Epaper – June 29 LHR 2020

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Monday, 29 June, 2020 I 7 Dhū al-Qa‘dah, 1441 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 1 I 52 Pages I Lahore Edition

Covid-19 Cases surpass 200,000 mark; 4,118 dead so far g

over 92,000 Patients have reCovereD aCross Pakistan, saYs nCoC

ISLAMABAD

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staff report

akistan’s coronavirus infections topped 200,000, reaching 202,955, making it the 12th most affected country from the Covid19 in the world. a total of 4,072 new coronavirus cases surfaced in the country over the last 24 hours, taking the tally to 202,955, said national Command and operation Centre (nCoC) on sunday. these include 74,202 in Punjab, 78,267 in sindh, 25,380 in khyber Pakhtunkhwa (kP), 10,261 in balochistan, 12,395 in islamabad, 1,423 in gilgitbaltistan (gb) and 1,027 in azad Jammu and kashmir (aJk). the death toll from the virus stands at 4,118 with 83 deaths reported over the last 24 hours. a total of 25,013 coronavirus tests were carried out during this period. so far 92,624 patients have recovered from the disease. according to nCoC, total active Covid19 cases in the country are 106,213.

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Dr Mirza saYs Pakistan Fighting CoviD-19 through a robust CoorDinateD national resPonse

a total of 5,342 patients are admitted across the country. out of 1,562 ventilators allocated for Covid-19 patients, 502 ventilators are occupied across Pakistan. according to the latest government projections, coronavirus cases in the country may be limited to 225,000 by the end of June if people continue to take strict precautions — the number was earlier expected to reach 300,000. speaking to media on Friday last, Federal Minister for Planning asad umar had said that when the number of Covid-19 cases surged, people started following preventive measures. “there were two weeks when the big hospitals in major cities faced pressure,” he said. he, however, cautioned everyone that if the standard operating procedures are not followed then the situation can deteriorate. nCoC also revealed that over 92,000 people in Pakistan had so far recovered from the disease caused by the virus. the nCoC also noted that as many as 7,288 violations of health guidelines/instructions were reported across the country over the past 24 hours.

a total of 1,070 markets/shops were sealed in the previous 24 hours while 1,234 violations of the government-prescribed standard operating procedures (soPs) were observed. the nCoC said that 16 violations of health guidelines were observed in islamabad where 14 markets/shops were sealed while two transporters were fined. around 2,172 violations were reported in Punjab where 618 markets/shops were sealed while 816 transporters were fined, it said. around 780 violations were observed in balochistan where 95 markets/shops were sealed and 816 transporters were imposed fines. kP saw 3,252 violations of health guidelines as 178 markets/shops were sealed there and 105 transporters were fined. according to official data, over 5,000 medical workers have contracted the virus in the country. a total of 5,164 healthcare providers have been sickened by the virus across Pakistan, as of June 24, revealed the daily tally of the Ministry of national health services, regulation and Coordination, in islamabad. the majority of the infected medics have been reported from Pakistan’s northern kP province, totaling 1,694. the second-highest tally is from sindh, 1,392, followed by Punjab, 1,099, islamabad, 419, balochistan, 391, gb, 95, and aJk, 74. of the 5,164 professionals, over 3,000 are doctors.

Meanwhile, special assistant to Prime Minister (saPM) on national health services Dr zafar Mirza in an online meeting informed World health organisation regional Director Dr ahmed al-Mandhari that Pakistan was fighting Covid-19 through a robust coordinated national response.

Purpose of the meeting was to discuss Pakistan’s Covid-19 response and explore areas where Who could provide technical guidance and support to the country.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

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Joint opposition rejects federal government’s budget for FY21 ISLAMABAD

people, they added.

staff report

the opposition parties on sunday rejected the federal government’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year, saying that it has failed on every account to address adequately the challenges to posed by a global pandemic to Pakistan, along with rampant inflation, endemic unemployment, collapsing industry, shrinking agriculture, a deadly locust invasion, and ongoing global economic shocks. in a joint statement issued from sindh house, islamabad, leader of the opposition and Pakistan Muslim league-nawaz (PMl-n) President Mian Muhammad shehbaz sharif, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman bilawal bhutto-zardari, leaders of Jammat-e-islami (Ji), Jamiat ulema-e-islam-Fazl (Jui-F), awami national Party (anP), balochistan national Party-Mengal (bnP-M), national Party (nP) and Qaumi Watan Party (QWP), said that Prime Minister imran khan’s government had miserably failed in providing relief to Pakistanis when they needed it the most. the budget fails to provide for protecting the lives, economic future, and livelihoods of the Pakistani

in today’s issue

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

Coronavirus in

pakistan

CONFIRMED CASES:

205,647

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

83

4,112

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

SINDH:

PUNJAB:

92,624 4,154 80,446

74,202

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

25,778

10,376

1,027/1,423 12,395

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Contact: 0307-7338168 irfan.farooq@pakistantoday.com.pk

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Monday, 29 June, 2020

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'First to enForce smart lockdown': Pm lauds team For steering country through covid-19 ISLAMABAD

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STAFF REPORT

RIME Minister Imran Khan on Sunday lauded his team for being among the first to enforce smart lockdown in a country. Sharing a Bloomberg opinion piece on smart lockdowns being the future of Europe on Twitter, the premier said he was proud of his team for helping him navigate through the Covid-19 crisis in the country.

Prime Minister Imran said that if Pakistan continued to follow standard operating procedures (SOPs), the country will successfully tackle the crisis.

The tweet comes a day after Pakistan’s coronavirus tally crossed the 200,000 mark. By Sunday afternoon, the tally had reached 202,810 with 4,117 reported deaths. Some 92,582 people have completely recovered so far.

Reacting to the tweet, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Information Secretary Dr Nafisa Shah said that the premier’s smart

lockdowns were the “cause of thousands of deaths”, adding that he could not “hide the facts by giving baseless statements which were opposite to reality”.

“It is incomprehensible how the prime minister can be proud of his inefficient team. Somebody should tell him that it is because of his inefficient team that cases have crossed 200,000,” she said.

The opinion piece said that European Union (EU) countries are experimenting with new ways of dealing with the coronavirus. Germany, Portugal and Italy have all enforced selective or “smart” lockdowns, shutting down smaller regions in response to new outbreaks as opposed to bringing their entire countries to a halt.

It said that this approach is the only hope of returning to a more normal life as we wait for a vaccine. “However, it also puts a much larger onus on the public sector compared to generalized lockdowns.

Health officials have to ensure small outbreaks do not get out of control and force the need for harsher measures,” it added.

govt to import 1.4mn tonnes wheat to fulfil shortfall ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

The federal government is likely to import 1.4 million tonnes of wheat at an estimated price of Rs1,929 per 40 kilogrammes (kg) to meet its target of 27.03 million tonnes of wheat production. According to sources the Ministry of National Food Security and Research has estimated that it will have to import wheat at Rs1,929 per 40kg, whereas local wheat prices stand in the range of Rs1,450 to 1,550 in Sindh and Rs1,460 to 1,600 in Punjab. Earlier on June 22, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) had allowed the private sector to import wheat and decided to monitor the situation on a monthly basis. The government was to import wheat itself in case of lack of imports from the private sector. The ECC has also directed the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to assess the financial implications of importing wheat via the private sector compared to the public sector. As of June 22, price of hard red winter wheat from USA and Canada stands at $212 per tonne whereas the price of wheat from Black Sea countries stands at $198 per tonne. The import parity price of hard red winter and wheat from the Black Sea region are estimated at Rs.1,929 per 40kg and Rs1,694 per 40kg respectively.According to sources, currently the wheat production in the country stands at 25 million tonnes with a shortfall of 1.4 million tonnes. Out of the 25 million tonnes produced, 19 million tonnes have been produced in Punjab, 3.8 million tonnes in Sindh, 1.2 million tonnes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and 0.98 million tonnes in Balochistan.

Balancing life, livelihood prime focus since covid-19 outbreak: asim ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting Lieutenant General (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa on Sunday said that balancing life and livelihood has been prime focus since start of the coronavirus disease in the country. The special assistant on information and broadcasting in a tweet on Sunday said that key to fighting this pandemic has been to contain disease through smart lockdown downs and adherence to standard operating procedures (SOPs). Bajwa said, “Our nation adapted and showed remarkable improvement in wearing masks and observing the social distancing.”

Britain, Pakistan fighting pandemic together: turner ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

British High Commissioner Christian Turner has said that Britain and Pakistan are fighting the coronavirus pandemic together. In a tweet on Sunday, the British diplomat said that Britain and Pakistan have worked tirelessly together to support continued safe travel between the two countries. He quoted a tweet of Prime Minister Imran Khan about partial opening of airspace for international flights to facilitate overseas workers and thanked him for his efforts in this regard. Christian Turner said in Urdu, “Mushkil waqt mein dost hi sath dete hain (only friends help in difficulties).”

It also said that this tailored approach to lockdowns is in no way a repudiation of the more draconian measures most European countries enforced earlier. “In fact, the current strategy can only work because Europe has largely brought new infections under control. It does not look as feasible for countries such as the US and Brazil,

where new infections are still on the rise in many areas,” it added.

The opinion piece had further stated that smart lockdowns require the collaboration of citizens: wearing masks and maintaining social distancing are two ways to reduce the risk of a new surge in cases.

“However, much of the burden falls on governments. They have to identify new cases early through rapid testing and contact tracing in order to circumscribe contagion. Getting more people to download contact-tracing apps would help on this front (not enough have done so in France and Italy), but the authorities will also have to ensure local health-care systems have enough staff to trace infections effectively. Finally, they will need to manage the process of reopening borders carefully, especially when it comes to countries that have not yet kept the virus in check,” it added.

It declared that smart lockdowns are the best hope we have until a vaccine is created.

NDMA to get locally-produced ventilators this week, says Fawad MINISTER SAYS INDIA’S IRRESPONSIBLE ATTITUDE POSING SERIOUS THREAT TO REGIONAL PEACE ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry on Sunday said that the first consignment of the ventilators made in Pakistan will be handed over to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) this week.

“The first tranche of ‘Made in Pakistan’ ventilators will be handed over to the NDMA this week,” tweeted the minister and congratulated the NRTC on the achievement.

He said that three more designs are in the last phase of development.

He said that after the manufacture of these new ventilators, Pakistan will be among those countries which man-

ufacture complex medical equipment.

Fawad said that all these machines will be according to the European Union’s (EU) standards.

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Health signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) regarding the indigenous development of electro medical devices.

The framework under this mechanism would spark off innovation and local engineering solutions in this field and will improve healthcare facilities. The initiative is expected to open a way forward for the innovators to invest multiple electro-medical equipment in Pakistan.

Electro-medical devices are being

Shehbaz submits interim bail request to LHC after being advised to rest three weeks NEWS DESK Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif has submitted a request for interim bail to the Lahore High Court (LHC) after he was advised rest for another three weeks.

Shehbaz, the PML-N president, submitted his petition to the LHC in connection with the ongoing money laundering case against

him. In addition, he also filed a miscellaneous petition, requesting to be excused from appearance in the next hearing.

According to the petition, interim bail has already been granted by the LHC in the cases of assets beyond means and moneylaundering.

The PML-N leader had also submitted bonds worth Rs500,000 following approval. He was supposed to

regulated by the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) and 15 ventilators were in various phases of trials at the time. Machine trials of four ventilators by the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) were expected to be completed as well.

Separately, the minister for science and technology said that India’s irresponsible attitude towards regional matters is posing serious threat to regional peace and stability. In an interview, he that said Pakistan is exercising effective diplomacy to promote peace in the region and resolve all outstanding disputes with India through dialogue. He added that Pakistan has always stood shoulder to shoulder with Kashmiri brethren in their struggle for their legitimate right of self-determination.

The minister further said that India must be aware of the fact that Pakistan is capable enough to give befitting response to every aggression. sign the bonds himself, but was unable to do so as he contracted the deadly coronavirus.

Doctors at the Mayo Hospital and Ittefaq Hospital have advised the former Punjab chief minister to rest for another three weeks, with certificates from the facilities attached in the petition.

It was requested in the petition that Shehbaz be given interim bail and be excused from appearing in person for another three weeks and that the time given to him to sign the bail bonds be extended. A two-member bench of the LHC under Justice Sardar Ahmed Naeem was set to hear the case tomorrow — Monday.

govt to start refunding hajj dues from thursday ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony has decided to refund Government Hajj Scheme dues following the Saudi decision of excluding pilgrims from outside Saudi Arabia from performing Hajj this year to contain coronavirus spread in the kingdom. According to spokesman of the ministry, the branches of designated scheduled banks would start cash return of the deposited Hajj dues of Government Scheme pilgrims from Thursday (July 2). "All successful Hajj applicants of Government Scheme were being informed about the repaying of their amount by sending messages to mobile phone of each pilgrim," the spokesman said. People would have to visit their respective bank branches (where they had deposited the dues) along with original CNIC and bank receipt of Hajj dues deposit for cash return of the amount. In case of transaction through banker's cheque, the group leader should visit the relevant bank's branch along with the original documents of his group's intending pilgrims. The applicants should contact accounts officer refund on telephone No: 051-9208465 in case of any difficulty in refunding process. Hajj inquiry number 051-9205696; 051- 9216980-82.

In case closure of the relevant branch, he said the amount would be refunded through other nominated bank branch. A total of 86,765 intending pilgrims were picked through general balloting from out of 149,295 applicants, aspiring to perform the sacred religious obligation under Government Scheme. A total 179,210 Pakistanis were aspiring to perform hajj this year including 107,526 under government scheme and 71,684 under private scheme. The government Hajj package (per person) was Rs463,445 for north region without Qurbani and Rs486,270 for same region with Qurbani (animal sacrificial). While Rs455,695 for South Region without Qurbani and Rs478,520 for same region without Qurbani. APP

gB polls scheduled for august 18 after president’s approval

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has approved the schedule of general elections of the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly.

According to the approved poll day schedule, the general elections in GB will be held on August 18. The legislative assembly was dissolved on completion of its term on June 24 and the law calls for holding fresh elections within 60 days of the legislature’s dissolution to elect the new government. The GB Election Commission will hold the elections in 24 constituencies. The federal government has already appointed Mir Afzal, former deputy inspector general of police (DIG) as the caretaker chief minister of the region. STAFF REPORT

SC fixes urgent hearing for Daniel Pearl murder case today NEWS DESK The Supreme Court has admitted the Sindh government’s plea and fixed the urgent hearing of American journalist Daniel Pearl murder case on Monday.

The provincial government had challenged the Sindh High Court (SHC) verdict wherein it had commuted the death sentence of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh – the man convicted of kidnapping and murdering Wall Street Journal journalist in 2002 – to a seven-year sentence.

The SHC had also acquitted three other accused namely Fahad Naseem, Sheikh Adil and Salman Saqib, who had been awarded life imprisonment in the case by an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Karachi.

Hours after their acquittal, the provincial government ordered three months detention of four accused, which is due to expire on July 2.

Later, the Sindh government and slain journalist’s parents approached the apex court against the SHC verdict.

However, three judge special bench of the top court led by Justice Mushir Alam on June 1 refused to suspend SHC judgement and adjourned the hearing until summer vacations.

SC rejects Sindh govt’s plea to suspend SHC verdict in Daniel Pearl case Now, the Sindh prosecutor general has moved an application for early hearing of the case given the sensitivity of the matter.

“The respondent and co-respondents

CMYK

have terrorised people in a horrific way with deprived indifference to human suffering, slaughtering brutally a US citizen on one hand and have also degraded and defamed stated of Pakistan globally,” the plea read.

It is also stated that the accused in the case did not deserve any mercy and should be dealt in accordance with law.

The advocate general also cautioned in the application that “there is serious apprehension of act of terrorism” if the accused are released from the custody after the expiry of detention period.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice Mushir Alam will take up the provincial government’s petition for early hearing tomorrow (Monday).

The Sindh prosecutor general and

senior lawyer Farooq H Naek are expected to appear before the bench to represent the Sindh government.

Daniel Pearl, 38, was doing research on religious extremism in Karachi when he was abducted in January 2002. A graphic video showing his decapitation was delivered to the US consulate a month later. Subsequently, Omar Sheikh was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to death by the trial court.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

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Pm-hosted dinner reveals Pti’s Festering wounds PML-Q ‘TOO BUSY’ TO ATTEND IMRAN’S DINNER EVENT FOR ALLIES PM IMRAN SAYS BALOCHISTAN’S DEVELOPMENT IS ONE OF HIS GOVT’S TOP PRIORITIES ISLAMABAD

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STAFF REPORT

AyS after the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), a now-former ally of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government at the Centre, parted ways with its coalition partner, the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), another member of the ruling alliance, decided to not attend a dinner event hosted by Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday night, an invitation for which had already been extended to the party on account of “predecided commitments”.

Earlier in the day, the prime minister, in order to address reservations expressed by his government’s allies about the proposed federal budget, extended a dinner invitation to the member parties of the coalition. According to reports, the leadership of BNP-M was also invited, however, it decided against attending the event, scheduled to be hosted at Bani Gala, the premier’s official residence.

