Migration, small towns and social
transformations in Pakistan
Arif Hasan is an architect/
planner in private practice
in Karachi, dealing with
urban planning and
development issues in
general and in Asia and
Pakistan in particular.
He has been involved
with the Orangi Pilot
Project (OPP) since 1982
and is a founding member
of the Urban Resource
Centre (URC) in Karachi,
whose chairman he has
been since its inception
in 1989. He is currently
on the board of several
international journals and
research organizations,
including the Bangkok-
based Asian Coalition
for Housing Rights, and
is a visiting fellow at the
International Institute
for Environment and
Development (IIED), UK.
He is also a member of the
India Committee of Honour
for the International
Network for Traditional
Building, Architecture and
Urbanism.
He has been a consultant
and advisor to many
local and foreign CBOs,
national and international
NGOs, and bilateral and
multilateral donor agencies.
He has taught at Pakistani
and European universities,
served on juries of
international architectural
and development
competitions, and is the
author of a number of
books on development and
planning in Asian cities
in general and Karachi
in particular. He has also
Environment & Urbanization Copyright © 2010 International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).
Vol 22(1): 33–50. DOI: 10.1177/0956247809356180 www.sagepublications.com
ARIF HASAN
ABSTRACT This paper derives from a longer IIED report and describes the close
relationship between migration/emigration and the sociology/ecology of the
different regions of Pakistan, and poverty-related issues in these regions. It also deals
with the massive migrations from India to Pakistan (at the time of partition and
as a result of three wars with India), the migration from Afghanistan (as a result of
the prolonged Afghan war), and from Bangladesh (as a result of the creation of that
country). The socioeconomic and political repercussions of these migrations are
discussed, as well as rural–urban migration and its repercussions on both the urban
and rural areas of Pakistan. The sections on emigration establish that, by and large,
emigration has not benefited the emigrants and their families except in relation to
building real estate. In addition, it has created severe strains on the extended family
and has increased the rich–poor divide. However, worker’s remittances from abroad
have played an important role in the growth of Pakistan’s GDP, and without them
the exchange rate and monetary and fiscal policies would have come under greater
pressure. The paper also deals with the legal and illegal processes of migration and
emigration; the role of the informal and state agencies in the processes; the role of
emigrant organizations in financing and in social projects and programmes; and
suggestions for enhancing and improving these roles. Finally, the paper focuses
on three very different small towns and discusses the impact of migration and
emigration on their physical and socioeconomic development; also the fact that
although the economy is dominated by the merchant classes, the political power
rests firmly with the landed elite except where the state is the major landowner.
KEYWORDS ecology / GDP / migration / poverty / small towns / social fragmenta-
tion / wars
I. INTRODUCTION: MIGRATION AND THE PAKISTAN CONTEXT
Pakistan is a poor country. In the UNDP Human Development Report 2006,
Pakistan ranks 134th out of 177 countries in the Human Development
Index (HDI); 32.6 per cent of the population lives below the national
poverty line; life expectancy at birth is 63.6 for women and 63.2 for men;
however, its gender empowerment measure ranking was 66th.(1)
There are a number of other aspects to poverty in Pakistan related
to debt and military expenditure.(2) In addition, it must be understood
that development in Pakistan has been unequal and there is a growing
gap between the rich and the poor; there are also major rural–urban
and provincial differences, which make generalizations difficult.(3)
Increasingly, these differences are due to a reduction in subsidies to
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E N V I R O N M E N T & U R B A N I Z AT I O N Vol 22 No 1 April 2010

the social and agricultural sectors, which has adversely affected health, received a number of
awards for his work, which
education, social housing and employment and incomes, especially after
spans many countries.
the implementation of structural adjustment in 1992.(4)
Pakistan is also a large country. Its population has increased from Address: Arif Hasan,
Architect and Planning
28.24 million in 1941 (the last census before Independence) to 130.58 Consultant, 37-D,
million in the last census in 1998. In 1941 the urban population was 14.2 Mohammad Ali Society,
per cent, and in 1998 it comprised 32.5 per cent of the total population. Karachi – 75350, Pakistan;
e-mail: arifhasan@cyber.net.
Critics of the 1998 census, however, point out that the size of the urban pk; arifhasan37@gmail.com
population is much underestimated. This is because very often, the huge
informal settlements in the peri-urban areas of the cities are not part of 1. UNDP (2006), Human
the metropolitan areas and, as such, are not classed as urban. Moreover, Development Report
in 1981 the definition of urban was changed from a settlement with more 2006, Palgrave Macmillan,
Basingstoke, UK, and New York.
than 5,000 inhabitants and with urban characteristics to an area that had
an urban governance system. As a result, 1,483 settlements with more 2. According to the UNDP
Report 2006, debt servicing
than 5,000 inhabitants were not classed as urban in the 1981 census.(5) stands at 4.5 per cent of the
The number of such unclassified settlements has definitely increased in country’s GDP and military
the 1998 census. expenditure at 3.4 per cent of
GDP. See reference 1.
3. For instance, according
to the country’s Economic
II. THE GEOGRAPHIC SETTING AND ITS RELATION TO Survey 2006–07, there are 7.5
SOCIOLOGY AND MIGRATION million girls and 11.5 million
boys studying at all levels of
education in the rural areas,
Migration patterns in Pakistan are related to its geography. The country whereas there are 6.5 million
can be divided into four broad geographical areas: the northern high girls and 7.5 million boys
mountain region, the western highlands, the Indus plains and the eastern studying at all levels in the
urban areas, which points
deserts. Each of these divisions can be further sub-divided into smaller to major gender-related
geographical entities (Figure 1). differences. However, contrary
Three of the greatest mountain ranges in the world, the Karakoram, to common belief, only 4.6 per
cent of all students are enrolled
the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush, meet to form the northern high in madarassahs, or religious
mountain region of Pakistan. For the most part, the area is barren, seminaries. Similarly, female
sparsely populated and inaccessible. People from the region did not have literacy in the 15–24 age group
in urban Punjab is 71.16 per
a tradition of migration, except from areas which lay directly on the trade cent, whereas it is 40.13 per
routes. However, with the end of the old barter economy and the building cent in urban Balochistan. In
of communication networks, migration has increased over time, since the rural Punjab, female literacy
in this age group is 36.02 per
harsh climatic conditions prevent any cash-related productive activities cent, whereas in Balochistan
except for tourism. it is 10.51 per cent. There are
Most of the region west of the Indus River and south of the mountain also major differences in the
physical environment. See
region forms the western highlands of Pakistan which are, by and large, Government of Pakistan (2007),
arid, rocky and sparsely populated. In the small river valleys, fairly Pakistan Economic Survey
extensive agriculture and fruit farming is carried out. However, such areas 2006–07, Ministry of Finance,
form no more than 5 per cent of the land mass of the region. Islamabad, www.finance.gov.pk.

