Day: September 2, 2026

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is set to sign long-delayed agreements with five major oil refineries on Thursday, paving the way for more than $6 billion in planned investment to modernise ageing plants, boost domestic production of petrol and diesel, and reduce the country’s dependence on refined fuel imports. The agreements with Pak-Arab Refinery Ltd. (PARCO), Pakistan Refinery Ltd. (PRL), National Refinery Ltd. (NRL), Cnergyico and Attock Refinery Ltd. (ARL) are being finalised through a series of meetings between the Petroleum Division and Inter-State Gas Systems (ISGS), a senior Petroleum Division official told…

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KARACHI: The Sindh Cabinet has approved a two-year extension of tax and registration incentives for non-commercial electric vehicles (EVs), while proposing a package of amendments to the Sindh Local Government Act, 2013 aimed at improving municipal services, institutional efficiency and accountability. The cabinet, chaired by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, approved the extension of EV incentives from May 30, 2026 to May 29, 2028, in a move aimed at encouraging cleaner and more affordable transportation across the province. Under the extended incentive package, the registration fee for non-commercial…

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KARACHI: The rapid degradation of the Indus Delta is threatening coastal livelihoods and could increasingly expose Karachi to flooding, seawater intrusion and other climate-related risks, experts warned at a book launch ceremony held at the Arts Council of Pakistan. Once a thriving ecosystem supporting fisheries, agriculture and thousands of coastal communities, the delta is steadily drying, eroding and sinking due to inadequate freshwater and sediment reaching its lower reaches. The worsening conditions are making parts of Thatta, Sujawal and Keti Bandar increasingly difficult to inhabit and forcing communities to abandon…

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ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Dr Musadik Masood Malik has called for a major expansion of groundwater recharge initiatives in Islamabad to tackle the continued depletion of the capital’s underground water reserves. Speaking at an event titled “Protecting Islamabad’s Aquifers” at the USEFP Auditorium, the minister said around 200 recharge wells had been constructed across the capital as a pilot initiative, but stressed that the programme needed to be scaled up significantly. Dr Malik said the recharge interventions had resulted in an estimated 0.4-millimetre rise in…

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BISHKEK: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has warned that water must never be used as a weapon or instrument of political coercion, stressing that agreements governing shared water resources are binding international commitments that must be respected in letter and spirit. Addressing the 26th Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State in Bishkek, the prime minister described water as the “lifeblood” of the region and said its availability was essential for sustaining millions of people, agriculture and the future of generations to come. “The treaties governing…

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