Author: newsdesk

  • Domestic LPG cylinder now costs Rs2,475 after an increase of Rs120

    Domestic LPG cylinder now costs Rs2,475 after an increase of Rs120

    The burden on the general public, who were already suffering from inflation, rising oil and food costs, has increased as a result of another hike in the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

    Following the increase of Rs10 per kilogramme, LPG is now priced at Rs210 per kilogramme nationwide.

    Moreover, commercial LPG cylinders will now be sold at Rs9,532, up Rs455 while domestic (11.8 kg) LPG cylinders are now priced at Rs2,475, up Rs120.

    According to the chairman of the LPG Association, the commodity’s price is declining on the international market but rising in Pakistan. He requested that the administration take note of the current gas shortage.

    People who now use LPG cylinders residing in new or developing housing communities without Sui gas connections will be impacted by this price increase.

    The frequent announcements of hikes have made life difficult for those with modest incomes. Along with rising LPG prices, many people are having trouble utilising their own vehicles because gasoline prices have skyrocketed.

  • Sindh local govt elections turn into a bloody ground with two deaths

    Sindh local govt elections turn into a bloody ground with two deaths

    The first phase of Sindh local government in 14 districts has been completed. According to unofficial results, the provincial ruling party Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is ahead of all the parties with the highest number of winning candidates as 885 out of 946 representatives were already elected unopposed when the polling started.

    The Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) came second, independents third, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) fourth, and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) secured the fifth position.

    According to media outlets, several complaints of missing ballot papers and changes in the election symbols were reported from many districts of the province, which eventually led to chaos.

    However, the provincial government ruled out such a possibility and described the demand as an “escape” from Opposition parties after they “failed” to field candidates in all districts, reports Dawn.

    Voting started at 9am and ended at 5pm on Sunday. The elections in the rest of the districts of Sindh will be held next month, i.e. July 24.

    Violence at the scene:

    During the election polling when clashes broke out between political parties, it led to deaths and multiple injuries. Two people, including the brother of a PTI candidate, were killed and at least 20 people were injured.

    PTI’s divisional president from Tando Adam, Mushtaq Junejo, said, “I can confirm the death of Qaiser, the brother of our party’s candidate Asghar Gandapur in Tando Adam.” The candidate was contesting in ward-13 of the Tando Adam municipal committee.

    In Nawabshah, the situation became tense when a group of armed people attacked social security. Later, the group fled the polling station along with the election material.

    Kashmore was among the most-affected districts in terms of violence.

    In Durrani Mahar, reports were received that around 10 polling staff members were kidnapped. However, the issue was resolved and police tried to cover up the issue as the polling staff was only released after successful negotiations between the police and the kidnappers.

    Misprinting of ballot papers:



    On Sunday, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced that some districts had incorrect candidate names printed on the ballot papers. In a tweet, the ECP said that polls in these regions would be postponed and a new schedule would be presented for them.

  • Police in Turkey arrest LGBTQ Pride March attendees

    Police in Turkey arrest LGBTQ Pride March attendees

    More than 200 protesters, including journalists, were detained by Turkish police on Sunday for being part of the pride march. Local authorities had banned the march from going ahead again this year.

    Eyewitnesses said that the cops made an effort to stop journalists from taping the arrests. According to the organisers, authorities denied detainees access to their attorneys and jailed more than 200 Pride attendees and LGBTQ activists.

    On Sunday, small groups of people waving rainbow and transgender flags congregated in accessible locations for a brief period of time and chanted before being scattered and pursued by the police, who forcibly detained several of them.

    “Discrimination is a crime, the rainbow is not,” one group chanted, while some others read statements to mark Pride week.

  • PM Shehbaz Sharif to host dinner for PML-N and coalition party MNAs

    PM Shehbaz Sharif to host dinner for PML-N and coalition party MNAs

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has invited the MNAs of coalition parties to dinner at Prime Minister’s Office tonight (June 27).

    Members of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and coalition parties will attend the dinner, where the current political situation and matters related to the budget for fiscal year 2022-23 will be discussed.

    Earlier this month, former President Asif Ali Zardari hosted a dinner for leaders and members of the coalition government. During the dinner, Zardari was also lauded by the coalition leaders and members for his efforts to unite the parties together. PM Shehbaz who was also in attendance received advice from members and leaders present at the dinner.

  • Man caught installing spy device in Khan’s bedroom

    Man caught installing spy device in Khan’s bedroom

    Staff at Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s Bani Gala residence on Saturday night caught a man red-handed while installing a spy device in his bedroom.

    ARY News reported that an employee of Bani Gala was paid to install a device in the former prime minister’s bedroom. However, the spying attempt was foiled after another employee informed the security team about the installation of the device.

    PTI leader and the chief of staff of the former premier, Dr Shahbaz Gill, handed over the suspect, an employee of Bani Gala, to the police.

    Shahbaz Gill claimed, “An employee – who cleans the former premier’s room – was paid to install a spy device,” terming the act ‘ heinous and unfortunate’.

    “Our people are being threatened to get information. Such shameful acts should be avoided,” he added. The PTI leader further said that the ‘arrested’ employee has made several revelations – which he refused to share at the moment.

    Many from PTI have been asserting that Imran Khan’s life is in danger. “In this regard, we have informed all relevant agencies, including the government,” Gill said.

    However, Islamabad police said that a media person had handed over the alleged spy to the police but the suspect was not able to speak properly.

    “The suspect could not be identified as he cannot speak properly. It has been decided that a medical test will be conducted on him to ascertain his physical and mental condition. The suspect was kept in Bani Gala house for a day. The person who handed over the suspect to the police has not provided any evidence or proof of spying. Police are investigating the matter and will soon reach the conclusion,” said the police.

