ISLAMABAD: A merchant-friendly mobile app has been approved to bring crores of retailers in the country into the tax net. The merchant-friendly app approved to bring retailers into the tax net will automatically calculate monthly tax payments, the app will keep records and facilitate payment to the shopkeeper. The app will levy up to 10 percent of the annual rent of the shop while the scheme is expected to be announced anytime. On the other hand, online retailers are also being considered to be brought into the tax net

Bakersfield Condors vs. Texas Stars Game Report: So you’re saying there’s a chance? Photo credit: twitter.com/Condors

From Tribune staff reportsTRUSSVILLE — Hewitt-Trussville High School graduate Isabella Hall is the newest hire at Trussville Fire and Rescue. Her path to her new career all started with specialized classes at her high school which she is now following up with more career targeted classes at Jefferson State Community College. She attended Hewitt High School where she completed EMT Basic through the Health Science Program. Hall currently lives in Trussville and has been volunteering on C Shift at Station 1 since July of 2023. “We are glad to have Isabella join us at Trussville Fire and Rescue and look forward to working with her throughout her career.” Chief Tim Shotts said.

Students are unable to study at night, and education is crucial for the prog­ress of any nation. It is disheartening to note that, in this modern era, people are de­prived of electricity. It is being said these days that the Neelam Jhe­lum hydropower project is off due to some repair work, leading to the electricity shortfall. We often read in newspapers that electricity is expensive be­cause the government has to pay a substantial amount of mon­ey to independent power plants for their power creation capaci­ty. Consumers are giv­en hefty bills to pay, but electrici­ty is not available.

PESHAWAR - The health department has finalized a health contingency plan to address potential emergencies during the upcoming elections. As part of the plan, a control room will be established, consisting of doctors and paramedics. On February 8, a team of 10 doctors will be on duty in the control room, with five doctors performing duties on February 9. During the general elections, an emergency will be declared in all public sector hospitals across all districts. District health officers have been instructed to coordinate with the relevant administration.

Mardan - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-Parliamentarian (PTI-P) provincial leader Syeda Nazia Shah anticipates a decisive victory for PTI-P in the 2024 general election in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Speaking at a women’s convention in Mardan, she underscored the commitment to bring peace, development, and prosperity to the province under the leadership of former Chief Minister Perviz Khattak. Addressing a gathering of enthusiastic women party members, Nazia Shah delved into the political landscape, election dynamics, and the specific challenges facing the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, particularly in Mardan district. She emphasized the revolutionary initiatives and development projects spearheaded by Perviz Khattak, aligning with the PTI-P manifesto. Nazia Shah asserted that a PTI-P majority in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would address key challenges faced by women and steer the province towards development under the leadership of the party’s chairman, Pervaiz Khattak.

PTI Imran KhanIncarcerated former premier Imran Khan denounced his back-to-back convictions as ‘frivolous’ on Friday and urged his party supporters to ‘wield their votes as their weapons’ on February 8. He pointed out the serious nature of the cypher case, warning about foreign interference in Pakistan’s internal matters. Despite being convicted in the Toshakhana case, Imran claimed financial integrity and asserted that the case was fabricated due to a lack of evidence of financial corruption against him. Imran said that the case accusing him of marrying Bushra Bibi, his third wife, in an un-Islamic manner was now being expedited. Therefore, they are concluding it in haste without an iota of fairness in the trial just to announce me guilty.”

TRUSSVILLE – The Trussville Area Chamber of Commerce has announced the date for its annual golf tournament. Teams and individuals can sign up online at the Trussville Area Chamber of Commerce website. Last year the chamber awarded $10,000 in scholarships. For more information about this event or the Trussville Area Chamber of Commerce, visit www.trussvillechamber.com or call the chamber office at (205) 655-7535This year’s tournament will be held on Monday, March 18, at Pine Tree Country Club. Supporting sponsors are UAB Callahan Eye-Trussville; APCO Employees Credit Union; Courtesy Buick GMC.

photo: AFPThe government and commercial banks have agreed on a Rs268 billion debt restructuring plan for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). The Ministry of Finance, abandoning its previous stance of not incorporating PIA debt into public debt, now commits to making principal and interest payments from the budget. Privatisation Minister Fawad Hasan Fawad remained persistent in his demand to make PIA debt part of public debt, Finance Secretary, Imdad Ullah Bosal, and Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar finally agreed to the proposal with some caveats. Despite the agreement on the most contentious issue affecting its privatisation, PIA is nowhere close to privatisation. The finance minister said two weeks ago that PIA’s Rs825 billion debt would be transferred into a holding company.

