Pakistan

Communication lines restored as relentless rains cut off Quetta

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Quetta’s internet, mobile phone services, electricity fully restored.
Air, railway routes closed; Pakistan’s death toll crosses 930.
“Affected voice, data services in Balochistan restored,” PTA says.

Relentless rains continued to pound Quetta on Friday, leaving Balochistan’s capital cut off from the rest of the country, however, communication lines were restored in the city after being cut for nearly 24 hours.

“Affected voice and data services in Balochistan have been restored,” the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) announced on its official Twitter handle.

Affected voice and data services in Balochistan have been restored. https://t.co/Y4r00hOu9O
— PTA (@PTAofficialpk) August 26, 2022

Earlier, the telecommunication authority said that due to torrential rains and flash floods, the company’s optical fibre cable had been damaged.

“The PTA said that voice and data services have been impacted in Quetta, Ziarat, Khuzdar, Loralai, Pashin, Chaman, Panjgor, Zhob, Qila Saifullah, and Qila Abdullah.

Severe overnight rains hampered rescue efforts, and caused internet and mobile phone service outages, aside from disrupting the city’s air and land routes.

A key railway bridge which connects Quetta to other parts of Pakistan collapsed and flight operations to and from the provincial capital’s airport were also suspended.

The railway bridge collapsed near the Mach area in the Bolan district in the early hours of Thursday, which also suspended trade with Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey, a Pakistan Railways official said.

The rail bridge linking Quetta with rest of Pakistan(between Hirok-Dozan stations) has been damaged due to high flash floods leaving train operations suspended .Hope it will be repaired soon by Pakistan Railways. pic.twitter.com/p4GibY5YpA
— Nazia Jabeen (@NazeeaJabeen) August 25, 2022

“Authorities have launched efforts to repair the bridge that was built by the British in 1885,” the official added.

In light of the rapidly worsening situation, the city administration issued a flood warning and asked people to contact two emergency numbers — 03368186794 and 03361187348 — in case of need.

Unfortunately, with no electricity since last night, police personnel and civil administration are not reachable on the issued numbers.

Pakistan Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) official Faisal Tariq said that hundreds were stranded due to floods after the heavy rains, however, rescue efforts were underway to take people to safe places.

Over 930 dead, more than 670,000 houses damaged

In its latest report on the rain-related damage, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) revealed that 34 more people died during the last 24 hours.

As a result of the fresh death toll, the total countrywide count has risen to 937 during this monsoon season, while 1,343 were injured after the new tally of injuries.

Quetta: Many areas are flooded after continuous rain, alerts issued.#Balochistan pic.twitter.com/q72UuHClyw
— Asim Ahmed khan (@leokhanasim) August 25, 2022

The report stated that more than 670,000 houses were damaged while nearly 800,000 animals died in the floods. It added that Tarbela Dam is filled to capacity while Chashma Barrage was about to be filled.

Business

Price of LPG “slashed” by Rs. 20 per kilogram

Published

18 hours ago

Farwa

Sources claim that LPG rates have been lowered by Rs 20, making the cost per kilogram drop from Rs 280 to Rs 260.

It is noteworthy to remark that the costs of LPG were reduced by Rs 20 per kilogram earlier, resulting in a total reduction of Rs 40 per kilogram within a few weeks.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas for the month of May 2024 was lowered by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on April 30.

The LPG tariffs were lowered by Rs 11.88 to Rs 238.46 per kilogram in accordance with the OGRA’s notice. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the new rates will go into effect.

In April of last year, the price per kilogram of LPG was Rs 250.34. pricing reduction of Rs 140.18 has resulted in a new pricing for home LPG cylinders set for May 2024 of Rs 2813.85.

The OGRA reported a drop in liquefied petroleum gas pricing in April. The price of LPG is now Rs 250.34 per kg instead of Rs 256.78 due to a reduction of Rs 6.44 per kg.

The price of the household cylinder was fixed at Rs 2954.03 for the month of April, down from Rs 3030.12, a decrease of Rs 76.9.

Business

ADB delegation stops by FBR headquarters

Published

18 hours ago

Farwa

Senior Director ADB Tariq Niazi oversaw the expedition, which also involved Sana Masood, Farzana Noshab, and Senior Public Sector Management Specialist Laisiasa Tora. The meeting included presentations from economists as well, according to an FBR press release.

The officers focused on structural and policy adjustments as they discussed the Domestic Resource Mobilization Program’s implementation at the meeting.

$300 million was given to the Pakistani government by ADB in December 2023 as a result of the hard work and dedication of FBR. Better laws, regulations, and institutional capability for the FBR were established by Sub-Program I.

With the $300 million in funding provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to the Government of Pakistan in December 2023, the delegation conveyed satisfaction with the program’s effective launch.

The FBR also underlined how crucial digitization is to recording the economy and boosting productivity in a sustainable way.

In order to promote the Government of Pakistan’s Digital Tax Administration Project, both parties decided to look into measures to improve their cooperation.

Latest News

Off-duty police in Islamabad are prohibited from donning uniforms.

Published

19 hours ago

Farwa

The new directives, according to specifics, were sent via wireless by the federal capital police and state that no officer may wear a uniform when reporting for duty or leaving it.

According to the police official, uniforms will only be worn when on duty; otherwise, two policemen will accompany each other during duty hours and will always be required to carry guns.

A different development was the earlier release of an app by the Islamabad Police with the goal of improving crime prevention and public safety.

Launched on the orders of former Interior Minister Sarfraz Akbar Bugti, the recently released ICT-15 app aims to empower the people of the capital city by giving them the ability to actively engage in the battle against crime and protect their areas.

Residents of Islamabad can now easily download and utilize the ICT-15 app because it is easily accessible on the Google Play Store.

Citizens can report a variety of issues with this easy-to-use application, such as incidents, unlawful behavior, complaints against law enforcement, the presence of undocumented people, or any suspicious criminal activity.

The police promise quick reaction times as soon as information is reported using the app, so assistance will be provided as quickly as feasible.