A skills training program for the transgender community by the Balochistan government: For the first time in the province’s history, the Balochistan government has launched a special training program to provide respectable employment opportunities and skill development for the transgender community. Under this initiative, participants are being trained in tailoring, embroidery, beautician courses, computer skills, and other vocational skills. Currently, 60 transgender individuals are receiving training through this program so they can play an active and independent role in society.

The program, running under the Balochistan Endowment Fund, is not only teaching skills but also providing education to participants. Trainees say this initiative will help eliminate the negative perception that transgender people cannot engage in respectable work.

Siraaj, a participant at the training center, said, “Here we have learned beautician skills such as eyebrow shaping, hair coloring, henna application, and waxing. Most importantly, we have received respect and confidence here. Now we can proudly say we earn a dignified living.”

Another participant, Anzela, said, “We have completed computer courses and now plan to open shops and stand on our own feet. Earlier we were struggling in life, but now we hope for a better future.”

Nairobi: To protect the environment from destruction, the world is returning to traditional knowledge from the past. In Kenya’s capital Nairobi, a construction material is being used that relies more on ordinary soil rather than cement.While Pakistan is witnessing a growing need for construction due to increasing population, the country is also facing the severe impacts of climate change. The cement industry is a major contributor to air pollution.

According to available data, air pollution in Pakistan increased by 687 percent between 1990 and 2020. Emissions rose from around 2.7 million tonnes to nearly 21 million tonnes during these three decades and are expected to increase further.During her participation in the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) in Nairobi, Lok Sujag correspondent Aliza Khalid visited Kenya’s Laikipia region to study the Laikipia Integrated Housing Project, a local housing initiative being built with low-carbon earth bricks instead of conventional cement blocks.These blocks are produced using Compressed Earth Block (CEB) technology.

They are considered an alternative to the traditional cement industry, as slightly cement-mixed wet soil is compressed and hardened through a mechanical press. These blocks are environmentally friendly and can also be affordable for ordinary people.This construction material is especially important for Pakistan because increasing floods and rising temperatures have made climate-friendly housing an urgent need.

However, such housing must also remain accessible to the public. Kenya’s community-led production of CEB materials could become an environmentally friendly alternative.If the government is serious about protecting the environment, instead of facilitating land mafias, cement companies, and large construction groups, it should support the use of materials like CEB that can benefit ordinary people.

The closure of the Afghan border had pushed tomato prices sky-high, but prices have now fallen as the arrival of the new crop from Sindh has started.

Tomatoes that were being sold for Rs500 per kg in major cities, including Lahore, are now available for around Rs200. Tomatoes from Badin and Mirpurkhas districts were sold at Rs80 to Rs100 per kg in Sindh markets today, while the rate in Lahore’s market is Rs165 to Rs170.

Badin farmer Amir Ali Chandio says that this year’s tomato crop in Sindh is much better. Full-scale supply from the region to the rest of the country will begin in the second and third weeks of November, which will further reduce tomato prices.

According to Lahore vegetable market traders, the main reason behind the increase in tomato prices was the closure of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, as during this period tomato production is not abundant in any part of Pakistan. Some areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa produce tomatoes, but this year floods and rains badly affected the crop, causing a major shortage in supply. The new Sindh crop will now restore the balance between demand and supply.

Balochistan contributes the largest share (34%) to the country’s total tomato production, followed by Sindh with 28%. However, Sindh’s crop is unique because it matures in November and December, when tomatoes are not ready in most parts of the country except some areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The CPPA and DISCOs have made two separate demands and, if approved by Nepra, they will increase the bill. First, a fuel adjustment tax of Rs1.78 per unit for January caused by expensive furnace oil plants being fired up when hydropower was unavailable during the canal maintenance. Instead of planning efficiently and using cheaper sources, the government has passed the cost directly onto the consumers.

Besides, DISCOs are seeking approval to recover Rs10.8 billion in quarterly adjustments. They claim discounted industrial rates have reduced the revenue and now ordinary consumers are being asked to cover the gap. This adds roughly 43 paisa per unit on top of existing fixed charges.

Together, these “adjustments” reflect a deeper problem: electricity in Pakistan has become a tool for revenue collection rather than a service. Whether fuel prices rise or fall, demand grows or shrinks, the burden is almost always shifted to households and small consumers.

It’s time to call these adjustments what they really are: a mismanagement tax that punishes the common people for systemic inefficiencies and poor planning.

Children in Balochistan are being pushed into labor instead of sports and books. Twelve-year-old Nizamuddin starts his morning not with the school bell but by picking up tools in a workshop. He has a desire to study, but he cannot go to school because if he does not earn, how will the household ration be provided?

This is not just his story. According to the Balochistan Child Labour Survey 2023, more than 200,000 children in the province are forced into labor. Around 2.9 million children are out of school, meaning nearly 69% of children in the province are deprived of education.

Poverty, lack of facilities, and government negligence have taken away their childhood and forced them to grow up too early.