The continuous expansion of urban areas in Pakistan is a striking feature of contemporary transformations in Pakistan. According to Population Census-2023, around 40 per cent of population lives in urban areas as compare to other South Asian countries, Pakistan has highest rate of urbanisation. The drivers and consequences of unregulated urban expansion processes are evaluated together with the associated encroachment upon ecologically sensitive areas.

The expansion of unplanned urban migration leads to urbanization and this leads to the expansion of housing societies. For instance, in Punjab out of 7,905 societies 5,118 are illegal, in KP more than 90 percent of the housing schemes are not legally approved, the Sindh government has declared 480 housing schemes illegal, for Baluchistan only Quetta has more than 125 illegal housing societies, and lastly, Islamabad, with a radius of 22 Km, has as many as 99 illegal societies.

Unregulated human activities have severely disrupted the natural flow and ecological balance of rivers and streams across Pakistan. The encroachment of residential and commercial settlements along waterways, combined with improper solid waste disposal practices and the weak enforcement of existing environmental regulations, has intensified flooding risks, degraded water quality, and diminished the capacity of natural drainage systems. The encroachment and construction on riverine areas have not only disrupted the ecological balance but also put human lives at risk.

Pakistan faces either water shortage or floods every year during the monsoon season. Human life........

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