This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: 2023 Pakistani census.(February 2024) |
This is a list showing the 100 most populous cities in Pakistan as of the 2017 Census of Pakistan. City populations found in this list only refer to the population found within the city's defined limits and any adjacent cantonment, if exists (except for Gujranwala and Okara). The census totals below come from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics [1] for the four provinces of Pakistan and the Islamabad Capital Territory, and from the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Planning & Development Department (PND AJK) for cities inside Azad Kashmir. [2]
As of the 2017 Census, there are two megacities, ten million-plus cities, and 100 cities having a population of 100,000 or more. Of these 100 cities, 58 are located in the country's most populous province, Punjab, 22 in Sindh, 11 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, six in Balochistan, two in Azad Kashmir, and one in Islamabad Capital Territory. It is unknown whether Gilgit-Baltistan has any city with over 100,000 people or not, as Gilgit-Baltistan has not yet publicly released any 2017 census results. As in the previous census in 1998, the largest city of Gilgit-Baltistan was Gilgit, with 56,701 inhabitants.
Rank | City | Population (2017 Census) [1] [2] [3] | Population (1998 Census) [1] [4] [3] | Change | Province |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Karachi | 14,916,456 | 9,339,023 | +59.72% | Sindh |
2 | Lahore | 11,126,285 | 5,209,088 | +113.59% | Punjab |
3 | Faisalabad | 3,204,726 | 2,008,861 | +59.53% | Punjab |
4 | Rawalpindi | 2,098,231 | 1,409,768 | +48.84% | Punjab |
5 | Gujranwala | 2,027,001 | 1,132,509 | +78.98% | Punjab |
6 | Peshawar | 1,970,042 | 982,816 | +100.45% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
7 | Multan | 1,871,843 | 1,197,384 | +56.33% | Punjab |
8 | Hyderabad | 1,734,309 | 1,166,894 | +48.63% | Sindh |
9 | Islamabad | 1,009,832 | 529,180 | +90.83% | Islamabad Capital Territory |
10 | Quetta | 1,001,205 | 565,137 | +77.16% | Balochistan |
11 | Bahawalpur | 762,111 | 408,395 | +86.61% | Punjab |
12 | Sargodha | 659,862 | 458,440 | +43.94% | Punjab |
13 | Sialkot | 655,852 | 421,502 | +55.60% | Punjab |
14 | Sukkur | 499,900 | 335,551 | +48.98% | Sindh |
15 | Larkana | 490,508 | 270,283 | +81.48% | Sindh |
16 | Rahim Yar Khan | 477,100 | 233,537 | +104.29% | Punjab |
17 | Sheikhupura | 473,129 | 280,263 | +68.82% | Punjab |
18 | Jhang | 414,131 | 293,366 | +41.17% | Punjab |
19 | Dera Ghazi Khan | 399,064 | 190,542 | +109.44% | Punjab |
20 | Gujrat | 390,533 | 251,792 | +55.10% | Punjab |
21 | Sahiwal | 389,605 | 208,778 | +86.61% | Punjab |
22 | Wah Cantonment | 380,103 | 198,891 | +91.11% | Punjab |
23 | Mardan | 358,604 | 245,926 | +45.82% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
24 | Kasur | 358,409 | 245,321 | +46.10% | Punjab |
25 | Okara | 357,935 | 201,815 | +77.36% | Punjab |
26 | Mingora | 331,091 | 173,868 | +90.43% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
27 | Nawabshah | 279,338 | 189,244 | +47.61% | Sindh |
28 | Chiniot | 278,747 | 172,522 | +61.57% | Punjab |
29 | Kotri | 259,358 | 62,085 | +317.75% | Sindh |
30 | Kāmoke | 249,767 | 152,288 | +64.01% | Punjab |
31 | Hafizabad | 245,784 | 133,678 | +83.86% | Punjab |
32 | Sadiqabad | 239,677 | 144,391 | +65.99% | Punjab |
33 | Mirpur Khas | 233,916 | 189,671 | +23.33% | Sindh |
34 | Burewala | 231,797 | 152,097 | +52.40% | Punjab |
35 | Kohat | 228,779 | 126,627 | +80.67% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
36 | Khanewal | 227,059 | 133,986 | +69.46% | Punjab |
