ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided to establish electronic data interfaces with different countries including the United Arab Emirates, European states, Afghanistan, Hong Kong and Singapore to curb under-invoicing and tax evasion, officials said on Thursday.
The government has been struggling to combat incorrect declaration and under-assessment of goods by importers to evade customs duty. Importers usually change invoices in the connivance with government officials to pay minimal taxes while clearing their consignments from ports.
“The under-invoicing and tax evasion by importers run into millions of rupees annually and we want to curb it by coordinating other countries,” Dr. Hamid Ateeq Sarwar, Member Inland Revenue Policy at the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), told Arab News.
Elaborating the plan, he said the electronic data interface with Afghanistan will be established by February this year and the project will then be extended to other countries as well in different phases.
“We don’t expect much to gain from Afghanistan as they don’t have the capacity to handle the imports and exports, but at least we will be able to find difference in invoices of importers if any of them attempts to alter them,” he said.
Sarwar said the FBR was planning to complete the project with the UAE, European countries and Singapore by June this year. “Once we are connected with the electronic data interface of a country, it will be almost impossible for importers to alter their invoices,” he said.
The cash-strapped South Asian nation has been struggling to increase its tax revenues by combating smuggling and under-invoicing by importers.
The country has suffered an economic loss of around $11 billion in terms of customs duties and withholding tax during 1972 to 2013 as the under-invoicing was recorded to be around $92.7 billion during the period, according to Mukarram Jah Ansari who is director-general valuation at the FBR.
Pakistan has been working closely with the World Customs Organization, an intergovernmental body headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, to sign agreements with other countries for electronic data interchange.
“We have been receiving very encouraging response from all the countries … numerous international organizations have been helping us to reform our tax system,” Sarwar said. “In today’s age, all the countries have open economies and it is in their interest as well to sign such mutual pacts.”
On the other hand, importers and businessmen have welcomed the move, hoping it will help discourage smuggling of the goods and boost genuine imports and business in the country.
“Once the smuggling and under-invoicing of the imported goods is stopped effectively, we will witness a competition among genuine importers which will boost the economy and increase revenue collection,” Anjum Nisar, chairman Pakistan Fast-Moving Consumer Goods Importers’ Association, told Arab News.
Pakistan to coordinate with UAE, Europe to curb under-invoicing, tax evasion
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Pakistan to coordinate with UAE, Europe to curb under-invoicing, tax evasion

- The project will make it ‘almost impossible’ for importers to alter invoices, say FBR officials
- Importers welcome the move, saying it will boost economy and increase tax collection
Britain’s King Charles sends condolences as Pakistan’s monsoon death toll hits 750

- NDMA says 43 people died in the last 24 hours as rains continue to wreak havoc across Pakistan
- The country has witnessed cloudbursts in north, urban flooding in southern cities like Karachi
KARACHI: King Charles III of the United Kingdom sent a message of sympathy to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday, expressing sorrow over the human loss and devastation caused by monsoon rains in Pakistan, as the nationwide death toll climbed to 750 since the season began.
The message came amid one of Pakistan’s deadliest monsoon seasons in recent years, marked by erratic and increasingly intense weather patterns scientists attribute to global climate change. Annual rains are vital for agriculture and rural livelihoods, but rising temperatures have triggered more frequent and destructive flooding across South Asia.
While the rains began in Pakistan earlier than usual on June 26, they intensified sharply on August 15 with powerful cloudbursts in northern Pakistan. Flash floods, landslides and collapsing homes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province alone have killed more than 380 people in under a week.
According to a situation report released by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Wednesday, 43 people were killed in the past 24 hours alone due to rain-related incidents across the country.
“The scale of devastation caused by this flooding is truly heart-breaking,” King Charles said in the message, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office. “We feel for all those who have lost their loved ones, homes, and livelihoods.”
“With so many families in the UK maintaining close ties with Pakistan, we extend our heartfelt sympathy to them as well,” he added. “We stand in solidarity with the people of Pakistan during this most difficult time.”
The king also praised the efforts of emergency responders, volunteers, and local communities working to rescue and support those affected, calling their courage “a candle in the darkness.”
He extended special prayers and appreciation for the resilience of the flood-hit communities as they faced recovery and rebuilding challenges.
The monsoon crisis in Pakistan is not confined to the north.
The country’s commercial hub Karachi was lashed by rain for a second straight day on Wednesday, inundating roads and bringing much of the city to a standstill.
Local officials said 17 people were killed, mostly by electrocution and related accidents.
Chinese foreign minister begins strategic talks in Pakistan after India visit

