Student Number

27235

Degree

Master of Science in Development Studies

School

School of Economics and Social Sciences (SESS)

Date of Submission

Fall 10-24-2025

Supervisor

Dr. Arslan Waheed, Assistant Professor and Program Director, Graduate Programs SSLA

Committee Member 1

Dr. Arslan Waheed, Supervisor, Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Karachi

Committee Member 2

Dr Shafia Azam, Examiner, Department of Anthropology, Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan

Keywords

Gender, Intersectionality, Feminist Political Ecology, Water Insecurity, Informal Settlements, Karachi

Abstract

This thesis examines how women living along the banks of the Gujjar Nullah in Karachi bargain with water insecurity within a settlement that has faced eviction and water infrastructure negligence. Based on qualitative fieldwork and an intersectional approach, this study examines the interplay of factors such as gender, age, socioeconomic status, class, tenure security, health, physical ability and spatial location on differentiated access to water. The study’s pivotal inferences indicate that the plight of women transcends beyond physical access, which includes emotional, economic, political, and social bargaining with different stakeholders. Women are not depicted as victims but as agents of action, existing in an informal environment where they have to grapple with various limitations to survive. Besides, the study challenges the current technocratic accounts of water governance and highlights the lived experiences and labour of marginalised women. It demands grassroots realities and social inequality policies. The study opens up new research avenues in terms of a longitudinal study in the same katchi abadis along the Gujjar nullah, which can show how water access, household relationships, and coping mechanisms change over time in a post-demolition setting.

Submission Type

Thesis

Document Type

Restricted Access

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