KARACHI:
The State with its regulatory agencies should ensure that eco-balance is maintained and unchecked rapid urbanisation is kept in check. The large-scale displacement of people who lived on fertile pastures, along the periphery of cities, have created a havoc for the environment. Hundreds of thousands of herdsmen and fishermen who have dwelled for centuries along the Sindh coastline have been forcibly deprived of lands.
The unplanned concretisation of green agriculture belts and riverbeds is resulting in the uprooting of people who have lived there for generations. Unfortunately, the corridors of power are dominated by real-estate developers, and the consequences of their decisions are now materialising. Punjab definitely needs affordable housing schemes such as ‘Apni Chhat’ but not at the cost of environmental disasters.
The agricultural lands in Punjab and along the Indus River have been the biggest employment generating sectors for centuries. Millions have tilled it for centuries and contributed to Punjab becoming the subcontinent’s food basket. Unfortunately, the greed of few, devoid of any vision or attachment to the soil, has embarked on dismantling these green pastures and converting them into housing societies for few — at the cost of millions.
Malik Tariq Ali
Lahore
