Epaper – October 20 KHI 2020

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020 I 2 Rabi-ul-Awwal, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 111 I 12 Pages I Karachi Edition

PM fears Covid-19 sPike in Polluted Cities g

Imran emphasises on reforestation for future generations ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

P

RIMe Minister Imran Khan on Monday said that there is a higher chance for a second wave of coronavirus in cities with high pollution levels. Addressing the Clean Green Index Award ceremony in Islamabad, the premier said that those cities with already high pollution levels are may increase virus transmissibility and make people more vulnerable to Covid-19.

“I fear that in these two months — October and November […] cities like Faisalabad, Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Gujranwala, where there is more pollution […] there might be a second spike in coronavirus cases. The cases are rising gradually and we hope that they don’t increase quickly and we are monitoring it,” he said on the occasion.

The PM’s fears are well-founded, as some experts have expressed that air pollution can certainly increase the risk of transmission, as well as pose new challenges to those who previously had been infected.

According to doctors, respiratory illnesses, such as viral influenza, increase with a spike in pollution levels. The poor air quality often leads to inflammation in the lungs, which make them more vulnerable for viruses such as Covid-19. experts feel the worst-affected would be people in the lower socioeconomic class with no access to masks.

A professor in the Department of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at Safdarjung Hospital, Dr Neeraj Gupta, has said that there has been a link between Covid-19 mortality rates and the proximity of people to industrialised areas where the pollution levels are generally higher.

“Italy showed a possible link between PM 2.5 concentration and excess mortality to the extent that one-unit increase is associated with a 9 per cent increase in

Covid-19 mortality,” Dr Gupta said.

Furthermore, there has been a study published by the Harvard Medical School in United States which showed that with every 1 micron per metre rise in PM 2.5 particles, an 8 per cent increase in mortality was seen.

Similarly, the Pakistan Medical Association had said earlier this month that carelessness and disregard of standard operating procedures (SOPs) on the part of people could trigger a surge in cases.

REFORESTATION FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS: PM Imran also emphasised on reforestation in Pakistan to save the future of the coming generations.

He said that the country has set an ambitious target of planting ten billion trees, and added that keeping the cities clean by managing solid waste is the next objective. He also said that efforts are also being made to generate electricity from the solid waste as has been done in the rest of the world. Furthermore, the premier added that efforts need to be made to clean the air and water.

In this regard, PM Imran said that the first step is to change the mindset of the people and to get them to acknowledge

Coronavirus in

Pakistan

CONFIRMED CASES:

323,452

LAST UPDATED AT 7:10 AM ON OCTOBER 19, 2020

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

5

RECOVERED:

NEW CASES:

440

DEATHS:

307,409 6,659 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

141,841

101,652

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

38,645

15,688

3,498/4,059 18,069

its importance.

The premier hinted at introducing a system of reward and punishment to overcome climate change hazards. He said that deputy commissioners and other officials who perform well in this Clean-Green Pakistan movement should be rewarded and this should be reflected in their annual reports as well.

Speaking on the occasion, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam explained that Attock and Bannu districts clinched the first position on the climate change index in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa respectively.

Amin on Sunday had reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to join global efforts for protecting environmentally and biologically-sensitive areas worldwide to stem the loss of biodiversity resources.

While speaking to the first meeting of the international High Ambition Coalition (HAC) for Nature and People, the SAPM had informed the participants that under the country’s Protected Areas Initiative (PAI), measures were being taken to improve environmental governance, management, financing and conservation activities on about 7,200 square kilometres. earlier this week, the Punjab government had introduced strict restrictions to curb the worsening air quality situation in the country.

These restrictions included a ban on burning of any type of crop residue, solid waste, tires, rubber, and plastics; open dumping/storage of construction material; parking which may cause hindrance in the smooth flow of traffic; and more.

Previously, Adviser to Sindh Chief Minister Barrister Murtaza Wahab had said that Sindh government had adopted two parks, New Clifton Park and Family Park Clifton ST14. Both the parks would be managed by the environment, Climate Change and Coastal Development Department and Sindh environmental Protection Agency, he had added.

Maryam says Sindh govt not responsible for Safdar’s arrest KARACHI STAFF REPORT

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Mar yam Nawaz on Monday absolved the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government in Sindh of the “charge” of the arrest of her husband and party leader Captain (r) Safdar Awan, saying she “never thought for a moment ” that the provincial authorities were behind the move.

Awan was arrested early Monday morning for slogan-mongering inside the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah a day earlier.

Maryam held a press conference in the evening to narrate the arrest as it took place. She was accompanied by Jamiat Ulema-eIslam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.

She started by saying: “We reached home late after the jalsa. We were sleeping when early in the morning I thought I heard someone’s door being knocked on loudly. I woke up my husband and said the loud

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

New level Capt Safdar released on bail of high hours after arrest handedness

Intra-Afghan talks a chance to create ‘lasting peace’: Qureshi ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, during a meeting with Afghanistan’s Hezb-e-Islami leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, said that the talks provide a chance to create a long-lasting peace in the area.

“Intra-Afghan talks provide a unique opportunity to the leadership for establishing lasting peace in the country,” the foreign minister said at the Foreign Office.

“Prime Minister Imran Khan has said lasting peace can only be achieved through a political settlement accepted by the people of Afghanistan,” Qureshi said, adding that Pakistan would continue to play its part in facilitating the peace process. Hekmatyar has come to Islamabad for a three-day visit. According to a statement issued by the FO, the Afghan leader discussed bilateral relations and the role of Pakistan in the peace process with the foreign minister.

His visit was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) through a tweet on Sunday. During his three-day visit, the former Afghanistan prime

knocks were on our door.”

“Safdar opened the door and police were standing outside who said we are here to arrest you. Safdar told them he’ll change and take his medicine since he is diabetic, but they broke down the door and came inside,” she added.

“Safdar asked them to not enter since I [his wife] was inside but they did and arrested him,” she further said.

The government is trying to give the impression that the Sindh government is behind this,” said Maryam, “but Bilawal had called me and he was very angry.”

“Sindh chief minister also called me and said that he never expected that something like this would happen with me,” said Maryam. “I never thought even for a moment that PPP was behind this; they [Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf] thought they can drive a wedge between PDM [Pakistan Democratic Movement]— we know things like this would happen, we are ready as well.”

STORY ON PAGE 03

EDITORIAL ON PAGE 06

more inside

Hafeez Centre flames finally doused, shopkeepers lament billions in losses STORY ON PAGE 02

minister, who is accompanied by his son Habibur Rehman and several other party leaders, will call on President Dr Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Imran Khan. Hekmatyar, who is visiting on the invitation of the FO, will also meet Senate chairman Sadiq Sanjrani and National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser amongst others.

“The visit of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar will provide an opportunity for [an] exchange of views on the Afghan peace process and strengthening of Pakistan-Afghanistan bilateral relations as well as people-topeople interaction,” the FO said in a statement issued on Sunday. Furthermore, Hekmat-

yar will speak at a policy think tank during his visit. Hekmatyar served two terms as the prime minister of Afghanistan, the FO believes this speaking event will be a good chance to improve relations between the two countries, as well as discuss views regarding the Afghan peace process.

The FO said that Pakistan attached great importance to its fraternal relations with Afghanistan rooted deep in shared history, faith, culture, values and traditions. “Pakistan fully supports all efforts for peace, stability and prosperity of the Afghan people,” it added.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

Minister rubbishes Sindh IGP ‘kidnapping’ claim after police arrest Safdar STORY ON PAGE 03

Lady health workers’ sit-in enters sixth day STORY ON PAGE 02

UK lauds Pakistan Army’s continued efforts for regional peace STORY ON PAGE 02

02

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

NEWS

Hafeez Centre flames finally doused, sHopkeepers lament billions in losses

t

NEWS DESK

hE shopkeepers of hafeez Centre in Lahore are weeping over the loss of billions as the flames have finally been put out after hours of the inferno raging through the plaza.

Rescue officials said on Monday that fire has been put on and now the cooling process is underway. Meanwhile, the shopkeepers protested against the Punjab government when their officials arrived on the scene.

According to the estimates, Rs2.5-3 billion worth of electronics had been lost in the fire. Approximately 250 to 300 shops in the plaza had been damaged by the fire. The president of the centre said that each shopped suffered a loss of at least Rs20 million.

“There are big and small shopkeepers

on each floor where the fire incident occurred. Out of which almost 100 shopkeepers had large businesses and 150 to 200 were operating small businesses with small shops”, he said, adding that details of the loss will be disclosed when each shopkeeper will calculate and submit claims.

According to police officials, the fire department was called into around 6 am after a fire started on the second floor of the plaza, where mobile and laptop stores were located. It soon spread up to the fourth floor.

“The cause of the fire at hafeez Centre will be ascertained. All the facts of the fire incident will be made public. The loss of traders is heartbreaking and I have instructed to estimate damages. We will review the losses of the traders and take steps to rectify the situation,” Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar had said.

Lahore Commissioner Zulfiqar Ghu-

pm seeks stringent measures against opposition, trouble-makers, law violators ISLAMABAD

ZUBAIR MEHFOOZ

man had formed a 14-member inquiry committee headed by the deputy commissioner (DC) on the hafeez Centre incident.

Lahore DC was appointed convener of the

committee and a preliminary report was sought within 24 hours while a detailed report would be submitted to the Lahore commissioner in seven days.

Lady health workers’ sit-in enters sixth day ISLAMABAD

MIAN ABRAR

STAFF REPORT

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday directed the cabinet members and senior government officials not to give concessions to the opposition alliance, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), and to take emergency measures to bring back former prime minister Nawaz Sharif from the United Kingdom, sources told Pakistan Today The prime minister chaired two meetings to chalk out the government strategy and gave directions to the cabinet members and relevant officials. he addressed separate meetings of the political committee and the government’s media spokespersons.

An important meeting of the political committee was held under the chairmanship of PM Imran to review the political situation in the country in which important decisions were taken after consultation on the latest political situation in the country. The meeting decided to take emergency measures to bring Nawaz back home. The meeting also discussed the rhetoric of the opposition parties against the state institutions and it was unanimously decided that the opposition would not get any concessions from now on. Furthermore, PM Imran said that the corruption case would be brought to a logical conclusion in any case. The premier also apprised the party leaders of the guidelines. The prime minister said that there would be no compromise on the implementation of the law and the spokespersons should strongly respond to the statements made by the opposition parties in time. Additionally, the premier asserted that the opposition parties will not get any concession, and corruption cases will reach a logical conclusion. The statements of the opposition targeting the institutions will be strongly responded to, he added. A meeting of party spokespersons was also held which discussed the anti-state statements of the opposition parties. During this, the premier decided to adopt an aggressive strategy against the opposition parties and added that law should take its course against law violators. Reportedly, PM Imran will also visit Lahore on Tuesday to review the steps taken by the provincial government and issues related to governance. The premier will meet Punjab Governor Chaudhry Sarwar and Chief Minister Usman Buzdar. There will also be meetings with the Punjab inspector-general of police (IGP) and the provincial bureaucracy while meetings with cabinet members and a high-level meeting are also on agenda. he will also chair a meeting of the federal cabinet on Tuesday before leaving for Lahore and the cabinet would take up a six-point agenda for consideration. The meeting will review the political, economic and security situation in the country, the opposition movement and anti-government rallies.

The protesting lady health workers (LhWs) clashed with police on Monday, as they attempted to march towards the parliament to continue demanding higher salaries to meet rising inflation and a formal service structure.

After an unsuccessful round of negotiations with the federal government, the workers who have been protesting since October 14 had announced on Sunday to enter parliament on Monday during the session. Prior to the announcement, the protesters, reports suggest, had stayed in the Ministry of National health Services (NhS) for six hours on Monday and allegedly even faced abusive language.

According to National Programme health Employees Federation (NPhEF) President Rukhsana Anwar, the demands include a service structure and creation of service rules and an increase in salaries and should be met immediately.

Anwar said lady health workers had no service structure and were paid little — from Rs20,000 to Rs22,000 other than LhWs from Sindh, who were paid Rs20,000 and another Rs17,000 as Covid-19 risk allowance. hundreds of lady health workers that do the unenviable job of administering polio vaccines to reluctant — at times abusive — citizens, and were also on the frontlines of the

government’s coronavirus response, have been demanding their rights in the prolonged sit-in that has yet to show any sign of conclusion. The workers were among tens of thousands of All Pakistan Clerk Association (APCA) members who gathered in Islamabad on October 14 to protest inflation, low salaries, and lack of service structure. While the other protesters left after a short demonstration, the LhWs have remained to exert pressure on the authorities.

Last week, Dr Faisal Sultan, the special assistant to the prime minister on health, had told the media that provincial governments, and not the Centre, could resolve the problems facing the workers. he said that he wanted to arrange a meeting with Punjab health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid but was told that the minister had already “let down the protestors” and now they seek the assurance of the chief minister.

According to Anwar, it was decided during a meeting the protesting LhWs held with Punjab health Secretary Ajmal Bhatti on Sunday that all their demands would be met but no notification in accordance with that meeting had been issued yet. Following the meeting and the assurance given by health officials, hundreds of protesters left the venue, assuming the notification would be issued. “But no notification has been issued so far and the government is now backtracking on the commitment to issue the notification,” she said.

Govt set to introduce new law to fast-track CPEC project ISLAMABAD AHMAD AHMADANI

The government has decided to introduce a fresh law to fast-track China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects, sources revealed on Monday.

As per details, the Cabinet Committee on the Disposal of the Legislative Cases (CCLC) had recently approved a draft law pertaining to the CPEC Authority. The federal cabinet is likely to ratify the newly-drafted law before presenting it before the National Assembly.

