PESHAWAR, Sep 09 (APP): The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Finance Department on Saturday released Rs 2 billion for the Sehat Card Plus Programme, Health Advisor Dr Riaz Anwar said here.
The facility of free treatment for the poor and middle class remains on the health card, Riaz Anwar said, adding, “health card treatment for poor patients has not been stopped now.”
The treatment of salaried employees up to Rs 32000 is free, he added.
ISLAMABAD, Sep 09 (APP): Pakistan Customs has seized essential commodities worth Rs2.25 billion over the past fortnight in an intensified anti-smuggling crackdown across the country.
Sugar and Urea are smuggled from Pakistan, whereas POL is smuggled into the country through unfrequented routes spanning the bordering areas of Afghanistan and Iran.
The smuggled goods were subsequently transported via trucks and in the case of passenger vehicles in smaller quantities to the main urban centres, according to a press release issued here on Saturday.
The operations were conducted in Quetta, D.I. Khan, Multan, Karachi, Sargodha and Lahore regions. The major seized essential commodities included sugar, urea, POL, Pak currency as well as tyres, black tea, betel nuts, vehicles, iron, steel and other goods.
In the Balochistan region on 2nd September, Customs Enforcement-Quetta seized 1,637 tons of sugar worth approximately Rs1.0 billion from smugglers in a convoy of 15 trucks.
This was followed by a massive seizure of smuggled goods and vehicles, worth Rs519 million on Daraban-Darazinda Road DIK on 3rd Sep 2023 in collaboration with local police and 218,000 litres of smuggled POL/diesel, valuing approximately Rs137.6 million by Customs Enforcement-D.I. Khan.
Last week, Customs Enforcement – Karachi disrupted the flow of smuggled POL by seizing Iranian origin 115,000 litres of diesel and 30,000 litres of petrol.
Moreover, strict instructions to the anti-smuggling formations including mobile squads of the Collectorates and airports have been issued to keep vigilance on the illicit movement of essential goods/commodities, Iranian POL and currency.
Chairman FBR Malik Amjed Zubair Tiwana and Member Customs (Operations) Zeba Hai Azhar have appreciated the Pakistan Customs for taking timely action to thwart the smuggling of essential goods.
Pakistan Customs is committed to eliminating the menace of smuggling and will continue intensifying its anti-smuggling operations across the country.
ISLAMABAD, Sep 09 (APP): Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari, President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) on Saturday said that open and hanging electric wires in the markets always pose great danger to the shopkeepers, while fire incidents due to short circuit of electricity cause loss of millions of rupees to the plaza owners as well as the shopkeepers.
Therefore, IESCO should address this issue on priority to save the traders from further losses, said a press release issued here.
He said that 5,000 traders are doing business in the Blue Area, but there have been fire incidents 6 to 7 times due to the short circuit of electricity in this biggest commercial center of Islamabad, which have caused huge losses to the business community. Therefore, ISCO should develop its infrastructure on modern lines besides improving the wiring system in all markets, he said.
Talking to Abdul Rasheed Sarki, XEN, F-6 Division of IESCO during his visit to ICCI, Ahsan Bakhtawari said that when a transformer burns in a market, there was no back up for it and it takes many days to repair the burnt transformerr.
Due to this situation, the perishable items get spoiled causing losses to the traders.
He stressed that IESCO should come up with a better solution to this problem to save the traders from further losses.
He said that the repair charges of commercial transformers are too high and should be reviewed.
He said that the ICCI will nominate market-wise committees for F-6, F-7 and Blue Area to liaison with his office and he should fully cooperate with them for timely solution of the electricity problems of the traders in their respective areas.
Faad Waheed, Senior Vice President ICCI highlighted the issues of MDI meters and net metering faced by the business community and proposed their better solution.
