SWABI: Rapid urbanisation and unplanned constructions in the district have been posing serious problems to the people’s living standard besides giving birth to social instability and evils, according to officials and local politicians.

Interaction on Friday with the officials, politicians, property dealers and people of various areas revealed that there was still no planning to tackle the problem of rapid shift of people from rural areas to the urban areas.

They said that more delay in implementing a mechanism to tackle the issue of unplanned expansion of the cities would create more problems.

Officials said that population of the district had already reached about 1.8 million and it was increasing with the settlement of people from other areas.

However, they said that accurate figures were not available about how much of the district population lived in urban or rural areas.

Unplanned cities invite risks of social instability, says MNA

“Unplanned cities invite risks of social instability and various other dangers while putting the existing infrastructure under a tremendous pressure,” MNA Usman Khan Tarakai told Dawn.

The politicians said that the grave problem was that there was no let up from the continued shifting of people to the urban areas and the government had failed to arrest this trend.

The people look for greater employment opportunities and hope for comfortable life in the cities as the rural areas lack adequate facilities of health, education, etc.

“About 85 per cent of the people, mostly from Gadoon Amazai mountainous belt, have settled in the Topi city where property prices have increased manifold,” said Mohammad Shafiq, a social worker. Mastan Khan, a property dealer, said that rents of residential units had almost doubled during the last three years.

A police officer said that unplanned cities could not be properly managed and with more population there was always a threat of disturbance.

MPA Babar Saleem said that there was an urgent need to check the growing trend of uplanned urbanisation because it exacerbated socio-economic disparities and harmed the environment besides putting the health, education and other facilities under a tremendous pressure.

Mohammad Rafiq, another property dealer, said that since the country’s inception only one housing scheme – Shahmansoor Township – had been imitated by the government in Swabi district.

The establishment of Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, Gadoon Amazai Industrial Estate, Tarbela Dam and Ghazi Barotha Dam has resulted in putting further pressure on the cities in the district.

KILLED: Two people were killed in separate incidents here on Friday.

Police said that a man was electrocuted while trying to turn off the power generator in Maneri Bala village. The victim, identified as Laiq Zada, was taken to a local hospital where the doctors pronounced him dead.

In another incident, a man was killed over a petty dispute in Jehangira area here. Police claimed that the victim, Fawad Khan, had exchanged harsh words with Mohammad Shahzad, who opened firing on him.

The police have registered the case on the complaint of Umer Said, brother of Fawad Khan.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play