"Following the expiry of the CPEC Authority Ordinance 2019, the government has prepared a fresh draft of CPEC Authority Bill 2020 to amicably deal with issues pertaining to CPEC Authority and to speed up the pace of CPEC projects which are important for the economic development of the country," an insider informed.

The CPEC Authority was established through CPEC Authority Ordinance 2019 on 5th October 2019 for the purpose of coordination, evaluation and monitoring of CPEC-related activities across the country.

The ordinance expired on 31st May 2020 after the grant of a one-time extension of 120 days through a resolution. As a result of the ordinance's expiry, the CPEC Authority stood dissolved.

Sharing details of the proposed law, sources said that it has been proposed to abolish the position of chief executive officer of CPEC Authority, reduce the powers of CPEC Authority chairman in decision making process and an end to the CPEC Authority’s powers to constitute CPEC Business Council. As per the draft law, "The authority may call for any pertinent information, required by it from any person, institution or body that is or has been involved directly or indirectly in any CPEC-related activity, while any person or its authorized officer will be bound to provide this information within the period prescribed by the authority or such officer."

Similarly, the authority, in the performance of its functions, can seek assistance or facilitation of office, authority or agency working under the government or a representative designated by the provinces and territories. In this regard, provinces and territories may appoint a rep-

uk lauds pakistan army's continued efforts for regional peace RAWALPINDI: United Kingdom’s (UK) Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Sir Nicholas Patrick Carter called on Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa at General headquarters (GhQ) on Monday, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). According to the military’s media wing, matters of mutual interest, including strengthening of bilateral security and defence cooperation between the two armies, were discussed during the meeting. The visiting dignitary acknowledged Pakistan Army’s continued efforts for regional peace and stability, particularly Pakistan’s efforts for Afghanistan peace process and achievements in fight against terrorism, said the ISPR. Separately, COAS Bajwa met with Ambassador of Switzerland to Pakistan & Afghanistan Benedict de Cerjat, who called on him at GhQ. According to the ISPR, both discussed issues pertaining to mutual interest and security situation in the region. The visiting dignitary appreciated the bilateral relations enjoyed between both countries and pledged to further improve the same. STAFF REPORT

faraz says govt's policies strengthened economy PESHAWAR: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Syed Shibli Faraz has said that Prime Minister Imran Khan is committed to the development of the country and improving its economic condition. Talking to the media at Peshawar Press Club on Monday, the information minister said that the government’s policies strengthened the economy and economic indicators have improved. he added that the government is fully aware of the problems faced by journalists and that it is working to resolve them. The minister also said that the past politicians had practiced a form of politics aimed at weakening the national institutions, adding that the opposition is putting on a failing show now. he said that the opposition parties have joined hands to protect their looted wealth. he added that the opposition also attempted to blackmail the government on Financial Action Task Force (FATF) legislation.

The information minister said that the people rejected these elements in the 2018 elections.

Meanwhile, talking to a state-run television channel, Faraz said that the government and opposition are parts of the democratic system and the role of the opposition is to point out mistakes of the government for rectification. he said that the opposition is busy defending its own corruption. The minister said that the politicians of the past extended their business during their regimes and that is the reason millions of rupees were recovered from the accounts of their servants. STAFF REPORT

resentative to provide input and assist the authority in performance of the functions under the new law.

The decision of the authority will be taken by the majority of total members, and the quorum for a meeting will be two-thirds of the total members while fraction being counted as one.

There will be a CPEC Business Council to be notified by the Board of Investment, which will advise the authority in accordance with the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the National Development and Reforms Commission of China and Pakistan’s Ministry of Planning Development and Special Initiatives.

The BOI will act as secretariat of the business council and will meet periodically.

It has also been proposed that a single line budget will be provided to the authority and the chairperson will be the principal accounting officer of the authority. The budget prepared by the authority will be reviewed by the budget committee consisting of three members, two to be nominated by the CPEC Authority and one member by the administrative authority. The authority may establish CPEC Fund to further its objectives on the terms and conditions approved by the finance division.

The authority, in addition to the audit under sub-section (1), will cause its accounts to be annually audited by a chartered accountant or a firm of chartered accountants.

It is pertinent to mention that the proposed law was shared with the Prime Minister’s Office for consideration, after which the PM directed the submission of the draft legislation for consideration of the cabinet.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

NEWS

minister rubbisHes sindH iGp 'kidnappinG' Claim after poliCe arrest safdar KARACHI

H

STAFF REPORT

OURS after Karachi Police arrested Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) leader Captain (r) Safdar Awan for slogan-mongering inside the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah a day earlier, Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Ali Zaidi refuted reports suggesting the abduction of Sindh police chief to coerce the police into nabbing Safdar.

In a tweet, the minister said: “[Maryam’s spokesperson] M. Zubair selling [the] nonsense narrative that CM Sindh told him IG was kidnapped & forced to register FIR. If this is true then CM Sindh must fire IG Sindh or resign himself as his orders were followed.”

The police arrested Safdar early in the morning for breaking the protocol at the mausoleum which — according to Quaid-e-

Azam’s Mazar (Protection and Maintenance) Ordinance, 1971, governing the premises — is punishable by “imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or a fine, or both”.

The arrest was first made public by Safdar wife and PML-N Vice President Maryam who tweeted: “Police broke my room door at the hotel I was staying at in Karachi and arrested Capt. Safdar.” however, Zaidi, who also hails from Karachi, immediately refuted the claim, saying the PML-N leader was “once again lying”.

“Video shows otherwise. Do [you] see any handcuffs? Does it look like he was arrested by force?” he tweeted.

Later in the day, journalist hamid Mir claimed Sindh Rangers “kidnapped” Sindh Inspector General of Police (IGP) Mushtaq Ahmed Mahar to “force” police to arrest Safdar. A short while after, another journalist, Murtaza Ali Shah, shared an audio clip,

in which Zubair is purportedly heard confirming Mahar’s “kidnapping” by the Rangers.

“They arrested Mahar at 4:00 am in the morning […] this is what the chief minister has told me […] the word kidnap,” he said.

“I asked him again. […] he [Shah] said yes, he was picked up and taken to the sector commander’s office where additional IG was also brought in and they were forced to issue orders [for Safdar’s arrest].”

“They [Rangers] also accompanied the police [contingent] to the site of the arrest [the hotel] and told them [the police] to go inside [the hotel to arrest the suspect],” he added in the clip being attributed to him.

Zaidi, while terming the alleged claim as “nonsense narrative”, said the PPP government was trying to distance itself from the FIR and the subsequent arrest.

Safdar had arrived in Karachi yesterday as part of the PML-N caravan to participate in the second public gathering of the Pak-

istan Democratic Movement (PDM), the 11party anti-government alliance of major opposition parties including the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).

In another tweet, Maryam said she was asleep when the police arrived.

Safdar was shifted to Aziz Bhatti police station in the metropolis’ Gulshan-e-Iqbal neighbourhood.

The arrest comes after police booked Maryam, Safdar and 200 others for violating the sanctity of the mausoleum. The complainant, Waqas Ahmed, alleged that the PML-N leaders, along with 200 of their followers, reached Jinnah’s grave where Safdar jumped over the grill surrounding it. he said that he tried to stop him from doing so but Safdar “got out of control” and started threatening him and his fellows that he would kill them. he added that Safdar later damaged government property before leaving the site with his followers.

“My complaint is that Safdar and his co-

Capt Safdar released on bail hours after arrest KARACHI INP

hours after the arrest of Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) leader Captain (r) Safdar Awan for “violating the sanctity of Mazar-e-Quaid” case on Monday, the judicial magistrate east approved his bail and instructed him to submit surety bonds worth Rs100,000.

Safdar was arrested on Monday morning from the hotel after he was booked for violating the sanctity of the Mazar-e-Quaid. he was presented before a judicial magistrate in the afternoon where he was granted bail.

PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz, while addressing a news conference flanked by Jamiat Ulemae-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, she said, “Mariyum Aurangzeb has just informed me that retired Captain Safdar has been released on bail.”

“Me and Captain Safdar will go from Karachi together,” she said after a lengthy press conference in which she bashed the federal government.

Speaking on the incident, Maryam said, “Safdar opened the door and police were standing outside who said we are here to arrest you. Safdar told them he’ll change and take his medicine, since he is diabetic, but they broke down the door and came inside.”

“Safdar asked them to not enter since I [his wife] was inside but they did and arrested him,” she added.

Safdar was earlier kept at the Aziz Bhatti Police Station before he was presented before the magistrate.

Maryam had taken to Twitter after Safdar was arrested and tweeted that police had “broken” the door of the hotel room they were staying in to arrest her husband.

“Police broke my room door at the hotel I was stay-

ISLAMABAD The World Bank (WB) has agreed to enhance assistance for Pakistan to support the ongoing reforms, besides balancing a mix between project mode of financing and programme lending.

This assurance was expressed when a high-level Pakistan delegation, led by Economic Affairs Minister Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtyar, held two consecutive sideline virtual meetings with the senior management of World Bank Group at the margins of the '2020-Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group'.

Other members of Pakistan delegation included Special Assistant to PM on Petroleum Nadeem babar, governor & deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and high ranking officials of Economic Affairs Division, Finance Division, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and Pakistan Embassy in the USA. At the onset, World Bank Group Vice President for South Asia Region hartwig Schafer appreciated the government's initiatives to successfully combat and curtail the impact of Covid-19 pandemic. he also lauded the government’s efforts for ongoing reforms, particularly in the power, governance and financial sectors, "which would possibly allow the country to unleash the growth potential and help a faster post Covid-19 recovery". The vice president reaffirmed WB's continuous support to Pakistan at this difficult time.

The two sides also discussed the performance of the WB's ongoing portfolio in Pakistan, besides the bank's

hort violated the sanctity of the Quaid’s mausoleum and his grave. A case [should be] registered against him for raising political slogans inside the mausoleum complex, death threats against me, and for damaging government property.”

According to the FIR, a case has been registered on Section 6 (a convening of meetings or processions in the mausoleum), Section 8 (entry into the mausoleum with a weapon) and Section 10 (the penalty for contravention of provisions) of The Quaide-Azam’s Mazar (Protection and Maintenance) Ordinance, 1971.

Responding to the move, PPP minister Saeed Ghani said that while Safdar’s behaviour at the mausoleum was inappropriate, the way his arrest was carried out was “condemnable”. he alleged this was being done to create a rift among PDM and claimed the provincial government had no role in the arrest.

Muhammad Zubair, Maryam’s spokesperson, while speaking to reporters in Karachi, claimed the arrest was a “sting operation by the state” and was carried out to damage the PDM alliance. he said he had talked to Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and Ghani and would reveal the facts in front of the public soon.

“The easiest way for Imran Khan is to arrest [Awan] so the entire blame will fall on Sindh government and police,” he said.

sindh govt to be responsible for gas shortage in karachi as roW not given: minister ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

ing at in Karachi and arrested Capt Safdar,” Maryam said via tweet. The PML-N leader had been taken into custody after a case of violating of the sanctity of the Quaid-e-Azam’s Mazar. A day earlier he had chanted the slogan “vote ko izzat do (honour the vote)” and urged people to join him.

The case had been registered on Section 6, Section 8 and Section 10 of the Mazar’s protection and maintenance ordinance. Maryam defended her husband’s actions earlier.

“What is wrong with repeating Quaid-e-Azam’s

stance at his mausoleum?” she asked, “What is wrong with Madar-i-Millat (mother of the nation) slogans? No one chanted slogans for Nawaz Sharif or me.”

While reacting to the development, Adviser to Prime Minister on Accountability Mirza Shahzad Akbar said on Twitter, “Mohtarma, Sindh police is under complete and direct control of [Bilawal BhuttoZardari] (Your ally these days). Either the arrest of your husband was staged by you [and] your new ally as publicity stunt or you’re working against each other STILL! Which one is it?”

World Bank assures Pakistan of continued assistance for reforms STAFF REPORT

03

probable initiatives in the near future.

Bakhtyar, while acknowledging the WB’s continuous support to Pakistan, said the government was committed to continuing with structural reforms in multiple areas of economy, governance and institutions, including simplification of decision making for project approval and implementation and regular portfolio review of foreign-aided projects. he appreciated the WB’s proposed $12 billion initiative to help developing countries procure Covid-19 vaccines to treat up to 1 billion people as soon as effective drugs become available. hartwig, while responding to a proposal of Bakhtyar, amenably agreed to enhance WB assistance for Pakistan to support the ongoing reforms.

Meanwhile, during his meeting with International Finance Corp (IFC) Asia & Pacific Vice President Alfonso Garcia, Bakhyar stressed upon the need for IFC management to enhance their investment volume in Pakistan, particularly in the infrastructure, housing and tourism sectors.

"As the focus of present government remains on private sector-led growth, the IFC support for SMEs, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic, should be the priority," he emphasised.

Alfonso, while appreciating the government’s ongoing reforms efforts, accepted the invitation of Bakhtyar to visit Pakistan in the coming months to explore avenues to further enhance the IFC interventions in Pakistan. "As the focus of present government remains on private sector-led growth, the IFC support for SMEs, particularly during the Covid-19

Energy Minister Omar Ayub Khan said on Monday that the Sindh government would be directly responsible for gas shortage in Karachi as it was not meeting its responsibilities in this regard. Taking to Twitter, the minister said that the Sindh government has not so far given the right of way (ROW) permission for the 17km Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) pipeline despite repeated letters and meetings with the concerned officials for the last one-and-a-half-year. “Sindh government will be directly responsible for any gas shortages in Karachi,” he maintained. Separately, Omer Ayub Khan informed the National Assembly Standing Committee on Power that the government would save around Rs147 billion in next three years after it streamlined matters related to the LNG usage in electricity generation. “Initially, it was mandatory to consume 100pc LNG in some power generation plants on the basis of take or pay, which was brought down to 66pc after the officials concerned showed some resistance. Recently, we have ended this condition due to which around Rs147 billion will be saved over a period of three years,” he said. Committee Chairman Chaudhry Salik hussain commended the government for taking this initiative and saving the public money. The minister, however, lamented that the previous government of PML-N had added into the power generation capacity without taking into consideration its pros and cons and started importing LNG and linked its consumption in some power generation plants. “These are the distortions in the market, which we are now going to open,” the minister said. Omar Ayub said the power sector was the biggest medium of transferring subsidies to consumers but there was a harsh reality that 50pc circular debt amount was due to the un-budgeted subsidies.

iHC summons nawaz via newspaper ad on nov 24 ISLAMABAD INP

pandemic, should be the priority," he emphasised.

