By: Muhammad Luqman This time, it is the shortage of tomato that has brought worries to almost every household in Pakistan. The prices of the red vegetable, used in all the  food dishes especially meat curries in the South Asian country, suddenly started rising ahead of Eid-ul-Adha , the Islamic festival  and later hiked to…

By :Muhammad Luqman As Pakistan has started picking the low-lying fruit of the US $ 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor with the completion of coal-fired Sahiwal Power plant, the project is generating jobs for the Pakistani youth especially those equipped with technical capabilities. Be it Port Qasim, Power Plant or Sahiwal Power, one finds thousands…

By:Muhammad Luqman  With the inauguration of CHASNUP III, the  third unit  of Chashma Nuclear Power Plant in Mianwali district, the total nuclear technology based power generation has reached the mark of 1040 megawatt, still much below 8000 Megawatt, the target set by Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission. Pakistan has now four nuclear power generation facilities, promising…

By: Muhammad Luqman After experiencing stiff opposition from different stake holders especially the cable operators for a period of 13 years, Pakistan’s electronic media watchdog, PEMRA has succeeded in auctioning first three licenses of Direct to Home service for a total amount of US $ 14.85 million (Around Rs. 15 billion). As compared to other…

  Malik Mazhar Sandheela, the owner of an orchard near river Chenab in Multan is eying a 100 percent increase in the income from his mango crop this year. To him, adoption of new production and pest management techniques have led to increase in the per hectare yield of the Chaunsa Mango, the prime variety…

  By Muhammad Luqman The passing away of Abdul Sattar Edhi in Karachi has highlighted how philanthropy and social work can transform lives of people in developing countries like Pakistan. On Saturday thousands of people turned up at the National Stadium to pay their last respects to country’s most revered person. This was the first ever…

By: Muhammad Luqman Lahoris are in a great rush in Ramazan evenings as Eid shopping picks up. Be it the upscale market of Liberty or lower middle class shopping areas of Ichhra and Islampura neighborhoods, people are busy buying clothes as part of the Eid Festival celebration that marks culmination of the month of fasting….

    Saad Hussain, a youth associated with a software house in Lahore, the IT Capital of Pakistan, sent a ripple in world’s software industry by developing an app for blackberry phone a couple of years ago and won acclaim at the home and abroad. Now he has dozens of mobile phone applications and video…

With mercury already exceeding 40 degrees centigrade (104 Fahrenheit) in the plains of Sindh, Balochistan and Punjab, Pakistan is bracing for a series of severe heat waves over the next two months.   According to experts, this is going to be the second consecutive hottest year in the South Asian region after last year during…

Belgian Vessel Exquisite docked at Port Qasim near Karachi has been instrumental in regasification of LNG imported from Qatar since March 2015. European captains and engineers, with the help of Philippine sailors carry out operations aboard this ship weighing 83,163 tons. “We enjoy the regasification task while staying on the vessel; after all, we are…

By Muhammad Luqman Bishan Singh, a cloth trader in a commercial centre of Lahore’s upscale Gulberg district has been able to double his business over the last five years as his professional courtesy attracts more and more customers. He believes that no customer discriminates him on religious grounds. Over the last decade, dozens of Sikh…

Pakistanis, having a special love for foreign and imported items, will soon have an opportunity to relish on the milk of cows of American origin. Some 300 Holstein heifers have reached commercial farms in agriculture-rich Punjab province. In a bid to acclimatize the animals to relatively harsh weather conditions, special cooling arrangements have been made…

  Muhammad Yaseen, a farmer with a small land holding of 10 acres in Kahna, a village near Lahore has no reason to celebrate the harvest in April this year. Due to little rains during the month of January, the growth of wheat crop has suffered a lot. The above normal rains during the month…

South Asian economies have been growing at a rapid pace in the recent years. Their share in the world cereal harvests stands at 60 percent of the total rice and 50 percent of wheat. Fruit and vegetable production is also in the higher brackets. This rapid growth however, has not translated into any trickledown effect…

With a middle class population of around 30 million, the demand for high-end products is on an increase in Pakistan. An average import of one million smart phones every month and increased demand for home appliances, the country with a population of a 190 million, is undergoing a silent economic revolution. Therefore, everything is not…

It is a win-win proposition for both energy-starved South Asia and food-deficient Central Asian nations that has compelled them to enter into agreements for projects like TAPI and CASA. Work on the construction of Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan and Afghanistan (TAPI) gas pipeline recently started to mark the beginning of efforts to translate the quarter century old dream…

  South Asians fail to reap economic benefits of regional bloc Sapna Devi, a businesswoman from the Indian state of Gujarat, is confident of a good response from Pakistani market for the women wear products she showcased at SAARC Trade Fair in Lahore. To her, the issue of Indo-Pakistan rivalry is just on the cyberspace….

By Muhammad Luqman This time, it was Paris, the French capital hosting the much-awaited World Summit on Climate Change.  According to the footage that aired on the TV Channels, Prime Minister Narendra Modi muttered certain things in a suggestive mood, while Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif gave an attentive ear. The meeting that lasted for almost…

        Written By: Muhammad Luqman   In February 1987, when Indian military exercises such as Brass Tacks along Pakistani border were at their peak, the President then, General Zia-ul-Haq, ventured to the Indian city of Jaipur to witness a Cricket test match between the two countries. Zia-ul-Haq’s meeting with the Indian Prime Minister…

        Written By: Muhammad Luqman Just a decade ago, people of Punjab had to look for off-season vegetables grown in the neighbouring province of Sindh to satifsfy the tingling of their taste buds. Be it bitter gourd (karela) or okra (bhindi), these would bring right around three times higher than the vegetables…

                                                  Statements of former President Asif Ali Zardari have just stroked the verbal war between PMLN led federal government and the PPP leadership. Both parties who used to be united upon…