Page 98 - Pakistan

UP ATS questions Pak citizen Seema, Indian partner Sachin for second day

Pakistani citizen Seema Haider, who entered India illegally in May, was picked up by Uttar Pradesh Police's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) for questioning for a second day on Tuesday, an official said. Her Indian partner, Sachin Meena, with whom Hiader is currently staying in Greater Noida, has also been taken for questioning by the agency, the local police official said. The cross-border couple were first interrogated by the UP ATS on Monday at its office in Noida and the duo was released late in the night. Haider, 30, and Meena, 22, were first arrested by the local police in Greater Noida on July 4 but were granted bail by a court on July 7.

No indication that Afghan refugees in Pak guilty of terrorism: White House

There is no indication that the Afghan refugees in Pakistan or those living along the border with Afghanistan are guilty of acts of terrorism, the White House has said after Islamabad accused them of creating instability. The remarks by White House National Security Spokesperson John Kirby came two days after Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that allowing Afghan refugees to settle in Pakistan was a grave mistake amid a spike in terrorist attacks on the country. The current situation has raised significant concerns about the facilities provided to the Afghan refugees, Asif said, adding Pakistan has suffered the consequences of sheltering and hosting the Afghan refugees. He also accused Afghan nationals involved in terrorist activities. "(We are) Seeing no indication that Afghan refugees in Pakistan or along that border are guilty of acts of terrorism," Kirby told reporters at a news conference here on Monday. Kirby said the US is grateful to Pakistan for the incredible

PubG love story: Seema Haider, partner being questioned by UP police

Pakistani national Seema Haider, her lover Sachin and his father are being questioned by UP's ATS at an undisclosed location in Noida

Shehbaz Sharif to step down as Pak PM before next month; all you must know

Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif said that he will hand over power to a caretaker government on August 14, paving the way for general elections

Will hand over power to caretaker setup next month: Pak PM Shehbaz Sharif

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday announced that his government would hand over the power to a caretaker setup before the completion of its tenure next month, indicating the National Assembly is going to be dissolved days before the completion of its tenure to pace the general election in November. Just a couple of days ago the premier had announced that his government would complete its tenure which is ending on August 13. However, Shehbaz's change of mind appears to be an advice from his allied Pakistan People's Party (PPP) leader Asif Ali Zardari. "Zardari in a meeting with PM Shehbaz on Saturday asked him to dissolve the National Assembly a couple of days before the government completes its tenure so that elections can be held in November," a senior PPP leader told PTI on Sunday. Under the Constitution, if the National Assembly completes its term, polls are to be held within 60 days. But if the assembly is dissolved prematurely, even if by a day, it would give th

150-year-old Mari Mata Temple demolished in Karachi's Soldier Bazar

A Hindu temple, believed to be built nearly 150 years ago, has been demolished after being declared an old and dangerous structure in Karachi, the provincial capital of Pakistan's Sindh province, leaving the Hindu community in shock. The Mari Mata Temple in Karachi's Soldier Bazar was razed to the ground by bulldozers in the presence of a heavy contingent of police force late on Friday night. "They (authorities) did it very early in the morning and we were not informed this was going to happen, said Ram Nath Mishra Maharaj, who looks after old Hindu temples in the area. Mishra, the caretaker of the nearby Shri Punch Mukhi Hanuman Mandir, said that the bulldozers left the outer walls and the temple's main gate intact, but they demolished the entire inside structure. Mishra said that the temple was built some 150 years ago and told stories that there was treasure buried beneath its courtyard. He said that the temple, which covered some 400 to 500 square yards in the area, had been t

Pakistan lost $8.3 billion in remittances and exports last financial year

The growth trajectory has been lost in FY23 despite over a million Pakistanis leaving the country for jobs mainly in the Middle East

Pakistan PM launches $3.5 bn Chinese-designed nuclear energy project

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday launched the 1200-megawatt nuclear power plant being built with China's assistance in Punjab province which is seen as a sign of growing strategic cooperation between the two all-weather allies. Earlier, Prime Minister Sharif had inked an agreement with China worth a whopping USD 3.5 billion under which Beijing would build the Chashma-V nuclear plant at Chashma in the Mianwali district of Punjab. He had termed the nuclear power plant agreement signing as a token of increasing economic cooperation between Pakistan and China and vowed to complete the project without any delay. The Chashma-5 nuclear energy project, which is by itself a huge milestone, a huge success story and a wonderful symbol of cooperation between two great friends," Sharif said. This mutual cooperation to promote clean, efficient and comparatively cheaper energy is a gift of friendship between the two countries and a model for other countries to emulate," he said.

