s nuclear tests today (May 28), a shocking 30-year-old secret has been exposed. It reveals how a young woman college lecturer, feeling betrayed after a romance with a nuclear scientist of the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (KANUPP), had given a lead to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in 1978, which in turn had led to the dramatic arrest of 12 Pakistani scientists and engineers, planning to sabotage Pakistan’s nuclear sites at the behest of a superpower.

The startling spy ring was exposed by this female college lecturer of a Karachi Memon family to the then head of ISI Sindh Brig Imtiaz Ahmed (Operation Midnight Jackals fame), only because she wanted revenge from her lover for being unfaithful. The expose led to the arrest of Pakistani scientists who were later given death and life imprisonment sentences by the special tribunal set up by the then president General Ziaul Haq.

Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed broke his silence of over 30 years to share this amazing operation with The News on the eve of the 11th annual celebration of Pakistan going nuclear. He said that while many people take credit for saving our nuclear programme, no one actually knows how an unsung jilted girl had actually ended up saving Pakistan’s nuclear project out of sheer vengeance.

Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed served as director in charge Internal Security ISI for several years in Islamabad and later director general Intelligence Bureau (IB) in the first government of Nawaz Sharif. The then prime minister Benazir Bhutto had put him in jail for about three years on charges of being part of the operation to oust her in 1989 during her first government. Later, General Musharraf also put him in jail for four years till his acquittal by the Lahore High Court. He is the only spymaster of Pakistan who was jailed for eight years, after serving 15 years in the ISI and the IB.

Brig Imtiaz recalled that as a lieutenant colonel he was posted as chief ISI Sindh in 1978. One day he received a telephone call from the sister of A K Brohi, who was a psychologist in Karachi. She informed him that she was treating a female young patient who was suffering from a disease called “secret concealment” wherein a patient could not be cured unless he or she shared this secret with someone.

The lady doctor had confessed to Brig Imtiaz that she had failed to make the girl reveal the secret and thought maybe he could help her. He then went to meet the woman at the clinic. She was very beautiful and had done her Masters in English Literature and was teaching at a local college.

After some initial talk, the woman finally told him that she was carrying a very dangerous secret with her but made it clear that she would not share it even if she was killed. She told him that she knew very well that the intelligence people were not trustworthy, as they usually use the people and then don’t care what had happened to them. Brig Imtiaz told her that if she was not ready to trust him, then he was ready to arrange her meetings with the then DG ISI General Riaz Mohammad (uncle of MNA Shahid Khaqan Abbasi). But, she refused. Brig Imtiaz did not lose heart and told her that he could arrange her meeting with General K M Arif who was then chief of staff to Gen Zia. When she refused again, as a last resort Brig Imtiaz offered to take her to meet President Gen Zia to share this strange secret which had made her life a living hell. But, the woman did not agree to any of these names to share her dangerous secret as she feared she might be killed.

According to Brig Imtiaz, he could have easily picked her up and kept her in a safe house for a few days in isolation to make her reveal the secret but he did not adopt this traditional style of the intelligence officers. For a few days, according to his own version, Brig Imtiaz grappled with the dilemma of whether to wait or to just pick her up and try extracting information through traditional methods.

It was during these days that one day while on his way to Clifton and driving by the consulate of a superpower, he saw a red colour Mazda car bearing a private number plate going inside at a very fast speed but he never really gave it another thought. But later, when he was sitting with the man in Clifton whom he had gone to meet, all of a sudden, his mind started working and he thought of the same red Mazda car and how it was allowed inside the consulate within a few seconds. He immediately ordered his men to stay vigilant outside the consulate and keep a tab on the car when it came out. But the red Mazda did not come out of the consulate building till late at night. Next morning, he went to his office and took out the Karachi metropolitan map and divided it into eight sectors. He gave motorcycles and cars to his ISI people with the directions to keep on roaming in these eight sectors all the time and note the registration numbers of all such red Mazda cars which were very few in those days. This exercise continued for a month but there was no big success. He kept on checking the registration numbers of red Mazda cars but no suspect was found.

One day, he got a red Mazda number which was rented out to someone from a Tariq Road showroom. One Rafique Munshi had rented that car. He had also given his address to the showroom. He was living in Garden East in MPA hostel in a suite. When the credentials of Munshi were checked, Brig Imtiaz came to know that he was working in the KANUPP as an engineer. The brigadier was immediately reminded of the female lecturer and went to meet the Memon lady. He again called the sister of Dr A K Brohi and requested her to arrange a meeting with her patient.

During the meeting, he suddenly asked the lady whether she knew Munshi. As he uttered the name, she started weeping. It took her a while to regain her composure but then she started sharing the secret which she was not ready to share earlier. She admitted that she and Munshi had been class fellows at Karachi University. Both had a serious love affair and he had promised to marry her. She said that they had also developed an illicit sexual relationship. But then he suddenly disappeared from Karachi and she could not trace him anywhere.

