LAHORE: The Punjab government’s Women on Wheels (WoW) program is to distribute 700 motorbikes among working women, students and women associated with small businesses on subsidized rates to make their travel easier.
This will not only help empower females but will also help to end the social taboos established in society that “women are not fit for every job,” Salman Soofi, director general, Chief Minister Strategic Reforms Unit (SRU) Punjab, told Arab News.
The SRU is distributing the motorbikes to the women to give them easier mobility for their colleges, offices and business places.
The program is one of the components of the SRU’s women-centric reforms and the provincial transport department and the Bank of Punjab (BoP) are the partners in it.
The government of Punjab is providing 100 percent of the markup of the motorbike alongside a subsidy of Rs 24, 975 ($216).
The WoW program is being started in five big cities of the province of Punjab: Lahore, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Multan and Rawalpindi, and 700 graduate women have been selected to receive motorbikes on subsidized rates.
The program will be officially started with a big rally of the women bike-riders in the second week of May.
The SRU envisages that this initiative will bring about a change of attitude toward women in society. It will also help to empower them as they will not have to depend on family members to travel.
“This program will not only break taboos that women can’t drive motorbikes but gives them the power of mobility to be anything they want to be: a businesswoman, a student, a professional or a housewife with the ability to take care of her household,” Soofi told Arab News.
Women activists believe that it is a step toward prosperity, and self-reliance that opens the door of progress for women.
Mumtaz Mughal, director of the Aurat Foundation, told Arab News that several women’s issues are related to mobility as they feel insecure while traveling on public transport: “Having their own conveyance will make them independent and they will feel free to go their places of work that certainly would lead to their prosperity.”
WOW: Women in Punjab to get 700 motorbikes
WOW: Women in Punjab to get 700 motorbikes
- Punjab government is distributing bikes to working women, students and women associated with small businesses on subsidized rates to facilitate their travel
- It is political gimmickry and aims to bribe party workers, opposition says
Pakistan PM to inaugurates faceless customs assessment system today during Karachi visit
- Launched as a pilot project last month, the system aims to streamline customs clearance through automation
- Shehbaz Sharif will also visit PSX to celebrate its achievement as the second-best performing global stock market
KARACHI: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is scheduled to inaugurate the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) new Faceless Customs Assessment System at the Karachi Port Trust during his daylong visit to the city, which began on Wednesday, to examine several key initiatives aimed at improving economic efficiency and health care services.
The Faceless Customs Assessment System, launched as a pilot project in December 2024, aims to streamline customs clearance through automation. By minimizing human interaction, the system seeks to enhance transparency, reduce clearance times and improve trade facilitation.
The initiative marks the first step in a broader government plan to scale up the system to upcountry ports and border stations in the coming months.
“The Prime Minister will visit the South Asia Pakistan Terminal at Karachi Port Trust, where he will inaugurate the FBR’s automated customs clearance system, the Faceless Customs Assessment System,” the PM Office said in a statement. “The Prime Minister had directed the installation of this system during his last visit to Karachi.”
Pakistan seeks to modernize its port facilities to transform itself into a transit trade hub. The country has also invited landlocked Central Asian nations to utilize its ports for access to global sea lanes, enhancing regional trade connectivity.
Sharif is also scheduled to attend a ceremony at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) to celebrate its achievement as the second-best performing stock market globally in 2024, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index rising 56 percent over the year.
His PSX visit comes at a time when the government aims to unlock both foreign and domestic investment to overcome a prolonged economic crisis. Pakistani officials have described the market’s strong performance as a reflection of growing investor confidence and the administration’s commitment to fiscal reforms and improved business facilitation.
Sharif will also attend the launch of the “Manual of Clinical Practice Guidelines” at Aga Khan University, calling it a milestone in Pakistan’s health care sector. The guidelines are expected to standardize medical practices and improve health care delivery nationwide.
Protesters in Pakistan’s north continue blockade of key highway to China over power outages
- Residents of Gilgit-Baltistan started a sit-in on Jan.1, vowing to protest until they got reliable electricity
- Despite the area’s significance, some residents say they only get electricity for 30 minutes in 24 hours
ISLAMABAD: Hundreds of protesters in Pakistan’s northern Hunza Valley blocked the Karakoram Highway (KKH) for the sixth consecutive day on Tuesday, demonstrating against severe power outages during the region’s freezing winter.