Agriculture in the western highlands is almost entirely rain fed, and 4. Hasan, M T (2002),
Governance and Poverty in
rainfall is erratic. In addition, there is immense pressure on productive Pakistan, Pakistan Institute
land. Communication systems are poor and almost no industries have of Development Economics,
been set up in these areas. All this creates the incentive to migrate, Islamabad; also Daily Dawn
(2002), “Call poverty by any
although little migration takes place from valleys that are cut off due to a name”, Karachi, 2 December.
lack of road infrastructure or where a strong feudal system exists. Almost 5. Ali, Reza (2002), “How urban
all migrants are manual labourers, working mostly in construction. is Pakistan?”, Economic and
The Indus plains are bound by the western highlands to the north Political Weekly Vol XXXVII, No
44/ 45, Delhi, www.epw.org.in.
and west, by the Indian frontier to the east and extend down to the Indus
delta in the south. They contain 77 per cent of Pakistan’s population and
almost all its major cities and industries. Income per capita and literacy
rates are higher here than in the rest of the country and communications

34
 M I G R AT I O N, S M A L L T O W N S A N D S O C I A L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N S I N PA K I S TA N

FIGURE 1
Pakistan: geographical regions and political divisions
SOURCE: Adapted from various maps in Hasan, Arif and Mansoor Raza (2009), Migration and Small Towns in
Pakistan, Rural–Urban Interactions and Livelihood Strategies Series, Working Paper 15, IIED, London, 134 pages.

are well developed. These conditions have led to the migration of skilled,
educated persons and entrepreneurs from the villages to the urban areas.
East of the lower Indus plains are the deserts of Nara and Thar in
Sindh and of Cholistan in the Punjab. These deserts extend east into
Indian Rajasthan. Until recently, there was no proper road infrastructure
in the region, hence urban settlements were almost non-existent and the
predominant Hindu caste system was a disincentive to migration. This
was because of the centuries-old control of the lower castes by the upper

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castes (who also decided on personal and property law issues of the lower
castes), barter as a means of exchange and the difficulty in social and
economic mobility.
Politically, Pakistan is a federation of four provinces (the North-
West Frontier Province (NWFP), the Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan), two
federally administered areas (the Tribal Areas and the Northern Areas),
the Federal Capital Territory (Islamabad) and federally administered
Kashmir (Azad Kashmir). All of Balochistan is in the western highlands,
as is a large part of the NWFP, which also includes some of the high
mountain region. Sindh and the Punjab comprise the Indus plains and
the eastern deserts, while the Northern Areas and Azad Kashmir are in
the high mountain region.
An analysis of census data clearly establishes the relationship between
migration and the geographical areas and the fact that the main migrant 6. According to 1998 census
destination is the larger cities of the Punjab and Sindh.(6) Migration to data, 10.8 million Pakistanis,
other countries was significant, amounting to 23.99 per cent of total or 8 per cent of the total
population, are migrants.
migrants. More than 63.7 per cent
Other patterns also emerge. Census figures clearly establish that of all migrants migrated to
migration has taken place from the deprived areas, where there is urban areas; 25 per cent of all
migrants moved to Karachi,
immense pressure on land and resources and where industrialization has Lahore and Rawalpindi, which
not taken place and communication systems are poor(7) However, in those are all large cities where job
areas where feudal institutions are strong, migration has been limited. opportunities are available;
13 per cent of all migrants
The largest migration has taken place from the NWFP to Karachi.
migrated to Karachi alone,
which is the centre for trade
and commerce. For details, see
III. MIGRATION TO PAKISTAN Gazdar, Haris (2003), “A review
of migration issues in Pakistan”,
Collective for Social Science
A fact that is often overlooked when discussing migration in Pakistan Resource, Karachi, June,
is that in the last century the country has received more migrants from 25 pages.
other countries than there have been emigrants leaving Pakistan. The 7. According to 1998 census
first major migration took place between 1872 and 1929, when the data, migrants from the Punjab
accounted for only 14.72 per
British developed perennial irrigation in the regions of central Punjab, cent of total migrants, although
which are now part of Pakistan. As a result, they colonized more than the Punjab accounts for 55.6
4.5 million hectares of desert and pastoral land for agricultural purposes. per cent of the total population
of Pakistan. Migrants from the
They imported peasants from eastern Punjab (now in India) to colonize NWFP accounted for 11.67 per
these lands and in the process marginalized the local pastoral population cent of total migrants, although
and completely changed the demography of a number of districts that it accounts for 13.4 per cent of
the total population of Pakistan.
constitute Pakistani Punjab.(8) For details, see reference 6,
Again, when the British Indian Empire was partitioned in 1947, 4.7 Gazdar (2003).
million Sikhs and Hindus left what is today Pakistan for India and 6.5 8. Ali, Imran (1989), The Punjab
million Muslims migrated from India to Pakistan.(9) According to the 1951 under Imperialism: 1885–1947,
Oxford University Press, Delhi,
census, 48 per cent of the urban population in Pakistan originated in 264 pages. Census figures
India and has migrated since August 1947.(10) show a population increase
The two migrations from India had a big impact on the sociology, of 18.29 per cent between
economics and politics of Pakistan. Before the colonizers arrived, and 1901 and 1911 in the rural
areas of Pakistan; this is
especially the refugees, clan and caste organizations were strong. Caste attributed to this first Punjabi
and professions were interrelated. With the coming of the refugees and migration. Increases in the two
the anarchy that followed, caste and clan organizations in the towns subsequent censuses were
7.68 per cent and 9.04 per cent.
where they settled became weak and ineffective almost overnight. An increase of 21.85 per cent in
Neighbourhoods vacated by migrating Hindus and Sikhs were occupied the urban population between
by Muslims and were no longer homogenous, either ethnically or caste- 1911 and 1921, compared to
4.32 per cent between 1901
wise.(11) The properties left behind by the Hindus and Sikhs were given to and 1911, is also thought to be
the refugees through a government-arranged settlement process. the result of the development