37 | Dera Ismail Khan | 217,457 | 92,114 | +136.07% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
38 | Turbat | 213,557 | 68,603 | +211.29% | Balochistan |
39 | Muzaffargarh | 209,604 | 123,404 | +69.85% | Punjab |
40 | Abbottabad | 208,491 | 106,101 | +96.50% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
41 | Mandi Bahauddin | 198,609 | 99,496 | +99.62% | Punjab |
42 | Shikarpur | 195,437 | 134,883 | +44.89% | Sindh |
43 | Jacobabad | 191,076 | 138,780 | +37.68% | Sindh |
44 | Jhelum | 190,425 | 147,392 | +29.20% | Punjab |
45 | Khanpur | 184,793 | 120,382 | +53.51% | Punjab |
47 | Khairpur | 183,181 | 105,637 | +73.41% | Sindh |
48 | Khuzdar | 182,927 | 91,057 | +100.89% | Balochistan |
49 | Pakpattan | 176,693 | 109,033 | +62.05% | Punjab |
50 | Hub | 175,376 | 62,763 | +179.43% | Balochistan |
51 | Daska | 175,170 | 102,883 | +70.26% | Punjab |
52 | Gojra | 174,860 | 117,892 | +48.32% | Punjab |
53 | Dadu | 171,191 | 102,550 | +66.93% | Sindh |
54 | Muridke | 166,652 | 111,951 | +48.86% | Punjab |
55 | Bahawalnagar | 161,033 | 111,313 | +44.67% | Punjab |
56 | Samundri | 156,991 | 54,908 | +185.92% | Punjab |
57 | Tando Allahyar | 156,562 | 85,812 | +82.45% | Sindh |
58 | Tando Adam | 152,617 | 104,907 | +45.48% | Sindh |
59 | Jaranwala | 150,380 | 106,985 | +40.56% | Punjab |
60 | Chishtian | 149,939 | 102,287 | +46.59% | Punjab |
61 | Muzaffarabad | 149,913 | 85,462 | +75.41% | Azad Kashmir |
62 | Attock | 146,396 | 69,729 | +109.95% | Punjab |
63 | Vehari | 145,464 | 94,343 | +54.19% | Punjab |
64 | Kot Abdul Malik | 143,434 | 63,525 | +125.79% | Punjab |
65 | Ferozwala | 141,405 | 55,433 | +155.09% | Punjab |
66 | Chakwal | 138,146 | 80,508 | +71.59% | Punjab |
67 | Gujranwala Cantonment | 137,302 | 93,093 | +47.49% | Punjab |
68 | Kamalia | 135,641 | 97,324 | +39.37% | Punjab |
69 | Umerkot | 134,052 | 35,559 | +276.98% | Sindh |
70 | Ahmedpur East | 133,369 | 96,415 | +38.33% | Punjab |
71 | Kot Addu | 129,703 | 80,720 | +60.68% | Punjab |
72 | Wazirabad | 128,060 | 90,197 | +41.98% | Punjab |
73 | Mansehra | 127,623 | 49,534 | +157.65% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
74 | Layyah | 126,361 | 72,319 | +74.73% | Punjab |
75 | Mirpur | 124,352 | 115,641 | +7.53% | Azad Kashmir |
76 | Swabi | 123,412 | 80,157 | +53.96% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
77 | Chaman | 123,191 | 56,792 | +116.92% | Balochistan |
78 | Taxila | 121,952 | 71,882 | +69.66% | Punjab |
79 | Nowshera | 120,131 | 89,813 | +33.76% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
80 | Khushab | 119,384 | 87,859 | +35.88% | Punjab |
81 | Shahdadkot | 118,915 | 60,436 | +96.76% | Sindh |
82 | Mianwali | 118,883 | 80,171 | +48.29% | Punjab |
83 | Kabal | 118,103 | 75,891 | +55.62% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
84 | Lodhran | 117,851 | 65,501 | +79.92% | Punjab |
85 | Hasilpur | 115,536 | 71,295 | +62.05% | Punjab |
86 | Charsadda | 114,565 | 87,218 | +31.35% | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
87 | Bhakkar | 113,018 | 68,896 | +64.04% | Punjab |
88 | Badin | 112,420 | 62,843 | +78.89% | Sindh |
89 | Arif Wala | 111,403 | 74,174 | +50.19% | Punjab |
90 | Ghotki | 111,321 | 52,823 | +110.74% | Sindh |
91 | Sambrial | 109,479 | 49,574 | +120.84% | Punjab |
92 | Jatoi | 109,424 | 38,986 | +180.68% | Punjab |
93 | Haroonabad | 107,858 | 62,878 | +71.54% | Punjab |
94 | Daharki | 103,557 | 34,615 | +199.17% | Sindh |
95 | Narowal | 103,067 | 57,052 | +80.65% | Punjab |
96 | Tando Muhammad Khan | 101,863 | 65,396 | +55.76% | Sindh |
97 | Kamber Ali Khan | 101,474 | 58,369 | +73.85% | Sindh |
