Infinity Social Updates

The federal cabinet has approved the nationwide implementation of a Track and Trace system for pharmaceutical products across Pakistan, Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal announced on Tuesday. According to an official handout , the system aims to strengthen public health and safeguard citizens from counterfeit medicines. The cabinet has also approved the necessary amendments to the Drug Labeling and Packing Rules, enabling the introduction of “a modern digital system for tracking and verifying medicines throughout the supply chain”, the statement said. “This decision marks a major and historic step towards eliminating counterfeit, fake and substandard medicines from Pakistan,” said Kamal according to the statement. “For the first time, every medicine in the country will be digitally traceable and verifiable, ensuring greater transparency, safety, and accountability,” he said. The statement noted that under the new regulatory framework, all pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers...

India gave a red-carpet welcome on Monday to Myanmar’s junta leader-turned President Min Aung Hlaing — his first trip abroad since becoming civilian leader — with talks focusing on security and trade. The former military chief met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, where they shook hands outside New Delhi’s sprawling Hyderabad House. Modi told the Myanmar leader that “India remains Myanmar’s trusted neighbour, a reliable partner and steadfast first responder in times of crisis”, Indian foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said. Min Aung Hlaing was sworn in as Myanmar’s president in April, continuing his rule from a civilian post five years after snatching power in a military coup. Modi also “reaffirmed India’s readiness to support peace and dialogue in Myanmar”, Jaiswal added. New Delhi’s top career diplomat, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, told reporters after the meeting that discussions included border security and the impact of the...

In 2018, Pakistan produced the widest survey in its history on how much nutrition its people were getting. The NNS or National Nutrition Survey was the fifth such epic exercise to be undertaken since 1965, and the first ever to show us the numbers from the districts. It was the most comprehensive data-gathering effort in Pakistan’s history and is regularly cited today in policymaking. The NNS results painted such an alarming picture at the time that the government should have declared a national emergency. Instead, I find myself writing this seven years on with a question as Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb tables an estimated Rs17.1 trillion federal budget for fiscal year 2026-27: What did Pakistan’s budget-makers do with the population nutrition evidence? No prizes for guessing the answer was scant little. What we got instead is a story of policy documents without funding to see through on the ground, bodies meant to coordinate without the mandate or teeth, and a government th...