36
 M I G R AT I O N, S M A L L T O W N S A N D S O C I A L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N S I N PA K I S TA N
of mandi (market) towns that
emerged to handle and export
the agricultural surplus that
perennial irrigation made
possible.
9. Ara, Iffat and Arshad Zaman
(2002), “Asian urbanization in
the new millennium: Pakistan
chapter”, unpublished paper
written for an Asian Urban
Information Centre publication
for Kobe.
10. Worked out from
government of Pakistan
population census reports.
11. Hasan, Arif (2002), The
Unplanned Revolution:
Observations on the Process
of Socioeconomic Change in
Pakistan, City Press, Karachi,
269 pages; also Bajwa, Khalid
(2008), “Development conditions
of Androon Shehr: the walled
city of Lahore”, unpublished
PhD thesis, Catholic University
of Leuven, Belgium.
12. Author’s conversation
with Dr Sono Khangharani,
Director, Thardeep (Thar) Rural
Development Programme,
November 2007.
13. See reference 9.
14. According to census reports,
the average population increase
in Peshawar went from 1.9 per
cent a year between 1961 and
1972 to 9.2 per cent between
1972 and 1981, and fell to 3.3
per cent between 1981 and
1998. Similarly, the population
of Quetta increased at a rate of
7.2 per cent per year between
1972 and 1981, compared to
3.44 per cent between 1961
and 1972 and 4.04 per cent for
1981–1998.
15. Worked out from
government of Pakistan census
reports.
16. For details, see Rashid,
Ahmed (2000), Taliban Islam,
Oil and the New Great Game
in Central Asia, I B Tauris and
Co. Ltd., London and New York,
273 pages.
As a result of the 1947 migration, the inner cities of Sindh and the
Punjab, where most of the richer Hindus and Sikhs used to reside, were
taken over by poor refugee families. Densities increased within a few
months as a result of the sub-division of large homes, and the occupation
of open areas and land that belonged to the departing Sikhs and Hindus for
makeshift residential accommodation. Many of these squatter settlements
were regularized and many of them expanded where land was available,
and have increased in density over time. The comparative tolerance of
squatter colonies in Pakistan, compared to other Asian countries, is the
direct result of the migration from India.
Migration to Pakistan has also been a result of the three wars that
India and Pakistan have fought since 1947 (1948, 1965, 1971) and
numerous small-scale battles. The Kashmir war in 1948 resulted in the
expulsion of the Hindu and Sikh feudal and merchant classes and brought
about an end to serfdom in most of Pakistani Kashmir and the dominance
of an Islamic culture. Freedom from serfdom created social and economic
mobility and large-scale migration to Karachi.
During the 1965 war, Pakistan captured a large chunk of the Indian
Thar desert and in 1971 India captured a large part of the Pakistani Thar
desert. Pakistani Thar as a whole was dominated by the Hindu upper caste,
which controlled most of the productive land and livestock and strictly
enforced caste divisions, making upward social and economic mobility
almost impossible for the Hindu lower castes. Their control over the caste
system also ensured the maintenance of agriculture-related infrastructure
through baigar (forced labour) and the protection of forests and pasture
lands.
As a result of the 1965 and 1971 wars, the Hindu upper castes and
their retainers fled to India, and the feudal institutions that managed
agricultural production and the maintenance of infrastructure collapsed.
In addition, 3,500 Muslim families moved from Indian Thar to Pakistani
Thar and were provided with 42,000 acres of land, much of it near the
small urban centres of the desert.(12) Again, as a result of the Soviet invasion
of Afghanistan and the subsequent jihad and civil war, 3.7 million Afghan
refugees came to Pakistan.(13) This refugee influx caused an abnormal
increase in the growth rate of Peshawar, capital of the NWFP, and of
Quetta, capital of Balochistan, and has led to informal settlements being
established on both state and agricultural lands.(14) In addition, according
to the National Alien Registration Authority (NARA), 600,000 Afghans
have settled in Karachi.(15)
Most of the Afghan refugees were supporters of the war against
the Soviets, which was being fought by the Americans, the Pakistani
army and religious establishments in the Islamic world. As a result, the
Afghan migration led to a strengthening of the religious establishment in
Pakistan, which became the main support to the military government of
that time. The migration was accompanied by massive opium cultivation
and heroine manufacture, both in Afghanistan and in the border regions
of Pakistan. The finances generated were used to fund the war. Guns came
with the heroine trade and as a result, what the Pakistanis refer to as the
“heroine and Kalashnikov culture” consolidated itself in Pakistan,(16) with
disastrous results for democracy and for the younger generation in urban
areas.(17) The emergence of the drug and gun mafia also undermined the
administration of the state, as government employees, especially those
belonging to the law-enforcing agencies, collaborated with the mafia. The
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richer Afghans meanwhile established businesses, and today control a 17. According to the Pakistan
lot of the inter-city transport, investment in real estate and urban land Country Report (September
2002) of the United Nations
speculation and are major contractors of earthworks all over Pakistan. International Drug Control
They have a strong network and form an important pressure group that Programme (UNDCP, Vienna),
is interested in maintaining the anti-democracy political status quo in there are 1.5 million heroin
addicts in Pakistan. In 1979,
Pakistan. there were none. In addition,
There has also been large-scale migration of Bangladeshi and Burmese there are a further 1.5 million
labour, who work in the fishing industry and as crew members on trawlers chronic addicts who are on
drugs other than heroin.
and deep-sea going vessels in Karachi.(18) It is estimated that there are
18. Hasan, Arif (1993),
more than 300,000 Bengali and Burmese migrants in Karachi. About half
“Evaluation of the community
of them live in informal settlements on state land near the coast and they development work at Rehri”,
are protected from eviction by the middlemen in the fishing industry. unpublished report prepared
Others live in neighbouring katchi abadis.(19) Apart from the resentment for IUCN, Karachi, July, 72 pages.

from locals against migrant labour, who work for lower wages, a number 19. See reference 18.
of other issues have also surfaced. One relates to local body elections. It is
claimed that illegal immigrants have acquired Pakistani national identity
cards and, as such, vote in the elections, which distorts the electoral
process.(20) Investigations into the electoral results show that 14 “illegal” 20. Daily News (2007),
“Removal of NIC requirement
migrants from Bangladesh and Burma were elected as councillors in the will allow bogus votes”,
2005 local government elections in Karachi.(21) Karachi, 7 August.
The other serious issue that has surfaced is that Bengali and Burmese 21. Daily Times (2007), “14
women are trafficked to Karachi for purposes of prostitution. It is estimated illegal immigrants made it to
that 200,000 Bangladeshi women have been trafficked to Pakistan in the CDGK elections”, Lahore, 5
August.
last 10 years, and many of them have been sold to the slave trade for US$
1,500–2,500 each. At present, there are more than 2,000 Bangladeshi and
Burmese illegal migrant women in prison and in shelters in Karachi.(22) 22. CATW, “Asia Pacific –
trafficking in women and
prostitution”, Coalition
Against Trafficking in Women-
IV. RURAL–URBAN MIGRATION International (CATW), http://
www.catwinternational.org/
Rural–urban migration is a continuing phenomenon. Although it about/index.php.
has declined in percentage terms, in number terms it has increased 23. Between 1951 and 1961,
44.8 per cent of urban growth
substantially.(23) According to the 1998 census, 43 per cent of all lifetime was due to natural increase
migrants said that they had moved with the household head; 17 per (4.48 per cent per year average)
cent because of marriage; 12 per cent for employment and 9 per cent for and 40.1 per cent (4 per cent
per year average) was due to
business.(24) On this basis, researchers conclude that most people migrate internal migration. This declined
for family reasons, whereas the real reason for their movement relates to during 1981–1998, where natural
why the family “head” moved. increase accounted for 74.2
per cent of urban growth (4.36
Migration from India and then the Green Revolution technologies per cent per year average) and
of the 1960s transformed subsistence agriculture into a capital intensive internal migration to 20.1 per cent
system and generated a demand for cash that the village economy (1.8 per cent per year average).
(Worked out from government of
simply could not generate for the poorer sections of the population. Pakistan census reports.)
Industrialization in the urban areas also created demand for unskilled 24. For details, see reference 6,
labour and for the skills that the artisan castes possessed. This was the Gazdar (2003).
beginning of the rural–urban migration process. Another reason for
migration is that agricultural production has become far too expensive
and small landowners are forced to do manual labour on a daily wage
basis in order to generate enough cash; urban areas offer better working
conditions and more money on a daily wage basis. Yet another reason is 25. Hasan, Arif and Mansoor
Raza (2009), Migration and
increased pressure on land due to population growth.(25) Small Towns in Pakistan,
Following the initial migration, other reasons for migration also Rural–Urban Interactions and
emerged. Interviews suggest that migrants experienced the freedom of Livelihood Strategies Series,
Working Paper 15, IIED, London,
the urban areas and wanted to free their children from the oppression of 134 pages.