98 | Mirpur Mathelo | 100,760 | 42,421 | +137.52% | Sindh |
99 | Kandhkot | 100,698 | 67,566 | +49.04% | Sindh |
100 | Bhalwal | 100,135 | 61,523 | +62.76% | Punjab |
– | Total | 59,905,843 | 34,666,353 | 57.87% |
Azad Jammu and Kashmir, abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir, is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entity and constituting the western portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947. Azad Kashmir also shares borders with the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the south and west, respectively. On its eastern side, Azad Kashmir is separated from the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir by the Line of Control (LoC), which serves as the de facto border between the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir. Geographically, it covers a total area of 13,297 km2 (5,134 sq mi) and has a total population of 4,045,366 as per the 2017 national census.
Pakistan had a population of 241,495,112 according to the final results of the 2023 Census. This figure includes Pakistan's four provinces e.g. Punjab, Sindh, KPK, Balochistan and Islamabad Capital Territory. AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan's census data is yet to be approved by CCI Council of Pakistan. Pakistan is the world's fifth most populous country.
The administrative units of Pakistan comprise four provinces, one federal territory, and two disputed territories: the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan; the Islamabad Capital Territory; and the administrative territories of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit–Baltistan. As part of the Kashmir conflict with neighbouring India, Pakistan has also claimed sovereignty over the Indian-controlled territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh since the First Kashmir War of 1947–1948. It also has a territorial dispute with India over Junagadh, but has never exercised administrative authority over either regions. All of Pakistan's provinces and territories are subdivided into divisions, which are further subdivided into districts, and then tehsils, which are again further subdivided into union councils.
The districts of Pakistan are the third-level administrative divisions of Pakistan, below provinces and divisions, but forming the first-tier of local government. In total, there are 166 districts in Pakistan, including the Capital Territory, and the districts of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. These districts are further divided into tehsils and union councils.
Northern Pakistan is a tourism region in northern and north-western parts of Pakistan, comprising the administrative units of Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad Capital Territory and the Rawalpindi Division in Punjab. The first two territories are a part of the wider Kashmir region. It is a mountainous region straddling the Himalayas, Karakoram and the Hindu Kush mountain ranges, containing many of the highest peaks in the world and some of the longest glaciers outside polar regions. Northern Pakistan accounts for a high level of Pakistan's tourism industry.
The former administrative units of Pakistan are states, provinces and territories which mainly existed between 1947 and 1975 when the current provinces and territories were established. The former units have no administrative function today but some remain as historical and cultural legacies. In some cases, the current provinces and territories correspond to the former units – for example the province of Punjab includes almost all the territory of the former province of West Punjab.
