Punjab | Pakistan

PPP Sindh President Nisar Khuhro on Saturday assailed Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s remarks regarding the contentious canals issue as a violation of the decision made by the Council of Common Interests (CCI). The war of words between the two sides, that kicked off over flood compensation, expanded to water rights on the Indus River as CM Maryam told the PPP leadership to keep its advice to itself. In response, the PPP had lawmakers stay away from parliamentary proceedings to protest the diatribe. PPP and PML-N bigwigs met in Islamabad on Wednesday to find a way out of the row, with the former asking CM Maryam to “rethink her tone” while speaking about water rights of the provinces. However, she declared a day ago that she would never apologise to the PPP over her outburst, while the latter said she did not represent the people of Punjab as her government was a byproduct of Form 47. In a statement issued today, the PPP leader said her remarks regarding the controversial canal project were a “violation o...

For the first time in Punjab, a major step has been taken in wildlife development under the directives of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif with the launch of an ostrich breeding programme.

More rain is expected in the coming days across Punjab as surveys to assess the losses and damages from the recent floods are underway, Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said on Saturday. Since June, monsoon rains across Pakistan have killed at least 1,037 people, swelling major rivers and devastating rural communities along their banks. In Punjab only, over 4.7 million people have been affected across 4,700 villages, according to the PDMA. Addressing a media briefing in Lahore today, DG Kathia said showers were expected to begin early tomorrow morning across Punjab, and continue till October 7 (Tuesday) in the northern parts. The PDMA chief said the north and northeastern regions from Rawalpindi to Lahore were likely to receive 30 to 35 millimetres of rainfall on average, while the province’s southern parts could see 5 to 10mm. He warned that the intensity of the showers would increase on October 6 and 7, with 50 to 70mm of rain anticipated in northern and nort...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Friday said that she would “never apologise” over a recent outburst which escalated into a rift between her party, the PML-N, and its coalition partner, the PPP. The war of words between the two sides — kicked off over flood compensation — expanded to water rights on the Indus River as the Punjab chief minister told the PPP leadership to keep its advice to itself. In response, the PPP, the ruling party in Sindh, had lawmakers stay away from the National Assembly and Senate sittings to protest the diatribe. On Wednesday, PPP and PML-N bigwigs met in Islamabad to find a way out of the row, with the former asking Maryam to “rethink her tone” while speaking about water rights of the provinces. Addressing a ceremony in Lahore, the Punjab CM censured the PPP for hurling “wrongful criticism” at the Punjab government amid devastating floods sweeping the country. “When floods swept through Punjab, the people of one province not only wrongly criticised the Punjab government,...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Thursday declared that safeguarding the dignity of Punjab is her foremost duty, asserting that she will never apologise for standing up for her people.

ISLAMABAD - The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday voiced serious concern over the extraordinary delay in holding local government elections in Punjab.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday voiced concern over the persistent delay in holding local government elections in Punjab.

• PPP leaders insist BISP data best suited for flood relief • Maryam says Punjab is working while other provinces are busy criticising it • 2,200 survey teams with 10,000 personnel from army, other depts deployed in the province • Azma Bokhari threatens to sue Nadeem Afzal Chan over loan claim ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: As the Punjab government on Saturday launched a survey to assess the losses caused by recent floods, the PPP urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to accept its demand for providing immediate relief to the flood-affected people through the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP). The PML-N and the PPP — coalition partners at the Centre and in Punjab — have been at odds over how to help the flood victims, with the former’s government in Punjab insisting on using its own resources, while the latter is adamant about channelling the aid through the BISP. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, PPP Secretary General Humayun Khan, Senator Palwasha Khan and the party’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa leader Muhammad Ali...

• PM doubles compensation for families of victims to Rs2m • 161,000 houses, 395 health facilities damaged in Punjab, UNOCHA says • Senate panel told deluges left 1,000 dead, millions displaced ISLAMABAD: As millions of people have been affected and hundreds of casualties reported across the country during the recent floods and monsoon rains, the prime minister has raised the ex-gratia assistance for the next of kin of those who lost their lives from Rs1 million to Rs2m. More than 4.2 million people in 18 districts of Punjab have been affected by the recent floods, with Muzaffargarh alone accounting for over a quarter of the total, according to a Rapid Needs Assessment (RNA) report released by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA). Muzaffargarh, located on the bank of the Chenab River, is followed by Jhang with 646,000 affected people (15.3 per cent), Bahawalpur with 514,000 (12.2pc), Khanewal with 397,000 (9.4pc), and Multan with 347,000 (8.2pc). Other affected distri...

Earthquake tremors were felt in several parts of Pakistan, including Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad, on Friday morning.

The federal government has approved the deployment of the Pakistan Army in Punjab to assist in assessing flood damages across the province.

LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday said that the Punjab government would enact new law aimed at eliminating land grabbing, particularly from orphans, widows, and underprivileged citizens across the province.

