“A news article that appeared in a local English newspaper on December 8, 2022, said mistakenly that Telenor Pakistan is ceasing operations. We want to make it quite clear that this is untrue. The statement added, “Telenor Pakistan is devoted to supporting its clients and connecting them to what matters most.

According to an earlier report, Telenor may think about ending operations in Pakistan as a result of the alleged failure of its merger negotiations with Ufone. The study made reference to Telenor’s growing displeasure with conducting business in Pakistan as a result of the low profitability of the telecom industry. In addition, it stated that if the merger between Telenor and Ufone fails, the business may think about ceasing operations there.

The aforementioned reports of an instant foreclosure have been vigorously refuted by Telenor, which requested in its explanation that “Telenor Pakistan’s Official Spokesperson be always contacted for corporate opinion for such news items.”

During the conference, the crucial decision was made to work with the AKCSP to establish Lahore as a smart city.

The CM also requested a project plan in this aspect. Lahore, according to him, will have the distinction of becoming Pakistan’s first smart city.

The Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB), he said, will assist in the digitalization of Lahore, and municipal utilities will be provided via a mobile app.

Additionally, the Kasur mausoleum of Baba Bulleh Shah will undergo renovations to fit the Wazir Khan Mosque’s design.

The Governor House’s induction ceremony for MPA Khayal Ahmad Kastro as a minister was attended by CM Punjab earlier this week. Balighur Rehman, the governor, took Khayal Ahmad Kastro’s oath of office.

The CM commended the newly appointed minister on taking the oath and expressed confidence in his ability to carry out his duties in a professional manner while striving to fulfill the needs of the populace. The administration is committed to the general populace’s welfare and is making every effort to help the people.

The new C-HR shares several design cues with the all-new Crown, Prius, Aygo X, and bZ4X, despite having a similar general form to its predecessor. With a bonnet that rises on the sides and dips in the middle, it features a front end like a sports car.

Air curtains and a little grille around the gaping mouth below. The front fascia, which is widened from the sides, acquires the nickname “Hammerhead.”

Large creases are produced by the front wheel arches, which meet in the center of the front doors and continue to the back. The door handles are now located near the taillights on the most recent C-HR model rather than the C-pillars as they were on the first C-HR. The front door handles extend as necessary and are flush with the automobile.

The manufacturing prototype is expected to differ from the typical concept characteristics, such as the large wheels and the side cameras in place of the mirrors. In contrast to “metal silver” and “recycled carbon,” the tri-tone paint scheme highlights the rearmost pillars with “sulphur.”

The dramatic appearance is continued with a rear wing that protrudes from two “bubbles” on the roof, full-width taillights, a sculpted tailgate, and a sizable rear diffuser. Toyota claims that this model has reduced overhangs, which may imply additional internal space as a result of a longer wheelbase.

A European self-charging plug-in hybrid powertrain will be used in the new C-HR. During a media conference in December, Toyota made a suggestion about the crossover’s all-electric drivetrain.

Although there is currently a lack of information surrounding its introduction, industry rumors indicate that the SUV will make its debut in late 2023 or early 2024.

Burger King and Pizza Hut are run by the firms MCR and MCR Pakistan, respectively. According to reports, the transaction will cost between $10 million and $15 million. Burger King and Pizza Hut will go on with the same brand identification.

An independent business with headquarters in Rawalpindi/Islamabad is called Maaks International. The company is active in the rice, oil, hospitality, pharmaceutical, and FMCG industries.

Burger King and Pizza Hut are now out of business, but their new owner has promised that they will reopen this month.

There are now nine Burger King locations and 84 Pizza Hut locations nationwide. Maaks International will open 25 additional locations for the two eateries every year.

We intend to fully reorganize operations, said Azhar Jafri, Executive Director of the recently acquired MCR and MCR Pakistan, in an interview with Business Recorder. By 2027, we want to have 200 Pizza Hut locations and 50 Burger King locations.

He continued by saying that Pizza Hut’s poor performance in Pakistan was mostly due to MCR’s failure to maintain the chain at its worldwide quality.

All Pizza Hut locations have closed as a result of supply-chain issues. The supply chain and atmosphere of Pizza Hut were not concerns of the former management. Pizza Hut subsequently lost ground, and its rivals profited from the circumstance.

