Estimation of Vehicle Damage Cost Involved in Road Traffic Accidents in Karachi, Pakistan: A Geospatial Perspective

AbstractRoad Traffic Accidents (RTAs) are serious but ignored problem in Pakistan. Now this problem is under limelight due to disastrous impacts over society in general and over economy in particular. Karachi is considered to be the most income generating city of Pakistan. This city holds a typical feature of most road traffic accidents facing in the country and the fourth highest RTA fatalities in the world. More than 26,000 road accidents occur on the arteries of Karachi every year making it a worrisome place. Outcome of RTAs could be measured in tangible manner i.e., in term of number of life loss but intangible losses are very difficult to measure. In this paper an attempt has been made to capture the potential flaws in road geometry through Remote Sensing and embedding the land use data through the inventory of Geographic Information Systems. Moreover, overlay analysis techniques helps in identifying the high accident cost areas. In Karachi, over 35,000 vehicles are involved in crashes every year, resulting in loss of life as well as wealth. The overall repair cost over the vehicles involved in all types of RTAs in year2012 is more than 20,000,000 PKR with Landhi Town showing the highest cost. Shah Faisal Town showed the minimum repair cost of over 300,000 due to its small aerial extent and lesser number of economic land use making it a safer place for vehicle users. Moreover, map of Karachi showing the spatial pattern of vehicle repair cost. It is suggested that the serious measures need to be undertaken to combat this problem

Analysis of Population Growth and Urban Development in Lahore-Pakistan using Geospatial Techniques: Suggesting some future Options

Population is the main focus in all studies within the framework of geography because population and basic natural resources are intimately related to each other and with the prospects of urban development and quality of the environment in a region. Therefore, the study and analysis of population growth and distribution in the urban development is the logical starting point for any research of the present nature. Lahore is 2nd largest city of Pakistan in terms of its share in total population of the country. The total population of Lahore was 6,318,745 as per 1998 Census. Systematic monitoring of the urban development, proper management of the City and planned future development would lead to improvement in the living standards and environmental conditions of the millions of people living in the city of Lahore. Remote sensing along with the GIS technology can be used effectively and economically in the analysis and the inventory of urban development and land use and land cover study of the urban settlements. It provides database for the site suitability for further urban development and growth corridors in this fast growing metropolis of the country

Seasonal and Spatial Growth Patterns of Shrimps Collected from Some Selected Creeks of Sindh, Pakistan

Shrimps are very important part of the export economy of Pakistan. They share about 60 % the total exports of the sea food. For the studies of shrimp health, the length-weight studies are critical for the evaluation of the shrimp stocks. In this paper an attempt has been made to explore the Length-weight relationships of the shrimps at the creeks zone of Sindh coast (the study area). Furthermore, the impacts of seasonal change on the growth of shrimps (length and weight treated as parameter) have been evaluated. The main objective of this study is to analyze the seasonal and spatial pattern of growth and condition of the selected shrimp species. For this purpose, three most abundant shrimp species Penaeus indicus, Metapenaeus affinis and Exopalaemon styliferus have been selected out of 30 found at the coastal creeks areas of Sindh, Pakistan from April 2013 to January 2014. Pre and Post-Monsoon seasonal changes were analyzed through Geographic Information Science (GIS) and universally accepted equation for LWRs logW = alogLb were applied on three species selected. It has been found that post-monsoon is the ideal period for shrimp catch for three species. LWRs (growth pattern) found stable in Penaeus indicus and Metapenaeus affinis while predicting an alarming deteriorated situation for Exopalaemon styliferus at creeks zone

Seasonal and Spatial Growth Patterns of Shrimps Collected from Some Selected Creeks of Sindh, Pakistan

Shrimps are very important part of the export economy of Pakistan. They share about 60 % the total exports of the sea food. For the studies of shrimp health, the length-weight studies are critical for the evaluation of the shrimp stocks. In this paper an attempt has been made to explore the Length-weight relationships of the shrimps at the creeks zone of Sindh coast (the study area). Furthermore, the impacts of seasonal change on the growth of shrimps (length and weight treated as parameter) have been evaluated. The main objective of this study is to analyze the seasonal and spatial pattern of growth and condition of the selected shrimp species. For this purpose, three most abundant shrimp species Penaeus indicus, Metapenaeus affinis and Exopalaemon styliferus have been selected out of 30 found at the coastal creeks areas of Sindh, Pakistan from April 2013 to January 2014. Pre and Post-Monsoon seasonal changes were analyzed through Geographic Information Science (GIS) and universally accepted equation for LWRs logW = alogLb were applied on three species selected. It has been found that post-monsoon is the ideal period for shrimp catch for three species. LWRs (growth pattern) found stable in Penaeus indicus and Metapenaeus affinis while predicting an alarming deteriorated situation for Exopalaemon styliferus at creeks zone

