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Gas and Electricity Shortages Hurting Pakistan

Hagler Bailly, a global management consulting firm with an office in Islamabad, warned in a 2006 study that Pakistan is going to witness gas shortage starting in 2007, and the imbalance will grow every year to cripple the economy by 2025, when shortage will be 11,092 MMCFD (Million standard cubic feet per day) against total 13,259 MMCFD production. The Hagler Bailly… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on January 13, 2010 at 9:57pm — 24 Comments

Comparing India and Pakistan 2010

Making predictions is hazardous business. After all, who would have forecast with any accuracy the Soviet defeat in Afghanistan and the fall of the Berlin wall in late 1980s, or the terrorists attacks of September 11, 2001, or the near-collapse of the US financial markets in 2008, the kind of events that fundamentally changed the world. This new decade of 2010-2020 could also bring long-lasting but hard to… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on January 7, 2010 at 7:00pm — No Comments

Thorium Nuclear Power For South Asians

In addition to green energy from water, wind and sun, is there a source of clean, renewable and plentiful energy that can satisfy the growing needs of the humankind… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on December 30, 2009 at 5:00pm — 2 Comments

Demographics: Pakistanis in America

Pakistani-American has been elected mayor of a town in Washington state by a landslide. The 54-year-old Mayor-elect Haroon Saleem admits that running the Timberline Bar and Cafe, with beer ads plastered everywhere, is not exactly a pious following of Islam, which forbids alcohol consumption.



The big win for a Muslim… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on December 28, 2009 at 1:48pm — 2 Comments

Pakistan: Year 2009 in Review

This December 31, 2009, is not just the end of the year; it brings a momentous decade of achievements in Pakistan to a chaotic and bloody end. After a relatively peaceful but economically stagnant decade of the 1990s, the year 1999 brought a bloodless coup led by General Pervez Musharraf, ushering in an era of accelerated economic growth that led to more than doubling of the national GDP, and dramatic expansion in… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on December 26, 2009 at 7:40pm — No Comments

Human Capital Generates Wealth of Nations

In modern economies, land and manufacturing continue to be significant sources of wealth of nations. However, the developed world, with icons like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, is in the midst of a major transformation to accumulation of wealth in the form of intellectual property. In this evolving new economy, there is much greater emphasis on intangible knowledge assets than on physical or tangible assets. The value of the intellectual assets determines the clout and… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on December 23, 2009 at 6:07pm — 6 Comments

Pakistan's Modern Infrastructure

As Pakistan struggles to bring a sense of stability and security amidst daily carnage, it is important to recognize that there is more to Pakistan than meets the eyes of a casual consumer of the images and reports by the world's media. For example, Pakistan is a developing country with functional bureaucracy, well-organized police force, democratic institutions and a powerful army. And Pakistan has more…

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Added by Riaz Haq on December 18, 2009 at 8:30pm — 30 Comments

Pakistan Thrash India to Reach Hockey Final

Pakistan and India have had two sports encounters this year at major international events in cricket and field hockey. Pakistan have won on both occasions to go on to the the final or semifinal. In September this year, Pakistan beat India in the ICC T20 Champions Trophy group match in South Africa to qualify for the semifinal. And today, Pakistan beat India 6-3 in a Champions Challenge hockey tournament… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on December 13, 2009 at 9:23pm — No Comments

Pakistan Defeat Kiwis--Level Test Series

After a string of 12 test match losses over the last three years, Pakistan won convincingly today against New Zealand by 141 runs at the Basin Reserve in Wellington. Pakistan's bowling attack, the Akmal brothers superb batting performance and patient scoring and leadership by Mohammad Yousuf were crucial in winning.



Ross Taylor's valiant second innings stand that added 97 runs couldn't save the Kiwis from defeat. In the end, Pakistan 264 (Kamran Akmal 70, Vettori 4-53, Tuffey 4-64)… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on December 6, 2009 at 12:15am — No Comments

Volunteer Programmers Contribute to Google Maps For Pakistan

After painfully watching the heartbreaking scenes of carnage in Pakistani provincial capital of NWFP on TV screens, it came as a pleasant surprise to see the New York Times mention Peshawar in a different context; volunteer cartographers contributing to digital maps "from Petaluma to Peshawar". It particularly caught my attention because I have had the pleasure of visiting both of these fine cities, and I currently live not… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on November 22, 2009 at 10:45pm — 10 Comments

Remembering Professor Nauman 1951-2009

My good friend and NED University Professor Mohammad Nauman passed away last Sunday. He was a dedicated teacher at NED Engineering University in Karachi. Born on December 19, 1951 in Bahawalpur, Nauman attended Cadet College, Petaro, and then graduated from NED University in electrical engineering in 1974. He attended North Carolina State University for his graduate work.