Alfonso, while appreciating the government’s ongoing reforms efforts, accepted the invitation of Bakhtyar to visit Pakistan in the coming months to explore avenues to further enhance the IFC interventions in Pakistan.

The court summons for the deposed prime minister and PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif in the AlAzizia Steel Mills and Avenfield house references have been published in October 19 edition of leading Urdu and English dailies, the Islamabad high Court (IhC) was informed on Monday. Sharif has been residing in London since November last year on the pretext of medical treatment. his party insists that despite being summoned by the courts, who declared him a proclaimed offender in the Toshakhana corruption probe, the former premier will only return after the “completion” of his treatment. The high court on October 8 decided to summon the former premier through newspaper advertisements after he refused to collect his arrest warrants from Pakistan high Commission in London. The court, in the same hearing, ordered the government to pace advertisements in two national dailies, Jang and Dawn. During Monday’s hearing, copies of the advertisements were presented before the court. The summons directs the former premier to appear before the IhC on November 24.

04

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

NEWS Four children, mother die as rooF caves in OKARA TLTP

Five persons -- four children and their mother -- died while three others got injured when roof of their room collapsed at Gamber area on Monday. On receiving information, rescue teams reached the spot and retrieved dead bodies from the rubble. Their bodies were moved to the hospital. Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar expressed sorrow and grief over the loss of precious human lives due to the collapse of the roof. He extended sympathies to the heirs and directed to provide the best treatment to the injured children. He has also sought a report from the concerned commissioner.

Punjab reports two more dengue cases LAHORE: Teachers protest outside the Lahore Press Club for the acceptance of their demands. ZUBAIR MEHFOOZ

lcci demands early comPensation For haFeez centre inFerno aFFectees LAHORE

t

STAFF REPORT

HE Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) on Monday gave an SOS call to the government for early compensation to the affectees of Hafeez Centre tragedy.

Addressing a press conference, LCCI President Mian Tariq Misbah, flanked by Senior Vice President Nasir Hameed Khan and Vice President Tahir Manzoor Chaudhry, invited the government's attention towards the plight of Hafeez Centre inferno victims.

"The Hafeez Centre inferno has caused irreparable damages to the property, shops and businesses of thousands of people...the effects of the fire will be felt for decades to come," he LCCI president noted. "Traders, shopkeepers and people associated with Hafeez Centre need to be facilitated and the government in this regard should formulate a plan of action to compensate them for their losses."

Misbah appreciated the services of media during the incident, saying, "We pay tribute to the media for the diligence with which they covered the incident throughout the day...the performance of rescue of-

ficials, police, army, disaster management, district administration and allied agencies is also commendable." Expressing their sorrow on the tragedy, the LCCI officials said that the business community was already facing many problems due of coronavirus and this tragic incident has caused

Pia to resume uK flight operations from oct 30: spokesperson

an irreversible loss to the businesses. They said the LCCI welcomed the government’s move to immediately constitute a 14-member committee which will submit its preliminary report in 24 hours and a full report in a week estimating the losses.

The chamber demands the govern-

ment to announce cash compensation to the affected businessmen as soon as the loss estimate report is received, they added. The LCCI leadership said until the Hafeez Centre is fully restored, the government should also take responsibility of the employees’ salaries.

ZUBAIR MEHFOOZ

Masood wants tri-party talks on Kashmir under UN supervision

KARACHI/LONDON

ISLAMABAD

APP

STAFF REPORT

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has announced to resume its United Kingdom operations from Oct 30 through a chartered European airline. According to a PIA spokesperson, the booking for the flights which will be operated through Hi Fly — a Portuguese charter airline — has started. In the first phase, round trips between Islamabad and London, and one-way flights from the capital to Manchester will be offered. The development comes a week after the first British Airways flight landed at the Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore since 1976. The airline has announced to operate the new route four times a week through a Boeing 787-8 aircraft. According to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the federal government has granted permission for four flights a week to British Airways with the condition to review slots upon resumption of PIA flights to Britain. Neil Chernoff, the Director of Network and Alliances at the airlines, said the new route would give the flag carrier an opportunity to open up more of Pakistan to British travellers.

The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has said that as a matter of principle, talks with India should be held only under the United Nations (UN) auspices, and side by side with Pakistan and India, presence of the Kashmiris on the negotiations table is a must.

He asserted that the UN supervision of the talks is essential in order to carry forward and implement the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions on Kashmir.

In an interview with a private TV channel, he said that India has always used the bogey of bilateral talks to consolidate its illegal occupation of Kashmir and to keep the UN and the Kashmiris out of the negotiation process, and now it can once again use the talks as a ploy to divert attention from its recent illegal actions in occupied Kashmir.

The AJK president maintained that since the Kashmir issue has been once again raised in the UNSC, the talks as a matter of principle should be held in not Islamabad or New Delhi, but in New York. However, to ensure participation of Kashmiris, these can also be conducted in Islamabad, New Delhi or Muzaffarabad and Srinagar.

In any case, we will have to ensure that the talks are

held within the framework of the UNSC resolutions on Kashmir only, he asserted.

Responding to a question, he said that Pakistan's stand on talks is very clear that Kashmir is not a bilateral dispute between Pakistan and India but it is an international issue which must be resolved by the UNSC. However, India does not consider it even a bilateral issue and describes it as its internal matter.

He said that India will also not accept Pakistan's condition of involvement of Kashmiris in the talks process.

"Pakistan has always adopted the stand that the Kashmiri people themselves are to decide their future destiny as has been laid down in the UN resolutions," he said adding that the Kashmir issue must remain with the international community so as to prevent India from turning occupied Kashmir into its colony, and stop it from depriving the Kashmiri people of their land and homes.

Answering another question, the AJK president said that the Pakistani and the Kashmiri community living across the world including Pakistan and AJK should rise up, and established contacts with the international community on the political level to muster their support in order to stop India from the illegal process of demographic change in occupied Kashmir.

LAHORE: The number of confirmed dengue fever cases in Punjab has reached 115 this year so far, after the detection of two new cases on Monday. According to a spokesperson of the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department Punjab Captain (r) Muhammad Usman, the fresh cases were reported in Lahore and the patients are under treatment. He further stated that no deaths have been reported in the ongoing year due to the dengue virus, adding that only five are still under treatment. TLTP

Punjab PdWP approves five development schemes LAHORE: The Punjab Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) on Monday approved five development schemes of various sectors with an estimated cost of Rs3,229.876 million. These schemes were approved in the 11th meeting of Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) of current fiscal year 2020-21. Provincial Secretary P&D Imran Sikandar Baloch, all Members of the Planning & Development Board, Provincial Secretaries of concerned departments, Senior Chief (Coord) Javed Latif, Assistant Chief Coordination Shahid Idrees and other senior representatives of the relevant Provincial Departments also attended the meeting. The approved development schemes included as Land Acquisition for Establishment of Sewage Treatment Plant (Sialkot) under PICIIP at the cost of Rs822.958 million, Land Acquisition and Resettlement Assistance for Establishment of Sewage Treatment Plant (North Zone) and Influent Pumping Station (North & South Zone) (Sahiwal) under PICIIP at the cost of Rs657.620 million, widening/improvement of main Lehtrar Kotli Kuliary Road, 24.10 km, Tehsil Kotli Sattian, Rawalpindi (Revised) at the cost of Rs649.463 million, dualization of Road Jandiala Sher Khan, Hiran Minar Road, 11.15 km, Sheikhupura (Revised) at the cost of Rs494.682 million and Rehabilitation and widening/improvement of roads in District Rahim Yar Khan (Revised) at the cost of Rs605.153 million. INP

PFuJ gives strike call for 22nd against media lay-offs ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has announced a country-wide strike on Thursday (October 22) over the worsening situation of the media industry.

According to a press release issued on Monday, the PFUJ has urged all unions of journalists to gear up for the protest against continued retrenchments and lay-offs, delays in payment of salaries, implementation of the 8th wage board award, and increasing censorship. “The entire media community and journalist bodies must forge unity amongst their ranks while preparing for the strike in support of our demands,” read the official communique. Stressing that it's high time for launching protests to voice demands of journalist fraternity, PFUJ President Shahzada Zulfiqar asked the unions of journalists to start preparations along with engaging labour unions, student organisations, and civil society. TLTP

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

HIgH port cHArgeS In pAkIStAn dIScourAgIng trAde wItH AfgHAnIStAn IslAMABAD

d

GHULAM ABBAS

URING a meeting of National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Commerce, the officials of the Ministry of Commerce said that one of the discouraging factors in PakistanAfghanistan trade is the high terminal charges at ports of the country.

These charges include the fees involved in the handling and storage of goods. Some of the reasons behind the high charges are the non-competitive environment, non-utilisation of Gwadar port and lack of regulation of the terminal operators and shipping lines.

The ministry is already dealing with various operational issues, including lack of permits, delays in goods clearance, difficulty in the registration of documents, insufficient space for clearance and handling of goods, etc.

While briefing the 17th meeting of the standing committee, Chairman Syed Naveed Qamar said that the government has prioritized enhancing regional trade and

SHAHZAD PARACHA

The federal cabinet is likely to give approval for the establishment of a temporary management committee of the Gun & Country Club in Islamabad.

Reportedly, cabinet, with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the chair, will take up six agenda items -the implementation status of Cabinet Division; establishment of a temporary management committee of Gun & Country Club, Islamabad; ratification of the decisions taken by the Cabinet Committee on Institutional Reforms (CCIR).

The Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) proposed Naeem Bukhari, Maria Sharif, Lt Col (r) Haroon Imam, Dr Fahad Haroon Aziz, Syed

Muhammad Irfan, Ahsan Iqbal Bhatti as the principal nominees, while three other members would be secretary of the Ministry of IPC, chairman of Capital Development Authority (CDA) and director-general of Pakistan Sports Board (PSB).

Reportedly, for the 9th South Asian Games, shooting ranges were developed in the premises owned by the PSB. In order to sustain and institutionalise the shooting range facilities, the Gun and Country Club was established through a resolution passed by the then-Ministry of Sports in 2002.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Supreme Court (SC) took suo motu notice of the allotment of land for the Gun & Country Club in 2011. The court order, dated July 9, 2018, ordered the IPC to take over the management of the club and appointed a

managing committee.

The court also said that since the resolution for the establishment of Gun & Country Club was not issued by a competent authority, the resolution had no legal validity or sanctity.

Subsequently, the SC on November 2018, appointed another management committee, which mostly consisting of private members.

The tenure of the management committee has been extended to November 19, 2020. Earlier, the apex court directed the federal government to complete its process for proposing a lawful and practical legal framework for the management of the club and the designations of the members of a new management committee before the next hearing.

New construction policy promises better year for development sector PREss RElEAsE With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping across the country, multiple sectors have suffered an economic setback while some have even hit rock bottom. The real estate industry isamongst the sectors to have faced the fallout of the deadly contagion as property markets around the world have been drying up. Lossof jobs means less people searching for homes.

Pakistan is the 5th most populous country in the world, with a population of around 220 million and labour force stronger than 60million. The country's annual demand of housing is estimated to be about 700,000 units, while only about half of this demand is currently being met. On the whole, the housing deficit is estimated at ten million units, which is growing every year.

However, some decisions taken in the right direction by the current government have made the year look promising for the development sector. It is safe to say that the investment sentiment countrywide has seen a boost since the federal

government decided to incentivize the construction sector through its new construction package and by launching a series of mega projects.

The constructionpackage is aimed at encouraging private companies to invest in private or government land and construct affordable housing units. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government adopted a number of measures to facilitate the sector including reduction of its taxation ratio for land transfers, digitizing land records through one-window facilities, removing procedural barriers,preventingdifferent departments from asking of money trail for investors to encourage investment.

With Covid-19 on the decline, the Punjab government has also decided to launch a mega project of building 35,000 apartments in the metropolis to lessen the impact of the pandemic on the provincial economy.

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar highlighted that the government is about to launch an over $1 billion mega housing apartments project for the

salaried class in the provincial capital under the prime minister’s Naya Pakistan Housing Programme (NPHP).

To facilitate people, the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) is also now providing 'very soft loans' to people at large to enable them to own a residence under the Prime Minister's Naya Pakistan Housing Program (NPHP), its top official said.

While the NPHP aims to improve access to housing for low-income groups, there are housing projects by foreign investors catering to the upper-middle segment of the society that also merit mention. Offering the best of premium living to the residents of the twin cities, project Eighteen was launched two years ago by Egypt’s Ora Developers as a community of world-class golf course, villas and apartments located along the new Airport in Islamabad. UAE-based real estate company Emaar also has under its belt, a few prestigious projects such as Emaar Crescent Bay in Karachi.These overseas investors have invested wisely in Pakistan by choosing the most ideal of locations. More so, amid the increase in

05

connectivity for the whole region through improvement in the Pakistan-Afghanistan trade.

