Model Colony, Karachi

Model Colony Karachi is a neighborhood in Karachi, Pakistan,[1] that is within Korangi District. It is situated on the outskirts of the city about two miles north-east of Jinnah International Airport, Karachi's international airport. Other important buildings in the vicinity are the Security Press, which is Pakistan's mint, and the SOS Village, which houses about 200 orphans.

For the neighbourhood in India, see Pune.

Currently it is divided into two Union Councils.

Most of the residents in this neighbourhood belong to the Muhajir community, Bengali origin, tracing their roots to Bangladesh and Bihar.[2]

History

According to local folklore, Model Colony was envisioned by Fatima Jinnah, the sister of Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and Syed Mohammad Hussain Qadri, who was very close to her and her brother. She asked town planner Mr Makki to lay out a plan for a 'model Muhajir colony'. It was a favored residential area for Karachi's elite until the mid-1980s.

The colony has seen sustained deterioration as a result of increased population and ethnic riots that reached their peak from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s. Following the formation of the Pakistani local government system in 2000, there have been improvements to the sewerage system and road network and now approximately 85% of the houses in the colony have access to the sewerage system.

On 22 May 2020, Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303, an Airbus A320 aircraft, crashed in the Jinnah Garden area of Model Colony during final approach to Jinnah International Airport. Several buildings were damaged, while 97 of the aircraft's 99 occupants[2] and one person on the ground were killed.[3]

Notable residents

References
  1. Malir Town - Government of Pakistan Archived 2006-02-19 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "97 dead, 2 survived as Pakistan plane crashes into crowded Karachi colony". India Today. 23 May 2020. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  3. "Crash: PIA A320 at Karachi on May 22nd 2020, impacted residential area during final approach, both engines failed as result of a gear up touchdown". The Aviation Herald. 1 June 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2020.

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