Gated Communities; For Secure & Luxury Living
“My job requires me to tour other cities, and I used to worry about the security of my family. But since shifting to Bahria Town Karachi, now I can travel without that tension. Because it’s a gated community project due to which there is no street crime or robberies within the scheme’s premises.” These are the words of Dr. Talha Farooqi, who reside in an Iqbal Villa located in Precinct 2.
12-year old young Laiba also enjoys more or less similar peace of mind. As she goes to school alone riding his bicycle herself and often rides it in the evening to buy day-to-day grocery stuff from the nearby markets.
The growing crime rate brings safety and security on top priority for buyers in deciding the property’s purchase. That has generated the concept of a gated community. It is a walled and guard-gated residential scheme or housing estate with strictly controlled entrances from outsiders. These schemes are also dependent on several factors, including geographical location, demographic composition, community structure, etc.
Affordable Housing Scheme
Yet apart from security personals at the entrance, gated communities are also supposed to provide luxury and leisure amenities within the boundary wall. Such housing projects once used to be high-value properties and primarily seen as the preserve of the elite, mainly serving or retired military and civilian bureaucrats. But now the industry caters to the rapidly growing middle class that is seeking secured housing and comfortable facilities in an affordable project.
At present, gated communities are being offered almost in every under-construction housing scheme around the country. Developers are now primarily focusing on gated compounds at multiple prices and payment plans that suit not just the rich but the middle-class buyers as well. They offer apartments, villas, and single-family homes in lots of sizes ranging from 120 square yards to 2000 square yards.
The trend for such housing schemes has been growing in urban areas where the crime rate has increased, and the population has grown exponentially over the last decade. According to a report, real estate developers have built over 250 gated communities across Pakistan in response to rising demands. So it is these communities, in a way, who are fueling the construction boom in Pakistan at the moment.
The Edge of Bahria Town Karachi
Launched in 2015, the Bahria Town Karachi is the largest and highly secured gated community project, which has set a completely new benchmark for all housing societies. It caters to the insatiable demand for world-class and well-developed housing with modern infrastructure, including well-built wide roads, and a reliable supply of water and electricity. Additionally, it offers various state-of-the-art amenities such as:
- Schools
- Hospitals
- Mosques
- Restaurants
- Theaters
- Shopping malls
- Parks located within a secured compound.
Though it is located away from the central city at a distance of 9 km from Super Highway, Bahria Town Karachi is more or less like a city within a city. They have their fire tenders, emergency rescue services, CCTV cameras, and uninterrupted electricity supply within the boundary wall. At the same time, world-class security with 24/7 surveillance and uniformed guards patrolling the streets is the hallmark of their security management system.
The man behind Bahria Town’s development is renowned Malik Riaz, and he has already developed high-end gated communities in various other cities, including Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Islamabad.