Dawood said that the government wants to resolve all trade issues with Afghanistan to formalise the bilateral trade between both countries.

The Ministry of Commerce briefed the committee on the revision of Afghan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA) 2010 during the meeting.

The committee also discussed the institutional arrangements, challenges and issues in transit trade with Afghanistan.

The committee was informed that the Afghanistan Pakistan Transit Trade Coordination Authority (APTTCA) was established to monitor the effective implementation of the agreement. Qamar stressed that the next agreement must be comprehensive and should better facilitate Pakistani exporters.

The committee expressed its displeasure at the absence of the chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in all three meetings on APTTA. Earlier, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Industry Abdul Razak Dawood reaffirmed its commitment to enhancing trade and bilateral economic relations with Afghanistan.

The meeting was attended by the members of the National Assembly, Muhammad Yaqoob Shaikh, Muhammad Aslam Bhootani, Mian Muhammad Shafiq, Usman Ibrahim and Tahira Aurangzeb. The meeting was also attended by SAPM Dawood and other representatives from the Ministry of Commerce and FBR.

Maryam says Sindh govt not responsible for Safdar’s arrest

Cabinet likely to approve temporary management for Gun & Country Club IslAMABAD

NEWS

unauthorized housing societies, builders like Emaar and Eighteen offer home-buyers a safe bet. They deliver on what they promise and do so in the stipulated time.

In light of these facts, the government should take further steps to make investment in Pakistan’s real estate a more attractive option for foreign investors. This is crucial for the revival of the national economy and for the subsequent image of Pakistan.

A relatively safe store of wealth, real estate makes for an attractive investment and comes with multiple financial rewards.While the market can have its up and downs, housing values generally rise over the long term. Although there are certain periods when the market value goes down, over the long term, real estate, in general, goes up in value.

Investing in the right location can earn you high returns indeed. Prime Minister Imran Khan has expressed hope for private investments especially from overseas Pakistanis through his new package but there’s a lot more than can be done to offer optimism to potential investors.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01 She defended the slogans raised during her visit to Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s mausoleum on Sunday, saying, “What is wrong with repeating Quaid-i-Azam’s stance at his mausoleum? What is wrong with Madar-i-Millat (mother of the nation) slogans? No one chanted slogans for Nawaz Sharif or me.” Earlier this morning, Maryam had said in a tweet, “Police broke my room door at the hotel I was staying at in Karachi and arrested Capt Safdar.” Furthermore, Maryam asserted that the complainant, Waqas Ahmed Khan, “is an absconder from an antiterrorism court”. She accused the PTI of falsely creating fake witnesses in its cases. “Why are the witnesses the same in the cases you file?” she asked, referring to a sedition case filed earlier against the PML-N leadership, questioning why people in such cases had a “criminal record”. “You find such people.

An honest man will never come forward in such things and these people [with records] will be picked up,” Maryam said. She added that Safdar had been receiving threats from the “highest level” for a long time, but insisted that these sort of tactics would not work on her or Nawaz Sharif. “Instead of blackmailing me through my relatives, if you have the courage, come and arrest me.” She went on to compare the PTI to Pervez Musharraf era, saying that the general had made “blunder upon blunder” at the end of its rule and that the PTI would be doing the same.

“When you do not think from the brain and think from [a position of] power then you make these mistakes,” added Maryam.

Intra-Afghan talks a chance to create ‘lasting peace’: Qureshi CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01 The visit comes nearly three weeks after the official trip of High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR) chairman Abdullah Abdullah — Afghanistan’s top envoy for the ongoing negotiations between Kabul and the Taliban — as Pakistan is engaged with all Afghan stakeholders for the sake of the peace process. According to Arab News, Hekmatyar will also meet Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader Senator Sirajul Haq. Hekmatyar’s son described the visit as “very important” because of Islamabad’s “key” role in the peace process.

Healthtech startup MedznMore claims raising $2.6m in seed funding lAHORE TAIMOOR HASSAN

Karachi-based health-tech startup MedznMore Sunday claimed to have raised $2.6 million in seed round for its medicines and healthcare products delivery operations.

If true, this would be the largest ever amount raised by a startup in a seed round in Pakistan. Profit reached out to the startup to verify the veracity of the claim but a cofounder from the company, Asad Khan, refused to share any document verifying that their was, in fact, the largest seed round raised by a Pakistani startup.

Profit had earlier successfully verified

IF TRUE, THIS WILL BE THE LARGEST EVER SEED ROUND RAISED

BY A PAKISTANI STARTUP the amounts raised by startups, with the founders sharing documents with the scribe confirming the amount raised during a financing round. This scribe subsequently announced it as a fact instead of a claim.

MedznMore, which began operations in August 2020, closed the seed round with participation from a syndicate of seasoned local and international angel investors, the company said in a statement.

The startup has been co-founded by Asad Khan, a senior Careem alum, and Saad Khawar, an e-commerce industry veteran.

Asad is a Duke University alumnus who left his post as general manager at Careem earlier this year to focus on his passion of making healthcare more accessible and affordable for the masses. He is a seasoned healthcare industry professional with over ten years of experience in leading healthcare

CMYK

companies in the US and Europe, including as country manager the United Kingdom and Ireland for IQVIA in London.

MedznMore is building an impressive team by attracting top talent from the likes of Daraz, Careem and other leading e-commerce players, which will allow the company to scale quickly leveraging knowledge from the wider ecosystem as well as addressing existing customer pain points.

It is currently operational in Karachi, with plans to launch and expand throughout Pakistan.

According to Asad, at MedznMore, they want to solve the chronic problem of counterfeit drugs in Pakistan.

“In order to ensure 100 per cent authenticity, all our medicines are procured either directly from the manufacturer or authorised distributors. In addition, we want to make the process more convenient than your local pharmacy, ensuring order delivery within four hours at the most affordable prices.”

Saad Khawar, who co-founded MedznMore and previously worked as the head of product for Dawaai.pk, said, “At MedznMore, we are building a product that is based on the best technology stack, backed with operational efficiency and a well-managed logistics engine coming together seamlessly to provide our customers with an amazing experience.”

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

06 COMMENT

Advertising as society’s mirror

After two rallies PTI government in blue funk

P

DM’s Karachi rally was as impressive as the one at Gujranwala. while Jinnah Garden’s massive enclosure was filled to its capacity, hundreds of late comers listened to the speeches standing outside the premises. PM Imran Khan had repeatedly been claiming that the masses knew the PMl-N and PPP leaders were corrupt and would never come into the streets at their call.

Days before the Gujranwala rally the PM had once again reiterated that the PMl-N workers “will not come out even if they are bribed with money and keemay kay naan”. The two rallies have shattered the PTI’s narrative.

The PM had also maintained that people come out for a cause and that presently there was none. he had conveniently forgotten that the government’s policy to export sugar and its failure to import wheat on time, had forced people to buy the commodities at prices many couldn’t afford. Similarly the government had displayed little competence to control the rising prices of other food items, while its ministers and advisers had done no home work to ensure regular supply of power and gas at reasonable service charges during the coming winter. As these problems are likely to intensify in days to come, the opposition will have no shortage of audience.

The PDM has during the last two years built a narrative that challenges the legitimacy of the PTI government. The elections, it maintains, were rigged by the establishment to install a pliant Imran Khan as PM. while challenging the ‘selected’ PM for lacking legitimacy, opposition holds the ‘selectors’ responsible for imposing an incompetent government on the country.

The three major PDM leaders would like the ‘selectors’ to realise their mistake and distance themselves from the PTI government while the opposition targets the PTI government for its glaring failures, it is also putting pressure on the ‘selectors’. As the massive rallies remain peaceful, there is no reason to disallow them. Mr Imran Khan’s explanation regarding rising prices might satisfy his Corona Tigers, but cannot alleviate the suffering caused to the masses. The opposition hopes that a distancing by the ‘selectors’ from the government would send a signal to PTI’s allies, making an in house change possible before PDM’s march on Islamabad. Both PTI and opposition are clutching on straws.

The view is not flattering

HASAN AFTAB SAEED

S

how me the TV ads of a society and I will tell you everything about that society. I am sure some wise man somewhere must have said this. If not, then I have just said it. No other trade is subject to a quicker and more ruthless feedback; and because big money is at stake, admen cannot afford to muck around. The only ads that stay (and in turn inspire similar ones) are those that reflect to some extent the values and aspirations of the society, or their plugs would have been pulled long ago.

Coming to our ads, the first thing one notices is loudness, both literal and figurative. Those who watch TV channels where they run Polish ads in between movies would have noticed how quiet and understated theirs are in comparison. Even without understanding a word of the language it is obvious that they are not nearly as pushy as ours; in some cases, there is even a soothing quality to them. In contrast, there is nothing subtle about ours. Granted, advertising everywhere is (by definition) propaganda, but ours are amazingly free of any nuances. Not only are they noisy but the content itself is designed to bludgeon the audience over the head with a sledgehammer; fitting for a nation that has (for the most part) failed to evolve to any level of sophistication.

This is also in keeping with the tone of the talk shows

New level of high handedness Forced entry and arresting without an FIR

T

hERE is no doubt that the recent actions of Captain (r) Safdar, PMl-N supremo Mian Nawaz Sharif’s son-in-law and Maryam Nawaz’s husband, are reprehensible. The outrage over the incident, captured in a video showing Safdar charging up a crowd of PMl-N workers to chant ‘vote ko izzat do’ (respect the vote) from inside Mazar-e-Quaid on Sunday prior to the PDM’s rally in Karachi, is understandable.

The Quaid’s mausoleum is no place for political sloganeering and is a condemnable offence that is punishable by law, but the manner in which Safdar was arrested has exposed a new level of high handedness on part of the government against the opposition and sets a dangerous precedent that will lead to further heightening of the political temperature in the country that is already at boiling point. Although Safdar has now been released on bail, his arrest was made without any FIR registered against him and, according to a tweet by his wife Maryam Nawaz, was taken from the hotel room they were staying at after police broke down the door.

Because the PPP runs Sindh, it would be safe to assume that the IG Police Sindh would think twice before arresting a senior member of one of their closest allies, the PMl-N, that too in such a forceful manner. It would also be irrational for the PPP to direct the Sindh Police to move forward with the arrest at this juncture in the PDM’s anti-government movement. There are also unverified reports that the IGP Sindh was made to issue the arrest orders by certain quarters and if there is even the slightest bit of truth to these rumors, it displays just how little pressure the PPP is able to consume when push comes to shove. whatever the case may be, the PDM, that is gearing up for its third show in Quetta has been sent a strong message: arrests can and will be made whenever and wherever required. with NAB cases registered against most if not all PDM leaders and this new possibility of ‘arrest-at-will’ without formal charges being framed, the coming months are surely going to test the opposition’s resolve in putting up a fight against the government, let alone ‘sending them packing before year end’.

Battling censorship Churails exposed the hypocrisy in our society

SulmAN Ali

C

huRAIlS is the first online series helmed by a Pakistani director Asim Abbasi with a completely Pakistani cast. The series, deemed feminist by its creators, revolves around cheating, women empowerment, domestic abuse, and other sensitive issues, including homosexuality. This has made the show ‘edgy’ for the audience of traditional Pakistani television. In the immediate aftermath of its trailer, the series started facing criticism from the masses, with many dubbing it ‘against our cultural values’, and ‘propaganda against our traditions’.

Nonetheless, the show received immense popularity and praise after it was released on Zee5 in August this year. Many TV critics laud the show for its cinematography, layered storyline, and virtuoso performances by all leading actors, especially Yasira Rizvi, Sarwat Gillani and Nimra Bucha. The show tackles the issues, which are very visible in our society like wife-beating, subjugation of daughters and forced marriages. one aspect of the show, lauded by many, is how it discusses the realities which prevail in our society, but no one is ready to talk about them – including homosexuality. The director has also been appreciated in depicting the storyline masterfully.

The reaction to the show underlines that many appreciate it, and many don’t. TV critics are in agreement that the show stands out as a Pakistani series on an online platform. whereas, many on social media have demanded that the show be banned, ever since

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

Umar Aziz

Asher John

Joint Editor

Executive Editor

Deputy Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

and childish ‘narratives’ that keep doing the rounds hosts, considering the mostly anachronistic resistance in the political arena and which are lapped up by the in some families to women earning a living. After an audience. Anything subtler would probably leave uneasy pause, she adds this explanation causing unpeople scratching their heads. our admen then, intel- told relief all around: ‘Ghar ka kaam naheen karteen’ ligent people that they are, can hardly be faulted for (housework, that is), as if tending to household chores were a crime now. The pendulum has swung to the not coming up with more intelligent stuff.

There was a time when mamta was all the rage as other extreme. This sort of emancipation is supposed far as the urban middle class – the principal target au- to be following in western footsteps – a delicious dience of admen – was concerned. You could sell irony because in the west most everybody contributes everything from tractors to after-shaves to free weights to household chores whether they work or not.

It would not be unreasonable to think that for the if you could somehow connect them to mamta – a piece of cake for advertisers. This class has evolved admen it is mostly a case of ad-imitating-life. when and so have its aspirations, and mamta is not the force it comes to the audience however, life-imitating-ad cannot be ruled out either, that it used to be. Now it is for few among the public worship of youth that is the live their own lives. Many in-thing. The young grandare playing one fictitious daughter proving the doubtcharacter at one moment, ing old grandmother wrong It would not be unreasonable followed by another the ‘Jo koi naheen kar sakta, next. So, trust many of the wohi to champion karta hai’ to think that for the admen it audience to start playing the (what no one else can do is is mostly a case of ad‘we-don’t-do-house-chores’ exactly what a champion can role or make themselves do) type poppycock, with the imitating-life. When it comes miserable if the circummother looking on approvstances are not conducive. ingly. This is followed imto the audience however, lifeThe practice of employmediately by the mother imitating-ad cannot be ruled ing children to sell things is telling her mother (the poor worldwide and is as old as grandmother again) that the out either, for few among the advertising itself. our pricelatter’s scepticism regarding public live their own lives. less contribution is this: The the washability of clothes is seven-years-old actor is misplaced when they are Many are playing one fictitious made to deliver the cheesy equipped with X brand of punch line like she is two detergent, because… you character at one moment, and can barely speak coherguessed it: ‘Jo koi naheen followed by another the next. ently. This passes for cutekar sakta wohi to champion ness in the Islamic Republic. karta hai’.

