Ministry of Energy fails to take off due to intense bureaucracy
Power and petroleum divisions were merged to create Ministry of Energy on the directions of the premier– a longtime demand which had been promised twice but never implemented.
Going after sugar cartels a far cry for govt
Provincial departments in no position to act against interests of ruling political parties Even after finding out that the sugar mills have formed a cartel, the federal government is in no position…
Proposed Nepra Act amendments to strengthen regulator
Changes proposed to strip NEPRA of its authority Much sought after ‘indemnity’ clause added The government has included the much sought after “indemnity” clause in the draft National Electric Power Regulatory Authority…
WB finds high undernutrition in Pakistani children
Pakistan has an exceptionally high level of child undernutrition, says a latest World Bank report which noted with concern that country’s stunting rate, 45 per cent, ranks worse than 124 out of…
NA body plans sending reference to NAB for determining culprits behind PSM closure
ISLAMABAD: In a big embarrassment to the government, the PML-N parliamentarians fully supported a demand of the PTI leader Asad Umar to formally submit a reference to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB)…
Kohsar Block to be ready for operations by July end
Finance minister chairs meeting to review progress on new secretariat The Kohsar Block, the New Pak Secretariat, would be ready for operations by the end of this month as the construction work…
Poor governance causing energy crises: NEPRA
The governance of public power sector entities is a major concern along with capacity issues, lack of financial support due to centralized control, which have resulted in such continued below par performance…
Govt plans e-readiness from July 1
Government has directed all ministries and their allied departments and the regulator bodies to put their policies, guidebooks, filing of applications, specimen documents, online tracking system and online complaint management system on…
Residents want improvement in KP cities
Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA) has recommended the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government to build resilient and inclusive cities for future socio-economic growth in Peshawar, Mardan and Abbottabad. The key recommendations were…
Pak-Afghan border to soon be re-opened for trade, says commerce minister
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will soon re-open its border crossings with Afghanistan for trade after security enhancement under a new border management plan, Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir announced Tuesday, blaming the war-ravaged neighbour for…
World Bank launches improved ‘Solar Maps’ for Pakistan
The World Bank, in partnership with the Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB), has launched a series of new solar maps for Pakistan in support of the efforts to increase the deployment of…
Govt unveils plans for Census 2017
Pakistan Bureau of Statistics Chief Statistician Asif Bajwa, in a press conference on Saturday, revealed the plans to conduct sixth population census that will officially kick off on March 3, with activities…
World Bank reassures mediation over Indus Waters Treaty
The World Bank on Thursday reassured Pakistan that the Bank would help in using its offices to find solution to the issues regarding the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) existing between the two…
Work on Bhasha and Mohmand dams to commence in 2017: minister
Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif on Wednesday said that the groundbreaking ceremonies of two massive reservoir construction projects, the Diamer-Bhasha dam and the Mohmand dam, will be performed in 2017.…
Pakistan seeks help to set up institution for financing development
Pakistan is seeking the support of international financial institutions (IFI) to set up a new institution to facilitate long-term investment for infrastructure projects, an official source said. The government plans to undertake…
China wants Pakistan to align its policies with CPEC
In a major development, China has asked Pakistan to align its development policies as well as internal reform agenda with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project to reduce delays resulting from bureaucratic…
Incentive package for CPEC economic zones under consideration
The federal and provincial governments are considering offering an incentive package for the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) included in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEc). An informed source said that the federal and…