ISLAMABAD: Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb on Friday announced the provincial government had launched a 10-year smog mitigation plan, as record-high air pollution levels have triggered hundreds of hospitalizations, school closures and stay-at-home orders in several districts of the Pakistan’s most populous province.
On Friday, the provincial capital of Lahore, home to 13 million people, had the worst air quality of any city in the world, according to live readings by IQAir, a Swiss air quality monitoring company.
Toxic smog has enveloped Lahore and at least 17 other districts in Punjab since last month, where health officials have been forced to close down schools and government offices, among other measures.
“For the first time, Punjab has developed a 10-year climate change policy,” Aurangzeb said while addressing a press conference in Lahore, saying Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif was “personally” monitoring the plan’s implementation.
Pakistan, like neighboring India, battles pollution each year as temperatures fall and cold air traps construction dust, vehicle emissions and smoke as farmers illegally burn paddy stubble to clear fields. Prohibited brick-kilns and smoke-emitting vehicles also contribute to the problem.
Speaking about measures taken to combat air pollution, the minister said the Punjab government had distributed super seeders to farmers, bearing 60 percent of their cost while farmers paid the remaining 40 percent. The no-till planters are designed for precision seeding which helps farmers contribute to cleaner air, improved soil health, and a more sustainable agricultural ecosystem.
“We have an aim of distributing 5,000 super seeders in Punjab by July next year,” the minister said. “We have now engaged more companies to increase production of super seeders.”
Aurangzeb also said authorities had demolished 800 brick kilns.
“We did not seal them this time because they would begin operating again from January if they were only sealed,” she added.
The minister said environmental control systems to detect smoke had been set up through loans provided by the Punjab government.
“More than 90 small and medium sized industries have installed the system using this loan,” she said, encouraging people to help with the afforestation of Lahore.
“Forest cover of Lahore should be 36 percent on international standard, it is 3 percent now,” Aurangzeb said. “Green master plan of Lahore has been made. Implementation has started. Forest cover is planned to be increased, which is a part of this plan.”
Earlier this week, the government of Punjab closed all high schools in the province until Nov. 17 due to persisting smog.
Primary schools and government offices had already been closed until Nov. 17 in many districts of Punjab earlier this month, with school closures likely to affect the education of more than 20 million students, according to associations representing private and government schools.
Authorities in 18 districts of Punjab also closed all public parks, zoos and museums, historical places, and playgrounds for ten days last week.
On Friday, a court in Lahore ordered the government to shut all markets after 8pm. Authorities have already banned barbecuing food without filters and ordered wedding halls to close by 10pm.
On Monday, the UN children’s agency said the health of 11 million children in Punjab province was in danger because of air pollution.
Pakistan’s Punjab launches 10-year smog plan amid record air pollution
https://arab.news/j4eyv
Pakistan’s Punjab launches 10-year smog plan amid record air pollution
- Government has distributed super seeders to farmers to support precision seeding
- 800 brick kilns demolished instead of being sealed which briefly happens each year
Pakistan, UAE agree to ease visa process for Pakistani citizens
- Mohsin Naqvi discusses enhanced security, anti-narcotics, and tech cooperation during Abu Dhabi visit
- Pakistani interior minister briefed on crime prevention and public safety at UAE police operations center
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) agreed to take “necessary steps” to facilitate visa issuance for Pakistani citizens during a high-level meeting between Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his Emirati counterpart in Abu Dhabi, according to an official statement released on Friday.
The development comes amid growing concerns over visa delays and restrictions reportedly faced by Pakistani nationals seeking employment in the UAE. Last month, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar also raised the issue in a meeting with UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed.
The UAE is home to over 1.5 million Pakistanis and remains a major source of remittances.
“It was also mutually agreed to ensure necessary steps to facilitate visas for Pakistani citizens, especially work visas,” the interior ministry said in a statement issued after the meeting. “The UAE Minister of Interior assured full cooperation in this regard.”
Naqvi said the fraternal relations with the UAE were valued by all Pakistanis. He also highlighted that a large number of them were playing a key role in strengthening the UAE’s economy.
“We want Pakistani citizens to be able to come to the UAE easily and easing visa policies will greatly benefit them,” he added.