Monitoring and Measuring Surface Water in Semi-Arid Environment Using Satellite Data: A Case Study of Karachi

Water is a dynamic and precious resource for all living creatures. Its significance is imperative for different sectors of economy at global and regional level. Sustainable use of land resources such as water is vital to carryout fundamental chores and has become an important area of investigation in developing and developed countries. Pakistan is an under developing country with agro-based economy and it is among the top of those countries which are facing acute water scarcity. World Bank has projected that by 2025 severe food shortage could be caused in Pakistan due to water scarcity.Karachi is the most populous city of Pakistan with high consumption of water and food but semi arid climate conditions and drastic variability in rainfall pattern make it prone to desertification and drought. In Karachi Hydrological drought is closely associated with agricultural drought. Hence, monitoring, quantification and mapping of water is vital for better planning.This Study is aimed at monitoring spatio-temporal variation of surface water in Karachi using Geoinformatic techniques. For this purpose four satellite images of Landsat -7 ETM + were used. Through NDWI spatial distribution of water and its seasonal variation was observed and maps of water availability in each Union council of Karachi using software ArcMap 10.1 were also developed for the quick and better interpration. Use of modern state of the art Remote sensing data coupled with GIS for the monitoring of land resources has proved very significant for evaluating the potential of resources in different administrative units for planning and decision making

Monitoring and Measuring Surface Water in Semi-Arid Environment Using Satellite Data: A Case Study of Karachi

Water is a dynamic and precious resource for all living creatures. Its significance is imperative for different sectors of economy at global and regional level. Sustainable use of land resources such as water is vital to carryout fundamental chores and has become an important area of investigation in developing and developed countries. Pakistan is an under developing country with agro-based economy and it is among the top of those countries which are facing acute water scarcity. World Bank has projected that by 2025 severe food shortage could be caused in Pakistan due to water scarcity.Karachi is the most populous city of Pakistan with high consumption of water and food but semi arid climate conditions and drastic variability in rainfall pattern make it prone to desertification and drought. In Karachi Hydrological drought is closely associated with agricultural drought. Hence, monitoring, quantification and mapping of water is vital for better planning.This Study is aimed at monitoring spatio-temporal variation of surface water in Karachi using Geoinformatic techniques. For this purpose four satellite images of Landsat -7 ETM + were used. Through NDWI spatial distribution of water and its seasonal variation was observed and maps of water availability in each Union council of Karachi using software ArcMap 10.1 were also developed for the quick and better interpration. Use of modern state of the art Remote sensing data coupled with GIS for the monitoring of land resources has proved very significant for evaluating the potential of resources in different administrative units for planning and decision making

A Spatio-Temporal Assessment of Green Turtle Habitat at Hawkes Bay, Karachi through Geo-Informatics Techniques

Hawkes Bay site is one of the major favorable nesting sites for green turtles (Chelonia mydas) in Pakistan. Many environmental factors influence the nesting patterns of green turtles at this beach. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the importance of monitoring habitat of wildlife with the help of GIS and remote sensing. Seasonal influence on nesting pit density is quite noticeable on high resolution imageries. Pearson’s correlation coefficient analysis was used to highlight the strong relation of temperature and nesting pits. As a result of this research monitoring of spatio-temporal variation and impacts of temperature rise on nesting grounds observed

A Spatio-Temporal Assessment of Green Turtle Habitat at Hawkes Bay, Karachi through Geo-Informatics Techniques

Hawkes Bay site is one of the major favorable nesting sites for green turtles (Chelonia mydas) in Pakistan. Many environmental factors influence the nesting patterns of green turtles at this beach. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the importance of monitoring habitat of wildlife with the help of GIS and remote sensing. Seasonal influence on nesting pit density is quite noticeable on high resolution imageries. Pearson’s correlation coefficient analysis was used to highlight the strong relation of temperature and nesting pits. As a result of this research monitoring of spatio-temporal variation and impacts of temperature rise on nesting grounds observed

Spatial Appraisal of the Impacts of Drought on Agricultural Patterns in Karachi

This paper is aimed at studying the spatial changes in agricultural patterns practiced in the suburbs of Karachi, which is the most densely populated city of Pakistan with high food demands of the inhabitants. This study deals mainly with Physical factors primarily climatic indicators to observe and analyze the changes in the pattern of agricultural production and the types of crops in last 20-30 years. Variability of climate when coupled with anthropogenic factors play important role in the acceleration of problems for farmers. Trends of associated agricultural output observed in different years of high and low rainfall. This study has successfully demonstrated inquisitive approach by using published secondary data from governmental sources and ground verification in recent times. Temporal variation in biomass, was found dependent upon pattern of rainfall and temperature etc. Study reveals that there are clear signs of desertification and drought in the study area