The Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Friday authorised the deployment of upto 200,000 troops to support the often delayed national population census, said a statement released by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

The troops will be deployed while continuing other security responsibilities, added the ISPR statement.

The population census will yield statistics about internal migration, urbanisation, as well as rural and urban population across the country. The population data will be used for delimitation of the constituencies of the national and provincial assemblies, a requirement under the constitution.

In Pakistan, the first four censuses i.e., 1951, 1961, 1972 and 1981, were held on time by the Population Census Organisation, in collaboration with staff from the provincial governments.

The fifth census was due in 1991 and the House Listing Operation carried out in 1990 showed abnormal population growth in some parts of the country, which not be justified by normal demographic indicators.

Consequently, the government decided to postpone the 1991 census. Another effort was made in 1994, which could not mature due to pressure by from political and ethnic groups.

It was decided that the 1998 census would be held with the support of the armed forces, which was broadly accepted by all political parties and appreciated internally.

The sixth Population and Housing Census was due in 2008, but could not materialise due to the law and order situation in the country, a paucity of staff and financial constraints

Opinion

Editorial

Minimum wages
Updated 13 Jun, 2025

Minimum wages

Foolish to expect toothless and corrupt provincial employees’ social security organisations to force wealthy employers to implement the minimum wage.
Iran attack fears
13 Jun, 2025

Iran attack fears

AS the fate of the US-Iran talks remains undecided, there are worrying signs that in case the negotiations collapse,...
Climate realities
13 Jun, 2025

Climate realities

EVEN as he faced a difficult crowd at the finance ministry’s post-budget press conference, it seems that Finance...
Lack of direction
Updated 12 Jun, 2025

Lack of direction

Few believe that a govt desperate to grow the economy can actually pull it off, as the dynamism required is not visible.
Taxing e-commerce
12 Jun, 2025

Taxing e-commerce

FOR the first time, the government has the digital economy in its crosshairs. With a slew of new measures proposed ...
Kashmir mediation
12 Jun, 2025

Kashmir mediation

ONE of the noteworthy outcomes of last month’s limited clashes between Pakistan and India is that the Kashmir ...