A spokesperson for PML-Q confirmed that the federal government, in fact, contacted the party leadership and invited them to the dinner. However, he said, the Chaudhry brothers would not be attending because of their “busy schedules”.

Nonetheless, according to the spokesperson, the party would vote for the budget.

Sources informed Pakistan Today that the ruling party’s ally did not attend the event because of a private event organised by the Chaudhry brothers.

Later, during a meeting with a delegation from Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), PM Imran said that development of Balochistan is one of the top most priorities of his government.

Giving special impetus to the province of Balochistan, the premier said his government wants to rid it of its feeling of being marginalised. He said that the government is paying special focus to development projects in the province and expressed hope for their timely completion.

He also said that the government is striving hard to sustain the country’s economy during tough times of coronavirus. He added that the government will ensure that all the grievances brought forth by government allies will be addressed and resolved.

The members of delegation apprised the prime minister of their concerns regarding a slash in the provincial budget. They also told him about problems of the people of Balochistan and the development projects currently being worked on there.

Previously, it had emerged that the prime

Pak army shoots down another indian quadcopter RAWALPINDI: The Pakistan Army on Sunday shot down yet another spy drone sent from India across the Line of Control (LoC). According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), “Pakistan Army troops shot down an Indian spying #quadcopter in Hot Spring Sector along LOC.” The statement further said that the quadcopter had intruded 850 metres on Pakistan’s side of the LoC, adding that this is 9th Indian quadcopter shot down by Pakistan Army troops this year. Earlier on June 5, Pakistan Army claimed to have shot down an “Indian spying quadcopter” allegedly intruding across the LoC. STAFF REPORT

minister would also reportedly take the ruling members of parliament (MPs) into confidence regarding the policies of the government, including its approach to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has been a matter of intense debate both on social and mainstream media.

Multiple reports, which cited sources, suggested that the purpose of the gathering is to ensure the presence of MPs of the ruling party and its allies in the National Assembly (NA) where the budget for the fiscal year 2020-21 is pending approval. The premier was also expected to discuss the government’s strategy for the approval of the budget. Besides, reports said, Imran would also address the concerns and grievances of miffed allies

of the ruling party.

Sources also said that 15 lawmakers of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had refused to attend the dinner but were convinced

by Planning Minister Asad Umar to attend it.

On the condition of anonymity, one of these lawmakers told Pakistan Today for 22 months, they have been ignored and “the promises made to us were not fulfilled”. “Now that the budget is to be voted on, we were asked to attend a dinner and pretend that everything is okay” the lawmaker said. yesterday, in a bid to placate his former coalition partner BNP-M, PM Imran had directed the federal ministries to implement

Opposition parties not sincere with country, public: Faraz ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Senator Syed Shibli Faraz on Sunday said that the opposition parties are not sincere with the country and the public.

Addressing a press conference along with Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar and Minister for Communications Murad Saeed on Sunday, Faraz said that opposition leaders, in their tenures looted the national exchequer ruthlessly and made properties worth billions of rupees abroad promoting their own business.

He said that the press conference of opposition leaders was nothing but a bundle of lies. The minister said that Prime Minister Imran Khan’s steadfastness restored the global identity of the country and nation. He added that opposition has no sympathy for poor segment of the country. Speaking on the occasion, Minister for Production and Industries Hammad Azhar said that opposition has criticised the federal budget maintaining the previous tradition. He said that the government has presented a “tax-free and balanced” budget despite financial constraints to provide relief to the public.

Azhar said to meet the challenge of global pandemic,

the government ensured provision of Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme to over 16 million deserving families across the country. He said that relief package was also announced for over 3 million businessmen to overcome their financial difficulties.

He said that the criticism of opposition on increase of petroleum prices is baseless as petrol prices are still lower in Pakistan as compare to other regional countries.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister for Communications Murad Saeed said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government is well aware about the problems of the people and it is working on fast track to provide all possible facilities.

He said that 200 panahgahs (shelter homes) across the country have been established on the directives of the prime minister to provide shelter to the labour class.

He also said that reforms are being introduced in different departments and soon improvement will be witnessed. The minister said that Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) governments have provided Sehat Insaaf Cards to deserving families.

He asked the Sindh government where it has spent the amount allocated for health, education and poverty alleviation in the province.

Body expresses concern over mounting number of child rights violations ISLAMABAD APP

The National Commission on the Rights of the Child (NCRC) has expressed concerns over the rising incidents of children’s rights violations. In its inaugural meeting, the commission reiterated to highlight impediments that have caused children to suffer in inhumane circumstances while moving forth to a mechanism that would serve as a model for the protection and welfare of children.

The commission is mandated to advise the federal and provincial governments to align in laws, policies

and prograrmmes related to child rights in compliance with constitutional obligations and international commitments. It is also empowered to work for the promotion, protection and fulfillment of child rights.

In the meeting, Afshan Tehseen Bajwa, chairperson of the NCRC, welcomed the members of the commission and appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Human Rights for the establishment of the commission headed by Minister Shireen Mazari.

The commission believes that the future of our country lies in the hands of our children, therefore, they should be given the right environment to grow into pro-

ductive citizens. The meeting was attended by ex-officio members of the commission. All members unanimously extended their full support to operationalise the commission. The members from provinces and child members were also present. The meeting was concluded on the note that the commission will now reach out to other stakeholders to join hands and collaborate in erecting a suitable system that can cater to the growing needs of the child. While discussing the impact of COVID-19 on children, the chairperson emphasised the adequate provision of budgetary allocation for the improvement of the socio-economic conditions of the children.

the six percent job quota reserved for Balochistan. The directives issued from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to all federal ministries and departments said that the prime minister has expressed serious concern over the non–implementation of the job quota.

“It should be implemented strictly in all ministries and government departments,” the official memorandum had said.

The PMO also summoned a record of all vacant posts on the reserved seats for Balochistan within 30 days.

Furthermore, sources also said that the ruling party is losing its grip in Punjab, where a forward bloc has emerged against Chief Minister Usman Buzdar.

govt committed to eliminating corruption: asad ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives Asad Umar on Sunday said that Prime Minister Imran Khan, being the most popular leader in the country, enjoys massive public support as he is effectively working for the wellbeing of people. Talking to a private news channel, Umar said that the government, under the charismatic leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan, is committed to further strengthening the national economy and eliminating the menace of corruption and money laundering from the country. He said that the names of opposition leaders have also been mentioned in sugar commission report and the government is determined to take action against all the responsible persons. Separately, Special Assistant for Political Communication, Shahbaz Gill said that PM Imran is committed to holding accountable all corrupt elements for plundering national exchequer.

Talking to a private news channel, he said that the process of accountability will continue till the recovery of the looted money, which then will be spent on the welfare of the country and masses. STAFF REPORT

Pti govt's first audit shows rs270bn irregularities, corruption: report ISLAMABAD: The first audit report of the incumbent government has unveiled irregularities and corruption to the tune of Rs270 billion in 40 government departments and ministries under its tenure. According to media reports, the auditor general of Pakistan has prepared the audit report of 2019-20 after conducting an audit of 40 government ministries and departments. The audit revealed corruption and fake receipts in ministries and departments to the tune of Rs12.56 billion. It stated that recovery cases of Rs79.59 billion in federal ministries were reported and a record of Rs17.96 billion was not provided to the auditor general by government departments. The report further said that Rs8.89 billion in corruption cases had been recorded owing to weak internal controls and cases worth Rs152.20 billion were reported due to poor financial management. The auditor general recommended that government institutions not be allowed to undertake expenditures unless approved from the parliament and similarly.TLTP

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Monday, 29 June, 2020

NEWS

opp moving forward wiTh an ‘agenda To Save corrupTion’: Buzdar SAYS ELEMENTS FOUND INVOLVED IN WEAKENING COUNTRY NOT TO BE SPARED LAHORE

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STAFF REPORT

UNJAB Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar said on Sunday that opposition parties are moving forward with their corruption saving agenda, adding elements found involved in weakening the foundations of the country will have to account for their misdeeds.

The chief minister maintained that the nation has not forgotten massive corruption being committed in the previous tenures till now and corrupt elements are not only culprits of the country but also of the nation, said a statement. He emphasized that those

committing loot and plunder of national resources in their previous tenures are afraid of accountability.

The CM underscored that the incumbent government under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan is the most transparent government in the history of Pakistan.

He censured opposition parties for adopting a different stance on coronavirus pandemic and added that the negative attitude posed by the opposition parties during the current critical situation is highly lamentable and condemnable.

The CM appreciated that PM Imran took timely collective decisions in order to cope up with coronavirus. He highlighted that seri-

Six-year-old girl killed after kite string slits throat in Lahore LAHORE: A six-year-old girl was killed early Sunday morning after a kite string slit her throat on Lahore’s Bandar Road. According to the police, she was returning home from Model Town with her parents on a motorbike when the incident took place around 2 am. The police took notice of the incident and handed over the girl’s body to the parents. Following the incident, the deputy inspector-general of the Lahore police (operations) suspended the Sandha SHO and ordered a detailed investigation into the case. The police are trying to find out whether the string belonged to a kite or was a hanging from a wire. The chief minister took notice of the minor girl’s death and ordered stern action against those involved in illegal act of kite flying in the area. INP

Locusts resume attacks on crops in district Shikarpur SHIKARPUR

ously affected areas owing to coronavirus have been sealed so as to impede its spread and further disclosed that positive results are coming to surface due to enforcing implementation on recent restrictions.

Buzdar stressed that the safety of citizens lies in implementing the standard operating procedures (SOPs) regarding coronavirus and urged that they must wear masks at the time of going out of their houses. He emphasized that cooperation of citizens is inevitable to curb the spread of coronavirus.

He outlined that severely affected areas due to coronavirus will be sealed in future also. He stressed that life can be protected by leading one’s life with precaution.

collective decisions with due consultations of all stakeholders with regard to coronavirus. He informed that decisions are taken after reviewing situation arising out of coronavirus on daily basis.

He pledged that he will not let decrease in resources regarding protecting lives of the masses and provision of treatment to the patients. He rebuked that those sitting before a laptop for doing photo session had ruined the health department in their respective tenures.

He regretfully remarked that neither any attention was paid on the conditions of the hospitals nor on the rural or basic health units.

He lamented that such elements remained busy earning cheap publicity, displaying show off whereas the masses remained deprived of getting quality treatment.

He condemned if opposition parties had taken practical steps for the betterment of health department then they would not have had to go abroad for their treatment. He deplored that doing propaganda politics is the norm of opposition parties and their leftover credibility have also ended due to projecting negative politics. He urged the opposition leaders to quit point-scoring tactics and regain their senses.

The CM apprised that coronavirus testing capacity has reached 12,000 on daily basis and the number of high dependency units have been increased in the hospitals of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan and other cities.

He asserted that indiscriminate action is ongoing against those elements involved in hoarding and selling coronavirus medicines at high rates across the province.

The CM warned that shortage of medicines or injections will not be tolerated under any circumstance. He deplored that leaders of opposition parties are the torchbearers of doing negative politics and have caused immense loss to the national solidarity and unity on coronavirus pandemic.

He reprimanded that opposition parties strive to create unrest among the nation on coronavirus pandemic and neither they have soothing heart nor a spirit to serve the distressed humanity.

Buzdar condemned that elements which indulged into propaganda by deserting the masses are now bent upon doing oral calculations and those making tall claims are displaying their un-pragmatic as well as impractical designs.

The CM commended that PM Imran took

Coronavirus claims 26 more lives, infects 2,179 more in Sindh KARACHI APP

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Sunday said that 2,179 patients of coronavirus were detected after testing 9,244 samples while 26 more patients lost their lives lifting the death toll to 1,269.

In a statement on Sunday, he said that 9,244 tests were conducted which diagnosed 2,179 more cases that constituted 23.5 per cent detection rate.

He added that so far 435,393 tests had been conducted which detected 80,446 patients and constituted 18.4 per cent detection ratio. The CM said that overnight 26 more patients died lifting the death toll to 1,269 that constituted 1.5 per cent death rate. He said that stemming from Covid-19 Sindh had 48 and 49 deaths on June 17 and 18 respectively which were the highest so far. “We have controlled the death rate by spreading awareness among the people and trying to reduce the death rate further,” he said.

The chief minister said that currently 34,654 patients were under treatment, of them 33,110 in home isolation,

88 at isolation centres and 1,456 at different hospitals.

CM Murad said that at present 655 patients were in critical condition, of them 94 had been shifted onto the ventilators. He prayed for their early recovery.

He said that overnight 1,079 patients recovered and returned to normal life, he said and added the number of patients recovered so far had reached to 44,523 that constituted 55.5 per cent recovery rate.

Out of 2,179 new cases 1,406 detected from six districts of Karachi division, he said, adding that 555 were from East, 358 South, 171 Korangi, 138 Central, 109 West and 75 Malir. He said that Sukkur had 86 new cases, Hyderabad 54, Ghotki 40, Khairpur 38, Jamshoro 26, Mirpurkhas 22, Thatta 19, Larkana 17, Sanghar 14, Naushehroferoze 12, Matiari 12, Shikarpur 12, Shaheed Benazirabad nine, Umerkot eight, Dadu seven, Kashmore and Tando Allahyar three each, Badin and Kambar two each and Jacobabad one. Speaking about the testing capacity, the chief minister said that laboratories established at Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, Gambat and Sehwan

146 inmaTeS, STafferS TeST poSiTive for coronaviruS in SuKKur jaiL SUKKUR: Over 146 inmates and jail staffers on Sunday tested positive for coronavirus in Sukkur Central Jail. According to Sukkur Central Jail authorities, a total of 1,600 tests were conducted, of which 146 tested positive for Covid19. 93 people, out of 146, have recovered from the disease, said authorities.

Those who recovered from coronavirus include 85 prisoners and eight jail staffers. 27 Covid-19 positive prisoners and 26 jail staffers have been isolated and kept in quarantine, added the authorities. Last month, over 200 inmates and nine warders had tested positive for coronavirus in Karachi Central Jail.

Inspector-General of Police (Prisons) Nusrat Mangan has confirmed that over 200 prisoners and nine jail officials, including DSP Jan Muhammad, were diagnosed with Covid-19 at the Karachi jail. He maintained that the Covid-19 positive prisoners have been isolated and kept in quarantine. The police officer said that there were over 3,500 prisoners at the Karachi Central Jail and added that half of them have been screened for the virus. Mangan said that all the prisoners and the jail staff will be tested for the virus. INP

had also started testing from last one month. He added that LUMHS Hyderabad has a capacity of conducting 2,000 tests per day, Syed Abdullah Shah Institute Sehwan 100 test, CMC Larkana lab 100, Gambat Institute 300 and Ghulam Mo-

hammad Maher Medical College, Sukkur 100 tests. “Alhamdullilah, all over Sindh we have developed a capacity of conducting around 12,000 test per day,” he said and added that in Karachi we have maximum capacity of testing samples per day.

PPI

After an interval of some days, the swarms of locusts in millions again attacked crops in various parts of district Shikarpur on Sunday, causing huge loss to the farmers and growers. The locust swarms were also flying over Shikarpur besides devastating the standing crops and green pastures like newly sowed saplings, vegetables, fruits and other crops in several parts of the district. The affected areas were Madeji, Khanpur, Lakhi, Zarkhail, Mian Sahib, Sultankot, Garhiyaseen and its other adjoining localities. A state of panic and fear prevailed among the farming community of district Shikarpur as they found themselves as helpless in pushing away the swarms comprising million in number by adopting local trends like as beating drums and making noise on self-help basis without any support from the agriculture department and other district officials.

Due to the return of locusts, the former community faced a big loss in their fields as the agriculture department and district administration seemed sleeping. The farmers demanded of the agriculture department to conduct spray of locusts through aero-plane so as to minimize loss to the crops.

All resources dedicated for enhancing hospitals’ capacity: Wazir PESHAWAR TLTP

Adviser to the Chief Minister on Information and Public Relations, Ajmal Wazir on Sunday said that all facilities are being provided to the hospitals to deal with Covid-19 patients. The advisor said this during his visit to Khyber Teaching Hospital where he visited various departments of the hospital to inspect the facilities being provided to the corona patients.

Ajmal Wazir reiterated that presently all the resources of the provincial government are dedicated towards enhancing the capacity of the hospitals.

He said that number of HDU and ICU beds for corona patients has been increased, adding they will be increased further by the end of next month.

He applauded efforts of the doctors and medical staff in all the hospitals across the province, working round the clock. Paying tribute to them, the advisor said that the doctors and paramedic staff are nation’s heroes.

He urged the people to take precautionary measures

against the virus, as no vaccine for the virus is available as yet.

Separately, Wazir said that petrol prices are fixed according to the global market and opposition is playing politics on the issue, which is beyond understanding.

Briefing the media persons here at Civil Secretariat, he said that corona has damaged the entire global economy. He said that the political point-scoring in these turbulent times is regrettable and urged the opposition to avoid this practice.

The adviser said that the PML-N and the PPP ruled the country for 30 years and are responsible for the poor economy of the country. He said now the country is on the right track under the leadership of Imran Khan and the opposition is unable to appreciate it.

