Punjab | Pakistan

LAHORE: Responding to traders’ protests and appeals by the shopping malls association and general public to revise 8pm business closure timings, the Punjab government has granted partial relief and lifted the restriction on market timings until June 1. The implementation and coordination wing of the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD), the Punjab government on Friday notified that “all the shops, markets, shopping malls, hotels, restaurants and food outlets are exempted from the prescribed closure timings till June 1, 2026”. On April 6, the federal government had announced that all markets across the country, barring Sindh, would close by 8pm throughout the week as part of energy conservation measures amid a global fuel crisis triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran. Complying with the federal government’s decision, Punjab notified that all shops, markets and shopping malls shall be closed at 8pm, including Saturday and Sunday. However, the government had exempted pharmacies, medical stores...

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan on Friday blamed provincial governments for delays in the completion of various highway projects. Presiding over a National Highway Authority (NHA) review meeting, the minister issued a decisive mandate to accelerate the completion of critical infrastructure, signalling a shift toward federal intervention where provincial commitments have faltered. Expressing formal dissatisfaction with the progress of projects involving the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments, Khan noted that delays would no longer be tolerated, as these delays were impeding progress on many vital projects. He specifically highlighted that after waiting for over five months for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to fund the Peshawar Northern Bypass, the NHA decided to complete the project independently if provincial funds were not released. Khan also observed that the Punjab government had remained unable to deliver its promised share for the Rawalpindi-Kahuta project, prom...

LAHORE: After the arrest of drug dealer Anmol alias Pinky by Sindh Police, her appearance in a Karachi court whose video went viral on mainstream as well as social media and her revelations during the investigation, Punjab police have also woken up to three old cases allegedly registered against her and her brothers in Lahore several years ago and are reportedly planning to seek custody of the woman from Sindh. On the other hand, the arrest and investigation have put the Punjab Police under the scanner as it transpired that officers in the CIA (now the Crime Control Department) had taken bribes and avoided arresting Anmol, who was nominated in three cases. The FIRs were registered with Liaqatabad Police Station in 2019, Iqbal Town Police Station in 2020 and Kot Lakhpat Police in 2022, nominating Anmol and her two brothers, Nasir and Riaz Baloch. The 2022 FIR clearly stated that the police, during a raid on Jan 6, rounded up a black SUV at Shadab Colony, following the intelligence reports that it was smuggling...

LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Thursday ordered the installation of safety nets beneath manhole covers across Punjab as part of a province-wide drive to improve public safety and urban infrastructure.

LAHORE: Punjab has decided to include the four-day war between Pakistan and India — Marka-i-Haq — in the national curriculum and make films on it. The decision was taken in a meeting of the Information Steering Committee with Punjab Information and Culture Minister Azma Bokhari in the chair here on Wednesday. “To instil a spirit of patriotism among the younger generation, the content related to Marka-i-Haq will be incorporated into the academic curriculum. Besides, the programmes related to it (Marka-i-Haq) and national unity would be held in private educational institutions with the same enthusiasm as that of the public,” the minister said. The four-day armed conflict between Pakistan and India in May last year marked one of the most serious military escalations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours in recent years. Tensions erupted after a militant attack in Indian-occupied Kashmir, which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan-based elements, an allegation Islamabad denied. Films on war narrative will also be prod...

LAHORE: The Punjab chief minister’s office has refused a lawyer’s requests, made under the right to information law, for details of vehicles in incumbent provincial chief executive Maryam Nawaz’s use, her foreign visits and a luxury plane acquired by the Punjab government. The right to information (RTI) in Pakistan is enshrined as a fundamental right under Article 19-A of the Constitution, designed to empower citizens with access to government-held information. Lawyer Abdullah Malik had submitted two applications with the Public Information Commission (PIC) in July last year and in February this year. In his letter in July 2025, he sought the following details: Expenditure under the heads of fuel, maintenance of vehicles and tours, including international visits Total number of vehicles and their make, model and cast Expenditure on helicopter or aircraft used by the CM and its total mileage of travel Total number of social media team members at the CM House, along with their salaries Whether the CM got the ap...