  • NEPRA announces increase of Rs7.90 per unit in power tariff

    NEPRA announces increase of Rs7.90 per unit in power tariff

    An additional increase in the price of power of Rs7.90 per unit was announced by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on Monday.

    After hearing the Central Power Purchasing Agency’s (CCPA) argument today, the power regulatory authority made the final hike announcement, according to ARY News.

    It is worth noting that life consumers and K-Electric are protected from the tariff increase and that the amount would be paid in July’s bills.

    In response to a request from CPPAG for a raise of Rs7.96 per unit, the increase was granted under fuel adjustment costs (FAC) for the month of May 2022, according to a notification released by the power regulating authority.

    Additionally, after a substantial increase of Rs7.91 per unit, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority has just set the power rate at Rs24.82 per unit for the fiscal year 2022–23.

    The authority approved a Rs5.27 per unit increase in electricity rates for K-electric customers on June 24.

    According to a handout provided by NEPRA, K-Electric requested an increase in the electricity rate of Rs5.25 to account for fuel adjustment charges for April.

    Earlier, The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet approved an increase in power costs for K-Electric customers of 57 paisa per unit.

    However, ECC deferred making a decision on a different proposal that called for charging K-Electric customers a surcharge of Rs1.45 per unit in order to recover Rs113.1 billion in past-due amounts related to quarterly rate increases. 

  • Surge in Covid-19 cases: CAA re-imposes restrictions

    Surge in Covid-19 cases: CAA re-imposes restrictions

    The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Monday released a fresh travel advisory instructing all relevant authorities to enforce the usage of masks on domestic flights in view of the ongoing surge of Covid-19 cases in Pakistan.

    According to a notification from CAA, all concerned quarters must ensure compliance with the new order. The notification added that the other Covid-19 guidelines on domestic air travel remained unchanged.

    https://twitter.com/official_pcaa/status/1541127874345930759

    According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), 382 cases of Covid-19 with a positivity rate of 2.85 per cent were reported in Pakistan on June 26.

  • Pakistan can generate revenue by implementing policy on cannabis: Science Ministry

    Pakistan can generate revenue by implementing policy on cannabis: Science Ministry

    According to the secretary of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST), Pakistan can bring in $8 billion in revenue within four years by implementing a policy on cannabis.

    As per Minister of Science and Technology, in light of the country’s dire economic situation, Pakistan should “generate revenue through the legal sale of the drug”, Aqib Rauf Abbasi reports for Pro Pakistani.

    The minister stated this during a meeting of the Standing Committe on Science and Technology, which was chaired by Senator Shafiq Tarin.

    The committee considered the possibility that by creating a regulation on cannabis usage, the government could generate $2 billion in income in a couple of months. He added that cabinet has not approved the policy developed by MoST regarding legal use of cannabis.

    The MoST will also initially grant 100 permits for cannabis growing.

  • Gen Bajwa receives medal for his contributions by Saudi Arabia

    Gen Bajwa receives medal for his contributions by Saudi Arabia

    Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, first deputy Prime Minister (PM) and minister of defence, decorated Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa with the King Abdulaziz Medal of Excellent Class for making “significant contributions in defence cooperation” between Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).

    The medal was named after Saudi Arabia’s founding King Abdulaziz Al Saud and is considered the highest civilian honour in KSA. Recently, it was given to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

    Pakistan’s army chief visited Saudi Arabia on an official tour met with the Crown Prince in Jeddah on Saturday. They reviewed bilateral relations, especially in the military fields, and opportunities for developing them. They also discussed a number of issues of common interest.

    Following this, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the COAS for being conferred the honour. “It is a great honour for the people and the armed forces of Pakistan,” he said in a tweet.

    In another tweet, he said Pakistan considers the security of Saudi Arabia “as our own and are completely resolved to further cementing our multifaceted bilateral relationship including excellent defence cooperation”.

    COAS Bajwa meets Musharraf:

    COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa and his wife also paid a visit to former President and Army Chief General (retd) Pervez Musharraf in Dubai, reports emerged on Saturday.

    Gen Qamar and his wife were accompanied by top physicians of the Pakistan Army. They spent some time with Gen Musharraf and his family while the army doctors examined the former military ruler, reports The Express Tribune.

    Earlier this month, Musharraf’s family revealed that he is going through a difficult stage where recovery is not possible as his organs are malfunctioning.

    After this, the establishment and politicians, including Nawaz Sharif, came forward and were of the view that he should be brought back to Pakistan.

  • Pak Suzuki may discontinue Cultus to promote new Swift

    Pak Suzuki may discontinue Cultus to promote new Swift

    One of Pak Suzuki Motor Company’s (PSMC) best-selling vehicles, Suzuki Cultus, will reportedly no longer be produced. According to reports, all variants of the hatchback will be officially phased out in the upcoming months.

    According to Pakwheels, Alto and Swift sales had an impact on Cultus sales, and the company intended to actively promote Swift while boosting Alto sales.

    If the rumours are true, it may be terrible news for those who adore this tiny hatchback since Cultus has long held the top spot in the 1,000cc category.

    According to information from the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), PSMC sold more than 9,800 Alto in March of this year. In April, the amount fell to 5,000. In May, sales slightly increased to about 5,400.

    It is also worth noting that PSMC has not made any public statements about the development. Once the business issues a formal statement regarding this, PSMC’s response will be added.

    The current generation of Suzuki Cultus was introduced in 2017. The hatchback is available in three variations from PSMC: VX, VXR, and VXL. Since its debut, Cultus has dominated the 1,000cc segment of the home market due to its compact size and impressive fuel economy.

    It is still too early to tell if these rumours are true, as several reports from last month that Pak Suzuki was preparing to reintroduce the Mehran turned out to be false after The Current obtained confirmation from numerous dealerships.