海角大神

In the center of Lahore 鈥� the city affectionately known as the beating heart of Pakistan 鈥� lies a working-class neighborhood called the Ghulam Mohammad Bhatti Colony. It is built across what once was a narrow streamlet with water so clean that the community used it to wash their clothes and bathe children.聽

鈥淚t was beautiful,鈥� says resident Ahsan Bhatti. 鈥淭here were trees on either side of the water and every evening people used to gather around and sit in the shade.鈥�

Things began to change in the 1990s, when gated communities and industrial parks were constructed nearby and their sewage systems started flowing into the water. Today, Ghulam Mohammad Bhatti Colony finds itself encircled by three of the city鈥檚 most exclusive neighborhoods 鈥� Model Town, the Defence Housing Authority, and the Pak-Arab Housing Scheme 鈥� but children here walk barefoot through rundown streets, avoiding the garbage-strewn trench, once a flowing stream, and scavenging food from other rubbish.

Income inequality is nothing new in Pakistan, yet it鈥檚 being thrown into a harsher spotlight as a severe cost-of-living crisis forces working-class Pakistanis to summon every ounce of resilience. Inflation has reached a 48-year-high with consumer prices up 27.6% compared to the same time last year, and the price of wheat flour, the most basic of staples in Pakistan, has nearly tripled to around 150 rupees ($0.57) per kilogram. Some in Ghulam Mohammad Bhatti Colony are going door to door buying stale rotis so they can break them down into cheaper flour to sell on the market. Others are relying on their community and picking up odd jobs to feed their families.

鈥淵ou see that mound of gravel there?鈥� says primary school teacher Khurram Javed, pointing in the distance. 鈥淎fter I鈥檓 done speaking to you, I鈥檒l go over there and offer to get rid of it at a price. That鈥檚 what it鈥檚 come down to. Last night, the only way I was able to eat was by cleaning a gutter.鈥�

Mounting crises

Pakistan鈥檚 import-dependent economy has suffered a number of external shocks over a short period. The monsoon floods, which destroyed millions of acres of farmland and disrupted agricultural supply chains, came when the economy was already reeling from the sharp increase in oil prices caused by the war in Ukraine. This further exacerbated the country鈥檚 chronic balance of payments problem, with the result that Pakistan did not have enough foreign currency in its reserves to pay its hefty import bill.聽

鈥淏ecause we didn鈥檛 have any dollars coming in, food items that were being imported from abroad would get stuck at our ports,鈥� explains economics and finance commentator Shahbaz Rana, based in Islamabad. 鈥淲hen suppliers within Pakistan saw that there was a commodity shortage in the market, they started hoarding these food items and caused an escalation in price.鈥�

Talks with the International Monetary Fund ended on Feb. 9 without a deal, though officials say they were given a road map for reforms needed to unlock the $1.1 billion in emergency aid. Meanwhile, food and medicine shortages 鈥� which come as Pakistan鈥檚 security situation deteriorates and power outages wrack cities 鈥� have many working-class people pointing fingers at their rulers.聽

鈥淚t鈥檚 the army and the government that are robbing this country,鈥� says local barber Mohammad Rizwan. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e the ones who have multiple cars worth tens of millions of rupees.鈥�

Hasan Ali

A child sells samosas on Feb. 2, 2023, in the Ghulam Mohammad Bhatti Colony in central Lahore, Pakistan. The principal of the local high school says that many residents want to send their kids to school but can't afford the supplies. Instead, some families have pulled their children out of class and put them to work.

A United Nations report published in 2021 estimated that perks given to the elite amounted to approximately $17.4 billion.

鈥淲hat I earn here isn鈥檛 enough to feed my family,鈥� Mr. Rizwan adds. 鈥淓very month I鈥檓 falling further and further in debt, and it鈥檚 a good thing that the house I live in belongs to the family or I鈥檓 sure I would be out on the street.鈥�

So acute is the crisis affecting the neighborhood that parents are taking children out of schools and putting them to work. Muhammad Afzal Raza, the principal of the local high school, says that many residents cannot even provide their children with pens and paper. 鈥淢ost parents really do want to send their children to school, but the fact is they simply can鈥檛 afford it,鈥� he says.

In spite of these difficulties, however, members of the community refuse to be despondent.聽

Faith and community

Emmanuel Sardar, one of the community鈥檚 海角大神 residents, says that his faith in God stops him from worrying about the future. 鈥淲e believe that Allah is the one who is responsible for sustaining us and that he knows best how much to give us.鈥澛�

Faith is likewise a source of strength for Hina Ansari. 鈥淲hat are our hardships compared to the ones faced by our Prophet in the early days of Islam?鈥� says the mother of five who has lived in the neighborhood for more than 10 years. 鈥淲hy should we complain about poverty? No! We have to work and get ahead.鈥澛�

Ms. Ansari supplements her husband鈥檚 monthly salary of 20,000 rupees by stitching clothes in their apartment and working as an agent for the local marriage bureau. It was initially a struggle to convince her husband to allow her to work.聽

Hasan Ali

Emmanuel Sardar sits outside a cafe on Feb. 2, 2023, in the Ghulam Mohammad Bhatti Colony in central Lahore, Pakistan. He says his faith has been a source of strength during Pakistan's cost-of-living crisis.

鈥淧eople think that if a woman goes out to work, she鈥檒l meet all sorts of other women who won鈥檛 have the right sort of character,鈥� she explains. 鈥淏ut I told him that everything I鈥檇 do, I鈥檇 do for my children and that I鈥檇 never do anything to compromise his honor.鈥�

There is even a sense that financial distress has brought the community closer. 鈥淚 owe about three months鈥� rent,鈥� admits resident Emmanuel Masih. 鈥淏ut my landlords are understanding. I believe that when you鈥檙e good to people and keep good relations with people, they are also willing to help you out. And whenever we get money, we drop all our other expenses to pay off what we owe in rent.鈥�

For some, even the possibility of Pakistan defaulting 鈥� a certainty, experts say, if the country can鈥檛 secure the IMF bailout 鈥� isn鈥檛 enough to shake their resolve.

鈥淭he thing is, when I came into this world I had nothing and when I leave it, I鈥檒l have nothing,鈥� says Javed Ahmed Khan, who sells mosquito control equipment. 鈥淚f you can control your desires, you can get by with just about anything.鈥