Latest news with #andDevelopment
Business Recorder
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Using up to 300 units: Sindh plans solar tax exemption for power consumers
KARACHI: Sindh Minister for Energy, Planning, and Development, Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, stated that the Sindh Government is making every possible effort to exempt electricity consumers using up to 300 units from the solar tax and is actively engaging with the federal government in this regard. He expressed these views today as the chief guest at the National Environmental Sustainability Conference and Awards Ceremony organized by the Youth Parliament, held at a local hotel. Chairman of Youth Parliament Rizwan Jaffer, Reham Khan, and other dignitaries also addressed the event. In his speech, the Energy Minister emphasized that the use of green energy is the need of the hour, and Sindh has been at the forefront of this initiative. The province is self-sufficient and rich in wind and solar energy resources, and work in this sector is progressing rapidly. Solar panels are being distributed among the most underprivileged and off-grid households in remote areas of Sindh. All these initiatives are being undertaken under the vision of Chairman Bilawal Bhutto and the directives of the Chief Minister of Sindh. The Sindh Energy Department is working tirelessly on this front. Nasir Shah stated that while the government is fulfilling its responsibilities towards the country's and the province's development, it is also essential for every individual to contribute their part. Sindh is the only province receiving substantial amounts in foreign dollars as carbon credit from international organizations—thanks to the mangrove plantations initiated along Sindh's coastal belts under the special instructions and interest of Chairman Bilawal Bhutto. The plantation of one million mangroves in a single day has also earned a place in the Guinness World Records. He expressed his happiness at the rapid progress of the Youth Parliament due to their dedication and hard work, noting the presence of a full house of youth at the event. He mentioned that the Sindh government wishes to take important legislative steps for the youth in the assemblies, but constitutional and legal barriers are in the way. Nasir Shah also highlighted that major efforts are underway to improve treatment plants and infrastructure in Karachi on a priority basis. He rejected the narrative that Karachi is unliveable, pointing out that people from across the country continue to migrate and settle in the city, unlike Sindh residents, who do not leave for other provinces in the same manner. Since 2013, Karachi and Sindh have not been receiving their fair share from the federal government, which is currently allocating only 2% to 3%—a clear injustice to the province. The Sindh Government, after introducing electric buses, is now planning to distribute electric scooters to working women. Special training and issuance of driving licenses for women are also under consideration. At the end of the ceremony, the Minister for Energy distributed awards. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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First Post
15-06-2025
- Sport
- First Post
Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan asked to attend Skills Development camp as T20I future looks bleak: 'It is about giving players clarity'
Amid media reports that Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan's T20I futures are in doubt, the PCB has asked them to attend a Skills Development camp. read more Babar Azam and Mohamad Rizwan will soon attend Skills development camp in Lahore. Image: Reuters Former Pakistan cricket team captains Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been asked by the country's governing board to attend a Skills and Development camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday said a total of 63 players for the camp, which will focus on helping the players develop their cricketing skills. The announcement of the skill development camp and that Babar and Rizwan are joining it comes close on the heels of stunning media reports that the batting duo and Shaheen Shah Afridi do not feature in Pakistan selectors' plans for future T20I assignments . STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Babar, Rizwan asked to attend Skills Development camp It's now expected that Babar and Rizwan would focus on their T20I hitting skills during the Skills and Development camp. The first batch will include 47 players and the 20-day camp will start from 16 June. As per the PCB, the players in the camp will work on fitness and fielding sessions from 6 am to 8 am, followed by skill-based sessions (net practice) from 2:30 pm to 6:30 pm at the Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA) Ground and NCA from Monday to Thursday. After training, the players will take part in match simulations at the LCCA Ground on Friday and Saturday. PCB says players will be given one-on-one coaching sessions The camp for the second batch will run from 23 June and include 16 players. 'We have invited 47 players to the 20-day skills camp at the National Cricket Academy following detailed discussions with white-ball head coach Mike Hesson,' Director High-Performance Aqib Javed said. 'This is an invaluable opportunity for the players to take a brief pause from competitive cricket and focus on enhancing their fitness and refining key aspects of their game. 'With a busy international calendar ahead, this window allows us to provide targeted support to the players, so they can return better prepared for the challenges to come. 'There is a complete alignment between the coaching staff at the National Cricket Academy and the national men's team. We are working in close coordination to ensure that every initiative contributes to the long-term progress of Pakistan cricket. Javed added that players will be given one-on-one coaching sessions to identify the areas of improvement. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'A central feature of this camp is the one-on-one coaching sessions. These personalised interactions allow each player to engage directly with coaches, understand the finer details of their game and identify areas that need attention. It is about giving players the clarity and tools to improve. 'In addition to supporting player development, this camp will also serve as a useful resource for the selectors as they begin to shape squads for both the Pakistan men's side and the Pakistan Shaheens ahead of upcoming international commitments.' First batch of Pakistan players for Skills Development camp: Aamir Jamal, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Babar Azam, Hasan Nawaz, Maaz Sadaqat, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza and Sufyan Moqim
Hindustan Times
06-06-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Rijiju launches portal for registration, monitoring of waqf properties
