Tag: Multan

  • Uber ceases operations in 5 Pakistani cities

    Uber ceases operations in 5 Pakistani cities

    According to a statement released by Uber on Tuesday, it has stopped operating in Karachi, Multan, Faisalabad, Peshawar, and Islamabad.

    A statement on the company’s website says, “Uber is dedicated to Pakistan. We will continue to serve these five cities via our subsidiary brand Careem and continue to run the Uber app in Lahore.”

    Uber will keep providing its services in Lahore while also introducing new products to “help earners through these challenging times.”

    It declared that it would inform its customers and business partners in the five locations of how to use and seamlessly switch to Careem.

    “When we acquired Careem, it was always our belief that the two companies could come together to complement each other’s strengths and better serve the region through tailored experiences,” the statement added.

    According to Dawn, the company said it was aware this was a “difficult time” for its teams, which had “worked incredibly hard to build this business over the past few years”.

    “We greatly appreciate everyone’s contributions and our priority is to minimise the impact on our employees, drivers, riders, and Hero partners who use the Uber app during this change in Karachi, Islamabad, Faisalabad, Multan and Peshawar,” the statement reads.

    Uber finalised the $3.1 billion acquisition of rival Careem in 2020. At the time, it was said that Careem and Uber will continue to operate as distinct businesses and provide their own regional services.

    By the time the purchase was completed, Uber had acquired Careem’s mobility, delivery, and payments operations throughout the larger Middle East, including its key markets in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates.

  • PM Shehbaz expresses grief over tragic Motorway accident

    The collision between a passenger bus and an oil tanker left at least 20 people dead and six others injured on the Multan-Sukkur Motorway (M-5) at Jalalpur Peerwala interchange in the early hours of Tuesday, August 16. The ill-fated bus left from Lahore for Karachi at 9pm.

    Following the incident, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief over the incident and prayed for the deceased and their families.

    “I am saddened by the loss of 20 precious lives in the accident. My prayers are with the bereaved families,” he tweeted.

    Multan Commissioner Amir Khattak confirmed the development on Twitter. According to him, the tragic accident had taken place around 4am. He also shared photographs of the scene.

    However, a statement issued by Rescue 1122’s provincial monitoring centre in Lahore said the accident took place at 2:20am.

    A Motorway Police spokesperson revealed that the tanker was carrying thousands of litres of petrol. He added that the apparent cause of the accident was the bus driver falling asleep, reports Dawn.

    According to the Motorway Police, both vehicles the oil tanker and the bus caught fire soon after the collision. The officers of the Motorway Police immediately reached the spot after the accident took place. Local police and Rescue 1122 teams also reached the spot.

    The police added that the fire was so intense and terrifying that it was visible from a distance. At least nine passengers were safely rescued from the burning bus.

    According to the bus company sources, there were two drivers aboard the bus. All staff was to be changed in Sukkur. There were a total of 24 passengers on board. Two passengers were going to Hyderabad, while the others were en route to Karachi.

    Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Pervaiz Elahi demanded a report on the incident from the Multan commissioner. He also expressed grief over the loss of lives.


  • Dynastic politics: PTI slammed for giving ticket to Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s daughter

    Dynastic politics: PTI slammed for giving ticket to Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s daughter

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice President Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s daughter Meher Bano Qureshi is contesting the upcoming by-polls for a National Assembly (NA) seat vacated by her brother Zain Qureshi.

    She will contest the election from NA-157, Multan. Addressing a press conference, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that they had filed nomination papers after the approval of PTI Chairman Imran Khan.

    “Meher Bano has a sense of the next generation. If we want to get our country out of this difficult situation, then mothers and daughters have to play a role because a mother has more sense of what will be the future of her child.”

    Meher Bano said that she has been working with the social media team of PTI since 2018.

    “My father has chosen me to keep Imran Khan’s narrative alive, contrary to tradition.”

    However, in Multan, PTI workers came to protest against their own party’s candidate, Meher Bano Qureshi, outside the Election Commission office and raised slogans of disapproval for dynastic politics. They argued that Mahmood couldn’t find anyone within the party for the candidacy.

    “First Mahmood gave a party ticket to his son, now her to his daughter,” they complained.

    A local PTI member, Engineer Waseem, who was also a part of the protest, said that if the party does not give him a ticket, then he would contest the election as an independent candidate.

