Various Waves of Migration had a profound impact on Karachi. The presentation intends to figure out felt impacts.

1. Migration, Causes and Impact
Habib University,
Tuesday October 14, 2014
Mansoor Raza; mansooraza@gmail.com

2. “If you wish to
converse with
me,” said Voltaire,
“define your
terms.”
Migration is the movement of a person
or a group of persons, either across
an international border, or within a
State. It is a population movement,
encompassing any kind of movement
of people, whatever its length,
composition and causes; it includes
migration of refugees, displaced
persons, economic migrants, and
persons moving for other purposes,
including family reunification
http://www.iom.int/cms/en/sites/iom/home/about-migration/key-
migration-terms-1.html

3. Excuse me---why to
discuss ‘migration’ • Pakistan has been the
designation of cross-border
migrants and refugees
• Mechanization and
modernization of agriculture
displaces people in rural
areas
• Pakistani citizens have
sought work abroad

4. So what. Isn’t Migration
natural?
May be, but
some
reasons are
painful

5. Reasons for Migration
• Economic Freedom (curious case
of students)
• Freedom to express political and
religious views (Pakistan 1980s)
• To avoid persecution (Christians
Ahmadis and Hazara Shias)
• To avoid climate related
hardships (Koochis and Pawandas from
Afghanistan)

6. Typology
of
Migration
• Out migration
(emigration)
– From South to
North
• Immigration (2.0
million aliens reported
in Karachi)
• In –land Migration
– From rural to urban
– From small towns
to cities

7. Lies, Damn Lies
and Statistics
• In year 2010, 63 million people were
out of the Country – out migrants
• So, out of every 100, 3 persons are
not in the Country.
– ‘Aa Aah’ – Remittances (August 2014,
USD1,489 million- 37.8 percent of
national budget of USD 39.3 Billion 
– But Social issues 
– ‘Buddy’ splitted families 
– Empty Nest syndrome 115,508
1,206,297
199,945
35,000
1,773,413
2,991,108
Africa
USA
Asia and Far East
Australia and
Newzealand
Europe
Middle East

8. From the
Past –
Has the
World not
changed
much?
• “The causes of this (in-migration)
movement are complex, but drives
mainly from the fact that Karachi is the
only modern and progressive place
in Sind. Higher education in these days
tends to produce dissatisfaction with
an old fashioned environment and
these is a strong centralizing
tendency in modern business. The
advantage of a mild climate are now a
days appreciated more than they used
to be.
• These and other influences noticed
below have attracted upcoming Hindus
(in particular), to make their homes in
the city.”
H.T. Lambrick, ICS
Officer and
Superintendent of
Census Operation
Sind (earlier it was
written as Sindh), in
the explanatory
notes of 1941
Census Report

9. Karachi – The
Great Host • Karachi in the last 56
years braved three
major waves of
migrants from various
parts of the region.
• All three had definite
social and political
effects and played
their respective roles
in bringing the city to
what it is now

10. First Wave
Table: Karachi's Demographic Change due to Partition (1947 and the resulting
Migration)
1941 1951
Population 450,000 1,137,000
Sindhi spoken as mother tongue (percent) 61.2 8.6
Urdu spoken as mother tongue (percent) 6.3 50.0
Hindu Population (percent) 51.0 2.0
Muslim Population (percent) 42.0 96.0

11. Migration
1947
• In 1947, some 600,000 refugees from India settled in
Karachi, raised the population figure from 4,50,000
in 1947 to 11,37,667 in 1951 and inter-censal growth
rate from 3.70 percent (1941-31) to 11.50 percent
(1951-41)
• The urban population of Sind was 11.85 percent of
the total population and in 1951 it went up to 29.2
percent.
• The migrants were quick and developed enough to
take up the opportunities and fill up the gap,
created by migrating Hindus to India, mostly in the
urban centers.
• An urban-rural divide followed this settlement and
functional pattern. The migrants due to their religio-
political orientation favored strong center, while the
rural native population was asking for more
political autonomy.
• The most important effect is the culmination of
multi religious and multi culturalism, as the
migrants were predominantly Urdu speaking
Muslims (though there exists shades between
those who migrated from Dehli, Rampur and
Lucknow).

12. Second Wave - Migration From
1971
• Between 1972 and 1978, some 350,000 refugees from
Bangladesh (former East Pakistan) moved into Karachi.
• Though, spread to low and middle income settlement,
nevertheless gave enormous expansion to one of the
largest Katchi Abadi of Asia, namely Orangi Town.
• Unlike other ‘regular’ in-migrants to the city, mostly from
NWFP and Punjab, who find their job market niche (first
generation) mostly in earth works, shoe shining, milk and
transport business, these migrants from Bangladesh
were urbanized, educated and monetized and by and
large had the same political orientations and hence
expectations from the state In terms of the provision of
jobs and services as of those who migrated in 1947. The
two groups exhibited their common interests in a major
political union in 80s and afterwards.

13. From late 70s and early 80s
• Between 1978 and 1998 some 600,000 Afghan refugees were
registered, in Karachi, by National Alien Registration Authority
(NARA).
• Unlike earlier two groups, intercity mobility was also observed in the
case of these Afghan migrants, as these first settled in refugee
camps or with some relatives in Balochistan and NWFP Province
and then came to Karachi, due to various push and pull factors.
• Their advent strengthened religious factions and promoted the gun
culture. Enterprising and hard working these soon grabbed the
opportunities and quickly established themselves in trading,
business, transport, earth works and scavenging.
• Corrupt administrative practices helped them to make valid National
Identity Cards and Passports. Before the establishing of NADRA, it
cost Rs. 300 to Rs. 500 to make NIC.

