The United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) has transferred to Pakistan Rs28 billion obtained through a settlement with a Pakistani citizen in a civil lawsuit, according to a spokesperson. The amount was deposited in the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s account in the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP). The NCA corespondent confirmed that the agency had transferred the amount but declined to give any further information about where the money had been deposited.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (Operations) Islamabad, Waqar Uddin, has announced a police motorbike squad that will be patrolling the city. The squad will help control street crime in the the federal capital and instill confidence on the streets. Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) has also announced an e-challan system as well to help facilitate the citizens.
Prime Minister Imran Khan distributed on Friday cheques among successful applicants under his government’s flagship initiative, ‘Kamyab Jawan’ programme. According to PM, the major aspects of the programme were transparency and merit. People are optimistic about this initiative and around 190,000 women applied for the loan under this scheme. A sum of Rs100 billion has been allocated for it out of which Rs25 billion have been set aside for women.
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on Friday increased the tariff on electricity by Rs0.26 per unit. A notification was issued by the ministry of power, energy division after the authority’s approval. The increased tariff will come into effect for consumers who have used more than 300 units of electricity from December 1. As per the IMF agreement, the government is bound to increase power tariff under quarterly adjustment.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement for Hajj 2020, which will allow as many as 200,000 Pakistanis to perform the religious duty next year. The new agreement has seen an increase in Pakistan’s quota from the previous 184,210 to 200,000. The Saudi government has agreed to increase facilities for Pakistani pilgrims, including the expansion of Road to Makkah project to other Pakistani cities, provision of quality food, transport, and residential facilities under this agreement.
The United States Embassy in Islamabad has introduced home delivery facility for Pakistani visa applicants. According to the tweet by the embassy, intending applicants can avail this facility by selecting the ‘premium delivery’ service option while submitting an online application and receive their passport and visa at home. The charges for this service will be Rs. 700. In recent months, the ties between Pakistan and the US have significantly improved, which is now reflecting in other fields as well.
President Arif Alvi on Wednesday gave the approval for the appointment of Justice Gulzar Ahmed as the new chief justice of Pakistan (CJP). Justice Gulzar will assume charge as the 27th chief justice of Pakistan on December 21 after Justice Asif Saeed Khosa retires. Gulzar, who hails from Karachi has been serving as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan since November 16, 2011.
In the The World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) for 2019 Pakistan was ranked poor in terms of the efficiency of air transport services. Pakistan scored 52.9 points out of 100, securing 93rd place on the list which includes 141 countries. The country got a value of 4.2 on a scale of 1-7 with 7 being the best. (GCI) for 2019 was compiled based on a different factors including the efficiency of air transport services.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Pakistan will be installing three new air quality monitoring systems in Islamabad. In order to increase the capital’s capacity to accurately measure the air quality, the monitors will be installed in areas with the highest industrial and vehicular emissions like Peshawar Mor, Rawat, and Taramri Chowk. EPA has prepared the project concept-I in this regard which will be sent to the Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC) for final approval.
Punjab Finance Department announced the fare for Pakistan’s first modern mass transit system Orange Line Train. The initial proposal from the finance department suggests that the provincial government wants to keep the fare between Rs. 40 to Rs. 50 for a single trip. The train project still requires several tests before the official launch, according to Punjab Transport Secretary, Asad Rehman Gilani.