M Malhan Khan

URBANIZATION-A SOURCE OF CONFLICT WITH RESPECT TO
PAKISTANI SOCIETY
M. MALHAN KHAN*
Urbanization is defined as a phenomenon whereby large numbers of people become

permanently concentrated in relatively small areas, forming cities. It also covers the aspect of
gradual increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas. Cities are rightly considered,
cradle of civilization, in the case of Pakistan, where several communities live differentiating on
the basis of ethnic, racial, linguistic and national identities. The role of urban areas has always
been underestimated while determining national policies. According to the census of 1998, the
people who live in cities comprise almost 32.5% of the population, but if we look at the
definition of urban areas, a region surrounding a city, then this figure touches the mark of 55% of
the entire population.
In the case of Pakistan, which is the most urbanized country in South Asia, except
Maldives, this boon is converted into bane causing conflicts of different nature. Urbanization is
considered as an indicator of industrialization around the world. The problem arises when rate of
urbanization lags behind with the pace of industrialization. When people of rural areas migrate
towards urban areas, they bring with them their own culture and life-style which is totally
different from the urban population and as Pakistan is a heterogeneous society, an underlying
struggle among different communities for better economic opportunities and higher standard of
living takes the shape of conflict. In the words of Robert E. Park and Ernest E. Burgess,
“competition does not require direct contact between persons; rather it’s an underlying struggle.
And when struggle becomes more conscious and direct, it becomes conflict.”
If we closely examine, then we find that the fault lines lies in the injustice system which
widens the gap between the haves and have not’s, resulting into the paranoia among people
regarding other communities, and they start protecting themselves under the shield of different
identities. And this important factor strengthens the non-state actors. For example; in case of
Liyari district of Karachi, the conflict between Kachhi and Baloch caused several casualties.
The hunger of good governance which leads the people to shift from rural to urban areas,
when does not materialize, they find the weaknesses in external anomalies, and due to
bombardment of information through unaccountable media, situation worsens causing
radicalization of unemployed people, making youth one of its biggest victim.
The rise of radicalization in Pakistan has also been the urban phenomenon, as
propagandist ideas quickly flourish in highly dense areas. Radicalization provides a camouflage
to justify the extreme actions and negative beliefs of different communities against each other.
Due to constant inflow of ‘concocted information’ in urban areas, people are misled about the
political scenarios, causing them to be more emotionally charged. The sectarian divide in
Pakistan, is also one of the important aspect of conflicts emerging due to urbanization, facilitated
by external factors.
According to 1951 census, more than half of the urban population were composed of
Indian migrants, the demographic shift in the urban composition of different ethnicities, is also
one of the prime factor behind the emergence of different conflicts, which resulted in the ethnic
and sectarian polarization of the society. The role of refugees can also not be marginalized in
1
aggravating the situation in KPK and Karachi, as currently around 600,000 Afghan refugees
reside in Karachi.
Some of the important aspects of the urbanization are also of pivotal interests that are:
need of proper housing, education, sanitation, health, energy-starvation, transport and mobility.
All these factors are interlinked with each other. No proper urbanization can take place without
proper housing, and as per current Federal minister of Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal,
the current government has preference in expanding the cities horizontally rather than on vertical
basis, due to energy starvation. It must be noted that building housing units stimulates almost 36
different industries; hence, even a factor like housing which is fundamental part of urbanization
may bring robust economic activity, settling employment issues to some extent.
Similarly, transport and mobility is the major issue which urban residents come across on
daily basis. Pakistani urban areas are in dire need of respectable and affordable transportation.
Especially, in case of Karachi, a specific community has monopolized the transport sector which
created misunderstandings among different ethnic groups. The on-going project of CPEC will
play a vital role in the transformation of the urban areas, as new conflicts will emerge and current
conflicts will take new forms. In ancient times, the cities used to establish near the river basins.
But, in the modern world, the trade routes are also of significant importance, and the western
corridor will also cause suburban areas to enter into the fold of urban category. Interestingly, all
the important cities of the Pakistan lie near the river basins flowing across Pakistan; 2,442 km
corridor will have the potential of replacing the location of future sub-urban and urban areas.
According to McKinsey Global Institute report of 2012, by 2025, just 600 cities around
the world will contribute towards 65% of the world’s GDP. Similarly, 78% of the GDP of
Pakistan comes from urban areas. Considering this factor, one can easily understand significance
of urban areas towards economic growth of the country. This is the major reason behind the
recent emergence of microfinance banks In Pakistan. As per current information, there have been
around 10 microfinance banks working in urban areas in Pakistan, working towards the
economic uplift of lower middle class
as this is the high time that the state should start giving due attention to the urban areas.
Urbanization is an opportunity for strengthening Pakistani nationalism, by assimilating
the different identities/communities which comes into direct contact in urban areas. As this is a
continuous process, if the state plays its due role providing good governance, law and order and
justice. As a chain result, the causes of conflicts will turn into reasons of strong nation state.
Bibliography
 Hafiz Hanzala Jalil and Muhammad Mazhar Iqbal, “Urbanization and crime: A case
study of Pakistan”;
www.pide.org.pk/psde/pdf/agm26/day2/Hafiz%20Hanzla%20Jalil.pdf
 James A. Schellenberg, “Social Process Theories”, Conflict Resolution: Theory, Research
and Practice. State University of New York Press. (1996): 65.
 Khawar Ghumman, “Aliens in Karachi: No Significant Change in Statistics,” Dawn
(Pakistan), February 23, 2014, http://www.dawn.com/news/1088863.
 Micahel Kugelman, “Pakistan’s Runaway Urbanization: What can be done?,” (Wilson

Center, 2014)
2
www.wilsoncenter.org./sites/default/files/ASIA_140502_Pakistan’s%20Runaway%20urb
anization%20rpt_0530.pdf
 Richard Dobbs, Jaana Remes, James Manyika, Charles Roxburgh, Sven Smit and Fabian
Schaer, “Urban World, Cities and the rise of the consuming class,” (McKinsey &
Company, 2012)
http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/urbanization/urban_world_cities_and_the_rise_of_the
_consuming_class.
 State Bank of Pakistan, “Banks and Development Financial Institutions’ regulated by

SBP” http://sbp.org.pk/f_links/index.asp. Last retrieved: (11/3/2015)
 “Urbanization”, Encyclopedia of Britannica,

http://www.britannica.com/topic/urbanization. Last retrieved: 11/4/2015
* Student, B.A (Hons) Third Year, Department of International Relations, University of Karachi.

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URBANIZATION-A SOURCE OF CONFLICT WITH RESPECT TO

Urbanization is defined as a phenomenon whereby large numbers of people become

 Micahel Kugelman, “Pakistan’s Runaway Urbanization: What can be done?,” (Wilson

 State Bank of Pakistan, “Banks and Development Financial Institutions’ regulated by

 “Urbanization”, Encyclopedia of Britannica,

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