Housing schemes built beyond city limits have used up an estimated 60,000 acres of prime agricultural land
KARACHI: Nowadays land management has become a big problem in Karachi. Outdated land-use regulations, buildings codes, the absence of a unified land record system and patchy data on land-use are resulting in poor urban land management. One consequence is extreme inequality in land-use. In Karachi, 36 per cent of the population lives in planned settlements that consume 77 per cent of the city’s residential land, where urban density can be as low as 84 people per hectare. On the other hand, Karachi’s many informal settlements have densities of more than 4,500 per hectare. These hugely varying densities have resulted in unequal access to vital urban services.
Unplanned urban sprawl continues unchecked. Housing schemes built beyond city limits have used up an estimated 60,000 acres of prime agricultural land. Both Karachi and Lahore have seen the development of large real estate schemes by private developers, particularly along the highways. These ventures are redefining urban limits, further straining service delivery.
In the end, it is not even a problem. There are bigger issues to focus on.
Usman Javed
Published in The Express Tribune, October 17th, 2019.
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