Pakistan opens headwork gates for water to flow into its area from India

On Wednesday, 192,000 cusecs of water were reported at Hussainiwala, which is flowing into Pakistan

Caller warns of 26/11-like terror attack if Seema Haider didn't return home

The traffic control room of Mumbai Police has received a call from an unidentified person warning of a 26/11-like terror attack if Pakistani woman Seema Haider did not return to her country, an official said on Thursday. The call was received on Wednesday, he said. The caller, who spoke in Urdu, said there would be a terror attack like the November 26, 2008 attack on Mumbai and the Uttar Pradesh government will be responsible for it, the police official said. Mumbai Police is investigating the threat call and a crime branch team has also been roped in, he said. The call was made through an app, and the police were trying to track down the IP address of the caller, the official said. Seema Haider, a Pakistani national, recently entered India illegally to marry her lover Sachin Meena, a resident of Greater Noida. The two had become friends while playing online game PUBG. Police arrested Haider for entering India illegally without a visa through Nepal.

Pakistan receives $1.2 bn first tranche from IMF bailout: FM Ishaq Dar

The IMF has transferred USD 1.2 billion to Pakistan, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Thursday, a day after the global lender approved a USD 3 billion bailout programme for the cash-strapped country. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) gave a final nod to the USD 3 billion bailout programme on Wednesday to support the government's efforts to stabilise the country's ailing economy. Addressing the media, Dar said when the Standby Arrangement (SBA) was finalised, it was decided that USD 1.2 billion would be given upfront while the "balance amount" of USD 1.8 billion would be handed over after two reviews in November and February. "I want to share the information that the upfront payment of USD 1.2 billion, the IMF has transferred it to the State Bank of Pakistan's (SBP) account," he was quoted as saying by the Dawn newspaper. The finance minister said that the IMF's Executive Board had approved the SBA with Pakistan and noted that this was a nine-month programme under which Islama

Pakistan gets final IMF nod for $3 bn bailout plan to aid ailing economy

In a relief to cash-strapped Pakistan, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday gave a final nod to a much-awaited USD 3 billion bailout programme for the country to support the government's efforts to stabilise the ailing economy. The development came two weeks after the two sides reached a staff-level agreement over the stand-by arrangement. "The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a 9-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) for Pakistan for an amount of SDR2,250 million (about USD 3 billion, or 111 per cent of quota) to support the authorities' economic stabilisation programme, the global lender said in a statement. "The arrangement comes at a challenging economic juncture for Pakistan. A difficult external environment, devastating floods, and policy missteps have led to large fiscal and external deficits, rising inflation, and eroded reserve buffers" in the fiscal year 2023," the IMF said in the statement. The Dawn newspaper reported that the ..

Pakistan gets $1 bn from UAE to boost its reserves: Finance Minister Dar

Pakistan on Wednesday received USD 1 billion from the UAE to boost its reserves, a day after Saudi Arabia transferred USD 2 billion to the country's central bank in the wake of a deal with the International Monetary Fund. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced the transfer of funds by the Gulf nation on the eve of the board meeting of the IMF to approve a USD 3 billion Stand-by Agreement. "We received confirmation some time ago that our brother country, our friend, the UAE has deposited USD 1 bn to the State Bank's account. The Federal Reserves Bank has confirmed that this amount has been credited to the (SBP's) account, he said in a video message shown live on television. Dar said the funds received from Saudi Arabia and the UAE this week had collectively "increased the country's reserves by USD 3 bn in two days" which would reflect in the weekly update of foreign exchange reserves due to be issued on July 14. He thanked the UAE leadership on behalf of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif,

Pak lost $4 bn remittances due to high exchange rates of illegal channels

Pakistan lost over USD 4 billion in remittances sent by expatriates to illegal channels in the current fiscal year, much higher than the amount the cash-strapped government struggled to secure from the IMF as a bailout. Data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the country's central bank, on Monday showed that the month-on-month remittances increased slightly by 4 per cent to USD 2.183 billion in June, while it witnessed a 22 per cent decline when compared with the USD 2.8 billion the country received in June 2022. The country received a total of USD 27.024 billion in remittances during FY23, against a record USD 31.278 billion in FY22, a decline of 13.6 or USD 4.254 billion, the Dawn newspaper reported. The central bank did not offer any reason for the decline of the remittances, but analysts said the government's effort to keep the dollar at lower than actual rates hit the inflows through banking channels. The government tried to maintain the dollar-rupee parity at Rs 22