Just what is so charming There is a common variabout somebody being at a ant of taking the mickey out much earlier stage of develof the elderly. It consists of a man (more often than not the husband) absolutely opment for his or her years is anybody’s guess. This clueless about some problem, only for a woman (usu- is just another instance of presenting dumbed down ally the wife) to stress the efficacy of a certain prod- content to the public, which appears to love being uct in solving the problem to everybody’s satisfaction talked down to. The resulting cringe worthiness aside, (not least the manufacturer’s). This, again, is very this mirrors the new urban middle/upper-middle class much in keeping with our politically correct milieu fad of encouraging children to remain immature for imported from the west; and which probably also their years. Some of them become so good at it that subconsciously seeks to reverse past excesses that they behave like adolescents in their thirties and later.

The fault is neither in our stars, nor in our adverwere in the opposite direction.

Nowhere have middle-class values or aspirations tisers. our ads are mirrors to our society; and what is changed more than its attitude towards work. when on view is not pretty. the prospective bridegroom’s mother dramatically Hasan Aftab Saeed is a connoisseur of music, says: ‘Hamaare haan larkiaan shaadi ke baad kaam naheen karteen’ (in our family girls don’t work after literature, and food (but not drinks). He can be marriage), it sucks the very life blood out of all the reached at www.facebook.com/hasanaftabsaeed

I

Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

I

its trailer first came out. however, the calls for the sent,” he added.

Actor osman Khalid Butt, who is quite vocal on show to be taken down grew in recent weeks after a clip featuring hina Bayat went viral on social media. different issues also expressed his anger and called The clip discusses the sexual favours that the charac- out the double standards of the Pakistani audience, ter had to give in order to progress in a male-domi- where adult content on Netflix is among the top searches in Pakistan. nated world.

“Popular Netflix Many were unsurprissearches in Pakistan: 365 ingly offended, questioning Days – a top search since it the ‘audacity’ of a Pakistani came out, Dark Desire (also drama. Those criticising the Many were unsurprisingly in the Top 10), hot Girls individuals taking such ofwanted, Newness – yeah fense say that those expressoffended, questioning the I’m sure you’re all watching ing outrage ignore the ‘audacity’ of a Pakistani these for the plot,” he said. realities of our patriarchal Actor Sanam Saeed also society, and prefer to express drama. Those criticising the pointed out the hypocrisy of their anger at a fictional individuals taking such the people, while pointing character. however, the outout that you can do these rage persisted and eventuoffense say that those things behind closed doors, ally what many expected but can’t talk about them. took place. expressing outrage ignore “Banning dancing ads, outThe Pakistan Telecomthe realities of our patriarchal spoken films and web series munication Authority (PTA) requested Zee5 to take down society, and prefer to express will not end rape if that’s the agenda. why are we riddled the series, only for Pakistan. their anger at a fictional with such hypocrisy?” she The online platform obliged asked. and the drama was banned in character.

However, the Actor and host, Zhalay Pakistan.

Sarhadi said that our TV The decision faced seoutrage persisted and dramas can show the harassvere criticism, especially eventually what many ment of women, but you from the director and the cannot discuss it openly. showbiz industry. The actors expected took place. “we can show women being and actresses call it an attack harassed and maligned but if on freedom of expression they want to initiate diaand hypocrisy of our society, logue and take power into where you can do anything behind closed doors, but cannot discuss it in the dra- their own hands, it scares us? Cowardly act to shut it down! Shame,” she exclaimed. mas.

After much criticism, Churails is back online and After the ban, director Asim Abbas said it was strange the drama got international praise, but was people can now watch it. It is being celebrated as a banned in the country of its origin, where hundreds victory for the director, actors and those who want to see such content, the audience that wants to watch of artists and technicians worked hard to make it.

“Artistic freedom squashed because it is wrongly something different to regular Pakistani drama. howperceived by some as a moral threat. Predictable, and ever, the battle against censorship for progressive TV yet, still disappointing,” Abbasi said. “For this is not shows is likely to continue. just my loss. This is a loss for women and marginalSulman Ali is a freelance columnist ized communities that this show meant to re-repre-

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

I

Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

I

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Tuesday, 20 October, 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

TikTok ban I really appreciate the authorities for banning the addictive app, TikTok. lately, there were many accidents connected to TikTok. Some people even lost their lives when they were making TikToks on the roofs of buildings, in front of trains or while driving. The youngsters were highly indulged in TikTok and had no focus on studies. Therefore, I request the considered authorities not to unban the addictive app.

Hani Manzoor HaMMal TurbaT

Medicine prices ThE federal government has approved price hikes as high as 262 per cent for nearly 100 local and imported medicines in Pakistan.

According to a notification issued by the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) on Thursday, “This change was approved for drugs in the ‘hardship category’ on the recommendation of the Drug Pricing Committee (DPC) under the Drugs Pricing Policy of 2018.” The price of the drugs are getting higher because of their low age and their massive importance. But we already know the condition of our citizens, they are not able enough to afford these medicines and other medical services. The poverty rate is increasing day by day and there will be more poor people if the rate of the drugs and medical services increase like this. Especially in rural areas of our country, the basic drugs and the facilities are never available for the people. It is a great threat to the population of our country and it needs to be solved by giving subsidies to the drugs which are not affordable. The funds which are given by international organizations like who, should be used to provide the basic facilities and drugs to the people of rural areas.

Ganji naEEM TurbaT

Follow SOPs and defeat Covid-19

Shouting at Jinnah Appropriate punishment must be meted out

Dr FAriD A mAlik

O

CToBER 18, 2020 will be recorded as one of the darkest days in the history of Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

By shouting at the father of the nation, Capt (r) Muhammad Safdar, the domesticated son-in-law of Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (NS) has proven beyond doubt that NS is the biggest political blunder of Zialed establishment. Yes the Army must go back to the barracks but not before getting rid of the political scoundrels it has created since october 1958. Karachi is the city of Quaid-e-Azam where he was born on December 25, 1876 and died on September 11, 1948 after a glorious struggle for the creation of the first Islamic Republic. In the words of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (ZAB) regarding the Quaid-e-Awam, ‘Pakistan is a grand laboratory where the work ability of Islam was to be experimented’. workers of PTI went to the Brigade Thana to lodge a report against the perpetrators of this desecration at the final resting place Muhammad Ali Jinnah. It took them 10 hours of sit-in protest before the complaint was lodged against the Captain, his wife Maryam and 200 other unknown workers of Pakistan Muslim league-Nawaz (PMl-N).

Finally, he has been arrested and moved to Aziz Bhatti Thana. PMl-N workers led by Muhammad Zubair the ex-Governor are complaining about Police high handedness in arresting him.

According to him, the arresting party should have waited in the lobby for the Captain to come out of his room which meant allowing him to escape from the back a door, a typical PMl-N vanishing stunt.

I remember in the seventies the Mazar of Quaid was desecrated. The ‘Vote Ki Izzat wali’ elected government of ZAB decided to post

24/7 uniformed contingent of the three armed ing place of the founder has been rendered unforces cadets at the two most important mau- safe. It clearly shows disrespect for the leader soleums (Jinnah and Iqbal) together with the and the manner in which he led the party. Being rangers. Since then the Guard of honor duties an astute lawyer he always operated within the are regularly changed with great fanfare. It ambit of law. he was never arrested or quesseems today we are not in a position to even let tioned for his conduct.

For his conduct unbecoming of an officer our founders and leaders rest in peace in their final abode. As a political party PMl-N is fa- Capt (r) Safdar must be tried and punished both mous for breaking rules of decency and fair under civil and military laws as he carries play and they usually get away with this disor- the rank of an officer of the Pakistan Army and derly behavior. Being a product of Zia’s ‘dark a graduate of the prestigious Pakistan Military ages’ who was handed over power by stealing Academy at Kakul form where he hails. In the the peoples’ mandate has lived up to their de- past, both serving and retired officers have been sign of spreading evil. This politics of darkness stripped of their ranks for disorderly behavior.

Then there are civil ormust come to an end dinances to enforce for Pakistan to move discipline and respect forward. was there no of such places where one to stop them? Even As a political party PML-N is revered leaders are laid the Maulana leading to rest. A few years the prayer did not have famous for breaking rules of back I was in Sarajevo, the courage to ask them to leave the inner decency and fair play and they while driving back to the hotel at night I cordon of the grave usually get away with this came across a well side. PMl-N has light grave in the city. proven to be a, ‘Vote disorderly behavior. Being a on inquiry I was told Ki Beizzat wali’ party. product of Zia’s ‘dark ages’ that the first President The All India Musof Bosnia and herzelim league (AIMl), who was handed over power govina, Alija Izetbethe founding party of govic, was buried Pakistan was formed in by stealing the peoples’ there. It was a small Decca in 1906. The mandate has lived up to their but very serene and headquarters of the quite place and as a party were later moved design of spreading evil.

This mark of respect, I to lucknow. In the politics of darkness must stopped there and ofyear 1934 Dr Muhamfate-ha. Incidenmad Iqbal convinced come to an end for Pakistan to fered tally yesterday was his Jinnah to become the 17th death anniversary; President of AIMl. he move forward. he died on october 19, then successfully led 2003. As the city came the movement for the under siege, there are creation of Pakistan graves all around but and was appointed the first Governor General (GG). After the partition his stands out as a mark of respect for the deof India, AIMl ceased to exist. Jinnah wanted parted leader. This blatant disrespect of our to frame a new constitution of the Pakistan Baba-e-Quam from a leader of a party that Muslim league (PMl). After failing to get claims to be the political successor of the foundconsensus he left the league never to return. ing political outfit is shameful and condemnable PMl fell on hard times. Political stalwarts from which should not go unpunished. In her recent East Pakistan like Suharwardy who were address at Karachi, Maryam Safdar, the wife of treated unfairly, left to form a separate party the detained Captain, openly said that this is a called Awami league which then became the fight between the elders in which the Prime founding party of Bangladesh. After Ayub Minister has no role. whom is she challenging Khan’s martial law of october 1958, he de- for a duel? Also it has been revealed that the cided to create his own brand of league called Captain did not retire he sought release from the Pakistan Muslim league (Convention) which Army as such he should not be addressed as has been the incubator of several ‘Sarkari Captain (r) either. Interesting times lay ahead leagues’ of which PMl-N is one. As a Muslim for the nation. league child it hurts when these so called NeoDr Farid A Malik is ex-Chairman, Pakistan leaguers indulge in malpractices of all kinds.

Misuse of the name of the founding party of Science Foundation. He can be contacted at: Pakistan has to be stopped. Now even the rest- fmaliks@hotmail.com.

ThouGh schools and colleges have been taking steps to implement the Standard operating procedures (SoP),positive cases are emerging in educational institutions. Meanwhile, 32 schools and colleges in Islamabad (both public and private) have been sealed due to positive cases. Around 23,000 staffers and students of educational institutions were tested and 72 of them were found infected with the virus since the reopening of educational institutions on September 15. however, the situation is still under control, especially if the public takes more measures in order to defeat Covid-19 easily.

MEHr balocH Sajidi awaran

Cleaning up the streets oNE of the worst habits one can have is the addiction of drugs. According to numerous researchers, drug addicts roam on streets with no aim and are in a very pitiful situation. They usually have no place to live as they try to be close to drug dealers, so that they can easily get drugs. Pakistan’s youth is highly indulged in drugs, which is destroying the future of our country. we need to uproot it from its roots. The drug dealers must be punished.

The authorities can easily arrest the drug suppliers by adding an option to complain about such people on the Prime Minister’s citizen’s portal.

Through this application, people can send the locations of drug addicts and within weeks the suppliers can be arrested. Therefore, I request the authorities to take steps to prevent drug trafficking. zuMrud GHani KEcH

Why unblock TikTok IT was strange to hear that the PTA has decided to unblock Tik-tok. This seems to be typical. First, PTA banned PuBG, and after a few days they unbanned it. PTA had blocked Tik-tok 10 days ago, and now they have unblocked it. what is the matter behind the wall? Everyone knows that both these apps are just a waste of time and money. In making tik-tok videos many youngsters have lost their lives. This culture of TikToks is also used for making memes. Vulgar language is also used in dialogue motions. PTA’s first decision was praised but this decision is opposed by most of the people. Government should think about it and should block TikTok for the better future of Pakistani youngsters. anTHony SaHoTra larKana

Fighting hunger ThE latest Nobel Peace Prize has been announced now. According to the news sources, the world Food Programme [wFP] has been awarded this prestigious prize. It has been reported that the efforts to fight hunger the world over have been richly rewarded with the coveted prize. Mainstream news channels like BBC and CNN have just highlighted this news piece.

As we know, the Nobel Prize institution has been a great platform, having been encouraging many a person and so many big personalities from diverse areas like social domain and science up till now.

More to the point, the number of people from such interesting yet intense fields should go up given the various problems facing the world now. Great doses of encouragement and enthusiasm should go into such humanitarian activities as fighting hunger. True to form, such coveted prizes have indeed been great panacea for world conflicts.

