Pakistan Plunges into 'Lantern Era' Amid IMF Pressure, Iran Conflict

• Pakistan implements severe austerity: ministers' salaries stopped, parliamentarians' halved, schools/colleges shift to remote learning.
• These measures, presented as a response to the Iran conflict and national security, are primarily driven by IMF conditions for crucial installments.
• IMF demanded drastic cuts in government spending, elimination of subsidies, and fiscal deficit reduction, which Pakistan was hesitant to implement.
• Shehbaz Sharif and Asim Munir used the Iran-America conflict as a pretext to impose unpopular IMF-mandated austerity, pushing the nation into a 'lantern era'.
• Cuts include 20% reduction in government department spending, ban on new vehicle/furniture, 60% vehicle fleet reduction, and 50% fuel allowance cut.