US-based Pizza Hut is owned by Yum Brands. Taco Bell, KFC, and The Habit Burger Grill are also owned by it. In 155 nations, the firm oversees more than 53,000 franchisees.

The parent business of Burger King is Restaurant Brands International (RBI), which also owns Tim Hortons, Popeyes, and Firehouse Subs. In more than 100 countries, RBI operates approximately 28,000 stores.

Why Did Things Go South?

The former administration of Pizza Hut did not follow Yum! Brands’ rules. KFC Pakistan already suffered the same fate. If you deviate from those rules, you’ll struggle, added Jafri.

Jafri disclosed that prestigious businesses were considering buying the long-listed MCR portfolio. Many well-known companies put in bids to purchase MCR, but foreign companies like Yum! follow particular rules, Jafri continued.

He revealed that the deal was almost finished and that the banks were still reconciling their accounts. Instead of using a sub-franchising arrangement, Pizza Hut and Burge King will be managed directly.

Will the cost drop?

Jafri claimed that Pizza Hut will compete with top-tier pizzerias, therefore the costs would stay high. Despite the current inflation, Pakistan still has a large amount of potential in the high-end food industry.

In Karachi, he said, Pizza Hut faces competition. However, there isn’t much competition in certain places. For this reason, Pizza Hut is considering setting up shops in Nawabshah and Larkana.

Jafri promised that Pizza Hut, which is undergoing a change stage, will be revolutionized with the most recent technologies. MCR has dispatched a technical team to Dubai to copy the Yum! software that is used across the world.

What Happens to Unpaid Workers?

Many employees at Pizza Hut have not received their paychecks, according to employees who spoke to Business Recorder. Jafri said that the new administration is looking into the situation when asked about it.

However, underpaid employees have not yet received their delayed paychecks as a result of the audit, reconciliation, and changeover. Pizza Hut has outstanding debts that vendors and landlords are also waiting to pay. Once the transaction is formally concluded, all stakeholders will be paid in full.

Jafri noted that Pizza Hut employs close to 1,200 people. To choose which staff will be kept, the corporation has begun the screening process.

End-to-end encryption, however, is only accessible to group chat users who have signed up for the beta program. Therefore, you must participate in the beta program in order to test it. For additional information about the beta version of Google Message, click this page.

Google also intends to soon integrate emoji reactions for RCS (Rich Communication Services) in its Messages app, in addition to end-to-end encryption in group conversations.

Google also made fun of Apple for not implementing RCS on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of SMS. The statement read, “Except Apple, all major cell carriers and manufacturers have implemented RCS.” Apple’s messaging is still stuck in the 1990s since it uses SMS to interact with users of Android smartphones.

Several months ago, the Mountain View-based search engine business began the #GetTheMessage campaign, which urged Apple to use RCS. CEO Tim Cook has stated that he would like to convert Android customers to iPhones, but the Cupertino-based tech company has been quite persistent and uncompromising in its position.

Simply get your mother an iPhone, he said.

It remains to be seen how the “green vs. blue bubble” debate plays out and how long it will take Apple to change its mind and implement RCS.

End-to-end encryption for Google Messages is now only accessible in the beta version, so it will be some time before it becomes available to the general public. Emoji responses for RCS will likely debut concurrently.

Due to the theft of one of Akmal’s pricey cell phones, he has drawn notice once more. The player said that this week at Model Town C Block Cricket Ground, his two phones were taken.

According to Umar Akmal, the two mobile phones are worth a total of about 760,000 rupees.

Abbas Ali, the cousin of Umar Akmal, filed the case at the relevant police station, and now police teams are looking for criminals to recover the priceless mobile phones.

Throughout the month of October, complaints were received from a number of telecom service providers, including cellular mobile operators (CMOS), Pakistan Telecommunications Company Limited (PTCL), long-distance international (LDI), wireless local loop (WLL), and internet service providers.

A sizable portion of the total telecom subscriber base is made up of cellular mobile subscribers. Most complaints are thus related to this group. By October, there had been 12,700 complaints made against CMOs, of which 12,585 (99 percent) had been resolved.

