
Capital ensures food stability amid crisis
In this regard, the district administration officials have begun preparations to avoid any shortage of fruits, vegetables, and other daily essentials in the markets of the federal capital, said a spokesperson of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration on Thursday.
Meanwhile, an important meeting was held with the Saddar Assistant Commissioner in the chair, focusing on the continued supply of fruits, vegetables, pulses, rice, and other food items during the current regional situation. The meeting took place with the participation of all key officials from the market committee.
The committee reviewed the current stock levels of essential items and discussed plans to maintain an uninterrupted supply. Officials briefed the meeting that there was a sufficient stock of essential items like potatoes, onions, and pulses available for at least 15 days.
The meeting also evaluated the supply chain and discussed emergency response strategies to deal with any sudden disruption in the availability of food items. The aim was to avoid panic buying and maintain stability in local markets.
On the occasion, district administration officials assured that coordination with wholesalers and market stakeholders would continue to keep supply consistent.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Express Tribune
41 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
Bilawal vows legislation against disinformation
Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has announced plans to introduce legislation to counter disinformation campaigns being used to mislead the nation, declaring that such efforts would be made in collaboration with the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ). He was addressing journalists from across the country at a dinner hosted by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah in honour of the PFUJ's Federal Executive Council at a local hotel on Thursday evening. The event also featured prominent addresses by Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti and Sindh CM Murad Ali Shah. Bilawal said the state must win hearts, not impose control by force, especially in conflict-affected areas like Balochistan. "We must earn people's trust with sincerity, not suppression. The right way forward is through unity, truth, and transparency," he said. He hailed the lifting of restrictions on digital media, calling it a "national asset" and a sign of democratic maturity. "Our media is our frontline defender. Even in times of war, our journalists have shown more responsibility and credibility than the Indian media," he remarked. Bilawal urged journalists to highlight the positive side of Pakistan, especially development efforts such as the Sindh government's initiative to allot housing units to women, making them rightful property owners. "This is not just about homes. It's about empowering women. It's a silent revolution," he said, requesting extensive media coverage of the programme. He also reiterated PPP's commitment to fully implement the Journalist Protection Law, ensuring a secure environment for media professionals. Earlier, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah described PFUJ not merely as a union but as a "movement" with a proud history of resisting authoritarianism and defending press freedom. Highlighting past struggles, he recalled the 17-day wage board strike in 1970, the public floggings of journalists during General Zia-ul-Haq's regime, and the clampdown on the Jang Group during Nawaz Sharif's second term, which the then-opposition leader Benazir Bhutto defied through a rally in their support. He also cited the 88-day sit-in by journalists in 2007 against then military ruler Pervez Musharraf, stating, "At every critical juncture in Pakistan's history, journalists have stood for the people's right to know - and we, as a party, have always stood by them." Murad highlighted key steps taken by the Sindh government, including, establishing Pakistan's first-ever Journalist Protection Commission; allocating funds for journalists' housing; providing financial support to press clubs across the province. "We have always safeguarded journalists' rights, and we will continue to do so," he affirmed. Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, speaking at the event, acknowledged the serious challenges in his province but urged journalists to also highlight the positive changes taking place. "The perception about Balochistan is worse than the reality. Things are improving, and the media has a role to play in bridging that gap," he said. The event served as a rare moment of unity between political leadership and the journalistic community, with speakers stressing mutual trust, transparency, and responsible reporting as the way forward for a more informed and democratic Pakistan. Senior journalists and office bearers of PFUJ, including President Afzal Butt, Secretary General Arshad Ansari, and other representatives from various parts of the country were also present. The gathering concluded with a note of appreciation for the provincial governments' support for the journalistic fraternity.


Express Tribune
2 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Gandapur vows FATF reply, slams India
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur has announced that he will formally respond to a letter reportedly sent by the Indian government to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) regarding his earlier statements. Gandapur stated that India has long been involved in terrorism within Pakistan and the wider region, and accused New Delhi of distorting his remarks to serve its agenda. In a policy statement, CM Gandapur said that due to his engagement in election activities, he only recently became aware that the Indian government had misrepresented one of his statements about FATF. "I feel the need to clarify it now," he said. Gandapur reiterated that India has historically been involved in promoting terrorism in Pakistan and across South Asia. "I have served as the minister for Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. Now, I am writing a letter to FATF and plan to personally go there to explain everything in detail," he added. The chief minister said he would reveal India's alleged role in destabilizing regions like Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and vowed to present these facts to the international community.


