From the highways to the skies: Pakistan's famous truck art goes airborne

A two-seater Cessna aircraft painted with Pakistani truck art is seen at general aviation area at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, December 30, 2020. Picture taken December 30, 2020. (REUTERS)
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Updated 01 January 2021
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From the highways to the skies: Pakistan's famous truck art goes airborne

  • A flying academy is painting a two-seater Cessna aircraft with the colourful technique
  • Imran Aslam Khan of Sky Wings plans to paint other aircraft too, with the aim of promoting tourism in Pakistan

KARACHI: Pakistan's famous truck art will move from its highways to the skies, as a flying academy is painting a two-seater Cessna aircraft with the colourful technique.
With elaborate and flamboyant motifs, Pakistani truck art has inspired gallery exhibitions abroad and prompted stores in Western cities to sell miniatures.
“We want to show the world that Pakistan is not all about Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and terrorism issues; it a very diverse country and a land of opportunities,” Imran Aslam Khan, chief operating officer of Sky Wings, a flight training organisation, told Reuters.




Men paint Pakistani truck art on a two-seater Cessna aircraft at general aviation area at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, December 30, 2020. Picture taken December 30, 2020. (REUTERS)

He also plans to paint other aircraft, with the aim of promoting tourism in Pakistan.
Such art has become one of Pakistan's best-known cultural exports in recent years. UNESCO, for example, has been using truck art, blended with indigenous themes, to promote girls' education in a northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.




Painter Haider Ali, 40, paints Pakistani truck art on a two-seater Cessna aircraft at general aviation area at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, December 30, 2020. Picture taken December 30, 2020. (REUTERS)

"The world is familiar with our truck art representation; now, with this aircraft, our colours will fly in the air. We are really excited," Haider Ali, the artist painting the aircraft, told Reuters at the academy's hangar.
Trained by his father, Ali, 40, has been decorating trucks since his childhood and is now one of the most prominent such painters in Pakistan.




Pakistani painter Haider Ali, 40 (R) and his student paint Pakistani truck art on a two-seater Cessna aircraft at general aviation area at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, December 30, 2020. (REUTERS)

Ali hopes to paint an Airbus or Boeing aircraft in the future, saying an opportunity to work on such gargantuan planes would truly be a learning experience. 

 


Government says Imran Khan’s ‘detailed’ medical report shared, family disputes claim

Updated 57 min 16 sec ago
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Government says Imran Khan’s ‘detailed’ medical report shared, family disputes claim

  • Khan underwent an eye procedure last month, PTI says family was not informed
  • Ex-PM’s sister says only brief notes provided despite Supreme Court assurance

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government said on Friday a “detailed” medical report of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan had been shared with his family following directions from the prime minister’s office, even as Khan’s relatives disputed the claim and accused jail authorities of withholding information.

Concerns over Khan’s health were raised by his family and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party last month after the government confirmed he was taken from prison to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) for a brief eye procedure. Authorities said at the time that Khan’s condition was stable and the treatment routine, while PTI leaders said they were not informed in advance and questioned the lack of transparent medical disclosure.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the report was prepared by PIMS and had been forwarded to the prison authorities and handed over to Khan’s family.

“A letter was written by the Leader of the Opposition to the Prime Minister and PTI Leaders also approached the Supreme Court of Pakistan regarding medical check up of Mr. Imran Ahmad [Khan] Niazi who is serving his sentences in Central Jail Rawalpindi (Adiala),” he said in a social media post on X.

“On directions from Prime Minister’s Office, a detailed report has been sent by Executive Director PIMS Hospital to the Superintendent of Central Jail Rawalpindi (Adiala) which has been handed over to the family,” he added.

 

However, the former prime minister’s sister Aleema Khan said they had not received complete medical reports, despite assurances given by the country’s top judge.

“The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court committed last Friday that Imran Khan’s medical reports would be provided to his family,” she said on X. “Today, when the jail superintendent appeared before the ATC [Anti-Terrorism Court], only two brief notes were submitted.”

She said the government’s conduct reflected a disregard for the court’s order, urging the Chief Justice of Pakistan to issue a contempt notice to the jail authorities and ensure that Khan’s medical reports were handed over to his family without further delay.

The dispute has renewed tensions surrounding Khan’s incarceration, which has become a flashpoint in Pakistan’s deeply polarized politics. 

Khan, who served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022, has been in prison since August 2023 following multiple convictions that he and his party say are politically motivated, a charge the government denies.