ISLAMABAD: As the government struggles to translate memorandums of understanding (MOUs) signed with the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) of thermal and renewable power plants for tariff discounts into contracts, sponsors of hydropower power plants (HPPs) have declined to revise old agreements with the government. A senior government official told Dawn that sponsors of HPPs had three to four sessions […]
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Assessment of major crops like cotton and paddy in lower Sindh is underway but authorities believe the overall losses to major crops and vegetables are heavy. A survey to determine losses is being conducted by the revenue department in Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Sanghar, Badin and Sujawal districts that are all left bank areas in Sindh. These […]
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The 1985 “Qamar-ul Islam” Taxation Reforms Commission (to which my London School of Economics colleague, Lord Stern, and I had the privilege of giving evidence) proposed enhancing the tax/GDP ratio from around 14 per cent to 20pc, to ensure economic independence, laying the basis for sustainable growth while reducing corruption in the then Central Board […]
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The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday directed prime minister’s adviser Mirza Shahzad Akbar to prepare a report on the poor standard of the city police’s investigation process and present it to the premier within two weeks. The court also directed Akbar to submit a detailed report on the matter in the IHC within three […]
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The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Monday wrapped up a chaotic public hearing over Karachi Electric’s (KE) performance, saying a decision will be announced later. According to the regulator’s spokesperson, stakeholders can submit further comments in writing within the next 10 days. Nepra did not announce the date on which the decision will […]
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The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has decided to maintain its policy rate at seven per cent in its new monetary policy announced on Monday. Following a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), the SBP, in a statement, said: “In reaching its decision, the MPC considered key trends and prospects in the real, external and fiscal […]
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Top government ministers on Monday held a press conference, a day after the country’s major opposition parties announced launching of a three-phased anti-government movement under the banner of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi asked the opposition not to “drag national institutions into politics”. “It is not good for the country, it is […]
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At least 10 people were killed and up to 25 were feared trapped after a three-storey residential building collapsed before dawn on Monday in western India, officials said. The accident in the city of Bhiwandi, which neighbours India’s financial capital Mumbai, occurred around 3:40am, local authorities said. “Ten people have died, we have rescued 11 […]
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Senior Indian and Chinese military commanders are holding talks on Monday aimed at resolving a tense months-long standoff along their disputed border in the mountainous Ladakh region. Details of the talks, held on the Chinese side in the Moldo area facing the Indian-controlled Ladakh region, weren’t immediately disclosed. For the first time, a senior Indian […]
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Taiwan said on Monday its armed forces have the right to self-defence and counter attack amid “harassment and threats”, in an apparent warning to China, which last week sent numerous jets across the mid-line of the sensitive Taiwan Strait. Tensions have sharply spiked in recent months between Taipei and Beijing, which claims democratically run Taiwan as its […]
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