Districts of Pakistan explained

Districts of Pakistan
Map:	Blank Districts of Pakistan.svg
Category:	Third-level administrative division
Territory:	Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Current Number:	166
Number Date:	2024
Population Range:	Greatest: Lahore, Punjab — 11,126,285 (2017)^[1] Least: Awaran, Balochistan — 121,660 (2017)
Area Range:	Largest: Chagai, Balochistan — 44748km2 Smallest: Nazimabad (Karachi Central), Sindh — 69km2
Government:	District government
Subdivision:	Tehsils Union councils

The districts of Pakistan (Urdu: {{nq|اِضلاعِ پاكِستان) are the third-level administrative divisions of Pakistan, below provinces and divisions, but forming the first-tier of local government. In total, there are 166 districts in Pakistan, including the Capital Territory, and the districts of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.^{[2] [3]} These districts are further divided into tehsils and union councils.

History

In 1947, when Pakistan gained independence there were 124 districts. In 1969, 2 new districts (Tangail and Patuakhali) in East Pakistan were formed, bringing the total to 126. With the Independence of Bangladesh, Pakistan lost 20 of its districts and so there were 106 districts. In 2001, the number was reduced to 102 by the merger of the 5 districts of Karachi Central, Karachi East, Karachi South, Karachi West and Malir to form Karachi District. The number of districts rose to 106 again in December 2004, when four new districts were created in the province of Sindh of which one (Umerkot) had existed until 2000 and three districts (Kashmore, Qambar and Jamshoro) were newly created.^[4] The new districts were carved out of Mirpur Khas, Jacobabad, Larkana and Dadu Districts respectively. In May 2005, the Punjab provincial government created a new district by raising the status of Nankana Sahib from a tehsil of Sheikhupura District to a district in its own right.^[5] On 11 July 2011, the Sindh Government restored again the districts of Karachi South, Karachi East, Malir, Karachi West and Karachi Central, then later in 2013, the district of Korangi was carved out of Karachi East District. In Azad Jammu and Kashmir, a second-tier of government was formed from three administrative divisions into ten districts. In Gilgit–Baltistan, there are ten districts divided between the two regions of Gilgit and Baltistan. In 2018, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) was merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and FATA agencies were converted into districts.

Chagai is the largest district of Pakistan by area while Lahore District is the largest by population with a total population of 11,126,285 at the 2017 census. Quetta is the largest district of Balochistan by population with a total population of 2,275,699 at the 2017 census. Bahawalpur is the largest district of Punjab by area. Chitral is the largest by area and Peshawar is the largest by population from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with the population of 4,269,079 at the Census 2017. Sindh's largest district by area is Tharparkar^[6] and by population its Karachi West with a population of 3,914,757 at the 2017 Census. The combined population of the six districts of Karachi division is over 16 million at the 2017 census, giving an average population for these six districts of Karachi division of over 2.675 million each. Neelum and Kotli are the largest districts of Azad Kashmir by area and population respectively. Gilgit is the largest by area and population both for Gilgit-Baltistan.

Administration

Deputy commissioner

See main article: Deputy commissioner (Pakistan).

A deputy commissioner (popularly abbreviated to "DC") is the executive head of the district. Deputy commissioners are appointed by the government from the Pakistan Administrative Service.

District council

A district council (or zila council) is a local government body at the district level.

The functions of a district council include construction and maintenance of roads, and bridges, building hospitals and dispensaries, schools and educational institutions, health facilities and sanitation, tube wells for drinking water, rest houses, and coordination of activities of the Union councils within the district.

