Fresh census in Pakistan

A necessity, as the last one was held 15 years ago

It was the PML-N’s previous stint in power when the last census was held in the country. This speaks volumes about the government’s efficiency, political exigencies and bureaucratic hurdles. The situation, though, has changed somewhat now. Urbanisation, growth within a city, ethnic diversity and equitable distribution of state resources are some of the issues that need to be explored periodically, and a census provides the means to determine that through the data it churns out. However, since the country has seen no such thing in the last 15 years, all the physical and social uplift planning and the government spending on country’s different segments of society has been based on, at best, informed hunches.

A census is not just a count of how many people reside in a particular area; it is the best statistical data to formulate policies that can affect a large number of people. Karachi, for instance, has seen abnormal growth in the areas under the control of the MQM and the PPP, while Balochistan has seen growth in both Baloch and Pashtun areas. Urbanisation has increased manifold and the state of literacy and employment has varied over the years, but a concrete data is unavailable. In 2011, an attempt was made by the previous government to carry out the census but it could not be completed beyond the first phase of house count because of political and ethnic rivalries in Sindh and Balochistan. Now that the federal government, again the PML-N government, is back in power after a 13-year interregnum and runs one province and is in alliance in another, it must show the political will to carry out the census. The census is needed to ensure equitable distribution of resources on the basis of population density. It is equally important for social and economic planning, and for the much needed changes in electoral constituencies.

As a census is such a humongous task, it can take months to complete and infer results, on which future policies would be based, it would be better to carry it out as soon as possible, so that its results can be utilised in the next elections for better electoral constituencies. While the exercise requires mobilisation of government machinery at a countrywide level, maintaining transparency and giving each stakeholder equal representation is a must. However great this challenge may be, it is one the government cannot shy away from any longer.