Land is fundamental component of urban development. The possession of land shows the social and economic stability of any community. The war for land has been a constant dialogue for centuries as it provides ecosystem services, employment opportunities and wealth generation. No progress is possible without land. It proves that land is most crucial part to acquire for achieving affordable shelter. However, tenure security alone is not enough for attaining affordable and adequate housing, yet it serves as one of the key factors for access to improved housing.

Other factors such as housing finance, provision of infrastructure, adequate planning, and relaxation of building codes and regulations have been identified as significantly affecting low-income people‘s access to housing, improved livelihoods and environmental conditions (Nyametso, 2010). Many developing countries like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Nigeria, face such issues of land tenure and squatter settlements. Also, in developed countries, land ownership represents the single powerful assets to be owned by anyone. This comes along with the importance of land tenure and its security which provides relief to the tenants. Land tenure has evolved as a significant terminology of housing studies. It has been defined in different perspectives of various researchers as following:

The recognition of prime role of land rights and tenure for managing land is not a new phenomenon to literature.

Secure land tenure for poor households is evolving as a major problem for developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America (Durand-Lasserve & Royston, 2002). In addition to residential sector which is surely in control of land tenure and rights, commercial land is also bound to fulfill the requirements of land legal system. The insecurity of land tenure is a great threat to vulnerability of an individual or a community. Reale & Handmer (2011) have established five ‘mediating factors’ that control secure land tenure as following:

(1) The local legal system;

(2) Government administrative authority;

(3) The economy;

(4) Evidence of tenure, and;

(5) Custom and dominant social attitudes.

The paradox of land tenure is becoming central focus of recent housing studies. Land is a public good and is essential for mankind for performing all types of activities. Like clean drinking water is a commodity for which public cries in dry regions, similarly for urban land security of tenure is a relief for public. Insecurity of tenure leads to extreme losses of a community which includes homelessness, violent, forced evictions, lost livelihoods, inadequate housing, loss of identity and environmental as well as social disturbance. Every piece of land is unique, its special value and scarcity have opened the doors to political favoritism and corruption. It is a subtle asset to administer, and most governments are simply not very good at it (Doebelej, 1987). In game of political urban power, local and state authorities often push the poor to leave the acquired land in favor of new commercial and residential buildings. This practice has been evident in various cities of developing world including Delhi, Karachi, Bombay and Bangkok (Hardoy and Satterthwaite, 1993, 121). This implies that low-income groups squat and construct substandard housing not because they choose to, but because they are forced to. (Sengupta & Sharma, 2006). This argument has been strengthened by the fact that in most cases, half of the urban population survives in illegal settlements or inadequate housing units (Durand-Lasserve & Selod, 2009). Hence, it proves that the role of governments at local or national level in effective administration of land and its legal matters, specifically in developing countries, has been unpromising one for long time. The aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of secure land tenure for developing countries such as Pakistan taking the case study of second largest city of Lahore. The paper highlights the differences and challenges of two squatters based on their tenure types. Findings help us to understand the phenomena of inter-connection of land tenure security and residential stability of squatters in Lahore.

Case of Brazil

Brazil has been facing housing challenges; Rio de Janeiro favelaFootnote 2 is most notable one among these which is now established as authorized squatter settlement. The local authorities launched Favela Bairro slum upgrading program (FBP) to overcome these challenges. The program established that transformation of such favelas into formal communities is the appropriate solution to Rio's housing afflictions. The significant challenge to meet in this program is the land tenure and how to deal with it. FBP introduced unique solution to this by setting an example of slum up gradation without attaining full legal tenure security and providing the primary right to occupy and use the land (Handzic, 2010). This exceptional state of using the land allowed this program to take place with huge success. This initiative put emphasis on provision of adequate infrastructure rather than legal land tenure. As a consequence, favela tenants felt the effect of security of tenure through better living conditions by implementation of FBP.

Case of India

India is going through rapid urbanization which has put massive pressure on existing urban infrastructure, hence creating informal settlements, squatters and slums. Even in such alarming housing shortages, people plan to own a home rather than rental housing. Obviously, rental housing is also not that much economical within urban centers nowadays. In India, there are two-fold reasons for it: first, rent-control laws in urban areas have discouraged new rent-based units from coming into the market; secondly, an increase in available housing finance options over the years has enabled more people to buy a home (UN-HABITAT, 2008). Four types of land tenure exist in case of India as following:

Squatter dwellers normally tend to survive their lifetime either on lease period or through stamp paper. Inability to show proof of legal land ownership limits the access to formal sources of housing finance. This implies that low-income groups seldom have formal secure land tenure and their rights to land are linked with other forms of land security. Previous studies have referred to such rights which are normally either property tax forms or stamp papers (the fourth type) known as para- legal rights. Para-legal rights in urban areas can also take the form of government-granted security to slum dwellers which protect them against eviction (Centre for Micro Finance (IFMR), 2007). The discipline of legal land rights and tenure is one of key areas for governments both state and central to play their role for up gradation of housing conditions that surrounds the poor.

