ISLAMABAD: The federal government has extended the deadline for the ongoing digital census process for the fourth time, as the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) failed to conclude the process within the given deadline.
According to latest reports, the PBS announced that April 30 will be the final deadline for the completion of the census process.
The census was first supposed to be concluded in early April but was later extended till April 10, April 15, and April 20, respectively. The bureau stated that the fourth extension was granted to complete the verification of population data and growth rate in some districts.
The institution witnessed an under-counting of population in major cities, with seven districts of Karachi including Central, South, West, East, Malir, Keamari, and Korangi showing low population counts.
Political parties including Jamat-e-Islami and MQM raised strong voices against the data made available by PSB till to date. Discrepancies were also found in the population count of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Hyderabad, and Quetta.
The PBS spokesperson explained that the data verification process in Peshawar, Dera Ismail Khan, Abbottabad, and Tank also contributed to the extension of the deadline. After a five-day Eidul Fitr holiday, the field operation of the digital census will resume today (Wednesday).
