Notes on Inflation in Pakistan

Inflation in Pakistan

The Concept of Inflation

Inflation literally means overpopulation, but overpopulation alone does not pose an economic problem, provided there are means and resources to provide a good standard of living for that population. In economics, the compound of inflation is used in the literal sense, not in the literal sense. The term inflation refers to a situation where the known resources of a country are unable to provide a decent standard of living to the people of that country. This is an additional term. Changing times and places can change the situation. A country may have a large population but it also has abundant means of production and the country is so developed from an industrial and commercial point of view that it can guarantee a good standard of living to the people. The industrialized countries of Western Europe, including Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom, fall into this category. On the other hand, there are countries that are relatively sparsely populated but whose resources of production and technology are unable to provide people with a decent standard of living. Many countries in Africa and Latin America are in a similar situation. Again, it is not necessary that the country which is facing the problem of inflation today will always remain like this. The fact is that in the future it will have more resources, such as the discovery of minerals, large quantities of mineral oil, or large deposits of iron ore and coal. More than that number can provide an opportunity to enter a better and more prosperous life.

Is Pakistan suffering from inflation?

Despite being relatively sparsely populated, Pakistan suffers from the problem of inflation because of the past 62 years of economic struggle, the known resources of our country have not been able to provide a decent standard of living to the productive population and most of the population of the country is living in extreme poverty. Evidence of this can be found in the following facts:

i.        Decreased per capita income

Pakistan's per capita income is very low. Per capita income refers to the average income earned by dividing a country's national income by the total population of that country. Per capita income = Total national income / population Runs At this point, it is particularly noteworthy that per capita income does not mean that every citizen of Pakistan receives an equal amount of money. In fact, there is a big difference in arrivals. Many people earn crores of rupees annually, many lakhs of rupees and many thousands of rupees and there are many who do nothing and live by begging. Per capita income is just an average income, which is useful in determining the standard of living of the people of the country. Since Pakistan's per capita income is very low, we are right to conclude that Pakistan is suffering from inflation.

ii.      Decrease in per capita cultivation

The area under cultivation per capita in Pakistan is very small which much less than one acre is per capita. In the opinion of experts, the average area under cultivation should not be less than one acre to guarantee a minimum standard of living for the people. To find out which cultivated area we divide the cultivated area of ​​a country by its population.

iii.      The problem of food shortage

About two and a half centuries ago today, Robert Thomas, a British mathematician and economist, said that the world's population is determined by food resources and there is a tendency in the population that these resources exceed food. This theory has been rejected in its original form. Population is determined not only by food resources but also by the total resources of a country. Most of the Middle Eastern countries are rich in oil and have the potential to import not only their own food but also other necessities of life in return. Or right for a few countries, not necessarily for the whole world. If a few countries in the world cannot produce their own food, then other countries must produce surplus food, otherwise non-food producing countries will have to face murder. At present, Pakistan's population is growing at an annual rate of more than 1.8%. According to the 1998 census, the population of Pakistan was about 130 million. Obviously, the current population will need its own food for the second population, but the current situation is that despite our efforts, we have not yet been able to produce wheat ourselves. In addition, we import large quantities of cooking oil. Not only is there a shortage of food quantitatively, but it is also poor. Our diet consists mostly of whole grains, wheat, rice, corn, etc., and healthy foods like meat, eggs, milk and fruits are available in very small quantities. 

Lack of Housing Needs

Every family needs a house to live in. Most of the population of Pakistan lives in rural areas. Their houses are backward and inadequate in terms of needs. Houses often collapse due to rain wax and floods. There are strong houses in the cities but they are not enough to meet the needs of the growing population. 

Lack of health and sanitation facilities

Our country is suffering from the problem of overpopulation of health and sanitation facilities. This is evidenced by the fact that we have a severe shortage of facilities. There is one doctor for every twelve hundred people in our country. There is only one nurse in the hospital for two and a half thousand people. Although epidemics have been largely controlled, diseases are common due to poor diet and unhealthy environment. That's why people's talent is so great.

Lack of education facilities

In our country, in 1998, only 44% of the population aged ten years and above was literate, while the person who could read a Savi phrase to me was also considered literate. As a result, the problem of educational facilities will only get worse if the population continues to grow at the same rate.

Lack of employment opportunities

As a result of the rapidly growing population, our country's workforce is increasing every year, but employment opportunities in the jewelry and industrial sectors are not growing at the same rate. Large-scale migration to Middle Eastern countries has reduced the severity of the unemployment problem. At present many people are working in foreign countries who are not only solving the problem of unemployment in our country but are also sending home by earning a large amount of foreign exchange.

Inflation situation

Inflation is a clear and important sign of population in Pakistan. Over the last few years, the prices of common goods in our country have been rising sharply, which has exacerbated the plight of the people, especially the low-income earners and the salaried class.