The COVID-19 pandemic started in the last week of December, 2019. An emergency was declared throughout the globe as the virus spread over 208 counties within a short amount of time. This pandemic had significant negative impacts on common men living in densely populated countries, including Pakistan. Hence, this research aimed to record people’s perception of the 7th largest settlement in Pakistan, namely Hyderabad. This study mainly focused on socioeconomic and psychological parameters. The close-ended questionnaire was designed concerning the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). The DASS-21 is an optimal tool for recording the emotional values of depression, anxiety, and stress. A total of 400 questionnaires were filled out; they used a 5-point Likert scale. Significant socioeconomic issues were noted, such as lower household income, economic recession, job cuts, inaccessible Internet services during online teaching or working from home, etc. The primary challenges in the lockdown situation were Internet access (4.06) and anxiety (4.86) in the female population. There were higher levels of depression (N = 200), anxiety (N = 341), and stress (N = 125) in the local inhabitants. Other notable problems were illuminated, such as restrictions on social gatherings, electricity load shedding, and lower incomes. This study concludes that the degree of psychological problems varied according to the typology of gender. Based on study findings, this study recommends the prompt execution of policies considering possible future pandemics to restrain anxiety and depression in the female population. The local government is also advised to revitalize infrastructure to provide uninterrupted power supplies and Internet facilities. The income-generating channels should be open for lower-income households concerning future lockdowns.

This study is aimed to determine the MLU development factors by executing a Delphi Method (DM). The MLU factors can contribute to the land-use development process in the thickly populated urban centers of developing countries. This is the first study of its type conducted to clarify MLU development factors in urbanized settlements of Sindh province, Pakistan. Karachi and Hyderabad are thickly populated cities in Pakistan where mixed land-use (MLU) development prevails over the years. The DM was attempted in two rounds focusing on the opinion of urban development specialists and academic experts. The experts initially provided a set of forty-two factors identified from the literature. These factors were arranged in a Likert-based questionnaire and determined through the coefficient variation. The prominent factors were identified as household savings, travel costs and low rent, nearby household items and shared utility services, economic vitality, variety in purchasing grocery and shopping items, demographic change and social poverty, accessibility to nearby public services, reduction in commuting time and easy access to restaurants. This proposed research recommends policy implications focusing on identified key parameters of MLU development, such as low carbon exposure, livable environment, and planned municipal system.

Plastic consumption is continuously increasing due to urbanization and growing global demand. The consumption of plastic deteriorates the quality of the urban environment of most cities, especially in developing countries. To overcome this issue to some extent, this study was conducted to prevent the usage of plastic products to provide a healthy environment. The data was collected by using the closed-ended questionnaire survey and by reviewing the literature. The collected data were assessed and analyzed on SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) software. The survey observed that there is no proper plastic waste disposal system in the study area. People who reside in the area and those who visit the market face an unhygienic environment. The results highlighted that 50% to 60% of residents use plastic items which are dumped at open spaces without proper management after their consumption. This study suggests short-term, mid-term and long-term mitigation measures to reduce the production by using bio-based plastic and consumption by reducing the unnecessary packaging of plastic waste.

The rapid growth in population and economic activity has primarily led to increased traffic congestion. The system of managing and planning transportation triggers chaos. The study aims to determine the major factors behind Traffic congestion. High urbanization rate, encroachments, public dependency upon private vehicles and giving of public transport, Lack of awareness, and monitoring of transportation adequacy, etc. In this regard, hotspot areas are highlighted, and the factors are ranked, which are assessed using a Likert scale rating-based questionnaire conducted by experts and respondents of Hyderabad, Sindh. These factors are analyzed by applying the Average Index Method Technique, and the sites are identified by generating the Road Network maps on ArcGIS. Findings reveal a clear concept about traffic congestion and the factors blocking traffic flow in the study area. It further explores that the top-ranked factor for traffic congestion, with an average index of 4.50, is Encroachments on roads and Footpaths, whereas the lowest average index is 3.30, Location of Hospitals and other amenities near main roads. This research can help reduce traffic congestion in Hyderabad and other cities with similar scenarios.