Pakistan

Ishaq Dar takes oath as senator after five years of self-exile

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Dar will take oath as finance minister tomorrow (Wednesday).
President Arif Alvi to administer oath to Dar at Aiwan-e-Sadar.
Preparations for oath-taking ceremony are underway.

PML-N leader Ishaq Dar on Tuesday took oath as a senator during a swearing-in ceremony at the Senate after living five years in self-imposed exile in the United Kingdom.

Dar had been successfully elected to the Senate from Punjab but had been out of the country since October 2017.

Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjarani administered the oath amid the ruckus created by the Opposition. PTI members tore the copies of the agenda of the meeting to register their protest and also surrounded the dais.

The Senate chairman directed all members to maintain the decorum of the Upper House as Dar continued to receive felicitations from members of the coalition parties.

The politician, who touched down in Pakistan with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Monday night, will swear in as the federal finance minister tomorrow (September 28) at 10am.

President Arif Alvi will administer the oath to Dar at Aiwan-e-Sadar. All arrangements for the oath-taking ceremony will be completed by tomorrow morning.

‘Rupee’s value kept artificially low’

Blaming the hundi and hawala businesses, Dar said that the rupee’s value has been kept low artificially, adding that such practices cannot hold the local currency hostage.

In a question-and-answer break during the Senate session, Dar said that the US dollar depreciated by around Rs10 against the rupee since he landed in the country, stating that one of the problems faced by the country is the artificial depreciation of the rupee.

“Inflation is also high,” he said listing the issues that the coalition government has to fix.

Referring to the winning streak of the rupee in the market, the PML-N leader said that the country’s debt reduced by Rs1,350 billion in less than 24 hours. He also stressed the need for amendments to the previous finance bill.

‘I will try my best to pull Pakistan out of maelstrom’

“I have returned to my country by the grace of God. I will try my best to pull Pakistan out of the [economic] maelstrom it is surrounded with,” Dar had said earlier.

He shared that PML-N President Nawaz Sharif and the PM have handed over the responsibility of the finance ministry to him.

“[We] pulled Pakistan out of an economic maelstrom back in 1998 and 2013,” the incoming finance minister said.

Dar has returned to “facilitate” the government in its efforts to resurrect the cash-strapped economy by taking over the key portfolio of the finance ministry.

Miftah Ismail stepped down as the finance minister in line with the party’s decision ahead of Dar’s arrival

The decision was made during a meeting of PML-N leaders in London, including Nawaz Sharif, PM Shehbaz, and others. During the session, several issues related to the country were discussed in detail.

According to a PML-N spokesperson, during the meeting, Miftah handed over his resignation to Nawaz and thanked him for giving him a chance to lead the ministry.

Miftah also said that over the last four months, he performed to the best of his abilities and remained loyal to his party as well as the country.

However, he will continue to remain part of the government.

Business

Price of LPG “slashed” by Rs. 20 per kilogram

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

Sources claim that LPG rates have been lowered by Rs 20, making the cost per kilogram drop from Rs 280 to Rs 260.

It is noteworthy to remark that the costs of LPG were reduced by Rs 20 per kilogram earlier, resulting in a total reduction of Rs 40 per kilogram within a few weeks.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas for the month of May 2024 was lowered by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on April 30.

The LPG tariffs were lowered by Rs 11.88 to Rs 238.46 per kilogram in accordance with the OGRA’s notice. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the new rates will go into effect.

In April of last year, the price per kilogram of LPG was Rs 250.34. pricing reduction of Rs 140.18 has resulted in a new pricing for home LPG cylinders set for May 2024 of Rs 2813.85.

The OGRA reported a drop in liquefied petroleum gas pricing in April. The price of LPG is now Rs 250.34 per kg instead of Rs 256.78 due to a reduction of Rs 6.44 per kg.

The price of the household cylinder was fixed at Rs 2954.03 for the month of April, down from Rs 3030.12, a decrease of Rs 76.9.

Business

ADB delegation stops by FBR headquarters

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

Senior Director ADB Tariq Niazi oversaw the expedition, which also involved Sana Masood, Farzana Noshab, and Senior Public Sector Management Specialist Laisiasa Tora. The meeting included presentations from economists as well, according to an FBR press release.

The officers focused on structural and policy adjustments as they discussed the Domestic Resource Mobilization Program’s implementation at the meeting.

$300 million was given to the Pakistani government by ADB in December 2023 as a result of the hard work and dedication of FBR. Better laws, regulations, and institutional capability for the FBR were established by Sub-Program I.

With the $300 million in funding provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to the Government of Pakistan in December 2023, the delegation conveyed satisfaction with the program’s effective launch.

The FBR also underlined how crucial digitization is to recording the economy and boosting productivity in a sustainable way.

In order to promote the Government of Pakistan’s Digital Tax Administration Project, both parties decided to look into measures to improve their cooperation.

Latest News

Off-duty police in Islamabad are prohibited from donning uniforms.

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

The new directives, according to specifics, were sent via wireless by the federal capital police and state that no officer may wear a uniform when reporting for duty or leaving it.

According to the police official, uniforms will only be worn when on duty; otherwise, two policemen will accompany each other during duty hours and will always be required to carry guns.

A different development was the earlier release of an app by the Islamabad Police with the goal of improving crime prevention and public safety.

Launched on the orders of former Interior Minister Sarfraz Akbar Bugti, the recently released ICT-15 app aims to empower the people of the capital city by giving them the ability to actively engage in the battle against crime and protect their areas.

Residents of Islamabad can now easily download and utilize the ICT-15 app because it is easily accessible on the Google Play Store.

Citizens can report a variety of issues with this easy-to-use application, such as incidents, unlawful behavior, complaints against law enforcement, the presence of undocumented people, or any suspicious criminal activity.

The police promise quick reaction times as soon as information is reported using the app, so assistance will be provided as quickly as feasible.