38
 M I G R AT I O N, S M A L L T O W N S A N D S O C I A L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N S I N PA K I S TA N
26. Families from the village of
Kunda migrated to the city of
Rawalpindi in the 1960s and
settled informally on land that,
at the time, was on the city
fringe but now is within the city.
Ownership was regularized and
now each plot on which the
houses are built is worth Rs 1.5
million or more. By selling this
property, owners can purchase
10 to 15 acres of good
agricultural land around Kunda.
Six families have done this and
many others are preparing for
it. Details are available from
the Urban Resource Centre,
Rawalpindi.
27. About 60 poor “low caste”
Hindu families from the village
of Ronia migrated en masse
to the town of Mithi, about 10
kilometres from the village.
The reasons for migrating
that were given to the IIED
report researchers were for
the education of girls, freedom
from feudal oppression, and
more lucrative employment
in business and commerce-
related jobs. For details see
reference 25.
28. For details, see reference
11, Hasan (2002).
29. Interviews undertaken for
the IIED report at Goth Lunya
near Mithi. See reference 25.
feudal controls. Some have even gone back to their villages and purchased
land and property (from their former oppressors) with money earned
in the urban areas.(26) Still later, migrants wanted their children to be
educated. It is interesting to note that one of the main reasons given for
migrating to the urban areas, and from smaller towns to larger towns,
was for the education of children, especially girls (as institutions for
girls’ higher education did not exist in rural areas), even among peasants
and the working classes. Migration has also taken place as a result of
competition between families, clan members and neighbours. They saw
the benefits that migration provided and did not want to be left behind.
All interviews for the IIED report and the author’s previous work
suggest that the vast majority of migrants are helped to establish
themselves in the urban areas by relatives and friends. Most migrants do
not bring their families over until they are properly settled, which means
having a permanent job and a house in an informal settlement. The mass
migration of entire clans and extended families also takes place when
an end to feudal oppression or a better socioeconomic environment is
sought.(27)
The physical impacts of migration are visible in both rural and urban
areas. In all urban areas where populations are increasing, the result has
been the creation of un-serviced or under-serviced informal settlements
both within and on the periphery of the urban areas or along the corridors
that exit the cities and towns. In rural areas, families whose members have
migrated have improved their homes or have built new ones in urban
styles. Interviews in small towns reveal that whoever gets an education or
saves enough money in business migrates to the bigger cities where there
are better jobs, lifestyles and business opportunities. Family members
who leave the small towns for educational purposes seldom come back
and settle there. As a result, small towns lose their political importance.
However, the social impacts on rural society have been the most
important result of migration. Migration has helped break up the old
caste system in the rural areas, and all interviews for the IIED report
suggest that fewer people are involved in the kind of work undertaken by
the old artisanal castes in the rural areas; this kind of work is not required
as goods produced by this work have been replaced by industrially
produced ones from the cities. Even village entertainers have migrated
to the city, and rural social festivities are becoming increasingly urban
in nature.(28) At the household level, earthenware utensils are being
replaced by crockery and metal ware, bought with remittances from the
urban areas. Clothes have also become more urban in nature and it is
now impossible to distinguish a rural male from an urban one from the
way he dresses. Women’s clothing is also undergoing change, and in the
rural areas of the Indus plains, this has already taken place. Dowry, which
previously used to consist of clothes made by the village artisans is now
usually of industrial manufactured textiles.(29)
The IIED report interviews also indicate that although the merchant
classes in the smaller urban centres have become financially powerful
and well educated, they do not have any political power, which rests
firmly with the big feudal families created by the British or the pre-British
families related to religious shrines. As a result, the merchant classes in
the changed socioeconomic environment feel discriminated against and
prefer to make investments in the larger towns where there is a more
democratic and egalitarian culture and society. This is especially true of
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small towns that do not lie on the main road networks and, as such, these
towns are losing their economic and political importance.

