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Punjab [Pakistan], September 28 (ANI): A team of female health workers administering human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines in Punjab’s Mandi Bahauddin district was attacked on Saturday, the second such incident reported in three days, Dawn reported.

The latest attack took place in a non-formal education school in the village of Ratuwal under Kathian Sheikhan police station limits. A 55-year-old villager entered the school and attempted to assault a female health supervisor, according to Dawn.

Kathian Sheikhan’s Station House Officer Sabir Iqbal Sindhu said the suspect “tried to attack the supervisor with a stick and by lifting a chair, threatened serious consequences and used foul language.” He added, “The sudden attack caused a stampede in the school, and the vaccination process had to be stopped immediately.”

Health Supervisor Shamim Anjum told Dawn that she and her team were forced to leave the premises to save their lives. “The assurance of security given by the provincial health minister on the first incident of September 25 has not been fulfilled yet, and no practical action has been taken by the police,” she said.

Police confirmed that a case has been registered based on her complaint. The FIR, a copy of which was reviewed by Dawn, was lodged under sections 186 (obstructing a public servant in discharge of public functions) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Pakistan Penal Code. The SHO said action has been initiated against the suspect, and his arrest will follow.

On Thursday, an HPV vaccination team was also attacked in Mandi Bahauddin’s Chak No. 38, where a woman health worker was beaten up by locals. Punjab’s health minister had taken notice of that incident and issued instructions for security, but health workers say Saturday’s attack shows no implementation of those directives.

When contacted by Dawn, Mandi Bahauddin, the Chief Executive Officer of Health, declined to comment and hung up the phone. Health workers say that without police security, they will not be able to continue administering vaccines.

The HPV vaccine, introduced in Pakistan in 2022, has been rolled out nationwide to protect adolescent girls from cervical cancer.

Phase 1 of the campaign, which ran from September 15-27, covered Punjab, Sindh, and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK), and the Islamabad Capital Territory.

The programme aims to vaccinate 90 per cent of girls aged 9-14 in these regions by the end of 2025, with subsequent phases to extend coverage to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and Gilgit-Baltistan in the coming years. (ANI)

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Islamabad [Pakistan] September 28 (ANI): Pakistan’s top tax authorities have expressed alarm over the widening gap between declared incomes and the extravagant lifestyles of many citizens, highlighting how the existing system fails to reflect the nation’s true wealth. Around half of the 5.9 million income tax returns filed for the year 2024 showed zero income, despite many of these taxpayers living in luxury, as reported by Dawn.

According to Dawn, the trend appears to be continuing in 2025, with more than 40 per cent of returns submitted by September 27 declaring nil income. Officials point out that people are living in palatial homes, driving expensive cars, shopping for branded goods, and travelling abroad frequently, yet their tax declarations do not match these lifestyles. An internal review cited that the current declarations are far from an accurate reflection of real earnings.

Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) acknowledges that the universal self-assessment scheme, under which taxpayer declarations are accepted without routine checks, has been widely exploited. Officials argue that the effectiveness of such a system depends on strong deterrent audits, third-party data, and a digitised economic framework, all of which remain underdeveloped.

To address these loopholes, the FBR is seeking to revamp its whistleblower programme. At present, informants can claim up to Rs 5 million, but the board is proposing to increase this ceiling to Rs 150 million, distributed on a graded scale. Officials suggest relying on extended families, neighbours, colleagues, and even domestic staff who often have knowledge of undeclared wealth. Advanced economies have successfully adopted similar models, combining strong secrecy protections with substantial incentives, as highlighted by Dawn.

FBR officials also propose simplifying reward structures, ensuring faster payouts, and restricting whistle-blower-based inquiries to the current tax year. This, they argue, would encourage voluntary compliance without triggering punitive backdated audits. “The foundation of an effective whistle-blower system rests on two elements: absolute secrecy and credible rewards,” one senior official remarked, highlighting the urgency of reforming Pakistan’s tax enforcement mechanisms, as reported by Dawn. (ANI)

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The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.