Gold price per tola jumps Rs3,600 in Pakistan
As per the rates shared by the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA), 10-gram gold was sold at Rs309,671 after it accumulated Rs3,087.
On Friday, gold price per tola reached Rs357,600 after a gain of Rs2,500 during the day. The bullion market remained closed on Saturday in support of a strike call by traders against tax laws.
The international rate of gold also increased on Monday. The rate was at $3,387 per ounce (with a premium of $20), a gain of $36, as per APGJSA.
Meanwhile, silver price per tola remained stable at Rs4,012.
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As the monsoons arrive, once again, Pakistan is facing a water crisis, shifting from drought-like scenarios to the threat of a flood. The seasonal threat is no longer creeping but ferocious. As seasonal relief in monsoon showers may seem to provide, the bitter truth remains the same: our water security is falling, drop after drop, each passing year. Where once favoured with powerful rivers and glacial flows, present-day Pakistan is a water-scarce nation. Water availability on a head-per-capita basis has crashed down to 800–1,017 cubic meters from 5,260 in 1951. By 2035, we could dip below 500–660 cubic meters, a threshold of pure scarcity, while UNDP predicts extreme scarcity below 500 cubic meters in 2025. This is no future prospect; it is present in the dried-out canals in Punjab, Sindh's saline groundwater, drop in water tables in Balochistan, and failing supply lines in main cities like Karachi and Lahore. 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Just as in lower Sindh, Ghulam Mustafa encountered an almost identical ordeal in May-June this year; he was waiting for water to begin kharif planting amidst water scarcity. The Indus reduced significantly by the time it flowed to his distributary because of downstream restrains added to existing upstream problems, slowing down and dwindling the stream. By the time water flowed back, as well, it was in vain, the sowing period was gone and his debts increased. Such incidents are not unique. Along the coasts in Sindh, advancing seawater engulfs arable lands as flows of freshwater fail to trickle down to the delta, making previously fertile patches near Thatta and Sujawal desolate areas. Across central and southern Punjab, numerous Rabi growers watched their wheat crop drought for insufficient final irrigations in February just months before harvesting, owing to paucity of water. 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Picture a Pakistani doctor in the United States funding a desalination plant back in his hometown in Sindh—it would not only provide him 6–8 percent returns but ensure that future generations also drink clean water. With sovereign backing, ESG reporting, and zakat-associated functionalities, such bonds could blend moral responsibility with financial sense. These diaspora flows could unlock matching contributions from development institutions such as the World Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, or the IFC, much like ADB's recentUSD500 million commitment for water resilience. Making it work: a phased roadmap But it won't happen without a phased, strategic roadmap. A Rs100 billion pilot bond in 2025 would aim for low-hanging fruit: wastewater treatment (national efficiency <1 percent) and flood irrigation and unlined channels (up to 60 percent loss of applied water). In 2026–27, scaling could be Rs 560 billion for storage, urban networks, and flood control. 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