WASHINGTON - The US and Japa­nese navies held joint ex­ercises in the Philippine Sea this week, in a show of force as tensions with China and North Korea rise. Washington and Bei­jing are at loggerheads over a raft of issues, from chips to tariffs, but both have been alarmed by the growing assertive­ness of China’s military in the Pacific. China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own and has vowed to seize the island, by force if necessary, ramping up pressure including with major military drills in the Taiwan Strait. US Rear Admiral Carlos Sardiello called the joint exercises -- involving around a dozen US ships, includ­ing two aircraft carriers -- “a great rehearsal op­portunity for us.” “Our operations here reflect an assertion of the mari­time rights of all nations in accordance with inter­national law to freedom of navigation and air op­erations, anywhere that is allowed,” Sardiello told reporters on the bridge of the USS Carl Vinson. “Our highly trained sailors can operate in these complex, contested domains and be lethal and survivable and execute the mission, regardless of what the threat is,” he said.

BRUSSELS - All 27 EU leaders have agreed a €50bn aid package for Ukraine after Hungary had previously blocked the deal. It comes as US military aid for Ukraine - the largest provider of military support for Kyiv - is being held up by Congress. Many European countries also pro­vide military aid to Ukraine. UKRAINE ‘HITS RUSSIAN MISSILE BOAT IVANOVETS IN BLACK SEA’Ukrainian forces say they have de­stroyed a Russian missile boat from the Black Sea Fleet in a special opera­tion off Russian-occupied Crimea. However, Russian military blogger “Voenkor Kotenok” wrote on Tele­gram that the boat had sunk after be­ing hit three times by naval drones.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-Parliamentarians (PTIP) chairman Pervez Khattak speaks during a gathering of supporters on January 29, 2024. — Facebook/Pervez KhattakNOWSHERA: Assailing ex-prime minister Imran Khan for catchy slogans of ‘Naya Pakistan’ and ‘change’, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-Parliamentarians (PTIP) chairman Pervez Khattak on Thursday alleged that the country and nation were suffering due to these hollow slogans. The PTIP candidate for NA-34 and PK-89, Dr Imran Khattak, PK-85 aspirant Ibrahim Khattak, PK-86 candidate Ismail Khattak and others also addressed the gatherings. He said that their manifesto for the general elections was a guideline for peace, development and reforms in education, health and all other sectors. Pervez Khattak said his party believed that the future was in modern agriculture techniques, so its government would provide a framework for land utilisation to irrigate the un-irrigated land through flood dams.

Israeli forces are firing heavily in a raid on al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis; Nasser and al-Amal hospitals are under...

An opulent spectacle of Lahore's Red-Light District, the first teaser of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s highly-anticipated OTT debut, Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, dropped on February 1. It had viewers both excited and riled up, with several hung up on the fact that a film about Heeramandi should’ve been Pakistan’s to make. The project is about love, betrayal, succession, and politics in the kothas with multi-faceted characters and soulful compositions. In a statement last year, Bhansali told ANI, "Heeramandi is an important milestone in my journey as a filmmaker. I am looking forward to my partnership with Netflix and bringing Heeramandi to audiences all over the world."

Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader, Nawaz Sharif, took a swipe at Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan without directly naming him during a rally in Swat on Thursday. Sharif questioned the fulfilment of promises made by Khan during his tenure in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), accusing him of deceiving the people. Addressing a spirited crowd, Sharif questioned the efficacy of Khan's pledge to generate 10 million jobs and provide five million houses. He questioned the wisdom of the people in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa for supporting Khan despite the achievements of his government. I want to ask you why you gave him [Imran Khan] a chance.