Paper short abstract:

This paper investigates how weak power dynamics, whether formal or informal, exacerbate the marginalization of displaced households caused by the construction of Metro Line in the urban city, Lahore. We find awareness of governance laws through power dynamics addresses the issue of marginalization.

Paper long abstract:

Amid the issue of urban giantism in the Global South, power dynamics through informal networks play a significant role in addressing the miseries of marginalized groups, particularly those displaced due to the construction of infrastructure projects. Displacement tends to exacerbate the well-being of the marginalized displaced households. In this regard, power dynamics are considered significant in mitigating the hardships experienced by them, fundamentally, through cognizance of governance laws associated with land acquisition and provision of compensation. However, that awareness of governance laws comes from both the formal and informal networks. The informal means to get formal support relates to information, knowledge, awareness through friends and families and other informal groups of people with some political connections. Whereas, formal support relates to all the efforts, actions and endeavors taken by the executing and implementing agency Lahore Development Authority (LDA) to aware people about resettlement and compensation through public notices and through official meetings. Against this backdrop, this paper examines the issue of displacement caused by the construction of 27-km Orange Line Metro Train track in the metropolitan city of Lahore, Pakistan. A sample of 100 displaced households has been selected and by employing quantitative techniques. Interestingly, we find that both the informal and formal means positively affects the mechanism of getting the formal support but once controlled for the other correlates, formal means becomes insignificant whereas informal ways remain significant thereby suggesting that existing power relations in heterogeneous societies results in better welfare outcomes for the marginalized people through informal networks.