ISLAMABAD: The next meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) is expected to approve the holding of a much-needed population census in the country, preferably in March or April 2017.
“A summary has been submitted for placing the census on the agenda of the next meeting of CCI proposing the holding of census in March/April 2017 on traditional method subject to availability of the armed forces,” said a report submitted before the Supreme Court. However the report did not specify when the CCI would meet next.
A three-judge Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, is conducting suo motu proceedings on the delays in holding the population census.
SC told army ready to provide 42,000 personnel for security, enumeration duties
Not impressed with the government’s point of view, the Supreme Court had, at the last hearing on Oct 18, asked the government to come with up a concrete statement about the date and time frame for the census.
Now, in a fresh two-page report, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has stated that it has completed preparations for a census held on traditional lines using paper questionnaires, while the latest technology will be utilised to process the data gathered, curtailing processing time to a minimum.
In pursuance of the CCI decision, the bureau had earlier held meetings with the Directorate of Military Operations to share manpower requirements for the census operation, where it was realised that 288,000 armed forces personnel with civilian enumerators will be needed for man-to-man deployment, including a security and command structure.
Now, the directorate has agreed that the census can be conducted in phases, which will minimise the manpower requirements, and has indicated that it will provide 42,000 army personnel for the census operation.
The use of digital tablets for data collection was also being considered and the hardware and software requirements, along with the total financial cost of the proposal, are also being worked out alongside a time frame, the report said.
The report recalled that at its last meeting on March 25, the CCI had reviewed the preparations for the conduct of census and had decided to hold it in 2016, subject to the availability of armed forces personnel.
Different possible scenarios were discussed with the Directorate of Military Operations, but they were of the view that such a large number of troops could not be spared by military authorities during the current year due to their preoccupation with security-related assignments such as Operation Zarb-i-Azb.
However, the availability of personnel would be re-assessed again over the next couple of months, the report said, adding that thereafter, at least three months would be required for the mobilisation and deployment of the armed forces.
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