ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani government is intended to sell nearly two dozen state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the coming years, Pakistani state media reported on Monday, citing Privatization Minister Aleem Khan.
The development comes amid Islamabad’s crucial talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a fresh, longer term bailout program after it completed a $3 billion short-term program in April that helped Pakistan avert a default last year.
Under the last bailout package, the lender said SOEs whose losses were burning a hole in government finances would need stronger governance, for which the country needed to implement an ambitious agenda for reforms.
Khan, while responding to a question in parliament, confirmed that the government intended to privatize around 24 state entities, including the national airlines, the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.
“These companies include Pakistan International Airlines, Roosevelt Hotel, First Women Bank, Utility Stores Corporation and various power distribution companies,” the minister was quoted as saying.
Minister for Power Sardar Awais Leghari said the provision of uninterrupted power supply was not possible without addressing the issue of line losses and power theft.
“Pakistan cannot afford a loss of 700 billion rupees in the power sector and we have to improve the performance of power distribution companies to control losses,” the broadcaster quoted Leghari as saying in parliament.
He said the provincial governments will have to extend their cooperation in this regarding, adding, “It is responsibility of all of us, irrespective of political affiliation, to play our due role to control power theft.”
The government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has stressed the need for a fresh, longer-term program to support $350 billion economy of Pakistan, which has been facing low foreign exchange reserves, currency devaluation and high inflation.
Pakistan plans to sell around 24 state entities in coming years — minister
https://arab.news/6nyg5
Pakistan plans to sell around 24 state entities in coming years — minister
- The development comes as Islamabad is locked in crucial talks with the International Monetary Fund for a fresh, longer term bailout program
- Under the last bailout package, the lender said state entities burning a hole in government finances needed stronger governance and reforms
Death toll in Pakistan shopping plaza fire rises to 67, officials say
- Rescue teams still searching for damaged Gul Plaza in Karachi where blaze erupted on Saturday, says police surgeon
- Karachi has a long history of deadly fires, often linked to poor safety standards, weak regulatory enforcement
KARACHI: The death toll from a devastating fire at a shopping plaza in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi jumped to 67 on Thursday after police and a hospital official confirmed that the remains of dozens more people had been found.
Police surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed said rescue teams were still searching the severely damaged Gul Plaza in the Karachi, where the blaze erupted on Saturday.
Most remains were discovered in fragments, making identification extremely difficult, but the deaths of 67 people have been confirmed, she said. Asad Raza, a senior police official in Karachi, also confirmed the death toll. Authorities previously had confirmed 34 deaths.
Family members of the missing have stayed near the destroyed plaza and hospital, even after providing their DNA for testing. Some have tried to enter the building forcibly, criticizing the rescue efforts as too slow.
“They are not conducting the search properly,” said Khair-un-Nisa, pointing toward the rescuers. She stood outside the building in tears, explaining that a relative who had left to go shopping has been missing since the blaze.
Another woman, Saadia Saeed, said her brother has been trapped inside the building since Saturday night, and she does not know what has happened to him.
“I am ready to go inside the plaza to look for him, but police are not allowing me,” she said.
There was no immediate comment from authorities about accusations they have been too slow.
Many relatives of the missing claim more lives could have been saved if the government had acted more swiftly. Authorities have deployed police around the plaza to prevent relatives from entering the unstable structure, while rescuers continue their careful search.
Investigators say the blaze erupted at a time when most shop owners were either closing for the day or had already left. Since then, the Sindh provincial government has said around 70 people were missing after the flames spread rapidly, fueled by goods such as cosmetics, clothing, and plastic items.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, though police have indicated that a short circuit may have triggered the blaze.
Karachi has a long history of deadly fires, often linked to poor safety standards, weak regulatory enforcement, and illegal construction.
In November 2023, a shopping mall fire killed 10 people and injured 22. One of Pakistan’s deadliest industrial disasters occurred in 2012, when a garment factory fire killed at least 260 people.