Law enforcement in Pakistan is one of the three main components of the criminal justice system of Pakistan, alongside the judiciary and the prisons. The country has a mix of federal, provincial and territorial police forces with both general and specialised functions, but the senior ranks of all the provincial forces and most of the federal ones are manned by members of the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP). The PSP is one of the most prestigious part of the Central Superior Services, Pakistan's main civil service organisation. Federal law enforcement agencies are generally overseen by the Ministry of Interior of the Government of Pakistan, while provincial police forces are overseen by a department of the government of that province.
Tourism in Pakistan is a growing industry. In 2010, Lonely Planet termed Pakistan "tourism's 'next big thing'". The country is geographically and ethnically diverse, and has a number of historical and cultural heritage sites. Condé Nast Traveller ranked Pakistan The Best Holiday Destination for 2020 and also declared it the third-highest potential adventure destination in the world for 2020. As security in the country improves, tourism increases; in two years, it has increased by more than 300%.
Pakistan is a federal republic with three tiers of government: national, provincial and local. Local government is protected by the constitution in Articles 32 and 140-A, and each province also has its own local-government-enabling legislation and ministries responsible for implementation. District councils and metropolitan corporations are respectively the highest rural and urban tiers of local government in the provinces. Both urban and rural local government have two or three tiers in all provinces except Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where councils are not identified as either urban or rural. There are 129 district councils across the four provinces, 619 urban councils made up of one city district, four metropolitan corporations, 13 municipal corporations, 96 municipal committees, 148 town councils, 360 urban union committees, and 1,925 rural councils. Additionally there are 3339 neighbourhood, ‘tehsil’ and village councils in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Pakistan:
The four provincial governments of Pakistan administer the four provinces of Pakistan. There is also a federal capital territory and two territories which have similar governments but with some differences. The head of each province is a non-executive Governor appointed by the President. The Governors play a similar role, at the provincial level, as the President does at the federal level. Each province has a directly elected unicameral legislature, with members elected for five-year terms. Each provincial assembly elects a Chief Minister, who then selects a cabinet of ministers from amongst the members of the Provincial Assembly. Each province also has a High Court, which forms part of the superior judiciary.
Pakistan's cultural heritage includes archaeological sites, stupas, forts, shrines, tombs, buildings, residences, monuments, and places of worship. Until the passing of the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, some sites were under the federal government while others were in the provincial domain.
The seven Bar Councils in Pakistan came into being as a result of enactment of Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Act 1973. These Bar Councils regulate legal professionals across provincial, territorial and national level. All bar associations in the country are affiliated to and work under the control of one of these bar councils.
The 2017 Census of Pakistan was a detailed enumeration of the Pakistani population which began on 15 March 2017 and ended on 25 May 2017. It was the first census taken in the country in the 21st century, nineteen years after the previous one in 1998, and it was carried out by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
Prisons in Pakistan and their administration, is a Provincial competency under the Constitution of Pakistan. Pakistan has the 23rd largest prison population in the world and the 5th largest death row population. Around 64.5% of prisoners are awaiting trial prisoners. 98.6% of prisoners are male, 1.7% are juveniles and 1.2% of those held are foreign citizens. As of 2018 Pakistan had an official occupancy capacity for 56,499 prisoners but held 80,145 prisoners.
Northern cricket team was a domestic cricket team in Pakistan representing Rawalpindi Division, Islamabad Capital Territory, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu & Kashmir. It competed in domestic first-class, List A and T20 cricket competitions, namely the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan Cup and National T20 Cup. The team was operated by the Northern Cricket Association.
Below you can find many detailed tables and graphs that show the historical spread and trends of COVID-19 in Pakistan. Data from 26 February 2020 – 9 March 2020 was taken by compiling news reports about the pandemic in Pakistan that minutely covered the pandemic. From 10 March 2020 – 2 April 2020, data was taken from the NIH's daily reports on COVID-19 that were published from 11 March – 3 April. Since 3 April 2020, data has been taken from the federal government's live tracker. A more detailed list of sources and data covering the national and provincial levels can be found here. Sources regarding the district level can be found in their subsection.