Previous Year Question
Which one of the following is the most urbanized country of South Asia?
India
Bhutan
Sri Lanka
Pakistan
Correct Answer: D
Detailed Solution
Urbanization refers to the percentage of the total population living in urban areas.
According to the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects: The 2014 Revision, the approximate share of urban population in 2014 among the given options was—
Pakistan — 38.3%
Bhutan — 37.9%
India — 32.4%
Sri Lanka — 18.3%
Therefore, Pakistan had the highest level of urbanization among the given options.
It should be noted that in the same 2014 UN data, the Maldives was about 44.5% urbanized, but the Maldives was not included among the options.
Current Status
In the World Bank/UN 2025 series, Bhutan has the highest urban population share among these four options at about 43%, compared with about 40% for Pakistan, 36% for India and 20% for Sri Lanka.