After four long years, he suddenly resurfaced in Karachi and was a totally changed man. Before going into hiding, he was a poor guy, but now he was loaded with dollars and leading a luxurious life. She also saw the photograph of a very beautiful foreign girl in his wallet. She then admitted to the brigadier that she was still dating Munshi but felt betrayed and cheated as she believed he had spoiled her life. She told Brig Imtiaz that she was thinking to take revenge from him but then she could not dare because it might have also harmed her.

Then the secret broke. The woman told him that one day, when Munshi left for his office, he left his safe open. She looked at the half-open safe and could not resist the temptation to check its contents. She was startled to see piles of dollars inside along with some official secret files. These papers were related to Pakistan’s nuclear sites and installations. This information was enough for Brig Imtiaz to proceed further as he understood the nature of the secret the woman was carrying with her for so many months and becoming sick in the process.

He asked her to help him get a key to Munshi’s suite so that he could himself inspect the stuff. She provided him the alternate key. With the help of a 70-year-old key-making expert Brig Imtiaz managed to open the foreign made safe and made copies of documents which were primarily questions and the answers related to Pakistan’s nuclear sites and the people working there.

Obviously Engineer Munshi was working for the secret agency of a superpower which used to provide him questions and he used to give them the replies to those questions related to the nuclear programme. This was the same man who was seen taking his red Mazda car inside the foreign consulate. Brig Imtiaz did not touch the dollars and kept putting the documents back after making copies. He now wanted to capture the whole gang, as he came to know through the papers that the agents of this secret agency of a superpower were also present in Kahuta and other important installations where the nuclear programme was being executed.

Munshi was simply playing the role of an agent between the foreign secret agency and Pakistani scientists working at those installations. After a labour of ten months and armed with necessary information, the matter was then brought to the notice of DG ISI Riaz Mohammad.

In the meantime, Brig Imtiaz came to know through those secret communications through papers that Munshi was to meet a foreign secret agent at Hawkes Bay Karachi to hand over some documents. He decided to arrest them red handed. He only took his driver along. When the two were exchanging documents, he tried to arrest them; and to his surprise, the agent shot at him but missed. But he, along with his driver, overpowered them and shifted them to a safe house.

Soon they had the names of 12 other officers at Kahuta and other places who were part of this plan to sabotage the nuclear sites. According to the plot, these nuclear scientists and engineers working on the payroll of a secret agency, were to develop huge technical sabotage of the programme to an extent that it could not have been repaired or fixed for some years to come. They all were arrested from various places in the light of information given by Brig Imtiaz.

It was revealed that actually the foreign secret agency had deputed five handlers from Washington to deal with the nuclear programme of Pakistan. These five foreign handlers included two girls, one of whose photos was seen by the heartbroken girlfriend of Munshi which made her jealous and she decided to take revenge.

Brig Imtiaz was immediately called to Islamabad to give a briefing to General Ziaul Haq The five handlers were immediately told to leave Pakistan and General Zia was said to have called the president of this superpower to register a protest that how his country’s secret agency had tried to sabotage Pakistan’s nuclear programme. Zia was said to have expressed extreme displeasure over this espionage of nuclear programme. But, the president of that superpower was said to have requested Zia not to make it a public issue as it might tarnish his country’s image and Zia obliged him.

A special tribunal was set up to try all those Pakistani scientists and engineers on high treasons charges. The ringleader Munshi was sentenced to death while others were awarded life sentences by the court. But one fine morning, much to his shock, Brig Imtiaz learned that President Zia had commuted the death penalty of Munshi on the recommendation of a top Sindhi leader in exchange for his political support to the Zia regime.

After the arrest of Munshi, Brig Imtiaz met the lady lecture whose tip had led to unfold this international conspiracy against Pakistan nuclear programme. She was devastated and feeling very depressed as she told the ISI officer that she loved Munshi dearly but as he had betrayed her she could not spare him.

The woman had managed to take her revenge from her lover while Brig Imtiaz was happy to unearth such a big conspiracy for which he was later decorated with a Tamgha-e-Basalat by the president of Pakistan for his services to the nation.

“Listen, almost 30 years have passed since this incident, but till date I can’t forget how a heartbroken woman’s commitment to herself to take revenge from her lover had led to the unfolding of this secret, which, if not shared, might have deprived Pakistan of its nuclear assets and we might not be celebrating this day,” remarked Brig Imtiaz while lost in the memories of the past.

FIRST NATIONAL BLOGGERS CONFERENCE 2009

AN INITIATIVE OF MINISTRY OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, GOVERNMENT OF SINDH

“Blogging has gone beyond pastime and into prime time….”

This is the first step by any government in South Asia and Middle East to take Blogging seriously and recognizing “Blogging” as an alternate medium and source of information.

The growth of the Pakistani blogging community has mirrored the expansion of the blogosphere elsewhere in the developed or the developing world. However, there have been only a few opportunities afforded to Pakistani bloggers to get together and discuss their common interests.

