Sindh | Pakistan

KARACHI: The Sindh government announced on Thursday that classes would be held six days a week at schools and colleges in the province from August 1 until further notice. The decision was announced in two separate notifications issued by the Sindh Education and Literacy Department and the College Education Department. In its notification, seen by Dawn and dated July 29, the Education and Literacy Department said: “In supercession of this department’s notification of even number dated March 31, 2026, it is hereby notified that all public and private educational institutions under the administrative control of the School and Literacy Education Department, Government of Sindh, shall observe a six-day working week (Monday to Saturday) with effect from August 1, 2026 till further orders.” Similarly, the notification issued by the College Education Department, issued on July 30 and seen by Dawn, stated: “In supercession of this department’s notification of even number dated March 31, 2026, it is hereby notified tha...

KARACHI: The Sindh government announced on Thursday that schools and colleges in the province would have six-day work weeks from August 1 until further notice. The decision was announced in two separate notifications issued by the Sindh Education and Literacy Department and the College Education Department. In its notification, seen by Dawn and dated July 29, the Education and Literacy Department said: “In supercession of this department’s notification of even number dated March 31, 2026, it is hereby notified that all public and private educational institutions under the administrative control of the School and Literacy Education Department, Government of Sindh, shall observe a six-day working week (Monday to Saturday) with effect from August 1, 2026 till further orders.” Similarly, the notification issued by the College Education Department, issued on July 30 and seen by Dawn, stated: “In supercession of this department’s notification of even number dated March 31, 2026, it is hereby notified that all publi...

The holiday will apply to all provincial government offices operating under administrative control of the Sindh

WHILE the killing of suspected criminals in alleged encounters is not a new phenomenon, it is rare in Karachi for arrested suspects to be brought to raids to arrest their accomplices and for them to end up dead “by firing from their own accomplices”. Thursday’s killing of three suspects, who were arrested recently for murdering a doctor during a robbery in Clifton, in a “shoot-out” between police and their alleged accomplices gives rise to the impression that Sindh police are now gradually moving towards the Punjab Crime Control Department’s (CCD) style of “dispensing justice”, which has been quite infamous for such encounters. Dawn reached out to several top officials for comments, but they declined to go on record. However, in background conversations, they said this was partly due to “frustration with the criminal justice system” and partly to prevent “the entry of criminals from Punjab” into Sindh, particularly Karachi. They said several suspects had fled the CCD operations in Lahore and came to Karachi, ...

Railway authorities on Monday partially restored the down track following the derailment of a freight train between Tando Adam and Wahab Shah railway station in Sindh, allowing train operations to resume at a restricted speed.

Govt mulls imports as Punjab asks for 1m tonnes, Sindh seeks 220,000

KARACHI: Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab has said the Sindh government carries out significant public welfare initiatives but has failed to effectively highlight its achievements.

ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) has decided to begin large-scale drilling operations following the discovery of significant shale gas reserves in Sindh, the company's managing director said.

• Committee headed by CS also recommends action against Civil Defence, fire department officers and building management committee • Suggests amendments to building control law to allow post-construction inspections KARACHI: The Implementation Committee constituted by the Sindh government has recommended disciplinary and legal action against officials of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) who served between 2020 and the date of the incident in January 2026 when the deadly Gul Plaza fire broke out. The committee held them responsible for alleged failures in inspection, enforcement and regulatory oversight, including the approval of a revised building plan and its subsequent regularisation. It also proposed amendments to the Sindh Building Control Ordinance, 1979, to empower the SBCA to carry out mandatory post-construction inspections and enforce compliance after completion of buildings. The recommendations were made at a recent meeting of the committee held under the chairmanship of Sindh chief secret...

KARACHI: The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Sindh on Sunday issued an alert for dust storms and rainfall in several districts of the province, urging authorities to remain on high alert.

• Senior lawyers agree with Federal Constitutional Court that SC had overstepped its domain by ordering a citywide demolition drive • Say verdict binds provincial govt to regulate and preserve public amenities for future generations A DAY after the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) verdict recalling some Supreme Court orders that led to the demolition of the 15-storey Nasla Tower, senior lawyers and constitutional experts endorsed the FCC’s stance that the apex court had overstepped its domain, but caution that the fresh decision now puts the onus on the Sindh government and Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to prevent illegal construction on amenity plots. Dawn spoke to four senior lawyers who were of the view that the Supreme Court had exceeded and overstepped its domain while issuing sweeping demolition orders, since there was limited scope, especially in its appellate jurisdiction. They also maintained that now, the issues of commercial activities and status of the subject plots, as well as illegal...

• Coalition partners trade barbs after PPP challenges PML-N to hold LG elections in Punjab, Islamabad • Saad Rafique opposes holding local polls in Punjab ‘on Karachi pattern’ • Sharjeel says people of Punjab should be given their constitutional right ISLAMABAD: The PPP said on Thursday that the next local government elections in Sindh would be held in 2027, amid a fresh war of words that has erupted between the party and its main ruling coalition partner — the PML-N — over the local government system in the country. “By the grace of Allah Almighty, local government elections will be held for the third time in Sindh in 2027,” senior PPP leader Senator Waqar Mehdi said in a statement issued in response to a recent statement by PML-N leader Khawaja Saad Rafique. In a post on X, Rafique had criticised PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s demand for local government elections in Punjab and the federal capital, saying such polls should not be held on the pattern followed in Sindh. He said it was Mr Bhutto-Zardari...