V. EMIGRATION
People from Mirpur in Pakistani Kashmir started to work as industrial
labour in Bradford and Birmingham well before Independence. However,
this emigration was very small and was limited to a few hundred persons.
In the 1950s and 1960s the number increased substantially, because
parts of Mirpur town and its surrounding areas were converted into a
huge water reservoir as a result of a mega irrigation project. As the UK
government was one of the international guarantors for the project, it 30. See reference 6, Gazdar
granted emigrant status to those who were affected.(30) A few enterprising (2003).
young men from the Gujarat district of the Punjab also left and settled in
Norway at the time, and since then have been helping their friends and
relatives migrate to Norway. This was the beginning of emigration to the
European Continent. As a result, there are more than 27,000 Pakistanis,
almost all from Gujarat, residing in Norway today.(31) 31. Arif Hasan’s conversations
with Pakistani emigrants in
Large-scale migration, however, only began in the 1970s, as a result Norway (1998); also
of the building boom in the Middle East. This emigration has had its ups see “Pakistani diaspora”,
and downs related to the changing geo-political situation in the Middle Wikipedia – the Free
Encyclopaedia, www.
East, the oil glut and the reduction in oil prices, all of which have had an wikepedia.org, accessed
adverse effect on emigration;(32) 9/11 also had an impact and emigration January 2008.
to the USA registered a fall. Remittances to Pakistan through informal 32. For example, during the
means decreased and the government made an effort to make remittances 1990 Iraq war, officially 44,500
Pakistani emigrants were
through formal means easier and more attractive. While emigration of forced to leave Iraq. Unofficially,
Pakistani workers to Europe and the USA became more difficult, demand this figure is well over 100,000.
for Pakistani workers in Korea and Malaysia increased, and in 2006 formal Similarly, after sanctions were
agreements were made between the government of Pakistan and these applied to Libya, emigration to
that country also declined, and
countries to promote this emigration.(33) in 2002 only 0.52 per cent of
The causes of emigration are the same as for internal migration, and the Pakistani emigrants made Libya
areas with the highest ratio of emigration are also the same. However, there their destination.
is considerable evidence to suggest that working-class persons emigrating 33. Syed, Razi (2007), “Private
agencies allowed to send
abroad are not the poorest of the poor but those who have skills and manpower to Korea”, Daily
higher levels of education. This is because you need considerable funds in Times, Karachi, 18 August.
order to emigrate, also information regarding employment opportunities 34. Azam, Farooq (2005),
abroad and knowledge of recruiting agencies and emigration networks.(34) “Public policies to support
international migration in
Young educated Pakistanis from both the middle and working classes also Pakistan and the Philippines”,
wish to emigrate for social and economic reasons.(35) Conference on New Frontiers
There has also been considerable demand for Pakistani doctors and of Social Policy; Development
paramedics in the UK and the USA. The governments of these countries in a Globalizing World, 12–15
December, Arusha, Tanzania.
have encouraged this emigration and jobs can easily be secured there.
35. For details, see Hasan, Arif
More recently, IT professionals have been accommodated in a similar (2007), “Changes in values,
manner.(36) Members of minority communities (belonging almost entirely lifestyles”, Daily Dawn, Karachi,
to unorthodox Muslim sects) also emigrated during the rise of political 24 September.
Islam in Pakistan, which was the result of the Afghan conflict. Many of 36. 4,359 (5 per cent) of all
physicians trained in Pakistan
the emigrants were given political asylum in European countries. in 2001 migrated in 2002. For
The official number of Pakistani emigrants is about 3.83 million. details, see reference 34.
However, it is generally believed that officially recorded emigration represents
about 50 per cent of the real figure. For instance, the official figure for
Pakistanis in the USA is 200,000, yet unofficial estimates put this figure 37. See reference 31, Wikipedia.
at 700,000.(37)
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 M I G R AT I O N, S M A L L T O W N S A N D S O C I A L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N S I N PA K I S TA N
38. See reference 33.
39. Iqbal, Zafar and Abdus
Sattar (2005), “The contribution
of workers’ remittances
to economic growth in
Pakistan”, Pakistan Institute
of Development Economics,
Islamabad.
40. See reference 3,
Government of Pakistan (2007).
41. Based on interviews for the
IIED report. See reference 25.
42. Conversations between the
author and Dr Haroon Ahmed,
President, Pakistan Mental
Health Association, Karachi,
May 2007.
The majority of Pakistanis have emigrated to Saudi Arabia (60.96 per
cent), followed by the UAE (28.13 per cent), other Islamic countries (9.45
per cent) and only 1.47 per cent to Europe and non-Muslim countries in
Asia. The reasons for the destinations are obvious. There is a demand for
labour and professionals and the people of Pakistan have strong religious
and cultural bonds with these countries. In addition, they are well received
and often develop personal and family friendships with the locals.
Emigration to Europe has also increased, but as it is mostly through
illegal means, via North Africa and Turkey, it is not possible to estimate
its scale accurately. However, official figures for emigration to Korea
and Malaysia are available and it is estimated that 28,000 Pakistanis are
working there.(38) Unofficial recruiting agents claim that there is a big
demand for Pakistani labour in Japan, Korea and Malaysia for unskilled
jobs that residents of these countries are no longer willing to do.
Workers’ remittances have played an important part in Pakistan’s real
GDP growth. In years when remittances were low, such as 1999 (1.7 per
cent of GDP), real GDP growth was also low (3.9 per cent). When they
were high, such as in 2002–2003 (6.7 per cent of GDP), real GDP growth
was also high (5.1 per cent). Quantitative evidence thus shows that real
GDP growth is positively related to workers’ remittances, which are the
third most important source of capital for economic growth in Pakistan.
This means that in the absence of workers’ remittances, the exchange
rate and monetary and fiscal policies would come under great pressure.(39)
There has been a sharp increase in remittances from the USA since 9/11.
This is because of the US crackdown on informal processes of remittances,
an easing of formal processes of transfer by the Pakistan government,
and because Pakistanis in the US were afraid that as a result of American
paranoia, their money was unsafe in the USA.(40)
Returning migrants interviewed for the IIED report have indicated that
they have not really benefited economically from emigration. However,
it has changed their manner of thinking. They have either become
more liberal or they have become more religious. However, in all cases,
emigrants indicated a major change in their attitude towards education
and a desire for an improvement in their physical environment. This
change, through them, has affected their families and some community
members. They are seen as role models back home, and because of them
some family and community members wish to emigrate. However, all
of them indicated that they had suffered from bouts of loneliness and
depression while abroad. Was it worth it? The majority were not sure.
Another issue that emerged from the interviews carried out for the
IIED report is that extended families tended to break up as a result of
emigration and/or migration of family members. One reason for this
is that money is sent to an elder brother or an uncle, who dishonestly
appropriates it, and this is why, increasingly, money is now sent to the
wife or the mother. Again, this adversely affects the structure of the
extended family and creates jealousies and gossip.(41)
Emigration of family members has a major impact on the lives of
women in both rural and urban areas. In the absence of her husband,
the wife assumes responsibility for many day-to-day business transactions
that are considered the work of men. This changes the women’s social
lives and, in the more conservative societies in the NWFP, they are often
censured for breaking social and cultural taboos. Being without a husband
for long periods is more often than not a cause for depression.(42)
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E N V I R O N M E N T & U R B A N I Z AT I O N Vol 22 No 1 April 2010

VI. THE IMPACTS OF MIGRATION ON THREE SMALL TOWNS

Major changes in the distribution of Pakistan’s urban population have
taken place since Independence. In 1951, 45.1 per cent of Pakistanis lived
in 198 cities with populations of less than 50,000, while 17.7 per cent of
Pakistanis lived in cities with more than one million inhabitants (of which
there was only one). In 1998, 49.7 per cent of Pakistanis lived in million-
plus cities (of which there are now six) and only 27.7 per cent Pakistanis
lived in 418 cities with 50,000 people or less. As a result, the political
43. See reference 25.
and economic power of the smaller cities is on the decline. Research in
three small towns describes this process.(43) The towns are Mithi in the
Tharparkar district of southern Sindh, Uch in the Bahawalpur district
of southern Punjab and Chiniot in the Jhang district of central Punjab.
These towns were chosen because they are very different from each other.
A description of each and the findings relating to them are summarized
in the sub-sections below.

