The land use change analysis of the walled city in Afghanistan

Abstract

The ramparted city Ahmad-Shahi Kandahar was established by Ahmad Shah Durrani in about 2 sq km area. It comprised four districts with a high-order planned layout and surrounded by a protective wall within six gates and a moat around it. Authentic literature is investigated to monitor the prior land use and detect the variations. Secondary data and GIS techniques are used for conducting this research. It was found that the circumambient wall, gates, towers, central covered market, freshwater streams network and greenery of the city have vanished, even though the functional status of the gates and the bazaars is still remarkably retained. The total road length is altered from 2.35 km to 16.63 km and streets from 28.12 km to 49.55 km, on the contrary, the reduction of streets width from 9 m to 2.87 m denotes an unfavorable transformation. The 1.01 sq km open space of the city is occupied by congested irregular settlements now. Therefore, applying land reform policy for improving the streets and congestion of dwellings with a special approach is highly recommended along with preserving the valuable monuments standing yet as an important part of the Afghans’ glorious history.