14. So, the figures say…
• If we treat official census figures as authentic (though researchers and
political parties contested against the 1998 census results), then
between 1972 and 1998, some 3.8 million migrants were added to the
city, 40 percent of the total reported population of 1998.
• Of the 2.15 million migrants between 1981 and 1998, 40 percent were
from Punjab and NWFP.
• Also of the total migrant population 43 percent were illiterates and 58
percent of the migrants were males.
• 91 percent of those who migrated between the two census periods of
1981 and 1998 settled in urban Karachi.
• District Malir and West cumulatively accommodated 55 percent of the
migrant population. Sindhi and Pashto are the dominant languages of
Malir, while Urdu and Pashto are the dominant languages of District
West.

15. Total In Country Migration 1998
Place of Previous Residence
Present Residence
Total Migrant
population NWFP FATA Punjab Sindh Balochistan Islamabad AK/NA Other Countries Not Reported
All Areas 10,829,264 1,207,920 114,197 4,263,301 834,200 215,656 22,025 230,258 2,597,528 1,344,179
11.15% 9.45% 39.37% 7.70% 1.99% 0.20% 2.13% 23.99% 12.41%
NWFP 647,725 357,761 75,952 64,249 12,393 1,308 4,035 5,266 24,659 102,102
55.23% 11.73% 9.92% 1.91% 0.20% 0.62% 0.81% 3.81% 15.76%
Punjab 6,701,256 324,070 14,730 3,302,164 161,803 30,317 14,433 150,664 1,831,509 871,566
4.84% 0.22% 49.28% 2.41% 0.45% 0.22% 2.25% 27.33% 13.01%
Sindh 2,833,227 430,848 20,696 635,765 615,769 76,599 3,292 46,310 684,457 319,491
15.21% 0.73% 22.44% 21.73% 2.70% 0.12% 1.63% 24.16% 11.28%
Balochistan 249,615 27,337 524 51,158 22,901 104,067 265 5,426 10,165 27,772
10.95% 0.21% 20.49% 9.17% 41.69% 0.11% 2.17% 4.07% 11.13%
Islamabad 397,731 67,904 2,295 209,965 21,424 3,565 22,592 46,738 23,248
17.07% 0.58% 52.79% 5.39% 0.90% 0.00% 5.68% 11.75% 5.85%
People on Wheels
•1/13th or 7.7 percent of the population is continuously on move.
•
•8, (approx) out of 100 people are migrants

16. Reminder
However, people do not tend to move
someplace at random- they tend to
go where they believe opportunity
exist.
The tendency to migrate cities is
because cities provides centralized
and organized economic activities

18. 1. One, remittances from abroad have had a
positive impact on Pakistan’s economy
• These remittances have not had much of an
impact on the local economy and have been
used mainly for building real estate, improving
lifestyles, purchasing gadgetry and for better
education purposes.
• Pakistanis from abroad have invested in the
social sectors but this has not made any
substantial difference to the provision of social
sector facilities in the areas from where people
have migrated

19. 2. Remittances in Crisis, are much desired
• Remittances the connections that the
migrants have created in the urban areas,
help them out in times of crisis such as
floods, earthquakes and droughts.
• Kashmir Earthquake, IDP Crisis 2009,
Floods 2010 and others

20. 3. Education and Values
• Emigration and migration has promoted
education, more liberal values, emancipation of
women and promotion of NGO activity.
• At the same time, they have led to the break-up
of the extended family and clan institutions,
promoted a rich and poor divide at the local level
and also an immense desire in the population to
go abroad since migrants and their families have
become role models for the rest of society.

21. 4. Spatial Preferences Emerges
• With the inculcation of education and
better lifestyles, the younger generation of
families whose members have migrated or
emigrated, wish to live in the larger cities
because of the better physical and social
environment over there. As a result, the
areas from where they move lose political
power, future civil society leadership and
professionals

22. ergence of Informal Settlements
• Emergence of informal settlements
along main corridors and other areas of
Karachi
• Civic facilities under tremendous
pressure

23. Impact at Donor Places
• Migrant families have improved their
homes or purchase more land
• Lobbied for pipe water
• Caste system and feudal order under
pressure
• Artisan products being replaced by
industrial goods
• Attire, language, crockery transformed

24. Conclusion
• The capitalist mode of production functions together with
residues of traditional economy.
• Besides major political upheavals in the region, that
trigger various categories of migration, the continuous
migration of people from rural to urban should be seen in
this context.
• The migrant population is aggressive, opportunist,
fiercely upwardly mobile and value cash value of time
more than human relationships.
• The phenomenon has definite socio-political
repercussions both on rural as well as on urban side.
Brain and skills drain from rural, pressure on civic
amenities in urban, identity crisis and exploitation of
feelings of being alone and alienation is often used aptly
by religious and political forces.

25. Axiom from
Badin, Sindh
Afrad, nazaria aur quome’n, hijrat
mae’n hee parwan chartey haen
(People, ideology and nations,
progress with/during migration)