Urban and Regional Planning at NUST, Islamabad

The deadline for NUST PG Admissions 2022 has been extended, for the last time this year, to June 10, 2022.

Make the most of the second chance at defining your future with Pakistan's most prestigious institution.

Apply today at https://pgadmission.nust.edu.pk/ to be a part of the NUST Nation!

For details on scholarships, visit https://nust.edu.pk/admissions/scholarships/

For details on Master's programmes, visit https://nust.edu.pk/admissions/masters

For details on PhD programmes, visit https://nust.edu.pk/admissions/phd

Congratulations to Mr. Ahmad Usama Khan for the successful defense of the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.
Title: Provision of green spaces in public and private housing schemes of Lahore: Approved versus ground realities
Supervisor: Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana

Mr. Ahmad identified the causes and factors driving the conversion of open/green spaces, examined the standards of open/green spaces provision, and identified the gaps in existing policies.

Congratulations to Mr. Imran Ahmed for successful defense for the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.

Title: Identification and Measuring Irregular Settlements Using Remote Sensing in Islamabad

Supervisor: Dr. Abdul Waheed

Mr. Imran identified irregular settlements and their characteristics using remote sensing techniques. The research study also calculated the carbon footprint in comparison with regular settlements.

Congratulations to Ms. Ayman Aslam for successful defense for the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.

Title: Local Climate Zones and its Implication for Future Growth and Sustainability: A Case Study of Pakistan

Supervisor: Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana

Ms. Ayman systematically reviewed the literature on local climate zones and their use in the built environment. She empircally verified linkages among temperature, urban form, and local climate zones. She also analyzed the impact of built-up form on climate change risk perceptions in Islamabad and Lahore.

Congratulations to Mr. Salman Khan for successful defense for the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.

Title: Flood Vulnerability of Young and Elderly People: A Case Study of Rural areas of Mardan, Pakistan.

Supervisor: Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana

Mr. Salman assessed the vulnerabilities and capacities of elderly and young adults. He further explored their flood risk perceptions and preparedness. He looked into the institutional challenges affecting flood risk reduction in rural areas of Mardan.

Congratulations to Mr. Mubeen Ahsan for successful defense for the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.

Title: A Framework for Assessing the Urban Governance Effectiveness in Pakistan

Supervisor: Dr. Abdul Waheed

Mr. Mubeen explored the existing urban governance measuring frameworks through the lens of effectiveness. He looked into the barriers affecting urban governance and proposed a framework to measure urban governance effectiveness in the selected cities of Pakistan. He also summarized public satisfaction with the performance of local government institutions.

Mr. Muhammad Hamza Baig, a postgraduate student of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, has published his research in the Case Studies of Transport Policy

Active transportation (walking and bicycling) enhances the safety of commuters and improves the environmental conditions of a region. The study examines gender preferences in opting for active commuting in two universities of Islamabad.

Here is the link to the publication:

An index-based approach for understanding gender preferences in active commuting: A case study of Islamabad, Pakistan Active transportation (walking and bicycling) enhances the safety of commuters and improves the environmental conditions of a region. A major way of f…

Congratulations to Mr. Shahan Ahmed for successful defense for the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.

Title: Formalizing of informal transport: A case study of Peshawar

Supervisor: Dr. Abdul Waheed

Mr. Shahan looked into the characteristics of informal transport. He examined public perceptions regarding. He identified factors affecting the formalization of informal transport and proposed strategies to integrate the formal and informal transport sector.

Ms. Khydija Wakil, a Ph.D. Candidate of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, published in the International Journal of Geo-Information, under a cross-sectoral NRPU project. This was a joint research venture of Urban and Regional Planning, Institute of Geographical Information Systems, NUST, Islamabad, and the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Visual Pollution is a newly emerging form of man-made pollution which has been affecting urban fabric and public spaces in cities around the globe. This research presents an extensive review of literature on the subject of visual pollution and demonstrates the development and use of an SDSS to mitigate urban visual pollution.

Here is a freely available link to the publication:

Mitigating Urban Visual Pollution through a Multistakeholder Spatial Decision Support System to Optimize Locational Potential of Billboards Urban visual pollution is increasingly affecting the built-up areas of the rapidly urbanizing planet. Outdoor advertisements are the key visual pollution objects affecting the visual pollution index and revenue generation potential of a place. Current practices of uninformed and uncontrolled outdoor...

Mr. Muhammad Qadeer, a Ph.D. Candidate of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, published his doctoral research in the International Journal of Geo-Information, under supervision of Dr. Abdul Waheed. This was a joint research venture of Urban and Regional Planning & Institute of Geographical Information Systems, NUST, Islamabad, and the University of New South Wales.

Planning support systems(PSS) are gaining the attention of urban planners in an increasingly uncertain world. Though the research on the development of PSS tools is growing, their application is often hampered by the challenges faced in data preparation for 'data-hungry' PSS. This research presents a complimentary tool to ease data preparation for the Online WhatIf? PSS..

Here is a freely available link to the publication:

Evaluating a Workflow Tool for Simplifying Scenario Planning with the Online WhatIf? Planning Support System In an era of smart cities and digitalisation, there has been a noticeable increase in the development and application of planning support systems (PSS). However, a significant challenge in the broader adoption of these PSS can be attributed to the user experience, which includes the efforts required...

Mr. Awais Ali Khan Masters student published his research in the Environmental Hazards: Human and Policy Dimensions Journal, under the supervision of Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana.

The study proposes a quantification method for assessing emergency preparedness and awareness in schools. The methods
was operationalized in high school students of Gilgit, Pakistan.

Gender-based emergency preparedness and awareness: empirical evidences from high-school students of Gilgit, Pakistan: Environmental Hazards: Vol 0, No 0 School emergency preparedness must be enhanced to save the lives of children and reduce adverse impacts on the school education system. The gender dimension of school-going children can help unders...

Congratulations to Ms. Rida Hameed Lodhi for successful defense for the Master's research for partial fulfillment in MS Urban and Regional Planning Program.

Title: Mode Choice Modelling for Educational Trips in Abbottabad, Pakistan

Supervisor: Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana

Ms. Rida investigated gender differences among school-going children regarding preferences and travel characteristics. She also quantified satisfaction regarding public transport. She developed a model for the identification of factors affecting mode choices for educational trips in Abbottabad city, Pakistan.