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Task Force set up to bring reforms in power sector: Awais

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NNPS Desk
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ISLAMABAD, Aug 08 (APP): Minister for Power Division Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari on Thursday said that on the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Task Force on Implementation of Structural Reforms in Power Sector had been constituted to review all the aspects for improvement in power sector.

Talking to media persons along Co-Chairman of the Task Force Muhammad Ali, after first meeting of the Task Force, the minister said that power sector was the backbone of any economy and the government was committed to bringing reforms to enhance its efficiency.
He said that since its inception, the incumbent government under the leadership of Shehbaz Sharif had started work to bring structural reforms in the power sector and around 20 to 22 key points were identified in this regard.

He said the PM has assigned the responsibility of the chairman of the Task Force to me. The Task Force would review in detail all issues pertaining to power sector reforms. All the government institutions would coordinate to implement the reforms in letter and spirit, he said.

He said we have little time and it is imperative to provide dividend to the nation and the consumers. Speaking on the occasion, Co-Chairman of the Task Force, Muhammad Ali said that today was first meeting of the Task Force and in coming days, it would regularly meet on daily basis. The Term of Reference (TORs) of the Task Force have already been devised, he said and added that the Task Force would also look into the issues of IPPs besides taking steps to bring generation cost of the electricity.

Tree plantation drive launched

By
Waseem Iqbal
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SARGODHA, Aug 08 (APP):A tree plantation drive was inaugurated by the district administration here on Thursday.
Deputy Director Local Government Babar Shahzad Ranjha planted a sapling
in Chak No 70 NB. The event was attended by Secretary Union Council Hyderabad Town Amir Basit, President  Union of Journalists (Dastoor) Muhammad Zulfiqar Hashmi and others. Secretary Amir Basit and residents also participated in the tree plantation drive.

No ban on transportation of wheat: food minister

By
Waseem Iqbal
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LAHORE, Aug 08 (APP):Punjab Food Minister Bilal Yaseen has said that there is no ban on transportation of wheat or other prepared items from Punjab to other provinces.
He presided over a meeting in which he was briefed about prices of wheat and flour
here on Thursday. Food Secretary Moazam Iqbal Sipra and officers of the food directorate gave briefing to the minister.
Bilal said that advantage of reduced prices of wheat and flour in the market must be transferred to people. Secretary Moazam Sipra said during eight days 37,000 bags of wheat had been transported to other provinces from Punjab.
During ongoing month, 124 wheat permits had been issued from different districts while 7,763 flour permits had been issued from flour mills of Punjab in one month, he added.
Moazzam Iqbal said that 157,844 metric tons of flour had been transported to other provinces. Bilal Yaseen made it clear that people would be provided all possible relief with regard to flour prices as per the direction of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.

Transition toward cashless society to drive financial inclusion: Ali Irfan

By
Imran Munir
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ISLAMABAD, Aug 8 (APP):The transition towards a cashless society can significantly impact Pakistan’s economy by reducing the informal sector, improving tax compliance, and fostering financial inclusion.
Addressing the first-ever GSMA Digital Nations Summit, Chief Experience Officer at JazzCash, Ali Irfan, advocated for the public sector to lead by example by mandating organizations to prioritize digital payments and phase out cash transactions. To encourage digital payments, he suggested reducing taxes for both customers and merchants.
He also emphasized the need to digitize remittances by enabling mobile wallets to receive funds from around the globe.
The panel discussion featured Shoukat Bizinjo, Additional Director of Digital Financial Services at the State Bank of Pakistan; Maleeha Bangash, Consultant of Digital Banking at IFC; and Clive Chai, Head of Partnerships for South Asia at Meta. The session was moderated by Sabahat Bokhari.
The panel discussed the need for policy interventions to support a cashless future, including incentivizing digital payments through reduced taxes on digital transactions, expanding the merchant base, and enabling RAAST QR payment acceptance points for merchants.
“Our shift from conventional banking to digital banking has been a two-decade journey that started in 2008 with the introduction of State Bank’s Branchless Banking regulations,” said Shoukat Bizinjo. “We now host 37 million RAAST accounts, which have been a key enabler in the instant payments ecosystem.”
Commenting on the way forward for the digital financial services industry, Bizinjo said, “Collaboration should be the name of the game. All industry players must work together to grow the digital economy.”
Maleeha Bangash, Consultant of Digital Banking at the International Finance Corporation, added, “The real challenge is navigating a hybrid country that is neither non-digital nor completely digital. We need the right infrastructure, a collaborative model, and interoperability of systems to prosper.”
Pakistan has over 18,650 ATMs, but the backbone of digital financial inclusion lies in the 651,672 branchless banking agents nationwide, with JazzCash hosting nearly 40% of these agents. These agents are critical links between digital financial service providers and customers in remote and underserved communities.
In addition to hosting Pakistan’s largest network of branchless banking agents and digital wallets, JazzCash regularly runs financial awareness campaigns. These include a comprehensive rural engagement program that stretches across 90 villages at a time, with dedicated sessions to raise awareness by sharing the benefits of mobile data and money.

