Punjab | Pakistan

Air pollution across Punjab has reached alarming levels, with Faisalabad emerging as the most polluted city in the province on Friday.

• Despite Imran’s instructions not to air dirty laundry in public, Salman Akram Raja and Aliya Hamza engage in ‘Twitter war’ over decision to remove party’s central Punjab president and secretary • Dispute between senior lawyers over list of who gets to meet Imran in Adiala leaves many within the party red-faced LAHORE: Mere weeks after incarcerated founder Imr­an Khan warned party leaders against airing their dirty laundry in public, ano­ther tiff — this time over the leadership of PTI in central Punjab — has erupted over the social media platform X, in full public view. In a telling series of tweets on Thursday, Secretary Gene­ral Salman Akram Raja railed against those who were “conspiring against him”, and recalled that Mr Khan had personally tasked him with conveying messages from Adiala jail. Although he didn’t explain the issue at hand, a cursory glance at his earlier tweets and messages posted by other PTI leaders laid bare the dispute. The controversy centres around the ouster of PTI Cen­tral Punjab P...

The provincial capital once again earned the dubious distinction of being the world’s most polluted city on Thursday, as a dense blanket of toxic smog engulfed large parts of Punjab, severely affecting air quality and visibility.

Lahore once again ranked as the world’s most polluted city, recording an alarming Air Quality Index (AQI) of 308, as smog continued to blanket Punjab and other parts of the country.

Polluted winds drifting from India continue to smother Punjab’s major cities, propelling Lahore, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala to the top of global air pollution charts.

Punjab continued to face severe smog conditions on Sunday as Gujranwala was recorded as the most polluted city in the province with an alarming Air Quality Index (AQI) of 562, ARY News reported.

• KP says ‘ban’ on inter-provincial movement of commodity violates Article 151(1) • Warns of shortages, risks to food security • Sindh accuses Punjab of halting supply of wheat seed; seeks PM’s intervention PESHAWAR / KARACHI: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Thursday asked Punjab to withdraw restrictions on the inter-provincial movement of wheat and flour, warning that the curbs are disrupting supply chains, increasing prices and threatening food security in the province. Meanwhile, the PPP leadership in Sindh also lashed out at the Punjab government, accusing it of restricting the supply of wheat seed. In a letter to his Punjab counterpart, KP’s food secretary said that lifting the ban was critical to res­t­oring a smooth supply chain, stabilising market prices, and safeguarding his province’s food security. The letter said KP, a wheat-deficient province, depends on inter-provincial supplies from Punjab to meet its requirements — roughly 14,500 tonnes per day. “The prevailing restrictions have severely ...

ISLAMABAD - The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) yesterday clarified that the local government elections in Punjab will be conducted soon after the completion of the delimitation process.

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has requested that the Punjab government withdraw “restrictive measures” on the inter-provincial movement of wheat and wheat products, citing a “sharp escalation” in the prices of the essential commodity in the province. The development comes a day after the KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi condemned the Punjab’s “move” to restrict the transportation of wheat and flour to KP while chairing a meeting. The KP CM termed the move “a blatant violation of the Constitution and an attack on the rights of KP citizens,” and directed food authorities to write a letter to relevant bodies in Punjab. In the aftermath of floods, the Punjab government began tightening controls on the inter-provincial movement of wheat and flour through a permit regime to curb price hikes within the province — a move that has particularly been denounced by KP amid soaring prices and wheat shortage. In a letter addressed to secretary price control & commodities management department, Punjab, the KP food de...

Peshawar - Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Muhammad Sohail Afridi, has strongly condemned Punjab government’s move to restrict transportation of wheat and flour, calling it a blatant violation of the Constitution and an attack on the rights of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

ISLAMABAD - The top election regulatory body yesterday once again gave the Punjab province a four-week deadline to complete new delimitations for the upcoming local government polls in the province.

LG polls: ECP grants Punjab a month

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has given the Punjab government a four-week deadline to complete new delimitations for the upcoming local government elections in the province.

Imperial College London has refuted the Punjab government’s claims that it is opening a campus at the Nawaz Sharif IT City in Lahore, saying that all of its campuses are based in the United Kingdom (UK). On October 18, the PML-N had posted on its official X account about a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. The post said that a campus of Imperial College London would open at the Nawaz Sharif IT City, adding that the foundation stone would be laid in November. “A modern 300-bed hospital will also be built within the college campus,” it said. In a separate post on X, Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb had also made a similar statement about the meeting chaired by the chief minister. “A campus of Imperial College London will be established in the Nawaz Sharif IT City which will also include a state-of-the-art 300-bed hospital and its foundation stone will be laid in November,” she had said. The post has since been deleted. Screenshot of post made by Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aura...

ISLAMABAD - The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) yesterday once again cancelled the scheduled local government elections in Punjab, as now the LG polls in the province will be held under the newly enacted Punjab Local Government Act 2025.

Punjab law 'compels' ECP to annul LG polls

Seed Association warns of severe shortages as Punjab authorities block interprovincial wheat seed movement

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Huzaifa Rehman said on Tuesday that the Centre has asked the Punjab government to arrange a meeting between KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and PTI founder Imran Khan to facilitate the formation of the provincial cabinet. Imran, imprisoned since August 2023, is serving a sentence at Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case and also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act related to the May 9 protests. The PTI has regularly raised concerns about the lack of access to the party founder and how family, friends and party leaders are hindered from meeting him. Afridi, who was elected as the provincial chief minister last week, was denied a meeting with Imran during a visit to the prison on Thursday. Speaking to reporters, he said he would announce his cabinet after consulting Imran and seeking his input. He claimed he had officially notified the Punjab government and the federal government of his plan to visit Adiala, but received no response, adding that Prim...

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari claimed on Tuesday that three civilians were killed during the operation in Muridke that dispersed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) protesters. The TLP, which began a protest march in Lahore earlier this month, was planning to reach Islamabad and stage a demonstration in support of Gaza and Palestine outside the US embassy. The march and sit-in, which reached Muridke, quickly turned into violent clashes between protesters and police before the protesters were dispersed, leading to a crackdown on the party and its supporters. Addressing a press conference in Lahore today, the Punjab information minister said “false stories” were being perpetuated about the operation in Muridke. “Three civilians were martyred in Muridke. These were people who were passing by or standing off to the side,” she said, adding that 48 civilians and 110 police officers were also injured. Eighteen out of 110 have sustained firearm injuries, she said. The minister also said that police vans had b...

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has decided to conduct upcoming local government elections in Punjab under the newly approved Local Government Act, replacing the 2022 framework.