Provinces and territories

Sr. No.	Province or territory	Division(s)	District(s)	Area (km^2)	Population (2017)^[7]	Population (2023)^[8]	Density 2017 (people/km^2)
1	Azad Jammu and Kashmir	3	10	13,297	4,045,366		304.23
2	Balochistan	8^[9]	36^[10]	347,190	12,344,408	14,894,402	35.55
3	Gilgit-Baltistan	3	14	72,971	1,492,924		47.96
4	Islamabad Capital Territory	1	1	906	2,006,572	2,363,863	2,214.76
5	Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	7	38	101,741	35,525,047	40,856,097	349.17
6	Punjab	11	42^[11]	205,344	110,012,442	127,688,922	535.74
7	Sindh	6	30^[12]	140,914	47,886,051	55,696,147	339.82

List of districts by province and territory

Azad Jammu and Kashmir

See main article: List of districts in Azad Kashmir.

	District	Headquarters	Area (km^2)	Population (1998)^[13]	Population (2017)	Density (people/km^2)	Division
1	Muzaffarabad	Muzaffarabad	1,642	453,957	650,370	394	Muzaffarabad
2	Hattian Bala	Hattian Bala	854	166,064	230,529	270	Muzaffarabad
3	Neelum	Athmuqam	3,621	125,712	191,251	53	Muzaffarabad
4	Mirpur	Mirpur	1,010	333,482	456,200	452	Mirpur
5	Bhimber	Bhimber	1,516	301,633	420,624	297	Mirpur
6	Kotli	Kotli	1,862	563,134	774,194	416	Mirpur
7	Poonch	Rawalakot	855	411,035	500,571	585	Poonch
8	Bagh	Bagh	770	281,721	371,919	483	Poonch
9	Haveli	Forward Kahuta	598	111,694	152,124	254	Poonch
10	Sudhnati	Pallandari	569	224,091	297,584	523	Poonch

Balochistan

See main article: List of districts in Balochistan.

Sr. No.	District	Headquarters	Area (km^2)^[14]	Population (2023)	Density (people/km^2)	Division
1	Awaran	Awaran	29,510	178,958	6.1	Kalat
2	Barkhan	Barkhan	3,514	210,249	59.8	Loralai
3	Chagai	Dalbandin	44,748	269,192	6.0	Rakhshan
4	Chaman	Chaman	1,341	466,218	347.7	Quetta
5	Dera Bugti	Dera Bugti	10,160	355,274	35.0	Sibi
6	Duki	Duki	4,233	205,044	48.4	Loralai
7	Gwadar	Gwadar	12,637	305,160	24.2	Makran
8	Harnai	Harnai	2,492	127,571	51.2	Sibi
9	Hub	Hub	N/A	N/A	N/A	Kalat
10	Jafarabad	Dera Allahyar	1,643	594,558	361.1	Nasirabad
11	Jhal Magsi	Gandava	3,615	203,368	56.2	Nasirabad
12	Kachhi	Dhadar	5,682	442,674	77.9	Nasirabad
13	Kalat	Kalat	7,654	271,560	35.5	Kalat
14	Kech	Turbat	22,539	1,060,931	47.0	Makran
15	Kharan	Kharan	14,958	260,352	17.4	Rakhshan
16	Khuzdar	Khuzdar	35,380	997,214	28.2	Kalat
17	Kohlu	Kohlu	7,610	260,220	34.2	Sibi
18	Lasbela	Uthal	15,153	680,977	44.9	Kalat
19	Loralai	Loralai	3,785	272,432	72.0	Loralai
20	Mastung	Mastung	3,308	313,271	94.7	Kalat
21	Musakhel	Musa Khel Bazar	5,728	182,275	31.8	Loralai
22	Nasirabad	Dera Murad Jamali	3,387	563,315	166.1	Nasirabad
23	Nushki	Nushki	5,797	207,834	35.9	Rakhshan
24	Panjgur	Panjgur	16,891	509,781	30.2	Makran
25	Pishin	Pishin	6,218	835,482	134.6	Quetta
26	Quetta	Quetta	3,447	2,595,492	754.3	Quetta
27	Qila Abdullah	Jungle Pir Alizai	3,553	361,971	102.3	Quetta
28	Qilla Saifullah	Qilla Saifullah	6,831	380,200	55.7	Zhob
29	Sherani	Sherani	4,310	191,687	44.5	Zhob
30	Sibi	Sibi	7,121	224,148	31.5	Sibi
31	Sohbatpur	Sohbatpur	802	240,106	299.6	Nasirabad
32	Surab	Surab	762	279,038	366.5	Kalat
33	Washuk	Washuk	33,093	302,623	9.1	Rakhshan
34	Zhob	Zhob	15,987	355,692	22.2	Zhob
35	Ziarat	Ziarat	3,301	189,535	57.4	Kalat
36	Usta Muhammad	Usta Muhammad	N/A	N/A	N/A	Nasirabad