Union minority affairs minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday launched a portal for the registration and monitoring of waqf properties, calling it a symbol of dedication to transparency and good governance. The Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development (UMEED) portal seeks to bring all stakeholders onto a single digital platform and streamline the management of waqf properties by ensuring real-time data collection and open access to verified information. 'We are taking a firm step toward ensuring that waqf properties are used for the benefit of the intended communities,' said Rijiju at the portal launch in the presence of minister of state for minority affairs George Kurian. Waqf properties are required to be registered on the portal within six months of the launch date. Rijiju asked representatives of state waqf boards, who were present at the launch virtually, to ensure adherence to the six-month limit. Respective state boards will have to carry out the registrations. Properties not registered within six months may get up to a two-month extension in exceptional cases such as technical delays. Those that remain unregistered beyond the extended deadline will be classified as disputed and referred to the Waqf Tribunal. Minority affairs secretary Chandra Shekhar Kumar said the portal will allow submission of documents for registering a property to prevent the inclusion of illegal or encroached land. He added the custodians of properties without documentation will be required to approach the tribunal for verification. 'Since land is a state subject, it will ultimately be up to the state governments to confirm or deny whether the land in question is indeed waqf,' Kumar said. Kumar said that women, children, and economically weaker sections will be among the primary beneficiaries of Waqf assets. The portal, which includes a field asking whether a property is on government land, was launched weeks after the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Act. Petitions challenging the law's constitutional validity are pending in the Supreme Court. On April 17, the court declined to stay the law after the government submitted that certain provisions would not be enforced for now. Rijiju refused to comment on the challenges to the law, saying the matter is sub judice. 'I hope the court recognises that this is a landmark law... The opposition must accept this and cooperate with the government to ensure smooth implementation. As for the waqf rules, it is a natural process. We are actively working on it.' The waf properties have to be registered with details such as dimensions and geotagged locations. Properties recorded in the names of women will be ineligible to be declared as waqf. The portal will generate a 17-digit unique identification number for each property based on the state and district codes, property type, etc. The portal features dropdown-based structured data input and an online grievance redressal mechanism. The public will have access to the property information. A three-tier user verification process has been instituted for the portal. The mutawalli or an authorised person of a waqf board will initiate data entry. The checker will be a district-level officer or a designated official to verify the data, and the approver will be the CEO or an officer to grant final approval. Data protection and privacy regulations will cover the portal. A toll-free helpline has been made available for technical assistance and support.
GMA Network
06-06-2025
- Business
- GMA Network
Jobless Filipinos rose to 2.06M in April 2025, says PSA
The number of Filipinos without jobs or livelihoods rose to over two million in April 2025 as more people entered the labor force, seeking jobs, during the period but only few were absorbed by the market, according to the results of the Philippine Statistics Authority's latest Labor Force Survey. At a press briefing on Friday, National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa reported that unemployed persons, ages 15 and above, increased slightly to 2.06 million in the fourth month of the year from 1.93 million in March 2025. Year-on-year, jobless individuals climbed by 23,000 from 2.04 million in April 2024, according to the PSA chief. As a percentage of 50.74 million participants in the labor force —who are actively looking for labor opportunities during the period — the number of unemployed persons translated to an unemployment rate of 4.1%, up from 3.9% in March and 4% in April last year. 'Dumami kasi ang mga kasama sa labor force, labor force participation, so siya 'yung factor… 'pag tumataas ang labor force participation, hindi naman lahat na-absorb lahat para maging employed persons,' Mapa said. (The increase in the number of those joining the labor force was the factor… when labor force participation rises, not everyone is absorbed to become employed persons.) Labor force participants grew by 340,000 from April 2024 and by about 780,000 from March 2025's 49.96 million. Of the 340,000 year-on-year growth in labor force participation, the PSA chief said about 317,000 became employed while 23,000 were not absorbed. 'Despite the slight uptick in unemployment, the Philippine labor market continues to demonstrate resilience amid global headwinds. We remain on track to meet our target unemployment range of 4.4% to 4.7% set under the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028,' said Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) officer-in-charge and Undersecretary for Policy and Planning Rosemarie Edillon. —AOL, GMA Integrated News
The Hindu
05-06-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
As the waqf portal is set to go live, TG Waqf Board ‘waiting for clarity'
Hyderabad With the Union government all set to launch the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development (UMEED), a portal that seeks to collate documents connected to waqf properties, purportedly for managing them better, the Telangana State Waqf Board (TGSWB) is still awaiting clarity. 'We are aware that the portal is going to be launched tomorrow. But we are still waiting for clear guidelines from the Ministry of Minority Affairs about what all documents are required, and which ones will be accepted. As far as we know, the portal will accept document uploads for the next six months,' TGSWB Chairman Syed Azmatullah Hussaini told The Hindu. A key concern, Mr. Hussaini said, that still remains, is the documentation of old places of worship such as those belonging to the Qutb Shahi period. 'We are yet to see what how to deal with documents connected to such masjids. With the portal going live from tomorrow, and in the absence of documents of a large number of Qutb Shahi masjids, we have to check as to how we should proceed,' he said. Meanwhile, others from the TGSWB pointed out that the portal is likely to have a three tier system. First, the mutawalli (manager of a waqf institution) will have to upload documents, for instance, a gazette notification. This is then verified by an officer at the TGSWB. The final approving authority would be the Chief Executive Officer. 'The previous online management system – the Waqf Asset Management System – will not be in use. Moreover data from this will not be migrated to the new portal. Ideally, it would have been better had the Central government waited for the Supreme Court judgment before going ahead with the portal,' an official said. Meanwhile, the TGSWB is continuing its efforts to strengthen documentation of properties in its custody. The board's CEO, Mohammed Asadullah, wrote letters to government agencies, such as the Chief Commissioner Land Administration, and the Telangana State Archives and Research Institute, and sent staff to obtain copies of documents of properties considered waqf.
