The Port of Karachi is one of South Asia's largest and busiest deep-water seaports, handling about 60% of Pakistan’s cargo (25 million tons per annum) located in Karachi, Pakistan. It is located between the Karachi towns of Kiamari and Saddar, close to the main business district and several industrial areas. The geographic position of the port places it in close proximity to major shipping routes such as the Strait of Hormuz. The administration of the port is carried out by the Karachi Port Trust, which was established in the nineteenth century. The modern port started its operations in 1854 during the British Raj, when a mole was constructed to connect the city to the harbor. At the time of independence in 1947, the Port capacity was about 1.5 million tons of dry cargo and 1.0 million tons of products per annum.