Wazir said that if the PML-N or the PPP were in government at this time, there would have been no hope for the masses, adding that it is a blessing of God Almighty that the country's premier is Imran in these tough times.

He said that the opposition should do politics but not at the cost of the future of Pakistan.

ICT administration decides to de-seal two sectors ISLAMABAD APP

The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration on Sunday announced desealing of two sub-sectors of the G-9 after imposing smart lock-down in the areas for five weeks to control the coronavirus (Covid-19) spread.

The administration has decided to deseal the residential areas of the sub sectors G-9/2 and G-9/3 immediately, while the commercial areas will be de-sealed from Monday.

The notification issued by the ICT administration said that in exercise of powers conferred under Epidemic Diseases Act, 1958, and after detailed survey, contact tracing, ground surveillance

and testing of suspected individuals, the residential areas of sector G-9/2 & G-9/3 are hereby de-sealed with immediate effect and the commercial areas will be desealed from Monday.

It further said that however, the desealed areas will be regulated by the prevailing orders of Section 144 issued vide No. 1(1) HC (G)-2020 dated 23.03.2020, amended time to time, and in case of any violation of SOPs, strict legal action will be taken against the delinquents under the relevant provisions of law.

Moreover, the Assistant Commissioner (Industrial Area), Islamabad will ensure compliance,” said the notification.

District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Zaeem Zia in his social media message said that in Islamabad, with enhanced

testing the positives are continuously getting lower.

According to the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) 189 positive cases were reported in the previous 24 hours with two more deaths.

The number of Covid-19 cases in the federal city have increased to 12,395 with 122 deaths overall. The number of recovered patients in the city has also improved and reached 6,532.

The DIG (operations) of Islamabad said that sectors G-9/2,3 would be desealed immediately, while commercial areas will be de-sealed from Monday.

Earlier, as the number of novel coronavirus (Covid-19) cases crossed the 10,000 mark, the ICT administration had decided

to seal five more areas of the city in the next 36 hours.

Deputy Commissioner (DC) Hamza Shafqaat had said this in his social media message. The areas include G-6/1, G-6/2, G-10/4, G-7/2 and Ghouri Town.

The DC in his message had stated that “We are about to seal sectors G-6/2, G-6/1, G-10/4, G-7/2 and Ghouri Town in the next 36 hours.

There were more than 40 cases or area in the last few days. There were more than 25 deaths reported and residents were requested to please plan accordingly, he added Lockdown imposed in more sub-sectors of the federal capital has reduced the number of coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in the city, he said.

Transporters increase fares after hike in fuel prices LAHORE INP

Punjab transporters on Sunday increased fares by 20 per cent after the federal government increased the petrol price by Rs25.58 per liter.

Transporters have increased fares for inter-city and intra-city bus travel. Meanwhile, the fares for inter-provincial transport service have been hiked by 15 per cent in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). The fare from Peshawar to Islamabad and Rawalpindi has been increased from Rs300 to Rs400. All Pakistan Goods Transporter Association (APGTA) has also confirmed increase in fares by 10 to 20 per cent after fresh jump in POL rates.

Youngster killed while filming TikTok video in Karachi KARACHI INP

In another shocking incident, a youth in Karachi lost his life while making a video for the highly popular video-sharing social networking platform TikTok. According to police, at least three people were injured after a car smashed into a tree in Karachi’s Korangi area.

All three were recording a video while driving, said police. All three were shifted to hospital but one youth from among them succumbed to his injuries during treatment.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

InterIor MInIstry Moves sC aGaInst sHC’s orders on suGar InquIry report

t

neWS deSK

HE Interior Ministry has moved the Supreme Court (SC) against the Sindh High Court’s (SHC) order stopping the federal government from taking action against those named in the Sugar Inquiry Commission’s report, a local news outlet reported on Sunday.

The inquiry commission’s report had made startling revelations about how the price of sugar is fixed, how exports of the commodity are faked to avail rebates on sales taxes, and how billions of rupees are overcharged by sugar mills owners.

The report had also highlighted that the sugar mills paid an estimated Rs22 billion in taxes to the government, but out of that total amount, Rs12 billion was reclaimed in rebates. Hence, the net contribution was close to around Rs10 billion. The sugar inquiry commission report which came out as a bombshell had been already rejected by opposition party Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), whereas the government has repeated multiple times that it will hold everyone accused of benefiting from the scandal accountable.

The ministry submitted a petition in the

PETITION STATES COURT GAVE RELIEF TO SUGAR MILLS WITHOUT LISTENING TO GOVT, THEREFORE, THE ORDER MUST BE DECLARED NULL AND VOID apex court, stating that the high court gave relief to sugar mills without listening to the government, therefore, the order should be declared null and void as a stay order cannot be issued without listening to both sides.

Citing the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) decision, the petition stated the SHC excluded IHC’s order which had declared that the inquiry commission’s report does not affect the rights of the sugar mills.

The federal government also told the court that the Centre’s stance was that it should be allowed to take action over the inquiry commission’s report.

Earlier this week, the SHC suspended the operation on the inquiry commission’s report to the extent of as many as 20 sugar mills owners in Sindh. The interim order came on the petition of Mirpurkhas Sugar Mills and others, which sought quashing of the inquiry commission’s report.

The petitioners’ counsel submitted that the commission was not properly constituted per the relevant legislation. Besides, the commission included members who were biased and had already made up their minds against the sugar mills as they were members of the earlier inquiry committee constituted for the same purpose.

They submitted during the entire inquiry commission exercise, none of the petitioners were asked for information or clarification regarding the operation and business of their respective sugar mills while the sugar commission made observations against the petitioners, which has harmed the businesses and reputation of the petitioners.

The SHC’s division bench, headed by Justice Omar Sial, inquired the counsel as to how the matter fell within the writ jurisdiction of the SHC as no concrete action had been taken by any department against the petitioners.

The counsel submitted that a perception had been created that all sugar mills are indulging in unlawful activities due to observations made in the inquiry report and ensuing media debates on the subject. They submitted that such a perception had been detrimental to the petitioners’ business and in breach of Article 14 of the Constitution.

They further submitted that two sections of the inquiry report reflected that 10 mills were selected for audit out of which only nine were forensically audited whereas the section 2 of the inquiry report showed that it were only these nine sugar mills which had been forensically examined and these mills did not include the petitioners. The court observed that points raised by the petitioners’ counsel required consideration; however, the court was also cognizant of the fact that sugar crisis was a national issue and the same must be addressed in a short time.

The court issued notices to the federal government, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and others and called their comments on June 30. The court in the meantime also suspended the operation of the inquiry commission’s report to the extent of the petitioners till the next date of hearing.

Joint opposition rejects federal government’s budget for FY21 continued on page 01 Separately, the opposition leaders also held a press conference in islamabad where they made the announcement and presented their resolution. Speaking alongside pML-n’s Khawaja asif and Ji’s Mian aslam, Bilawal said the “united opposition” has rejected the government’s budget and has issued a joint statement in this regard. the ppp, pML-n, Ji, Jui-F, anp, Bnp-M, np, QWp and some of our independent friends in the national assembly have rejected this budget, he said. “this budget has united the people against the government. We had thought that the budget would help protect the people’s economic rights. instead of doing that, it has added to their burden,” Bilawal said, adding that the government’s unexpected decision to increase the prices of all petroleum products by up to nearly Rs26, was an “excellent example of this government’s hypocrisy”.

Responding to a question, Bilawal said that the opposition had played a “responsible role” so far. “When the pandemic hit, we said we will keep partisan issues aside and fight it together. three to four months have passed and this is still our stance, but the prime minister has not taken this seriously. Before the pandemic, he was a threat to our democracy and economy. now, he is a threat to people’s lives and their economic prosperity,” he said. the ppp chief also said that the pti lacked the leadership needed to combat the pandemic. “You need to have an ‘above politics’ view […] the pti doesn’t have such leadership, and citizens are suffering as a result,” he said.

Bilawal also said that leader of the opposition was in contact with all parties despite having the coronavirus. He said that an all parties conference (apc) will be announced as soon as Shehbaz recovers. “even when sick, Shehbaz is making imran sweat,” he said.

He further said that if the government had paid heed to the advice of doctors and other international bodies, the country may have been spared from

covid-19. “the only way to solve the country’s problems is through democracy […] not with selected consensus. as long as imran is premier, we are headed towards disaster,” he added. Representing the pML-n, Khawaja asif reiterated that instead of providing people some relief during this difficult time, the government had added to people’s difficulties. “prime Minister imran Khan has become a national liability. as long as he is the premier, we are headed towards disaster. the sooner we get rid of him, the more chances we have of salvaging the situation,” he said, adding that they will formulate a joint strategy in this regard.

He stated that the manner in which the government’s coalition partners were abandoning ship was a sign that its end was near.

He added that that a government that used state institutions to target the opposition was “cowardly”, adding that it was now time for them to be held accountable. asif said that the opposition will explore all constitutional means to change the government. “there is a need for building consensus within the opposition, which is already there. the pti has a lot [divisions] at the moment, which will become more visible in the coming days,” he added. “[the country] needs a new mandate.”

Ji’s Mian aslam also criticised the government’s ability to address current problems in the budget for the new fiscal year, calling it “unrealistic”.

JOINT RESOLUTION: in the joint resolution, the opposition parties said that that unprecedented challenges merit an unprecedented response but this budget is nowhere close to that. they also said that the fiscal numbers presented by pM imran’s government are not in the least credible, and the “obvious deception” in the budget has started unraveling very quickly under the scrutiny of the opposition. they added that the massive and oppressive increase in petrol prices has laid bare the fact that a series of real mini-budgets will start appearing almost every month. the opposition said that the record high deficits incurred by pM imran’s government in both its years are

more than any deficit ever incurred by the ppp or pMLn and the economic damage has mortgaged pakistan’s future for generations. they criticised the government for its fiscal policies and alleged that “anonymous overseas investors” had been able to make billions at the expense of the people of pakistan. talking about the coronavirus pandemic, the opposition parties said that the government did not provide protection to doctors or health workers and left the people at the mercy of “oxygen mafias”. they also said that instead of a crisis budget, the government presented a “flagrantly dishonest exercise that completely ignores the heartbreaking life-and-death realities on the ground” and instead of increasing development spending that provides jobs to the people, it slashed it. they alleged that the government wants to slowly kill of china-pakistan economic corridor (cpec). about the provinces’ share in the revenue pool, they said that the government did not take the provinces on board and instead of enhancing the percentage of gross domestic product (gdp) spent on health, it “illegally and callously” slashed federal support to the provinces. they also slammed the government’s response to the locust crisis and water emergency. the joint opposition said that the government increase petrol price under “petroleum levy” to avoid sharing revenue with provinces, which further burdens the people and the federating units. they also accused the government of allowing money laundering. they added said that the government also slashed social protection by Rs34 billion and ignored the people of tribal areas and internally-displaced persons (idps), and the budget allocations transferred to non-development sectors and those areas is unknown as the people there do not have access to the internet. they further said that the government did not increase salaries despite the enhanced vulnerability of the people, and they did not adjust minimum wage for inflation, which placed an additional burden on the daily wagers.

NEWS

05

Covid-19 cases surpass 200,000 mark; 4,118 dead so far continued on page 01 Speaking about political commitment in Pakistan to fighting the disease, Dr Mirza said that this was the highest level of uninterrupted political attention to a healthcare issue. Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired the National Coordination Committee (NCC) with all provincial chief ministers as members, he added. The NCOC was established in March with top leadership discussing each aspect of the response thread-bare every day. Pakistan was implementing smart lockdowns rather than a generalised lockdown as the prime minister was cognisant of the financial hardship for around 25 per cent of the population living below the poverty line. Currently, 543 lockdowns are in place across Pakistan, shared Dr Mirza. He added that 35 standard operating procedures (SOPs) had been developed and the public was being educated through a strong risk communication initiative. Strict action was being taken against those who do not adhere to the SOPs, he shared. “We have ramped out our health system to cater to critical cases and done so with unprecedented speed,” Dr Mirza added.

Govt urged to set up interfaith commission to encourage acceptance LaHoRe STAFF REPORT

The government has been urged to set up an interfaith commission to encourage acceptance between faiths and sects. In a statement issued on Sunday, the Interfaith Advisory Commission of Pakistan (IACP) suggested that the proposed commission must address all violent incidents of hatred and bigotry from district to provincial and federal levels and also establish clear and consensus-based recommendations after reviewing the on-ground situation. The advisory body suggested that the police must take advice from the proposed commission before writing First Information Reports (FIR) and before any formal or informal investigation on sensitive issues. It added said that the proposed commission can also submit recommendations before the court after assessment of all religion-based cases.

Allama Shakeelur Rehman Nasir requested the religious scholars and other faith leaders to guide the people as the national economy is challenged by the coronavirus pandemic.

“Currently, approximately everyone is facing financial and health crisis due to coronavirus. We have no other option but to protect ourselves and our neighbourhood,” he said. Dr Masood Mujahid and Allama Kazim Raza also endorsed the setting up of the much-needed commission. “We believe that no one should face hardships due to his or her faith,” they said, adding that the government must realise the valuable contribution and some relief due to the presence of this proposed commission.

A locust a day keeps the doctor away CiTy NOTES Between you and me, I have no intention of being made a shaheed by Insafians, the Tiger Force, or youthias, so I will never mention Osama bin Laden without appending the title shaheed. If Imran wants to call him a shaheed, I will join in, rather than have the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) come after me. You have to get things in perspective. Osama was killed in the same area as Kakul. So, he was probably shaheed, right?

And in the world of Donald Trump, since Osama was killed under Obama, he must have been shaheed.

It also probably meant that Osama was not a corrupt element. Can you imagine Imran extending this courtesy to those whom he is not willing to meet? Of course, it would be nice if they were to so act as to be called shaheed.

Problem is, shuhada have a way of not going away. The Bhutto father and daughter are still around. Of course, Imran may not accept the father as a martyr, out of respect

for the judiciary. But surely, he will accept the daughter?

While Imran was telling the parliament that Osama was a martyr, Zimbabwean President Emerson Mnangagwa was firing Health Minister Obadiah Moyo, who was involved in a covid-19 corruption scandal which included selling the Zimbabwean government with facemasks at $28 a pop. Ad all this during the #BlackLivesMatter campaign. But then, as the example of the people killed by Kenyan police for violating the lockdown showed, the only Black lives that matter are those of American Blacks.

However, while Zimbabwean and Kenyans are denizens of the Third World, First World Citizens are being defrauded over the Internet, especially when they try to buy stuff that is not shown, with the seller alleging that the stuff can’t be shown because of social distancing.

Well, it seems the government has finally decided to pay attention to the problems of the police, by imposing a strict lockdown in areas where cases are spiking. I live in one such area, and it is not possible to get out. I have not found out what departure fee the po-

lice are charging, but I am sure they are compelled by habit to charge such a fee.

But at the same time as we have been locked in, people I know have been dying.

The same day as I learnt of the death of Dr Mughheesuddin, that fine journalism teacher, passed away, I leant of the passing of two more people. All three were because of Covid-19. The former Jamat-e-Islami (JI) chief Munawar Hasan also passed away, and though no one said it, I suspect Covid-19.

Look, survivors do not admit it easily.

There’s a stigma quickly attaching, even though the virus is caught by being sneezed, not any dubious means, like AIDS. You have more people passing away now than ever before, but survivors say the deceased had a heart problem.

Another problem is hospitals not letting you in because you might have Covid-19.

So, you might be having a heart attack right there on the hospital reception floor, but until you show you do not have Covid-19, they would not let you in. And they would not test your corpse either.

In fact, that seems the latest solution to the pandemic. Do not test. Funny, I do not

hear Imran saying that US President Donald Trump got the idea from him. Anyway, whoever thought of it first, both are claiming that higher rates of infection are because of testing. Simple solution: don’t test.

And when people keel over and die, say that it was probably heart disease. The pandemic has been having widespread effects.

The Hajj has been more or less cancelled and is to be performed by just 1,000 people.

The Hajj has been cancelled before, because of epidemics, but I have not heard of such a small Hajj.

And meanwhile, another problem has emerged. Sport is desperate to get back, to the extent of playing before empty stadia. TV rights, ad revenue, all at work, I suspect. But you need players. And though we named a 29-man squad for the cricket tour of England, 10 players tested positive, including at least two players who would be sure for both the Test and T20I teams. The soccer leagues all over Europe are experiencing the same problem, as are US baseball and basketball teams.

And it never rains but it pours. Imran does not have a #BlackLivesMatter problem to accompany the pandemic, probably

because here both police and people assume that #NoLivesMatter and anyone who survives any interaction with the police considers himself lucky. However, he does have to deal with a locust invasion, which Trump does not. There has been a brilliant suggestion, that eating locusts is a cure for Covid-19.

That ranks up there with Trump’s suggestion that drinking bleach would kill any viruses in a person’s throat. That the person might also be affected adversely, was not discussed.

Of course, you cannot get away from Covid-19. Look at the Karachi plane crash.

It seems that the pilot and co-pilot were discussing it on their ill-fated final approach.

And then there was the Jagan Nath Rath Yatra in Odisha, where social distancing was not observed. There was complete silence from the Modi government over this, though its members waxed eloquent over the iniquities of the Tablighi Jamaat, whose Delhi Markaz was fussed over as a hotspot.