Gilgit-Baltistan

See main article: List of districts in Gilgit-Baltistan.

	District	Headquarters	Area (km^2)	Population (1998)	Division
1	Ghanche	Khaplu	6,400	88,366	Baltistan
2	Skardu	Skardu	15,000	214,848	Baltistan
3	Astore	Eidghah	8,657	71,666	Diamer
4	Diamer	Chilas	10,936	131,925	Diamer
5	Ghizer	Gahkuch	9,635	120,218	Gilgit
6	Gilgit	Gilgit	38,000	243,324	Gilgit
7	Hunza	Karimabad	17,145	80,355	Gilgit
8	Kharmang	Tolti		20,000^[15]	Baltistan
9	Shigar	Shigar	8,500	109,000	Baltistan
10	Nagar		15,567	89,420	Gilgit

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

See main article: List of districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Sr. No.	District	Headquarters	Area(km^2)^[16]	Population(2023)	Density(people/km^2)	Division
1	Abbottabad	Abbottabad	1,967	1,419,072	721.6	Hazara
2	Allai	Allai Valley	N/A	N/A	N/A	Hazara
3	Bajaur	Khar	1,290	1,287,960	998.4	Malakand
4	Bannu	Bannu	1,972	1,357,890	688.6	Bannu
5	Battagram	Battagram	1,301	554,133	425.9	Hazara
6	Buner	Daggar	1,865	1,016,869	545.1	Malakand
7	Charsadda	Charsadda	996	1,835,504	1,843.1	Peshawar
8	Central Dir District	Wari	N/A	N/A	N/A	Malakand
9	Dera Ismail Khan	Dera Ismail Khan	9,334	1,829,811	196.1	Dera Ismail Khan
10	Hangu	Hangu	1,097	528,902	482.3	Kohat
11	Haripur	Haripur	1,725	1,174,783	681.3	Hazara
12	Karak	Karak	3,372	815,878	241.9	Kohat
13	Khyber	Landi Kotal	2,576	1,146,267	445.0	Peshawar
14	Kohat	Kohat	2,991	1,234,661	412.9	Kohat
15	Kolai Palas	Kolai	1,410	280,162	198.7	Hazara
16	Kurram	Parachinar	3,380	785,434	232.4	Kohat
17	Lakki Marwat	Lakki Marwat	3,296	1,040,856	315.8	Bannu
18	Lower Chitral	Chitral	6,458	320,407	49.6	Malakand
19	Lower Dir	Timergara	1,583	1,650,183	1,042.4	Malakand
20	Lower Kohistan	Pattan	642	340,017	529.5	Hazara
21	Malakand	Batkhela	952	826,250	868.1	Malakand
22	Mansehra	Mansehra	4,125	1,797,177	435.6	Hazara
23	Mardan	Mardan	1,632	2,744,898	1,681.4	Mardan
24	Mohmand	Ghalanai	2,296	553,933	241.2	Peshawar
25	North Waziristan	Miranshah	4,707	693,332	147.3	Bannu
26	Nowshera	Nowshera	1,748	1,740,705	995.8	Peshawar
27	Orakzai	Kalaya	1,538	387,561	252.0	Kohat
28	Peshawar	Peshawar	1,518	4,758,762	3,135.6	Peshawar
29	Shangla	Alpuri	1,586	891,252	562.0	Malakand
30	Upper South Waziristan	Spinkai	N/A	N/A	N/A	Dera Ismail Khan
31	Lower South Waziristan	Wana	N/A	N/A	N/A	Dera Ismail Khan
32	Swabi	Swabi	1,543	1,894,600	1,228.0	Mardan
33	Swat	Saidu Sharif	5,337	2,687,384	503.6	Malakand
34	Tank	Tank	2,900	470,293	162.2	Dera Ismail Khan
35	Torghar	Judba	454	200,445	441.6	Hazara
36	Upper Chitral	Booni	8,392	195,528	23.3	Malakand
37	Upper Dir	Dir	3,699	1,083,566	292.9	Malakand
38	Upper Kohistan	Dasu	5,440	422,947	77.8	Hazara