Suicide bomber killed on Punjab border

The Government of Punjab has approved a new policy introducing a special motorcycle permit system for teenagers aged between 16 and 18 years.

The Punjab School Education Department is expected to begin summer vacations in government schools across Punjab from May 25, according to official sources.

Sardar Saleem Haider Khan has signed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill 2026 into law, introducing major changes to traffic regulations in Punjab, including reduced fines and the abolition of imprisonment for several driving offences.

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has issued an advisory to government departments regarding expected weather conditions in Punjab during May and the following two months.

LAHORE - Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has said that Punjab is entering a golden era of development by the grace of Almighty Allah.

ISLAMABAD: PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja on Wednesday maintained that the formation of the Punjab Coordination and Monitoring Committee would not be discussed, as the party leadership planned to raise the issue in the upcoming party meeting. The composition of the aforementioned committee has been a subject of internal rift within the party, with leaders opposing the nomination of Amjad Khan Niazi as the convenor of the body, as he had parted ways with the party in the wake of May 9, 2023, protests. A senior PTI leader, on condition of anonymity, told Dawn that a number of party leaders believe that the newly formed body was nothing but an attempt to “occupy” the party in Punjab. His claim referred to the committee’s terms of reference, which include the task of coordinating organisational matters between Punjab’s four regions through engagement with their presidents and general secretaries. PTI’s Punjab chapter comprises four regions — Central, West, North and South — each led by its respective pre...

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority, Punjab, has issued a warning about an intense heatwave likely to affect the province from May 7 to 11.

Punjab has taken a major step in the insurance sector, launching what officials describe as an “insurance revolution” with the introduction of a new general insurance company, making it the first province in Pakistan to do so.

LAHORE: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) on Tuesday launched a crackdown on ‘anti-state’ social media activities, arresting 13 individuals in Punjab. “In a province-wide crackdown against anti-state social media activities, the NCCIA has arrested 13 individuals from different cities of Punjab during the last couple of weeks,” a spokesperson for NCCIA told Dawn. He said the crackdown has been launched on the instructions of NCCIA Punjab Director Muhammad Ali Waseem, who recently took charge. Those arrested were involved in running a campaign against the state, particularly the army and government functionaries, across various social media platforms, he added. Two of them were also allegedly involved in posting content targeting Gulf countries. The arrested suspects have been booked under different sections of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016. According to the spokesperson, social media activists Usman, Qamar, Abbas, and Tahir Mushtaq have been arrested from Lahore; Hami...

• Establishment Division transfers ‘encadred’ officers, many of whom are close to retirement, to KP and Balochistan • Under rotation policy, these postings were supposed to go to younger officers • IGP says matter will be taken up with Islamabad • Estab secretary claims rotation policy ‘suspended’ at provinces’ request LAHORE: The Establish­ment Division has transferred 10 police officers from Punjab to ‘hard areas’ in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan for a mandatory period of one year, despite concerns about their advanced age and health, Dawn has learnt. The term ‘hard areas’ refers to designated regions in the country that are recognised for being challenging to live or work in due to factors like rem­oteness, lack of infrastructure, harsh terrain, or security thr­eats. Officers posted to these areas are usually given incentives, such as a special allowance. A senior police officer told Dawn that in line with the policy announced by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, younger officers were previously posted t...

The Health & Population Department of Government of Punjab Health & Population Department has announced an internship programme under the Directorate of Drugs Control for PharmD students, graduates, and postgraduates from public sector universities across Punjab.

The government of Punjab has launched Pakistan’s first virtual women police station, aimed at making it easier for women to report harassment and seek protection.

MUZAFFARGARH - Maryam Nawaz Sharif has emerged as a prominent trendsetter in Punjab through her visionary “Clean and Green Punjab” initiative, which continues to inspire impactful reforms across the province.