Indeed, some members of the BJP were in Odisha, getting Jagan Nath’s blessing, presumably against the virus.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

06 COMMENT

The Face of Prejudice

The pandemic rages on Reliability of figures must be ensured

W

HILe the world saw the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases reach 10 million, Pakistan saw them reach 200,000 on Saturday, while the death toll rose to 4099. The detection of almost 4000 new cases, and the 35 new deaths should act as a check on the self-congratulation that was caused by the recent decline in the number of new cases, which the government opined was because of the ‘smart lockdown’ policy of the government, whereby it imposes a strict curfew-like lockdown only on those parts of a city where there are an increasing number of cases.

At the same time, there has been a reduction in the number of tests conducted, either because of a lack of ability to manage the processing of a larger number of samples, or because of a misguided notion that fewer tests will mean fewer positive cases. Thus, the only indication of as hotspot would be an increase in the number of covid-19 deaths. However, if the deceased had not been tested in life, then the authorities can claim that the death was not part of the pandemic. Such a policy is not only cowardly, but shortsighted, for it does not prevent people from dying. even if there is some sort of social stigma attached to covid-19, the deaths because of it cannot stay concealed, even if they are somehow kept off the books.

The country’s ability to deal with the epidemic, to absorb the shock it is administering, is being compromised, rather than enhanced, by the government’s attempt to avoid testing, which is an essential part of managing the pandemic, whether it through ‘smart lockdowns’ or contact tracing.. The government would actually achieve better results if it stopped trying to be clever and find ways of escaping its responsibilities, and worked on making its proposed solutions work. This includes ensuring accuracy of figures, without which no method can work, because nothing will work unless based on correct information. It is more important to keep its citizens alive than provide the WHO and other international bodies doctored figures. The government must also remember that the sort of contortions it is carrying is the reason why government is not trusted by the people, and it should tell the truth now, lest later even if its truths are treated as falsehoods.

Humayun GauHar

O

ne of the most acute manifestations of prejudice is racism. It reveals the mindset of a person and a large part of the society he or she comes from. They may be very intelligent and witty but their racism is manifest and they have perpetrated untold miseries on people of a race that they thought was inferior.

That shows the basest view of people who think that theirs is a superior race. They don’t stop to think that biologically all humans are the same with similar blood groups, DnA and what have you. It is just their outside look that sets them apart─ their features and the colour of their skin. Truth to tell, white is not pigmentation but the acute lack of it. So coloured people can consider people with lack of pigmentation as inferior. That’s as far as I’ll go otherwise I’m in danger of sounding racist. Suffice it to say, that people are people and that’s the end of it But racism causes Man to inflict untold inhumanity on people with a different look. One such racist was the oh-so-intelligent and witty Winston Churchill, once Prime Minister of Britain. Here are some of his choicest comments about other people: “I do not agree that the dog in a manger has the final right to the manger even though he may have lain there for a very long time. I do not admit that

right. I do not admit for instance, that a great wrong has been done to the Red Indians of America or the black people of Australia. I do not admit that a wrong has been done to these people by the fact that a stronger race, a higher-grade race, a more worldly wise race to put it that way, has come in and taken their place.” The “dog” here are the Palestinians whom Churchill called a “lower manifestation” and advocated the creation of the Israeli State.

Churchill was a product of genocidal British Imperialism at its worst and they have gone and built monuments to him. This man of limited emotion starved four million to death in India in 1943 and has been voted the Greatest Briton of All Time. That’s a grave insult to the British. He boasted that “all who resist” (meaning the Pashtoons) “will be killed without quarter” and that the people of Afghanistan must “recognise the superiority of race.” This about a people who take great pride in their race. He wrote with great relish about the Pashtoon tribesmen who were routinely and summarily executed. Let’s go on. He advocated “self rule” of Afrikaners in South Africa and thus helped plant the seeds of apartheid. About egypt, he said in 1959 “tell them that if we have any more of their cheek, we will set the Jews on them and drive them into the gutter, from which they should never have emerged.”

In 1896, he declared on Cuba, “a grave danger represents itself. Two fifths of the insurgents in the field are negroes. These men…would in the event of success, demand a predominant share in the government…the result being after years of fighting, another Black republic.”

Another racist feather in Churchill’s cap is that he ordered more that 150,000 Kenyans to be put into concentration camps as part of the land grab of fertile highlands in Kenya for white colonial settlers.

Churchill called them “Blackamoors” who were raped, castrated, tortured and burnt. He introduced forced labour, which is slavery by another name. He committed genocide against the Irish, killing hundreds, kidnapping them, beating them and burning down their properties.

Then Churchill ordered the British army to massacre Greek anti-Fascists in Athens in December 1944. In fact, he praised nazi collaborators in Greece

so that he could paint Communists as part of the enemy. About the Afghan campaign in 1897 he said, “We proceeded systematically, village by village, and destroyed the houses, filled up the wells, blew down the towers, cut down the great shady trees, burned the crops and broke the reservoirs in punitive devastation.”

So here we have the Greatest Briton of them All. To compound their shame and embarrassment, the British have erected many statues of him all over the land including one in their Parliament building.

Churchill was a highly prejudiced racist with a great sense of superiority, which is the camouflage for a sense of inferiority. They stole from their colonies, especially from India, with great abandon and thus built a powerful mercantile, industrial complex. I don’t see what the difficulty is in removing his statues except for the fact that re-written history about Churchill has so infected the British mind.

This kind of racism did not end with Churchill.

Today, US President Donald Trump proudly parades it for all to see. He probably hates George Floyd for having the impudence to die under the knee of a white policeman. Or all the Blacks who were killed by White policemen as if the hunting season was at its peak. In fact, I have before me a 1922 State of Missouri “nigger hunting license” that whoever pays the license fee, “is hereby licensed to hunt and kill niggers during the open season hereof in Missouri. This license must be carried on person when hunting niggers and gives the holder permission to hunt day or night with or without dogs.”

This kind of licensing may have lapsed in law but it is still prevalent in the white man’s DnA considering the callous manner in which white policemen wantonly kill African Americans. The reaction has finally come and it is severe and will change America, hopefully for the better. This is what the manifestation of prejudice is all about. not that it is unique to America; it has existed in virtually every part of the world in history but that does not justify it. Man and his society have not progressed a jot and are still victims at least of latent prejudice. I rest my case.

Humayun Gauhar can be reached at: humayun.gauhar786@gmail.com

A salute where it is due

Legal accountability Staring off a debate

The terrorists could not have been beaten without the military

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HILe lawyers are quick to jump in with claims of accountability for other professions, it appears that when the question of their own accountability arises, they close ranks and take refuge behind the principle of the independence of the judiciary. This seemed to be the reason why the Supreme Court Bar Association so roundly criticized the proposed law, which provides for the lifetime revocation of a lawyer’s license to practice if he is found guilty of physical violence against any individual. The SCBA condemned this, claiming that its own accountability mechanisms were strong, and thus the proposal was merely an attempt by the government to get its back on lawyers for backing Mr Justice Qazi Faez Isa of the Supreme Court against the government, which is supposed to have filed a reference against him to the Supreme Judicial Council because of a judgment he had given. His case had been taken to court by lawyers’ organisations, including the SCBA. The problem that the lawyers’ community faces is that it hasn’t made much of a fist at self-accountability.

The attack on the Punjab Institute of Cardiology, in which the hospital was trashed and patients manhandled, has not resulted in any punishment. That was merely a sample. Other incidents have included the beating-up of session court judges in their courtrooms, or strikes against judges who have not given lawyers’ clients bail. Self-accountability is all very well, but as lawyers have to be convicted of assault by judges who are counted as part of the judicial community, or disbarred by the Pakistan Bar Council, which is elected by lawyers, it is difficult to see how lawyers are restrained by anyone or anything.

The proposed legislation should thus be used as an opportunity for the important debate of how to conduct true accountability of both Bench and Bar. It is not that the judicial community alone that needs reform; but someone must take the first step. The Bar should take part, for if it insists on an obdurate insistence on its own perfection, it could end up being reformed without a voice in the process.

moHsin saleemullaH

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heRe are things known, and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors of perception,” said Aldous Huxley, an english writer, and a philosopher in his book The Doors of Perception, which had hit me up with scores of questions linked to real-life incidents happening around us, and which had convulsed my mind for a while. A phone beside me screamed to bring me back to a state of consciousness to answer it to know who had disturbed me, but it was the wavery undertone voice of a book publisher. He once in a week, makes a call to ask whether I would be interested in some new books out in the market. He continued letting me know of the book’s titles, and their renowned authors that are of my interest, but among all was a book of a distinct title Beautiful Colors of a Resilient Nation that struck my attention. To my inquisitive nature, I asked him further about it, and the author, Danish Javed, who seemed relatively a new name in the Pakistani authors list we know so far.

Going through each chapter of the book revealed me a heroic story of our warriors of Pakistan Army, but also others, civilians, who have had sacrificed their lives for a greater cause in their respective fields.

Whilst I continued to read the tale of stories and incidents that were never revealed to us by the media for some reason. And we, in our sheer ignorance remained unbothered about the heart-wrenching facts which would give us an insight into the unknown lives of warriors of Pakistan Army, who lost their lives fighting at the forefront, and facing off other calamities hitting our region, since the Quaid-e-Azam got us independence from India in 1947. Reading between the lines on Pakistan’s tumultuous journey of

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fighting three wars with India, and then down the and officials who had falsely raised our hopes with years of simmering border tensions resulting in mil- their performance in the pre-coronavirus days are itary skirmishes on the frontiers. The later tragic ex- now making excuses for not continuing to perform perience of combating and mopping up terrorism well. Since the outbreak, the situation is quite selfwithin the country could only be done due to the tire- explanatory of their failed strategies to confront the less efforts of the armed forces, along with many un- crisis, and have raised questions on their transparency, as well as the hefty sung civilians, whose embezzlement in developunwavering support, and ments funds at the provinsacrificed lives have made cial level, is much talked me a prouder citizen of a about these days, which is country known as a resilient At such critical times, when why the provincial governnation across the globe. ments and their departFor a long time, critics the government is at a ments are falling short of are busy running after the standstill, and running in the funds, and asking the fedlost cause of demeaning the eral government to allocate services rendered by our state of chaos amid the more on the pretext of comarmed institution, which batting the coronavirus. comes forward to offset the outbreak, the armed forces At such critical times, largescale damage caused when the government is at a by catastrophes from earthhave stepped forward to standstill, and running in the quakes in the year 2005 to prevent crisis further state of chaos amid the outfloods in Sindh, and now the break, the armed forces have coronavirus pandemic gripdeteriorating the situation, stepped forward to prevent ping the country, but the list goes on. International through their senior officials, crisis further deteriorating the situation, through their media, and media from the and other associated senior officials, and other hostile neighbors aren’t institutions of happy with Pakistan Army, institutions of Pakistan army, associated Pakistan army, who are out which has been asked by the to serve this nation, not for a government to have their who are out to serve this base salary of a few thoumain support to support the nation, not for a base salary sand rupees to give up their government in running the lives, and future, but for country smoothly. Moreof a few thousand rupees to their commitment, and with over, at the provincial levthe spirit to save millions of els, district administration give up their lives, and precious lives by comprofolks sitting in their spamising their own in the line cious offices, though visitfuture, but for their of their duty. This what ing fields as well- for whom commitment, and with the makes me recall Abraham we have an equal respect, Lincoln’s quote “Commithave begun spamming twitspirit to save millions of ment is what transforms a ter with photos of them perpromise into a reality.” I forming their duties. And precious lives by salute, every member of the additionally, trying to make compromising their own in Pakistan Army, be it a solthe analogy between their dier who is standing at the salary structures, and prothe line of their duty world’s deadliest border, posed budget with that of Line of Control (LOC), and armed forces. This new dethe families of the martyred bate on social media and rearmy officials, who lost their questing writers to initiate a discourse on so-called discrimination done with the lives in the hope of saving us, and our future generacivil service members is quite trending these days, tions. but through personal messages only.

Mohsin Saleem Ullah is a freelance writer who I’ve failed to understand that why aren’t we done with propaganda against a few institutions, holds an LLM, in business law from UC Berkeley, which are the only ones left working transparently, reports for The Fox News Digital in Pakistan. he can and that too with some professional responsibility. be reached at mohsin.saleemullah@berkeley.edu or The current crisis has pierced the veil of ministries, @MohsinSaleemu.

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Monday, 29 June, 2020

COMMENT 07 Editor’s mail Send your letters to: Letters to editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Animal cruelty is common these days PeOPLe are badly barbarous and this is happening everywhere, in every spot and in every nook and cranny. Mercilessly Killing dogs,elephants etc Let’s look at a common example of Donkeys Donkeys are the highly abused animal in our county. People forget while putting down the burdens on carts tightened on their back that they also breathe and exist and the difference is they can not and we can speak.

They forget that they’ll make him kill if they make him carry heavy weight things. Islam forbids us from treating animals cruelly or killing them except for food and this is most illicit in humanity for hurting them.

Once holy prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) chastised his followers for mistreating animals and spoke to him about mercy and kindness. And said: “May the curse of Allah be on the person who treats animals harshly.”

People all should have to do is acknowledge that animals have basic rights that aren’t followed in Pakistan and in other countries as well.

Stop treating them as a non-living thing!

ARIFA SAeeD TUNIo Larkana

Online payments to FPSC

Tackling white collar crime a national imperative Antigraft bodies should be unified moHib asad

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He erasure, or at least a minimization, of corruption in the body-politic of the country has been a declared agenda by all political parties, is a dream of the public, and the desire of all right-thinking citizens. All governments in this country starting from Gen Ayub Khan in the 1960s have attempted to curb the menace in their own way, and according to their own understanding of the scene. One common thread running through as a single strand is that the bulk of corruption and corrupt practices is what is termed White Collar Crime (WCC) Most suspects of this typology of crime belong to the higher economic classes, and possess several white shirts worn with lounge suits. So, for ease of classification, criminologists have coined the term WCC. Criminologists treat WCC as part of the broader category termed Organized Crime.

Hundreds of detailed studies and research have identified a model of whitecollar criminality. It is an operation planned by one person, who puts together a group of informed people to assist him in skimming off funds from the public or the private sector. As opposed to other forms of organized crime, violence does not figure in WCC to a significant level, although this may not always be the case. The model of choice is: WCC needs a single leader who has business connections with government, the judiciary, and the law enforcement apparatus. The organizer has a second tier who plan the operations ordered by the leader, using a third tier of operatives who do the day-to-day chores. The third tier generally does not know the leader.

WCC always preys on large sums of money, the lion’s share going to the leader. The organizer has personal influence with senior functionaries who run the criminal justice system through graft or sharing of profit.

WCC is also sometimes classified as a ‘victimless crime’, as the economic loser of one of these crimes is not aware that he has been robbed merely for being an unsuspecting citizen.

Thus when a politician, a bureaucrat, or a banker, skims off billions from an international tender for construction of a dam, you and I have no knowledge of the event as these matters are purposely kept opaque from the hoi polloi. Only the major actors in the scam know the details.

The real victim, the taxpayer, is an ignorant bystander. no victim to register a case—-so a ‘victimless crime’!

Due to the global village we live in now, with the Internet spanning all corners of the globe, WCC is now a trans-national offence. The steep rise in money laundering was noted with alarming concern by the international community in the last quarter of the 1900s. The result

was the Un Convention against Corruption said, foreign investment does not go to countries (UnCAC) of 2005. Pakistan is a signatory and which rank high on the international corruption has since ratified this treaty. The UnCAC is index. Pakistan is at number 120 out of a total largely concerned with WCC, money laundering of 180 countries studied by the Transparency International during 2019. This unhappy state couand terrorist financing.

The extent of world-wide corruption was pled with the highly unstable government that highlighted by the Secretary-General of the we have today does not augur well for the econUnited nations, when on 9 December 2018, in omy. To deal with the post-covid19 era, we need his message on the global Anti-corruption day, to improve our agricultural and industrial posihe said that around $3.6 trillion were being stolen tion. The local businessman invests in other or given in bribes each year. Most of this bleed- countries like the UAe, Sri Lanka, and as far ing, which amounts to around five % of the away as Vietnam. He earns windfall profits here global GDP, happens in developing countries. and promptly transfers the non-tax paid wealth The Secretary-General said that “It robs societies for profit abroad.

Therefore we need to improve our position of schools, hospitals and other vital services, drives away foreign investment and strips nations in the Transparency list. Irrespective of all the of their natural resources”. This is happening in criticism of international standards bodies like Moody’s, S&P, the WB, the IMF and so on as Pakistan on a daily basis —and flagrantly.

