Pakistan

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KARACHI: The Sindh government has cancelled the construction contract for the long-delayed Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Red Line project on University Road and will re-award it on an “emergency basis”, Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon confirmed on Wednesday. The government cancelled the contract for the Mosamiyat–Numaish section of the project. The stalled construction on the Red Line resumed in November after the removal of several bottlenecks following the chief minister’s intervention, but there is still no clear timeline in sight for the project’s completion as thousands of University Road commuters continue to face daily hardships. Speaking to Dawn, Memon confirmed that the contract had been terminated due to delays in the project’s execution by the contractor. He said the contractor was issued several warnings to complete the work within the stipulated time, but failed to comply. The government, he added, tried its level best to accommodate the contractor by resolving issues related to rate escalation. M...

ISLAMABAD: Amid public outcry over expensive power and excessive loadshedding, the government on Wednesday announced that it had unearthed expensive power purchases by distribution companies (Discos) outside the national grid at exorbitant rates in violation of the economic merit order. According to an official statement, the Discos were purchasing electricity from small power producers (SPPs) and captive power plants (CPPs) through bilateral contracts at higher rates than the national tariff, bypassing the national grid and the Independent System and Market Operator (ISMO). It added that the names of the Discos and the quantum of power purchasing were not disclosed to allow an independent inquiry to take its course. The statement said that Power Minister Awais Leghari took notice regarding the off-take of power from SPPs by Discos, exceeding the national merit order and ordered the initiation of an independent probe. “The matter was revealed during the stock-taking of Discos and ISMO,” it said. Per the state...

ISLAMABAD: In an apparent push to modernise border control and cut wait time for travellers, Pakistan appears to be moving towards a “one-window” airport clearance system using e-gates and smart scanners, with a joint strategy by the Ministries of Defence and Interior coming under detailed discussion on Wednesday. The plan comes amid growing international passenger traffic and repeated complaints of congestion at major airports. In 2025, Pakistan handled 25.4 million domestic and international passengers, up 12 per cent year-on-year, according to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data. On Wednesday, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi chaired a high-level meeting to address the dual challenge of facilitating outbound passengers while strengthening checks against human smuggling. The meeting was attended by Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry, Interior Secretary Muhammad Khurram Agha, Defence Secretary Lt Gen (Retd) Muhammad Ali, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) DG Dr Usman Anwar and other officials. ...

Defence and Aviation Minister Khawaja Asif has announced the resumption of domestic operations by Fly Jinnah, marking a significant development in Pakistan’s aviation sector.

The Government of Punjab has unveiled plans to introduce an e-bike scheme for teachers, aiming to provide an affordable and efficient commuting solution across the province.

Schools in India’s capital must ring regular bells to remind schoolchildren to drink water as the megacity gears up to face heatwave conditions, a new city order has said. Summer heat in the world’s most populous nation can be brutal — putting millions of people at risk, with nearly 11,000 people dying due to heat stroke between 2012 and 2021, according to government data. A heatwave in May 2024 in New Delhi saw temperatures match the capital’s previous record high: 49.2 degree Celsius clocked in 2022. That year was India’s hottest year since thorough records began in 1901, with sizzling temperatures following a global pattern of extreme weather driven by climate change. The temperature on Wednesday morning in New Delhi and the wider sprawling metropolitan region of 30 million residents was a relatively balmy 29.4 degree Celsius. But weather forecasters predict temperatures will hit 41-43 degree Celsius later on Wednesday, and rise to 42-44 degree Celsius later in the week. The India Meteorological Department...

China has selected two Pakistani astronauts as candidates for its manned space programme, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Wednesday. Both will travel to China for training, and one will participate in a flight mission as a payload specialist and become the first foreign astronaut in China’s space station, CCTV said. Meanwhile, China Daily reported on Wednesday that the astronauts were identified as Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud. The report said the two had passed multiple rounds of selection procedures and will soon come to China to take part in spaceflight training. It quoted the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) as saying that the selection and training of Pakistani astronauts was a “landmark event in the history of China’s space industry”. Separately, in a statement issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Pakistan’s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) said the astronauts were set to depart for China to “begin advanced astronaut training at the Astronaut Centre...

Abdul Aleem Khan has welcomed the signing of a strategic agreement between the Asian Development Bank and the National Highway Authority for the construction of the M6 Motorway, linking Karachi to Sukkur.

Pakistan has announced plans to modernise air traffic management at its two busiest aviation hubs, Jinnah International Airport and Allama Iqbal International Airport, in an effort to strengthen safety standards and improve operational performance.

Since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war on Iran, colourful murals have sprung up across Tehran and other major cities, rich in symbolism and themes of resistance and defiance. Murals and banners have long been a defining feature of Iran’s urban landscape, particularly in Tehran, where such paintings in central squares mirror the state’s political messaging and foreign policy. This photo taken on April 8, 2026 shows a woman walking past an anti-USA and anti-Israel mural, in Tehran. — AFP/File Since the 1979 revolution, which established the Islamic republic, such imagery has served as a medium to reflect ideology and collective memory. This photo taken on April 11, 2026 shows women walking past a wall mural along the roadside in Tehran. — AFP/File This photo taken on April 12, 2026 shows people walking past a wall mural along the roadside in Tehran. — AFP/File In recent days, a mural in Tehran showed a US aircraft carrier carrying rows of coffins draped in American flags, surrounded by small Iranian-flagged b...

