# Orangi Town

Orangi Town (Urdu: اُورنگی ٹاؤن) is a residential town of Orangi District located in the northwestern part of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It was named after the sprawling municipality of Orangi. Town system was formed in August 2001 by dissolving Karachi District West as part of the Local Government Ordinance 2001, and was subdivided into 13 union councils. The town system was disbanded in July 2011. Orangi Town was re-organized as part of Orangi District (formerly Karachi West District) in March 2015. Orangi Town has a population of 596,919 as of the 2023 Pakistani census.

## History

1960s
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. 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. The local community financed, designed and built their own low-cost sewerage system.
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.
2010s
In 2011 the City District Government Karachi was disbanded but remained in place for bureaucratic administration until 2015, when the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation system was reintroduced. In 2015, Orangi Town was re-organized as part of Karachi District West.

## Demographics

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.
Languages of Orangi sub-division (2023 census)
| Language | Rank | 2023 census | Speakers | 2017 Census | Speakers | Growth rate (2017-2023) |
| Pashto | 1 | 55.25% | 329,285 | 52.33% | 272,224 | 5.6% |
| Urdu | 2 | 30.32% | 180,690 | 29.68% | 154,421 | 2.1% |
| Sindhi | 3 | 3.83% | 22,856 | 3.73% | 19,414 | 2.7% |
| Punjabi | 4 | 3.20% | 19,104 | 4.64% | 24,159 | 31% |
| Hindko | 5 | 2.92% | 17,447 | 3.70% | 19,273 | 21% |
| Saraiki | 6 | 2.29% | 13,686 | 3.27% | 17,019 | 30% |
| Others | 7 | 2.32% | 13,851 | 2.63% | 13,685 | 12% |
| All | 8 | 100% | 595,919 | 100% | 520,195 | 14.5% |
Religion
Religions in Orangi sub-division (2023) :
| Religion | Religion | Percent | Percent |
| Islam | Islam | 98.54% | 98.54% |
| Hinduism | Hinduism | 0.13% | 0.13% |
| Christianity | Christianity | 1.46% | 1.46% |
| Other | Other | 0.02% | 0.02% |
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.

## Town Municipal Corporation

On 29 September, 2022 Government of Sindh issued a notification of remaining names of Union Committees of Orangi Town, Orangi District of Karachi 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.

## Transport

The Orange Line - Karachi Metrobus, also known as the Abdul Sattar Edhi Line, is a 3.88 km (2.4 mi) bus rapid transit line of the Karachi Metrobus in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It is the smallest of the five Metrobus lines in the city. The current daily ridership is 3,000. The route goes from Board Office to Gulshan-e-Zia (Orangi Town). It was inaugurated on 10 September 2022.
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. Three of the four stations are at ground level, while one is elevated. Each station is 6 meters wide and 70 meters long.

## Orangi Town areas

* Baloch Goth
* Bilal Colony
* Chisti Nagar
* Raees Amrohi Colony
* Data Nagar
* Ghabool Town
* Ghaziabad
* Hanifabad
* Haryana Colony
* Iqbal Baloch Colony
* Madina Colony
* Mohammad Nagar
* Mominabad
* Mujahidabad
* Shah Khalid Colony
* Aligarh Colony
* Banarsi Town
* Farooq-e-Azam Colony
* Ghulfamabad
* Gulshan-e-Bahar
* Gulshan-e-Zia
* Gabol Colony
* Iqbal Colony
* Islamnagar
* Khairabad
* Mansoor Nagar
* Shahrah-e-Qaddafi
* Orangi Town, Sector 1
* Orangi Town, Sector 2
* Orangi Town, Sector 3
* Orangi Town, Sector 4
* Orangi Town, Sector 5
* Orangi Town, Sector 6
* Orangi Town, Sector 7
* Orangi Town, Sector 8
* Orangi Town, Sector 9
* Orangi Town, Sector 10
* Orangi Town, Sector 11½
* Orangi Town, Sector 12
* Orangi Town, Sector 13
* Orangi Town, Sector 14
* Orangi Town, Sector 15
* Orangi Town, Sector 16

## Bacha Khan Flyover (Banaras flyover)

The Banaras Flyover is the largest flyover in Karachi, Pakistan. Spanning nearly two kilometers in length and 24 meters in width, 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, 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.