KARACHI: Wearing green jackets and caps, enumerators on Wednesday visited hundreds of blocks across the metropolis, Hyderabad and Ghotki districts as well as Sehwan taluka of Jamshoro district to count housing units and register the heads of the families residing there.

A senior official in the census organisation said the first day of the housing census was ‘peaceful’, as no untoward incident was reported from across Sindh. During the first three days of this phase, officials would conduct house count, he said, adding that headcount would take place in the next phase.

The census was formally launched with President Mamnoon Hussain scribbling the digit ‘01’ at the State Guest House in Karachi in the presence of senior government officials and the census authorities. He said the country had been waiting for population census for the past 19 years, and once the exercise got completed Pakistan would update all its indicators and institutions, which so far had been relying on the figures of the 1998 census.

Officials said the enumerators had been provided with all the required equipment and paraphernalia for the census. “More than 12,000 enumerators are taking part in the first phase of the housing census in the eight districts of Sindh,” said an official, adding that every enumerator was being accompanied by an army soldier and a policeman for the purpose of security and transparency. Besides, the Rangers personnel were there for added security during the census.

Major task

Men and women in the uniform of the statistics division were found visiting apartments and houses, and strolling in the narrow lanes of the city’s congested slums to calculate the housing units.

Mohammad Ali, an enumerator deputed to cover parts of Shah Faisal Colony, said the exercise was hectic, yet people were found largely understanding considering the significance and cooperated with him wherever he went. “In certain places, people inquired why I was not writing the names and details of their families, and I had to tell them that would be held in the next phase,” he said.

Farzana Hashim, another enumerator, was in Lines Area where someone confronted her for writing certain details using a pencil. “People have turned very sceptical; they thought it was [something suspicious]. I showed them that a soldier and a policeman were accompanying me, and the temporary use of pencil was to ensure nothing was written wrong in finalising the details,” she said.

Census divisions

According to the officials, Karachi, for this exercise, has been divided into 21 census districts comprising 365 charges. These charges cover 2,401 circles comprising 14,550 blocks. Over 10,000 staffers including 7,274 enumerators under the supervision of a divisional head and six district officials in-charge are taking part in the exercise in the city during this phase.

In Hyderabad district, there are 71 charges comprising 339 circles which have been further split into 2,072 blocks. A total of 1,448 staffers have been appointed for census in Hyderabad district, which included a divisional in-charge, a district in-charge, five census district in-charges, 20 charge superintendents, 339 circle supervisors and 1,038 enumerators.

Some 20 charges are in Ghotki district comprising 101 circles, which have further been divided into 1,284 blocks. A total of 763 officials and enumerators have been appointed to take part in the census exercise in this district.

Funds in Hyderabad

The first day of the census exercise remained peaceful with law-enforcement agencies coordinating with each other as well as enumerators for their security, said Hyderabad Commissioner Sajid Jamal Abro while addressing a press conference at Shahbaz Hall.

Accompanied by a representative of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Abdul Majeed Leghari, the commissioner said all the families, which could not be counted on the first day for any reason, would be revisited by enumerators.

He said he remained present at Polytechnical College, one of the despatch centres for census, to supervise the exercise that began in various parts of Hyderabad district and Sehwan taluka of Jamshoro district at 7am.

The commissioner said Hyderabad district administration had been given Rs59 million funds instead of Rs69m. He said the civil administration needed more funds for travel expenses given the nature of areas such as Thana Bula Khan. In some areas 4x4 vehicles would be required and their rent could vary in different parts of the district. The PBS had been informed about the required funds and it would be reminded about more funds, he said.

Mr Abro said everyone, including foreigners, immigrants and nomads, were to be counted in census. Even those who didn’t have national identity cards were being counted though mostly people had their CNICs, he said.

No female staff

PBS representative Abdul Majeed Leghari told the media that women were not included in house and head count exercises given the tough nature of the jobs.

He claimed that sufficient male staff was available, as one enumerator would cover two blocks of households. He said that blocks were being physically verified by using GPRS technology.

Mr Leghari said that since 1998, 30 per cent increase had been witnessed in blocks in Hyderabad.

Alertness tested in Ghotki

Overall arrangements, preparedness and emergency response in Ghotki district of Sukkur division were examined and tested at DC office complex during its visit by General Officer Commanding of Pano Akil Major General Zafarullah Khan on Wednesday.

Within five minutes of the emergency alert, Rangers and police contingents as well as ambulances arrived at the complex.

Maj Gen Khan, who was accompanied by Sukkur Commissioner Mohammad Abbas Baloch, Sukkur police range DIG Syed Feroze Shah, Brig Salman Anwar, and senior officers of the Rangers, discussed the overall arrangements with Ghotki Deputy Commissioner Syed Aijaz Ali Shah at the DC office.

Mr Shah briefing the officers said that the exercise of house count began at 8.30am in all talukas of Ghotki district. He said control rooms had been set up in all the five talukas of Ghotki district as well as at the DC office. He said staff were posted at the control rooms for addressing complaints from different areas concerning the census. He said the presence of doctors and paramedics at all hospitals in Ghotki had been ensured.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2017