The recent CNN interview clearly shows that the people from the world Food Programme including the wFP Director have all been a happy lot enthusiastically working on their project.

As a token of reminder, my family [I had been rigorously working in the fields and on the farms] and others have been into intense farming activities like crop cultivation and growing trees around in my native areas like Tuticorin, Korkai, Nagercoil, Tiruchendur, Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu.

P SEnTHil Saravana durai MuMbai

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

08 WORLD VIEW

Forced to undergo genital exams in colonial india ACCORDING TO PROF MITRA, VIRTUALLY ALL WOMEN OUTSIDE OF MONOGAMOUS HINDU UPPER-CASTE MARRIAGES WERE CONSIDERED PROSTITUTES

BBC

i

SoutiK BiSwaS

N 1868, police in the British-ruled Indian city of Calcutta (now Kolkata) sent a woman called Sukhimonee Raur to prison for evading a genital examination which had been made compulsory for "registered" sex workers.

Under the colonial Contagious Diseases Act, designed to contain the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, sex workers had to "register themselves at police stations, get medically examined and surveilled". Raur fought back - she petitioned the court, demanding her release. "I did not attend for examination twice a month as I have not been a prostitute," she said. She said the police had mistakenly registered her and that she had never been a sex worker. In March 1869, the high court in Calcutta ruled in her favour.

The judges said that Raur was not a "registered public prostitute" and, moreover,

such registration of women would have to be voluntary. In other words, women could not be forced to register.

Trawling the colonial archives, Durba Mitra, a professor of women, gender and sexuality at Harvard University, found that thousands of women were arrested by the colonial police for failing to abide by the rules of registration for genital examination mandated under the law.

Prof Mitra's new work Indian Sex Life, published by Princeton University Press, is a remarkable study of how British authorities and Indian intellectuals "developed ideas about deviant female sexuality to control and organise modern society in India". One way to regulate sexuality was by classifying, registering and medically examining women seen as prostitutes, she told me.

In July 1869, some prostitutes of Calcutta petitioned the colonial authorities, accusing them of "violating their womanhood" by forcing them to register and undergo genital examination.

The women protested against the "process of hateful examination which is, in other words, gross exposure". They wrote that those caught by the police were "forced to expose themselves to the doctor and his subordinates… The sense of female honour is not wholly blotted from our hearts". Au-

thorities quickly rejected the petition.

Powerful city officials said the "clandestine prostitutes" who evaded registration were a threat to the new law. Regulating the prostitutes in Bengal was an almost impossible task, argued Dr Robert Payne, the chief of a key hospital in Calcutta. He said women should be registered without consent.

Between 1870 and 1888, says Prof Mitra, 12 women were arrested every day for breaching the law in Calcutta alone. Authorities noted that many women, discovering that they were under supervision, were fleeing the city. The federal government debated whether the police in Bengal could legally carry out genital examination on women "who were accused of undergoing abortion and infanticide". One magistrate felt that "false cases of rape and procuring abortion will largely increase without compulsory genital examinations of women".

Another argued that securing consent from women for the examination could cripple the "administration of justice". In a letter to the secretary of Bengal, the city's police commissioner, Stuart Hogg, suggested women continued to infect men with venereal diseases because of the limitations of the law.

But with the growing opposition to the law in India and Britain, the offending Contagious Diseases Act was repealed in 1888.

Jessica Hinchy, a historian and author of Governing Gender and Sexuality in Colonial India, said it was not suspected prostitutes alone who were subjected to genital examinations in colonial India. She told me that people whom the British "classified with the pejorative colonial term 'eunuch', especially transgender Hijras" were subjected to genital examinations under a controversial 1871 law which targeted caste groups considered to be hereditary criminals. "The aim of this law was to cause the 'gradual extinction' of Hijras - both physically and culturally through police registration, prohibitions on performance and dressing in feminine clothes, forced removal of children from Hijra households and interference with Hijra discipleship and succession practices," Dr Hinchy said. The Contagious Diseases Act is considered a shameful chapter in the history of colonial India. Officials distributed questionnaires to magistrates, policemen and doctors on how to define a prostitute.

Colonial authorities, writes Prof Mitra, replied that all Indian women were potential prostitutes. A top police official, AH Giles, argued that all women who were not upper caste and married could be classified as a prostitute. Twenty volumes of a statistical account of Bengal between 1875 and 1879 repeatedly used the category of prostitutes.

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, then a midlevel bureaucrat in Bengal who would eventually become a celebrated novelist and author of India's national song, detailed "a diverse array of women who practiced clandestine prostitution".

In colonial India, according to Prof Mitra, virtually all women outside of

monogamous Hindu upper-caste marriages were considered prostitutes.

They would include so-called dancing girls, widows, both Hindu and Muslim polygamous women, beggars, vagrants, women factory workers and domestic servants. The 1881 colonial census of Bengal considered all unmarried women over the age of 15 as prostitutes.

The first census of the city of Calcutta and its neighbourhood counted 12,228 known prostitutes out of a population of 145,000 women. By 1891, the number rose to more than 20,000 women. "The introduction of the act led to an epistemic shift, a pivotal change where Indian sexual practices became a primary object of knowledge for the British colonial state," says Prof Mitra.

But sexual practices of men remained almost entirely outside the formal purview of the state. Prof Mitra says the "control and erasure of women's sexuality became critical to how the British colonial state intervened in every day life". Also, in places like Bengal, where she based her study, Indian men "also took up the control of women's sexuality in their own vision of Indian society that reorganised society along high-caste visions of Hindu monogamy, to the exclusion of Muslims and lower caste people".

At the root of all this was the notion that "deviant" womanhood was a problem that could not be easily solved. In the process, says Prof Mitra, women were "described, put on trial, scrutinised in public view, forcibly indentured, imprisoned, examined against their will". And so much of this history, she says, resonates with what is still happening with women.

The ratings system is broken and the television industry knows it RATINGS CORRUPTION IS PART AND PARCEL OF PRIVATISATION, WITH THE GENERAL PUBLIC ALSO AMONG THE LOSERS IN THE BARGAIN. BUT WHAT ABOUT BUSINESSES: SHOULD THEY NOT DEMAND THAT THEY GET THEIR MONEY’S WORTH WHEN THEY SPEND ON ADVERTISING?

Open Magazine Kaveree Bamzai

Consider this: Each of the 44,000 Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) meters determines about Rs 75 lakh of advertising spend a year. And it is open to manipulation for a few hundred rupees a day.

And then this: News channels that are making the most noise about television ratings points (TRPs) are watched by a minority of the TV-viewing universe: exactly 7 per cent at the start of 2020, which went up to 21 per cent at the height of the Covid-19-induced lockdown in March-end, continuing to boom till June-end, before dropping back to 9 per cent of the total (with general entertainment channel viewership at a peak of 52 per cent and movies at 24 per cent).

And finally this: India has 20 crore (200 million) TV sets, over 700 TV channels in 15 languages and a TV ad spend of Rs 35,000 crore. It samples 44,000 households. The US, with 120 million TV sets, 1,000 channels mostly in two languages (English and Spanish) and a TV ad spend of $70 billion, samples 46,000 households. It delivers ratings only for national channels, considering niche channels too statistically insignificant.

News networks in India have been accusing each other of manipulating ratings after Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh held a press conference to announce an investigation into the involvement of three TV news channels—Republic TV, Fakt Marathi and Box Cinema—in a TRP controversy.

Don’t be fooled by the shock and horror: the Indian television industry has been here before. In 2012, NDTV sued Television Audience Measurement (TAM), a joint venture between Nielsen and Kantar Media, which had been measuring TRPs since 1998. It was enough for the Indian Broadcasting Federation (IBF) to take over the ratings mechanism, forming BARC with a 60 per cent stake to measure audience ratings, in conjunction with the Advertising Agencies Association of India and the Indian Society of Advertisers.

So given the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) is a member of the IBF, why can’t

it make the measurement foolproof? Especially since such complaints have been made before in Madhya Pradesh and the south. NBA President and India TV Chairman Rajat Sharma admits that recent events have demonstrated, once again, that there are “weaknesses in the rating system, and BARC itself has acknowledged in its police complaints that metered homes are being manipulated”. The investigation has exposed that panel homes were being compromised by certain channels.

It has been done with the help of ex-employees who are familiar with the system and aware which households are metered, he adds. The corrupted data is creating a false narrative on what India watches and is putting pressure on newsrooms, says Sharma, to make distorted editorial decisions. “The current atmosphere of toxicity, abuse and fake news is no longer tenable and is not in the spirit of journalism we have encoded in the NBA.” He says the NBA is working with the IBF to involve international experts to make the system robust.

Not a moment too soon. As veteran investor and marketer Mahesh Murthy points out, comparing TAM’s ratings to BARC’s is a little like competition between Haji Mastan and Dawood Ibrahim. “Both are fraudsters, but one wears suits and boots and pretends to be up to some international standard. There’s no difference really,” he says. TAM was owned by WPP, the same people who own media agencies Mindshare and GroupM. It was no surprise that it helped WPP’s media agencies make more money. For over 20 years TAM had less than 2,000 meters covering all of India. Which meant controlling a mere 100 households across India could get consistent TRPs of five.

It was convenient for everybody, points out Murthy. Here’s how: It was a time of 500 channels, 15 crore TV sets and TV ad spend of Rs 20,000 crore. No media agency wanted to deal with 500 channels with average TRPs of 0.2 each. It was too much hard work. It was so much easier with two or three channels with TRPs between five and 15. “So rather than writing 500 insertion orders for air time at rates of Rs 1,000 per 10 seconds, the bigger agencies much prefer to write three orders for airtime at the rate of Rs 1 lakh for 10 seconds.

They make more money from their fees, their media commissions and their undeclared kickbacks from TV channels—and all for less work. And those five channels make more money too. Win-win for everyone, except clients,” adds Murthy.

But when the rest of the media discovered

this and created BARC, the ostensible goal was to generate more accurate ratings for television.

In effect though, the result was only marginally better. We’re now in a universe with 20 crore TV sets, over 700 TV channels and a TV ad spend of Rs 35,000 crore. It’s easy to see that BARC’s 44,000 households are not any great statistical improvement. Especially when everyone on the ground knows where the 44,000 households are.

Such a sample size and that too compromised is woefully inadequate to help determine where Rs 35,000 crore of ad spend should go. Especially in this age of digital options. A better solution has to involve more sampling and not be fixable. It’s not difficult.

One can put in two-way set-top boxes in lakhs of households. Meters can cost less than Rs 5,000 at scale and be deployed in lakhs and hence be resistant to all but bruteforce fixing. Everyone watches TV with their phones near them. One can build an app that ‘listens’ to what’s on TV and sends data on an anonymous basis to a central server with the user’s permission. And this app can be downloaded in the crores. All of these can easily improve TV ratings. Provided TV ratings want to be improved.

The technology exists. Solutions are affordable too. And these have been presented multiple times to the agencies, the TV channels and BARC. But no one is listening. It will mean a complete overhaul of how money

is allocated.

For instance, the cost of a 10-second spot on the Indian P r e m i e r League (IPL) was Rs 10-15 lakh last year. This was 50-100 times more than the

cost of spots on a typical lowbrow channel.

Agencies would earn more selling one ad spot on the IPL than selling 100 elsewhere. For less effort. Because it was assumed that the IPL had 50-100 times the TRP of those other channels.

What if, hypothetically, asks Murthy, you did authentic ratings and found that the IPL had ‘only’ 10 times the ratings of say ETV Marathi? Would you pay more for ETV or less for IPL? “I believe you’d do the latter. In that case Star would not end up paying Rs 17,000 crore for five years of IPL rights, so teams would not cost so much and maybe football or kabaddi could make its way more into our consciousness,” he says.

It will also show us exactly how much should be spent on TV and digital advertising.

India has 60 crore internet users, who spend more time on their phones than on the TV sets in their homes. But the country spends almost half on internet advertising than it does on 20 crore TV sets. In the US, meanwhile, internet ad spend has eclipsed TV ad spend. It’s tougher to control access on Facebook and Google than it is to master TV ratings in India, so the cycle continues.

Arvind Rajagopal, a media studies professor at New York University, gives a historical perspective to the whole debate, pointing out that Indian TV was not organised around viewer feedback when it was established. Doordarshan was a monopoly after all. Viewers began to be counted by private agencies when sponsored programmes began to earn significant revenue. They were called “national readership surveys”, suggesting that the mindset of survey research was not fully abreast with the new technology.

It was common knowledge, he says, that households with meters were paid to tune into one or other channel. “In the states, the most politically powerful channels always got the highest ratings even when this was far from the truth. Money and muscle power were always used to silence any critics.

The tilt away from public to private became clear when TAM surveys omitted any mention of Doordar-

shan even though it was the most watched channel. There was no protest from the Government until SY Quraishi, then Director General of Doordarshan, initiated inquiries that led to the formation of BARC. But BARC too, instead of acting as a public service, allowed media companies to skew the numbers,” he says. Quraishi even wrote about this recently in a national newspaper. He tells Open: “Even now there is no change in either the basic system or the technology. Only the controlling organisation has changed, from TAM, which was controlled by Nielsen, to BARC.” It is something the Government itself has allowed, with private channels eroding its public service. How and why this happened deserves investigation, points out Rajagopal. We are often taught to denounce the era of government monopoly media and to celebrate liberalisation of the airwaves. But giving broadcasters freedom on the airwaves has not necessarily led to better news and entertainment for the public as a whole.

‘Free flow of information’ was a Cold Warera American idea, designed to promote commercial entertainment throughout the world, in the name of democracy. In the US this has led to a situation reminiscent of the Civil War, where no common ground exists between warring sides.

