MARDAN: Police in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province presented a guard of honor to doctors and paramedics in front of Quetta’s Sheikh Zayed and Fatima Jinnah hospitals on Saturday, following a similar salute to Punjab’s health care professionals at the gates of Lahore’s iconic Mayo Hospital on Friday.
On Saturday, the official tally of confirmed cases in the country had surged to over 1,400 with the majority of the cases in eastern Punjab province, followed closely by southern Sindh.
“Coronavirus has been declared a global pandemic and we are also feeling its impact,” Quetta’s senior superintendent of police, Tariq Mastoi, told Arab News and added that the ceremony was held to salute the “frontline soldiers” in the ongoing war against the elusive pathogen.
“Doctors, paramedics and others working in hospitals are fighting at the frontline of this battle and we salute them for their work,” the officer said, adding that the police wanted to boost the morale of medical practitioners and other hospital staff during this time of crisis.
In a widely circulated video, doctors and medical staff at Mayo Hospital stood in rainy Lahore with their hands on their hearts before the Punjab police on Friday, as they too were presented a guard of honor salute.
“It’s great to see our staff, who have shown such bravery and are working tirelessly, being appreciated in this manner,” Dr. Mumraiz Naqshband of Mayo Hospital, who is among Pakistan’s frontline health care professionals, told Arab News.
But the doctors deserve protection as well as appreciation, said chief of a representative body of doctors, the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA).
According to Qaiser Sajjad, General Secretary of PMA, it was the government’s responsibility to provide protective gear to doctors so they could fight the virus more courageously.
“Currently, doctors are fighting this battle without weapons,” he said. “Doctors deserve appreciation as well as protection.”
“The way police are saluting doctors across the country is absolutely great,” he added. ”I salute those who salute doctors and paramedics.
Last week, a 26 year old doctor from Pakistan’s northern Gilgit Baltistan lost his life when he contracted the virus after screening patients without appropriate personal protective equipment.
On Saturday, Dr. Raheem Babar, spokesperson for the Young Doctor’s Association in Balochistan told Arab News that two senior dental surgeons had tested positive for the virus in Quetta. Dentists are at especially high risk from the coronavirus infection which is spread via droplets from the mouth and nose.
On Saturday, the PMA said at least six doctors in Punjab and Sindh had also tested positive for the virus.
Police present ceremonial salute to medics in Balochistan, Punjab
https://arab.news/42ar9
Police present ceremonial salute to medics in Balochistan, Punjab
- Last week, a Pakistani doctor died after contracting coronavirus while working without PPE
- ‘We salute them for their work,’ says Quetta police chief
Pakistan says economy stabilizing as it looks to 2026 growth
- Inflation averages 5 percent, remittances hit $16.1 billion as government cites signs of recovery
- IT exports, industry and development spending highlighted as focus shifts to next year’s targets
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s economy has shown signs of stabilization in the first half of the current fiscal year, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said on Thursday, as the government looks ahead to sustaining growth momentum into 2026 after several years of economic volatility.
Briefing the media on economic performance through November, Iqbal said key indicators including inflation, industrial output, exports, remittances and fiscal revenues had improved, creating what he described as a more stable base for forward planning.
Pakistan has spent much of the past two years navigating high inflation, external financing pressures and fiscal tightening under an IMF-backed reform program. While growth remains modest, officials say recent data suggests the economy has moved out of crisis mode and into a consolidation phase.
“During July to November of fiscal year 2025–26, stability has returned to Pakistan’s economy,” Iqbal said, adding that average inflation during the period stood at around 5 percent, compared with 7.9% last year, easing pressure on households and businesses.
Large-scale manufacturing posted growth of 4.1 percent, which Iqbal described as “clear evidence of recovery in industrial activity.”
The planning minister said government revenues also improved, with Federal Board of Revenue collections reaching Rs4,733 billion ($16.9 billion) during July–November, reflecting a 10.2% increase.
External inflows remained resilient, with workers’ remittances rising 9.3% to $16.1 billion, while IT services exports increased 19% to $1.8 billion over the same period, he said.
On the public investment side, Iqbal said Rs196 billion ($700 million) were released under the development budget during the quarter, of which Rs92 billion ($329 million) had already been spent. He added that cost rationalization in development projects between July and October saved Rs3.3 billion ($11.8 million) billion in public funds.
In November, the planning minister said, the Central Development Working Party approved 10 development projects, while six major schemes were referred to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council.
Iqbal said the approved projects were expected to create 994 immediate jobs, with nearly 24,859 direct and 40,873 indirect employment opportunities projected overall.
Looking ahead, he said all future development schemes would be required to comply with green building codes to ensure environmental protection and sustainable growth.
He also highlighted skills and innovation initiatives, saying that under the “Uraan Pakistan” program, partnerships with Oxford and Cambridge universities were being pursued to promote research, technology and innovation.
Under an IT industry revival plan, he said more than 20,000 young people were being trained in advanced technologies, with over 14,000 new jobs expected to be created.
The government has said maintaining macroeconomic stability while gradually lifting growth remains its central challenge as Pakistan moves into 2026, with officials emphasising disciplined spending, export growth and job creation as key priorities.