During his talks with UAE’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Lt. Gen. Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, both sides reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral cooperation in multiple areas including security, anti-narcotics, anti-smuggling and preventing illegal immigration.
The discussion also included regional peace and the use of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence to tackle security challenges.
Later, the Pakistani minister visited Abu Dhabi’s state-of-the-art police operations room, where he was briefed on crime prevention and public safety systems.
He expressed particular interest in the UAE’s advanced police monitoring model and praised the country’s use of technology for law enforcement.
Pakistan court suspends order seeking YouTube ban on government critics
- YouTube has warned 27 content creators their channels may be blocked if they fail to comply with a court order seeking to ban them
- Digital rights groups warn the move could further erode free speech in Pakistan, where authorities face criticism for silencing dissent
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court on Friday suspended an order seeking to ban the YouTube channels of more than two dozen critics of the government including former Prime Minister Imran Khan, a defense lawyer said.
Alphabet-owned YouTube this week told 27 content creators that it could block their channels — including those of journalists and Khan and his opposition party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf — if they failed to comply with a judicial magistrate court order seeking to ban them.
A regional communication manager for YouTube did not respond to a Reuters request for a comment.
The judicial magistrate court in Islamabad had said it was seeking the ban after the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency criticized the channels in a June 2 report for “sharing highly intimidating, provocative and derogatory contents against state institutions and officials of the state of Pakistan.”
The decision to suspend the order was taken by an additional sessions judge, said Imaan Mazari, the lawyer for two of the YouTube content creators.
In Pakistan, an additional sessions judge is a judicial officer who presides over a sessions court, handling both civil and criminal cases.
“Our submission is that the order has no legal basis. It was a one-sided decision without giving defense a chance to be heard,” Mazari said.
She also said the magistrate court had no jurisdiction over the matter.
The next hearing in the sessions court is on July 21.
In Pakistan’s judicial system, cases start at civil and judicial magistrate courts and appeals are heard in high courts and the Supreme Court.
Digital rights campaigners say that any ban would further undermine free speech in Pakistan, where the authorities are accused of stifling newspapers and television, and social media is seen as one of the few outlets for dissent.
Islamabad, Moscow sign protocol to restore and modernize Pakistan Steel Mills
- The Pakistan Steel Mills has been non-operational since 2015 due to years of financial mismanagement, political interference and mounting losses
- Both sides discussed plans to modernize the major steel complex on the sidelines of the recent INNOPROM Annual Industrial Forum in Yekaterinburg
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Russia have signed a protocol to restore and modernize the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) in Karachi, Pakistani state media reported on Friday.
The development comes days after the two sides discussed plans to modernize the major steel complex and expand industrial cooperation on the sidelines of the INNOPROM Annual Industrial Forum in Yekaterinburg.
INNOPROM, Russia’s largest annual industrial trade fair, brings together government delegations, business leaders and technology firms from over 30 countries to explore partnerships in manufacturing, engineering and high-tech industries.
The protocol was signed at the Pakistan Embassy in Moscow by Pakistan’s Secretary of Industries and Production Saif Anjum and Russian General Director of Industrial Engineering LLC Vadim Velichko, reaffirming the long-standing industrial partnership.
“The project aims to restart and expand steel production [in Pakistan], marking a new chapter in bilateral cooperation,” read a report on Radio Pakistan broadcaster.
The PSM, once Pakistan’s flagship industrial complex, was built in the 1970s with Soviet assistance. While it symbolized national self-sufficiency, the mill has been non-operational since 2015 due to years of financial mismanagement, political interference and mounting losses.
Moscow is also expected to finalize an agreement with Islamabad this summer to construct a new steel mill in Karachi, Russian Consul-General Andrey B. Fedorov told Arab News this month.
Technical experts from Russia have already inspected the proposed site for the new facility, and another delegation is expected soon to draft a detailed roadmap.
Russia has a long history of industrial cooperation with Pakistan, having previously built key infrastructure projects such as the Guddu Power Station in Sindh in the 1980s, one of the country’s major electricity producers.
Moscow and Islamabad have expanded cooperation in recent years despite global tensions over the war in Ukraine.
