The government of Punjab has decided to shut down free WiFi facilities across the province owing to heavy annual payments to service providers. Reportedly, the free WiFi facility has cost the government an extra Rs. 195 million in federal payments while heavily denting the provincial exchequer. The project was initially suspended in 2019 due to the nonpayment of dues by the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL).
Educational institutions in the country will reopen in phases from January 18, the government has announced. Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood said that in the first phase, classes nine to 12 would be allowed to resume. He said that in the next phase, classes one to eight would resume on Jan 25. All higher educational institutions would resume from Feb 1, he added.
The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has decided to reconstruct a Hindu temple that was set ablaze and vandalized by a mob in the Teri area of the district of Karak. The Karak Hindu temple was burned by a mob last Wednesday, comprising youngsters, elders, and children, drawing criticism from human rights activists and religious minorities.
Pakistan has further improved its position on the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) in 2019 due to the ongoing counter-terrorism operations. According to GTI 2020 report, Pakistan has dropped two places to 7th in 2019 from 5th in 2018 on the GTI, indicating a significant improvement in the overall security situation of the country. Note that the lower the rank on the GTI, the safer the country is considered.
Young Pakistani girl, Emma Alam, broke multiple world records as she won the 29th World Memory Championships global finals, beating over 300 competitors from all across the world. Emma became the first Pakistani ever to win the World Memory Championship. Emma has been making the country proud in various competitions over the years, raking in countless trophies and medals.
The Punjab government has removed Umar Sheikh from the post of Lahore Capital City Police Officer. Sheikh has been replaced with Ghulam Mehmood Dogar, who has served as a police officer for 14 years, including as the Lahore DIG operations and Lahore chief traffic office. Dogar, who hails from Sialkot, is counted among some of the most professional, able and responsible police officers in Pakistan.
Pakistani ambassador to Germany, Dr Mohammad Faisal has revealed that he had met Dieter Mettke from the multinational IKEA conglomerate who was en route to Pakistan to start IKEA operations there. Dieter Mettke will be in charge of IKEA operations in the country. “We look forward to #IKEA opening up stores in major cities of #Pakistan,” Ambassador Faisal said on Twitter.
The European Union Air Safety Agency (EASA) has refused to allow Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to resume its flight operations to and from European countries without the safety audit of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and has extended the ban for three months. The national carrier had requested the EASA for provisional permission following its fulfillment of several prescribed conditions.
Pakistan Post has been ranked at 67th position in the Universal Postal Union 2020 rankings. According to the 2020 report, Pakistan Post has jumped up 27 places since 2016 when it was ranked at 94th position. The Universal Postal Union is a United Nations specialized agency that publishes the annual rankings based on service, consumer confidence, reach, hard work, and dedication.
Abbottabad once again reported the highest positivity ratio in the country, after another 1,800 Covid-19 infections surfaced on Sunday. Abbottabad had also figured on top on Dec 21 when it recorded 40.32 per cent ratio of coronavirus cases. According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 1,853 people contracted the virus while 57 lost their lives.