The protest, which began on January 1, involves local residents, political parties and civil society groups who vowed to continue their sit-in until their demands for reliable electricity were met.
Demonstrators on Tuesday voiced frustration over the Gilgit-Baltistan government’s failure to ensure even a few hours of power each day, saying over 80,000 people were struggling for basic needs.
The KKH, a vital trade and strategic route linking Pakistan with China, has been obstructed at Aliabad, the district headquarters of Hunza. The area plays a critical role in bilateral trade facilitated by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which has increased since an agreement to keep the Khunjerab Pass open year-round for economic exchanges.
“This is a nerve-breaking power outage in Hunza,” said Baba Jan, a protester, speaking at the sit-in. “We are getting power only 30-40 minutes in 24 hours.
“It is very cold here,” he added. “The temperature drops to minus 15 at night. Students don’t have Internet due to the power outage. There are issues in lighting, heating and cooking that people are facing here.”
Rehan Shah, another protester agreed, emphasizing the area’s important defense and strategic location.
“It’s the gate of CPEC and Pakistan-China connectivity,” he noted. “People here are hardly getting power for one hour and twenty minutes during the daytime. They’ve been out protesting on the streets for the last six days.”
Power cuts, known locally as load shedding, are a chronic issue in Pakistan, with many areas facing significant disruptions. The harsh winters in Gilgit-Baltistan exacerbate the problem, leaving residents without adequate heating or access to essential services.
Last week, Hamid Hussain, an engineer at the Gilgit-Baltistan Water and Power Department, acknowledged the issue but attributed it to technical limitations.
“The region heavily relies on hydropower, which often faces disruption in winter due to the freezing of rivers and lakes,” he told Arab News.
“There are 137 power stations in Gilgit-Baltistan,” he added. “The installed capacity of these power stations is 190 megawatts. However, power generation is 140 megawatts during the summer while 76 megawatts during the winter due to the low flow of water.”
Protesters have demanded thermal power generators to supplement energy needs during the winter, but Hussain said they were costly and were hard to implement due to financial constraints.
Diplomat pays tribute as 89 Pakistani devotees attend Sufi saint’s death anniversary in India
- Religious devotees are commemorating the 813th anniversary of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer
- Despite strained relations between the two nuclear-armed states, cultural and exchanges continue
ISLAMABAD: A group of 89 Pakistani devotees began attending the 813th annual Urs, or death anniversary commemoration, of the 12th-century Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in India, with a Pakistani diplomat laying a traditional chaddar, or ceremonial cloth, at his shrine on Tuesday.
Born in 1141 in Sistan, modern-day Iran, Chishti arrived in India in the late 12th century and gained a following for his teachings of compassion and service to humanity, which resonated deeply with the region’s marginalized communities. Known as Gharib Nawaz, or Benefactor of the Poor, he established the Chishti Order of Sufism in South Asia.
His legacy as a symbol of interfaith harmony endures through his shrine in Ajmer, Rajasthan, which draws millions of devotees annually, particularly during the commemoration of his death anniversary.
“To participate in the 813th annual Urs Mubarak of Hazrat Khwaja Syed Moinuddin Hasan Chishti (RA), a group of 89 Pakistani Zaireen [pilgrims] is in Ajmeer Sharif from 7-9 January 2025,” the Pakistan High Commission said on X, formerly Twitter.
“Pakistani Zaireen accompanied by Second Secretary, Pakistan High Commission, New Delhi, Mr. Tariq Masroof, placed the traditional Chaddar at the Shrine of Hazrat Khwaja Syed Moinuddin Hasan Chishti,” it added.
The event underscores how cultural and religious exchanges have persisted between India and Pakistan despite strained diplomatic relations since August 2019, when New Delhi revoked Kashmir’s special constitutional status. The disputed Himalayan region has long been a flashpoint between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, who have fought wars and numerous border skirmishes over it.
Religious tourism remains a crucial element of people-to-people exchanges under the 1974 Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines, which permits citizens of both nations to visit sacred sites. These include Hindu and Sikh temples in Pakistan and Islamic shrines in India.
At the beginning of the year, the Pakistan High Commission announced it had issued 94 visas to Indian nationals to attend the birth anniversary of an 18th-century Hindu spiritual leader in Sindh province.