The UnCAC had suggested that there being inimical to Pakistan, the fact is that we are should be only one single anti-corruption agency a country with a heavily indebted and poor govin the member states, which can then work with ernment. In this global village we have to swim in fairly infested waters. other members in the But for sure we need to area of mutual legal break this downward aid. The nAB existed economic spiral, and at the time of signing of the best way is to imthe UnCAC treaty by Unless we clean up our act, prove our WCC figures us, and logically all let’s be prepared to go hat in of conviction in courts. provincial anti-corrupThe general public tion departments hand to the IMF for a perception is that alshould have been though Imran Khan is brought under its sixteenth bail-out in three trying his very best to purview. This was not years’ time. By then the live up to his electoral done due to obvious of eradication political pressure. At dollar will be worth Rs 200, if promises of corruption in the nathe moment, there are tion, he is being thwarted myriad agencies dealpresent trends continue by investigators, proseing with WCC and afcutors, and the courts. Of filiated offences. these three organs of the Over the last two law enforcement system, decades, hundreds of cases have been registered with the nAB, FIA, the most blame is being placed at the courts’ door. and the provincial anti-corruption departments. It is said that of all the scores of charge-sheets in Although the conviction rate is low, yet hundreds court which are being vigorously followed by prosof accused persons have been jailed, and billions ecutors, the courts tend to go soft on the accused recovered in cash and property. Yet, the image of for small lapses on the part of prosecutors, and the agencies responsible for putting down corrup- technical legal glitches.

This public perception may or may not be tion is low in the public mind. Partly it is due the inordinate delay which is observed in the disposal true, but it fits in very well with the criminologof cases against high-profile politicians, and partly ical model of WCC enunciated above. Unless because the agencies do not publicize their good we clean up our act, let’s be prepared to go hat in hand to the IMF for a sixteenth bail-out in work; only get blamed for not doing enough.

I have had a life-long immersion in this as- three years’ time. By then the dollar will be pect of law enforcement, both as a trained crim- worth Rs 200, if present trends continue. not a inologist with a postgraduate degree in the very pleasant scenario─ except of course for the subject from the UK, and as a career police offi- economic mafias running WCC so efficiently for cer. I know the complex highways and byways their personal benefit.

The state of Pakistan is in peril. Accountaof this interesting crime, but the purpose of this article is not to point fingers or allocate praise bility can be the oxygen to revive a faltering or blame. Officers posted in these agencies know economy. Without financial vigour, defense, sewhere the shoe pinches, and conspiracies curity and governance will each suffer. Miniabound, and the complexities of their day to day mization of WCC is an absolute imperative. work. My purpose in this writing is different.

Mohib Asad is a freelance columnist As the Un Secretary-General quoted above

AS the world is changing at a mind-boggling pace and so should fpsc.Waiting for hours in the Queues of nBP to deposit fee for a post is outdated.This pandemic changed the life style of many and people realized that much can be done through technology.

On my visit to the bank i realised that the place was more crowded than usual. Majority was of young boys and girls, having the same printed paper, upon enquiring i came to know that these are young unemployed gratuates depositing a fee of 300 for a post recently advertised. Looking at those SOP following graduates packed into queues, with an uncertainty of the future on their faces and high hopes in their glittering eyes was a grim picture of an antiquated system.As the famous saying goes ‘necessity is the mother of invention’ and at the moment their is a need to transform the way people interact.This month even our milk man refused to take cash and asked me to transfer it online. He told me that this way record keeping of every house is easy and helps in curbing the transmission of corona.so why cant our federal recruiting agency?

Kppsc has set the precedent , One can apply through its very user friendly online portal And pay the fee through jazz cash or epaisa. The fpsc must take the responsibility with alacrity and provide some ease to the unemployed youth.

SALAL AMJAD Charsadda

How to boost immunity THeSe days COVID-19, SOPs, & government policies are the talk of the town, but no one is paying heed to how to boost immunity. In these most traumatic days when we are facing a dangerous and deadly virus we should eat food which has vitamin C to boost our immune system. Vitamin C helps to increase white blood cells that play a role of catalyst to fight infections. We should eat an egg daily in our breakfast because it has Vitamin e that the body needs for proper immune functioning. One can use lemon juice in salad because it is also a good source of Vitamin C, drink plenty of water, eat citrus fruits, broccoli, garlic, ginger, spinach, yogurt, almonds etc. However, excess consumption of red meat, sugar and low fiber food adversely impacts our immune system. Most of us are reluctant to eat green chilies because they are not well in taste, but you will be amazed to know that it contains more vitamin c than lemons. So, we must make green chilies as a part of our diet. Why is it necessary to eat all these things because our body does not store vitamin c so we should eat healthy to fight the ongoing deadly virus and to continue good health.

AFIA IRShAD TUNIo Karachi

Ope book exams OPen-BOOK exams allow you to take notes, texts or resource materials into an exam situation. Main purpose of this test is to find your Level of reasoning , diversity of information and power of knowledge.This type of examination is a better option for Universities in this condition of lockdown. Online papers of different problems or questions can be uploaded to a relevant platform and then allow the students to re-uploaded after solving the questions within time limit.The questions should be of mix category, some questions of the relevant subject and others should be of general IQ level Problems.Open-book exams test your ability to quickly find relevant information and then to understand, analyse, apply knowledge and think critically. exams of this type don’t test your memory only but test also your ability to find and use information for problem solving, and to deliver well-structured and well-presented arguments and solutions.The style of question depends on the Level of degree and subject.

Probably the biggest misconception about open-book exams is that there is no need to study. You should study just as you would for any other exam.So that you would become able to apply it effectively.

SAQIB IShAQ Azad Kashmir

Load shedding THIS is to draw the attention of the concerned authorities to the highlighted problem of shortage of electricity in District Shikarpur. It creates a headache and miserable life for citizens including educated students who are anxious to study in the schools owing to the power load-shedding. The daily routine of load-shedding is 14 to 16 hours in a day.

I am beseeching the higher authorities kindly look into the matter and take stern / immediate action against relevant authorities and resolve it as soon as possible.

ZAMIR AhMeD MeMoN Shikarpur

Monday, 29 June, 2020

08 WORLD VIEW

Putin’s new nuclear doctrine RCD

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Mark B Schneider

n June 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued an edict on “On the foundations of state policy in the field of nuclear deterrence.” This is a first because the previous versions of this document were classified and previous unclassified Russian written doctrinal pronouncements on nuclear weapons use at the Presidential level were part of longer documents on military doctrine. notwithstanding the significance of Putin’s new edict, there are major inconsistencies in the new document. Moreover, Putin is making unprecedented (for a doctrinal document) nuclear first use threats while simultaneously denying Russia’s policy provides for such a course of action.

Putin’s decree represents a major, but incomplete, victory for the hardline faction in the Russian military who support the first use of nuclear weapons and want to talk about it in public. Major General (ret) Vladimir Dvorkin commented that the purpose of the edict was to “…force him [President Trump] to agree to the extension of the 2012 new START treaty.” While there is no logical reason nuclear threats should “force” a U.S. President to extend a seriously flawed arms control treaty, the Russian default mode is if Russia does not like what is going on in the world, it resorts to making nuclear threats. Still, while it is unusual for Russia to combine doctrinal statements and nuclear targeting threats, it is not unprecedented. In July 2014, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made a nuclear threat relating to Crimea by referencing Russia’s nuclear doctrine. Ironically, the unclassified 2010 version of the Russian nuclear doctrine (in effect until Putin’s June 2020 decree) would not apparently apply to Crimea since the loss of Crimea, which was not Russian territory to begin with, would hardly destroy the Russian state, which was supposedly the basis of their announced policy. The reason was that Russia’s 2010 pronouncement on nuclear weapons first use, which was presented as a new limitation on first use, was a deception. Even at the time, it was announced (February 2010), Colonel General Sergei Ivanov, then-Deputy Prime Minister and formerly Defense Minister, said, “In terms of hypothetical use of nuclear weapons by Russia, the new Military Doctrine does not differ from the one that was signed in 2000.” Indeed, in February 2015, Ilya Kramnik, the long-time military correspondent for an official Russian news agency RIA novosti, wrote that the 2010 revision of Russia’s military doctrine “further lowered” the threshold of “combat use” of nuclear weapons.

According to Olga Oliker, Program Director, Europe and Central Asia, Crisis Group, Brussels, we are supposed to “rejoice” over Putin’s new edict because before this it was necessary to “…piece together Moscow’s positions and intentions from components of other documents (most notably a line or two in the country’s military doctrine statements from officials, exercises, force structure and the writings of Russia’s own specialists and strategists…)” While I see no reason to rejoice over the Putin decree, Ms. Oliker is correct insofar that it was necessary to piece together Russian nuclear strategy from these sources, however, it is rather amazing that she omits statements by senior U.S. civilian and military leaders, intelligence officials, the content of official reports and declassified intelligence reports on nuclear first use from her list of sources. The problem is that for two decades, Minimum Deterrence advocates and their apologists in the “expert” community for Russian nuclear first use policy ignored almost all of these sources. The only good news in Putin’s decree is that it is now more difficult for Russia’s apologists to continue to ignore the fact that Russia plans on nuclear weapons first use in circumstances that no Western leader would even consider using them. However, they will certainly try.

Significantly, it is imperative to point out that Russian nuclear doctrine has not been consolidated in one place. There are obviously classified and highly classified aspects of Russian nuclear doctrine that are not in the Putin decree. There is a separate published Presidential directive that deals with naval nuclear weapons policy in the context of escalation. There are Defense Ministry documents that deal with Russian nuclear weapons use policy. One of the most important of these is the 2003 publication, “The Priority Tasks of the Development of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation,” which announced Russia’s nuclear escalate to deescalate policy stating, “De-escalation of aggression is forcing the enemy to halt

THE ONLY GOOD NEWS IN PUTIN’S DECREE IS THAT IT IS NOW MORE DIFFICULT FOR RUSSIA’S APOLOGISTS TO CONTINUE TO IGNORE THE FACT THAT RUSSIA PLANS ON NUCLEAR WEAPONS FIRST USE IN CIRCUMSTANCES THAT NO WESTERN LEADER WOULD EVEN CONSIDER USING THEM military action by a threat to deliver or by the actual delivery of strikes of varying intensity with reliance on conventional and (or) nuclear weapons.” In the same year, Alexei Arbatov, Vice Chairman of the Duma Defense Committee and head of the International Security Center within the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of World Economy and International Relations, said Russia had put more emphasis on tactical nuclear weapons “…although a selective first strike with strategic nuclear forces also is possible.”

In 2009, Russia announced that it was classifying its nuclear doctrine, including its plans for a pre-emptive nuclear attack. In August 2009, prominent Russian journalist Colonel (ret.) nikolai Litovkin wrote that the Russian nuclear first use provision would be in the closed part of the new military doctrine and further maintained that, “Russia has recognized for itself the right to the preventive employment of nuclear weapons should we be attacked by some military bloc (like nATO).” In late December 2009, less than two months before the publication of the unclassified version of the new military doctrine in February 2010, Alexei Arbatov said, “Russia’s new draft military doctrine drawn up by a Russian Security Council commission contains a preemptive nuclear strike concept.” In September 2014, General of the Army (ret.) Yuriy Baluyevskiy, former Chief of the General Staff and First Deputy Defense Minister, who developed the 2010 revision of Russia's nuclear doctrine when he was Deputy Secretary of the Russian national Security Council, stated that the "… conditions for pre-emptive nuclear strikes… is contained in classified policy documents.”

Thanks to Putin’s decree, we now know that Russian state-run RT (formerly Russia Today) and the independent Interfax news agency were accurate when they both reported Russian nuclear doctrine allows for nuclear weapons first use “…if the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Russian Federation are under threat.” (Emphasis in the original). Paragraph 4 of Putin’s 2020 decree states, “The state nuclear deterrence policy is of a defensive nature and is directed at supporting the capabilities of nuclear forces at a level sufficient to ensure nuclear deterrence and to guarantee the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state and to deter a potential adversary from aggression against the Russian Federation and (or) its allies in the event of the emergence of armed conflict by preventing the escalation of military activities and ending them on conditions acceptable to the Russian Federation and (or) its allies." In 2008, General of the Army Yuriy Baluyevskiy threatened preventive nuclear war using these criteria: “We do not intend to attack anyone, but we consider it necessary for all our partners in that to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Russia and its allies, military forces will be used, including preventively, including with the use of nuclear weapons.” A threat to sovereignty and territorial integrity may represent a still unannounced condition for Russia’s nuclear first use. If so, it is potentially very permissive because of its ambiguity. Both concepts could have more than one meaning.

ANNOUNCED CONDITIONS FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS USE: Putin’s decree contains four announced conditions for nuclear weapons use, all of which involve first use of a nuclear weapon. It states: The conditions which determine the possibility for the use by the Russian Federation of nuclear weapons are: a) the receiving of creditable information concerning the launch of ballistic missiles attacking the territories of the Russian Federation and (or) its allies; b) the use by an enemy of a nuclear weapon or other types of weapons of mass destruction against the territories of the Russian Federation and (or) its allies; c) enemy actions against critically important state or military facilities of the Russian Federation, the disablement of which will lead to a disruption of retaliatory operations of the nuclear forces; d) aggression against the Russian Federation involving the use of conventional weaponry, which threatens the existence of the state itself.

According to Olga Oliker, “Some of this is old. But two things are new or newish.

First is the clear statement that Russia can launch under warning of a ballistic missile attack. This is in line with Putin’s statements, but still notable to see in a formal document.

Second, is the equally clear statement that an attack (military or otherwise) on Russia’s nuclear, command and related infrastructure, broadly defined, justifies a nuclear response.

This has been a matter of speculation and often assumed to be true. now it's confirmed." This is not completely accurate. Her later statement that "First use is allowed only in case of existential threat: to Russia or to its deterrent” is inaccurate. All four of Putin’s announced conditions allow for nuclear weapons first use. Paragraph 19 (A), (B) and (C) all contain conditions for nuclear weapons first use that are lower than even what appeared in the most alarming of the open-source reports concerning Russian willingness to use nuclear weapons first.

The most important revelation of paragraph 19 is that what was supposed to be a limitation on Russia first use of nuclear weapons adopted in the 2010 edition of the Presidential document on Russia military doctrine (paragraph 19 [D] in Putin’s decree), the existential threat criteria, was just one of several “conditions determining the possibility of the use of nuclear weapons by the Russian Federation…” Launch under attack is hardly new and is actually part of some of Russia’s narratives for Russia’s large strategic exercises, but not in the extreme form of the Putin decree. Similarly, “…the equally clear statement that an attack (military or otherwise) on Russia’s nuclear, command and related infrastructure, broadly defined, justifies a nuclear response,” was hidden by Russia for a long time but it is not new. In September 2017, Colonel General (ret.) Viktor Yesin, former Commander of the Strategic Missile Force, said, “Our military doctrine says that even a conventional attack on our nuclear installation will be considered the start of a nuclear war that will entail a massive nuclear retaliatory strike.

That’s why no one will ever risk attacking a nuclear arsenal with conventional weapons.”

He was not speculating but reporting fact.

The formulation just released by Putin goes beyond conventional attacks and includes nuclear command and control facilities, which General Yesin did not mention. Thus, this could be an evolution of Russian doctrine lowering the nuclear use threshold. Alternatively, General Yesin may merely have spoken about only part of what was in their closed military doctrine.

There are a number of important aspects of the newly released language. First, as noted Russian journalist Pavel Felgenhauer pointed out, the Russian formulation is consistent with a nuclear response “possibly even [to] single missile launches…” This would be while the type of warhead on the missile or missiles is unknown. Second, the condition of a nuclear response to “other types of weapons of mass destruction…" is broader than the three previous formulations, which spoke specifically about chemical and biological attack. This is clearly a change in declaratory policy. Third, the use of “nuclear forces” rather than “strategic nuclear forces” in the provision related to nonnuclear attacks on nuclear and command and control facilities (paragraph 19 [C]) opens up the possibility of a nuclear response to a non-nuclear attack on a vast number of Russian military facilities, airbases, naval ships and Army bases and units.

This is because dual capability (conventional and nuclear capability) is almost universal in Russia. The Russians are trying to effectively use the threat of nuclear escalation to negate our conventional and cyber capabilities. If they impose this targeting constraint upon us, we lose the war.

Moreover, there may well still be undisclosed conditions for Russian use of nuclear weapons as reported in the Russian press, including state media. In March 2020, staterun Sputnik news said that Russian nuclear doctrine provided for nuclear first use “…in response to large-scale conventional aggression.” This is clearly a lower use threshold than the official formulation of aggression that “threatens the existence of the state itself.” Russian press reporting of nuclear

weapons policy different than the official line on nuclear strategy goes back to the very start of the Putin era. noted Russia expert Stephen Blank writes that in 1999 there were Russian press reports that said that in the classified documents, Russia reserved the right for a nuclear response to conventional attacks on Russian nuclear forces or a ground invasion of Russian territory. Thus, we have evidence that Putin’s Paragraph 19 (C) condition goes back to 1999.