Express Tribune
4 hours ago
- Express Tribune
The wish guru
Listen to article India today is not ruled by a prime minister but by a wish guru. A leader fuelled less by policy than by image, less by competence than by dominance. At the heart of this phenomenon lie two forces Francis Fukuyama identifies as isothymia and megalothymia: the yearning to be recognised, and the darker craving to dominate. The first is an innocent and universal human impulse. The second is what happens when recognition becomes a zero-sum game. Countries nursing old colonial wounds are particularly vulnerable to this transformation, mistaking raw power for self-respect. India's growing discord, both at home and abroad, is a textbook example of this shift. The pattern is global. Dominance hierarchies are driving debates everywhere, from conspiracy theories to cultural skirmishes like Sydney Sweeney's "good jeans". We live in the age of pop psychology, where one-size-fits-all cures for complex social pathologies sell faster than careful scholarship. Jordan Peterson's 12 Rules for Life, with its lobsters and wrens, rehabilitates hierarchy as a survival mechanism, outselling more challenging works like Acemoglu and Robinson's The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty, which connects the thirst for dominance to despotic leviathans. These influences seep into politics, legitimising strongmen who promise self-assertion on a national scale, even at the cost of liberty. Last week, I wrote about India's monsoon session and the widening rift between the Modi government and the RSS. Some readers complained that I glossed over the international blowback against the diaspora and the policies that caused it. The oversight was due to space, but the point deserves elaboration, particularly when the ineptness of Indian discourse leaves these issues unexamined. India is in the eye of a storm. Exogenous shocks and self-inflicted wounds buffet the country, yet its pundits seem blind to the forces shaking their world. This is no accident. In electing Modi over more capable leaders, India chose form over substance. Its media abandoned its role as everyman's watchdog and recast itself as the strongman's cheerleader and dirty tricks department. Journalism was reduced to laundering one man's image, living off state or elite-sponsored hand-me-downs. The so-called alternative media offered only reaction, not depth, sacrificing critical thought at the altar of expediency. Consider this. Last week I noted ex-VP Jagdeep Dhankhar's age (74) as a key reason for his shock resignation being ignored. No one has gone near it with a barge pole since. Likewise, the media gawks at President Trump's tariff policy towards India without understanding the deeper dynamics, or Modi's failure to strike a trade deal with Washington. When you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Modi used repression to silence farmers' protests. Could he then open agriculture to foreign competition without risking chaos? His supporters blame Congress for forcing his hand in Operation Sindoor. But would this opposition back him in case of trade concessions? Modi rose to power not as a policy craftsman but as a political sorcerer selling wishes. His rhetoric promised miracles: a self-reliant India, instant global respect, prosperity for all. Like a street-side fakir offering talismans for every ailment, he presented dominance as a cure for national insecurity. But wishes are not strategies, and magic cannot substitute governance. The deeper the country's problems grew, the louder the promises became. India was not given a statesman but a wish guru, a leader who thrives on chants of devotion while evading the hard work of building lasting institutions. The Indian diaspora played a crucial part in Modi's rise. It craved an image makeover abroad and better governance at home. After "putting Muslims in their place" during the 2002 riots, he built a doer's reputation as Gujarat's chief minister. Billionaire allies enriched under his rule amplified the myth. Eleven years later, many diaspora members are waking up to the reality that they were duped. For years, the diaspora believed that power abroad would translate into prestige at home, and that Modi was the man to deliver it. They mistook fear for respect, thinking that browbeating minorities, silencing journalists, and projecting brute strength would make India admired on the world stage. But dominance is not dignity. As the cracks appear, H-1B visas under fire, overseas scrutiny rising, far-right links backfiring, the myth of Modi as a global strongman-turned-statesman is collapsing. Wishes, no matter how loudly sold, cannot override the long memory of democracies or the quiet contempt of the powerful. This diaspora had flourished under western multicultural hospitality. Modi's natural allies, however, were not liberal democrats but far-right extremists. His obsessive image projection forced Indians abroad into the spotlight, inviting scrutiny and paranoia, while his minions empowered far-right groups making life abroad harder. Manmohan Singh had mainstreamed Indians overseas. Modi weaponised them. Even coercion was acceptable if it polished his image. Had it not been for the ill-advised visit of far-right EU MEPs to Kashmir to end the post-Article 370 isolation, the world might never have heard of Srivastava Group's operations or India's links with Europe's far right. When Nikki Haley was foisted on Trump's first administration as UN ambassador, it passed without comment. But when she was last to exit the 2024 primaries, despite paltry votes and after a failed attempt on Trump's life, it was too much for his base. Kamala Harris then became his main challenger. The same base that still seethes over Hillary's challenge to their leader began to question the Indian link. Focus shifted to Silicon Valley, feeding into the H-1B visa backlash. Rishi Sunak, similarly pushed to front a failing UK government, led his party to its worst defeat in living memory. Meanwhile, Modi's obsession with image left him surrounded by yes-men. Governance atrophied. His lack of education and limited grasp of key issues left India with little more than a wish guru at the helm. The RSS, under Dr Mohan Bhagwat, had banked early wins under Modi but plays a long game. It now sees the fallout of self-serving blind policies. Listen to Bhagwat's speeches after enduring Modi's diatribes and you are pleasantly surprised. Unlike Modi, talent and genuine intellectual discourse do not make him insecure. Darkness may be Modi's compulsion. The RSS wants to outgrow it and build genuine global outreach. The 2024 election results, state polls in Haryana and Maharashtra, and the Operation Sindoor debacle offer a chance to replace Modi. A hundred-year-old organisation with all the cards is unlikely to let that chance slip. Modi has none left to play.