Pakistan has also promoted religious tourism by hosting Buddhist monks, as well as Hindu and Sikh pilgrims from India and other countries.
Pakistani authorities deny detaining 800 Afghans, say only repatriating illegal immigrants
- Afghan embassy recently said Islamabad administration was making arrests, targeting registered refugees
- Pakistani authorities announced in November Afghan nationals would require NOCs to stay in Islamabad
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration on Tuesday rejected claims by Afghanistan’s diplomatic mission it had detained approximately 800 Afghan citizens, asserting it was only repatriating illegal foreign nationals in accordance with the law.
Pakistan, which hosted over four million Afghan refugees after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, registered these individuals with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). They were issued Proof of Registration (PoR) cards and Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) to allow legal residence and access to services such as health care and banking.
Another wave of Afghan refugees arrived after the Taliban’s capture of Kabul in 2021 amid the withdrawal of US-led international forces. Confronted with economic challenges and a surge in militant violence perpetrated by groups reportedly operating from Afghan territory, Pakistan initiated a crackdown against “illegal immigrants,” mostly Afghans, citing security concerns.
Pakistani officials said in 2023 that some Afghan nationals had been involved in attacks, including suicide bombings, targeting civilians and security forces, a claimed denied by the administration in Kabul.
The Afghan embassy in Pakistan said on Monday authorities in Pakistan’s federal capital had detained about 800 Afghan nationals, including individuals registered with the UNHCR.
“It is clarified that only the illegal foreign nationals are being repatriated as per law of the land,” the ICT administration said in a statement.
“With regard to Afghan nationals, it is being clarified that those holding valid documentation— such as Proof of Registration (PoR) cards, Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC), visas, or those listed for third-country resettlement— are not being repatriated,” it added. “Islamabad Civil Administration remains committed to safeguarding the rights of all documented individuals.”
The statement further noted that search and combing operations were also conducted in compliance with the law, offering undocumented foreign nationals the chance to validate their status.
It also confirmed that in 2025, Islamabad authorities deported 183 illegal foreign nationals, while two were still in holding areas. Officials stressed that those deported lacked any legal documentation and reiterated that actions are taken strictly against undocumented individuals.
“The civil administration reaffirms its commitment to ensuring fair and humane treatment of all individuals while strictly adhering to legal requirements,” the ICT statement said, urging foreign nationals to carry valid documentation to avoid inconvenience.
Last year in November, Pakistani authorities announced that Afghan nationals would need no-objection certificates (NOCs) to stay in Islamabad. The decision followed the detention of several Afghan nationals who reportedly participated in a political rally by former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, which turned violent, resulting in casualties.
The Afghan embassy expressed concern over alleged “unwarranted arrests, home searches, and extortion targeting Afghan nationals,” highlighting the reported detentions, including 137 who, it said, were temporarily registered with the UNHCR and had applied for visa extensions.
Women, children among six killed in road crash in Pakistan’s Balochistan
- The crash occurred in the mountainous Zhob district after speeding car lost control
- Fatal road accidents are common in Pakistan where traffic rules are rarely followed
QUETTA: At least six people, including women and children, were killed after a speeding car crashed into a trailer in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province on Tuesday night, officials said.
The vehicle was en route to the provincial capital of Quetta from the Zhob district, according to Zhob Assistant Commissioner Naveed Ahmed.
The speeding car lost control on a mountainous curve on N-50 Quetta-Islamabad Highway and crashed into the trailer coming from the opposite direction in Badinzai area, some 20 kilometers from Zhob city.
“Six people, including two women and two children, were killed in the fatal accident and seven others injured,” AC Naveed Ahmed told Arab News, adding speeding vehicles often results in accidents at dangerous curves along the Quetta-Zhob highway.
Muhammad Shahjahan, in-charge of the Zhob Trauma Center where the bodies and injured were taken, told Arab News that four critically wounded persons had been shifted to Quetta.
“The bodies have been identified and handed over to the heirs, while three other injured are out of danger now,” he added.
Fatal road accidents are common in Pakistan where traffic rules are rarely followed and roads, particularly in rural and mountainous areas, are in poor condition. Such accidents are frequent in Balochistan where single-carriage roads connect various cities, and even some highways lack modern safety features.
On Dec. 30, at least 18 passengers were killed in two separate road accidents in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab and southern Sindh provinces, authorities said.