The 1999/2000 Putin nuclear doctrine provided for nuclear weapons first use in “situations critical to the national security of the Russian Federation and its allies.” Alexei Arbatov and fellow Duma Deputy Petr Romashkin suggested that under Putin’s nuclear doctrine, Russian first use of nuclear weapons would be appropriate in response to contingencies like nATO’s past military action in Kosovo. In 1999, then Colonel General Vladimir nikolayevich Yakovlev, then-Commander of the Strategic Missile Force, stated that “The need for Russia’s orientation toward expanded nuclear deterrence, which means including not only nuclear and wide-scale conventional wars, but also regional and even local military conflicts in the sphere of interests of the RVSn [ICBM force] and Strategic nuclear Forces as a whole, is because of a number of objective reasons.” In October 2009, nikolay Patrushev, the Secretary of Russia’s national Security Council, revealed, “We have corrected the conditions for use of nuclear weapons to resist aggression with conventional forces not only in large-scale wars, but also in regional or even a local one….There is also a multiple-options provision for use of nuclear weapons depending on the situation and intentions of the potential enemy.

‘In a situation critical for national security, we don’t exclude a preventive nuclear strike at the aggressor.’” (Emphasis in the original). In October 2009, then-Russian Ambassador to nATO Dmitry Rogozin said, “Russia’s main threat is now coming from territorial and local conflict. So the country is developing a compact, mobile force with state-of-the-art flexible nuclear weaponry.”

(Emphasis in the original). Provisions related to the use of nuclear weapons in local war apparently are in the classified part of Russia’s nuclear doctrine.

RUSSIAN NUCLEAR DE-ESCALATION OF A WAR: Olga Oliker is still beating a dead horse about "escalate to deescalate" not being Russian nuclear strategy. Despite her statement about having to look at multiple sources, she argues that “… the combination of paragraphs four and 15 [of the Putin 2020 decree] may be understood as follows: Russia will use nuclear weapons only under the conditions delineated in paragraph 19. That is to say, it will not use them for simple battlefield advantage or to ‘escalate to deescalate.’ First use is allowed only in case of existential threat: to Russia or to its deterrent.” This is not a valid legal analysis. It discards two of the four conditions in paragraph 19 ([A] and [B]). As I have suggested above, paragraph 4 may be an unrevealed condition for nuclear first use, as General Baluyevskiy stated in 2008.

Ms. Oliker ignores the evidence that we have with regard to Russia’s introducing nuclear weapons in regional war exercises

where there is clearly no “existential threat: to Russia or to its deterrent.” Indeed, nikolai Sokov, who she approvingly quotes, wrote in 2014 that "…all large-scale military exercises that Russia conducted beginning in 2000 featured simulations of limited nuclear strikes." In 2016, nATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Russia “simulated nuclear attacks on nATO Allies (eg, ZAPAD) and on partners (e.g., March 7 2013 simulated attacks on Sweden) …”

Sweden hardly poses an existential threat to Russia or its nuclear deterrent. In 2017, thenDIA Director Lieutenant General Vincent Stewart, said Russia is “the only country that I know of that has this concept of escalate to terminate or escalate to deescalate but they do have that built into their operational concept, we’ve seen them exercise that idea and it’s really kind of a dangerous idea…” He also said that he had seen no evidence that this policy was changing. The “Hard-core believers in ‘escalate to deescalate’” include not only the 2018 nuclear Posture Review report but the senior political and military leaders of the Obama and the Trump administrations, the Obama administration’s Defense Science Board, the Obama administration’s national Intelligence Council and the november 2018 report of the Commission on the national Defense Strategy for the United States.

There is nothing in Putin’s 2020 decree that indicates that his 2017 decree on the Russian navy is still not Russian policy. The content of the 2017 decree contradicts Ms. Oliker’s assertion that Russia will not use nuclear weapons “…for simple battlefield advantage or to 'escalate to deescalate.'” The July 2017 Putin decree on the Russian navy said, "During the escalation of military conflict, demonstration of readiness and determination to employ nonstrategic nuclear weapons capabilities is an effective deterrent," and the, "Indicators of the effectiveness of measures undertaken to execute the State Policy on naval Operations are:….b) the capability of the navy to damage an enemy's fleet at a level not lower than critical with the use of nonstrategic nuclear weapons."

In 2016, Ambassador Steven Pifer pointed out, "The 'de-escalation' doctrine, Putin's references to nuclear weapons in his public statements, and the broad modernization of Russia's nonstrategic nuclear forces suggest that the classified strategy could envisage use of those weapons in wider circumstances." Indeed, a 2011 RAnD Corporation report by James T. Quinlivan and Olga Oliker, warned that Russia might, “…remove what it might interpret as threats to the survival of the state (its own or an ally’s) with small nuclear attacks that promise both definite effects on the battlefield and ‘de-escalation of military actions’.” Ms. Oliker got it right then except that the threshold for first use of nuclear weapons is lower than the survival of the state.

Dr. Mark B. Schneider is a Senior Analyst with the National Institute for Public Policy. Before his retirement from the Department of Defense Senior Executive Service, Dr. Schneider served in a number of senior positions within the Office of Secretary of Defense for Policy. He also served in the senior Foreign Service as a Member of the State Department Policy Planning Staff.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

BUSINESS 09

Closure of cargo sheds on weekends hampering supply of medicine, medical equipment, says FBR ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in a letter written to the aviation secretary has requested that air freight units and cargo sheds at airports be kept operational on Saturdays to ensure unhindered supply of medicine and medical equipment in the country during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The letter was written by Customs Operation Member Tariq Huda to Aviation Secretary Hassan Nasir Jammy which suggested the opening of air freight units and cargo sheds at the airports, especially at Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, on Saturdays in order to provide relief to the general public.

Currently all sea ports,terminal-operators, dry ports and Pakistan Customs remain operational on Saturdays for handling of import and export cargo. However, air freight units and cargo sheds at airports remain closed on Saturdays which decreases revenue and slows down the clearance and supply of medicines and medical equipment to the general public during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Uber's Middle East business Careem sees ride-hailing recovery next year DUBAI AGENCIES

Careem, a unit of Uber Technologies, expects ride-hailing demand to recover to pre-pandemic levels “sometime” in 2021, encouraged by a better-than-expected pickup as countries started to ease coronavirus-related curbs. “It’s been a tough couple of months,” Careem Chief Executive Mudassir Sheikha told Reuters on Sunday. “It’s really anyone’s guess. We have planned for a recovery (in ridehailing) sometime next year but ... the recovery has begun and the recovery has been faster already than our initial projections.” The company, which primarily operates in the Middle East, has seen its overall business, which also includes delivery services such as take-away food, recover at an almost double-digit rate week-on-week over the past two months as countries eased restrictions, he said. “I’m actually quite bullish on the rest of the year and the next few years as a result of some of the restrictions that were put on our movement and the growth it led to in the adoption of digital platforms.” Dubai-headquarterd Careem will fasttrack plans to add more features to its ‘Super App’ that has expanded to also include some payment services. It announced on Sunday it had signed a multi-year agreement with Visa that will see Visa push payment services become available through the app. Careem, which was bought by Uber last year for $3.1 billion, shed nearly a third of its workforce as a result of the pandemic, laying off 536 staff.

“We did a lot of things in our business in the last three months that now position us well for any future disruptions were they to come,” Sheikha said.

Taxpayers urge FBR to extend Tax Amnesty Scheme till December 31 ISLAMABAD TLTP

A larger number of taxpayers have urged the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to extend the last date of Tax Amnesty Scheme 2019 to December 31, 2020. According to an application sent to the Prime Minister Imran Khan through the Citizen Portal, taxpayers who declared assets under the Amnesty Scheme, urged the authorities to ease the burden on businesses and individuals who are battling the economic effects of Covid-19. Earlier Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh also sought extension in the date arguing that businesses across all segments are in distress and facing huge financial losses due to the disruptions in business activities. The FBR on the other hand had earlier clarified that the due date for payment of outstanding taxes under the Asset Declaration Scheme 2019 will not be extended beyond June 30, 2020.

OGRA iSSUES 63 LPG LiCEnCES in FiRST ninE MOnThS OF FY20 ISLAMABAD APP

O

IL and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has issued around 63 licences of varying nature for the promotion of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) industry in the country during the first nine months of the current fiscal year.

From July 2019 to March 2020, the gas regulatory authority issued one operational licence for LPG storage terminal, three for setting up of LPG air-mix plants, 35 for construction of LPG storage and filling plants and 18 for the operation of LPG storage and filling plants, according to Economic Survey 2019-20.

FROM JULY 2019 TO MARCH 2020 THE LPG SECTOR ATTRACTED AROUND RS3.72 BILLION IN INVESTMENT During the period under review, the LPG sector attracted approximately Rs3.72 billion investment in supply and distribution infrastructure, which shows investors’ confidence in business-friendly policies introduced by the government.

In addition, OGRA also granted three licences for the construction of LPG auto refueling stations and three operational permits for LPG auto refueling stations.

“OGRA has simplified the procedure for grant of LPG licence, which is now granted on a fast- track basis once the requirements are fulfilled,” the survey report said.

Currently, as many as 11 LPG producers and 200 LPG marketing companies are operating in the country, with more than 7,000 authorised LPG distributors.

The current size of the LPG market is around 1,061,447 Metric Tonnes (MT) per annum, while the commodity supply during the nine-month period stood at 739,785 MT. Around 76 percent of the LPG consumed is met through local production, whereas the rest is imported. Till March 2020, as many as 52 LPG equipment manufacturing companies were registered with the authority.

FBR begins stocktaking of OMCs NEWS DESK The Federal Board of Revenue has begun stocktaking of Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) after the government increased petrol prices by Rs25.58 on Friday, after concerns arose that OMCs may be able to evade taxes due by underreporting sales.

According to a report published by The News, petroleum companies and refineries have been directed to provide details of their stock till June 25. In addition, they have also been directed to provide invoices issued against unrealised supplies prior

to the price hike.

According to the report the OMCs might report higher sales at lower prices or report inventory losses due to the price petroleum price hike in a bid to evade taxes.

Earlier on Friday, the government announced that it will increase petroleum prices due to the increase in oil prices in the international market.

According to a press release issued by the Finance Division on Friday, the price of petrol has been increased by Rs25.58 to Rs100.10 per litre from its previous level of Rs74.52 per litre.

Similarly, Price of High-

Speed Diesel (HSD) has been increased by Rs21.13 to Rs101.46 per litre, from its previous level of Rs80.15 per litre.

Moreover, the price of Light Diesel Oil (LDO) has been increased by Rs17.84 to Rs55.98 per litre, from its previous level of Rs38.14 per litre.

Similarly, the price of Superior Kerosene Oil (SKO), has been increased by Rs23.50 to Rs59.06 per litre, from its previous level of Rs35.56 per litre.

Earlier on May 31, the government had reduced the price of petrol by Rs7.6 per liter in response to decrease in international oil prices.

180,000 foreign workers repatriated from Abu Dhabi in three months ABU DHABI AGENCIES

In recognition of workers’ contribution to the country, the Abu Dhabi government said on Sunday that it has prioritised the interests of workers during Covid-19 challenges and provided them with free testing for coronavirus in the emirate, while facilitating the return of 180,000 workers back to their respective home countries over the past three months.

During Covid-19 testing, a large number of workers from all localities of worker’s accommodations in Abu Dhabi, including the industrial zones, were provided free testing for the virus.

These were expatriate workers who had lost their jobs and were helped by the Abu Dhabi Government for their accommodation and meals, ensuring that all their rights were met before they took a flight back home, said the Committee for Emergency Management, Crises and Disasters to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic in Abu Dhabi.

The committee, in cooperation with Abu Dhabi Department of Health and Department of Economic Development, designed several programmes to ensure the protection of workers’ rights, security and safety during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since the start of the global health crisis, the committee has ensured a safe working environment that takes into account all precautionary measures and in accordance with the highest international standards, and the application of preventive health measures to ensure the safety of workers from transmission, the committee said on Sunday.

The committee also provided free medical examination to all residents of industrial and workers’ cities and free treatment for those who were infected with the virus.

Workers were provided with educational material in several languages and through several means to educate them about the risks of Covid19 and ways to prevent the infection, the committee said.

Workers’ affairs were continuously followed by the committee to check on the conditions of the workers and it coordinated with the relevant authorities to provide an adequate living environment for the workers who had lost their jobs due to the pandemic. These relief measures included measures for providing housing and food. The committee also coordinated with various bodies to ensure that the workers received their wages, dues, financial allocations and rights, the committee said.

The committee has coordinated the return journeys of more than 180,000 workers over the past three months, after ensuring that they were free of any infection and that they had received all their dues.

In keeping with the directives of the leadership in Abu Dhabi to protect workers’ rights, measures had been put in place over the past few years for protection of workers’ right and improving the applicable regulatory systems.

The committee said that all these measures reflect the emirate’s commitment towards ensuring fair treatment for all workers, protect and treat them with dignity and respect and without any discrimination.

Global Covid-19 fundraising meeting raises $6.9 billion, leaders want vaccine for all BRUSSELS AGENCIES

A global fundraising meeting on Saturday raised 6.15 billion euros ($6.9 billion) from the United States, the European Commission and numerous countries to fight Covid-19, with many participants stressing that an eventual vaccine should be available to anyone who needs it. The pledging summit, part of a joint initiative by the EU executive and advocacy group Global Citizen, also included a globally televised and streamed fundraising concert featuring Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Shakira, Chloe X Halle, Usher and others. The Commission together with the European Investment Bank pledged 4.9 billion euros ($5.50 billion), the United States $545 million, Germany 383 million euros, Canada C$300 million ($219 million) and Qatar $10 million. Forty governments took part in the summit. The money will be used for Covid-19 tests, treatments and vaccines, and also to support the world’s poorest and most marginalised communities.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it was crucial that everyone who needed it should have access to a vaccine. “I am trying to convince highincome countries to reserve vaccines not only for themselves but also for low- and middle-income countries. This is a stress test for solidarity,” she said.

British Premier Boris Johnson concurred. “If and when an effective vaccine is found, then we as world leaders have moral duty to ensure that it is truly available to all,” he said. French President Emmanuel Macron was adamant about pooling efforts together.

“Let’s refuse an ‘every man for himself’ approach, let’s continue to move forward together,” he said.

Italy, one of the hardest hit by the pandemic, echoed his sentiment. The EU is championing global cooperation in efforts to control and end the pandemic, in contrast to the United States and China’s focus on national initiatives.

HEC, Microsoft launch Certification from Home Platform for Pakistani students ISLAMABAD TLTP

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan has reached an agreement with Microsoft to provide students a Certification from Home Platform for Microsoft Certifications.

The certification will be provided free of cost to the first 2,000 students who register for the opportunity, said a press release issued on Sunday.

The certification platform provides students with a prescribed curriculum roadmap for technology skill development and certification. Specific areas of study under the certification include productivity, computer science, data science, and Information Tech-

nology infrastructure.

Additionally, certifications of Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) and Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) provide useful credentials for individuals seeking to validate their skills and advance their careers.

The exams covered include Office 365, cloud fundamental courses covering Azure fundamentals, Dynamics 365 fundamentals and Microsoft 365 fundamentals.

“Digital transformation has been at the forefront of every industry in the last few years, and education is no different,” said HEC Chairman Dr Tariq Banuri.

He further said that while working with Microsoft, HEC has been able to bring in a set of tools and technology of-

ferings that can help establish a technology-rich culture in the higher education sector of the country.

He added that enabling students to acquire more advanced skills not only helps them in their careers but also strengthens the technical potential of Pakistani industry and academia.

Commenting on the agreement, Microsoft-Pakistan Country Education Lead Jibran Jamshad said that the modern-day workplace requires adaptability to frequent technological changes and problem-solving strategies and that this platform will help students learn such skills.

“The variety of skills you can learn in the Microsoft Certification Program allows

you to display your flexibility to current and prospective employers. These credentials demonstrate that you can use a variety of strategies to solve problems and resolve the concerns of consumers as well as stakeholders more effectively,” he said.

He further added that the agreement is a major step towards bridging the gap between education and employability and for helping students acquire professional skills while they have more time on hand during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Microsoft and HEC have been working together under a strategic partnership over the last decade to promote the use of information technology in the higher education sector.

The partnership covers all public and private sector universities in the country, with multiple programmes aimed at enhancing the skills of the youth and providing them with multiple platforms which can be used to help build their capacity and showcase their technical potential at a global level.

Many students have found that they have more time at hand during the long COVID19 break, which can give them the space to focus on developing marketable skills in addition to theoretical knowledge.

With Certification from Home Platform students will be able to conveniently select the technology area of their choice and learn at home with in-depth tutorials and selfstudy videos and also take exams.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

10 FOREIGN NEWS

TrUmp deNies he was Briefed oN rUssia-TaLiBaN BoUNTy iNTeLLigeNCe WASHINGTON

U

AGENCIES

S President Donald Trump denied Sunday he had been briefed on intelligence that reportedly showed Russia had offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing US soldiers in Afghanistan.

In a pair of early morning tweets, Trump angrily slammed the report by The New York Times as "Probably just another phony Times hit job, just like their failed Russia Hoax."

"Nobody briefed or told me, @VP Pence, or Chief of Staff @MarkMeadows about the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians, as reported through an 'anonymous source' by the Fake News @nytimes," he wrote.

"Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us...."

"Nobody's been tougher on Russia than the Trump Administration."

On Friday, the Times reported that US intelligence had concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit offered rewards to Taliban-linked militants to kill troops of the US-led coalition in Afghanistan.

