Urbanisation in Pakistan

Edit links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Urbanisation in Pakistan has increased since the time of independence and has several different causes. The majority of southern Pakistan's population lives along the Indus River. Karachi is its most populous city.

Nowshera, Mardan and Peshawar. During 1990–2008, city dwellers made up 36% of Pakistan's population, making it the most urbanised nation in South Asia. Furthermore, 50% of Pakistanis live in towns of 5,000 people or more.[2]
Pakistan is one of south Asia's most rapidly urbanising countries, as of at least early 2024.

Historical causes of urbanisation

Ethnic Groups in Urban Pakistan

The British relinquished control of the colony in 1947 with the Great

katchi abadis in Karachi.[4]

Muhajirs from India migrated in large numbers and shifted their domicile to Pakistan, especially to the port city of Karachi, which is today the largest metropolis in Pakistan.[5]

Burmese immigrants followed suit much later. The Soviet invasion in the 1980s forced millions of Afghan refugees into Pakistan, but most of them have been repatriated since 2002.[6][7] Inevitably, the rapid urbanisation caused by these large population movements has also brought new political and socio-economic complexities.[5]

In addition to immigration, economic events such as the Green Revolution and political developments, among a host of other factors, are also important causes of urbanisation.[5]

As of at least early 2024, Pakistan is one of the most rapidly urbanising counties in south Asia.[8]

Province wise

In 1998, 32.52% of Pakistani lived in Urban areas and has risen to 36.38% in 2017. In the 2017 census , the Urbanization trend has increased in all administrative divisions of Pakistan except Islamabad Capital Territory, where it witnessed a sharp decline in Islamabad Capital Territory.In 1998, 65.72% of the population in Islamabad lived in urban areas and this dropped to 50.58% in 2017.

Sindh is the most urbanized province in Pakistan with 52.02% of its population living in urban areas. Sindh has seen an increase in Urbanization from 48.75% in 1998 to 52.02% in 2017.FATA is the least urbanised province with only 2.84% living in Urban areas[9]

Effects of urbanisation on public health

With the proliferation of slums comes a plethora of related issues, such as public health, infrastructural, and sanitation issues. The infrastructure cannot support the population size, and in the rural areas, plumbing/wells/etc. often cannot be afforded, leading to water contamination.[10] Many water sources are highly contaminated because of the lack of regulations and monitoring by the government.[11] As a result, there is industrial waste and sewage contaminating water sources, as well as high fluoride and arsenic contents, which is further exacerbated by monsoon flooding, thus causing many epidemics throughout the years.[11] Studies have shown that there are critically high levels of nitrates and chlorides in Karachi's water sources as well as other water-born pathogens causing diarrhea and loss of nutrients, exacerbating the existing problem of malnutrition.[12] Specifically, 1 in 5 "street children" in Pakistan were shown to be stunted, and 1 in about 8 were wasted.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Urban Frontier—Karachi". National Public Radio. 2 June 2008. Retrieved 2 July 2008.
  2. ^ Jason Burke (17 August 2008). "Pakistan looks to life without the general". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  3. ^ Basu, Tanya. "The Fading Memory of South Asia's Partition". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
  4. OCLC 58454487
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-1-84376-475-5
    .
  6. ^ Voluntary Repatriation Update (UNHCR Nov. 2016)
  7. ^ UNHCR welcomes new government policy for Afghans in Pakistan (UNHCR Feb. 7, 2017)
  8. ISBN 9780300266900
    .
  9. ^ "8 takeaways from the population census 2017 results". Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  10. ^ Malik, Wasim S. "Cities and Urban Issues in Pakistan" (PDF).
  11. ^
    PMID 21087795
    .
  12. ISSN 1439-8621
    .
  13. ^ Moazzam, Ali (October 2004). "Street Children of Pakistan: A Situational Analysis of Social Conditions and Nutritional Status". Social Science and Medicine. 59 (8): 1701–1717 – via Bibliography of Asian Studies - Elsevier.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Urbanisation_in_Pakistan&oldid=1220054698"