Went for a walk around Naya Saddar this afternoon. Empress market looked soulless, forlorn and forsaken. Nice building though. The landa bazaars in the alleys have all gone as have many of the shops adjoining the park. Wonder what the fate of the Regal second-hand booksellers > , a key feature of Sunday’s in the area, is going to be. The mosque, which has grown at the most phenomenal pace over the years, remains untouched. The fruit hawkers and the Quettawal cloth sellers in nearby streets continue to attract crowds while dodging/paying off the >

They start arriving early every morning round 6am. They are old men now, most sporting white beards and wearing that trademark white cap. Five or six of their colleagues have spent the night under the shamiana outside the Karachi Press Club. The morning shift is now coming to > to the sit-in, now in its 51st day. They are the workers of Port Qasim who began work there in the 80s. The tasks they performed have now been outsourced to a Chinese firm, and they claim they haven’t been paid for five months. Their demand: to be paid their dues and to get >

Today, I achieved the impossible: I managed to finally cancel my PTCL broadband internet and Smart TV services. It felt like I’d succeeded in escaping from some sort of cult - and breaking free was just as complicated. I’d been paying Rs 4,000 per month for no good > reason, having got myself a new Storm Fiber connection a few months ago. To spare you an ordeal, I am sharing the tips I got from my lineman before I made that fateful trip to the Cantt exchange today. Take the following with you or be prepared >