The civil war in the Indian case is staged between political parties, fought through proxy TV channels and friendly anchors.

‘Fake news’ has extended deeper and wider in India and affected even the information that industry insiders rely on. Ratings corruption is part and parcel of this privatisation, with the general public also among the losers in the bargain. But what about businesses: should they not demand that they get their money’s worth when they spend on advertising? Or are they too nervous to challenge the powers that be?

In a television market as segmented by language and genre as in India, the current TRP model is just not good enough to give you an accurate reflection. For that to change, it will require much less hectoring of others and much more introspection. Longtime observer of TV and founder of Indiantelevision.com, Anil Wanvari, feels leakages on account of human intervention due to greed can happen in perfect systems too, but that does not mean the system is bad, it’s the humans who are. He believes news channels need to be subscription-driven, rather than purely dependent on advertising. Additionally, advertisers and agencies need to understand that news brings with it quality audiences, not the masses that general entertainment shows bring. “The barometer of investing for advertising needs to be the quality of editorial, its voice and quality of production as well and the internal numbers the channel’s team provides,” he adds. If that happens, it would really be breaking news.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

BUSINESS 09

PTA lIFTS BAn On TIkTOk, wARnS AccOunTS POSTInG OBScene cOnTenT wIll Be BlOckeD ISLAMABAD

P

TAIMOOR HASSAN

AKISTAN Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on Monday lifted the ban on popular Chinese video-sharing service TikTok, with a caveat that accounts of users posting obscene content will be blocked. “TikTok is being unlocked after assurance from management [of TikTok] that they will block all accounts repeatedly involved in spreading obscenity and immorality. TikTok will moderate the account in accordance with local laws,” read a tweet on PTA’s social media handle Twitter.

It is pertinent to note that the unblocking of the video-sharing service comes only 48 hours after TikTok management offered to invest in Pakistan if the restriction was lifted. On October 17, in an official statement, a spokesperson from TikTok had shared that if the Government of Pakistan decides to reopen access to its services, the Chinese video-sharing social networking service will certainly assess the allocation of resources to the Pakistan market. As reported by Profit, TikTok has 25 million downloads in Pakistan of which 68 per cent are female and 96pc are Android users. "As I predicted TikTok has been unbanned in Pakistan," said Habibullah Khan, founder of Penumbra.

"TikTok is a channel that is not only an outlet for

the lower and working-class but also a channel through which you can reach them for critical services for the advancement of the nation," said Khan.

"There is a reason when Covid-19 hit, the first people government reached out to were TikTok influencers. Similarly from financial inclusion to disaster preparedness, TikTok can play a central role in evangelizing behaviours and actions that help Pakistan via mass adoption," he further said. In an interview with The New York Times, Khan had stated that the ban had political motivations to suppress discontent and the social media expert predicted the app would be unbanned by Monday, which it has.

“Excellent news for marketers as the most robust social media platform is now back in the mix. The expedited reversal of the ban goes to show that ByteDance is very much invested in the Pakistan market,” said Empact Middle East Digital Account Director Saif Ali. “TikTok must remain firm in its commitment to better police ‘immoral and indecent’ content and bring onboard/expand a team of Urdu content moderators,” he added.

However, Saif contended that instead of just blocking certain accounts, TikTok needs to regularly monitor even the biggest creator accounts to ensure compliance with community standards, which will rule out brand safety concerns for advertisers as well.

“On occasions, some influencers we have worked

DRAP notifies up to 35pc hike in prices of 253 medicines LAHORE TLTP

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) on Monday increased prices of 253 medicines by up to 22 to 35 per cent. A notification in this regard has been issued by the regulatory body. This is the second increase in the prices of medicines in a month. Meanwhile, Pakistan Drug Lawyers Forum (PDLF) President Noor Mohammad Mahar has demanded the federal government to take back the hike in medicine prices. On September 24, Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan had said that the recent hike in prices of 94 essential life-saving drugs by DRAP was ‘inevitable’ to ensure availability of the medicines. Dr Faisal Sultan, while talking to the media in Islamabad, had said that a ‘reasonable increase’ was made in prices of 94 essential drugs by the DRAP. Pharmaceutical companies usually stop production of some medicines if prices are not increasing, he had said, adding a halt in production by the pharmaceutical companies creates a shortage of drugs across the country.

Gold imports plunge 73pc in Q1FY21 ISLAMABAD APP

The import of gold into the country witnessed a decline of 73.04pc during the first quarter (Q1) of the current fiscal year (FY2020-21) as compared to the corresponding period of last year. Gold imports during July-September FY21 were recorded at $1.206 million against the imports of $4.474 million during July-September FY20, according to the latest data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). In terms of quantity, gold imports shrunk 82.30pc, from 113kgs last year to 20kgs during the period under review. However, on a year-on-year basis, the import of gold increased by 2.12pc in September 2020 when compared to the imports of September 2019. Gold imports during September 2020 were recorded at $1.181 million against the imports of $1.206 million in September last year.

with have been seen posting objectionable content shortly after a brand collaboration. If noticed, this is bound to leave a sour impression with advertisers and undermine future investments on the platform,” he elaborated. “Likewise, the creator community itself must also commit to reporting obscene content to keep TikTok clean and safe for all,” he added.

The video-sharing service was blocked by PTA on October 9 following “complaints from different segments of the society against immoral and indecent content on the video-sharing application.”

The PTA had then assured that it would review its ban, subject to a satisfactory mechanism by TikTok to moderate unlawful content.

On October 14, Federal Minister for Information Technology Syed Aminul Haq had said that the ban will be lifted once the TikTok management agrees to have morally compromised and anti-state content removed from the app for good. Subsequently, TikTok also offered to invest in Pakistan if the federal government decided to reopen access to its services.

“After TikTok was blocked in Pakistan, we continued to engage with the PTA to demonstrate our commitment to comply with local laws and further enhance our content moderation capacity. Though the PTA acknowledged and appreciated these efforts, our services remain blocked in the country and we have received no communication from PTA.”

MARKET DAILY

Stocks manage modest gains despite political noise KARACHI STAFF REPORT

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) commenced the week on a positive note, as indices traded in green for the most part of the session while volumes improved from the previous close.

Equity markets around the globe also showed a positive trend, whereas crude oil prices fell lower from the previous close; WTI crude price declining 0.75pc to $40.81 while Brent crude price decreasing 0.75pc to $42.61.

"The market discounted the anticipated negative impact of the demonstration held by the opposition parties against the incumbent government. Investor sentiment was already dampened at the close of last week and it was anticipated to further deteriorate post allegations made by the PML-N leadership on the military establishment. But contrary to general expectation, the index sided with the positive expectation on the upcoming quarterly results," said report issued by AHL Ltd. The benchmark KSE-100 Index gained 327.11 points in early trade to record its intraday high at 40,491.13. It, however, fell changed its direction in the afternoon, dropping to to its intraday low at 40,077.90 (86.12 points). The index finally settled higher by 176.15 points at 40,340.17.

Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index accumulated 551.71 points to close at 64,315.00, while the KSE All Share Index

added 96.00 points, ending at 28,567.79.

The overall market volumes surged from 254.12 million shares in the previous session to 319.46 million shares (+25pc).

Average traded value also increased by 3pc, from to $49.0 million as against $47.6 million. Unity Foods Ltd (UNITY +7.45pc), Pakistan International Bulk Terminal Ltd (PIBTL +6.26pc) and Fauji Foods Ltd (FFL +6.58pc) led the colume chart, exchanging 53.66 million, 36.64 million and 26.74 million shares, respectively.

Sectors that kept the benchmark index afloat included fertilizer (+87.31 points), oil & gas exploration (+28.91 points) and oil & gas marketing (+19.36 points).

Among the companies, Engro Corporation Ltd (ENGRO +61.94 points), Engro Fertilizer Ltd (EFERT +22.81 points) and Mari Petroleum Company Ltd (MARI +19.91 points) remained the top contributors .

Adding 1.82pc to its total market capitalization, the fertilizer sector ended as the session's top performer, with Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim Ltd (FFBL +2.14pc), Arif Habib Corporation Ltd (AHCL +7.48pc) and Engro Fertilizer Ltd (EFERT +2.73pc) posting decent gains.

Meanwhile, Mari Petroleum Company Ltd (MARI +2.56pc) declared its financial performance for the first quarter of FY21.

The company's revenue increased by 14pc YoY, while cost of sales fell by 15.60pc, resulting in 34pc surge in gross profit.

MARI's earnings per share improved from Rs55.94 last year to Rs67.96 in 1QFY21.

ECC forms eight-member committee to evaluate wheat support price ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet has formed an eight-member committee to evaluate the proposal for an increase in the minimum support price (MPS) of wheat for the 2020-21 crops.

Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh chaired the meeting of the ECC at the Cabinet Division on Monday.

The ECC held a detailed discussion on the MSP of wheat, wherein the Ministry of National Food Security & Research (MNFS&R) briefed the meeting on different estimates gathered from Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and the federal capital.

During the discussion, it also came to the fore that there was a need to increase the MSP to support farmers and

to grow enough quantities in the next sowing season.

The forum further discussed the need to rationalize the prices of inputs and make them more affordable to the farmers, as it would support rural economy through various measures and increase the supply of wheat in the market which will bring flour prices down.

The forum stressed a better system to gather data regarding the agriculture sector.

The ECC on the occasion formed a committee, comprising MNFS&R Minister Syed Fakhar Imam, Adviser to PM on Finance Dr Hafeez Shaikh, Special Assistant to PM on Austerity & Institutional Reforms Dr Ishrat Hussain, SAPM on Revenue Dr Waqar Masood, SAPM on Power Nadeem Baber, Adviser to PM on Commerce Abdul Razzaq Dawood, Planning Minister Asad Umar and Ecocnomic Affairs Minister

Khusro Bakhtiar as members, to thoroughly evaluate the proposal for the increase in the MPS of wheat for the 2020-21 crops.

The committee shall also prepare a proposal on subsidy on fertilizers, mainly DAP, which may be offered as a part of the package for the farmers so that their input cost is reasonable/reduced. It was also decided that the provinces should increase the wheat releases to stabilize/reduce the price of flour in the market. Local governments will also be directed to specially monitor the prices of wheat and flour in the markets so that its prices may not be allowed to escalate for the common man.

The committee shall present its proposal in the next meeting of ECC. Meanwhile, the committee approved in-principle the procedure for registration under the concessionary regime of electricity, RLNG and gas

CMYK

under the export-oriented sectors (erstwhile zero-rated sectors) with instructions to ensure better targeting of the recipients of this subsidy.

The ECC also decided that the previous list of manufacturers or exporters declared zero-rated by FBR (under condition (xii) of the SRO 1125) may be adopted in export-oriented sectors. FBR may register new manufacturers or exporters of five export-oriented sectors (erstwhile five zero rated sectors), in accordance with past precedents of STGO-117, under Commerce Division’s O.M No.1 (18)/2019 in manner specified by FBR. FBR, Petroleum Division and Power Division may formulate periodic rechecking/monitoring/withdrawal strategy for previous and newly registered units along with procedure to penalize in case of misrepresentation and misuse.

CORPORATE CORNER In a first, Meezan Bank to offer financing under PM’s low-cost housing scheme KARACHI: Meezan Bank, Pakistan’s first and largest Islamic bank, on Friday became the first bank in the country to disburse the first two Shariah-compliant housing finance facilities under PM’s Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar, low cost housing finance scheme. Meezan Bank Founding President & CEO Irfan Siddiqui said, “We are delighted to be the first bank in the country to make a disbursement under the Prime Minister’s Low-cost housing finance scheme and look forward to contributing towards this important sector which directly and indirectly supports over 40 industries and employs a very large percentage of the unskilled labour of the country.”

Sanofi, DVAGO team up to offer safe vaccination space KARACHI: Sanofi announced a partnership with DVAGO Pharmacy & Wellness Experts whereby people in Karachi and Hyderabad can avail vaccination services by certified pharmacists within safe, hygienic and quality-controlled environs of DVAGO Pharmacies. Sanofi is a global healthcare provider with the vision to create a world where no one dies of a vaccine-preventable disease. Sanofi strongly feels due to Covid-19, where numerous children have missed out on their due vaccinsations, they are to be immunized in an environment which is hygienic and has no exposure to infections.

KARACHI: A walk was held in connection with ‘Breast Cancer Awareness Month’ at Kiran Cancer Hospital. Ms Musarat Misbah was also present on the occasion.

LAHORE: Jubilee Life Insurance, Pakistan’s leading insurance provider in the private sector, is partnering with EasyInsurance.com.pk, the country’s fastestgrowing insurance aggregator, to offer cutting-edge insurance policies at the consumers’ fingertips through a dedicated online buying platform.

LAHORE: On account of International Day for Eradication of Poverty, Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) organized asset distribution ceremony in Shangla and Lakki Marwat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, under the second phase of Livelihood Support & Promotion of Small Community Infrastructure Program (LACIP).

KARACHI: Faysal Bank Limited (FBL) has joined hands with IGI Life as one of its Banca-Takaful partners to launch new products with life & health coverage segments for Faysal Bank customers. The signing ceremony was attended by Tahir Yaqoob Bhatti, Head Retail Banking, Faysal Bank Ltd and Ali Nadeem, Chief Operating Officer, IGI Life Window Takaful Operations.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

10 FOREIGN NEWS

As Us election looms, eUrope weighs risk of A dispUted resUlt BRUSSELS/BERLIN/LONDON

w

AGENCIES

ITH less than three weeks until the U.S. presidential election, European capitals are concerned about the risk of a disputed outcome and the impact it would have in the United States and abroad. While Democrat candidate Joe Biden leads in opinion polls, the 2016 election produced a split between the popular vote and the Electoral College. Analysts say that remains possible on Nov. 3.

