DYNAMICS OF SPRAWL Case Studies of Secondary Cities of Sindh

South Asian Cities Conference Pakistan Urban Forum 09-12 Jan. 2014 By:Ar. Plnr. Tariq Ahmed Rind

INTEGRATING INDIGENOUS CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS FOR ENHANCING RESILIENCE OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES IN DISASTER PRONE AREAS

Introduction• Sindh is most urbanized province of Pakistan, where more than 60 % of the total

population live in cities. • Urban Sindh is continuously transforming due to growing pressures on urban Services and

haphazard land use. • There has been unsighted approach to inappropriate usage of land parcels, varying urban

densities and linear development along Highways, By-passes, particular in secondary cities, resulting in Urban/Rural sprawl

• Land disposal mechanism in these towns is governed by the provincial Hierarchy of Board of Revenue trickling down to Deputy Commissioner, Tapedars, Patwarees

• To quantify urban sprawl/fragmentation , patterns for 20 Towns cities (secondary Cities) are evaluated through their growth direction, Urban Density of buitup areas using satellite

DYNAMICS OF SPRAWL – CASE STUDIES OF SECONDARY CITIES OF SINDH

Sprawl in secondary cities of Sindh:• Sprawl is generally defined as the increased development of land in

suburban and rural areas outside of their respective urban centers.• This increased development of real estate in the outskirts of towns,

villages and metropolitan areas is quite often accompanied by a lack of development, redevelopment or reuse of land within the urban centers themselves.

• This trend is often referred to as both urban sprawl and rural sprawl. Although these two terms might sound contradictory, they are ironically referring to the same phenomenon—that is, the movement of development from urban areas, to rural areas.

DYNAMICS OF SPRAWL – CASE STUDIES OF SECONDARY CITIES OF SINDH

Population based parameter of land parcel division in Secondary cities. • In Pakistan, Urban Areas are defined as , “Places

with municipal corporation, town committee or cantonment (Demographic Yearbook 2005, table 6.)

• The areas notified as Urban are based on a population and physical feature based criterion. (wards, Union Council, District Council)

DYNAMICS OF SPRAWL – CASE STUDIES OF SECONDARY CITIES OF SINDH

Growth of sprawl along improved Roads. Jamali Byepass (Jacobabad)Indus Highway (Kashmore)

Jacobabad Town Kashmore Town

Kandhkot Town Sprawl is evident towards East, South and West.The Canal restricts the Sprawl towards the North

Shikarpur Town existing fragmentation on the external fringe has the tendency to be merged in main body of Town

Kandhkot Town Shikarpur Town

•

The Town of Kambhar is compact in formThe alarming level of Sprawl is observed in Khairpur

in all directions.

Kamber Town Khairpur Town

The By Pass have become a core of development with commercial and residential activities. Institutional Expansions on city fringes and recently developed

Nawabshah- Qazi Ahmed Road, Nawabshah-Sakrand Road are hub of Low Density Sprawl.

Nausheor Feroz Town Nawabshah Town

Town Fringes are hub of Low Density Sprawl due to availability of Affordable Private Land for catering for

Increasing Housing Demand

Sanghar Town Tando Allayar Town

Matiari Byepass is prone to commercial and resindential activity hence resulting in sprawl. Dadu is compact in form

and going through leap-frog development filling the gaps/Open spaces in the town, quite rare in Sindh

Matiari Town Dadu Town

Thatta Town/Makli (centuries old Necropolis) and Sujawal are twin cities just bifurcated by river Indus. Makli is provided with a bye-pass along sujawal road that has become of hub of Housing schemes on the hilly

plateau towards east. In Sujawal Town eastern barren land is prone to land speculation, for being in close proximity with Zulfiquarabad, a

proposed Industrial city.

Thatta Town Sujawal Town

Badin Town is prone to Urban Sprawl in all directions but the pace is relatively slow. Tando Muhammad Khan Town is observing fragmentation and city is divided into large

parcels bifurcated by Highways and Water canals (phuleli) crossing through city.

Badin Town Tando Muhammad Khan Town

MirpurKhas town is extending towards ring road that encircles the town. The low urban density development is evident, inclined to Low efficient

infrastructure as a result of Sprawl. In UmerKot, Desert restricts the sprawl on the South, East and North, however the southern parcels along MirpurKhas-

Umerkot roads the residential and commercial activities are sprawling.

Mirpur Khas Town UmerKot Town

Conclusion:• The sprawl of secondary cities of Sindh is expanding phenomena and difficult

to contain through land control regime, due to political dynamics of Land and politics. (Khairpur, Nawabshah, Shikarpur, Tando Allayar, Sanghar, Matiari)

• The infrastructure in secondary cities is continuously under pressure due the sprawl. (Tando Muhammad Khan, Umerkot, Badin Thatta, Sujawal)

• The agriculture land in the Town fringes is prone to landuse change due to enhanced demand for housing and institutional setups. (Khiarpur, Nawabshah, Mirpurkhas, Jamshoro)

• In each city/Town of Sindh there are possibilities of urban Densification by introducing vertical movement. The Sindh Building & Town Planning Regulations (Building Control Regime) already provides this possibility and may ease the sprawl along fringes. (All 20 Towns)

DYNAMICS OF SPRAWL – CASE STUDIES OF SECONDARY CITIES OF SINDH

DYNAMICS OF SPRAWL – CASE STUDIES OF SECONDARY CITIES OF SINDH

Recommendations:Following recommendations are suggested based on the study in this paper. • Comprehensive planning guidelines for each town be developed based on

sustainable development parameters and understanding the Dynamics of Land at local level. A permanent Planning Body must continue to function above political prioritization of Projects.

• Planning Interventions be sought for Towns’ Growth rather than Engineering Solutions.

• As cities expand, the necessary land for public streets, public infrastructure networks, and public open spaces must be secured in advance of development.

• City densities must remain within a sustainable range. If density is too low, it must be allowed to increase, and if it is too high, it must be allowed to decline.

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