Organisers and allies of the People’s Climate March have demanded of the authorities concerned to put end to the demolition of working-class homes and villages and ensure the protection of the right to shelter.

The event, which is scheduled to take place on Sunday (today), would host climate activists, political parties, ethno-political parties and people from different walks of life. A climate march, inspired by the global movement, would be held from Nehr-e-Khayam to Bilawal Chowrangi in Karachi.

The activists have also called for action against those officials who issued illegal leases.

“The purpose of this year’s People’s Climate March in Karachi is to organise a people-led response to this crisis, with victims of climate injustice at the forefront: the affectees of demolitions along with Gujjar and Orangi Nullah, Malir Expressway and Karachi Circular Railway; and those who have been forcibly displaced by the violent practices of Bahria Town, DHA and other developers, such as those industrializing the agricultural lands in Malir,” read an official statement of the event.

It also demanded that a bill be passed in reference to the affectees of Gujjar and Orangi Nallahs, the Karachi Circular Railway and Haji Lemo Goth with the same urgency as displayed to protect “buildings”.

The statement also urged the government to put an end to the forced displacement of marginalized communities in the city, a people-centred resolution to the water crisis, ensure the right to clean air, ensure the right to relief from heat stress, land reclamation and protection of indigenous ecologies, and people’s participation in environmental decision making.

“In light of the repeated failure of world governments and international regulatory bodies to alleviate this [climate] crisis, it is now obvious that the situation demands a people-centred response in the form of a grassroots struggle,” it read.