    People on social media are expressing their disappointment over PTI continuing with the tradition of dynastic politics.

    https://twitter.com/Zara75520916/status/1555522618228445184?s=20&t=nDRe3scpPcj4cUJJzB3taA
    https://twitter.com/__Mugal/status/1555581107739004929?s=20&t=nDRe3scpPcj4cUJJzB3taA

    Reacting to the backlash, Meher Bano tweeted: “I have come across so many spreading fake news, doctored images and posters and attributing false statements to me. I wonder if it would have been different had I been a man. Anyhow, happy to work hard and prove myself.”

    Shah Mahmood’s son Zain Qureshi won PP-217 in the Punjab by-polls held on July 17. After becoming a member of the Punjab Assembly, he vacated his NA seat. His sister will now contest the election for the NA seat vacated by him.

    PTI Chairman Imran Khan himself has condemned and attacked the Pakistan Muslim-League (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) for dynastic politics on multiple occasions.

  • Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Zardari to be new neighbours?

    Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Zardari to be new neighbours?

    Former President Asif Ali Zardari has reportedly bought two bungalows of 14 kanal in one of the elitist areas of Gulberg in Lahore, reports The News.

    According to media reports, discussions to purchase another bungalow of 6 kanal for residential purposes in Lahore are ongoing. This bungalow is situated in front of PPP’s rival Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s house near Gaddafi Stadium.

    If the deal finalises, Zardari and Qureshi would become neighbours. It is pertinent to mention that Qureshi left PPP in 2011 after almost two decades of serving under the leadership of Benazir Bhutto. Since then, he is on bitter terms with PPP.

    Zardari and his son Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s current residence in Baharia Town in Lahore will be converted into a farmhouse.

    Earlier, the former president hinted at buying a residence in Gulberg so that he can hold more meetings with people, as it gets difficult for people to come to his residence in Bahira Town.

    Stronghold in Punjab

    According to Geo Urdu, Zardari is currently in Islamabad. However, he will later visit Lahore and hold meetings to discuss the political crisis in Punjab.

    Prior to this, the PPP co-chairman claimed that his party will form the next government in the Centre after winning the next general elections.

    “The next government (in the Centre) will be the PPP’s. I promise if I get a chance to return to power, I will turn around Pakistan 110 degrees. The PPP has the capability to help the country negotiate all the challenges,” said Zardari.

    Talking about politics in Punjab, Zardari said, “The PPP has to sacrifice its politics to save Pakistan. I will myself look into the party affairs in Punjab and ensure its revival here.”

    “We will strengthen our party in Punjab and ensure we get our fair share in the province,” he said.

    Criticising former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, Zardari said that the policies of the “anokha laadla” (favourite) had caused price hike and inflation in the country.

    The PPP is currently ruling Sindh, where it is in power for the third time in a row, while it is also a major stakeholder in the incumbent federal government.

  • Number of 3G, 4G users in Pakistan increases to 113.89 million

    Number of 3G, 4G users in Pakistan increases to 113.89 million

    The latest data from Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) reveals that the number of 3G and 4G users grew by 1.14 million from 112.75 million in April 2022 to 113.89 million in May 2022.

    Pakistan’s cellular subscriber base grew by 0.25 million to 193 million by the end of May 2022, up from 192.75 million at the end of April, according to Brecorder.

    By the end of May, cellular mobile teledensity had risen from 87.6 per cent to 87.67 per cent. By the end of May, the total teledensity had risen to 88.81 per cent, up from 88.74 per cent in April.

    The monthly penetration of Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) at the end of April had risen to 51.73 per cent, up from 51.24 per cent.

    Network providers

    The total number of 3G users on Jazz fell from 6.222 million at the end of April to 6.068 million at the end of May, a reduction of 0.154 million. By the end of May, the number of Jazz 4G users had risen from 36.567 million to 37.168 million.

    Zong 3G subscribers fell from 3.357 million at the end of April to 3.272 million at the end of May, while 4G users grew from 27.952 million at the end of April to 28.317 million at the end of May.

    Telenor 3G subscribers fell from 3.696 million at the end of April to 3.613 million at the end of May, whereas Telenor 4G users enhanced from 21.216 million at the end of April to 21.494 million at the end of May.

    By the end of May, there were 3.576 million Ufone 3G users, up from 3.673 million at the end of April. Ufone’s 4G users increased from 8.761 million at the end of April to 9.052 million at the end of May, a 0.291 million increase over the previous month.

  • Babar Azam scores a century against West Indies, breaking Virat Kohli’s ODI record

    Babar Azam scores a century against West Indies, breaking Virat Kohli’s ODI record

    Pakistani skipper Babar Azam has surpassed Virat Kohli, the former Indian captain, as the fastest to 1000 ODI runs as a captain.

