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ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Wednesday blamed “Indian-sponsored terrorists” for an attack targeting the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary (FC) force in northwestern Pakistan that killed three personnel, state media said. 

According to the state-owned broadcaster Pakistan Television News, FC’s Lance Naik Mehmood Shah, sepoys Shahid and Rauf were killed when militants attacked their vehicle in Pakistan’s northwestern Karak city on Wednesday. The driver of their vehicle, Shahpur, was also killed in the attack. 

Local news channel Geo News quoted Karak District Police Officer Shehbaz Elahi as saying that the FC personnel were targeted while carrying out routine patrolling duties in Karak’s Garagri area.

“Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has strongly condemned the terrorist attack by Indian-sponsored terrorists on a vehicle carrying FC personnel in Karak,” PTV News reported. 

Naqvi extended condolences to the families of the FC personnel and the driver killed, saluting their sacrifices for the nation. 

“Mohsin Naqvi emphasized that the sacrifices of these martyrs further strengthen our resolve in the fight against terrorism,” PTV News said.

Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in violence in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province since a fragile truce between the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the state broke down in November 2022. 

Pakistan’s security forces have been battling TTP fighters in KP, especially its tribal areas, which border Afghanistan. Islamabad has repeatedly blamed Kabul for not taking action against TTP and other militant groups that it alleges operate from sanctuaries on Afghan soil. Kabul denies the allegations. 

Islamabad also blames New Delhi for arming and training the TTP and insurgents in Balochistan, alleging they carry out subversive activities in Pakistan. India rejects the allegations and accuses Pakistan of exporting “terrorists” across the border into its country. 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal launched the findings of the 7th Agricultural Census 2024 on Wednesday, showing a marked increase in the country’s population of livestock, agriculture farm households and cultivated area, state media reported. 

Pakistan conducts its agricultural census every 10 years, with authorities conducting the last one in 2010. The main purpose of the census is to provide information about the agrarian structure of the country for baseline data for food security and better livelihood of the population, and to share estimates for the population of livestock. 

As per the findings of the census launched by Iqbal, Pakistan’s agriculture farm households have risen to 11.7 million households in 2024 from 8.3 million in 2010.

“As per the 7th Agricultural Census 2024 data, livestock increased to 251.3 million in 2024 from 143 million in 2006 with the growth of 3.18 percent per annum,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. 

The broadcaster said Pakistan’s cultivated area increased from 42.6 million acres in 2010 to 52.8 million acres in 2024, adding that 79 percent of the cultivated area in the country is irrigated by canals and tube wells. 

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Iqbal said agriculture remains the backbone of Pakistan’s economy, noting that it contributes significantly to the country’s GDP, exports and employment. 

“He commended the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics for introducing innovation, transparency, and precision in data collection, which is vital in planning for the country’s economic growth and prosperity,” Radio Pakistan said. 

Agriculture constitutes the largest sector of Pakistan’s economy, as per the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), with the majority of the country’s population, directly or indirectly, depending on it.

As per the PBS, agriculture contributes about 24 percent to the GDP and accounts for half of Pakistan’s employed labor force. It is also the largest source of foreign exchange earnings.