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Agriculture: The forgotten roadmap for water security

The 1991 Indus Water Apportionment Accord was a landmark agreement designed to ensure the fair distribution of Pakistan’s most precious resource — water. However, over time, discussions around the accord have become narrowly focused on Clause 2, which deals with water apportionment, while neglecting the broader, forward-looking provisions aimed at securing Pakistan’s water future. This agreemen

National Highway Authority faces huge losses as deficit tops Rs318bn

With its net deficit for the fiscal year 2024-25 going beyond Rs318 billion, the aggregate losses and loans of the National Highway Authority (NHA) have crossed Rs1.82 trillion and Rs3.1tr, respectively, while its annual revenues stand at a mere Rs54.15bn. The NHA’s total assets, valued at Rs5.8tr, have been declining for the past two years, down from Rs5.9tr in FY22 and Rs5.84tr in FY23. In

Shares at PSX rally 1,000 points amid expectations of smooth IMF review

Bulls regained their control of the trading floor at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday as shares gained more than 1,000 points. The benchmark KSE-100 index gained 1,009.70 points, or 0.89 per cent, to stand at 115,094.23 points from the last close of 114,084.53. Mohammed Sohail, chief executive of Topline Securities, said that investors were buoyed amid expectations that the Inte

Eroding bases of power

THIS is not how it works. The biggest folly that any wielder of power can fall prey to is to take their own power for granted. It does not work that way. The world is not made of Lego blocks that it can be made, disassembled and remade into whatever shape one fancies. Trying to treat it as such undermines the very roots from which one’s power grows. The government has some cause to celebrate th

SBP pauses rate cuts, but likely not for long

With inflation cooling, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) hit pause on its multiple rounds of monetary easing that might have risked destabilising its currency or worsening the trade deficit. Economists said the government should shift its focus to implementing economic reforms as interest rate cuts are not the elixir for growth, after the central bank on Monday unexpectedly kept interest rates