SCO summit: Govt announces 3-day public holiday in twin cities

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has announced a three-day public holiday in Islamabad and Rawalpindi ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting next week.

Public holiday will be observed in twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad on October 14, 15, and 16 to facilitate the smooth conduct of the 23rd SCO CHG, said a notification issued by the Cabinet Division on Monday.

Islamabad is all set to host the SCO Council of Heads of Government meeting on October 15 and 16 with major foreign leaders to attend the event.

The forthcoming event holds key significance as it will also be attended by India's Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar — the first visit by an Indian foreign minister to Pakistan in nearly a decade.

The federal government has called in the Pakistan Army as part of its comprehensive security plan with troops' deployment approved under Article 245 of the Constitution from October 15 to 17.

Pakistan currently holds the rotating Chairmanship of the SCO-CHG, which is the regional organisation's second-highest decision-making forum.

In July this year, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that the summit would feature a ministerial huddle along with multiple meetings of senior officials to foster cooperation in finance, economics, socio-cultural affairs and humanitarian efforts among member states.

The SCO, comprising India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, is a crucial multilateral platform, primarily for regional security and collaboration with Central Asian nations.

Pakistan had extended invitations to all the government heads of the SCO member states, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for the upcoming CHG meeting in Islamabad, Baloch had said.