- ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Cabinet, which met here under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Wednesday, decided to re-introduce two weekly holidays in all the federal and provincial offices.
It decided to observe two holidays in all commercial institutions including public and private banks.
Finance Minister Dr. Hafeez Shaikh, briefing journalists, said, “In an effort to save energy the federal Cabinet on Wednesday decided on two holidays a week and closure of markets by 8 p.m. and wedding halls by 10 p.m.”
The government claims that the move would save around 1500 MW of electricity which will reduce power outages.
However, the business community opposed the decision.
It may be mentioned, in April 2010, the Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO) Director General Muhammad Khalid had urged the government to observe two public holidays in a week to mitigate power outages and cut losses being incurred by the country's industrial sector.
