No more air conditioners in Pakistan government offices

In a show of sweaty solidarity, the Pakistani government has banned the use of air conditioning in all government offices from May 15 on, as the nation continues to struggle with widespread energy and gas shortages. 

Pakistan's caretaker government implemented the move Wednesday, after a statement from Prime Minister Mir Hazar Khan Khoso's office was released to the public, according to the Associated Press.

That's not all: the caretaker prime minister has also issued a rather stringent summer dress code for all government employees. 

"The dress code includes white or light-colored (beige, light gray, sky blue, off-white, cream) shirt/bush shirt (full-sleeved or half sleeved) with light-colored (as prescribed for shirt) trouser or shalwar kameez with waist coat, and moccasins (shoes without laces) or sandals (shoes with straps) without socks," said the Prime Minister's office, according to DAWN.com.

"All public servants have been given seven days for preparations and have been directed to observe the dress code."

The move may sound like a small concession, but Pakistan in the summer months can be a brutally hot place — a temperature of a whopping 128 degrees Fahrenheit(53.5°C) was recorded in May of 2010, the hottest ever recorded in Asia.

Temperatures regularly top 120°F in Sindh province in May and June, according to the Weather Underground. 

Pakistan's energy crisis has been estimated to cost the economically-delicate nation up to 4 percent of GDP in the past few years, according to information from the National Bureau of Asian Research, and some analysts worry that the shortage could become a national security concern. 

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