Claim: Lahore’s population is more than Karachi according to the seventh digital census data.
Fact: The city of Lahore has not surpassed Karachi’s population, but the Lahore division is the most populous division. The Lahore division comprises four Districts — Kasur, Lahore, Nankana Sahib and Sheikhupura.
Fact or Fiction?
On 8 August 2023, The Express Tribune published an article with the headline “Lahore edges past Karachi in population.”
Soch Fact Check found the claim to be misleading. The headline of the article is misleading because it discusses the population of the Lahore division, not Lahore city. Lahore is among the most populous divisions with a population of 22,772,710 people.
The body of the article, however, mentions the Lahore division and not just Lahore.
Lahore division, an administrative division of Punjab province, comprises four districts, one of which is also named Lahore; Kasur, Lahore, Nankana Sahib, and Sheikhupura. The population of Lahore district was recorded at 13,004,135.
According to data available on the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics website, the population of Karachi division, which contains seven districts of Karachi — Karachi Central District, Karachi East District, Karachi South District, Karachi West District, Korangi District, Malir District, and Keamari District — has reached 20,382,881 people. Karachi division population count would be comparable to Lahore district.
The 2023 Pakistan Census was conducted by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) between March 1 and May 22, 2023. The Council of Common Interests (CCI) “unanimously” approved the results of this census on 5 August 2023. The population of Pakistan is about 241.49 million, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
This first-ever digital census revealed that the country’s population has reached 241.49 million, reflecting a growth rate of 2.55%. These findings were officially unveiled during the 50th meeting of the Council of Common Interest (CCI), presided over by former Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, where the results of the census were unanimously approved.
Virality
The claim was also found here on Facebook.
Conclusion: The population of Lahore city is not more than Karachi.