Pakistan rain death toll rises to 90 as authorities issue fresh flood warning
- Heavy rains have also damaged at least 343 houses nationwide
- Relief operations underway in affected areas, authority says
KARACHI: The death toll from monsoon downpours in Pakistan rose to 90 after three children died in rain-related incidents in the eastern Punjab province, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Friday, amid fresh alert about possible flooding between July 13 and July 17.
Punjab has reported 32 deaths, including 18 children, while the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has recorded 30 deaths, 14 of them children, since the start of monsoon in late June.
The southern province of Sindh has reported 16 deaths and the southwestern Balochistan province has logged 11 fatalities. One man lost his life in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
“The total number of 90 deceased include 45 children, 29 men and 16 women,” the NDMA said in a report on Friday, adding that another 158 people were injured in incidents across the country.
“Minor flooding is ongoing at Tarbela, Taunsa and Guddu Barrages, while moderate flooding continues at Kalabagh and Chashma.”
Heavy rains have also damaged at least 343 houses nationwide. Of them, 109 were destroyed and 234 incurred partial damages, according to the NDMA.
Flood relief operations have been underway in affected areas, with authorities distributing tents, ration bags, blankets, sandbags, quilts, gas cylinders, mattresses, kitchen sets, mosquito nets, plastic mats, hygiene kits and food packets to affected families.
A total of 24 relief camps have been set up in Punjab and two in Sindh, providing shelter to 176 people, whereas around 245 people have been rescued in 21 operations carried out across the country.
FLOOD ALERT
Taunsa Barrage located on Indus River in Punjab’s Dera Ismail Khan district “may experience moderate flooding,” the NDMA said in a fresh alert on Friday.
There is a risk of minor flooding at Marala and Khanki along the Chenab River and at Nowshera along the Kabul River. Flooding is also expected in the Swat and Panjkora Rivers as well as their adjoining streams.
The NDMA has advised people to exercise caution and avoid crossing streams, bridges and floodwaters.
Pakistan has also rolled out a location-based SMS alert system to warn citizens living in flood-prone areas about imminent weather threats.
Pakistan, home to over 240 million people, is consistently ranked among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. In 2022, record-breaking monsoon rains and glacier melt triggered catastrophic floods that affected 33 million people and killed more than 1,700.
Pakistani father kills daughter over TikTok account, police say
- TikTok is wildly popular in Pakistan, in part because of its accessibility to a population with low literacy levels
- Pakistani authorities have repeatedly blocked or threatened to block the app over what they call ‘immoral behavior’
RAWALPINDI: Pakistan police on Friday said a father shot dead his daughter after she refused to delete her account on popular video-sharing app TikTok.
In the Muslim-majority country, women can be subjected to violence by family members for not following strict rules on how to behave in public, including in online spaces.
“The girl’s father had asked her to delete her TikTok account. On refusal, he killed her,” a police spokesperson told AFP.
According to a police report shared with AFP, investigators said the father killed his 16-year-old daughter on Tuesday “for honor.” He was subsequently arrested.
The victim’s family initially tried to “portray the murder as a suicide” according to police in the city of Rawalpindi, where the attack happened, next to the capital Islamabad.
Last month, a 17-year-old girl and TikTok influencer with hundreds of thousands of online followers was killed at home by a man whose advances she had refused.
Sana Yousaf had racked up more than a million followers on social media accounts including TikTok, where she shared videos of her favorite cafes, skincare products, and traditional outfits.
TikTok is wildly popular in Pakistan, in part because of its accessibility to a population with low literacy levels.
Women have found both audience and income on the app, which is rare in a country where fewer than a quarter of the women participate in the formal economy.
However, only 30 percent of women in Pakistan own a smartphone compared to twice as many men (58 percent), the largest gap in the world, according to the Mobile Gender Gap Report of 2025.
Pakistani telecommunications authorities have repeatedly blocked or threatened to block the app over what they call “immoral behavior.”
In southwestern Balochistan, where tribal law governs many rural areas, a man confessed to orchestrating the murder of his 14-year-old daughter earlier this year over TikTok videos that he said compromised her “honor.”
