The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has received nearly 2 million income tax returns for tax year 2026 as of September 5 — a sharp jump from the roughly 1.6 million returns filed during the same period last year. With the September 30 deadline approaching fast, here’s what’s actually behind the numbers. The Numbers So Far Metric Tax Year 2026 (as of Sept 5) Same Period, Tax Year 2025 Returns filed ~2 million ~1.6 million Tax deposited with filings Rs. 3.5 billion Roughly unchanged That’s an increase of about 400,000 returns, or roughly 25% more filers than the same point…
Author: M Awais
Huawei has launched the Mate XT2, the latest version of its flagship tri-fold smartphone, as it moves to defend its lead in China’s premium phone market against fresh challenges from both Apple and Xiaomi this week. What’s New in the Mate XT2 The Mate XT2 keeps Huawei’s signature tri-fold design, unfolding twice to open into a tablet-sized screen. It’s built around Huawei’s new Kirin 9050 Pro chip, which the company says delivers more computing power while using less electricity — a design choice Huawei credits with helping it work around continued US restrictions on access to advanced chip technology. Beyond…
More than 300,000 Afghans have returned from Pakistan to Afghanistan since the start of this year, as Islamabad continues implementing its Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP) — and by early September, the pace of returns had accelerated sharply, with UN agencies warning that support systems on the Afghan side are struggling to keep up. How the Numbers Have Grown Through the Year The 300,000 figure marked an early-year checkpoint, but returns have picked up significantly since. According to UNHCR, more than 554,000 Afghans returned from Pakistan between April and late August alone, including 143,000 in August. The pace surged further…
Pakistan loses an estimated 6.5% of its GDP every year to air pollution — not from a single disaster, but from smog, industrial emissions, and burning fuels that never fully clear the sky. As the world marked the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies on September 7, 2026, a new policy analysis makes the case that air pollution in Pakistan has become as much an economic emergency as a health one, and that the country already has the policies needed to fix it — just not the financing or enforcement to make them work. The Numbers Are Genuinely…
Pakistan cricket’s rough tour of England just got messier. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed Monday it has opened an internal disciplinary inquiry tied to conduct concerns, following days of media reports involving senior players Imam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Rizwan. What PCB Actually Confirmed PCB media director Amir Mir issued a statement Monday confirming the board had launched an internal inquiry into matters of “discipline and conduct,” currently under internal review. He stressed the process was being carried out under standard PCB regulations, with all concerned individuals given due consideration. Notably, PCB’s official statement did not name Imam or Rizwan directly,…
An unregistered phone in Pakistan doesn’t stay usable for long — PTA blocks non-compliant devices from all local networks within 60 days of first use. Whether you just bought a new phone, imported one from abroad, or picked one up secondhand, here’s exactly how to check PTA mobile registration status in under a minute, completely free. What You Need First: Your IMEI Number Every mobile phone has a unique 15-digit IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number, and dual-SIM phones have two. To find yours: Open your phone’s dialer app. Dial *#06#. Your IMEI number(s) will appear instantly on screen. Note…
Federal Health Minister and senior MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal has reaffirmed that his party has not walked back its long-standing demand for new provinces, pushing the issue back into the national conversation as tensions between MQM-P and the Sindh government continue to simmer. What Kamal Said Speaking to reporters after inaugurating Pakistan’s first International Travellers Vaccination Centre in Karachi, Kamal was direct when asked about the party’s position: MQM-P has not backed away from the demand for provinces, and has consistently supported the idea whenever the topic comes up. He pointed to Karachi’s administrative structure to make his case, noting…
Yes to South Punjab. Yes to Gilgit-Baltistan. But touch Sindh, and the PPP draws a hard line. As Pakistan’s debate over creating new provinces heats up again, the PPP stance on new provinces has become one of the most closely watched — and most scrutinized — positions in national politics, with critics accusing the party of applying its own “consensus” principle rather selectively. The Official Line: “Consensus, Not Force” PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has repeated a consistent formula whenever the new-provinces question comes up: any decision must be based on public consensus, and nothing should be imposed on a…
The moment you realize your phone is lost or stolen, your SIM becomes a bigger risk than the device itself. A working SIM can receive OTPs, unlock your JazzCash or Easypaisa wallet, and give access to your WhatsApp and email accounts. Here’s exactly how to block a lost or stolen SIM in Pakistan within minutes, plus what to do next to fully secure your identity. Step 1: Act Within the First Few Minutes PTA guidelines recommend reporting a lost or stolen SIM within 24 hours, but the faster you act, the better. Your SIM is directly tied to your bank…
Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal says the country is sitting on billions of dollars in untapped export potential — but only if it stops selling raw farm goods and starts selling branded, processed, certified products instead. The remarks came at a roundtable bringing together nearly 100 stakeholders from government, industry, and academia to map out a path for the agriculture sector’s export future. The Core Problem: Raw Commodities, Not Finished Products Agricultural products currently make up close to 22% of Pakistan’s total exports, according to Rana Ihsaan Afzal, who spoke alongside Iqbal at the event. The issue, he explained, is…