5 781 complaints were made against Jazz, of which 5 760 (99 percent) were handled, according to PTA statistics. Additionally, 2,476 complaints were made against Telenor, and 2,421 (or 97% of them) were settled.

Similarly to this, 3,308 complaints were made against Zong, and 3,287 (99 percent) of them were resolved. Ufone received 1,133 complaints in total, 1,115 of which (98 percent) were handled.

Additionally, PTA received 157 complaints about basic telephone service, 94 of which were resolved in October, for a resolution rate of 59%. Furthermore, 389 (74 percent) of the 520 complaints made against ISPs were resolved.

According to our channel investigations, the download option for paid apps via mobile phone accounts has been suspended in the country. While this ban only applies to local transactions, it is worth noting that when installing a paid app, the Google Play Store still supports credit card payments.

This comes after the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) halted payments of $34 million to international service providers last week. The blockade/confusion caused havoc in the local tech community, with people unable to download paid Google Play Store apps using their mobile balance as a payment method.

Harcheez.com heard at the time that the central bank had suspended the direct carrier billing (DCB) method, causing payments to overseas service providers such as Google, Amazon, and Meta to get stalled.

As a result, given the country’s recent economic challenges, the government agreed to open Google transactions for a month while simultaneously devising a framework for an effective payment process in order to limit any liquidity shortfalls. In lieu of the payment barrier, and with no policy or process in place, Google has banned carrier-paid apps in Pakistan as it awaits the government’s intervention to find a solution.

The Ministry of Finance has now consented to IT Minister Syed Amin Ul Haque’s request for developing an effective method and making payments against Google App services. At the time, the minister stated that SBP had been asked to postpone the implementation of the DCB mechanism policy for one month.

Amin Ul Haque stated that telecom providers had been granted one month to adopt payment procedures and that the Ministry of IT, Finance, and the State Bank will develop a plan of action in mutual consultation within a month. Amin stated that in response to the Telecom operators’ plea for assistance, a letter was submitted to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar requesting that the payments are made and a timetable be established.

Jazz CEO Aamir Ibrahim also thanked Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and IT Minister Amin Ul Haque for making a timely decision on the issue.

“Relieved to see the DCB issue progressing towards a resolution. Thank you Syed Amin Ul Haque, Ishaq Dar and SAPM Finance Tariq Bajwa for ensuring Google Play apps remain available to Pakistani users. A whole-of-government approach is needed to strengthen the digital ecosystem,” he tweeted on Thursday.

For those who are unfamiliar, DCB is an online mobile payment system that allows users to conduct transactions using their mobile phone carrier bills. Until recently, telecoms allowed users to purchase these products with airtime and subsequently transmit funds abroad, classifying such transactions as payments for IT-related services.

The Quetta-born boxer won the title in the ongoing Asia Asian Boxing Federation (ABF) when he defeated Indonesia’s Hendrik Barongsay.

Shoaib outperformed his opponent, standing unbowed throughout the 10-round battle and earning 117 points to Barongsay’s 57. The young boxer will now be able to fight in larger contests.

After defeating Thai boxer Sornram in September to qualify for the title battle, Shoaib, commonly known as “the Coolest Boy,” won his third consecutive bout in the event to capture the professional ABF title.

Shoaib told reporters after the feat that it had always been his desire to raise the green flag all over the world after representing the country in mega-events.

“I swear I will not let down my homeland as I feel totally equipped to outperform the best fighters,” the national boxer declared, dedicating his victory to the people of Pakistan.

According to reports, Ben Foakes, the wicket-keeper batter, has been ruled out of the team because he contracted a viral infection yesterday and will not be fully recovered in time for the first Test.

Meanwhile, the management has decided to name Will Jacks as the starting lineup for the curtain-raiser. In Ben Foakes’ absence, Ollie Pope will keep the wickets.

It was reported yesterday that the curtain-raiser could be postponed because half of the visiting squad was suffering from a viral infection, which also forced them to miss the previous training session.

Later in the statement, the Pakistan Cricket Body (PCB) indicated that they were in discussion with the English cricket board over the start of the series.

Meanwhile, Pakistan named their playing XI ahead of the encounter, with four fresh faces making their red-ball debut. Zahid Mahmood, Mohammad Ali, Saud Shakeel, and Haris Rauf are among Pakistan’s debutants.