Pakistan formally suspends trade ties with India
Islamabad: Pakistan has formally suspended its trade relations with India after New Delhi revoked Jammu and Kashmir's special status.
On Friday, the federal cabinet headed by Prime Minister Imran Khan endorsed the decisions taken by the National Security Committee and the joint session of parliament, which include suspension of trade ties with India, the Dawn reported.
Trade relations between the two neighbours were already strained following the Pulwama terror attack as India imposed 200 per cent customs duty on all goods imported from the neighbouring nation.
Imports from Pakistan declined by 92 per cent to USD 2.84 million in March this year compared to USD 34.61 million in March 2018, according to the commerce ministry data. During January-March period of 2018-19 fiscal, imports from Pakistan declined by 47 per cent to USD 53.65 million.
Two notifications were issued soon after the cabinet meeting to implement the decision to suspend bilateral trade with India with immediate effect and until further orders, the report said.
One notification suspends all kind of exports to India, while the other banned import of goods of Indian origin or those imported from it. Earlier, this ban was only limited to imports from Israel with which Pakistan has no trade ties at all.
Pakistan's imports have already entered negative growth with almost all countries, except India, as Islamabad mostly imports raw materials from India, the report said.
According to a data of Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), the total exports from India to Pakistan in the financial year 2018-2019 was around USD 2 billion. The major items exported by India include chemical products and textiles among others, and the imported items include mineral products and vegetable items.
On Monday, India revoked Article 370 to withdraw the special status to Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the region into two Union Territories - Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
In reaction to India's move, Pakistan on Wednesday downgraded diplomatic ties with India by expelling Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria and announced that it would also suspend trade relations with New Delhi.
India has said Jammu and Kashmir was an integral part of India and the issue was strictly internal to the country.
Pakistan has also suspended import of Indian goods under the Pak-Afghan transit treaty, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan told a media briefing on Friday.
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Hospital wall collapse: CM orders suspension of executive engineer; kin of victims get solatium
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday ordered the immediate suspension of an executive engineer for the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital wall collapse that claimed the lives of seven people, during a high-level review meeting at Vidhana Soudha.
A compensation of Rs 5 lakh, as announced by the CM Siddaramaiah, was distributed to the families of seven victims who lost their lives in the tragedy on Wednesday evening, which occurred due to heavy downpour with gusty winds and hailstorm.
The meeting of municipal commissioners of the five corporations, chaired by the chief minister and attended by Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, focused on fixing accountability and examining lapses that led to the tragedy.
"Why was soil dumped in a way that damaged the wall? Why did you not monitor this?" Siddaramaiah asked, pulling up hospital authorities during the meeting.
A statement from the chief minister's office said that the CM ordered the immediate suspension of the executive engineer of the Karnataka Health Systems Development Project (KHSDP).
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He also questioned the hospital authorities, asking why they failed to monitor the dumping of soil that weakened the structure.
The chief minister directed that a notice be issued to the head of the Hospital.
During the meeting, Siddaramaiah said the rains had caused extensive damage in the city, with over 250 trees uprooted.
The Chief Minister instructed officials to take necessary measures before the onset of the monsoon to avoid untoward incidents.
Commissioners of all five municipal zones in Bengaluru have been asked to take precautionary steps, including trimming dry and dangerous tree branches, the CMO said.
Siddaramaiah also directed them to get the silt cleared from stormwater drains to prevent flooding, and that immediate action be taken to remove debris and fallen branches from roads.
Further, he instructed that barricades be placed at underpasses where water stagnates and restricts public movement.
The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) Chief Commissioner M Maheshwar Rao said in a statement that Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad distributed compensation cheques of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the deceased on Thursday.
Seven people, including a six-year-old girl, were killed and seven others injured when the compound wall collapsed amid heavy rain, strong winds and a hailstorm on Wednesday evening.
Police said the victims, comprising three from Bengaluru, two from Kerala on a study tour and one each from Uttar Pradesh and Assam, had taken shelter near the wall when it suddenly gave way, trapping them under the debris.
The chief minister questioned officials over the dumping of soil near the wall despite knowing it could weaken the structure, and directed that a notice be issued to the head of Bowring Hospital.
Siddaramaiah, who had visited the spot soon after the incident along with senior officials, reviewed the situation and ordered a detailed probe into the collapse.
