Pakistan

The Pakistan Meteorological Department has forecast widespread torrential rains accompanied by wind and thundershowers across the country from July 15 (today) to July 17.

Tesla unveiled its first showroom in India on Tuesday, marking its entry into the world’s most populous country, as Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company seeks new customers amid sagging sales in the United States and Europe. The store opened its doors to select visitors after its inauguration by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in India’s financial capital Mumbai. Tesla has for years signalled its interest in India but held back due to the country’s steep tariffs on electric vehicles. Musk, who once described India as having “more promise than any large country”, has also criticised its import duties, calling them among the “highest in the world”. New Delhi has offered to cut import taxes on electric vehicles for global automakers only if they commit to investing hundreds of millions of dollars and make cars locally. Tesla has yet to announce plans to set up a plant in India. For now, local media reports say, the company will likely sell cars imported from China, with deliveries projected to start...

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar represented Pakistan at the joint meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Member States during a call on Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday met Indonesian Defence Minister Lieutenant General (R) Syafrie Samsudin at the Prime Minister’s Office, reaffirming the strong bilateral relationship and expressing commitment to expand cooperation in multiple sectors, especially defence and defence production.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has reaffirmed Iran’s deep commitment to strengthening relations with Pakistan, highlighting the importance of unity among Muslim nations and appreciation for Pakistan's past support.

The United Kingdom has introduced a digital visa system for Pakistani nationals on most student and worker routes, replacing traditional physical immigration documents with an online eVisa.

Pakistan lags behind its regional peers in digital connectivity, with the lowest 4G network coverage and inadequate readiness for 5G deployment, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a recent report, highlighting serious challenges in the country’s digital ecosystem.

Pakistan Railways is set to launch a modern, high-tech business train aimed at enhancing passenger comfort and convenience, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif scheduled to inaugurate the upgraded service on July 19 at Lahore Railway Station.

ISLAMABAD - The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Government of Japan have concluded a $6.

KARACHI - Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah conducted a comprehensive review of key ongoing infrastructure projects, including the New Link Road, Shahrah-e-Bhutto Expressway, and the Korangi Causeway Bridge near Qayyumabad, Korangi.

A divided United States supreme court gave US President Donald Trump the green light on Monday to resume dismantling the Education Department. The conservative-dominated court, in an unsigned order, lifted a stay that had been placed by a federal district judge on mass layoffs at the department. The three liberal justices on the nine-member panel dissented. Trump pledged during his White House campaign to eliminate the Education Department, which was created by an act of Congress in 1979, and he moved in March to slash its workforce by nearly half. Trump instructed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to “put herself out of a job”. Around 20 states joined teachers’ unions in challenging the move in court, arguing that the Republican president was violating the principle of separation of powers by encroaching on Congress’s prerogatives. In May, District Judge Myong Joun ordered the reinstatement of hundreds of fired Education Department employees. The supreme court lifted the judge’s order without explanation, ju...

The Senate will convene today (Tuesday) at 4:00pm at the Parliament House to deliberate on a 12-point agenda featuring critical legislative matters and public interest issues.

• Writes to KP governor, chief minister; says delay in oath taking would prevent it from holding Senate elections on schedule • Commission reserves verdict on plea seeking redistribution of reserved seats in provincial assembly ISLAMABAD: With Senate elections in Kh­yber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) just a week away, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has written to the province’s governor and chief minister, asking that the provincial assembly be convened immediately so that new members can be sworn in on reserved seats. Also on Monday, the ECP reserved its verdict in a case related to reallocation of reserved seats in the KP Assembly. The letter, addressed to the KP governor’s principal secretary, stated that the commission was obligated to conduct Senate elections in the province, which had been set for July 21. “But the matter of administration of oath is still pending and dela­yed,” it said. The correspondence no­ted that the KP Asse­mbly speaker was requ­ested to administer the oath to the newly returned can...

FAISALABAD - Minister of State for Interior and senior PMLN leader Senator Talal Chaudhary said that the Frontier Constabulary (FC) is being restructured and renamed Federal Constabulary only to bolster internal and national security of Pakistan.

LAHORE: A sessions court on Monday sought a reply from Johar Town police on a habeas corpus petition seeking the recovery of a man allegedly arrested for using abusive language against Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. Muhammad Umar filed the petition for the recovery of his father, Muhammad Sajid. Representing the petitioner, Advocate Sameer Khan Khattak alleged that Johar Town police had illegally detained his client’s father for the past two days. He claimed that Sajid had been arrested without any registered case and had not been produced before any court. The counsel also stated that the police had forced the petitioner’s father to record apology videos, which were later circulated on social media. He asked the court to order the recovery and release of the petitioner’s father. Additional District & Sessions Judge Ghulam Farid issued a notice to the Johar Town station house officer (SHO) and directed him to file a reply by July 15. A few days ago, a video of Sajid riding a motorcycle in the rain went viral on...

Shehbaz Sharif says expanding tax base, reducing tax burden on poor top priority Calls for digitisation of economy to ensure transparency Simplified digital tax returns will be launched from today for salaried individuals and from July 30 for other taxpayers, PM told.

Six including four children die in KP Two madrasa students die, 12 injured in Bahawalnagar Man dies, three injured in Hyderabad n Another spell of heavy rains most likely from today: PMD.

KARACHI - Federal Finance Minister Mohammad Aurangzeb on Monday addressed a press conference in Karachi, ex-pressing confidence in Pakistan’s economic trajectory and emphasising the pivotal role of banks in national development.

ISLAMABAD: The Pri­­vatisation Commis­sion has granted access to the virtual data room of Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited (PIACL) to four shortlisted parties for conducting buy-side due diligence ahead of the airline’s privatisation. The commission infor­med the National Asse­m­bly Standing Committee on Privatisation on Mon­day that the pre-qualification committee had fi­­nalised four entities — a consortium comprising Lucky Cement Ltd, Hub Power Holdings Ltd, Kohat Cement Company Ltd and Metro Ventures Limited; a consortium comprising Arif Habib Corporation Ltd, Fatima Fertiliser Company Ltd, The City School Ltd, and Lake City Holdings Ltd; Fauji Fertiliser Company Ltd; and Air Blue. The virtual data room — an online repository used for document stora­­ge and sharing — facilita­tes due diligence proces­ses typically associated with mergers and acquisitions, loan syndication, private equity and venture capital transactions. A meeting of the standing committee, chaired by Muhammad Farooq Sa...

ISLAMABAD - Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi has urged bar representatives to sensitize their respective bar associations about the ongoing developments and to proactively engage in judicial reform initiatives.