KARACHI:
Every morning for the past four years, my daily commute has taken me through a bus stand in Wah Cantt. When I first started this routine, I would see one or two people sleeping on the benches or the cold ground. Today, in 2026, that number has grown to five or six people every single day. This sight is a small but painful reflection of a much larger crisis. According to the last available census, Punjab bears the heaviest burden of the homelessness crisis as it holds over 44% of the country’s homeless population.
The struggle to find a home is tied directly to the rising cost of living. While poverty has always been high in rural areas, it is now rising rapidly in cities and even though wages have gone up slightly, people cannot keep up with inflation. This has pushed many vulnerable households out of their rented rooms and onto the streets.
The safety nets that used to exist are also disappearing. A few years ago, numerous shelter homes were built across Punjab to help the displaced but most of these are no longer working. Today, major cities like Rawalpindi, Faisalabad and Multan only have one functional shelter home each.
The government has tried to help through housing schemes like “Mera Ghar Mera Ashiana” and “Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar,” but these programs are run through commercial banks that require salary slips and credit histories. Most people living in poverty work in the informal economy and do not have bank accounts or official documents, which makes them invisible to the system.
Another major issue is the location. To save money, the government builds these projects on the far outskirts of cities, far away from where the jobs are. For a daily laborer, living 30 kilometers away from the city center is not practical as they need to be close to where they can find work every morning.
To truly solve this crisis, the government must change its approach. Instead of relying on banks and mortgages, they should provide direct grants or interest-free micro-loans. We need housing solutions that consider the actual income and location needs of the working class. Until we fix these mathematical and logical gaps in our housing policies, the number of people sleeping at our bus stops will only continue to grow. It is time to build a system that offers a roof to everyone, not just those who have a bank account.
Saira Atique
Wah Cantt