This will not be a conference in the traditional sense. It will be relatively informal with the biggest bloggers of Pakistan and the people they blog about (the politicians). Instead of lengthy presentations, people will be invited to lead discussions on various topics throughout the day – some practical, such as how to build a better blog, and some theoretical on the role, influence and future of blogs.

It is hoped that this First National Bloggers Conference will be a memorable event where all participants will learn more about the social, cultural, creative and technological aspects of blogging from one another.

A Trip to Murree

Karachi to Islamabad
Location: Karachi Air Port, Karachi to Rawalpindi. The start of my tour, from Karachi airPort. It was decided to travel by aero plane instead of train. Overall it was marvelous experience. My flight was sharply at 5:00 AM and reached at Islamabad on time after almost 1:30 hours. It was very economical and costs around 100 USD per person.

Rawalpindi to Murree
My next destination on this tour was to reach Murree and spend 2 nights there. After finishing some persnol stuff and shopping, we started our journey around 12:10 PM by taxi. Good news for Murree lovers that new Motorway to Murree it is almost finished, only metal ling is left on some part. This was bit boring one and half hour drive due to hot summer day. And you can feel Global warming effects if you are travelling to Murree after 10 years. Most of the snaps are took at Murree city on our first day of visit. It cost us around 20 USD from Rawalpindi to Murree on taxi.

Murree to Patriata
My very next day journey after reaching Murree was to visit Patriata Hills and enjoy chair lift and cable car. i decided to hire Jeep to go there, so that i can enjoy places on the way. After too much negotiations on the rate we hired Jeep on 18 USD for round trip and committed with driver to get back by 3:00 PM. It was an hour journey with lots of excitement to explore roadside areas and markets on the way. i found that local people were very innocent and tourism in those areas is the only better way of earning. Despite tourism there is no other business activity on these hill stations. Government should facilitate local and foreign tourists to explore the hidden beauty of this area and to work for the betterment of local people by engaging them in different tourism related activities. Roads should be better maintained to avoid any kind of accidents and to create awareness in drivers to properly maintain vehicles and follow road signs. Patriata chair lift & cable car is a must experienced thing and you can also enjoy horse riding on top of the hill. Patriata hiking track is very safe and wide and you can enjoy trekking on it. You must follow the maps displayed on the top hill for trekking to avoid to forget the way back. The chair lift & cable car cost almost 4.5 USD per person.

Murree, NathiaGali to Abbottabad
The next journey of My trip to Mansehra for Fairy Meadows, it was planned to get up early in the morning and reach Murree General Bus Stand to get bus for Abbottabad. i checked out from Hotel at 6:30 AM morning and reached to bus stand after 15 minutes walk. The total cost of Murree to Mansehra was almost 10 USD. Journey started at 7:20 AM and reached Mansehra near 11: AM morning via Abatobad. It was good journey to move from one Provincial area to another and observe changes in culture influenced by local traditions and values. On a way we have seen many foreign organizations are running number of programs for poor areas of country to increase the living standards and to provide basic necessities of life.

Back to Islamabad Air Port to Karachi
It was almost 5 days trip. then i come back Karachi

DEFENDING AND SUPPORT DR. AAFIA SIDDIQUI (KARACHI PROTEST)

DEAR ALL PAKISTANIES, IF WE CAN COME ON THE ROADS FOR THE POLITICAL PARTIES THEN WHY COULD NOT FOR OUR SISTER FREEDOM OF AFIA SIDDIQUI.

WE REQUEST ALL CITIZENS OF PAKISTAN

wake up we all should join hands in this public campaign and start some public campaign on our ends as well. It time to go far beyond then just this blog and lets pray for her good health, as she is now in critical conditions as parts of her body are also removed, and also pray for her early release

We are a volatile Nation, if we stand united and don’t take their bullshit we might be able to save quite much of disturbance in our country, we are already dealing with a lot.

WHO IS AAFIA SIDDIQUI?

* Detained Incommunicado for five years
* Abused physically and psychologically
* 11 year old son in custody in Afghanistan
* Her two youngest children remain missing

Aafia Siddiqui now faces trial in the US in circumstances that can only be described as strange at best. Questions remain as to her own whereabouts over the last five years and still that of her children.

Her medical condition is currently extremely poor as she suffers from gun shot wounds, and part of her intestine has been removed. Her condition is not made any easier by the flights of stairs she is forced to climb by herself in her condition during visits and the strip and cavity searches that she is forced to endure.

Please design and bring your own banners!

* The entire world should come out to help innocent Dr. Aafia Siddiqui
* UN Human Rights, European Court of Human Rights, Amnesty International should take action on Dr. Afia issue
Ensure Dr. Aafia treated according to U.S. & international Law .

SUPPORTED BY:
Islamic Human Rights Commission (www.ihrc.org)
CAMPACC (www.campacc.org.uk)
The Peoples Resistance
DR. AAFIA SIDDIQUI DEFENDING AND SUPPORT GROUP (Dr. Afia Siddiqui - Prisoner 650)

Ramadan Schedule for Karachi