# Punjab Urban Resource Centre (PURC)

> The Punjab Urban Resource Centre (PURC) is an independent urban policy and research centre founded in Lahore, Pakistan, in October 2001 by a group of development professionals, community activists, architects, sociologists and academics. It works as a bridge between government and the urban poor in Punjab, empowering urban citizens through information, research, dialogue, training and advocacy, and proposing inclusive, affordable and alternative ideas for urban development.

## Key facts

- Name: Punjab Urban Resource Centre (PURC)
- Type: Independent urban policy and research centre (non-governmental)
- Founded: October 2001, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
- Address: 95-C Fazal Street, Allama Iqbal Road, Garhi Shahu, Lahore, Pakistan
- Phone: +92 42 35466227, +92 301 4353809
- Email: info@purc.org.pk
- Record: 25 open urban forums on record since October 2004; annual research internships since 2005; 9 publications on water, sanitation and housing

## How PURC works

Six activities: (1) issue-based information collection, including daily newspaper clipping; (2) research and documentation; (3) a forums programme open to all citizens, local government representatives and planning institutions; (4) a reference library of books, reports, maps and forum transcripts; (5) advocacy through policy briefs, policy memos and position papers; (6) training for students, government officers and other stakeholders.

## Areas of work

- Water and sanitation: drinking water policy, the performance and finances of water utilities (WASAs), and public-sector reform
- Housing and katchi abadis: regularisation policy and secure tenure for informal settlements
- Climate and heat: adaptation for the urban poor
- Food and farmland: protecting productive land around growing cities
- Mobility: affordable public transport and safe streets
- AI and the urban poor: fair and transparent use of technology in city services
- Ecology: protecting canals, rivers, trees and other green and blue spaces

## Pages

- [Home](https://purc.pk/): overview of PURC, its record, how it works and FAQ
- [About PURC](https://purc.pk/about/): history (founded October 2001 in Lahore), focus areas and how PURC operates
- [Areas of work](https://purc.pk/initiatives/): seven areas — water and sanitation, climate and heat, food and farmland, housing and katchi abadis, mobility, AI and the urban poor, ecology
- [Our Planet](https://purc.pk/our-planet/): sourced evidence on Lahore's river, groundwater, air and green cover, with a full list of sources
- [Publications](https://purc.pk/publications/): research reports with abstracts, key findings, citations and free PDFs
- [Urban Forums](https://purc.pk/urban-forums/): archive of 25 open forums since October 2004 — water privatisation, WASA, Lahore Ring Road, two-stroke rickshaws, signal-free corridors, the Punjab Local Government Act 2013, katchi abadis and the Walled City — with forum summaries
- [Gallery](https://purc.pk/gallery/): images of the urban themes PURC works on
- [Contact](https://purc.pk/contact/): Lahore Secretariat address, phones, email and inquiry form

## Our Planet: key sourced figures

- Lahore residents could gain 5.8 years of life expectancy if PM2.5 met the WHO guideline (AQLI, 2025 update)
- Lahore's average PM2.5 in 2025 was 88.9 µg/m³, nearly 18 times the WHO annual guideline of 5 µg/m³ (IQAir, 2026)
- About 640 million gallons a day of wastewater reach the River Ravi; Lahore has no functioning treatment plant (AIIB, 2018; Profit, 2025)
- The Ravi supplies about 82% of Lahore's groundwater recharge (WWF-Pakistan, 2014)
- Lahore's groundwater level fell about 0.49 m a year in 2003–2020 (Sajjad et al., Remote Sensing, 2023)
- Lahore's vegetation cover fell from 60.5% (1990) to 47.7% (2020) while its surface heat island grew from 1.72°C to 2.41°C (Farid et al., Frontiers in Remote Sensing, 2022)

## Publications

- [Thirsty Cities: Analyzing Punjab Drinking Water Policy](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/thirsty-cities-punjab-drinking-water-policy-purc-2012.pdf): Imdad Hussain, PhD (2012), ISBN 978-969-9773-00-6, published with support from WaterAid Pakistan. Analyses the 2011 Punjab Drinking Water Policy; the ADP 2011-12 funded its 311 drinking-water schemes at only about 16% of their total cost.
- [Water Supply in Lahore: Public Sector Reform, Not Privatization](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/water-supply-lahore-public-sector-reform-not-privatization-purc-2008.pdf): Rabia Ezdi and Amir Butt (September 2008). Argues against privatising Lahore WASA; WASA ran a Rs 772.5 million deficit in 2007-08, with electricity bills taking 65% of its budget.
- [Katchi Abadis of Punjab: Informal Settlements and Regularisation](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/katchi-abadis-of-punjab-informal-settlements-regularization-purc-2013.pdf): Amir Butt (2013), in Urdu. Regularisation policy from the 1985 cut-off to the 2011 amendment; only 89,188 of 209,863 dwelling units in listed pre-1985 katchi abadis had proprietary rights by June 2007.
- [State of Water & Sanitation in Punjab: Position Paper](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/state-of-water-and-sanitation-in-punjab-position-paper-purc-2011.pdf): Punjab Urban Resource Centre (June 2011), with financial assistance from WaterAid. About 97% of people in Punjab have access to improved water sources, but 49% of those sources are contaminated.
- [Budget Analysis of Water and Sanitation Agency, Gujranwala: Equity and Inclusion Perspective](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/budget-analysis-wasa-gujranwala-equity-inclusion-purc-2012.pdf): PURC with WaterAid Pakistan (undated, c. 2012). WASA Gujranwala supplied piped water to only 32% of the city's 1.7 million people; no water schemes were funded in the 2010-11 ADP.
- [Lahore mein Farahami-e-Aab (Urdu)](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/lahore-mein-farahami-e-aab-water-supply-lahore-urdu-purc-2008.pdf): Rabia Ezdi and Amir Butt, translated by Kalb-e-Ali Shaikh (September 2008; printed 2009). Urdu edition arguing for public-sector reform of WASA Lahore rather than privatisation.
- [Amina Park: An Analytical Study (Urdu)](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/amina-park-analytical-study-urdu-purc-2009.pdf): December 2009. Settlement of about 4,900 people near Thokar Niaz Baig, Lahore; only 33% of households on a sewer.
- [Chaudhry Park: An Analytical Study (Urdu)](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/chaudhry-park-analytical-study-urdu-purc-2009.pdf): December 2009. No WASA water supply; 87% of households rely on private bores.
- [Shadiwal Sahnwan: An Analytical Study (Urdu)](https://purc.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/shadiwal-sahnwan-analytical-study-urdu-purc-2009.pdf): December 2009. Village relocated after the 1988 Ravi flood; no government water supply and only 2 of 40 streets sewered.