0.5m people under lockdown in Beijing to contain Covid-19 outbreak BEIJING AGENCIES

China imposed a strict lockdown on nearly half a million people near the capital to contain a fresh coronavirus outbreak on Sunday, as authorities warned it was soon to “relax” over the new cluster of cases. After China largely brought the virus under control, hundreds have been infected in Beijing and cases have emerged in neighbouring Hebei province. Health officials said Sunday that Anxin county about 150 kilometres from Beijing - will be “fully enclosed and controlled”, the same strict measures imposed at the height of the pandemic in the city of Wuhan earlier this year. Now, only one person from each family will be allowed to go out once a day to purchase necessities such as food and medicine, the county’s epidemic prevention task force said in a statement. Earlier the county had been subject to some travel restrictions, but now individuals are only allowed to leave their homes to seek medical treatment, the notice said. The move comes after another 14 cases of the virus were reported in the past 24 hours in Beijing, taking the total to 311 since mid-June. The outbreak was first detected in Beijing’s sprawling Xinfadi wholesale food market, which supplies much of the city’s fresh produce and sparked concerns over the safety of the food supply chain. Businesses in Anxin County had supplied freshwater fish to the market. Some 12 cases of the novel coronavirus were found in the area, including 11 linked to Xinfadi market, the state-run Global Times reported. The new cases in Beijing have prompted fears of a resurgence of the virus in China. The capital has masstested wholesale market workers, restaurant workers, residents of medium and high-risk neighbourhoods and delivery couriers over the past week. Testing has now expanded to include all employees of the city’s beauty parlours and hair salons, the Global Times said. Beijing city official Xu Hejian told reporters Saturday:

The rewards were purportedly incentives to target US forces as Trump tries to withdraw troops from the conflict-torn country -- one of the militants' key demands -- and end America's longest war.

Citing anonymous officials, The Times said Trump was briefed on the findings in March, but has not decided how to respond.

White House press secretary Kayleigh

McEnany on Saturday issued a denial similar to Trump's but left open the possibility that such intelligence existed.

"This does not speak to the merit of the alleged intelligence but to the inaccuracy of The New York Times story erroneously suggesting that President Trump was briefed on this matter," McEnany said.

SKEPTICISM TRUMP NOT

BRIEFED: Others were skeptical that Trump would not have been informed of such an explosive conclusion.

"The idea that Trump wouldn't be briefed on Russia putting a bounty on US troops is even crazier than him being briefed and doing nothing," Ben Rhodes, a former national security aide to Trump's predecessor Barack Obama, wrote on Twitter.

The Taliban have denied the report, reiterating that they were committed to an accord signed with Washington in February that paves the way for withdrawing all foreign forces from Afghanistan by next year.

"The Islamic Emirate has made use of weapons, facilities and tools... that were already present in Afghanistan or are war spoils frequently seized from the opposition in battles," it said.

Russia has also denounced the report, with its embassy in Washington tweeting that the "baseless and anonymous accusations" in the Times story had "already led to direct threats to the life of employees" at its embassies in Washington and London.

"Stop producing #fakenews that provoke life threats, @nytimes," the embassy added in a later tweet.

Blast at Iranian ballistic missile plant ‘caused by sabotage’: report JEDDAH AGENCIES

A massive explosion at an Iranian missile plant that shook Tehran and sent a massive fireball shooting into the night sky was almost certainly caused by sabotage, a leading security analyst told Arab News.

The blast happened at the Khojir military explosive manufacturing and testing site in the Parchin defense industries area, in the Alborz mountains about 20 km east of the capital.

The plant, which has a hidden underground tunnel system, produces and tests artillery rockets and ballistic and cruise missiles. New satellite photos of the site showed hundreds of meters of charred and blackened scrubland.

“Although military and defense industry accidents do occur in Iran, the consensus appears to be a cyberstrike by Israel against Iran,” said Dr. Theodore Karasik, senior adviser at Gulf State Analytics in Washington, DC. “The ongoing cyberwar between Iran and Israel is not new. Iranian cyberforces attacked Israeli infrastructure in April,

specifically water and sewage treatment facilities. Israeli cyberforces retaliated the following month against Iranian facilities, military industries and ports.

They attacked Shahid Rajaee Port in an attempt to shut it down.

“Although sabotage can occur from within the facility, that is doubtful. But from outside Iran, that is another story.

The tactic of placing defective parts into a supply chain to create such an event cannot be ruled out either.

“To be sure, the timing of the explosion is important given continued Iranian mischief in the region. As these tensions will probably grow in the coming months, the tit-for-tat nature of cyberwar is part of a troubled security landscape. The Khojir event is a continuation of the Stuxnex virus used 10 years ago to disrupt and deter Tehran’s military industry.”

Iranian state TV said the blast had been caused by leaking gas in “a public area,” but did not explain why the incident was handled by military officials rather than civilian firefighters. The explosion on Friday appeared to have struck a plant operated by the Shahid Bakeri In-

dustrial Group, which makes solid-propellant rockets, said Fabian Hinz, a researcher at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in California.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington said Khojir was the “site of numerous tunnels, some suspected of use for arms assembly.”

Large industrial buildings at the site visible from satellite photographs also suggest missile assembly.

The US Defense Intelligence Agency says Iran overall has the largest underground facility program in the Middle East. Such sites “support most facets of Tehran’s ballistic missile capabilities, including the operational force and the missile development and production program,” the DIA said in 2019.

Iran’s missile and space programs have suffered a series of explosions. The most notable was in 2011, when a blast at a missile base near Tehran killed Revolutionary Guard commander Hassan Tehrani Moghaddam and 16 others. Authorities officially said the blast was an accident, but conducted secret interrogations on suspicion that Israel was behind it.

G20 ministers vow to address disturbances in education amid pandemic RIYADH AGENCIES

G20 education ministers during an extraordinary meeting discussed measures taken to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic and vowed to address disturbances in education amid Covid-19 pandemic.

“As a result of the pandemic, we have seen the development and advancement of a variety of distance learning, e-learning, and other digital education solutions, within different country contexts,” Saudi Education Minister Dr. Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Asheikh said during the talks.

He added: “We strongly support public

and private efforts to sustain education continuity for all by leveraging new pedagogical methods, as well as diverse modalities of and approaches to instruction.

“To prepare more effectively for potential future disruptions, we commit to working toward stronger and more innovative approaches to build resilience into our education systems and improve teaching and learning. “For this purpose, we support the development of educational content, technological and digital solutions and other means facilitating education continuity, as appropriate in country contexts and with respect to data security and privacy.

“As proactive approaches should be taken in the short and long term, we com-

mit to continuing discussions within the Education Working Group to expand our collective understanding of the effects that crises can have on education and of countries’ respective preparations and responses.” he said.

Topics on the agenda included experiences in reducing the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak, and lessons learned to ensure continuity and build resilience into education systems, the Saudi Press Agency reported ahead of the meeting.

Saudi Arabia pledged to continue working with all G20 members, invited countries, and regional and international organizations to support global education systems.

Civilians among over 100 victims of Libya mines: UN TRIPOLI AGENCIES

Mines have killed or wounded more than 100 people, including many civilians, south of Libya's capital following deadly combat between rival forces, the UN said Sunday. "Mines and improvised explosive devices (planted) in or near homes have caused more than 100 victims," including civilians and mine disposal experts, UNSMIL, the UN mission in Libya, said in a statement. It did not give a breakdown of killed or wounded. The toll was for casualties since early June, it said following a meeting in Rome between interim UN envoy to Libya Stephanie Williams and Government of National Accord head Fayez al-Sarraj. Earlier this month, the Tripoli-based GNA recognised by the UN regained full control of the capital and its suburbs after more than a year of fighting off an offensive by eastern strongman Khalifa Haftar. Haftar's forces have been accused by the GNA, the UN and Human Rights Watch (HRW) of laying mines in residential southern suburbs of the capital. HRW said earlier this month that antipersonnel mines discovered in May were "of Soviet and Russian origin".

At the Rome meeting, Williams also expressed concern over reports claiming that "mercenaries of various nationalities" had been deployed in Libyan oil installations. On Friday, the country's National Oil Corporation said Russian and other foreign mercenaries had entered the key Al-Sharara oil field the previous day.

Al-Sharara is under the control of forces loyal to Haftar, who is backed by Russia.

Williams said the presence of mercenaries there "threatens" to transform Libya's socalled oil crescent region into a "battlefield". Plunged into chaos by the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed its longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi, oil-rich Libya has two rival administrations. Haftar's forces, which are also backed by Egypt and the UAE, launched an assault in April 2019 to wrest control of the capital Tripoli from the GNA. Haftar's fighters withdrew from the southern outskirts of Tripoli and the entire west of the country earlier this month after a string of battlefield defeats to the Turkish-backed GNA. On Saturday, Sarraj also held talks in Rome with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte during which he stressed that a solution to the Libyan conflict cannot be military, the GNA said.

June jump in employment in Us likely around 3m NEW YORK: Employers probably kept hiring millions of Americans in June as states gradually lifted pandemic-related restrictions on businesses in a delicate balancing act of getting economies rolling again while limiting infection rates. Economists project the Labor Department will report a 3 million increase in payrolls after a surprising 2.5 million gain a month earlier. The back-to-back gains, nonetheless, pale in comparison to the number of jobs lost before that - about 22 million in March and April combined. The unemployment rate is seen falling only slightly in June, to just over 12% from 13.3%, though the figures could again be complicated by data-collection issues. Even so, the report will likely continue to indicate a long road to recovery for a labor market severely damaged by a deep recession. The data will be issued Thursday, a day earlier than usual because of the Independence Day holiday. AGEN C IE S

'George Floyds of India': Outrage mounts over police custody deaths NEW DELHI AGENCIES

The deaths of a father and son from alleged torture at the hands of police have sparked outrage across India, with many drawing parallels with the killing of George Floyd in the United States.

Their case has thrown a new spotlight on police brutality just weeks after the killing of Floyd, an African-American man, by a white police officer in the US led to world-

wide protests.

J. Jayaraj, 58, and Bennicks Immanuel, 31, were arrested on June 19 and accused of keeping their store open past permitted hours in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, which has reimposed a lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus. They died in hospital a few days later, officials said, with their family alleging in written complaints that they were severely abused by police and had suffered rectal bleeding.

Two policemen involved in the alleged

torture were suspended, the state's Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami said.

The deaths in the small town of Sathankulam triggered a protest last week and shopkeepers across Tamil Nadu staged a strike on Wednesday.

"Reeling from what I'm hearing. Absolutely stunned, sad and angry... the guilty must not be allowed to go unpunished," tweeted Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra Jonas on Saturday. "Let's demand for the same justice we did for George Floyd," said

CMYK

actress Krystle D'souza.

State politician, social activist and lawyer Jignesh Mevani wrote that the "George Floyds of India are far too many".

"Will Indians march on streets in thousands like in America?" he tweeted.

Rahul Gandhi, a leader of the opposition Congress party, described it as a "tragedy when our protectors turn into oppressors".

Several reports by human rights groups in India have detailed cases of alleged torture of suspects in custody, with deaths often blamed

by police on suicide or natural causes.

According to the National Human Rights Commission, 3,146 people died in police and judicial custody in 2017-18.

"Custodial violence and torture is so rampant in India that it has become almost routine," it said in a report.

"It represents the worst form of excesses by public servants entrusted with the duty of law enforcement."

Convictions in such cases are extremely rare, according to activists.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

SPORTS 11

DePleteD PakistaN sqUaD leaves For eNglaND toUr LAHORE

a

INP

depleted Pakistan squad left for the tour of England on Sunday to play three Tests and as many T20Is after half the players and some members of the support staff tested positive for the coronavirus.

Pakistan’s T20 captain Babar Azam tweeted a picture of some of the players from the plane. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief executive Wasim Khan on Saturday said the players left behind can rejoin the squad of 18 players once they have taken two negative tests.

“Eighteen players who had tested negative in their first round of testing have again tested negative as have 11 officials from the team management,” said Khan. Players Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf, Haider Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan, Wahab Riaz, Imran Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain and Kashif Bhatti first tested positive earlier this week. Of these, four players were such that tested positive both times — Kashif, Haris, Haider and Imran, whereas the remaining six — Hasnain, Shadab, Fakhar, Rizwan, Wahab and Hafeez — tested negative the second time around.

The team’s masseur Malang Ali tested

positive twice. Khan said that in England, the team will once more undergo testing within the first 24 hours of arrival. “No questions have been raised by England over our

testing methods,” he said.

He added that bowling coach Waqar Younis underwent testing in Australia and has been diagnosed negative. Younis will fly

Pakistan to target England’s top order LAHORE AGENCIES

Pakistan have England’s “fragile top order” in their sights as captain said that the hosts’ batsmen haven’t looked confident since retired in 2018. He called England’s bowling line-up “brilliant” but played down any sense of pressure handling an experienced attack.

England have struggled to nail down a regular top three in recent years, not least since Cook’s final Test in September 2018. In their 18 Tests since then, England (five excluding nightwatchman Jack Leach), and no pair has opened together more than nine times. seems to have secured his place but remains inexperienced, with only 15 caps to his name, while (6 Tests), (14) and (4) will be fighting it out for the other two spots during their series against West Indies.

“Their bowling attack is brilliant in their own conditions and there is no doubt about it,” Azhar said before leaving for England. “Other than Jofra Archer we have faced all of them - Broad, Anderson, Woakes, Stokes and even Wood was there, but we have still won against them. Looking at their batting, their top order has been fragile for some time since Alastair Cook retired. They have tried a lot of combinations lately and might be looking a bit more settled, but they haven’t been really confident with it. So there is something for us in it to look at.”

Pakistan have a decent away record in England since 2016, winning three Test out six Tests in two drawn series, which finished 2-2 (in 2016) and 1-1 (2018). In fact, that record in England is among the best for a leading Test side in the last four years: during that time, Australia have won two Tests in England with India, South Africa and West Indies winning one game each since 2016.

for England from there, he added.

Of the five reserve players, he said four — Moosa Khan, Rohail Nazir, Bilal Asif and Mohammad Nawaz — had tested nega-

Azhar said he felt his side had done well on previous tours in England conditions: Pakistan are the only visiting team to score 500+ in a Test in England since 2016, and Azhar suggested that their other successes there - including the 2017 Champions Trophy - could provide them with the belief to succeed again on this tour.

Pakistan’s inexperienced fast bowling bowling line-up might be considered as a weaker link as the talented youngsters and have no experience playing Test cricket in English conditions. Only , who played two Tests on the 2018 tour and has spent two seasons playing county cricket for Leicestershire, has much in the bank. , Pakistan’s main spinner, has ample experience but he has had a poor run of late in Tests, averaging 75 with 10 wickets in his five appearances since the beginning of 2019.

“In terms of number of games, of course England have tons of experience in their bowling,” Azhar said. “But we have the skills: they [our bowlers] are young and have a lot to offer. They can give trouble to any team in the world. In a very short time, they have achieved a lot and that is a good sign.

“You can’t buy experience immediately, and for that you obviously have to play more, but then we have a very experienced coaching staff with Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmed. Their expertise and knowledge can be utilised and they will be helping them. So I believe, when this combo of experience and skill is brought together, that we can produce a great result. I am confident about this.

“About spinners, we are not really sure about the conditions at the time of the Test series. The weather right now is great there but it changes frequently and suddenly. We don’t know how it will pan out this summer. We will bring our game plan according to the conditions. We have a larger pool of player and have a lot of flexible options in our touring party.”

Football transfer rumours: Sancho, Rice, Onana, Koulibaly, Havertz BERLIN AGENCIES

Borussia Dortmund are growing increasingly confident that 20-year-old England winger Jadon Sancho will remain at the club, having yet to receive an offer for the player.

Jurgen Klopp has admitted he thinks Sancho would look “very good” in a Liverpool shirt but the Reds manager does not think a transfer will happen this summer. Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has refused to rule out a move for Sancho when the summer transfer window opens.

However, United must sell at least four players - including Chile forward Alexis Sanchez, 31, and England midfielder Jesse Lingard, 27 - to fund a move for Sancho.

Chelsea want to sign West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice, 21, with Blues boss Frank Lampard planning to use the £45m-rated England international as a centre-back.

Chelsea are also keen on signing Ajax’s Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana, 24, as a replacement for Kepa Arrizabalaga. Spain international Arrizabalaga, 25, has been linked with a move to Valencia this summer on a

two-year loan deal.

Newly crowned Premier League champions Liverpool are set to make a bid for Napoli’s Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly, 29.

Tottenham Hotspur have no intention of selling record signing Tanguy Ndombele, 23, this summer. The French midfielder is yet to feature since the Premier League restart and has been linked with Barcelona.

Bayer Leverkusen boss Peter Bosz accepts a deal for Kai Havertz to leave the club could be completed by August, with Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United among those competing for the 21-year-old Germany midfielder.

Aston Villa’s 24-year-old English midfielder Jack Grealish, a target for Manchester United, has told friends he has found a house in the northwest of England.Arsenal are interested in Red Bull Salzburg’s Hungarian midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai. The 19-year-old was first linked with the Gunners during the summer of 2019.

RB Leipzig boss Julian Nagelsmann would like to take a job abroad when his deal with the Bundesliga side expires in 2023 - and the 32year-old German is keen on a move

to the Premier League.

