ISLAMABAD: At least 250 teachers, mostly females, are suffering due to the tussle between former president Dr Arif Alvi and the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government as they could not be absorbed in the educational institutions of the federal capital despite the passage of a law from parliament. The teachers were once employees of the provincial governments and divisions, but …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Romina Khurshid Alam on Saturday said the Republic of Azerbaijan and Pakistan would work together to boost climate action and launch joint climate change adaptation initiatives for building resilience of the lives and livelihoods of the people and vulnerable ecosystems. The two sides also announced to launch joint climate transparency …

ISLAMABAD: US Ambassador Donald Blome has said his country had the largest scholarship and fellowship programmes for students and professionals, with special focus on school education. Addressing a press conference after attending the fifth Annual Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Alumni Conference on Friday, Ambassador Blome said besides providing a large number of scholarships, the US was also contributing to school …

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court has taken notice of non-implementation of its guidelines to curb child marriage by the nikah/marriage registrars. Justice Anwarul Haq Pannun observed that apparently, the marriage registrars, without relying upon any document, mention the age of the bride as 18 years or above in clear violation of the law. In a verdict issued on a habeas …

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has criticised the report of the special commission on the 20-day Faizabad dharna (sit-in) in 2017, describing it as “replete with clichés, platitudes, and homilies, often as a substitute for substance”. A three-page order issued by the Supreme Court on Saturday noted that the commission’s report did not address the Terms of Reference (ToR) and incorrectly assumed that the right to travel …

QUETTA: The Balochistan Assembly adopted a resolution demanding the provincial government to take strict measures to stop illegal fishing and trawling in province’s waters. The resolution also called for initiating action against officials of the fisheries department and other individuals involved in this illegal business. The resolution was moved by Maulana Hidayatur Rehman of Haq Do Tehreek (HDT) during the session on …

ISLAMABAD: Justice Babar Sattar of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has strongly reacted against the stopping of lawyers and litigants from entering the courts due to a nationwide strike call issued by the top lawyers’ bodies, terming it as “obstruction of justice”. Sources privy to the development told that Justice Sattar wrote a letter to the three-judge administrative committee, drawing attention to the issue …

ISLAMABAD: The National Asse­mbly is set to begin its fifth regular session on Monday (tomorrow), with formation of the standing committees still not in sight. Speaker Ayaz Sadiq on Saturday invited the parliamentary leaders and chief whips of the parties for a meeting on Monday to discuss the strategy for the upcoming regular session as well as the next month’s …

ISLAMABAD: The Tehreek Tahafuz Aayeen-i-Pakistan, a multi-party coalition of opposition parties launched earlier this year, has decided to launch another nationwide campaign for the “restoration” of the Constitution, with power shows expected in Karachi and Faisalabad. In April this year, the six-party alliance had decided to kick-start a countrywide movement for the rule of law and chose Mahmood Khan Achakzai as its …

NORTH WAZIRISTAN: Seven security personnel were martyred and two others sustained injuries in two militant attacks on security forces at different locations in North Wazir­istan on Saturday, local sources said. They said the first attack took place in the Hassan Khel area of Tehsil Datta Khel when an improvised explosive device went off targeting a bomb disposal unit. Soon after …