PBS provides census-related requisite information to ECP

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has provided all requisite information related to the 7th Population and Housing Census 2023 to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), ARY News reported on Tuesday.

“The information includes gazette notification of Census Charges, Circles and Blocks, colour prints of Digitized maps of 1,85,514 Blocks, Circles and Charges (excluding Sindh) and Census Block wise data etc.,” the PBS said in statement.

However, the bureau said the colour prints of Digitized maps of Sindh would be handed over by August 30.

The PBS also said the census results were unanimously approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI) in its 50th meeting held under the chairmanship of the then Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on August 5, 2023.

It said that the census data was important for the delimitation of boundaries for the conduct of general elections in the country.

Accordingly, the PBS was assigned the task of providing important information to the ECP which has been completed and the requisite information and the block-wise census data have been handed over successfully to the ECP.

The required information and data were handed over to the ECP in a meeting held on August 28 at the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, chaired by Chief Census Commissioner Dr Naeem uz Zafar.

It is pertinent to mention here that the federal government on August 7 notified the results of the seventh census after approval from the Council of Common Interests (CCI).

According to a notification, Pakistan’s population crossed 241 million including 147.7 million rural and 93.7 million urban population.

Province-wise, Punjab’s population has reached 127.7 million, and Sindh’s population is recorded at 55.6 million, as per the results of the digital census.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s population has reached 40.8 million, while Balochistan’s population was recorded at 14.8 million, the notification said and added Islamabad’s population has reached 2.36 million.

According to these figures, the population of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa increased by 2.38 percent, Punjab 2.53 percent, Sindh 2.57 percent and Balochistan 3.2 percent.