The Italian coastguard on Monday searched off the coast of southern Italy for survivors or the bodies of dozens of migrants feared missing after two shipwrecks left 11 people dead. With up to 60 migrants potentially lost at sea, the coastguard said it has been looking for “possible missing persons” since late Sunday, “following the shipwreck of a sailing boat …

Russia said on Monday that a Swiss-hosted conference on the Ukraine war had produced negligible results and showed the futility of holding talks without Moscow. The Kremlin was commenting on a weekend summit where Western powers and their allies denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but failed to persuade major non-aligned states to join their final statement. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the …

Millions of people dependent on Himalayan snowmelt for water face a “very serious” risk of shortages this year after one of the lowest rates of snowfall, scientists warned on Monday. Snowmelt is the source of about a quarter of the total water flow of 12 major river basins that originate high in the region, a report said. “This is a wake-up call …

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Tuesday assured that other sectors would be brought into the tax net, while also highlighting the need to reduce tax exemptions. His remarks come days after the government presented the federal budget for the upcoming fiscal year (FY2024-25) with a total outlay of Rs18.9 trillion, which analysts said was broadly “in line with International Monetary Fund (IMF) …

LAHORE: Industry representatives and public have criticised the government over its plans to impose 18 per cent General Sales Tax (GST) on locally produced infant formula milk and baby food. They said the heavy taxation would worsen malnutrition among infants and children as parents would be compelled to choose cheaper and unhealthy alternative feeding solutions. According to the budget proposal presented by the finance …

CHITRAL: Ecologists and agriculturists have said that growth and survival of a large number of fruit trees, vegetables and cereal crops have become possible in Chitral as seen during the last three to four decades due to the climate change phenomenon triggered by global warming. They said that the phenomenon could be exploited for economic benefits as the number of …

SHANGLA: A group of youth in Lilownai area of Shangla has opened two small grocery shops for the differently-abled persons to help them earn a respectful living for their families. Members of a community-based organisation collected money from the people for setting up the shops. Local youth, mostly professionals from different government non-government sectors, have taken the initiative to support the most …

LAHORE: Disillusioned by low prices for their crop and the lack of government support, cotton growers have shifted to alternative crops, resulting in lower cultivation area and yield. The difference in cultivation data from last year and this year’s Kharif season is the most stark in ‘Punjab’s cotton valley’ comprising Bahawalpur, Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions. Data from the Punjab Crop …

On April 12, 2024, a 14-year-old boy and six-year-old girl died on the first day of Eid after remaining ill with acute diarrhoea for some days. They were residents of Nazimabad. The water suppled to their locality by the water board was visibly contaminated and stinking, and had worms that could be seen with the naked eye. Worms in water is the …

GILGIT: In a first, the Gilgit-Baltistan cabinet approved a women-centric development policy aimed at gender equality and women empowerment through infrastructure development and other measures. The GB Women Empowerment Policy, Strategy, and Action Plan 2024-2029 is aimed at the empowerment of women in seven priority areas, including education and lifelong learning, economic empowerment and inclusive growth, health, civic participation, climate …