a. Mithi
Although Mithi was established as a settlement some 500 years ago, its
population in 1998 was only 19,524. However, today it has a population
44. Estimate given by Dr Sono
of more than 50,000.(44) The reason for this increase is that in 1992, Khanghrani, Director, Thardeep
Mithi was declared the headquarters of the newly created desert district (Thar) Rural Development
of Tharparkar. This was as a result of pressure from its politicians, who Programme in November 2007.
justified such the move on the basis of an increase in population and
on the difficulties of travelling to Mirpurkhas, the district headquarters
before Tharparkar district was created. Mithi’s population also increased
because of road building projects, which have linked the town with the
other desert settlements and the irrigated areas of the Indus plains. As a
result, jobs have been created and a large number of businesses and desert
tourism have developed.
Because of the wars with India, as a result of which large areas of
Tharparkar were occupied by Pakistan in 1965 and by India in 1971, the
old Hindu-dominated caste and feudal system collapsed, with the result
that the artisanal castes were freed from serfdom. Since they, unlike
the peasants and herdsmen, possessed skills that were required by the
urban economy, many of them became economically well-off and have
subsequently become doctors, lawyers and NGO activists who are involved
in the political and development affairs of Mithi. The breakdown of the
old feudal system has also meant that families are now free to migrate to
Mithi from the rural areas. Recurring drought (the result of the collapse
of the old feudal system of resource management) has caused famine, and
rural families are heavily indebted; jobs in the urban areas are a way of
repaying debts. Migration to Mithi has also been triggered by the desire
of rural families (now freed from serfdom), especially the artisanal castes,
to educate their children and have better civic facilities, particularly for
the education of girls, which are not available in rural areas. There have
been instances where entire clans have migrated en masse to Mithi for 45. See reference 27.
these reasons.(45)
Migration has also been facilitated by the fact that considerable
amounts of land around Mithi are controlled by the state. This makes it
easy for migrants to negotiate with government officials to occupy land for

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 M I G R AT I O N, S M A L L T O W N S A N D S O C I A L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N S I N PA K I S TA N
46. Author’s interview with
Dr Khatao Mall in Mithi,
November 2007.
47. Author’s conversation
with Dr Sono Khanghrani,
Director Thardeep (Thar) Rural
Development Programme in
November 2007.
48. Interviews at Goth Lunya
near Mithi for the IIED report.
See reference 25.
the creation of informal settlements. The migrants feel that if they make
sufficient investments in building their homes and in acquiring utilities
(such as electricity), it will be difficult for the state to evict them. They cite
numerous examples of where this has happened both in Tharparkar and
in other towns in Sindh. State control of land has also made it possible for
bureaucrats and elected representatives to allocate land for different civic
functions without going through the long, difficult and legal process of land
acquisition. In this instance, Mithi is luckier than many other small towns.
Before decentralization and devolution in 2003, the Mithi merchants
and the newly created professionals and NGO representatives had a good
working relationship with the local government bureaucracy. However,
after devolution, the elected representatives became more powerful and
the involvement of “civil society” in the affairs of Mithi declined. Also,
many positive decisions were taken by the provincial bureaucracy, and
state land in key locations was allocated for important civic facilities. In
some cases, after decentralization and devolution, elected representatives
shifted the allocation to less valuable sites and sold the old allocations to
their families and supporters at throw-away prices.
Families and individuals have migrated from Mithi to Karachi and
other Sindh cities. This migration caters to the demand created by the
building of roads, petrol and compressed natural gas (CNG) stations,
and small tea shops and utility stores that have sprung up to serve the
newly created transport sector. A large number of Tharis (inhabitants
of Tharparkar) are also working as tailors in the garment industry in
Karachi and as domestic servants in the larger Sindh cities. In addition,
people send their children to Karachi and other Sindh towns for higher
education. An increasing number of educated Tharis are now working in
the NGO sector in Pakistan.
Because of the trends mentioned above, there has been a major social
revolution in Tharparkar. People of different castes now eat together in
violation of Hindu religious requirements and local Muslim tradition.
Kohli (an aboriginal caste and hence untouchable) girls now work in
the homes of the upper castes.(46) Money from the larger cities has not
been invested productively. Most of it has been used for building or
improving houses and creating shopping “plazas”, whereas previously
only neighbourhood shops existed.(47) In the rural areas agriculture has
declined, and too much remittance money has been spent on building
urban style homes and acquiring crockery and gadgetry, especially
mobile phones and motorbikes, which are fast replacing camels and
donkeys. Families who do not receive remittances are the “new” poor.
They are increasingly being employed to work the land for the newly
rich who, because of remittance money, have lost interest in agriculture
and herding. Dress and food has also changed and is becoming similar to
that in urban areas. As one Thari put it: “Before, we ate what we produced;
now, we sell what we produce and buy what we eat.” Traditional festivities
such as music, dance and weddings and religious celebrations have also
undergone a change and have acquired urban characteristics.(48) What is
happening in Tharparkar is a major social revolution, and Mithi, as the
district headquarters, has become the centre of it. The major reasons for
this revolution are the demise of an important section of the traditional
rural elite, Mithi’s proximity to Karachi, a change from barter to a cash
economy, and remittance money, all resulting in an expansion of trade,
commerce, education and comparative political and social freedom.
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b. Uch
Uch is a small town in Bahawalpur district in southern Punjab. According
to tradition and some scholars, the town existed at the time of Alexander’s 49. Elliot, H M (1985), The
invasion of the Punjab.(49) By the twelfth century, the city had become History of Sindh as told by its
own Historians, Allied Book
one of the most important cultural and religious centres of the Islamic Company, Karachi (reprint of an
world and attracted Sufi scholars and thinkers to its seminaries. 1849 manuscript), 541 pages.
The town is divided into two main quarters. The oldest quarter is
Uch Bokhari, named after Hazrat Syed Jalaluddin Bokhari, a Sufi saint
of the thirteenth century, and this is where his shrine is located and his
descendents are its keepers. The other quarter is known as Uch Jilani,
after another important Sufi saint who taught in Uch in the fifteenth
century. His descendents are also the keepers of his shrine. The town still
commands great reverence from Muslims in South Asia who believe in
Sufiism. As such, it is visited by pilgrims and for festivities related to the
saints’ birthdays by people from all over Pakistan and also from India.
The descendents of the two pirs (saints), Bokhari and Jilani, have
dominated the political and spiritual life of the town and the adjoining areas.
The shrines bring them considerable income and they own large agricultural
estates on the outskirts of the town. Before land settlement was carried out
by the British in the 1850s, all land in and around Uch belonged to the state,
and the important religious and political families were given the right to farm
the revenues of state lands with the help of the state bureaucracy. However,
the right to farm revenues could be revoked at any time by the state and
was subject to constant review. British land settlement and colonization did
away with this system and created hereditary landowners consisting for the
most part of large estates to the old elite and smaller holdings for peasant
proprietors. Land was not given to the artisanal and lower castes or to
castes that were traditionally “hired” by the peasants to work in agricultural
production. This was because the British wanted to maintain the status quo
in social terms and prevent the possibility of upward mobility in the lower
castes. However, the important religious and political families were granted
large estates and the Bokhari and Jilani families were the beneficiaries of these
grants. As a result of the settlement, land acquired a value since it became a
sellable commodity. The traditional division of Uch into Bokhari Uch and
Jilani Uch was also formalized and considerable land and properties within
the town became the property of these two pirs. Uch after the settlement was,
as such, governed by an understanding between these two powerful families
and the British bureaucracy represented by the District Commissioner. After
Independence, the system remained in place until the decentralization plan
of 2003.
In the 1960s, Green Revolution technologies were introduced to the
Punjab. As a result, middlemen pushing loans, fertilizer and pesticide
agencies, tractors, mechanized transport and tube wells came into
existence. The traditional merchant classes (Shaikhs) benefited as a result,
since they became agents and financiers to the smaller producers in the
rural areas. They established businesses in Uch that required extension
agents, mechanics, vehicle drivers, links with the larger cities from where
supplies of the Green Revolution technologies originated and accountants.
As a result, an increasing number of people from the rural areas, mainly
from the merchant and artisanal castes, migrated to Uch. The increasing
affluence of the Shaikhs encouraged them to send their children to school
and into higher education.

