• Ahsan Iqbal proposes incentives under NFC for provinces managing population growth • Projections say population can reach 389.9 million by 2050 even under a slow-decline scenario ISLAMABAD: Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal on May 12 warned that unchecked population growth could become a “social bomb” and a major obstacle to Pakistan’s economic progress, urging urgent reforms to address the rising demographic pressure. He cautioned that if current trends continue, Pakistan could end
Child Rights in Focus
ISLAMABAD: Health authorities on Wednesday formally launched the Prime Minister’s National Programme for the Elimination of Hepatitis C from the Islamabad Capital Territory, aiming to screen 1.6 million people in the federal capital within six months and eventually test more than 164 million people across the country in phases as part of an ambitious drive to eliminate hepatitis C by 2030. Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal and World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative in
On May 11, the Federal Constitutional Court ruled that that custody of a child cannot be granted to the grandmother or paternal aunt solely on the basis of the mother’s second marriage. The ruling came in connection with a case regarding the custody of a nine-year-old child. Custody had initially been granted to the mother, after the father’s death, but this was challenged by the child’s paternal aunt, grandmother and uncle. During the hearing,
PESHAWAR: Health department has sought more funds from government to provide cochlear implants to about 1,000 deaf and dumb children under Sehat Card Plus scheme. Officials at Health Secretariat told Dawn that government was providing Rs4 billion every month for free treatment of patients under Sehat Card Plus scheme that was given to empanelled hospitals by State Life Insurance Corporation, the executor of the cashless treatment programme. “About Rs300 million goes to free transplants, including Rs150
ISLAMABAD: The regulatory authority for private schools in the capital on May 13 took notice of the practice of heavy school bags carried by children and announced a ‘Lighter School Bags Policy’ for all private schools in the capital. On the other hand, the federal government separately expressed concern over a controversial O-level book and directed the removal of its copies from bookshops. According to sources, a meeting was held in Islamabad, which was
LAHORE: One thousand playfields will be built in schools of Punjab besides awarding monthly scholarships to 1,000 talented children of inter-school competitions. It was decided at a meeting held between Punjab Sports Minister Faisal Ayub with Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat here on Wednesday. It was also decided that the ‘Khiltey School” meetings will be held in the first week of every month. The meeting also decided to start a grassroots talent hunt programme
Child marriage is not a tradition we can afford to romanticise. It is a violation of childhood, consent and opportunity. Defined as any formal or informal union where one or both parties are under 18, child marriage remains one of Pakistan’s most persistent forms of gender inequality. Despite legal prohibitions, girls continue to be married before they are old enough to choose, study, work, vote, or understand the consequences of a decision made for
ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on May 12 gave the nod to the Anti-Rape (Amendment) Bill 2026, which declares sexual assault, physical abuse and child exploitation non-bailable offences. Under the provisions of the anti-rape amendment, law enforcement agencies must ensure child victims undergo medical examination by a certified forensic expert within 24 hours. The law also mandates strict safeguards to protect victims’ dignity, privacy and security during the process. Forensic evidence collected during examinations will
TAXILA: Speakers at an awareness seminar in Attock on May 11 said the Punjab government was taking initiatives to modernise the education sector by introducing Artificial Intelligence (AI), digital learning and advanced teaching technologies across the province. The seminar, organised by Nawaz Sharif School of Eminence, brought together students, parents, teachers and education stakeholders from different areas of the district. Addressing the gathering, participants were informed that the Nawaz Sharif School of Eminence project
Rawalpindi: For hundreds of families bringing their children to Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital, the biggest fear is not only cancer, but whether delayed treatment has reduced the chances of saving their child’s eyesight and recovery. Doctors at the hospital’s Cancer Unit said nearly 140 children treated over the past three years are now free of cancer, a milestone they described as significant in a country where childhood eye cancer is often diagnosed at advanced
THE first 1,000 days of a child’s life often shape decades to come. In Pakistan, where chronic malnutrition has long harmed childhood development, an evaluation of the Benazir Nashonuma Programme shows that some children are finally getting a better start. The Aga Khan University study found a 22pc reduction in child stunting among beneficiary children at six months and an 18pc decline at one year. Equally encouraging were the reductions in low birth weight,
ON July 29, 2025, Maria Shahbaz, a 13-year-old Christian girl, was abducted in Lahore by her 30-year-old neighbour. She was subsequently forced to convert to Islam and marry her captor. A police investigation confirmed that the marriage certificate produced by the abductor was fabricated and not registered with any union council. The girl’s father presented the Nadra-issued B-Form and school records to the honourable court, as evidence of her age. However, on Feb 3,