• Rs1m for destroyed, Rs500,000 for partially damaged houses • Farmers to receive Rs20,000 per acre of submerged land, Rs500,000 for each head of cattle lost • ‘Relief cards’ planned to avoid long queues at aid centres • Jalalpur residents say govt focused on saving motorway, neglecting villages • Dozens of Jamshoro villages affected; funeral procession negotiates floodwaters in Manjhand LAHORE / DADU: The Punjab government on Tuesday announced a relief package for people affected by recent floods, but stopped short of giving a date for its distribution. “A sum of Rs1 million will be given to the owner of a destroyed house and Rs500,000 for partially damaged houses,” Punjab Inform­ation Minister Azma Bokhari told a press conference. She said that farmers whose land had been submerged would receive Rs20,000 per acre, while compensation of Rs500,000 would be provided for each cow or buffalo lost. “All these payments are being made from the Punjab government’s own resources without seeking external aid,” she sai...

National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik visited flood-affected areas of Punjab on Tuesday, where he reviewed ongoing relief operations and assessed the scale of damage.

The devastation caused by ongoing floods continues to grip Punjab, as wheat worth millions of rupees was destroyed in Multan and a widow with six children was left homeless in Uch Sharif after losing her husband and belongings to the floodwaters.

The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) has arrested 89 terrorists in 940 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) launched across Punjab over the past three months, the department said in a statement on Monday. There has been a recent uptick in terror attacks in Pakistan over the past year. The CTD regularly carries out operations to prevent and investigate terrorism-related activities and gather intelligence. During the three months, 14 terrorists were arrested in Lahore, 14 in Rawalpindi, seven each in Faisalabad and Bahawalpur, six each in Jhang and Sargodha, five in Sahiwal, four from Gujranwala and three each from Bahawalnagar and Gujrat, the statement read. “Of the arrested terrorists, 55 belong to Fitna al Khawarij, five are from ISIS (Islamic State), and two each are from Al-Qaeda, Hizb-ut-Tahrir and Jeay Sindh,” the statement added. The state uses the term Fitna al Khawarij to refer to terrorists of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). According to the CTD, items seized during the raids include 2...

Flooding in the Sutlej River continues to devastate southern Punjab, destroying hundreds of homes, displacing families, and claiming lives across multiple districts.

Seven people, including five children, died when the roof of a room in a house collapsed in the Farooq Azam neighbourhood of Punjab’s Hafizabad district on Saturday, according to police. Hafizabad District Police Officer (DPO) Atif Nazir Kadhar said in a statement that a woman and her son were holding tuition classes in the affected house when the room’s roof collapsed. “As a result, the woman, her son and five children who were taking tuition classes died.” The statement said DPO Kadhar reached the site after receiving information about the incident and oversaw the rescue work. According to data shared by the Rescue 1122, one child also suffered a critical head injury in the incident. Last month, three members of a family died after the roof of their under-construction house caved-in in the Islampura locality of Nankana Sahib in Punjab. Earlier in July, two children had died and two other were injured when the roof of a house collapsed in Lahore’s Badami Bagh. The incident had taken place reportedly due to t...

LAHORE: The Punjab government’s support for a controversial YouTuber — who recently sparked outrage with remarks aimed at Sindh — has not only angered the PPP but also triggered a war of words between the two coalition partners on social media. A Senate standing committee recently summoned YouTuber Rizwan Razi, also known as Razi Dada, and grilled him for making derogatory remarks about the people of Sindh. The panel subsequently directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to block his YouTube channel over what it termed “hate speech” against the people of Sindh. Committee members also questioned how a presenter who appeared on the state-run PTV News could make such remarks on his personal YouTube channel. In one of his recent vlogs, Razi considered close to the CM made unsavoury, racist remarks. CM Maryam backs Razi’s apology after PPP terms his remarks a slight to Sindh However, the Punjab government and Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz openly came out in support of Razi, with a social media campaign...

• Despite official denials, checkpoints set up at province’s exit points to curtail movement • Flour prices in KP jump 68pc; 20kg bag hits Rs2,800 • KP Assembly passes unanimous resolution against Punjab’s move LAHORE: Punjab’s unannounced ban on the interprovincial movement of wheat has ignited a new crisis, causing a severe flour shortage and soaring prices in other provinces. The move has drawn sharp criticism from politicians and flour millers who argue it violates constitutional rights and a recent deregulation agreement. While Punjab officials de­n­ied a formal ban, they acknowledged establishing checkpoints to curb what they termed “unusual” whe­at movement. Critics, however, argued that these mea­sures are against the spirit of a deregulated market. The ban has been met with strong condemnation from other provinces, particularly Khyber Pakhtu­nkhwa and Sindh, which heavily depend on Punj­ab’s wheat supply. The All-Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA) has labelled the policy unconstitutional, citing...