LAHORE: Residents of the Theme Park—an illegal housing scheme in the flood-prone area near the Ravi River hit by the recent flood—have sought compensation from the government for the massive damage to their houses. They have also demanded action against the officers of the revenue department for transferring the land situated in the riverbed in their name as they were unaware of the danger.

“The floodwater completely drowned our three-marla house and left us with no option but to leave the place to save our lives,” says Jannat Bibi, a resident of the housing scheme.

“We had bought a plot for Rs1.38m on installments a few years back. Later, we constructed a house, spending Rs1m. On Aug 28, as soon as we left the house, the floodwater entered the scheme,” Jannat, who works as a maid, tells Dawn while narrating her ordeal.

“My husband is a rickshaw driver,” she adds.

Seek action against officers who allowed illegal scheme to function

Theme Park is an illegally-developed housing scheme where a huge number of people, especially the lower strata of society, had purchased plots (mostly of three and five marlas) on installments.

Under the marketing plan, the buyers were allowed to construct houses on the plots soon after making the advance payment along with the first installment. This attracted the people to invest as the plot price was also low (Rs200,000 to Rs500,000 per marla as per location). The cheapest plots were situated in depression and very close to or in the riverbed. However, the plots situated away from the river were sold for up to Rs500,000 per marla.

“Our house is situated a bit far from the river. But despite that, the floodwater also submerged our and all other houses in the neighbourhood. Three days ago, the water level was reduced, enabling us to see the first floor of the house. But the floodwater reappeared on Sept 5, drowning our houses completely again,” Fauzia said, adding that she and her family had spent first three days at the house of a relative at Samsani and then shifted to a relief camp set up by a non-government organisation near Chuhng (Multan Road).

“We just want the government to help us by giving us plots, as we didn’t know about the actual status of the Theme Park for being uneducated,” she raised her demand.

Arshad, another affected person, said he and his brother, Shahzad, had bought a five-marla plot in the scheme for Rs1.2m on installments and later constructed the house on it.

According to him, the last installment was due in the ongoing month and the scheme developer was supposed to transfer the land in their name after the last installment.

“But Aug 28, the floodwater first hit our block since it was very close to the riverbed. Moreover, this block is also in depression,” he said while speaking to Dawn on Sunday.

“Some days back, I visited the scheme and saw the upper floor of my house. But the floodwater again drowned the house completely. Some residents have told me that the houses’ structures had started collapsing due to constant accumulation of floodwater,” he added.

Kiran, Arshad’s sister, said her sister-in-law who was three months pregnant suffered abortion because of tension caused by the flood.

“A day before, she was hospitalised. Today, she had abortion. She was in tension since she had left the house along with her kids, husband and brother-in-law Shehzad after the flood,” Kiran said, demanding the government compensate the flood victims of the Theme Park.

“We are poor and uneducated people and don’t know about technicalities (land near river, illegally developed housing schemes, approval status etc). The government must take action against the officers/officials who passed mutation/transfer of plots situated in the riverbed or close to river or the areas prone to floods,” she demanded.

Shehzad also urged the government to take action against the officers concerned for not paying attention to the development of the illegal Theme Park.

“We request the government to help us financially as we didn’t know about the illegal status of this scheme,” he added.

Lahore Deputy Commissioner Syed Musa Raza was not available for comments.

SAAF PANI: The Punjab Saaf Pani Authority and Wasas working under the housing department have started providing clean drinking water to the flood affectees. According to a spokesperson, the Punjab Saaf Pani Authority had supplied 129,000 litres of water in 15 districts on Saturday, benefiting more than 53,000 citizens. The spokesperson said that during the last three days, Punjab Saaf Pani Authority has supplied 332,500 litres of water.

Similarly, Wasa agencies distributed more than 123,000 bottles of water in flood-affected districts over the last three days. In 15 districts, 42 water bowsers are also being used to ensure the supply of drinking water.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2025