Former Brazil forward Ronaldinho, 40, wants to come out of retirement to play for Gimnasia, who are managed by Argentina legend Diego Maradona, once he has finished his house arrest in Paraguay.

Juventus director Fabio Paratici has played down talk of a move to the Premier League for midfielder Adrien Rabiot, with Manchester United, Arsenal and Everton all interested in the 25-year-old Frenchman. The midfielder swap deal

CMYK

involving Barcelona’s Brazilian Arthur, 23, and Juventus’ Bosnian Miralem Pjanic, 30, is moving closer, with both players expected to have medicals on Sunday.

Real Valladolid want to extend Sandro Ramirez’s loan until the end of the La Liga season but have yet to reach an agreement with Everton for the 24-year-old Spanish striker.

Tottenham will listen to offers for 21-year-old English striker Kazaiah Sterling this summer after a series of loans failed to ignite his career.

tive and one — Imran Butt — had tested positive. Waseem said Zafar Gohar will also join the team in England. “He has only been called for practice,” he added.

Pakistan’s 20-man advance group lands on Sunday afternoon in Manchester and will undergo a 14-day quarantine period at New Road, Worcestershire before transferring to Derbyshire’s County Ground on July 13. Another batch of players that include Wahab Riaz, Shadab Khan will join the squad in the next 10 days if they receive a second negative result for Covid-19. The tour comprises three Test matches starting in the first week of August and three T20Is stretching into September. All six games will be played behind closed doors.

It is expected that the first Test will take place in Manchester in August but the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said the behind-closed-doors match schedule would be announced in “due course”.

Squad flying off on Sunday includes Azhar Ali (Test captain), Babar Azam (T20 captain), Abid Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Iftikhar Ahmad, Khushdil Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Sohail Khan, Usman Shinwari, Imad Wasim, and Yasir Shah.

Reserve players Rohail Nazir and Musa Khan will also fly out.

Poirier outlasts Hooker in highlight bout at UFC Fight Night LAS VEGAS AGENCIES

Dustin Poirier absorbed several heavy blows but delivered a few more Saturday night, ultimately outlasting Dan Hooker for a unanimous decision victory in a “fight of the year” candidate in the main event at UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas.

Poirier (26-6) and Hooker (20-9) boxed at an incredible pace throughout the first two rounds, both remaining standing despite being rocked multiple times. Hooker nearly ended it late in Round 2, after both fighters had already been bloodied, but Poirier slowly took control down the stretch. He showed his conditioning in an impressive final round to claim scores of 48-47 from two judges and 48-46 from the third.

It was Poirier’s first bout since he lost via rear-naked choke to Khabib Nurmagomedov in a lightweight championship bout in September of 2019, the longest time between fights in his career.

In October, he had hip surgery that kept him from bearing weight on his leg for eight weeks. But the 31-year-old proved he had the stamina to go the distance, saying afterward that he “had a few more rounds left in me.” “It was a tough one man,” Poirier said.

“Dan came to fight. He’s a tough guy on the rise.” Hooker, a 6foot, 30-year-old from New Zealand, caught the 5-foot-9 Poirier with a knee to the head late in the second round and followed with a series of punches to the head of his shaken opponent.

Poirier, who somehow remained standing, said afterward that the knee caused him to “flash out for a second,” and that he “came to” while being hit and didn’t know how much time was left in the round. The horn sounded just seconds later, perhaps saving him from a technical knockout.

In Rounds 3 and 4, Hooker managed takedowns and did some damage, but Poirier fought back with near-misses on a few submission attempts, including guillotine chokes and an arm bar.

He also landed sharp elbows in Round 3 and punches from behind while controlling Hooker’s back in Round 4.

By Round 5, Hooker clearly had less gas in his tank and was unable to convert his takedown attempts. Poirier ultimately landed 222 of 291 strikes, including 196 of 262 to the head.

In the co-main event, Mike Perry (14-6) handled Mickey Gall (63) by unanimous decision in a welterweight bout to snap a two-fight losing streak. Perry, who fought with only his girlfriend in his corner, was cut above the eye just two minutes in. But he then took control both as a boxer and on the ground, nearly ending it with heavy elbows from a full mount just before the second-round horn sounded. Earlier Saturday, Maurice Greene (95) submitted fellow heavyweight Gian Villante (17-12) with a rare arm triangle in the third round. Villante had dropped Greene with a heavy punch moments earlier, but Greene quickly turned the tables to win while on his back. In other main-card bouts, Brendan Allen (15-3) beat fellow middleweight Kyle Daukaus (91) via unanimous decision; Japan’s Takashi Sato (16-3) TKO’d Jason Witt (17-6) via punches in a welterweight fight; and Julian Erosa (24-9) submitted Sean Woodson (7-1) via D’Arce choke in the third round of a catchweight bout.

Monday, 29 June, 2020

NEWS

0.5m die of covid-19 gLobaLLy aS caSeS Top 10m PARIS

T

US SancTionS, coRonaviRUS make foR iRan'S ToUgheST yeaR: RoUhani

AGENCIES

HE total number of coronavirus cases has topped 10 million globally, according to an AFP tally on Sunday, as the pandemic surges particularly in the United States and Latin America.

At least 10,003,942 infections, including 498,779 deaths, have been registered around the world, according to a count at 0930 GMT based on official sources.

Europe remains the hardest hit continent with 2,637,546 cases including 195,975 fatalities, while the United States has 2,510,323 infections including 125,539 deaths. The rate of infections worldwide has doubled since May 21, with one million new cases recorded in just the last six days.

In Latin America alone, more than 400,000 new cases were registered in the past week, while India’s total topped 500,000 on Saturday, with a record 18,500 in one day. The tallies, using data collected

by AFP from national authorities and information from the World Health Organisation (WHO), probably reflect only a fraction of the actual number of infections.

Many countries are testing only symptomatic or the most serious cases and some do

not have the capacity to carry out widescale testing. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the number of people infected in the United States is 10 times the official figures or more than 20 million people.

The disease is gaining ground in 30 of the 50 states, mainly the biggest and most populous in the south and west such as California, Texas and Florida.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, the

Taliban reject claims Russia aided fighters in attacks on US troops KABUL: The Taliban on Saturday rejected a newspaper report claiming their fighters had received rewards from Moscow’s spies to kill US troops in Afghanistan. The New York Times reported on Friday that bounties offered by a notorious arm of Russia’s military intelligence service gave incentives to Taliban fighters to target US forces, just as US President Donald Trump tries to withdraw troops and end America’s longest war. “The nineteen-year jihad of the Islamic Emirate is not indebted to the beneficence of any intelligence organ or foreign country,” the Taliban said in a statement issued in Kabul. The group also denied previous US accusations it was given arms by Russia.

“The Islamic Emirate has made use of weapons, facilities and tools ... that were already present in Afghanistan or are war spoils frequently seized from the opposition in battles.” The Taliban said home-made explosives accounted for most of the casualties among US forces.

The group reiterated it was committed to an accord signed with Washington in February that paves the way for withdrawing all foreign forces from Afghanistan by mid next year.

Earlier on Saturday Russia also denounced the New York Times report. The “baseless and anonymous accusations,” published by the newspaper, had “already led to direct threats to the life of employees of the Russian Embassies in Washington DC and London,” the Russian Embassy in Washington wrote on Twitter. “Stop producing #fakenews that provoke life threats, @nytimes,” it added in a later tweet. AGENCIES

virus is spreading the most rapidly. Between June 21 and 27 the region registered 408,401 new cases, compared with 253,624 in the US and Canada and 121,824 in Europe.

In total, Latin America has 2,432,558 infections with 110,695 deaths.

Brazil is the worst affected with 1,313,667 cases — 246,088 in the last seven days, followed by Peru (a total of 275,989 with 24,651 new in the last week), Chile (267,766 total, 31,018 new), Mexico

TEHRAN: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday that his country is experiencing its toughest year because of US sanctions coupled with the Covid-19 pandemic. The coronavirus crisis has exacerbated economic problems that worsened after US President Donald Trump withdrew in 2018 from Iran’s nuclear deal with major powers and reimposed sanctions. On Monday, Iran’s rial currency fell to its lowest ever level against the US dollar. “It’s been the most difficult year due to the enemy’s economic pressure and the pandemic,” Rouhani said in a televised speech. “The economic pressure that began in 2018 has increased … and today it is the toughest pressure on our dear country.” Iran has seen a sharp increase in coronavirus infections and deaths since restrictions to stem the spread of the pandemic were gradually lifted from mid-April. The death toll has recently topped 100 a day for the first time in two months.

Some 2,489 new cases were recorded in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 222,669, Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari told state television. She said 144 people had died, bringing the total to 10,508. Rouhani said the wearing of masks will become mandatory for two weeks starting next Sunday in “gathering places” that are deemed “red spots”. Senior officials have regularly warned that restrictions will be reimposed if health regulations such as social distancing to stem the surge in infections are not observed. Iran launched a campaign on Saturday to motivate a reluctant public to use face masks. AGENCIES

(212,802 total, 37,600 new) and Colombia (88,592 total, 22,959 new).

Asia is also facing a surge in cases, par-

Satellite images show buildup on disputed India-China border BEIJING AGENCIES

Construction activity appeared underway on both the Indian and Chinese sides of a contested border high in the Karakoram mountains a week after a deadly clash in the area left 20 Indian soldiers including a commanding officer dead, satellite images showed.

The images released this week by Maxar, a Colorado-based satellite imagery company, show new construction activity along the Galwan River Valley, even as Chinese and Indian diplomats said military commanders had agreed to disengage from a standoff there.

The images appeared to show that the Indians had built a wall on their side and the Chinese had expanded an outpost camp at the end of a long road connected to Chinese military bases farther from the poorly defined border, according to experts. The contradictions in words and deeds showed the fragility of an agreement following the worst violence since the Asian giants went to war in 1962 over their competing claims to the arid border region, experts said.

China has said that India first changed the status quo last August when it split the state of occupied Jammu and Kashmir into two federal territories — the territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the territory of Ladakh, parts of which are contested by China.

The new maps released by India following the move drew criticism from Beijing because they showed Aksai Chin — an area administered by China but contested by India — as part of Ladakh.

Indian officials said the standoff that culminated in this month’s deadly clash in the Galwan Valley, part of a remote stretch of the 3,380-kilometer (2,100-mile) Line of Actual Control, or LAC, established following the 1962 war, began in early May when large contingents of Chinese soldiers entered deep inside Indian-controlled territory at three places in Ladakh, erecting tents.

After a few skirmishes in May, Indian and Chinese commanders met June 6 to hash out an agreement that would reduce tensions. The two sides agreed to build observation posts on either side of the mouth of the Galwan River, China’s ambassador to India, Sun Weidong, told the Press Trust of India news agency on Tuesday.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that during the June 6 meeting “both sides had agreed to respect and abide by the LAC and not undertake any activity to alter the status quo,” but did not address whether they had agreed to observation posts.

Around midnight on June 15, soldiers attacked each other with rocks, clubs and their fists in the Galwan Valley, the deadliest violence between the

two countries in 45 years.

Indian security officials said the fatalities were caused by severe injuries and exposure to subfreezing temperatures. China has not said whether it suffered any casualties in the clash.

India and China have blamed each other for the melee and staked fresh claims on the area where it occurred.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Wednesday that the confrontation occurred on China’s side of the Line of Actual Control and that Indian forces had illegally entered Chinese territory.

“The responsibility (for the incident) is entirely not on the Chinese side,” Zhao said.

But Srivastava said Thursday that China had provoked the fight when its soldiers “sought to erect structures just across the LAC” on the Indian side. He said Indian soldiers foiled the attempts.

However, a sequence of Maxar images of the river bend where the clash occurred in the weeks before and after the clash showed that construction had expanded up the Galwan Valley toward the Line of Actual Control from Chinese bases, Maxar Vice President Steve Wood said. Wood said that since May 22, satellite images showed “convoy after convoy of heavy trucks, diggers, bulldozers and some military armored equipment” rolling down the Galwan Valley toward the disputed border.

Pregnant women with Covid-19 symptoms, newborns dying in India as hospitals turn them away NEW DELHI AGENCIES

A number of alarming cases are being reported from different states of India where the hospitals staff were turning away pregnant women with Covid 19 symptoms and refusing to attend to the newborns who required immediate treatment due to certain health complications.

They country’s Covid-19 cases crossed half-million mark with around 16,000 deaths and daily caseload of 18,500. The apathy and inhuman treatment led to a number of deaths which also posed a big question mark on the working of health sector in India, which is now crumbling under the increasing number of coronavirus infected patients. A 30-year-old woman in the eighth month of her pregnancy had died in an ambulance after eight hospitals in India either referred her to another facility as she showed symptoms of Covid-19 or cited lack of beds.

ticularly in India which has a total of 528,859 infections including 118,398 over the past seven days.

The woman and her family were on the road for 13 hours when she breathed her last.

According to the Times of India report published earlier in the month, this is not the first time patients have found themselves being turned away by hospitals in Noida while Covid-19 protocols are in place. On May 24, a pregnant woman was allegedly denied treatment by the Sector 30 district hospital and told to go to a hospital in Ghaziabad, as she lived in Khoda, which is sealed.

In another case the next day, a newborn died after failing to get admission in a NICU for seven hours, even as his father went to at least four hospitals, including the District Hospital. The episode jolted the Noida administration. Narendra Bhooshan, nodal officer for Covid-19 response in Noida, admitted this was a growing concern.

Neelam Kumari, a resident of Ghaziabad’s Khoda Colony, and her family shuttled from one hospital — first in an auto and then an ambulance — beginning around 6 am on Friday. When she began

experiencing labour pain, Neelam’s husband Bijendra, who works in the maintenance department of a media firm, his brother Shailendra Kumar, an auto driver, and his wife Sushma rushed her to ESIC Hospital in Noida’s Sector 24.

ESIC hospital took her in for some time and gave oxygen, and then referred her to the District Hospital in Sector 30.

But the staff there didn’t admit her and told us that since we had come from Khoda, which is a containment zone, we should return and get treatment there. The family then took Neelam to Shivalik Hospital in Sector-51, which said she was serious and should be taken to a ‘better hospital’.

Around 11 am, Neelam’s family took her to Fortis Noida, but again hit a wall.

“The staff said they did not have a vacant bed and a ventilator, and asked us to take her somewhere else as her condition was serious, Shailendra said. They next went to Jaypee Hospital in Sector 128 but could not get her admitted there either.

Pointing out that Neelam had Covid-19 symptoms and should be taken to Sharda Hospital or Government Institute of Medical Sciences (GIMS) in Greater Noida, both designated Covid facilities, the family claimed the hospital sent them away.

“We drove to Sharda since it was closer than GIMS. There, we were told she needed to be tested for Covid first. They charged us Rs 4,500 for it, but even before the test, referred her to GIMS, saying they did not have a vacant bed. We tried to call an ambulance through 108 but did not get any. We hired a private ambulance for Rs 5,800 since Neelam required oxygen support and took her to GIMS,” Shailendra told TOI. But GIMS, he added, claimed it did not have vacant beds. On the brink of losing hope, the family said it took Neelam to Max Hospital in Ghaziabad’s Vaishali, which also allegedly refused admission.

They headed for GIMS again, but by the time they reached, Neelam had expired in the ambulance. Shailendra said.

Published by Arif Nizami at Qandeel Printing Press, 4 Queens Road, Lahore. Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk

india has given befitting reply to china, claims modi NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that India has given a befitting reply to the Chinese transgression in Ladakh and the world has seen India’s commitment to safeguarding its borders. The Prime Minister in his monthly address to the nation ‘Mann ki Baat’ (What’s on my mind) said that India has given a befitting reply to those who eyed our territory in Ladakh. “The world has seen India’s strength and commitment to peace. We bow to our brave martyrs,” the Prime Minister further said adding that they have always kept India safe. Their valour will always be remembered.

“There could be any number of challenges, but our history shows that we have always overcome them. We have emerged as stronger after facing challenges,” he said. This is the first public statement of Modi after the allparty meeting where he spoke about the Ladakh issue. He had also assured the country that India gave a befitting reply to China’s People’s Liberation Army. AGENCIES

china reportedly sent martial artists to Lac before deadly clash BEIJING: China reinforced its troops near the Indian border with mountain climbers and martial arts fighters shortly before a deadly clash this month, state media reported. Tensions in the mountainous border terrain are common between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, but this month’s fighting was their deadliest encounter in nearly 50 years. Five new militia divisions, including former members of a Mount Everest Olympic torch relay team and fighters from a mixed martial arts club, presented themselves for inspection at Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, on June 15, the official military newspaper China National Defense News reported. State broadcaster CCTV showed footage of hundreds of new troops lining up in the Tibetan capital. Tibet commander Wang Haijiang said the Enbo Fight Club recruits would “greatly raise the organisation and mobilisation strength” of troops and their “rapid response and supportability,” China National Defence News reported, although he did not explicitly confirm their deployment was linked to ongoing border tensions. Later that day, Indian and Chinese troops brawled for several hours in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh, using stones and nail-studded clubs to beat each other, killing 20 Indian soldiers and injuring at least 76 more.