ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s state television said on Wednesday a Pakistani soap opera with Arabic subtitles would air in Saudi Arabia in June this year, one of two television series to be broadcast in the Muslim Kingdom.
Last week Pakistan’s information minister Fawad Chaudhry announced during a visit to the Saudi capital of Riyadh that Islamabad would soon export its television series to the Kingdom.
The move is part of a push by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the last three years to modernize the deeply conservative Kingdom where cinemas, public concerts and other forms of entertainment have been banned for decades.
“We have selected two very popular dramas, Dhoop Kinare (Sunlight’s Edge) and Tanhaiyaan (Loneliness), for Arabic subtitles,” Shahzia Sikander, Director International Relations at Pakistan Television, told Arab News. “We will be able to send Dhoop Kinare to Saudi Arabia by June this year.”
She said the move would not only be a source of revenue for Pakistan but also bring recognition for local television series and actors and help Saudi nationals understand the culture of Pakistan.
“This is the first time that Pakistan Television is subtitling Pakistani drama into Arabic for Saudi viewers,” Sikander said.
Last week, during the information minister’s visit to the Kingdom on the invitation of Saudi Culture Minister Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan, Chaudhry said Saudi Airlines would soon include Pakistani television dramas in their in-flight entertainment. He also said Pakistan’s art academies and actors would extend their support to Saudi Arabia as it established new academies for performing arts.
Pakistan is also once again expected to participate in a music festival to be held in Saudi Arabia in April this year. Last year, Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan participated in the festival at Riyadh’s King Fahad Culture Center.
In September 2018, Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Information Dr. Awwad bin Saleh Al-Awwad had visited Pakistan to discuss how the two allies could broaden their relationship in the fields of media and culture.
Two major Pakistani drama series to air in Saudi Arabia this year
Two major Pakistani drama series to air in Saudi Arabia this year
- Pakistan Television has picked two television series, Dhoop Kinare and Tanhaiyaan, for broadcast in the Kingdom
- This is the first time Pakistan is subtitling its drama series into Arabic for Saudi viewers
Authorities begin action against vehicles without e-tags in Pakistani capital
- Capital administration made e-tags mandatory for all vehicles in Islamabad in Nov.
- Vehicles already equipped with a motorway tag, or m-tag, do not require an e-tag
ISLAMABAD: Authorities have begun action against vehicles plying roads in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad without electronic tags, or e-tags, the Islamabad administration said on Sunday, in a move aimed at streamlining traffic management and improving monitoring at the city’s entry and exit points.
The capital administration made e-tags mandatory for all vehicles in Islamabad in Nov. last year to enhance security in the city. Vehicles already equipped with a motorway tag, or m-tag, do not require an e-tag.
The move is aimed at regulating traffic flow, improving record-keeping, and ensuring that vehicles entering the federal capital are properly registered within the system, according to the officials.
The enforcement relies on e-tag readers installed at entry and check points across the capital, which automatically identify untagged vehicles and allow authorities to take action without manual checks.
“Vehicles without m-tags are being stopped at various checkpoints,” the Islamabad administration said in a statement, citing a top excise official. “Citizens are requested to get the tags installed as soon as possible to avoid legal trouble.”
Readers are fully operational at various check points across the city to identify vehicles without e-tags, according to the statement. Installation of e-tags is also underway at 17 points set up in different areas.
“A total of 166,888 vehicles have so far been successfully issued m-tags,” the statement read.
Last month, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also reviewed Islamabad’s monitoring system and said reforms in Safe City project operations and the effective use of technology were the “need of the hour,” according to his ministry.
“Under the Capital Smart City initiative, citizen services such as Rescue 1122, traffic management, security, and the Capital Development Authority (CDA) would be integrated into a centralized system,” Naqvi said.