Absconder among two held, illegal arms recovered in DI Khan

By
Waseem Iqbal
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DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Aug 08 (APP):The district police have arrested two outlaws including an absconder and recovered a stolen cow and Rs 300,000 cash from their possession here in the limits of Saheed Nawab Khan police station on Thursday.
According to police spokesman, a team of Shaheed Nawab Khan police station led by SDPO Paharpur Circle Naqeeb Ullah Khan along with SHO Sheikh Muhammad Bilal arrested an absconder accused in murder and attempt to murder cases named Muhammad Humayun son of Momin Khan, a resident of Rehmani Khel. The police also recovered a Kalashnikov along with 15 cartridges from him.
Likewise, the same police also traced a robbery case and arrested accused Tanvir son of Bashir, resident of Mardan-Pul, Paharpur. The police also recovered two stolen cows and Rs 300,000 cash from him.

Bahawalpur may receive more rain

By
Waseem Iqbal
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0
BAHAWALPUR, Aug 08 (APP):Bahawalpur region might receive more rain as the local Met Office has forecast a partly cloudy to cloudy weather with chances of rain for Bahawalpur for next 24 hours.
The highest maximum temperature 38 centigrade and the lowest minimum 25 centigrade were recorded during last 24 hours.
The partly cloudy to cloudy weather with chances of rain has also been forecast for rest of the region.

Govt committed to welfare of poor, youth, women: Dr. Musadik

By
NNPS Desk
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0
Dr. Musadik

ISLAMABAD, Aug 8 (APP): Federal Minister for Petroleum, Dr. Musadik Masood Malik on Thursday reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the welfare of the poor, youth and women of Pakistan.

Addressing a press conference, he said, “We are following the vision of ‘One Pakistan,’ working towards the uplift of the poor people and creating opportunities for the youth and women of the country.”

He criticized the Opposition for focusing on negativity, destruction and divisive politics. He lamented that the Opposition has not offered any constructive suggestions for the progress, prosperity or development of the country.

He said that the people of Pakistan have elected their representatives to highlight their issues and resolve problems.

The minister highlighted the positive impact of the government’s economic policies under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, noting a significant drop in food inflation from 48 percent to 2 percent.

He added that overall inflation in the country has decreased from 38 percent to 12 percent due to the government’s effective measures. He further said that the reductions in inflation and positive economic indicators demonstrate that the country is moving towards stability. Alleviating poverty, reducing inflation and providing job opportunities for the youth remain the government’s foremost priorities, he added.

He also pointed out that GDP growth in rural areas had reached 6.3 percent, while tax collection has increased by 30 percent.

Dr. Musadik Malik said that after the elections, the Opposition was offered the chance to form the government, but they refused. He criticized the Opposition for comparing Pakistan to Bangladesh.

Regarding the events of May 9, he condemned the attacks on military installations and memorials of the country’s heroes by PTI workers, and said, “We are united and determined to bring the country out of the crisis.”

He said that some elements were running negative campaigns on social media.

Responding to a question, he said that Rs 50 billion had been allocated to protect 86 percent of electricity consumers in the country for the next three months.

Despite economic challenges, the government has allocated Rs 600 billion in the current federal budget to uplift poor people. He added that development projects were being executed, especially in backward areas, to provide job opportunities to locals.

Rupee gains 05 paisa against dollar

By
Waseem Iqbal
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0
ISLAMABAD, Aug 8 (APP):Pakistani rupee on Thursday appreciated by 05 paisa against the US dollar in the interbank trading and closed at Rs 278.68 against the previous day’s closing of Rs 278.73.
However, according to the Forex Association of Pakistan (FAP), the buying and selling rates of the dollar in the open market stood at Rs 279.30 and Rs 280.40 respectively.
The price of Euro increased by 44 paisa to close at Rs 304.85 against the last day’s closing of Rs 304.41, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
The Japanese yen went up 01 paisa and closed at Rs1.91, whereas an increase of 15 pasia was witnessed in the exchange rate of the British Pound, which traded at Rs 353.94 as compared to the last day’s closing of Rs 353.79.
The exchange rate of the Emirates Dirham decreased by 01 paisa to close at Rs 75.87 and the Saudi Riyal increased by 01 paisa to close Rs74.25.

Breach in Bahawalpur’s canal causes flash flood

By
Waseem Iqbal
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0
BAHAWALPUR, Aug 08 (APP):Breach occurred in a canal in Ahmadpur East area of Bahawalpur district have caused flash flood, inundating standing crops and entering houses of people.
Reports reaching here suggested that a 15-foot wide breach occurred in L-6 canal passing through Ahmadpur East area which started to inundate standing crops. The breach spread to 50 feet wide, causing flash flood in the area. “Earlier, flash flood inundated standing crops near village Roshan and other areas and later it engulfed nearby villages, entering houses of people,” they said.
Sources in the Irrigation Department and the district management said that although local people made efforts to fill the breach, however, it had damaged standing crops spread on hundreds of acres land including cotton crops, maze crops and others.
The teams and machinery from the Irrigation Department and the district management have also reached the area to participate in rescue and relief operation.

Gold rates remain unchanged at Rs.255,500

By
Imran Munir
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0

ISLAMABAD, Aug 8 (APP):The per tola price of 24 karat gold remained unchanged at Rs.255,500 on Thursday, the All Sindh Sarafa Jewellers Association reported.

Likewise, the price of 10 grams of 24 karat and 10 gram 22 karat gold remained constant at Rs.219,050 and Rs.200,795 respectively.

The price of per tola and ten gram silver also remained unchanged at Rs.2,850 and Rs.2,443.41 respectively.

The gold in the international market was also traded at same rates of $2,393, the Association reported.

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