The federal and Sindh governments on Monday announced public holidays on June 25 (Thursday) and 26 (Friday) on account of Ashura. In a notification dated June 22, the Cabinet Secretariat said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has declared Muharram 9 and 10, falling on June 25-26, as public holidays. Meanwhile, the Sindh Information Department also issued a notification to this effect on social media platform X. The notification, issued by Sindh’s chief secretary, said. “The government of Sindh, hereby declares June 25 and 26, 2026 as public holidays throughout the province of Sindh, on the occasion of Ashura (Muharram 9 and 10, 1448 A.H).” It added that all offices, autonomous bodies, semi-autonomous bodies, corporations and local councils under the administrative control of the government of Sindh, except essential services, would remain closed. Muharram is a month of mourning, observed in particular by Shia Muslims worldwide. It commemorates the Battle of Karbala in 680 AD, where, amongst many, the grandso...

LARKANA: Water shortages in Sindh and Balochistan are deepening as Punjab continues to draw excess water, threatening the downstream provinces’ agricultural activities and drinking water supplies. According to data from the Sukkur Barrage Control Room on Wednesday, the total upstream inflow at Sukkur Barrage was recorded at 50,620 cusecs, while the total withdrawal stood at 32,120 cusecs. Irrigation department sources and representatives of growers and millers stated that the combined water allocation for Sindh’s seven canals is 53,200 cusecs. With the actual supply at just 32,120 cusecs, Sindh is facing an overall shortage of 21,080 cusecs, or 39.6 per cent. In contrast, upstream barrages and canal systems in Punjab continue to withdraw water well above their allocated share. Against an allocation of 44,000 cusecs, Punjab is currently drawing 53,394 cusecs — an excess of 9,394 cusecs, or 21.35pc. This continued over-withdrawal is directly reducing water availability downstream. Barrage and canal breakdowns T...

• Budget likely on Friday after president summons NA, Senate sessions today • National Economic Council finally set to meet today; KP still weighing participation • Federal, provincial govts to jointly cover Rs800bn shortfall • Extra FBR revenue to stay with Centre; ‘strategic needs’ may require Rs1.3-1.7tr • Sindh, Punjab agree to cut ADPs; KP, Balochistan not yet on board • Uplift plans worth Rs4.715tr likely to be revised down ISLAMABAD: Signs that the federal budget may be presented later this week emerged on Tuesday after the government finally called a meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) on the same day that sessions of the National Assembly and Senate were summoned by President Asif Ali Zardari. A source in the NA Secretariat told Dawn that both sessions have been called budget sessions for 2026–27; however, it is expected that the budget will be presented in parliament on June 12. This echoed Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry’s words, who said on Tuesday that the budget fo...

HYDERABAD: Water crisis in Sindh and Balochistan continues to deepen with each passing day as the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) remains indifferent to their hue and cry constantly being raised over the last few weeks. The two smaller provinces have been expressing their strong reservations over “unfair” deduction in their share of the Indus water while Punjab continues to draw in excess of its allocated quantum. Kotri Barrage reported 57pc reduction in flows on June 7 as Sindh’s overall deficit in flows rose from 22pc to 39pc within the last fortnight while Punjab, through its controversial Chashma-Jhelum (CJ) link canal keeps withdrawing more water than Kotri. Balochistan has also come up with 71pc reduction in its share from Sukkur Barrage’s right bank canal on Saturday. Shortage in Sindh worsens to 39pc while Balochistan gets 71pc less flows The Balochistan irrigation department has taken up the issue with Irsa, pressing it to settle it with Sindh authorities in order to ensure its required share of ...

LARKANA: The Right Bank Canal System of Sukkur Barrage is currently experiencing a critical irrigation water shortage, severely impacting the command areas of Larkana an Qambar-Shahdadkot districts, as well as the lands in Balochistan, fed through the North West Canal (NWC) during the peak Kharif crop season. The impact is also affecting Dadu Canal, Rice Canal and those irrigating the Sukkur district. Sources privy to the situation told Dawn on Saturday that the prevailing shortfall across the canal network has reached an alarming level — North West Canal (-) 64.1%, Rice Canal (-) 38.0% and Dadu Canal (-) 82.0%. Credible data obtained from sources in Sindh’s irrigation department indicates that Punjab is currently drawing 53,394 cusecs against its allocated share of 44,000 cusecs — an excess withdrawal of around 21.35%. Similarly, Taunsa Barrage is lifting 25,694 cusecs against its entitled share of 24,000 cusecs, reflecting an over-withdrawal of approximately 9.3%. Meanwhile, the pond level at Chashma Barrag...

Violent dust storm kills 11 in central Sindh

ISLAMABAD: The state-owned Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) on Wednesday said it made a significant oil and gas discovery from its exploratory well Bobi Deep-1, located in Sindh’s Sanghar district. The company is the country’s largest oil and gas producer and, in April this year, began commercial production from Pakistan’s largest-ever oil and gas discovery from a single well. In a statement issued today, OGDCL said the well successfully tested the Massive Sand interval of the Lower Goru Formation and produced 2,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) and 1.1 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd) through a cased-hole Drill Stem Test (DST), confirming the hydrocarbon potential of the reservoir. A Drill Stem Test (DST) is a temporary well-completion procedure used in oil and gas exploration to assess the pressure, permeability and production potential of a geological formation. It helps determine whether a well has encountered a commercially viable reservoir without the need for costly per...

The Pakistan Meteorological Department has forecast rain, dust storms, and thunderstorms in several districts of Sindh as intense heat, high humidity, and a western weather system influence conditions across parts of the province.