Indonesia on Wednesday accused Israel of flying a “propaganda” banner over the ruins of a hospital that had been built in Gaza with Indonesian funding. The Indonesia Hospital, in the north of the Gaza Strip near the fortified border with Israel, was opened in late 2015 after Indonesia’s Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, a humanitarian NGO, raised approximately $7.3 million in donations for its construction, according to state news agency Antara. It has since been destroyed, and Jakarta on Wednesday objected to the raising of a banner over the ruins that alluded to Israel’s 12-day “Rising Lion” military operation against Iran last year. “The use of military symbols and propaganda over the ruins of a destroyed hospital, especially when linked to a specific military operation, is a highly provocative act and cannot be justified,” the foreign ministry said in a statement posted on X. “This act is an insult to a humanitarian facility built from the solidarity of the Indonesian people for the Palestinian people.”...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday directed that efforts for promoting electric vehicles (EVs) in the country be accelerated. He expressed these views while chairing a review meeting on promoting electric vehicles in the country, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement. “In view of the prevailing regional situation and the requirements of the future, the promotion of EVs will not only reduce the fuel import bill, but it is also extremely important for protecting the environment and energy security,” the prime minister was quoted as saying. According to the statement, the prime minister directed that transparency be ensured in the subsidy provided on electric motorcycles for low-income individuals under the National Electric Vehicle Policy. It added that the meeting was also briefed on ongoing steps to promote EVs nationwide. The meeting was told that 72 certificates were issued for the manufacturing electric motorcycles and rickshaws, while four certificates were issued for the manufactu...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to accelerate efforts for the promotion of electric vehicles (EVs) across Pakistan as part of a strategy to reduce the country’s fuel import bill.

A senior New Zealand minister has sparked outrage by deriding a planned free trade deal with India as a “butter chicken tsunami”. Wellington is poised to sign a free trade agreement with India in New Delhi next week. The New Zealand government has hailed it as a “once in a generation” deal that will give its businesses access to the world’s most populated country’s vast domestic market. But its ruling coalition partner, the right-wing populist NZ First party, has pulled support over fears it will open the country’s borders to thousands of Indian nationals. The split will mean the government will need the opposition Labour Party to vote in favour when legislation goes before parliament in the coming months. On Monday, the party’s deputy leader and Minister for Regional Development, Shane Jones, said his party would “never accept” the deal. “I don’t care how much criticism we get, I am just never going to agree with a butter chicken tsunami coming to New Zealand,” Jones told Reality Check Radio. The comments we...

Last year, my plans to celebrate Eid in Iran were dismantled by the sudden escalation of regional aggression. What was meant to be a personal pilgrimage became a casualty of geopolitics. Yet, in a twist of fate this past September, I found myself touching down at Tehran’s IKA Airport, not for a holiday, but as an invitee to the “Nobel of the Muslim World” or the Mustafa (PBUH) Prize granted to top science and technology researchers from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation member states. The September 6 to 10, 2025, award week is organised by the Mustafa (PBUH) Science and Technology Foundation, which stands as a testament to the enduring power of human inquiry. I had expected it to be a sombre affair. The mystics of Qom I was keen to visit the holy city of Qom before the events kicked off and so the organisers assigned me guides, two cheerful women, who led me through its striking salt ranges and mineral-dense rainbow rocks. Qom greets you with pristine air and radiance. It was a Friday so the city was mo...

A surge in temperatures has gripped several parts of Pakistan, with the mercury rising above 40°C in areas of Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab.

Federal Minister for Information Attaullah Tarar hit out at India over the Pahalgam attack, calling it a "false flag operation" that indicates what he relates as a "hollow and irrational mindset.

Nasa unveiled a new telescope on Wednesday to scan vast swathes of the universe for planets outside our solar system and probe the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy. The Roman space telescope is expected to discover tens of thousands of planets, possibly offering clarity about how many could be out there. “Roman will give the Earth a new atlas of the universe,” Nasa administrator Jared Isaacman told a news conference at the Goddard Space Flight Centre in Maryland, where the telescope went on display. The 12-metre (39-feet) silvery contraption with massive solar panels will be transported to Florida ahead of a launch into space aboard a SpaceX rocket planned for September at the earliest. Roman, which took more than $4 billion and over a decade to build, is named after astronomer Nancy Grace Roman, nicknamed the “Mother of Hubble” for her role in developing the landmark space telescope. Thirty-six years after Hubble launched into space, revolutionising astronomical observations, Nasa hopes Roman will he...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has taken strong notice of a sudden surge in crime across the province and convened an emergency meeting to address the situation.