Illegal barriers.

I LIVE in Gulshan-i-Kaneez Fatima, a housing society in Karachi's Gulzar-i-Hijri neighbourhood. The area is now fully commercialised, with shopping centres, high-rise apartments, portions and high-priced plots sandwiched between Block 2 and Block 4. All entry and exit points pass through these two blocks as per the master plan approved by the Karachi Development Authority (KDA).

However, the unions of these respective blocks have closed all entry and exit points either by placing steel barriers or a concrete wall on the roads which is an open violation of the KDA's plan, and has brought commercial activity to a standstill in the...