Punjab

See main article: List of districts in Punjab, Pakistan.

Sr. No.	District	Headquarters	Area (km^2)^[17]	Population (2023)	Density (people per km^2)	Division
1	Attock	Attock	6,858	2,170,423	316.7	Rawalpindi
2	Bahawalnagar	Bahawalnagar	8,878	3,550,342	399.6	Bahawalpur
3	Bahawalpur	Bahawalpur	24,830	4,284,964	172.3	Bahawalpur
4	Bhakkar	Bhakkar	8,153	1,957,470	240.5	Mianwali
5	Chakwal	Chakwal	6,524	1,734,854	266.2	Rawalpindi
6	Chiniot	Chiniot	2,643	1,563,024	591.3	Faisalabad
7	Dera Ghazi Khan	Dera Ghazi Khan	11,922	3,393,705	285.8	Dera Ghazi Khan
8	Faisalabad	Faisalabad	5,856	9,075,819	1,551.7	Faisalabad
9	Gujranwala	Gujranwala	3,622	5,959,750	1,644.5	Gujranwala
10	Gujrat	Gujrat	3,192	3,219,375	1,007.0	Gujrat
11	Hafizabad	Hafizabad	2,367	1,319,909	557.0	Gujrat
12	Jampur	Jampur	N/A	N/A	N/A	Dera Ghazi Khan
13	Jhang	Jhang	6,166	3,065,639	497.6	Faisalabad
14	Jhelum	Jhelum	3,587	1,382,308	385.7	Rawalpindi
15	Kasur	Kasur	3,995	4,084,286	1,021.4	Lahore
16	Khanewal	Khanewal	4,349	3,364,077	774.3	Multan
17	Khushab	Jauharabad	6,511	1,501,089	230.8	Sargodha
18	Lahore	Lahore	1,772	13,004,135	7,336.6	Lahore
19	Layyah	Layyah	6,289	2,102,386	334.5	Dera Ghazi Khan
20	Lodhran	Lodhran	2,778	1,928,299	693.5	Multan
21	Mandi Bahauddin	Mandi Bahauddin	2,673	1,829,486	683.1	Gujrat
22	Mianwali	Mianwali	5,840	1,798,268	307.4	Mianwali
23	Multan	Multan	3,720	5,362,305	1,441.1	Multan
24	Muzaffargarh	Muzaffargarh	8,249	5,015,325	607.5	Dera Ghazi Khan
25	Nankana Sahib	Nankana Sahib	2,216	1,634,871	737.0	Lahore
26	Narowal	Narowal	2,337	1,950,954	834.3	Gujranwala
27	Okara	Okara	4,377	3,515,490	802.2	Sahiwal
28	Pakpattan	Pakpattan	2,724	2,136,170	785.3	Sahiwal
29	Rahim Yar Khan	Rahim Yar Khan	11,880	5,564,703	468.2	Bahawalpur
30	Rajanpur	Rajanpur	12,319	2,381,049	193.3	Dera Ghazi Khan
31	Rawalpindi	Rawalpindi	5,286	6,118,911	1,156.5	Rawalpindi
32	Sahiwal	Sahiwal	3,201	2,881,811	900.6	Sahiwal
33	Sargodha	Sargodha	5,854	4,334,448	740.1	Sargodha
34	Sheikhupura	Sheikhupura	3,744	4,049,418	1,080.3	Lahore
35	Sialkot	Sialkot	3,016	4,499,394	1,492.5	Gujranwala
36	Toba Tek Singh	Toba Tek Singh	3,252	2,524,044	776.2	Faisalabad
37	Vehari	Vehari	4,364	3,430,421	787.7	Multan
38	Talagang	Talagang	N/A	N/A	N/A	Rawalpindi
39	Murree	Murree	N/A	N/A	N/A	Rawalpindi
40	Taunsa	Taunsa	N/A	N/A	N/A	Dera Ghazi Khan
41	Kot Addu	Kot Addu	N/A	N/A	N/A	Dera Ghazi Khan
42	Wazirabad	Wazirabad	N/A	N/A	N/A	Gujrat