Last flight: British carrier Virgin Atlantic says goodbye to Pakistan skies

A spokesman for the Civil Aviation Authority said that the final flight left from Islamabad International Airport to London's Heathrow Airport at 8 am (local time)

Pak aims to get investment of $30-50 bn in next few yrs in agriculture: PM

Pakistan is aiming to get investment worth USD 30-50 billion in the next four to five years in agriculture under a programme to transform the economy, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Monday. Sharif said this while addressing a seminar on agriculture and food security in Islamabad which was also attended by Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir. He said that the landmark steps were being taken to exploit its full potential in agriculture and other domains under the ambit of the recently launched Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). He said the Green Pakistan Initiative, which is part of the SIFC, would be the second green revolution, paving the way for prosperity and progress in the country and the government anticipated an average investment of 30 to 50 billion dollars over the next four to five years. Our efforts are focused to enhance productivity and transform barren land into fertile ground which will significantly bolster our revenues," he said, adding that .

6 killed, 10 injured as gas explosion causes building collapse in Pakistan

At least six people were killed and 10 others injured on Sunday when a three-storey building collapsed due to a gas cylinder explosion in Pakistan's Punjab province, officials said. The three-storey hotel building located on the Grand Trunk Road in Punjab's Jhelum collapsed after the cylinder exploded in the kitchen, they said. Six people were confirmed dead while 10 injured were recovered so far and admitted to hospitals for treatment, Geo News reported, citing Jhelum Deputy Commissioner Samiullah Farooq. "(Rescue) efforts are underway and our teams are present here. There are reports that four to five people could be underneath the rubble, he said. He added that the rescue operation would continue till the whole site was cleared. Earlier, Dawn reported that the explosion took place at around 9:45 am Sunday, following which the rescue teams immediately responded and initiated rescue efforts. Additional Deputy Commissioner (Revenue) Hassan Tariq said that all senior doctors and s

Cash-strapped Pak allows foreign investors to remit entire profit abroad

In a major economic policy decision, cash-strapped Pakistan allowed foreign investors to remit the entire profit abroad in their own country's currency. The Cabinet on Friday approved the Pakistan Investment Policy 2023 through the circulation of a summary, which aims to bring USD 20-25 billion in investment, Geo News reported quoting sources. The policy was readied after consultations with the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, and provincial and federal institutions, people, familiar with the matter, said. In the new policy, the minimum equity rate for foreign investment has been abolished, the sources said. Foreign investors will be allowed to invest in all sectors except six, the sources said, without specifying which ones. Under the new policy, foreign investors will be allowed to remit the entire profit abroad in their own country's currency, they said. "Foreign investors will be given special protection," the sources added. The development comes days after Mini

7 people including 2 children killed by gas explosion in van in Pakistan

A fire in a passenger van in eastern Pakistan Saturday killed seven people, including two children, a government official said. The dead included four members of the same family a woman, her daughter and her two granddaughters. Eight passengers received burn injuries of various degrees. Official Nabeel Bhatti said the incident occurred in the Sargodha district of Punjab province after a liquefied petroleum gas cylinder fitted in the vehicle leaked and exploded. The van was immediately engulfed in flames. Five passengers died at the scene, while two others succumbed to their injuries at the hospital. Three of the bodies were charred beyond recognition. Punjab Interim Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi ordered an investigation into the incident.

Cash-strapped Pakistan assures IMF of $8 bn external payments: Report

Cash-strapped Pakistan has provided the IMF with a financing plan for external payments, in which it has informed the global lender that it will arrange USD 8 billion for the purpose instead of USD 6 billion, according to a media report on Saturday. The Pakistan government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reached a long-awaited staff-level agreement on June 29 to inject USD 3 billion Standby Arrangement (SBA) into the ailing economy after months-long negotiations that pushed the country to the brink of default. The Executive Board of the IMF will meet on July 12 to review the SBA for Pakistan According to sources in the finance ministry, the IMF had asked Pakistan for assurances of USD 6 billion for external payments, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. However, the sources added that Pakistan had given the IMF assurances of USD 8 billion for external payments. The sources said China would provide USD 3.5 billion to Pakistan of which Islamabad would keep USD 2 billion