Page 7 - Pakistan Government

Pakistan employs new measures to deal with smog affecting 70,000 people

Pakistani authorities introduced mobile clinics and added more beds in hospitals to treat the nearly 70,000 patients received daily with respiratory-related diseases as hazardous smog continued to shroud the country's east, officials said Wednesday. Punjab, Pakistan's most populous province with 127 million residents, has been hit by a record-high ongoing wave of pollution since October. The UN children's agency on Monday warned that the health of 11 million children there was at risk. Lahore and Multan, the province's two main cities hit by smog, remained the two most polluted cities in the world on Wednesday, with air quality index readings of about 400, according to the Environmental Protection Department. Anything over 300 is considered hazardous to health. The dangerous smog is a byproduct of large numbers of vehicles, construction and industrial work as well as burning crops at the start of the winter wheat-planting season, experts say. Meanwhile, more than 200 clinics on boa

Pakistan's $7-bn IMF bailout deal hits a rough patch. Here's what we know

IMF reportedly mulling stricter review of Pakistan bailout package after noticing early slippages

Pakistan, US 'old friends'; Trump's win won't affect China ties: Pak FO

Pakistan and the US are "old friends and partners", the Foreign Office spokesperson said on Thursday, but added that Donald Trump's election as the new American President will not affect Islamabad's ties with China. Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated President-elect Trump on his election as the 47th President of the US. Our relations with the United States are decades old, and we look forward to further strengthening and broadening Pakistan-US relationship in all fields," Baloch said at the weekly briefing. Responding to a question if Trump's election will affect Pakistan-China ties, she said Islamabad's relations with Beijing are "all-weather, strategic, and a source of stability" in the country's foreign policy. "This relationship has remained unaffected by developments around the world. So we do not need to even consider the possibility that this relationship will be affected by any domestic development in another

Justice Amin-ud-Din appointed Pak SC's 1st-ever constitutional bench head

A Pakistani constitutional panel on Tuesday appointed Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan as head of the first-ever constitutional bench in the Supreme Court as mandated by a recent amendment that gave legislators more power in appointing the top judge. The amendment passed last month created a body called the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) with powers to form a constitutional bench within the Supreme Court to deal with constitutional and political disputes. The 12-member JCP met in Islamabad and appointed Justice Khan as head of the constitutional bench in the Supreme Court by a split decision of 7-5. Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, who led the JCP, found himself with the minority, along with two more senior judges of the apex court and two representatives of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, who were members of the panel. Constitutional benches have been created at the Supreme Court through an amendment to Article 191-A. "There shall be a constitutional bench of the Supreme Court, which may ...

Imran Khan's wife Bushra Bibi breaks down during court proceedings

A court in Pakistan on Monday witnessed emotional scenes when jailed former premier Imran Khan's wife Bushra Bibi burst into tears, expressing her utter helplessness against the inefficient justice system and her husband's "unjust sentencing". The former first lady appeared before Islamabad District Magistrate Afzal Majoka's court to acquire bail for her husband in six cases and herself in another case, registered at Tarnol, Karachi Company, Ramna, Secretariat and Kohsar police stations. During the hearing held at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, Khan was not produced in the court. He was also not allowed to appear through a video link. When Bushra took to the rostrum to speak, she became emotional. "I have been facing injustice by those responsible for serving justice for the past nine months. I and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder were unjustly sentenced," she said. "There is no justice. I haven't come to seek justice," she sobbed, and even blamed lawyers, saying all lawyers,

Baloch Human rights dept condemns violence following Mastung bomb blast

Paank called on the Pakistani government to halt its support for religious extremist groups in the region, Dawn reported.

Pakistan's national carrier stake sale now uncertain after low offer

Pakistan's government has failed to privatize the airline in previous attempts because of protests by labor unions and political parties

Pakistan's FM Aurangzeb sees 'encouraging' reply from China debt talks

Pakistan is seeing a period of stability after securing a new $7 billion loan program from the IMF

Pakistan central bank announces $30 billion foreign debt repayments in FY25

Pakistan's central bank has said the country is scheduled to repay a total of USD 30.35 billion in maturing foreign debt and interest payment in this financial year even as the foreign debt repayments and interest payments are rising every passing year, a media repot said on Monday. The payments over the 12 months from August 2024 to July 2025 include those significant loans which bilateral creditors roll over every year, reported the Express Tribune quoting a JS Global report, which, in turn, cited data from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The report showed that Pakistan is to repay maturing foreign debt worth USD 26.48 billion and pay another USD 3.86 billion on account of interest expense in the period. Pakistan's repayments and interest payments are fully secured under the latest USD 7 billion IMF Extended Fund Facility (EFF) through the loan period of 37 months. In terms of debt-to-GDP ratio, however, the foreign debt has dropped to 20.2 per cent in August 2024 from 27.6 per