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The 1960s and 1970s also saw the development of new road networks
and the establishment of industry in neighbouring Multan. This created a
demand for skilled and unskilled labour and a number of artisans migrated
from Uch. They invested their earnings in improving their homes in Uch
and in the process destroyed some of the town’s most beautiful residential
architecture. Migration of artisans from the rural areas was also the result
of the introduction of industrially produced agricultural implements,
textiles, shoes and utensils. Goldsmiths, who had been present in all rural
areas and in Uch, also migrated to other cities. This is because traditionally,
gold jewellery had been a form of savings and was pawned for loans in
times of need and for agriculture. In the 1970s, bank loans and bonds
replaced this ancient system.
Because of the proximity of larger and better serviced towns on
the main communication networks, Uch has been left behind. The city
had a tradition of learning, and in the past many of its families became
important federal and provincial government functionaries in the larger
cities. This tradition has continued but now the younger generation does
not return to Uch. The general complaint is that anyone who acquires an
education or a job in the larger cities abandons Uch, as it does not have
the facilities or the lifestyle that the younger generation requires.
The merchant communities have become increasingly affluent as a
result of education (which has given the younger generation lucrative
jobs in other cities) and because of an expansion in the cultivation and
production of cotton around Uch. However, they have not been able to
wrest political power from the old elite, and this has been an additional
disincentive for them to develop social and community facilities in the
town. A number have emigrated to France, Australia, Saudi Arabia and
the UAE, and education and better financial options are the reasons why
the business classes migrate. There has also been large-scale migration of
artisans to the UAE, to work in the building industry as electricians and
masons. According to rough estimates, about 5 per cent of families in Uch
have family members working abroad.
Local remittances have been used to improve homes and acquire
household gadgetry, furniture and crockery. Foreign remittances have
been invested in building lavish new homes on the housing estates being
developed by the pirs on their land adjacent to the city. According to
estate agents, more than 40 per cent of the plots in these housing estates
have been purchased by remittances from abroad. However, interviews
suggest that an even larger investment has been made in real estate by
Uch emigrants in the larger Punjabi cities and in the provincial capital.
What has emerged from conversations with various Uch residents is that
migrants within Pakistan normally do not save enough to make such
investments but some international emigrants do. These investments are
also made by people who are not emigrants but who are involved in the
lucrative fertilizer and pesticide business, or by middlemen engaged in
financing the agriculture of the cotton crop, its storage, transportation
and sale.
The land issue is important to the future of Uch. Since land around the
city is owned by the influential families, badly needed civic facilities can
only be acquired if they donate that land. A land use and structural plan
prepared for the city by the NGO Conservation and Rehabilitation Centre
(CRC) can only be implemented if land is either donated or is acquired
through the land acquisition act. As the two influential families are the

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local government representatives of Uch, they are unlikely to go ahead

with any land acquisition process. In the absence of a rational land use
plan that has legal authority, the town continues to expand haphazardly,
and consists mostly of real estate developments catering to the better-off
residents (many of whom receive remittances from abroad) and informal
settlements on unproductive land.
The Uch situation indicates that as a result of the migration of the
better-educated citizens, the control over land and local government by
the influential families, and the proximity of economically better off
towns on the main communication networks close to Uch, the town
does not have much of a future. However, the CRC feels that if Uch’s
monuments and its status as an ancient town can be rehabilitated, along
with the proper organization of the religious festivals associated with its
shrines, it could become a major tourist attraction.

c. Chiniot
Chiniot is one of the oldest towns in the Punjab. It is located on the
banks of the Chenab, the second largest river of Pakistan and is famous
for the folk romances of Sohni-Mahiwal and Heer-Ranjha. The town has
a continuous recorded history since the Sanskrit epic Mahabharta was
penned in 800 BC.
The town is famous for its wood carving, ornate masonry and brass
work and it is recorded that the artisans of Chiniot were employed in the
building of the Taj Mahal. Today, it is the second largest town in the Jhang
district, with a population of 169,282 according to the 1998 census.
Most of the agricultural area around the town was developed as a
result of the canal colonies established by the British. Before the British,
the land situation was similar to that in Uch. Today, the area consists for
the most part of peasant holdings and small farmers. Due to the absence
of influential families, unlike in Uch, there are fewer caste barriers and
greater social mobility than in Uch and its surroundings. However, there
are powerful landlords who were established as a result of land grants
from the British, and these consist of the traditional religious elite, the
Syeds (descendents of the Prophet) and the Qazis (descendents of the
doctors of Islamic law).
Because of its history and location, Chiniot has always had a very
affluent merchant class of Muslim Shaikhs and Hindu Banyias, born
out of centuries of trade and commerce, especially related to the timber
business. Today, the Shaikhs dominate the textile industry in Pakistan,
but their mills are in Karachi and Faisalabad, where better infrastructure
and investment policies are available and where they are free of the
domination of the Syeds and Qazis. In these cities, they dominate the
chambers of commerce and industry, and the Shaikhs of Chiniot are
among the richest families in Pakistan.
The masons and carpenters belong to the traditional artisanal castes.
Traditionally, their profession was hereditary but today, through an
apprentice system, people from other castes are also becoming carpenters
and masons. However, the businesses and investments related to these
trades are controlled by the Shaikhs. It is estimated that there are more
than 100 workshops in Chiniot producing furniture and carved doors for
the elite of Pakistan; they also receive orders from Europe, the Middle

