Govt slammed for announcing "public holiday" on Youm-e-Takbeer amid economic crisis

Youm-e-Takbeer is being observed today (May 28) across the country to commemorate historic nuclear tests conducted by Pakistan on this day 26 years ago.

In 1998, Pakistan took the decision as a response and in self-defence to the nuclear tests accompanying hostile posturing by its neighbour, India.

Pakistan carried out five successful tests of its own in Balochistan's Chaghi followed by another one in Kharan on May 30.

Following the successful tests, Pakistan became the seventh nuclear-armed country in the world and the first in the Islamic world.

A day earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a public holiday across the country to mark the historic day.

However, the decision was not received well by the business community, corporate sector, and people.

Slamming the decision, Karachi and Lahore traders associations announced to keep markets open across the cities.

According to traders, sudden public holidays affect the scheduled bank transactions between the parties, which reduces the trust level in business.

The premier in his several public addresses vowed to steer the country out of the economic crisis.

Talking about PM Shehbaz's dedication to resolving financial turmoil, Chairman Karachi Tahjir Ittehad Atiq Mir said that the premier's commitments do not reflect his decisions.

"We cannot afford a holiday during the crisis," he added.

Speaking to the Geo News morning show, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Irfan Siddiqui said that he was not in favour of public holiday during the severe economic crisis in the cash-strapped country.