ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government announced on Wednesday that it had denied a request for use of its airspace for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to fly over Pakistani skies for a flight to Germany.
The request had been submitted by the Indian government last week, following six weeks of heightened tensions between Pakistan and India, following New Delhi’s move on Aug. 5 to abrogate the partial autonomy of Kashmir, a region both countries own in part but claim in full.
In a video message, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the decision had been made “keeping in view the situation in occupied Kashmir,” and called it a “violation of rights in the region.”
Earlier this month, Pakistan denied the use of its airspace to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind for his flight to Iceland, citing similar reasons.
Keeping in line with international law, such requests are usually granted.
In February this year, Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian traffic following a dogfight in the skies over Kashmir that brought the two nuclear-armed South Asian countries to the brink of war. It reopened its skies for all civilian traffic in July, ending months of restrictions that had affected major international routes and thousands of travelers.
Pakistan denies airspace to Indian PM amid Kashmir buildup
Pakistan denies airspace to Indian PM amid Kashmir buildup
- Indian President was also denied Pakistani airspace earlier this month
- Tensions heightened between India and Pakistan after New Delhi revoked Kashmir's special status on August, 5
Pakistan PM orders accelerated privatization of power sector to tackle losses
- Tenders to be issued for privatization of three major electricity distribution firms, PMO says
- Sharif says Pakistan to develop battery energy storage through public-private partnerships
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s prime minister on Monday directed the government to speed up privatization of state-owned power companies and improve electricity infrastructure nationwide, as authorities try to address deep-rooted losses and inefficiencies in the energy sector that have weighed on the economy and public finances.
Pakistan’s electricity system has long struggled with financial distress caused by a combination of factors including theft of power, inefficient collection of bills, high costs of generating electricity and a large burden of unpaid obligations known as “circular debt.” In the first quarter of the current financial year, government-owned distribution companies recorded losses of about Rs171 billion ($611 million) due to poor bill recovery and operational inefficiencies, official documents show. Circular debt in the broader power sector stood at around Rs1.66 trillion ($5.9 billion) in mid-2025, a sharp decline from past peaks but still a major fiscal drain.
Efforts to contain these losses have been a focus of Pakistan’s economic reform program with the International Monetary Fund, which has urged structural changes in the energy sector as part of financing conditions. Previous government initiatives have included signing a $4.5 billion financing facility with local banks to ease power sector debt and reducing retail electricity tariffs to support economic recovery.
“Electricity sector privatization and market-based competition is the sustainable solution to the country’s energy problems,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said at a meeting reviewing the roadmap for power sector reforms, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office.
The meeting reviewed progress on privatization and infrastructure projects. Officials said tenders for modernizing one of Pakistan’s oldest operational hubs, Rohri Railway Station, will be issued soon and that the Ghazi Barotha to Faisalabad transmission line, designed to improve long-distance transmission of electricity, is in the initial approval stages. While not all power-sector decisions were detailed publicly, the government emphasized expanding private sector participation and completing priority projects to strengthen the electricity grid.
In another key development, the prime minister endorsed plans to begin work on a battery energy storage system with participation from private investors to help manage fluctuations in supply and demand, particularly as renewable energy sources such as solar and wind take a growing role in generation. Officials said the concept clearance for the storage system has been approved and feasibility studies are underway.
Government briefing documents also outlined steps toward shifting some electricity plants from imported coal to locally mined Thar coal, where a railway line expansion is underway to support transport of fuel, potentially lowering costs and import dependence in the long term.
State authorities also pledged to address safety by converting unmanned railway crossings to staffed ones and to strengthen food safety inspections at stations, underscoring broader infrastructure and service improvements connected to energy and transport priorities.