Protests in Pakistan after govt raises taxes by 40% under IMF bailout

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose coalition government has only been in power for seven months, is urging patience in a country that can no longer keep up

Bidding for Pakistan's national airline delayed to Oct 31: Officials

Pakistan's government has previously said it would sell between 51-100 per cent of the loss-making airline as part of reforms urged by the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Pakistan cuts 150K jobs, dissolves six ministries as part of IMF deal

In an effort to minimise administrative expenditures, cash-strapped Pakistan on Sunday announced to abolish about 150,000 government posts, close six ministries, and merge two others, as part of reforms agreed upon with the IMF under USD 7 billion loan deal. The International Monetary Fund on September 26 finally gave a nod to the assistance package and also released over USD 1 billion as the first tranche after Pakistan committed to cut expenditures, increase tax-to GDP ratio, tax non-traditional sectors like agriculture and real estate, limit subsidies and transfer some fiscal responsibilities to provinces. Addressing the media on his return from the US, Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb said that a programme had been finalised with the IMF, which would be the last programme for Pakistan. We need to implement our policies to prove that it will be the last programme, he said, and emphasised that in order to join the G20, the economy must be formalised. The minister said ...

Pakistan government plans to privatise several institutions or shut them

Earlier on August 22, the federal cabinet approved the privatization of two departments under the Petroleum Division, ARY News reported

Pakistani HC disposes of petition regarding Imran Khan's military trial

The 71-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician had petitioned the Islamabad High Court against his trial being handed over to the military authorities

Election Commission failed to perform its duties in Feb 8 elections: Pak SC

Order also expressed 'some doubts about whether the commission has the power to reject the certificate of intra-party elections' which resulted in all kinds of legal and political implications for PTI

Pakistan accepts IMF's condition to not establish new SEZs: Report

Pakistan has accepted the IMF condition that it would not establish any new special economic or export processing zone in the country as it waits for the approval of a USD 7 billion bailout package from the international money lender, a media report said on Wednesday. The Washington-based lender's condition will impact the government's plans to establish an export processing zone (EPZ) on a piece of land belonging to the closed Pakistan Steel Mills, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. The report quoted government sources as saying that the IMF had asked Pakistan that it would not create any new special economic zone (SEZ) or EPZ and tax incentives already availed by the existing zones will not be extended after expiry. While the condition will be applicable to both federal and provincial governments, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has refused to accept it, the report said. The IMF's conditions underscore how deeply it has captured Pakistan's economic and industrial policies, which could ..

Will not compromise with govt, says ex-Pak PM Imran after 400 days in jail

The government ministers say Khan's freedom is linked with his unconditional apology for the riots in which the PTI workers allegedly attacked state and military installations

Pak HC temporarily bars trial court from issuing verdict against Imran Khan

A high court in Pakistan Monday temporarily barred a trial court from issuing its verdict in an alleged case of corruption against jailed former premier Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi. An anti-corruption court has been hearing the Al-Qadir Trust case against the former first couple which is based on the charges that Khan caused a loss of over Rs 50 billion to the national exchequer. A two-judge bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), comprising Justices Mian Gul Hassan Aurangzeb and Babar Sattar, heard Khan's petition requesting the submission of records from the National Accountability Bureau's (NAB) previous decision to close the case. Barrister Salman Safdar, representing Khan, highlighted that the case originally included eight accused, of which six were currently at large. "A total of 35 witnesses have testified so far, with the cross-examination of the final witness in progress," Safdar informed the court. After arguments, the bench restrained the trial court from ...

Weakening the military is weakening the nation: Pak Army chief Gen Munir

Pakistan's Army chief General Asim Munir has said that any attempt to undermine the nation's powerful military is equivalent to weakening the country. Addressing the Azadi Parade at the Pakistan Military Academy on the eve of the country's 78th Independence Day, he also underscored the importance of maintaining national unity amidst efforts by foreign powers using digital terrorism' to create a gulf between state institutions and the people of Pakistan. "We emerge as a strong nation after trial and tribulations. To weaken Pakistan's armed forces is tantamount to weakening the country itself," Geo News quoted him as saying. Asserting that the nation's unwavering trust in the Pakistan Army is the military's most valuable asset, he said, Neither any negative force has ever been able to weaken this relationship of trust and love nor can it do so in future. Historically, we as a nation have always emerged stronger after every hardship," he said, adding that mutual trust between the coun

74% Pakistanis unable to meet expenses, 10% doing two jobs: Report

Survey of Pakistan with roughly 240 mn population, also highlighted that more than half of those who are just managing to cover expenses, are unable to save any money after meeting their basic needs