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Govt to resume two suspended passenger trains
Minister for Pakistan Railroads Hanif Abbasi said two passenger trains would be restored in September and October as part of a phased resurrection of stopped routes.
The Mohenjo Daro passenger train will resume operations on September 15 while a service between the eastern city of Sialkot and Rawalpindi will start on October 15, the railroads ministry said in a statement issued here on Saturday, Minister Hanif Abbasi said.
Abbasi said the railway authorities had been asked to make provisions.
“All suspended trains will be restored in phases,” he was quoted as saying in the statement.
Pakistan’s huge but antiquated rail system has for years struggled with crumbling infrastructure, lengthy travel times and financial woes, leading successive governments to seek investment to modernise the system.
The government has stepped up attempts to restart passenger services and upgrade infrastructure with Pakistan Railroads reporting record revenue of Rs 115 billion ($414 million) in the last fiscal year. The railway authorities have also been working on station improvements and on the introduction of new and reinstated services.
Work was due to start in January on the long-delayed Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway upgrade, which was in its final phase of preparations, Abbasi added.
ML-1, the Karachi-Peshawar railway artery, has been in the pipeline for upgrade under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor for a long time but has been repeatedly delayed over the issue of financing and the scope of the project. More recently Pakistan has attempted to push it in segments, starting with the Karachi-Rohri portion.
“The ML-1 project will change Pakistan Railways,” Abbasi stated.
As part of a phased restoration of stopped routes, Pakistan will resume two passenger rail services in September and October, said Railroads Minister Hanif Abbasi.
The Mohenjo Daro passenger train would be resumed on Sept 15 while a service between the eastern city of Sialkot and Rawalpindi will be launched on Oct 15, Railroads Minister Hanif Abbasi said in a statement published here on Saturday, the ministry said.
Abbasi said the railway authorities had been asked to make provisions.
“All suspended trains will be restored in phases,” he was quoted as saying in the statement.
Pakistan’s huge but antiquated rail system has for years struggled with crumbling infrastructure, lengthy travel times and financial woes, leading successive governments to seek investment to modernise the system.
The government has stepped up attempts to restart passenger services and upgrade infrastructure with Pakistan Railroads reporting record revenue of Rs 115 billion ($414 million) in the last fiscal year. The railway authorities have also been working on station improvements and on the introduction of new and reinstated services.
Work was due to start in January on the long-delayed Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway upgrade, which was in its final phase of preparations, Abbasi added.
ML-1, the Karachi-Peshawar railway artery, has been in the pipeline for upgrade under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor for a long time but has been repeatedly delayed over the issue of financing and the scope of the project. More recently, Pakistan has worked to promote it in stages, starting with the Karachi-Rohri portion.
“The ML-1 project will change the face of Pakistan Railways,” Abbasi stated.
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Pakistan begins issuing e-passports at diplomatic missions worldwide
Director General Immigration and Passports said that Pakistan has started issuing electronic passports (e-passports) at Pakistani diplomatic missions across the world, a major milestone achieved under the vision of the prime minister and orders of Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
This launch was accomplished due to the ongoing effort of the team of Directorate General of Immigration and Passports.
The e-passport is equipped with state-of-the-art security measures and constructed according to international standards and is a step forward in modernising the passport services in Pakistan.
The director general said machine-readable passports currently issued would stay valid until their expiry dates, and e-passports would be issued to anyone applying for new passports.
The effort has been termed as a key step in modernising Pakistan’s passport services in line with the vision of “One Nation, One Passport, One Identity”.
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Interior Minister Naqvi warns against online fraud, cybercrime and blackmail
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has warned the residents about the increasing hazards of online fraud, cybercrime and blackmail and advised them not to post personal images and videos with unconnected persons.
New types of online fraud were coming to light, including situations where women and girls were coaxed into revealing their images and videos and later blackmailed, Naqvi said during a press briefing on cyber crime in the province capital.
He warned people, especially women, to be very careful about sharing personal images, as some people use pictures and films to blackmail. He made a special appeal to moms and sisters to keep their private images private.
The interior ministry also warned individuals not to transfer money online without verification, even if someone claimed to be sick and asked for financial help online, to avoid falling victim to online financial scam. He called on people to check the names of those who asked for money and to beware of bogus accounts.
Fraudsters impersonated residents on social media with bogus identities, Naqvi added. He said the cyber police are being mobilised to check cybercrime and measures are being taken to provide assistance to the victims in time.
He said he will start a public awareness campaign to educate individuals about online fraud, phoney identities and extortion. He also committed his complete support to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA).
The interior minister stated the NCCIA was getting the largest number of instances of harassment of girls. He said he encountered three girls who tried to commit suicide.
“It is important to prevent online harassment and blackmail, protect victims and provide timely assistance,” Naqvi said when talking about the occurrences.
He appealed to residents to be careful when using the internet and social media and to avoid unnecessarily sharing personal information and images and to report the proper authorities if they came across any suspicious online behaviour.
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German defence ministry accords guard of honour to President Zardari
A magnificent celebration was hosted in honour of President Asif Ali Zardari at the Ministry of Defence in Germany. Additionally, a guard of honour was presented to him at this event.
Upon President Zardari’s arrival at the German Ministry of Defence, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier extended a warm welcome to him. The ceremony included the playing of the national anthems of both countries, as well as the presentation of a guard of honour to the president of Pakistan.
In response to President Steinmeier’s invitation, President Zardari is currently taking a trip to Germany. Due to the fact that this is the first time in almost 23 years that a Pakistani head of state has travelled to Germany, the visit is of great significance.
During this year, Pakistan and Germany are also commemorating the 75th anniversary of the foundation of their diplomatic relations with one another.
During the course of his tour, President Zardari will meet with his German counterpart as well as senior officials from the German government. He will also be accompanied by a high-level team.
The topics that will be discussed include bilateral ties, events in the area and the world as a whole, and strategies to improve economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.
Pakistan and Germany are expected to deepen their collaboration in a variety of fields as a result of President Zardari’s visit, which is likely to add new momentum to the bilateral relations between the two countries.
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