He said that the cabinet doors of some transformers are left open which leads to short circuits so ISCO should take steps to address this problem. He said that deep freezers, refrigerators and other appliances of traders often get burnt due to fluctuation in electricity voltage, so IESCO should look into this issue for redress.
Abdul Rasheed Sarki, XEN, ISCO’s F-6ix Division, speaking on the occasion, said that every possible effort would be made to solve the issues highlighted by the business community.
He said that if any person visits markets or shops for inspection, he should be handed over to the police as ISCO has not assigned this responsibility to anyone.
He welcomed the proposal of ICCI for the nomination of market-wise committees to liaison with his office and assured that he will cooperate with the committee members for the early solution of the electricity-related issues of their respective markets.
Former President ICCI and Secretary General UBG Pakistan Zafar Bakhtawari said that last year the total revenue of Pakistan was Rs 7500 billion while the total revenue of the electricity companies was PKR 12000 billion but still many electricity companies are incurring losses, which should be a cause of concern the government.
He said that IESCO should solve the electricity problems of its customers, including the business community, on a priority basis, which will reduce the problems of the customers and improve the revenue of IESCO.
Asad Aziz President of F-7 Markaz Jinnah Supermarket, Yusuf Rajput, former President Blue Area, Sheikh Abdul Waheed, Khalid Chaudhry, Faseehullah Khan, Nasir Chaudhry and representatives of other markets also highlighted the electricity related issues of their respective areas and stressed for their early solutions.
KARACHI, Sep 09 (APP): Chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari began his visit from Karachi to various cities of the Sindh province here on Saturday.
He left for Thatta, where he would pay condolence to PPP Sindh Records and Events Secretary Abdul Wahid Soomro at his residence in Mukli.
Bilawal would be welcomed at various places along the convoy routes including Thatta during his visit to the province.
During that, he would pay condolence to PPP leader Dr. Sikandar Mandhro at his residence in Badin, where he would be given a historic reception after which he will leave for Hyderabad.
The PPP Chairman would be welcomed by the people and workers at Fateh Chowk in Hyderabad. He would inaugurate a water project next day in Hyderabad.
ISLAMABAD, Sept 09 (APP): The people and Government of Pakistan stood in solidarity with the Kingdom of Morocco and expressed their heartfelt sympathies and condolences at the tragic loss of lives in yesterday’s earthquake.
“We have also conveyed our offer of assistance to Morocco,” Spokesperson Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a press statement, on Saturday.
Pakistan Embassy in Rabat has reached out to the Pakistani community to inquire about their safety. “As per initial reports all Pakistani nationals are safe. We will continue to monitor the situation to facilitate them in the wake of this tragedy,” she added.
According to Moroccan state media, at least 820 killed and 672 were injured after a powerful earthquake of magnitude 6.8 struck Morocco.
KARACHI, Sep 09 (APP): Sindh Governor Mohammed Kamran Khan Tessoi met Punjab Governor Mohammed Balighur Rehman at the Governor House Sindh here Saturday.
They discussed the cooperation between the two provinces in various fields, exchange of delegations, measures to increase industrial production and other matters of mutual interest.
They stressed the need specially, for the establishment of agriculture-based industries.
The Sindh Governor said that both provinces could benefit from each other’s experiences in various fields.
He said that mutual cooperation between the two provinces would be beneficial for the economy of the country.
The Punjab Governor said that the efforts of the Governor of Sindh would benefit the industrialists of the entire country. He said that the public welfare initiatives of the Sindh Governor were exemplary.
PESHAWAR, Sep 09 (APP): Chairman Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao on Saturday expressed grief and sorrow over the deaths of the people as a result of a devastating earthquake in Morocco.
In a statement issued here, the QWP chief said, “I am saddened to hear about the terrible earthquake, destruction and deaths of hundreds of people in Morocco and all my sympathies are with the bereaved families.”
It is time for the government to immediately send rescue troops and aid to the Moroccan brothers and sisters to support them in this difficult time, he added.
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