Orangi was established as a township in 1965. Orangi Township was originally planned over 1,300 acres (530 ha) by the Karachi Development Authority, and many of Karachi's squatter settlements were relocated here. The township was planned and developed with informal assistance from the city's municipal administration.
1970s
Orangi population rapidly increased during & after Bangladesh Liberation War in late 1971, following the arrival of thousands of refugees fleeing from the newly independent state of Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan).
1980s
Orangi became famous in the 1980s when local inhabitants became frustrated at the lack of development in the area by the municipal administration and launched the Orangi Pilot Project under the guidance of Akhtar Hameed Khan.[1] The Orangi area was the largest squatter settlement in Karachi at the time, so the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) did not extend services to the Orangi community.[2] The local community financed, designed and built their own low-cost sewerage system.[3]
2000s
The federal government introduced local government reforms City District Government Karachi in the year 2000, which eliminated the previous "third tier of government" (administrative divisions) and replaced it with the fourth tier (districts). The effect in Karachi was the dissolution of the former Karachi Division in 2001, and the merging of its five districts to form a new Karachi City-District with eighteen autonomous constituent towns including Orangi Town.
There are several ethnic groups in Orangi sub-division. The total population of Orangi sub-division is 596,919, including 316,870 male and 280,021 female residents as of the 2023 Pakistani census.
There are 587,225 Muslims, 8,733 Christians, 793 Hindus, 20 Ahmadiyya, 13 scheduled castes, 94 Sikhs & 41 others of total population 595,919 of Orangi sub-division.
08 Union Committees of Orangi in Town Municipal Corporation
Sub Sr Number
Number of Union Committee
Name of UC in Town Municipal Corporation
1
UC#01
Gulshan-e-Zia
2
UC#02
Benazir Colony
3
UC#03
Muslim Nagar Colony
4
UC#04
Jinnah Colony
5
UC#05
Iqbal Baloch Colony
6
UC#06
Naeem Shah Bukhari Colony
7
UC#07
Shah Waliullah Nagar
8
UC#08
Data Nagar
Geographics
Orangi Town is linked to New Karachi Town by th north east across the Shahrah-e-Zahid Hussain (New Karachi - Orangi Link Road),
Baldia Town to the west through Baldia Stadium Road (Farid Colony - Gulshan-e-Ghazi Road) & North Nazimabad to the east via Kati Pahari (N.Nazimabad - Orangi link road) and also Bacha Khan Flyover. It is also linked to M-10 motorway (also called Northern Bypass) through Shahrah-e-Qaddafi and Orangi link road. There were 13 residential neighborhoods, called union councils within Orangi Town.[6]
Orange Line - Karachi Metrobus goes from Board Office/Jinnah University to Orangi town TMA office, spanning about 4 kilometers. The line carries around 3,000 passengers daily with a station after every kilometer.[9][12] Three of the four stations are at ground level, while one is elevated. Each station is 6 meters wide and 70 meters long.[9]
The Banaras Flyover is the largest flyover[13][14] in Karachi, Pakistan. Spanning nearly two kilometers in length and 24 meters in width,[15] it is one of the city's most significant and longest infrastructural projects. The flyover connects North Nazimabad to Sajidabad and Orangi Town, alleviating traffic congestion in one of Karachi's busiest areas. Officially inaugurated in 2012,[16][17] the flyover had partial access during its construction phase prior to the official opening. Banaras Flyover was built to prevent ethnic violence among two groups and to protect one from the other.[18]