Sindh

See main article: List of districts in Sindh.

Sr. No.	District	Headquarters	Area (km^2)^[18]	Population (2023)	Density (people/km^2)	Division
1	Badin	Badin	6,858	1,947,081	284.6	Hyderabad
2	Dadu	Dadu	7,866	1,742,320	221.8	Hyderabad
3	Ghotki	Mirpur Mathelo	6,083	1,772,609	291.3	Sukkur
4	Hyderabad	Hyderabad	993	2,432,540	2,448.7	Hyderabad
5	Jacobabad	Jacobabad	2,698	1,174,097	434.0	Larkana
6	Jamshoro	Jamshoro	11,204	1,117,308	99.7	Hyderabad
7	Karachi Central	North Nazimabad	69	3,822,325	55,838.8	Karachi
8	Karachi East	Gulshan e Iqbal	139	3,921,742	28,220.1	Karachi
9	Karachi South	Saddar Karachi	122	2,329,764	19,104.6	Karachi
10	Karachi West	Orangi Town	370	2,679,380	7,238.1	Karachi
11	Kashmore	Kandhkot	2,580	1,233,957	477.3	Larkana
12	Keamari	Moriro Mirbahar	559	2,068,451	3,699.8	Karachi
13	Khairpur	Khairpur	15,910	2,597,535	163.3	Sukkur
14	Korangi	Korangi	108	3,128,971	28,968.8	Karachi
15	Larkana	Larkana	1,948	1,784,453	915.8	Larkana
16	Malir	Malir	2,160	2,432,248	1,126.8	Karachi
17	Matiari	Matiari	1,417	849,383	599.0	Hyderabad
18	Mirpur Khas	Mirpur Khas	2,925	1,681,386	574.7	Mirpur Khas
19	Naushahro Feroze	Naushahro Feroze	2,945	1,777,082	603.2	Shaheed Benazir Abad
20	Qambar Shahdadkot	Qambar	5,475	1,514,869	276.4	Larkana
21	Sanghar	Sanghar	10,728	2,308,465	215.0	Mirpur Khas
22	Shaheed Benazirabad	Nawabshah	4,502	1,845,102	409.5	Shaheed Benazirabad
23	Shikarpur	Shikarpur	2,512	1,386,330	552.1	Larkana
24	Sujawal	Sujawal	8,785	839,292	95.5	Hyderabad
25	Sukkur	Sukkur	5,165	1,639,897	317.7	Sukkur
26	Tando Allahyar	Tando Allahyar	1,554	922,012	592.8	Hyderabad
27	Tando Muhammad Khan	Tando Muhammad Khan	1,423	726,119	509.1	Hyderabad
28	Tharparkar	Mithi	19,637	1,778,407	90.6	Mirpur Khas
29	Thatta	Thatta	8,570	1,083,191	126.8	Hyderabad
30	Umerkot^[19]	Umerkot	5,608	1,159,831	207.2	Mirpur Khas

N.B. All the figures require to be re-checked. Data entry error has occurred in Sindh Province.

