KARACHI: Pakistan decided to build an 80-kilometer segment of the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline on Friday after the Cabinet Committee on Energy approved the recommendations of a ministerial oversight committee evaluating various dimensions of the project after it was constituted by Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar last September.
Originally intended to supply gas from Iran to both Pakistan and neighboring India, the project was referred to as the IPI pipeline. However, India later withdrew from the project over concerns related to pricing and security, leading to the current designation as the IP gas pipeline.
The project remained stalled for a significantly long period since it could potentially create problems for Pakistan due to the international sanctions targeting Iran.
The United States, in particular, expressed opposition to the project, and there had been concerns that Pakistan could face economic sanctions if it proceeded with it.
“The [Cabinet] Committee [on Energy] recommended to start work on the 80 km segment of the pipeline inside Pakistan i.e. from Pakistan border up till Gwadar in the first phase,” said an official statement circulated by the Petroleum Division of Energy Ministry. “The Project will be executed by Inter State Gas Systems (Pvt) Ltd. and will be funded through Gas Infrastructure Development Cess.”
“All the concerned divisions gave a positive nod to move ahead with the project to ensure gas supplies to the people of Pakistan, thereby addressing the increasing energy needs of the country,” the statement added.
The project is expected to boost the country’s energy security and strengthen the local industry that can be assured sustainable and enhanced gas supplies.
The construction of the IP pipeline is also expected to catalyze the economic activity in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province and which can positively impact the national economy.
Government greenlights construction of 80-kilometer segment of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline
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Government greenlights construction of 80-kilometer segment of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline
- The pipeline will be constructed from Pakistan’s border with Iran to its port city of Gwadar in the first phase
- The project is likely to boost the country’s energy security, strengthen local industry with enhanced gas supply
Islamabad steps up vehicle checks to boost security as 166,000 cars get electronic tags
- Authorities say over 3,000 vehicles registered in past 24 hours as enforcement intensifies
- Extended service hours introduced to push full compliance with digital monitoring system
ISLAMABAD: Authorities in the Pakistani capital have intensified enforcement against vehicles without mandatory electronic tags with more than 166,000 cars now registered, according to data released on Sunday evening, as Islamabad moves to strengthen security and digital monitoring at key entry and exit points.
The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration introduced the electronic tagging system late last year as part of a broader effort to regulate traffic, improve record-keeping and enhance surveillance in a city that hosts the country’s main government institutions, foreign missions and diplomatic enclaves.
Under the system, vehicles are fitted with electronic tags that can be read automatically by scanners installed at checkpoints across the capital, allowing authorities to identify unregistered vehicles without manual inspections. Vehicles already equipped with a motorway tag, or m-tag, are exempt from the requirement.
“A total of 166,888 vehicles have successfully been issued M-Tags so far, including 3,130 vehicles in the last 24 hours,” the ICT administration said, according to the Excise Department.
Officials said readers installed at checkpoints across Islamabad are fully operational and are being used to stop vehicles still without tags, as enforcement teams carry out checks across the city.
To facilitate compliance, authorities have expanded installation facilities and extended operating hours. The Excise Department said m-tag installation is currently available at 17 booth locations, while select centers have begun operating beyond normal working hours.
According to Director General Excise Irfan Memon, m-tag centers at 26 Number Chungi and 18 Meel are providing services round the clock, while counters at Kachnar Park and F-9 Park remain open until midnight to accommodate motorists unable to visit during daytime hours.
Officials said the combination of enforcement and facilitation was aimed at achieving full compliance with minimal disruption, adding that operations would continue until all vehicles operating in the capital are brought into the system.
The enforcement drive builds on a wider push by the federal government to integrate traffic management, emergency response and security monitoring through technology-driven “safe city” initiatives. Last month, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi reviewed Islamabad’s surveillance infrastructure and said reforms in monitoring systems and the effective use of technology were the “need of the hour.”
Authorities have urged motorists to obtain electronic tags promptly to avoid delays and penalties at checkpoints as enforcement continues across the capital.