- Wang Yi’s visit follows a brief but intense India-Pakistan military standoff in May
- Chinese FM was received by Pakistan’s deputy PM Ishaq Dar at the foreign office
ISLAMABAD: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived at Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday to begin formal talks under the sixth round of the Pakistan-China Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue, Pakistan’s foreign office said.
Wang landed in Islamabad on Wednesday for the two-day dialogue, days after holding talks in New Delhi with India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval over their disputed Himalayan border. He also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the visit.
Wang’s Pakistan trip comes just months after a brief but intense military standoff between India and Pakistan in May, during which Islamabad deployed Chinese-made fighter jets and missiles. India later claimed Beijing had actively supported Pakistan’s response, though officials in Islamabad said their country’s “victory” in the conflict was base on its own capabilities.
“Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has reached the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” the foreign office said in a statement. “Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar welcomed the distinguished guest at the main gate. The two will hold discussions on bilateral ties and matters of mutual interest.”
The statement said the two leaders will hold the sixth round of the Pakistan-China Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue.
The dialogue, institutionalized in 2017, provides a platform for high-level engagement on regional issues, economic cooperation and multilateral coordination.
Pakistan sees China as its top economic and diplomatic ally, with Beijing making extensive investment in power, infrastructure and telecoms under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Earlier this week, Pakistan’s foreign office described Wang’s visit as part of regular high-level exchanges aimed at reaffirming support on core issues, enhancing economic ties and advancing regional peace and stability.
Once a haven for reform, then neglect: Hyderabad’s Besant Hall rises again

- Built in 1917 and inaugurated by Annie Besant, the colonial-era landmark was once a hub for reformist debate and the Home Rule Movement
- After decades of decline and abandonment, the hall has been restored by Sindh’s Endowment Fund Trust and now hosts libraries and cultural events
HYDERABAD, Pakistan: On a busy street in Pakistan’s southern city of Hyderabad, the red-brick façade of Besant Hall now stands with quiet dignity, its symmetry and arches evoking a bygone era.
For much of the last century, the colonial-era landmark embodied the city’s intellectual and political energy. But in recent decades, the building fell into despair, its walls cracked, doors eaten by termites and halls used as a den by addicts.
Named after British socialist and theosophist Annie Besant, the hall was inaugurated by her in 1917 during the height of the Indian independence movement. For decades it remained a space for reformist gatherings, but its fortunes declined after the partition of the Subcontinent in 1947. By the 1980s, it was reduced to a marriage hall before being abandoned entirely.
In 2019, the Endowment Fund Trust (EFT) of the Sindh provincial government stepped in, launching an ambitious restoration project. The task was painstaking: red bricks were brought from Lahore to replicate its original look, layers of lime and cement that had dulled its character were replaced, and termite-infested windows rebuilt. Archivists salvaged fragile materials, some so badly infested they caused skin reactions in handlers.
Today, Besant Hall has been returned to life. Its rooms once again ring with the voices of students, scholars, and artists. The restored structure now houses the Jehangir Siddiqui Children’s Library and the Syed Abdullah Shah Scholar Library, and regularly hosts book readings, exhibitions, and cultural programs.
“This building, Besant Hall, was given to Annie Besant on lease in 1901 by Col. Alcot,” said Sobhia Ali, the director who now oversees the revived cultural center. She did not provide Alcot’s full name, but records show a Col. Henry Steel Olcott, co-founder of the Theosophical Society, of which Besant was a member. He died in 1907.
“When we received the building in 2019, it was full of cracks and in a very poor state… It had become a haven for drug addicts. We wiped everything out, restored it, not only restored the architecture but also its cultural and traditional value.”
The building, with its Roman-inspired entrance and Tudor-style windows, is one of Hyderabad’s most significant surviving colonial relics, and a lasting reminder of the woman it was named after.
SOCIALIST, THEOSOPHIST, WOMEN RIGHT’S ACTIVIST
Besant’s influence in South Asia was profound.
A British socialist, theosophist, and women’s rights activist, she became the first woman to preside over the Indian National Congress in 1917 and was a leading figure in the Home Rule Movement. The campaign sought self-governance for India, inspired by similar struggles in Ireland and other British colonies.
According to historian Dr. Kaleemullah Lashari, theosophy — an occult movement originating in the 19th century with roots that can be traced to ancient Gnosticism and Neoplatonism — took root in the Subcontinent by the early 1900s, after Helena Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott founded the Theosophical Society in 1875. Besant’s arrival in 1893 gave the movement new vigor.
“Many of its offices were established in various cities, with people showing great cooperation. In Karachi, our Theosophical Hall, located in front of Radio Pakistan, is quite well-known,” Lashari said. “Similarly, it also started in Hyderabad, where there was already a movement related to women. Our Hindu women in Hyderabad were very active, socially engaged.”
Author and historian Dr. Zaffar Junejo, whose book Hyderabad and Beyond was published earlier this year, said the hall’s history is entwined with the city’s colonial rise.
“The defeat of Sindh’s Talpur Mirs in 1843 sealed its future within the British Empire. By the 1920s, wealthy Sindhi Hindu merchants, known as Sindhworkies, had transformed Hyderabad into a commercial hub,” Junejo said.
“It is no wonder that [Indian polymath] Rabindranath Tagore called Hyderabad the most fashionable city in all of India.”
Besant Hall, alongside Homestead Hall, also became a vital stage for reformist debate. Its significance deepened when Besant herself launched the Home Rule Movement from its platform. The space was also remarkable for its inclusivity: Muslim leaders such as G.M. Syed and Hyder Baksh Jatoi joined Hindu intellectuals in theosophical sessions, making it a rare non-denominational forum.
“One could say that Besant Hall became an ideal place for educational, social, cultural and political activities,” Junejo said.
But the hall did not survive unscathed through the decades. In the 1990s, ethnic violence between Sindhis and Urdu-speaking migrants reduced its library and reading hall to ashes. Later, land mafias attempted to seize the property.
The EFT’s 2019 intervention, under a 10-year agreement with the Hyderabad district government and the Theosophical Society, marked a turning point.
Today, the hall’s legacy has been reclaimed. Children study in its libraries, community groups gather for cultural events, and Hyderabadis once again see the red-brick landmark as a living part of their city’s story.
“We have not only restored its architecture but also revived the tradition and the original purpose for which Annie Besant had this building constructed: intellectual gatherings, academic and cultural activities and cultural reforms,” Ali said.
Pakistan commerce minister visits Bangladesh to boost trade amid thaw in ties