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 M I G R AT I O N, S M A L L T O W N S A N D S O C I A L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N S I N PA K I S TA N
50. Information provided by
real estate agents in November
2007.
East, Japan and the USA and participate in international exhibitions. As
a result, there are a number of foreign banks and insurance companies in
the town.
Various industries are being established on the outskirts of Chiniot,
mostly small and medium-sized agro-industries. Bigger industries are being
established by the Shaikhs in the larger cities of Pakistan. Labour for the
new industries in Chiniot is being imported from the northern districts
of the Punjab or from the NWFP, because the industrialists fear that local
labour will organize trade unionism and will press for the imposition of
the minimum wage. Most of the labour is male and in the slack season
they return home for a few months. Almost all are accommodated in
makeshift huts within the factory premises or in the immediate vicinity,
either on privately owned land that is informally rented for this purpose
by the factory owners, or on land that belongs to them. As such, there is
no question of security of tenure for these makeshift homes.
The Middle East construction boom in the 1970s led to a big demand
for carpenters and masons in the UAE, and later in Saudi Arabia. Chiniot
artisans migrated to these countries in large numbers and, as a result,
lifestyles changed and an affluent class of artisans was created, leading to
the setting up of shops and workshops in Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore.
In the interviews, the major reason given for migrating to Chiniot
from the rural areas and the small towns was to learn carpentry and
masonry skills or to work as labour in the building industry. The other
reason was for the education of children. This is very similar to the
situation in Uch. The biggest problem people face is that since there is no
government land, it is difficult to form katchi abadis where they can live.
As a result, densification of the existing low-income formal settlements
and katchi abadis is taking place and rental accommodation is very much
in demand. The rental costs for two rooms can be as high as Rs 2,000 (US$
30) per month, or 40 per cent of normal monthly earnings, and often
this accommodation is shared by eight or more persons.(50) Meanwhile,
changes are taking place in the inner city, with its beautiful traditional
architecture. Since the old timber market and the workshops are located
in the inner city, they are expanding there, and as a result, the affluent
residents of the inner city are moving out to the new housing estates in
the suburbs, and their homes are being taken over by workshops and as
storage for timber and furniture.
The major reason given for migration and emigration from Chiniot
is the demand for carpenters in the Middle East, Karachi, Lahore and
Islamabad. Also, since large orders are being received from these larger
cities of Pakistan, Chiniot entrepreneurs have established workshops and
showrooms there, employing Chiniot artisans, many of whom have taken
their families with them.
Artisans who migrated have invested their savings in the purchase
of mechanized tools for their workshops. This has improved their
production capacity and capability but it has created problems for those
artisans who do not have mechanized tools. In the 100-plus workshops
in Chiniot, more than 2,000 artisans are employed, but this does not
include unskilled labour or those working in transport-related activities.
It is generally agreed that the demand for furniture and wood carving is
not being adequately met.
A number of housing schemes are being built on the outskirts of
Chiniot as joint ventures between developers and the owners of agricultural
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land. The developers for the most part are from the old merchant or
artisanal castes and are skilled in measuring land, entrepreneurship and
“public dealing”, compared to the agriculturalists who do not have these
skills. Many of these housing schemes have not been approved by local 51. For details, see Alimuddin,
government and, as such, are informal in nature.(51) The middle classes Salim, Arif Hasan and Asiya
and the wealthier artisans are investing in them, and real estate agents Sadiq (2001), Community-
driven Water and Sanitation:
claim that a sizeable number of plots are being purchased by remittance the Work of the Anjuman
money. The new schemes are not homogenous by clan, caste or ethnicity, Samaji Behbood and the Larger
unlike the old traditional neighbourhoods in Chiniot, since allocation is Faisalabad Context, Pakistan,
Poverty Reduction in Urban
primarily of a commercial nature. Meanwhile, the process of migration in
Areas Series, Working Paper 7,
Chiniot is through family, friends and agents. It is well organized, as the IIED, London, 88 pages.
process and systems related to it are understood and the links with the
Middle East and with the larger cities of Pakistan are well established as a
result of long association.
The political leadership, which consists of the Member National
Assembly (MNA), the Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) and the district
nazim, comes from the powerful traditional elite. All of them, however,
live in Lahore, along with their families. They are landlords and, as such,
it is claimed that they are against the business community.

VII. CONCLUSIONS
A number of broad migration- and emigration-related conclusions regard-
ing the economy (macro and micro), social change (both in rural and urban
areas), governance and the larger political and physical environment can
be drawn from this paper.
First, remittances from abroad have had a positive impact on
Pakistan’s economy. Without these remittances, the exchange rate and
monetary and fiscal policies would come under great pressure. However,
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 educational opportunities. In places
such as Chiniot, where skills and entrepreneurship already exist, remit-
tances have been used as tools for business purposes, but in the less
developed areas of Pakistan, from where most emigration has taken place,
this is not the case. 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.
However, remittances from within Pakistan have been used mainly
for improving the lifestyles and houses of the migrants. There has been
no investment in the social sectors as a result of the remittances but these,
and the connections that the migrants make in the urban areas, help in
times of crisis such as floods, earthquakes and droughts. In addition, these
remittances have reduced the importance of and interest in agriculture
and have created a new underclass of agricultural landless labour that
now works as tenants on the migrants’ farms.
Second, emigration and migration have promoted education, more
liberal values, the emancipation of women and the promotion of NGO
activities. At the same time, they have led to the break up of the extended
family and of clan institutions, have promoted a divide between the
rich and the poor at the local level and have created an immense desire
in the population to go abroad, since migrants and their families have

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become role models for the rest of society. There are also indications that
the children of migrants “tend to be spoilt and arrogant”. It is generally
agreed that remittance money is not saved and it is seldom invested in
any productive enterprise, with the result that when migrants return, the
living standards of the family often go down. In addition, emigration
is more often than not accompanied by loneliness and depression, both
of the emigrants and their wives, who are left behind in Pakistan.
Also, when emigration is undertaken illegally, the emigrant’s family is
constantly concerned about his safety, as there is no news for long periods
of time. Very often, huge sums of money are paid to informal agents to
arrange emigration illegally and there is always an element of risk of fraud
involved.
Third, due to in-migration from the rural areas, under-serviced
informal settlements are developing in the small towns. Where these
settlements are on state land, there is hope for their regularization. In
towns where there is no state land, densification of katchi abadis and
the inner cities is taking place and causing environmental degradation
and social fragmentation. Informal settlements on private land are also
developing in these towns but there is no likelihood of their regularization.
As such, their residents are not interested in improving their homes and
services. Local government in towns that have state land can also plan
their development and expansion; however, towns that do not have state
land have to go through the long process of land acquisition, which is not
supported by the powerful landowning political families.
Fourth, as a result of better education and better lifestyles, the younger
generation of families whose members have migrated or emigrated
want to live in the larger cities because of the better physical and social
environments. As a result, the areas from where they move lose political
power, future civil society leadership and professionals.
Fifth, in spite of a change of values and the emergence of an
economically more powerful business community in the small towns,
political power rests firmly with the traditional landowning elites. The
maintaining of this power has been helped considerably by decentral-
ization and the devolution of governance systems. This is because the
elected local government representatives now have complete control
over the bureaucracy, and a majority of the nazims (mayors) of the small
towns belong to powerful landowning families. Devolution has also
created more unequal development because the elected leaders, unlike
the bureaucrats that they have replaced, give preference to development
in those areas that have supported them in the election process, or are
inhabited by populations who belong to their clan or political party.
Finally, a number of issues need to be addressed regarding the
processes and repercussions of migration. Corruption by agents needs to
be controlled and the costs of migration need to be reduced. Trafficking
and the processes leading to bonded labour need to be controlled and
the problems associated with illegal migration, which result in deaths
and exploitation, require efforts both by the countries from where the
migrants originate and the host countries. Much more needs to be done
to open up avenues for productive investment of remittances and for the
protection of the human rights of migrants in the countries to which
they migrate. However, the most important question is “Is migration
and especially emigration worth it?” There is no definite answer to this
question.

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