Imran Khan's supporters converge on Lahore's Liberty Chowk to launch protest march for fresh polls
Lahore/Islamabad (PTI): Pakistan was tense on Friday as hundreds of supporters of Imran Khan's party gathered in Lahore as the former prime minister was all set to launch his protest march towards Islamabad to force the government to announce a date for early general elections.
Supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) riding on their motorcycles and carrying party flags have assembled at the famous Liberty Chowk from where Khan would proceed towards the capital through the historic GT Road.
Khan, 70, plans to arrive in Islamabad on November 4 and has sought formal permission from the government to allow his party to hold a protest rally. His party has billed the protest as a Haqiqi Azadi March' or a protest for actual freedom of the country.
It is not clear if he would go back after the rally or transform it into a sit-in on the pattern of his 2014 protest when a 126-day sit-in was staged by his followers in front of the parliament building.
The organisers had announced to start the march at 11 am but it was delayed and it was not clear when exactly it would begin.
The coalition government led by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has made elaborate security arrangements to maintain peace while warning the PTI that any effort to create a law and order situation would be dealt with an "iron hand", Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah told reporters in Islamabad.
He warned that strict action will be taken if they attempt to break the law and create a law and order situation in the capital, he said, adding that the Supreme Court's orders regarding the protest were clear. If protesters abide by the law, we will facilitate them, he said.
In response, PTI secretary general Asad Umar told the media in Lahore that the protest would be peaceful and from now on all decisions will be taken by the people . He said that the party decided to dedicate the march to slain journalist Arshad Sharif.
The country was grappling with different versions about the killing of journalist Sharif in Kenya and indirect allegations against the armed forces.
Former information minister Fawad Chaudhry, who was with Umar at the presser, urged the public to take part in the protest. "You should take part in this march even if you do not belong to the PTI. The nation must reject decisions taken behind closed doors," he said.
The government rejected the march and Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the nation had refused to be subservient to a "foreign-funded" instigator and had rejected the "bloody march".
As the PTI planned protest was about to begin, the stocks fell by over 200 points during early trade and the benchmark KSE-100 index lost 228.54 points, or 0.55 per cent, to reach 41,374.32 points by the middy.
Earlier, Khan in a video message said that the protest was not for personal or political interests but to attain actual freedom for the country . Khan has been demanding early elections and threatening a protest march towards Islamabad to force his demands if the government failed to give a date for elections.
The term of the National Assembly will end in August 2023 and fresh elections should be held within 60 days.
Khan, who was ousted from power in April after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, has talked about a 'threat letter' from the US and claimed that it was part of a foreign conspiracy to remove him as he was not acceptable for following an independent foreign policy. The US has bluntly rejected the allegations.
According to officials, the interior ministry has already decided to deploy around 30,000 police, rangers, and para-military troops in Islamabad and not allow protesters to enter the red-zone area near the parliament building.
The President's House, Prime Minister's House, ministers' offices, parliament, and other important buildings, including foreign embassies, are located in the red-zone area.
The march's commencement date was announced on Tuesday by Khan. We will gather at Liberty Chowk at 11am on Friday, and set off for Islamabad, he had said.
We will stay peaceful. If any disruption comes, it would be from the other side, not ours. We are aiming for a soft revolution. We are not going to Islamabad to create any mischief, Khan assured, adding that despite all his peaceful intentions he was ready for arrest as well.
چیئرمین عمران خان کا کنٹینر لاہور لبرٹی چوک پہنچ گیا- #حقیقی_آزادی_لانگ_مارچ pic.twitter.com/wpLfW9ew05
— PTI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (@PTIKPOfficial) October 28, 2022
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'Made in India' must become symbol of excellence, global competitiveness: PM
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called upon states to encourage manufacturing, boost 'ease of doing business' and strengthen the services sector to make India a global services giant.
Addressing the 5th National Conference of Chief Secretaries here, Modi emphasised the need for quality in governance, service delivery and manufacturing, and said the label 'Made in India' must become a symbol of excellence and global competitiveness.
He said India has the potential to become the world's food basket and the country must move towards high-value agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries to become a major food exporter.
"Called upon states to encourage manufacturing, boost 'Ease of Doing Business' and strengthen the services sector. Let us aim to make India a Global Services Giant," Modi said in a series of posts on X.
The theme of the three-day conference, which began on December 26, was 'Human Capital for Viksit Bharat'.
Modi observed that this conference marks another decisive step in strengthening the spirit of cooperative federalism and deepening Centre-State partnership to achieve the vision of a 'Viksit Bharat'.
Highlighting India's demographic advantage, he said nearly 70 per cent of the population is in the working-age group, creating a unique historical opportunity which, when combined with economic progress, can significantly accelerate the journey towards a 'Viksit Bharat', according to an official statement.
Modi said India has boarded the "Reform Express", driven primarily by the strength of its young population, and empowering this demographic remains the government's key priority.
He noted that the conference is being held at a time when the country is witnessing next-generation reforms and steadily moving towards becoming a major global economic power.
Underlining the need to strengthen 'atmanirbharta' (self-reliance), he said India must pursue self-reliance with zero defect in products and minimal environmental impact, making the label 'Made in India' synonymous with quality and strengthening the commitment to "zero effect, zero defect".
The PM urged the Centre and states to jointly identify 100 products for domestic manufacturing to reduce import dependence and strengthen economic resilience in line with the vision of 'Viksit Bharat'.
In higher education, too, he said, there is a need for academia and industry to work together to create high-quality talent.
He highlighted that India has a rich heritage and history with the potential to be among the top global tourist destinations.
Modi urged the states to prepare a roadmap for creating at least one global-level tourist destination and nourishing an entire tourist ecosystem.
He said it is important to align the national sports calendar with the global sports calendar.
"India is working to host the 2036 Olympics. India needs to prepare infrastructure and sports ecosystem at par with global standards," he said.
The prime minister said the next 10 years must be invested in the states, only then will India get the desired results in such sports events.
Every state must give this top priority and create infrastructure to attract global companies, he said.
In the services sector, Modi said, there should be greater emphasis on other areas like healthcare, education, transport, tourism, professional services and artificial intelligence, etc. to make India a global services giant.
He said India will soon be launching the National Manufacturing Mission (NMM).
States should work in tandem with the discussions and decisions emerging from the conferences of both chief secretaries and DGPs to strengthen governance and implementation.
The PM said similar conferences could be replicated at the departmental level to promote a national perspective among officers and improve governance outcomes in pursuit of a 'Viksit Bharat'.
In conclusion, he said every state must create a 10-year actionable plan based on the discussions of this conference with one, two, five and 10-year target timelines wherein technology can be utilised for regular monitoring.
The conference featured a series of special sessions that enabled focused deliberations on cross-cutting and emerging priorities.
It marks another important milestone in strengthening the Centre-State partnership through structured and sustained dialogue on national development priorities, according to the statement.
The PM's principal secretaries P K Mishra and Shaktikanta Das, Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan, members of the NITI Aayog, chief secretaries of all states and Union territories, and domain experts attended the meeting.
Anchored in the prime minister's vision of cooperative federalism, this conference serves as the forum where the Centre and states collaborate, designing a unified roadmap to maximise India's human capital potential and accelerate inclusive, future-ready growth.
It has been organised annually over the past four years.
The first conference was held in Dharamshala in June 2022, followed by subsequent conferences in New Delhi in January 2023, December 2023 and December 2024.
