Pakistan

‘No need to look at anything negatively’: Pakistan responds to Modi’s US visit

Published

11 months ago

Farwa

Pakistan has belligerent neighbour who indulged in military adventurism, says Khar.
“World must see whether India waned conflict preservation or resolution.”
It must decide if those propagated for role in regional security deserved it: Khar.

Commenting on the Indian Prime Minister’s visit to the US, Minister of State Hina Rabbani Khar said that Pakistan would always look positively at bilateral ties between sovereign countries and not view them in a negative light.

“There is no need to look at anything negatively,” she said in an interview with Voice of America (VoA).

However, she maintained Pakistan had a very belligerent neighbour who indulged in military adventurism by sending jets to Pakistan in 2019, terming the move “unprecedented” and “unthinkable”.

The state minister said the world must look into this factor and decide whether those being propagated for a role in regional security deserved it.

“The world has to see whether there was conflict preservation instead conflict resolution due to them (India), then it did not augur well for the region. We hope that nothing will go wrong for the region and Pakistan,” she remarked.

The Indian PM is currently in the US for his first visit with the full diplomatic status of an official state visit.

The visit is also the third state visit of Joe Biden’s presidency and the third by an Indian leader to the US, indicating the strengthening bond between Washington and New Delhi.

The visit is expected to see the two countries expand cooperation in the defence industry and high technology sectors, with India getting access to critical American technologies that Washington rarely shares with non-allies.

The visit, however, puts Pakistan in a precarious position given its strained ties with India.

Over the years, Washington’s cooperation with India has increased as Pakistan has gotten closer to China — especially after the latter’s investment in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Ties with EU

About ties with the EU, the state minister said Pakistan’s Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) status was not sufficient to define the country’s relations with the EU as their bilateral engagements were wider and broader at all levels, including business contacts, institutional linkages, IT sector growth etc.

She said the GSP Plus benefited Pakistan and enhanced the EU’s trade with Pakistan, adding that Pakistan and the EU countries were engaged at different multilateral fora.

The MoS further stressed that such relations should not be looked at merely through the GSP Plus lens, but their interactions were much broader.

About her recent visits to different Scandinavian countries, she elaborated that certain countries had an ageing population and required young people for various sectors.

She said opening legal migration of skilled labour to these countries was their primary objective, as Pakistan and these countries did not want to promote illegal migration.

Business

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

Published

2 days 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

2 days 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

2 days 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.