Zarmina Khan
People enter their homes, schools, hospitals, workplaces, and other public buildings every day with the expectation that these places are safe. When a building collapses, the consequences extend far beyond physical damage. Such incidents claim lives, leave families in grief, disrupt children’s education, and weaken public trust in the institutions responsible for ensuring building safety. Therefore, safe buildings are not only an engineering objective but also a public policy responsibility. Building collapse incidents in Lyari, Rahim Yar Khan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Kahna, and Baghbanpura have drawn renewed attention to building safety in Pakistan. In response of these incidents, federal and provincial governments launched rescue operations, ordered technical investigations, announced financial assistance for affected families, and directed inspections of similar buildings. These measures addressed the immediate consequences while also highlighting the importance of preventing similar incidents in the future. In Pakistan, many old buildings remain in use without regular structural inspections. Financial constraints also prevent many families and institutions from carrying out essential repairs. Moreover, Pakistan’s exposure to earthquakes, rapid urbanization, ageing infrastructure, and climate-related hazards has made building safety an increasingly important public policy issue. As these risks continue to grow, building failures are becoming more frequent and deadlier. The country already has building codes, engineering standards, and regulatory institutions that are responsible for construction safety. The challenge now is to ensure that these measures are implemented consistently and continue to respond to changing risks. Recent incidents also provide an opportunity to review existing policies, improve regulatory oversight, and strengthen long-term building safety.
Understanding Building Safety Through a Public Policy Lens
Building safety is often associated with engineers, architects, and contractors because safe buildings begin with good design and quality construction. However, engineering alone cannot guarantee public safety. Governments also play an important role by setting building regulations, approving construction plans, conducting inspections, and enforcing safety standards. Without effective implementation and oversight, even the best regulations cannot achieve their purpose.
The Capability Approach, developed by Amartya Sen, explains why building safety is a public policy issue. Development is not only about economic growth but also about enabling people to live safe and productive lives. Safe homes, schools, hospitals, and workplaces protect people’s well-being and allow them to carry out their daily activities with confidence.
Johan Galtung’s Structural Violence Theory offers another perspective. It shows how institutional and social conditions can expose people to avoidable risks. Financial constraints, limited housing options, and poor maintenance often leave vulnerable families with few safe alternatives. This theory helps us to understand why many low-income families continue to live in unsafe buildings. Some cannot afford major repairs, while others have nowhere else to go. As a result, building safety becomes both a social and a public policy issue.
Ulrich Beck’s Risk Society Theory argues that many risks arise from human decisions rather than natural hazards alone. Earthquakes or heavy rainfall may trigger a collapse, but poor planning, weak oversight, and delayed maintenance often increase the damage. Similarly, the Urban Resilience Framework highlights that safe buildings are essential for disaster preparedness and community recovery.
Together, these perspectives show that building safety depends on more than engineering. It also requires effective public policy, capable institutions, and consistent oversight. Construction practices alone cannot explain recent building collapse incidents in Pakistan. Governance also plays an important role in public safety.
Pakistan’s Policy and Regulatory Framework for Building Safety
Pakistan has established a policy and regulatory framework for building safety through national building codes, engineering standards, planning regulations, and disaster management policies. The Building Code of Pakistan (BCP-2021), developed by the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), provides standards for safe building design and construction. The PEC regulates the engineering profession, while provincial building control authorities and local governments are responsible for approving building plans, enforcing building bylaws, conducting inspections, and issuing occupancy certificates. The Green Building Code promotes environmentally sustainable construction, whereas the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Provincial Disaster Management Authorities (PDMAs) support disaster risk reduction and infrastructure resilience.
Governance Challenges and Lessons from Recent Building Collapse Incidents
Pakistan already has the institutions and regulations needed to support building safety. The priority now is to ensure the consistent implementation of these frameworks through effective enforcement, regular inspections, and stronger compliance. Therefore, building safety depends on effective governance as well as sound engineering.
Recent building collapse incidents further highlight the importance of effective governance. The roof collapse at a Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) payment centre in Rahim Yar Khan, the school roof collapse in Dera Ghazi Khan, similar incidents in Kahna and Baghbanpura, and the residential building collapse in Lyari occurred under different circumstances. However, they point to similar policy concerns. Poor maintenance, ageing buildings, weak compliance with safety standards, unauthorized structural changes, and delayed preventive action increased the risks. These incidents show that building safety depends not only on construction quality but also on regular inspections and effective oversight throughout a building’s life.
