Infinity Social Updates

KARACHI: The Sindh Education and Literacy Department is set to introduce religious textbooks for Hindu students to be taught in grades three to five across government schools in Sindh, it emerged on Thursday. In a letter dated April 29 to the chairman of the Sindh Textbook Board (STBB), the education department requested the distribution of “three religious books for grades III to V for the current academic year 2026–27”, referring to a decision taken at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Sindh Curriculum Council on April 20. Chief Executive Advisor Dr Fauzia Khan wrote in the letter that the cost of publication will be borne by a social welfare organisation, Prem Sagar Sanstha Karachi, for the current academic year. “The distribution of the books will be carried out through STBB,” the letter said. Khan also requested the board to “allocate/adjust budget for the publication of the religious books for the next academic year”. A similar move was made by the federal governme...

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday launched the “PM Apna Ghar Programme” under which housing loans of Rs10 million will be given on easy instalments. The scheme will be implemented in the federal capital, all four provinces, as well as Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Addressing the launch ceremony in Islamabad, PM Shehbaz said a total of 500,000 housing units will be constructed under the programme, supported by a total allocation of Rs3.2 trillion. The loans are to be returned in 20 years, he said. During the first 10 years, the markup on the loan will be 5 per cent, while in the next 10 years it will be charged at the market rate at the time. The premier said that for the first year, the government has set a target to fund 50,000 houses for which an amount of Rs321 billion had been earmarked. Under the scheme, a maximum of 10 marla housing units will be allowed to be built. PM Shehbaz said he would personally review the programme’s progress o...

President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday invited Chinese investment into “priority sectors,” particularly alternative energy sources, state-run Radio Pakistan reported. The president arrived in China on Saturday for a week-long visit to the Hunan and Hainan provinces for engagements related to economic and trade cooperation. President Zardari held a meeting with the chief executive officer (CEO) of Hangzhou Jinjiang Group, Wang Jian, in Sanya, where he invited the Chinese company to invest in “priority sectors, including alternate energy, water treatment, and electric vehicle battery systems”, according to Radio Pakistan. The president, according to the report, “noted that Pakistan is actively encouraging foreign investment in various sectors, especially water treatment, electric vehicle battery systems and alternate energy”. “Such partnerships could support sustainable growth and industrial development,” the report said, adding that President Zardari assured the company of “all p...

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab on Wednesday expressed objection to comparisons between Karachi and Lahore in terms of infrastructure and governance, noting that both provincial capitals had different ground realities. Speaking alongside Punjab Housing Minister Bilal Yasin in Lahore, Wahab said, “When you compare Karachi to Lahore, this comparison is improper because of the population. We get water from a distance of 125 kilometres. Our daily water requirement is 1,100 million gallons per day (MGD), while our daily supply is 550 MGD, and the population continues to grow”. “Therefore, I think that comparing them leads to conflict,” he added, calling for both administrations to “work together” and share expertise. At one point, a reporter asked Wahab why the PPP “could not deliver what the public wanted” despite ruling Sindh for years, prompting Yasin to ask media persons to be “mindful of respecting the guests”. Responding to another question, Wahab said making such comparisons “leads t...

Forces have destroyed several Afghan Taliban posts and vehicles in Balochistan’s Chaman sector, security sources said on Wednesday. The operations, part of the ongoing ‘Operation Ghazab lil-Haq’, were a response to the “unprovoked aggression” by Afghan Taliban forces and terrorists on the Pak-Afghan border, according to the sources. Security sources said that the army destroyed several Afghan Taliban posts and vehicles in Chaman “with precision”. “The Pakistan Army’s effective operations have forced the Afghan Taliban and the Fitna al Khawarij to retreat”. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). “Security forces’ unwavering resolve to defend the homeland is ensuring the country’s territorial integrity,” sources added. The sources also stated that the operations will continue until “all set targets are achieved”. Security forces also destroyed multiple Afghan Taliban posts in the Chaman sector on Tuesd...

Iran warned last week that submarine cables in the Strait of Hormuz were a vulnerable point for the region’s digital economy, raising concerns about potential attacks on critical infrastructure. The narrow waterway, already a chokepoint for global oil shipments, is equally vital for the digital world. Several fibre-optic cables snake across the seabed of the strait, connecting countries from Southeast Asia to Europe via the Gulf states and Egypt. What makes undersea cables important? Subsea cables are fibre-optic or electrical cables laid on the sea floor to transmit data and power. They carry around 99 per cent of the world’s internet traffic, according to the ITU, the United Nations specialised agency for digital technologies. They also carry telecommunications and electricity between countries, and are essential for cloud services and online communications. “Damaged cables mean the internet slowing down or outages, e-commerce disruptions, delayed financial transactions … a...

QUETTA: Five labourers were injured in a grenade attack in the Dalbandin area of Chagai district late on Monday night, police said. According to police officials, unidentified assailants on motorcycles threw a hand grenade at a house, which exploded in the backyard and injured five labourers. “The injured individuals are from Punjab who were working on a daily wage,” police officials said. Security forces rushed to the site shortly after the incident and shifted the injured to Prince Fahad Hospital. Police added that the windowpanes of the affected house and nearby homes were also damaged. An investigation has been launched, and no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. On Feb 16, two people were injured when unidentified individuals threw a hand grenade at a milk shop situated on Khuda-i-Dad Road in Quetta. Last year, an eight-year-old child was killed and five other members of a family, including two women, were injured when a grenade exploded inside a house in...