(25 Sep 2013) Surging violence by criminal gangs and militants has caused big problems for most businesses in Pakistan's largest city.
But one industry in Karachi is flourishing: the production of armoured vehicles - to protect wealthy businessmen, politicians and their families.
STORYLINE:
Here in this workshop in Karachi, staff are working flat out to bullet-proof vehicles.
They have never been so busy, with demand outstripping expectations.
Orders for armoured vehicles are up, with wealthy and high-profile individuals fearing for their safety.
Pulling up at his home in Karachi is Nadeem Khan.
The vice president of a Pakistani pharmaceutical company has had his vehicle armoured to protect him and his family.
Khan has nearly a dozen armed guards and 15-foot walls protecting his palatial home in the city's most upscale neighbourhood, but prefers to travel as low-profile as possible.
"Before (the) bullet proof car, I am (was) travelling with my family in a car and I am not feeling safe, with my guards also. Now I am feeling very safe because of our bullet proof car and my family (is) also safe," says Khan.
Karachi, a city of 18 million people, has a long history of violence, much of it associated with gangs linked to the city's main political parties.
But recent years have been especially bloody.
There were 2,174 people killed in Karachi last year, according to the Citizens' Police Liaison Committee (CPLC), the deadliest year since 1994 when the organisation began collecting figures.
This year is on track to be even worse.
There were 1,894 people killed in the first eight months of 2013, according to the CPLC.
Karachi and other cities in Pakistan have also been plagued by deadly attacks from the Taliban and their allies.
The violence has caused thousands of businesses to leave and produced millions of dollars in economic losses.
But leaving isn't an option for everyone.
Wealthy businessmen who have stayed first hired private security guards and sought licenses to carry weapons.
Now they are turning to armoured vehicles for even greater protection.
Mohammed Khalid Yousuf heads up a company that armours vehicles in Karachi.
"The people of Pakistan from the last two years moved from here, say about 50 to 60 thousand families to various countries. And they moved their factories, their business, their families. The rest of the people, they cannot go abroad so they want themselves to be protected on the streets," explains Yousuf, who is Chief Executive Officer of Streit Pakistan PVT Ltd.
"So most of the people, they were carrying three, four, five cars with security guards.
"Now they say, OK leave the guards, because the bullet is coming from where, no one knows. So now they feel as they find out the bullet proof cars business start in Pakistan as per the international standards."
Armouring a vehicle involves an elaborate process whereby the entire car is dismantled, leaving only the metal skeleton and the engine.
Steel plates are then attached to the vehicle using the same welding technology involved in ship construction.
Bullet-proof windows and special tyres designed to resist deflation when punctured are also installed.
Workers then re-install the seats, dashboard and other components that were removed.
The only armoured vehicles available in Pakistan for years were imported at very high cost and required special government approval.
The cost came down significantly several years ago when the government first authorised domestic companies to armour vehicles - although customers still need government approval to carry out the process.
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