The incidents also prompted governments to review existing procedures, order structural safety audits, and strengthen inspections of vulnerable buildings. These steps highlighted the importance of prevention alongside emergency response. After the Lyari building collapse in 2025, the Sindh Government announced compensation for the affected families, suspended senior officials of the Sindh Building Control Authority, and ordered the inspection, evacuation, and demolition of unsafe buildings. In 2026, after the roof collapse at a private tuition academy in Kahna, Lahore, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz provided compensation cheques to the families of the deceased and injured victims and directed the provision of medical treatment for those who sustained injuries. The Punjab Government also ordered the closure of around 760 unregistered academies in Lahore, made building fitness certificates mandatory for educational institutions, and launched a program to upgrade government schools through new classrooms and the renovation of existing buildings. These measures reflected greater attention to school infrastructure and building safety. They also created an opportunity to review existing procedures, strengthen inspection mechanisms, improve regulatory oversight, and reduce the risk of similar incidents in the future.
Socio-economic Challenges
Building safety is also closely linked to socio-economic conditions. Many low-income families continue to live in unsafe buildings because they cannot afford major repairs or move to safer housing. Pakistan’s shortage of affordable housing leaves many households with few viable housing options, even when buildings show visible signs of deterioration. Financial constraints also affect some private schools, tuition academies, and small businesses, which continue to operate in ageing buildings because relocation or major repairs require resources they do not have.
At the same time, some building owners and developers reduce construction costs to increase profits by using substandard materials, by hiring unqualified workers, or carrying out unauthorized structural alterations. Additional floors or extensions without proper engineering assessment can further weaken a building. These issues have different causes, but they point to the same governance challenge. Effective regulation, professional accountability, and regular inspections remain essential to protect public safety.
Emerging Challenges
Pakistan also faces new challenges that require greater policy attention. Rapid urban growth has increased demand for housing, schools, commercial buildings, and public infrastructure. Regulatory institutions now face greater pressure to manage this growth. At the same time, many older buildings require regular maintenance and structural assessments to remain safe.
Climate-related hazards have added another challenge. Heavy rainfall and flooding allow water to enter foundations, walls, and roofs, which can weaken structural components, damage concrete and steel reinforcement, and increase the risk of cracks and gradual deterioration. Prolonged heat causes repeated expansion and contraction of construction materials, which can lead to cracks in walls, roofs, and concrete surfaces over time. Earthquakes place sudden stress on structural elements and can cause severe damage or even collapse, mostly in buildings that were not designed to withstand seismic forces. These risks require stronger regulatory oversight, resilient construction practices, regular structural assessments, and strict compliance with building codes.
Technology can support better governance. Digital approval systems, electronic inspection records, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Building Information Modelling (BIM) can improve transparency, strengthen oversight, and help regulators identify high risk buildings more efficiently. At the same time, engineers, architects, contractors, developers, and building owners all have a responsibility to follow building regulations and maintain safety standards.
Furthermore, building collapse incidents should be viewed as more than isolated tragedies. They provide valuable lessons for policymakers and regulators. Stronger implementation of existing regulations, regular inspections, institutional coordination, timely maintenance, and greater professional accountability can reduce future risks and help create a safer built environment across Pakistan.
Policy Recommendations.
Strengthen inspections and enforcement. Conduct regular structural audits of ageing buildings and high-risk public facilities such as schools, hospitals, and commercial buildings. Take timely action against unsafe structures, unauthorized alterations, and violations of building regulations.
Support low-income households. Introduce grants or low-interest loans to help vulnerable families repair or retrofit unsafe buildings. Financial support can reduce structural risks and improve access to safe housing.
Strengthen digital regulation. Expand digital building approvals, electronic inspection records, and GIS-based monitoring to improve transparency, strengthen oversight, and identify high-risk buildings more efficiently.
Promote climate and earthquake resilience. Building regulations should be periodically revised to incorporate resilience standards that respond to Pakistan’s increasing vulnerability to earthquakes, flooding, extreme heat, and other climate-related hazards. In parallel, investment in resilient construction and the retrofitting of vulnerable public buildings should be prioritized to strengthen public safety and reduce disaster risks.
Improve institutional coordination and accountability. Coordination among regulatory authorities, disaster management institutions, and local governments should be strengthened to improve the implementation and enforcement of building safety standards. At the same time, greater professional accountability should be promoted among engineers, contractors, developers, and building owners to ensure compliance with approved construction practices.
Building safety is ultimately a governance responsibility. Strong regulations, capable institutions, responsible professional practice, and timely oversight can prevent avoidable tragedies before they occur. As Pakistan continues to urbanize, building safety should remain a national development priority to protect lives and create safer, more resilient communities.