See also

• Administrative units of Pakistan
• City Districts of Pakistan
• List of administrative units of Pakistan by Human Development Index

Further reading

• Web site: List of Districts/Agencies/Tribal Areas. https://web.archive.org/web/20101219104501/http://www.statpak.gov.pk/depts/pco/statistics/admin_unit/admin_list.html. 19 December 2010. Government of Pakistan. Population Census Organization. 14 April 2006.
• Web site: List of Tehsils/Talukas with respect to their Districts. https://web.archive.org/web/20101230183032/http://www.statpak.gov.pk/depts/pco/statistics/admin_unit/admin_list_tehsil.html. 30 December 2010. Government of Pakistan. Population Census Organization. 14 April 2006.
• Web site: Pakistan >> District Profiles. https://web.archive.org/web/20110518213808/http://www.southasianmedia.net/profile/pakistan/pakistan_districprofiles.cfm. 18 May 2011. South Asian Media Net. Country Profiles. 14 April 2006.
• Web site: District Governments of Sindh. Local Government Department, Government of Sindh. 16 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20091126053250/http://www.lgdsindh.com.pk/districts1.htm. 26 November 2009.

External links

• from the Population Census Organization (Government of Pakistan)

Notes and References

1. Web site: District Wise Census Results – Census 2017. www.pbscensus.gov.pk. 3 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170829164748/http://www.pbscensus.gov.pk/sites/default/files/DISTRICT_WISE_CENSUS_RESULTS_CENSUS_2017.pdf. 29 August 2017. dead.
2. Web site: Dividing governance: Three new districts notified in G-B – The Express Tribune. The Express Tribune. en-US. 2019-04-05. 26 July 2015.
3. Web site: Administrative Setup.. ajk.gov.pk. 17 May 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100409161504/http://www.ajk.gov.pk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=24&Itemid=8. 9 April 2010 . live.
4. News: Four new districts in Sindh. 16 February 2014. Daily Times. 11 December 2004. https://web.archive.org/web/20131211231925/http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_14-12-2004_pg7_36. 11 December 2013.
5. Web site: Nankana becomes district . Dawn. Pakistan . 10 May 2005 . 16 February 2014.
6. Web site: Thatta (District, Pakistan) – Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location . citypopulation.de.
7. Web site: Province Wise Provisional Results of Census – 2017 . Pakistan Bureau of Statistics . https://web.archive.org/web/20171115133446/http://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/PAKISTAN%20TEHSIL%20WISE%20FOR%20WEB%20CENSUS_2017.pdf . 2017-11-15 . dead.
8. https://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/population/2023/tables/national/table_1.pdf
9. Web site: Babakhel . Mohammad Ali . 2018-10-23 . New districts . 2022-04-25 . Dawn. Pakistan . en.
10. Web site: 2021-06-30 . New division, two districts created in Balochistan . 2021-06-30. Dawn. Pakistan. en.
11. Web site: Districts | Punjab Portal . Punjab.gov.pk . 16 January 2014 . 16 February 2014.
12. Web site: Map of Sindh . Government of Sindh . 16 February 2014 . 26 December 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181226144353/http://sindh.gov.pk/images/map.JPG%20 . dead .
13. Azad Government of Jammu & Kashmir, Muzaffarabad, 2019.
14. https://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/population/2023/tables/balochistan/dcr/table_1.pdf
15. Web site: Kharmang now GB district . Pakistan Observer . 2013-03-24 . 2015-12-12 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151124220156/http://pakobserver.net/201303/24/detailnews.asp?id=201427 . 24 November 2015.
16. https://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/population/2023/tables/kp/dcr/table_1.pdf
17. https://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/population/2023/tables/punjab/dcr/table_1.pdf
18. https://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/population/2023/tables/sindh/dcr/table_1.pdf
19. Web site: Historically & Geographically. District Government Umerkot. 16 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20120224191524/http://www.umerkot.gos.pk/. 24 February 2012.