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Express Tribune
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Two martyred, seven injured in bomb blast in Quetta
Listen to article Two people were killed and seven others injured in a bomb explosion in the Killi Mangal area of Quetta on Saturday evening. The blast – which occurred within the jurisdiction of Hanna police station – stirred up fear and panic in the administrative capital of Balochistan, the province which has been caught up in a spiral of violence for more than two decades now. It was immediately not clear who detonated the bomb and who was their target. Emergency response teams and law enforcers rushed to the site, threw a security cordon, and ferried the casualties to hospital. Police confirmed that they have registered the FIR, and efforts are underway to identify and apprehend the perpetrators. The casualties were driven to the Trauma Centre at Civil Hospital Quetta, where emergency measures were put place. Medics confirmed that they have received two dead bodies and seven injured persons, who are mostly in stable condition. A police official, while speaking on the condition of anonymity, told The Express Tribune that while the motives behind the blast remain unclear, preliminary investigation point to the possibility of terrorist activity. Soon after the bombing, security measures were further tightened in the provincial capital with the law enforcers launching a sweeping search operation. The bombing took place at a time when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was in Quetta to visit the Command and Staff College, the premier military institution of Pakistan Army. The blast came a day after heavily armed terrorists launched a coordinated assault on a bank and the residences of senior government officers in Surab district of Balochistan. 'The attackers looted the bank and set fire to several official residences,' Shahid Rind, a spokesperson for the provincial government, said on Friday. Read More: Senior Balochistan official martyred in terrorist attack on Surab Bazaar Officials and witnesses stated that 20 to 30 terrorists of 'Fitna al Hindustan' entered the market of Surab city on motorcycles Friday evening and targeted soft civilian areas such as banks and markets. Ordinary Baloch women and children were also attacked in the market, they added. Spokesperson Rind also confirmed that Hidayatullah Buledi, the additional deputy commissioner (ADC) of Surab, was martyred while fighting the terrorists.
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Business
- Express Tribune
Govt mulls 1.5% tax on imports
At high tax rates, profit margins for sellers decrease, leaving them with options to pass on the burden to consumers, compromise on the quality of products, evade taxes or find cheaper illicit goods. photo: file Listen to article In what could become the single largest new revenue source in the budget, the government is considering imposing a 1.5% withholding tax on the value of imports. The tax would be collected by banks at the time of making payments to overseas suppliers. The measure, still under discussion, will be used as an enforcement tool to curb the widespread under-declaration of import values, a senior government functionary told The Express Tribune. He said that the tax would apply to commercial importers only, who would have the right to claim adjustments against their final tax liabilities. Currently, commercial importers pay withholding tax when filing goods declarations with the Customs Department. Under the new plan, however, the tax would be deducted when the payment is made to the foreign supplier through banking channels. Sources said the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has briefed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) about its proposal to tax imports at three key points: upon arrival, during shipment, and at the stage of payment to exporters. While it remains unclear whether the IMF has endorsed the proposal, the plan appears to be the government's biggest attempt in the budget at hitting the next fiscal year's tax target of over Rs14 trillion. Finance Secretary Imdad Ullah Bosal on Thursday said there were no plans to delay the budget presentation, reiterating thrice that it would be presented on June 10. Meanwhile, the Annual Plan Coordination Committee will meet on June 3, and the National Economic Council will convene on June 6 to approve macroeconomic and development plans for FY25. The proposed withholding tax would be deducted at the point of sending money abroad through letters of credit, said the sources. Banks would follow a model similar to how they deduct tax on overseas credit card payments. FBR spokesperson Dr Najeeb Memon and Chairman Rashid Langrial did not respond to queries on the matter for the purposes of this story. A recent report by the Policy Research Institute of Market Economy (PRIME), titled 'Combating Illicit Trade in Pakistan', estimates that the country is losing a staggering Rs3.4 trillion annually to black market activities. Of this, nearly 30% stems from misuse of the Afghan Transit Trade facility. These losses amount to 26% of the current fiscal year's total tax target. The report warns that illicit trade is eroding formal businesses, government revenues, and consumer safety. It highlights outdated border controls, minimal customs automation, a lack of risk-based profiling, and poor scanning technologies as key contributors to rampant smuggling. If passed by Parliament, the new withholding tax could offer the FBR a relatively easy way to collect revenue, especially since it would be implemented through banks. The tax authority has historically underperformed in areas where it must rely on its own enforcement rather than external withholding agents such as banks, provincial bodies, or employers. The government has previously relied on indirect taxation, including last year's controversial 20% federal excise duty (FED) on the packaged juice industry. The result was a 45% drop in sales, according to Atikah Mir, a representative of the industry. The Fruit Juice Council is lobbying for the FED to be reduced to 15%, arguing that the move would benefit both the industry and revenues. Meanwhile, another tool used frequently by the FBR is blocking genuine tax refunds to inflate revenues. On Thursday, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Haroon Akhtar Khan met with a delegation from Utopia Industries to address their pending tax refunds. According to a statement from the Ministry of Industries, Utopia Industries — a leading exporter of mattress covers, pillows, comforters, and plastic products — has been unable to recover more than Rs3 billion (approximately $10 million) despite submitting all required documentation. The company, which began operations in 2020 with a $50 million investment, now ranks among Pakistan's top 12 exporters by revenue and leads in the number of containers shipped abroad. It is also one of the top two sellers on Amazon, with annual revenues of $170 million. All of its products are branded under its own name and carry Pakistani origin labels, distributed widely across households in the United States, Canada, and the UK. According to company officials, Rs600 million in sales tax refunds are pending from the April-January period, despite refund payment orders having been generated. An additional Rs700 million in refunds has been deferred for the same period, and Rs350 million in income tax refunds have been stuck since 2022. Utopia's representatives also met the finance minister in Washington, DC, last October and have filed a complaint with the Federal Tax Ombudsman, but the matter remains unresolved. The company says it has reached out to multiple stakeholders, including the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association, the Pakistan Textile Council, the commerce and planning ministers, and even the Special Investment Facilitation Council and the Pakistani ambassador to the USyet the issue persists.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
India factory fire footage misrepresented as Pakistan air strike
"Recent missile attacks have struck the Udhampur Airbase in Jammu and Kashmir. While Indian officials report limited damage and no operational losses, the incident underscores the escalating military tensions between India and Pakistan," reads the caption of a Facebook reel shared May 10 by Pakistani news outlet The Express Tribune. The video, which has more than 3,000 engagements, shows large clouds of smoke billowing on the horizon. Fire trucks drive toward the fire as bystanders watch. Other Pakistani news outlets have shared similar posts on their social media pages, racking up thousands of views. Geo News published the video in a May 10 Instagram post, while Dawn News shared it on its verified YouTube channel. Social media users also shared the same video alongside similar claims thousands of times on X. Pakistan launched counterattacks against India on May 10 after three of its air bases were struck overnight in an escalation of the conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours. Indian Wing Commander Vyomika Singh said the same day that there were "several high-speed missile attacks" on air bases, but "limited damage" to equipment (archived link). More than 70 people were killed in the four-day conflict between India and Pakistan, which was sparked by an attack on tourists by gunmen in Indian-administered Kashmir last month that New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing -- a charge it denies (archived link). The military confrontation -- which involved intense tit-for-tat drone, missile, aerial combat and artillery exchanges -- came to an abrupt end after US President Donald Trump announced a surprise ceasefire. The video shared online is unrelated to the violence; it shows a fire at a chemical factory in Hanumangarh in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Keyword searches on Google led to similar footage that Indian media organisation NDTV published May 8 on YouTube (archived link). Another Indian outlet, ETV Bharat, also posted a video of the fire from a different angle (archived link). ETV Bharat reported that the blaze broke out at an acid factory in the industrial area of Hanumangarh Junction, killing two workers. Hindi script on one of the fire trucks seen in the footage shared online says "Firefighting Services Rajasthan." The number plate of another fire truck also contains the sequence "RJ14", with "RJ" representing the state of Rajasthan and "14" representing the city of Jaipur under India's Regional Transport Office (archived link). Google Maps Street View imagery of the factory also matches the structure seen in the false posts (archived link). AFP has debunked other misinformation about the India-Pakistan conflict here.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
India factory fire footage misrepresented as Pakistan air strike
"Recent missile attacks have struck the Udhampur Airbase in Jammu and Kashmir. While Indian officials report limited damage and no operational losses, the incident underscores the escalating military tensions between India and Pakistan," reads the caption of a Facebook reel shared May 10 by Pakistani news outlet The Express Tribune. The video, which has more than 3,000 engagements, shows large clouds of smoke billowing on the horizon. Fire trucks drive toward the fire as bystanders watch. Other Pakistani news outlets have shared similar posts on their social media pages, racking up thousands of views. Geo News published the video in a May 10 Instagram post, while Dawn News shared it on its verified YouTube channel. Social media users also shared the same video alongside similar claims thousands of times on X. Pakistan launched counterattacks against India on May 10 after three of its air bases were struck overnight in an escalation of the conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours. Indian Wing Commander Vyomika Singh said the same day that there were "several high-speed missile attacks" on air bases, but "limited damage" to equipment (archived link). More than 70 people were killed in the four-day conflict between India and Pakistan, which was sparked by an attack on tourists by gunmen in Indian-administered Kashmir last month that New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing -- a charge it denies (archived link). The military confrontation -- which involved intense tit-for-tat drone, missile, aerial combat and artillery exchanges -- came to an abrupt end after US President Donald Trump announced a surprise ceasefire. The video shared online is unrelated to the violence; it shows a fire at a chemical factory in Hanumangarh in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Keyword searches on Google led to similar footage that Indian media organisation NDTV published May 8 on YouTube (archived link). Another Indian outlet, ETV Bharat, also posted a video of the fire from a different angle (archived link). ETV Bharat reported that the blaze broke out at an acid factory in the industrial area of Hanumangarh Junction, killing two workers. Hindi script on one of the fire trucks seen in the footage shared online says "Firefighting Services Rajasthan." The number plate of another fire truck also contains the sequence "RJ14", with "RJ" representing the state of Rajasthan and "14" representing the city of Jaipur under India's Regional Transport Office (archived link). Google Maps Street View imagery of the factory also matches the structure seen in the false posts (archived link). AFP has debunked other misinformation about the India-Pakistan conflict here.
Express Tribune
3 days ago
- Climate
- Express Tribune
Metropolis braces for scorching heat
The megalopolis is expected to experience extremely hot weather on Thursday, with temperatures likely to exceed 41 degrees Celsius. On Wednesday, the city recorded intense heat and humidity, with scorching midday winds creating heatwave-like conditions. Humidity levels rose to 68 per cent, making it feel about five degrees Celsius warmer than the actual temperature. According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department, the maximum temperature recorded in the city was 37.1 degrees Celsius. Due to the high humidity, however, the temperature felt closer to 42 degrees Celsius. Spokesperson for the Meteorological Department told The Express Tribune that sea breezes have been continuously prevailing in the city. Nonetheless, the combined effect of rising temperatures, increased humidity (up to 65%), and weak winds are contributing to the ongoing heatwave-like conditions. According to the forecast issued by the Meteorological Department's Early Warning Centre, Karachi can expect stronger-than-usual winds on Thursday. However, the weather is likely to remain extremely hot and dry, with the maximum temperature potentially exceeding 41°C. Meanwhile, light rain is expected in several districts of Sindh, including Ghotki, Kashmore, Shikarpur, Khairpur, Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas, Badin, and Tharparkar. Despite the chance of rain, most areas of the province are forecasted to experience hot to very hot and dry weather accompanied by strong winds.
