The Crucial Problem of Housing Crisis in Pakistan

Recently, Prime Minister called for the developing high-rise vertical buildings in the whole country. This policy will address the housing crisis of Pakistan. The PM further stated that he needs to avoid the unplanned settlements which will solve the residential crisis. This will further caution the issues and frauds which are already happening in terms of residential developments.

For taking care of this issue, the government is looking for rules and regulations that will be utilized for standardization of high rise buildings in the major takeaways for the Prime Ministers tweets for highlighting the major issues.

• High rise buildings are the main construction for the future. It will be ideal for the replacement of the congested or unplanned settlements.
• Future cities will be vertical as per the ideal as per the studding of the nation’s skyline.
• Green plantation and green dense areas will be protected.

These are some of the important takeaways from the Prime Minister’s tweets on the issues of the residencies.

REASONS BEHIND THESE CHANGES

There are different factors which have added to the country’s development and its further comprehension.

Rural to Urban Migration

According to 2017, Pakistan Pakistan’s total population is about 207.7 million. Out of this, about 75.7 million people are living in urban settlements. These developed cities offer multiple opportunities where people residing in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad enjoy their access to better facilities. These opportunities are luxurious and provides the complete ideas for capturing better lifestyle.

People are now migrating to urban settlements. Over 45,000 people migrate to the city of Karachi every month and the percentage keeps increasing. It further encourages the overall plausible solution for bringing a jump in the settlements.

Demand and Supply Gap

​​​​​​There is a different dynamic that comes to creation of demand and supply gap for the people that require urban housing demand in Pakistan. Right now, we need about 350,000 units per year. The total number of received units is 150,000 per year. It creates a huge short fall of the overall populations and the homes that need to be provided for them.

There is also a complete backlog of 8.5 million residential units. This figure keeps increasing 200,000 units per year. This means that there is a gloomy picture of low and middle income groups. There are successive governments which are divided into slums, information sub divisions as well as agricultural land. These are still not permanent solutions yet only temporary fix for the complete developed communities. This also does not constitute a proper solution that can be directed to the authorities for the illegal structures.

Unplanned or Illegal Construction

Supreme Court ordered the sweeping operation to clear out the encroachments country wide. The constructions were swept in order to regain the legal structures. The first operation was targeting Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) as it was an important idea for illustrating the complexity of this task. There were more than 25 settlements, as it comprised more than 4,500 households. With the proper plan, these families will be also vulnerable to their own displacement.

Plot Culture

Real estate investors in the country consider plot ownership as the most safe investment choice. There are salaried individuals which are preferring the buy houses or apartments. This is also a big reason for the overall facilitations that are provided by the plot economy. Plot transactions are often undocumented which can further bee accompanied by largely unaffordable venture for plots.

WHAT ARE THE SOLUTIONS?

There are several solutions which can be used to tackle the problem of the shortage of homes in Pakistan. Some of them are as follows:

• Banning slums as well as illegal settlements.
• Focusing on growth of more apartments.
• Formulation of effective by-laws.
• Revamping the housing regulatory bodies.
• Promotion of affordable housing through campaigns.

In conclusions, the shortage of homes is one of the most crucial issues that needs to be resolved on an urgent basis. It is also vital to understand the problems so that one can further lead to providing an effective change.