URBAN GROWTH AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN GUJRANWALA, PAKISTAN: A GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS

Abstract

Cities all over the world, particularly in developing countries like Pakistan, are
experiencing rapid urban growth and changing socio-economic profile. Present study was conducted to
investigate the trends of urban growth and socio-economic development in Gujranwala, the prominent
industrial city, 5th largest city of the Punjab and 7th amongst the big populous cities of Pakistan. By
making comparison of its structure with overall socio-economic structure of the Punjab Province,
selected indicators were considered viz. population size, housing facilities and urban growth patterns.
Data was obtained from various sources and efforts were made in order to realize the behavior of urban
growth and socio-economic development. Results revealed that city had better place regarding its
educational, health, housing and human development scenarios. But noticeably, a small proportion of
population could have access to safe drinking water, sanitation etc. The urban growth patterns
suggested the increasing urban population due to migration and natural increase of population, though
overall growth rate was declining. Resultantly, city was spatially expanding in north, west and east
directions since 1947 to present.