- Jam Kamal’s visit follows Sheikh Hasina’s ouster last year, which strained Bangladesh’s ties with India
- The Pakistan minister will meet senior officials and business leaders to boost economic collaboration
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal arrived in Bangladesh on Wednesday for a four-day visit aimed at expanding trade ties after years of strained relations, with meetings planned with senior officials and business leaders.
Kamal’s trip comes in the wake of the ouster of former Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina in a popular uprising last year.
Hasina, long seen as close to India and critical of Pakistan, fled to New Delhi after her fall, putting pressure on Dhaka’s ties with India. The political shift opened space for Pakistan and Bangladesh — one nation until the bloody 1971 war of independence — to edge closer again, with senior officials from both sides holding meetings at global forums.
“Federal Minister for Commerce, H.E. Jam Kamal Khan, arrived in Bangladesh on Wednesday to begin a four-day official visit, scheduled from August 21 to 24, 2025,” the commerce ministry said in a statement.
“The visit is aimed at strengthening bilateral trade ties and enhancing economic cooperation between Pakistan and Bangladesh,” it added.
“During his stay, the Commerce Minister will hold high-level meetings with his Bangladeshi counterpart, senior government officials, and leading business representatives to explore new avenues of collaboration in trade and investment.”
Earlier this month, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Bangladeshi High Commissioner Md. Iqbal Hussain Khan in Islamabad, expressing satisfaction at the revival of bilateral mechanisms to rebuild ties.
Sharif recalled his “warm and productive” exchanges with Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Mohammad Yunus, most recently at the D-8 summit in Cairo last December, and said Pakistan was eager to broaden cooperation in political, economic and cultural areas while boosting trade and people-to-people contact.
The Bangladeshi envoy, according to Sharif’s office, briefed him on steps being taken by both countries to ease travel, trade and connectivity and voiced his intent to “further strengthen the historic bonds of friendship.”
Pakistan slams Muslim-only UN terror list, flags global rise of right-wing extremism

- Pakistan says UN terror list contradicts the world body’s own stance that terrorism is not tied to any religion
- Its envoy maintains TTP, BLA and Majeed Brigade are collaborating in cross-border attacks against Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday highlighted a global policy blindspot at the United Nations Security Council that was allowing right-wing and fascist movements to fuel extremist violence without attracting the same level of scrutiny as Muslim groups, despite posing serious threats in various parts of the world.
In remarks at a high-level Security Council briefing on threats to international peace, Pakistan’s UN envoy Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said his country had suffered deeply from militancy and condemned terrorism in all its forms. However, he urged the international community to revisit the global counterterrorism discourse, calling for a uniform application of the term “terrorism.”
“There has been a surge in the emergence of right-wing, extremist and fascist movements in several countries and regions of the world leading to terrorist violence,” he told the Council. “Yet, we see a strong inclination to see acts by non-Muslims not as terrorism, but often described just as violent crime.”
“It is not understandable, and is indeed unacceptable, that every name on the Security Council’s terrorism lists is Muslim, while terrorists and violent extremists elsewhere escape scrutiny,” he said. “There is no non-Muslim in the lists. This must change.”
Ahmad pointed out this approach ran counter to the UN’s own position that terrorism should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group.
The Pakistani envoy also reiterated his country’s concern over the challenge of militant violence emanating from Afghanistan, calling it “the single most potent threat” to the region and the world.
He cited the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as the largest UN-designated militant outfit operating from Afghan soil, with nearly 6,000 fighters posing a direct threat to Pakistan’s national security.
“With safe havens close to our borders, it directly threatens our national security,” Ahmad continued, adding there was “credible evidence of collaboration” between the TTP and the separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and Majeed Brigade.
These groups, he noted, had jointly targeted Pakistan’s strategic infrastructure, economic projects and civilians.
He recounted recent attacks including the hijacking of a passenger train in Balochistan earlier this year in March and a school bus attack in Khuzdar in May that left 10 people dead, eight of them children, pointing out that these acts were carried out by the same groups.
Ahmad accused Pakistan’s “principal adversary in the region” of sponsoring militant violence on its soil without naming India, saying it was also carrying out “extra-territorial assassinations that have gone global.”
He also condemned a cross-border strike by New Delhi in May that killed 54 Pakistani civilians, including 15 children, and led to an intense four-day war between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.