Muhammad Saqib 
A merit-based admission letter to a BS Software Engineering program at a well-regarded Islamabad university doesn’t automatically mean the seat gets used. For one student from Mianwali, the acceptance came first — the deferral came four months later, once the actual cost was worked out. Rs. 35,000 per semester in fees. Add hostel, transport, books, … Read more
A freelance graphic designer working out of a bedroom setup for four years — regular clients, decent Fiverr reviews, steady work — runs into a common wall: every rupee earned gets absorbed by household expenses, leaving nothing to invest back into the business. The upgrade needed was modest by most standards: a proper workstation, licensed … Read more
Sixty applications, eleven interviews, zero offers — not because of a lack of competence, but because Pakistan’s formal job market runs narrow, competitive, and heavily dependent on connections that don’t exist for every capable graduate. That was the outcome for one BA Commerce graduate from a government college in Multan, roughly two years after finishing … Read more
Most small kiryana stores in Pakistan run almost entirely in cash — no formal accounts, no audited statements, minimal tax filing history beyond basic registration. To a commercial bank, that makes an otherwise stable, profitable shop look uncreditworthy on paper, regardless of how long it’s actually been running. A general store owner in Sialkot, running … Read more
The Apni Chhat Apna Ghar Scheme is a Punjab government initiative offering subsidized housing loans specifically to low and lower-middle income families — a category that includes a large share of renters who’ve spent a decade or more paying rent that only climbs, with no path to ownership in sight. One such case: a two-room … Read more
Nearly 15% of a Rs. 40,000 monthly salary can disappear before a single grocery item gets bought — just from getting to work and back. That’s the math for a textile factory worker commuting daily from the outskirts of Gujranwala: two wagon changes each way, Rs. 80-100 per leg, roughly Rs. 6,000 a month, every … Read more
An electricity bill of Rs. 18,000 in a single month sounds manageable until it’s measured against a Rs. 35,000 household income — at which point it’s more than half of everything earned, gone to WAPDA before food, rent, or school fees get touched. That was the reality last summer for a household in Sheikhupura: two … Read more
My cousin Zara is in her third year of BS Computer Science at a government college in Faisalabad. For the past two years, she’s been doing her assignments on her younger brother’s phone — a mid-range Android with a cracked screen — because there was no laptop at home and buying one wasn’t something the … Read more
Every few months, a version of the same scene plays out across Pakistan. A woman wakes up early, gets her children ready, arranges for someone to watch the younger ones, and travels — sometimes an hour or more — to the nearest HBL Konnect agent or BISP payment center. She stands in a queue. When … Read more
A schoolteacher I know in a small town near Sahiwal told me something that stuck with me for weeks. She said that out of the 34 students in her class, at least 19 of them came from BISP households — meaning their families were registered beneficiaries. But when she asked how many were receiving the … Read more