KARACHI: Industries and Production Minister Makhdum Khusro Bakhtiar has said that addition of 900MW in power generation capacity for Karachi is a gift for people and the industries. He said Prime Minister Imran Khan will inaugurate K-Electric’s Bin Qasim Power Station III project as soon as it’s completed. Mr Bakhtiar on Thursday met members of the KE’s senior management at …

ISLAMABAD: The National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) has launched contactless biometric verification services for the banking and payments industry, making Pakistan one of the first countries in the world to implement the technology on national level. The service was launched during a visit by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Dr Reza Baqir to the Nadra headquarters here on …

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee of the cabinet on Thursday allowed about 13 paisa per litre increase in port charges for oil products at Fauji Oil Terminal Company (Fotco) and approved an import tender for procurement of 120,000 tonnes of wheat, having a landed cost of about Rs2,470 per 40kg. A meeting of ECC, presided over by Minister for Finance …

ISLAMABAD: The country’s top three mobile companies — Jazz, Telenor and Zong 4G — have decided to stay away from the Sept 16 auction of additional spectrum, leaving only Ufone in the field as the last date to submit the bids in this regard expired on Thursday. As the three major players have stayed away from the bidding process citing …

MOSCOW: A smoke alarm sounded on Thursday in Russia’s segment of the International Space Station (ISS) and astronauts smelled “burning” on board, Russia’s space agency and Nasa said. The incident, which the Russian space agency Roscosmos said happened at 01:55 GMT ahead of a scheduled spacewalk, is the latest in a string of problems to spur safety concerns over conditions …

DUBAI: The US Navy’s Fifth Fleet said on Thursday it launched a new task force in the Gulf incorporating drones and artificial intelligence following maritime attacks blamed on Iran. A statement by the US Naval Forces Central Command, or NAVCENT, said the task force would rely on regional and coalition partnerships. “The bottom line on why we’re doing this is …

LONDON: Britain and France locked horns on Thursday over reported plans by London to turn back boats carrying migrants across the Channel, triggering alarm and anger in Paris. At least 14,100 people have now crossed the Channel to the UK on small boats this year, according to Britain’s domestic Press Association news agency — some 6,000 more than for the whole of …

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce has asked the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) to pursue a case in a court of law for lifting ban on exports of poultry products from the country. The standing committee meeting, chaired by MNA Naveed Qamar on Thursday, discussed the ban on the export of livestock, especially the ban on poultry and …

National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf dismissed on Thursday allegations of Pakistan extending support to the Taliban in Panjshir — the last holdout Afghan province where the group defeated resistance forces earlier this month — linking the accusations to a “fake news network” created by India and a “bogey” by previous governments in Kabul. On September 7, demonstrations were held in Kabul against the …

US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke for 90 minutes in their first talks in seven months on Thursday, discussing the need to avoid letting competition between the world’s two largest economies veer into conflict. The US side said the “proof will be in the pudding” as to whether the stalemate can be broken with relations between …