Keamari, Karachi


Keamari is a neighbourhood in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Keamari was originally an independent settlement built on a sandy ridge on the eastern side of Karachi Harbour. Keamari Town was formed in 2001 as part of the Local Government Ordinance 2001, and was subdivided into 11 union councils. The town system was disbanded in 2011, and Keamari Town was re-organized as part of Karachi West District in 2015.
In 2020, Keamari District was carved out of Karachi West District. So Kemari Town ended up being part of Kemari District.

Location

Kemari Town comprised the western parts of Karachi, including the Port of Karachi and an extensive coastline of sandy beaches, small islands and mangrove forests. It does not include the southern island of Manora, which is administered by the Pakistani military as Manora Cantonment, because of the naval base located there. The town formed a large triangle with defined boundaries: the RCD Highway and the Lyari River form the northeastern border, the Hub River to the northwestern border, and the Arabian Sea formed the southern border.

History

Kemari was a low lying island located between Manora and the city of Karachi well into the colonial era. During this time, Keamari was the landing point for all goods and people entering Karachi. Kemari's anchorage during the early colonial era was too shallow for large ships, and so those were instead forced to dock at Manora.
The 3-mile-long Napier Mole Road was built in 1854 as a raised embankment which connected Karachi with Keamari. A year earlier in 1853, the Napier obelisk was built to commemorate the late Governor of Sindh, Charles Napier. The British further built a spur of the Sindh Railway to Kemari, which did not follow Napier Mole, but instead along the east part of Chinna Creek. During the colonial era, Kemari had a naval yard, a government commissariat, post office, customs and railway houses. In 1865, the 1,200-foot-long iron Napier Mole Bridge was built as part of an upgrade. In 1914, the Sydenham Passenger Pavilion at Kemari's Boat Basin was inaugurated by Lord Willingdon. In 1917, the imposing Mules Mansion, designed by Iraqi-Jewish architect Moses Somake, was completed.

Neighbourhoods

Most of the neighborhoods of the defunct Kemari Town are densely populated with two exceptions. Baba Bhit is composed of three small islands in Karachi harbour that are home to about 5% of the town's population. Further west, Gabo Pat is mostly rural with about 10% of the town population but half of the total town area. There are small villages in the rural area of Kiamari, including:

Sports

Kemari has many semi-professional football teams, including:
  • Keamari Muhammadan
  • Kemari Union FC
  • Society Brothers FC
  • Mohammad Eleven FC
  • Ayaaz Eleven FC
  • Usman Shaheed FC
  • ''Northern Loon FC''