ABSTRACT
This chapter documents and analyses the transformations that have taken place in Karachi during the post-independence period from an institutional perspective. The city experienced many changes during the past two centuries. Since the British conquest in 1839, it has emerged from a small regional port town into a busy regional centre. The city became the administrative headquarters of Sindh province before partition in 1947. After that it also functioned as the capital of the new state of Pakistan for over a decade. A large number of people took residence in the city from different regions across the Indian subcontinent. The city has continued to expand and benefit from industrial and business developments, retail and wholesale enterprises, banking and financial institutions, administrative agencies, transport and logistics, and related developments. However, due to weak urban governance, fragile political process, and the rise of various interest groups, the management of the city has suffered on many counts. Informal processes have dominated trade, livelihood and employment, transport and mobility, housing and infrastructure, and many other sub-sectors within the overall framework of urban management. This chapter includes a diversity of cases and examples to illustrate the discourse and support the arguments.