Case of Pakistan

Increasing urban population in major cities of Pakistan is causing urban poor as migrants to get suffer through poor housing conditions. The high population levels and centralization of job markets is making difficult supply of formal housing in cities. As a result, people tend to opt informal housing and squatter settlements. In Pakistan, squatters are called ‘katchi abadis’; the term refers to housing settlement on state land without ownership rights. Under the revised katchi abadis act 1987 the settlement can be declared as official katchi abadi that is not ecologically dangerous zone, not on areas earmarked for amenities, not required for the development needs of the cities and having at least 40 dwelling units (Qadeer, 1996). For a long time, within the context of Pakistan, the informal housing in Karachi has been prime focus of researchers, since it is the largest city of Pakistan. However, Lahore being the second largest city overall, and largest city of largest province (Punjab) has not been in international/national debates or a prime focus of research for informal housing or squatters. Till date, community oriented projects have been acknowledged in case of Karachi as compared to Lahore (Table 1). Karachi presents more development of informal land and housing market due to the inadequacy of the formal sector to meet population demands (Hasan, Ahmed, Raza, Sadiq, Ahmed, & Sarwar, 2013)

Important informal housing projects include Organi Pilot Project (OPP), Khuda ki basti (KKB – Hyderabad) and Yakoobabad project. The most successful among these is OPP which is house to 1 million people and is the largest squatter of Karachi since 1980. The success story behind OPP is land provision from KDA (Karachi development Authority) and improvement of house construction by providing technical assistance and managerial support to over 65,000 house-owners for financing and developing their own underground sanitation scheme. In addition, the OPP has developed a package of advice for local masons for improving their performance, both technical and managerial, and to the people regarding design and construction of houses (Hasan, 1992). The process resulted in improved house construction with economical budget accompanied with training sessions for masons and builders. Recently, studies have now started to evolve in this regard, to highlight the housing problems and land tenure issue of low-income groups in Lahore. Research has shown that tenants of katchi abadis (squatters) that have been authorized by State and local authorities receive better access to infrastructure and public goods. Similarly, residents of squatters located close to central Lahore have much convenient access to employment and facilities as compared to residents of peripheral squatters. Hence, dwellers that have property rights have greater bargaining power and so see better provision of public goods that those that do not have property rights. (Shami & Majid, 2015). Another research in Lahore cantonment and Aziz Bhatti town reveals that most people have preferred to live in new urban settlements of the city after selling their rural lands and have started investment in new developed urban areas. This has resulted in creating more pressure on urban centers and pushing urban poor to reside in substandard housing settlements. Haider (2015) discussed that Low income areas are faced with problems of healthcare and housing and are often faced with tedious legal formalities of land ownership.

Lahore is the largest city of Punjab province and second largest city of the country. Qadeer (1983) in his book described that since Independence, Lahore has undergone explosive growth and notable transformation of its material, technological and institutional bases. Yet like most third world cities, it counties to be ravaged by poverty, inequality and mismanagement. Lahore is a hometown to 8.9 Million presently and is expected to go beyond 11 million by 2020 (Lahore Population 2016, 2016). The city is experiencing huge influx of urban poor coming from smaller adjacent cities and suburbs in search of employment opportunities. Also, the city is currently a huge development of housing infrastructure. Total demand of 1,265,183 housing units until year 2021 has been established, including the existing shortage of 199,204 units (Urban Unit, n.d). Housing backlog can be effectively tackled by addressing the secure tenure for informal housing like squatters. In current situation, it has become essential as well as important to provide secure tenure types to all types of residents for discontinuation of increasing figure of housing deficit in Lahore. The study adopts a qualitative method of research through case study approach for developing deep insight into complex homeownership phenomena. The case study is comprised of two study points based on type of their land tenure. First study selection is of legalized squatter with secure tenure through lease of 99 years (Qalandar pura squatter) and second study selection is of illegalized squatter with no security of tenure (Badar colony). This has helped to identify the reasons for which tenants have shown improved residential stability in squatters provided with land tenure security. It also explores how the completed social mechanism behind sustained existence of informal settlements in rapidly urbanizing city of Lahore. Field Survey along with well-structured questionnaires will be conducted to collect data from both squatters. Analyzing parameters will include: