Punjab govt announces closure of all educational institutes on Friday

LAHORE: The Punjab government announced the closure of all private and public schools, colleges and universities across the province today.  According to a notification on Thursday, the government also imposed Section 144 in the province for the next two days — October 18 and 19. The notification said that all kinds of protests and rallies will be banned in the province.  The government’s decision to impose Section 144 was made to maintain law and order and protect of human lives and property, said the notification.  The development comes after the ongoing protests…

SSC, HSSC: New grading system aiming to promote fairness introduced

ISLAMABAD: The Inter Boards Coordination Commission (IBCC) on Wednesday introduced a new grading system for matric and intermediate examinations — a move towards modernising the education system of the country.  The new system aims to promote fairness, transparency, and accuracy in student evaluation. The Sindh government was the first to adopt the new grading system and later the federal government and the governments of Balochistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan notified new grading policy. Sharing the details of key features of the new grading system, the IBCC said that it will…

FAA gives nod to SpaceX Falcon 9 return to flight after mishap probe

WASHINGTON: The US Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday it had approved the return to flight of the SpaceX Falcon 9 vehicle after the agency reviewed and accepted the SpaceX-led investigation findings and corrective actions for the mishap that occurred on September 28. The FAA said on September 30 that SpaceX had to investigate why the second stage of its Falcon 9 malfunctioned after a Nasa astronaut mission, grounding the launch vehicle for the third time in three months. The malfunction caused the booster to fall into a region of…

SCO, other matters on agenda as Chinese PM to reach Pakistan tomorrow

ISLAMABAD: Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit Pakistan for four days, starting October 14 (tomorrow).During his stay here, Qiang will attend conference of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and discuss a range of topics of mutual interest with Pakistan on its sidelines. The Foreign Office said PM Li would be accompanied by ministers and senior officials including those from the ministries of foreign affairs and commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission and the China International Development Cooperation Agency. “PM Shehbaz and Premier Li will lead their respective delegations to…

NFJ Delegation Meets Iranian Ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam to Discuss Media Cooperation

Islamabad – 3 October 2024 ( ) : A two-member delegation of the National Federation of Journalists (NFJ) met with the Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam. The delegation was led by NFJ Secretary General Abid Siddique Chaudhry, accompanied by Joint Secretary Adnan Hameed. During the meeting, discussions centered on enhancing media cooperation between the two countries and strengthening the long-standing bilateral ties between Pakistan and Iran. According to an NFJ spokesperson, Abid Siddique Chaudhry expressed condolences on behalf of the federation over the martyrdom of Hassan Nasrallah. He…