Pak Affairs

PM’s Package for Construction Industry The New Deal for Economy? On April 03, Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a relief package for the construction industry with the twofold aim of providing employment to daily wage earners, and spurring economic activity. The package also includes additional incentives for builders and developers to build low-cost housing for the poor under the Naya …

CLIMATE CHANGE Causes, effects, evidence and how to deal with it Sajad Ali Jatoi Climate means average weather pattern of a particular area over a long period of time – at least thirty years, while Climate change refers to the long-term shift in global average weather patterns i.e. changes in temperature, precipitation and rainfall patterns. These changes in climate are …

China-Pakistan Nuclear Energy Cooperation The role of nuclear energy in Pakistan’s national energy mix is set to significantly increase in the coming years as the country seeks to scale-up nuclear power to meet the rising energy demands of a growing population. In the backdrop of falling domestic gas production, gradual closure of inefficient oil-based power plants, and nominal addition of …

Achieving a Cleaner and Resilient Generation Mix In Pakistan 58 million people lack access to electricity. With growing incomes, population and urbanization, energy demand is increasing, placing pressure on domestic resources. Expansion of electricity generation to meet rising demand and reduce the endemic power blackouts and outages has been a high priority of the Pakistan government. Despite the existence of …

Environmental Protection The Path towards Sustainability Last year in March, the United Nations issued its assessment of the global environment in the form of the sixth Global Environmental Outlook, a 708-page compendium of the planet’s ailments. The scientific team that conducted the assessment warned that the Earth’s condition has continued to deteriorate since the first global outlook was prepared in …

Pakistan-Turkey Partnership and the Muslim World Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s recent visit to Pakistan came at a testing time for both countries, and manifested truly the special nature of their fraternal relationship. Pakistan-Turkey ties are rooted in their history and culture going back to the centuries of Muslim rule in India, but a unique emotional dimension of this relationship goes …

CRIMINAL LAW AND  THE PUNJAB SENTENCING  ACT, 2019 Constitutionality of Criminal Law    Modern states claim to assert their monopoly over lawful use of force within their jurisdiction through criminal law; in this sense, criminal law enables states to maintain their internal national security and to keep order in the society. Historically, Pakistan’s criminal law has not been rewritten. Colonial …

How to Overcome Hurdles to CPEC? First, Pakistan is hobbled by a high fiscal and current account deficit, a large foreign debt and a resulting heavy debt repayment burden. Its ability to provide support funds for CPEC has lost to a great extent, and there is large financial pressure to expand infrastructure construction. IMF loans come with conditions and Pakistan …

UN Secretary-General’s Visit Pakistan’s New Global Image Shamshad Ahmad For decades, having been on the top of many negative lists including those of world’s most dangerous, most violent, most unsafe and most corrupt countries on earth, it was indeed heartening to see Pakistan being hailed by UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, as a ‘trustworthy and benevolent nation’ committed to peace and …

Police Reforms vs Policing Reforms Police reforms are inward-looking and focus on the organizational aspects of police. For example, an axiomatic question is the constitutionality of police organizations, i.e. whether they operate under the federal or the provincial legal power. Needless to state that the constitutionality debate in Pakistan is much bipolar in its purport, and more often than not, …