Nauman was a soft-spoken academic and a left-leaning intellectual of high caliber. He was loved by his friends,… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on November 16, 2009 at 8:08pm — 1 Comment

Life Goes On in Pakistan

The world media are focusing on scores of deadly terrorist attacks in the last four weeks claiming over 300 innocent lives in Pakistani cities, and tracking the military's counterinsurgency campaign unfolding in South Waziristan. However, the Pakistani blogosphere is buzzing with… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on November 12, 2009 at 5:01pm — 3 Comments

Social Entrepreneur Fixing India's Sanitation Crisis

Guest Post by Dost_Mittar



A simple solution to a disgusting problem

"The toilet is a part of the history of human hygiene which is critical chapter in the growth of civilization."

[Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak]



Anyone who has seen the blockbuster film “Slumdog Millionaire” would remember one… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on October 28, 2009 at 11:00pm — 2 Comments

Pakistan Education Reform: Rehman Fires Back at Hoodbhoy

Professor Pervez Hoodbhoy is a vocal critic of Pakistan's Higher Education Reform initiated by Dr. Ata ur Rahman, adviser to President Musharraf, in 2002. This reform resulted in over fivefold increase in public funding for universities, with a special emphasis on science, technology and engineering. The reform supported initiatives such as a free national digital… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on October 24, 2009 at 5:20pm — 3 Comments

Pakistani IT Industry Overview

Pakistan's information technology industry is quite young. It is in very early stages of development compared to the much older and bigger Indian IT industry, which had a significant headstart of at least a decade over Pakistan. During the lost decade of the 1990s under Bhutto and Sharif governments, Pakistani economy stagnated and its IT industry did not make any headway. However, the industry has grown at 40% CAGR… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on October 22, 2009 at 1:30pm — 19 Comments

India, Pakistan Contrasted by Roti, Kapra Aur Makaan

There is nothing more basic in terms of human necessities than the adequate availability of roti, kapra aur makaan. Going beyond these bare essentials of food, clothing and housing, one can add sanitation, health care and education. Let's examine how the two biggest nations in South Asia are coping with such fundamental necessities of their population:…

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Added by Riaz Haq on October 12, 2009 at 10:04pm — 3 Comments

Asia Gains in Top University Rankings 2009

The latest edition of the world's top universities from The Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) has few surprises in 2009. The top 10 Universities are: Harvard (US), Cambridge (UK), Yale(US), UCL, London (UK), Imperial College, London and Oxford (both UK, joint 5), Chicago (US), Princeton (US), MIT, Massachusetts (US) and California Institute of Technology (US). As always, the top of the list is dominated by American and British Universities this year, together making up about 40% of the… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on October 9, 2009 at 10:00pm — 3 Comments

South Asia Lags in Human Development

In spite of the fact that Pakistan's Human Development Index (HDI) has risen by 1.30 percent per year from 0.402 to 0.572 during 1980-2007 period, and it has accelerated to 1.9% increase since 2000 when it was reported to be 0.499, its progress is not yet sufficient to improve the nation's ranking relative to other countries in regions like East Asia, which have been moving considerably faster. Pakistan's index… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on October 8, 2009 at 10:30am — 1 Comment

More on Quality of Higher Education in India and Pakistan

A recent Chowk.com article titled "Indian Technical Recession", written by Sharad Chandra, asks the following basic question about the quality of engineering education in India:



"So why Indian engineering education system is not capable of producing quality engineers for the country?"



Then the author goes on to answer his own question as follows:



"One of the… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on September 19, 2009 at 11:00pm — No Comments

Professor Hoodbhoy's Critique of Higher Education Reform in Pakistan



Professor Pervez Hoodbhoy is a vocal critic of Pakistan's Higher Education Reform initiated by Dr. Ata ur Rahman, adviser to President Musharraf, in 2002. This reform resulted in a fivefold increase in public funding for universities, with a special emphasis on science, technology and engineering. The reform supported initiatives such as a free national digital library… Continue

Added by Riaz Haq on September 5, 2009 at 7:30am — 3 Comments

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    Blog Posts

    Pakistan's Rising Arms Sales to Developing Nations

    Pakistan is emerging as a major arms supplier to developing countries in Asia and Africa. Azerbaijan, Myanmar, Nigeria and Sudan have all made significant arms purchases from Pakistan in recent years.  Azerbaijan expanded its order for JF-17 Thunder Block III multi-role fighter jets from Pakistan from 16 to 40 aircraft. The recent order extends a 2024 contract worth $1.6 billion to modernize Baku’s airborne combat fleet to $4.6 billion. This makes Azerbaijan the largest export customer of…

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    Posted by Riaz Haq on October 29, 2025 at 10:30am

    Improved US-Pakistan Ties: F-1 Visas For Pakistani Students Soaring

    The F-1 visas for Pakistani students are soaring amid a global decline, according to the US government data. The US visas granted to Pakistani students climbed 44.3% in the first half of Fiscal Year 2025 (October 2024 to March 2025) with warming relations between the governments of the two countries. The number of visas granted to Indian students declined 44.5%, compared to  20% fewer US visas given to students globally in this period.  The number of US visas granted to Pakistani…

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    Posted by Riaz Haq on October 19, 2025 at 10:00am — 2 Comments

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