    On Wednesday night at the Multan Cricket Stadium, Pakistani captain Babar Azam made history by smashing a century against West Indies in the first ODI, his 17th in the 50-over format, to set a new record.

    He became the first Pakistani batsman to achieve 1000 runs. It took only 13 innings for the world’s number one ODI batsman to achieve this milestone.

    Kohli was the first captain to score 1000 runs in his 17th innings, followed by AB De Villiers (20 matches) and Kane Williamson (22 matches).

    Babar is also the only batsman in ODI history to score three centuries in a row twice. He previously accomplished this feat against the West Indies in 2016, but this time he did so with a century against the West Indies, followed by two hundreds in the second and third home ODIs in April of 2022.

    Babar’s third successive century in ODIs came against Australia in Lahore earlier this year, when he scored 114 and 105 to help Pakistan win the series. It’s worth noting that Babar is now ranked first in the ICC hitters rankings for T20Is and ODIs.

  • West Indies cricket players reach Multan for ODI series against Pakistan

    West Indies cricket players reach Multan for ODI series against Pakistan

    The West Indies Cricket Team arrived in Multan on Monday and received a warm welcome. They will play three International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup Super League One Day International (ODI) matches against Pakistan.

    The visiting squad is likely to have a training session today (Tuesday). The two teams will lock horns on June 8, 10, and 12 in Multan.

    The West Indies team just finished their series in the Netherlands, whitewashing the home side 3-0. However, Pakistan, who won their last ODI series by 2-1 at home against Kangaroos reportedly started their training on Monday.

    Under the captaincy of Babar Azam, Shaheens currently stand at tenth position with six wins out of 12. Whereas, West Indies stands at fourth position with eight wins in 18 matches.

    Earlier, the entire series was moved from Rawalpindi to Multan due to the critical political situation in Islamabad.

  • Pak vs WI ODI: Series moves from Pindi to Multan due to political situation

    Pak vs WI ODI: Series moves from Pindi to Multan due to political situation

    The three-match Pakistan-West Indies One Day International (ODI) series has been moved from Rawalpindi to Multan due to the political situation in Islamabad.

    The first ODI between Pakistan and West Indies will take place on June 8. The West Indies team is likely to arrive in Multan next week on June 5.

    Earlier, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had sought guidelines from the federal government to decide on the future of the West Indies series, which was set to start in Rawalpindi.

    It is pertinent to mention here that the ODI series is part of the World Cup 2023 qualifying round.

    Former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan warned Pakistan’s government to set new elections in the next six days or he will again march on the capital along with millions of people.

  • Khan admits failure, awards only 10 favourite ministers: Bilawal

    Khan admits failure, awards only 10 favourite ministers: Bilawal

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Thursday said that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had himself admitted failure of his entire cabinet by awarding ‘best performance’ certificates to only 10 ‘blue-eyed’ federal ministers.

    Taking a jibe at Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Bilawal said that Imran Khan had committed a ‘great injustice’ to Multan for not conferring a certificate on Qureshi while distributing performance certificates.

    He said PM Imran had given a certificate to the minister who halted the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project and also conferred a certificate on another who had promised to create a Seraiki province in 90 days. He gave another certificate to a minister who was removed from one ministry but now held the planning portfolio for “planning the sugar, gas, petrol, medicine and fertiliser crises in the country”.

    PM Khan on Thursday awarded appreciation certificates to the “top 10 best performing federal ministries” under his government, with the communications ministry, planning ministry, and poverty alleviation division getting top honours of first, second and third respectively.

    “When I came [into power], I had very revolutionary ideas to bring sudden changes but I realised our system doesn’t have the capability to absorb sudden shocks [and only by] incentivising will we bring positive changes in our bureaucracy and ministries,” said PM Khan.

    The premier further said that the government and ministries had not given the desired results. “The biggest problem is that there has been no connection between the government and the interest of the country,” he added.

    “Are our ministries performing how to stabilise the country through increasing exports and how the condition of the people can be improved, how poverty can be eliminated?” he asked.

  • Spectacles stolen from Quaid’s statue

    Spectacles stolen from Quaid’s statue

    Monocle from statue of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah in Vehari got stolen by unidentified people. The statue was installed in front of Deputy commissioner office.

    After the issue came to light on social media, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar took notice of the incident and summoned report from Multan commissio ner. The chief minister directed the officials to initiate legal action against the accused involved in the incident.

    Pakistan Muslim League N (PML-N) leader Khawaja Asif reacted to the news sarcastically.

    However, a new pair of spectacles has been installed.

    Earlier this year in July, a thief in Bahawalpur stole a hockey and a ball from the statue of former hockey player Samiullah Khan.