Finance Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar here on Thursday chaired a briefing session to seek an update on the second phase of Population & Housing Census – 2017.
Chief Statistician, Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) apprised the meeting that second phase of the census which commenced on 25thApril would cover 88 districts throughout the country and continue tillMay 24. In the second phase twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi along with federally administered tribal areas (FATA) would also be covered. The second phase, he said was progressing smoothly and in accordance with the schedule.
The Chief Statistician added that all filled in census documents in respect of 63 districts covered in the first phase of the census had been safely received at the PBS headquarters.
The meeting was further informed that the government had already released the total allocated budget i.e. Rs 18.5 billion for the census process.
The Finance Minister said he was pleased to note that a team of international observers had expressed satisfaction over the census operation that had now entered in its second phase, adding to the credibility and transparency of the drive.
Finance Minister appreciated and thanked the Provincial Chief Secretaries, armed forces personnel and members of the law enforcement agencies for their cooperation and support in successful completion of the first phase of the census. He also lauded the hard work undertaken by the PBS and the census staff for smooth conduct of all census-related activities. He said that indeed response from people and their support for the census process was overwhelming. He asked the PBS to keep up the good work with same dedication in the second phase as was demonstrated in the first one.
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Khawaja Zaheer Ahmed, Secretary Statistics Division, Chief Statistician PBS and senior officials of the Finance Division attended the meeting.
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