With Trump equivocating on whether he would accept a peaceful transfer of power if he loses, and suggesting the Supreme Court may have to decide the winner, the risk of a contested result is significant.

One British bookmaker is offering 9/4 that Trump will lose the popular vote but be re-elected, odds that imply a 69% probability. A poll of global fund managers

by Bank of America found 60% expected the result to be

disputed. In major European capitals, where many quietly hope the election will produce a change of president and a shift in U.S. policy on issues from climate to trade, NATO and the Iran nuclear deal, caution prevails.

“The majority of EU governments hope for a Biden victory, although no one would say that,” said one EU diplomat.

“Governments are looking at scenarios, contingency plans, although it remains to be seen what could be done in the case of Trump contesting the result.”

German officials have been thinking through the implications for months - since Trump raised doubts about whether he would accept the outcome. “We analyse what could happen, different scenarios,” one said.

Presidential elections have been disputed in the past, as in 2000, when lawyers for Al Gore and George W. Bush spent a month arguing over a Florida recount that the Supreme Court ultimately decided in Bush’s favour.

But a dispute this time could last longer and be more unpredictable, officials say, including the risk of violence

on the streets, legal challenges and the chance Trump refuses to vacate the White House.

LEADERSHIP VACUUM? That would have grave implications in a country already polarised over race and politics and battling the coronavirus.

Washington is in a trade dispute with China and trying to exert influence from the South China Sea to Yemen. A contested result could risk a leadership vacuum that Beijing, Moscow or Pyongyang might seek to exploit. Geopolitical analysts are concerned, for example, that China might move against Taiwan.

For Britain, it would create more uncertainty as a potential no-deal Brexit kicks in on Jan. 1, and as London tries to clinch a trade deal with Washington.

Britain’s Foreign Office says it is “ready for any outcome”. For France, it could mean the difference between the United States fully withdrawing from the Paris climate accord or potentially rejoining it under Biden.

NATO wants a strong U.S. recommitment whether

Trump or Biden wins, and countries in east Europe, always wary of Russia, want U.S. security promises kept, including more troops in Poland.

“There are several concerns – one is that Trump will be reelected,” said a senior EU official. “The other big concern is that there might be violence on the streets in the U.S. after the elections.”

Some European officials feel more confident now about Biden winning.

“I think the game’s almost over,” said one. “For a long time we thought Trump would do it, but now, I don’t see it.” Yet in Brussels, officials fear Trump’s return would mean another four years of tension. They are preparing for either outcome, while hoping that the result is accepted.

If Trump disputes it, one official said, “it would send Washington into political paralysis”. Brussels would have to look at “how quickly the rats leave the sinking ship”, including how quickly the Republican party distances itself from Trump.

UAe cabinet ratifies accord to israel ahead of official visit DUBAI AGENCIES

The cabinet of the United Arab Emirates on Monday approved an agreement to establish full diplomatic relations with Israel that was signed in Washington last month, ahead of the first official visit by a UAE government delegation to Israel. The UAE and fellow Gulf state Bahrain in September became the first Arab states in a quarter of a century to sign agreements to establish formal ties with Israel, forged largely through shared fears of Iran. “Together the UAE and Israel will stand better prepared to confront the malign threats from the Iranian regime, their proxies, and other extremist groups,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi. His televised remarks were made at the first Abraham Accords Business Summit held on Monday with the participation of Israeli delegations. Mnuchin and other U.S. dignitaries will accompany the UAE government delegation to Israel on Tuesday. He arrived in Abu Dhabi from Bahrain, where U.S. officials joined an Israeli delegation on a trip to Manama to sign a communique formalising nascent ties. The UAE cabinet statement said the Abraham Accord would be “an avenue of peace and stability to support the ambitions of the region’s people, and enhance efforts for prosperity and advancement, especially as it paves the way for deepening economic, culture and knowledge ties.” Israel had ratified the deal in a cabinet vote and a parliamentary vote last week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a speech to parliament on Monday, said the historic treaties would bring real peace between peoples, including economic peace. “Especially at a time of the coronavirus, this is so important.

Students attend a class at the beginning of the school year amid fears of the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in Sanaa, Yemen October 18. AGENCIES

Turkey withdraws from base in northwest Syria, sources say AMMAN/ANKARA AGENCIES

Mist hangs over Pitlochry, Scotland, Britain October 17. AGENCIES

Turkey is withdrawing troops from a military post in northwest Syria that was surrounded by Syrian government forces last year, but is consolidating its presence elsewhere in the region, sources familiar with the operation said on Monday.

The observation post at Morek was one of a dozen set up by Turkish soldiers in 2018 under an ill-fated deal to calm fighting between Syrian government troops and Turkey-backed rebels controlling the northwestern Idlib region.

Morek and several other Turkish posts

were surrounded last year by advancing Syrian government forces. Ankara has kept them manned and re-supplied since then, while reinforcing the remaining rebel-held territory to hold back government forces and prevent millions of refugees streaming towards Turkey.

Turkish officials have in the past ruled out pulling back from a single observation post, but the sources said there was no longer any military value in staying at Morek. “The dismantling of the base has begun,” a senior Syrian opposition figure close to Turkey told Reuters.

The withdrawal from the exposed position would take several days, he said, describing it

as part of Turkish efforts to “consolidate ceasefire lines” reached in a March agreement with Russia which halted the heaviest fighting in years around Idlib. Two other sources familiar with the operation, who asked not to be named, said the withdrawal started early on Monday. “The Turkish armed forces are not considering evacuating another observation post at this stage,” one of them said.

Syrian rebels say Turkey retains between 10,000 and 15,000 troops in the pocket of northwest Syria, alongside rebel fighters backed by Ankara and jihadist forces it has committed to disarm and contain.

US and Brazil must reduce dependence on China imports: Pompeo BRASILIA/WASHINGTON AGENCIES

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned on Monday the United States and Brazil need to reduce their dependence on imports from China for their own security as the two countries reinforced their business partnership.

At a virtual summit on increased U.S.-Brazil cooperation aimed at post-pandemic recovery, Pompeo underscored the importance of expanding bilateral economic ties, given what he called “enormous risk” stemming from China’s significant participation in their

economies. “To the extent we can find ways that we can increase the trade between our two countries, we can ... decrease each of our two nations’ dependence for critical items” coming from China, he said.

“Each of our two peoples will be more secure, and each of our two nations will be far more prosperous, whether that’s two or five or 10 years from now,” he added.

The Trump administration is working to boost ties with Brazil and provide a counterweight to China, keen to gain some advantage in what it sees as a new ‘Great Power’ competition.

Brazilian far-right President Jair Bolsonaro is keen

to follow suit but is hamstrung by China being Brazil’s largest trade partner, which buys much of its soy and iron ore.

Bolsonaro has yet to decide whether to ban Brazilian telecom companies from buying 5G equipment from China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd as wished by the U.S government.

At the summit organized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Bolsonaro announced three agreements with the United States to ensure good business practices and stop corruption. He said the package will slash red tape and increase trade and investment.

“In the last year and a half, together with President

Trump, we have elevated Brazil-U.S. relations to its best moment ever, and opened a new chapter in the relationship between the two largest economies and democracies in the hemisphere,” he said.

Pompeo said Brazil was getting closer to joining the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) grouping rich nations with the support of the United States. “We want this to happen as quickly as we can,” he said.

The U.S. Export-Import Bank would back projects valued at $450 million in Brazil this year, while the U.S. Development Finance Corp had plans involving about $1 billion in projects there, he said.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

SPORTS 11

Misbah naMes 22 ‘probables’ for ZiMbabwe series AGENCIES

h

EAD coach and outgoing chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq on Monday announced a 22-man group as “probables” for the home series against Zimbabwe, naming several uncapped players and National T20 Cup standouts such as Abdullah Shafique, Khushdil Shah and Rohail Nazir but leaving out veterans such as Sarfaraz Ahmed and Shoaib Malik.

It was the last squad that Misbah picked for a home assignment as he is set to relinquish the chief selector’s role at the end of November. He is still expected to name the touring party for the New Zealand tour later.

Misbah explained that the group picked was a blend of youth and experience as Pakistan have not played ODI cricket for a long time and so too much experimentation could not have been done. “One day is now very important for us,” he said. “We need to win every match to qualify. No team can be taken as easy opponents. “We did not do too much experimentation as we have not played ODI cricket for a year. We will try and give more chances to youngsters in the T20I series.”

‘ON PRESENT FORM, RIZWAN IS CLEARLY NUMBER ONE’: He then discussed why Sarfaraz and Malik were absent from the list. “Sarfaraz Ahmed and Shoaib Malik were not picked as we want to try some young players, not seniors,” he said.

“It was difficult to give Sarfaraz a chance as Rizwan is playing well. Not many will disagree that on present form, Rizwan is the first-choice wicketkeeper in both the white-ball formats.

“Sarfaraz will now have to play domestic cricket to put himself in contention for the New Zealand tour. “Rohail Nazir has been chosen as Rizwan’s back-up wicketkeeper. Instead of Sarfaraz sitting on the substitute

FIRST CALL-UP FOR ABDULLAH SHAFIQUE BUT SARFARAZ AHMED LEFT OUT

bench, it makes sense that he plays in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy so that he retains his fitness and rediscovers form for the tour for the longer and more demanding tour of New Zealand.”

‘SARFARAZ AND MALIK’S CAREERS ARE DEFINITELY NOT OVER’: Misbah, in a PCB press release, made it clear that those left out should not take it as if their international careers were over.

“I want to categorically state that their careers are not over by any means as performance remains the only criterion for selection,” he said.

“These are strategic decisions as Shoaib Malik’s absence will provide players like Abdullah Shafiq, Haider Ali and Khushdil Shah better chances of featuring in the upcoming matches. “We have followed the same philosophy while leaving out Mohammad Amir and Usman

Álex Márquez is fast, but his rise through MotoGP ranks might be faster MOTOGP ROOKIE ÁLEX MÁRQUEZ MADE IT BACK-TO-BACK PODIUMS WITH A STUNNING 2ND PLACE FINISH AT ARAGÓN IN SPAIN, AS THE CHAMPIONSHIP CHASE GETS ANOTHER NEW LEADER AGENCIES For the second consecutive weekend, Repsol Honda’s Álex Márquez came through the field to take a stunning second place finish at the MotoGP™ of Aragón and almost snatched the victory from eventual race winner Álex Rins.

The result was all the more significant for Márquez, as his stunning second place finish last time out at the French Grand Prix was earned in wet conditions. By following up that result just a week

later in the dry proves it was no flash in the pan. Márquez even managed to save a late near highside in his desperate attempt to wrestle the lead from Rins, regrouping to hang on and pressure the Suzuki rider right up to the chequered flag. With 10 laps remaining, Márquez moved up into third place, past early race leader Maverick Viñales. As the race entered the final five laps, Márquez had worked his way up to the front from his season-best grid position of 11th and was right with the leading Suzuki duo of Joan Mir and race leader Rins. Equipped with the medium

compound front tyre, Márquez superbly conserved the grip and snatched second place from Mir one lap later in a decisive move.

Márquez set a scorching pace over the final handful of laps and was just about in control of his Honda RC213V, forcing Rins to use all of his skill to defend his lead to become the eighth different winner of the rollercoaster 2020 MotoGP™ campaign.

“I want to thank the team, because we had an amazing bike again, like in Le Mans and in Misano too,” said Márquez after the race. “The start wasn’t really good,

but then I started to recover stepby-step. I enjoyed it a lot, each overtake on the last corner. It was unbelievable. This was a dry podium, so I’m really, really happy.” Márquez’s rise to the front of the MotoGP™ is yet another dramatic development in a season of incredible twists and turns.

Firstly, the season has largely been run without fans and the calendar radically rescheduled due to the ongoing effects of the global Covid-19 pandemic. The injury of reigning champion Marc Márquez in the opening race at Jerez and subsequent absence from competition signalled the start of a frantic season, with surprise winners and, with five races remaining, a championship battle that’s wide open.

With another race scheduled to take place at Motorland Aragón next weekend, Joan Mir now leads the overall standings from early season favourite Fabio Quartararo, despite not having won a MotoGP™ race. Only 20 points separate the top four in the championship, rounded out by Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso – the Italian rider still in this hunt for his maiden premier class title after finishing seventh in Aragón.

Talking points from the Premier League LONDON AGENCIES

Talking points from the Premier League weekend: VAN DIJK INJURY BLOWS HOLE IN LIVERPOOL’S DEFENCE: News that Liverpool’s central defender Virgil van Dijk requires surgery on an ACL knee injury sustained in a dreadful tackle by Everton keeper Jordan Pickford has rocked Anfield.

The Dutchman, who has started 94 successive Premier League games for the champions, is the glue that holds Liverpool’s defence together and his value to the team is arguably greater than even strikers Mo Salah and Sadio Mane. His absence, which could be for many months, will leave a huge hole that manager Juergen Klopp will find hard to fill. “Can they win the league without Virgil van Dijk? I think it blows the title race wide open,” former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher told Sky Sports.

CHELSEA REARGUARD A CAUSE FOR CONCERN: For all the attacking threat Chelsea

now possess — highlighted by goals for new signings Timo Werner and Kai Havertz on Saturday — manager Frank Lampard has still not solved the puzzle of his side’s leaky defence.

They blew a 2-0 and 3-2 lead against Southampton on Saturday to draw 3-3. They have let in nine goals in five games, continuing a trend since Lampard took charge. Lampard has been in charge for 62 games and in that time Chelsea have kept only 15 clean sheets and conceded 99 goals yet most of their transfer business was designed to strengthen at the other end of the pitch, a policy that may haunt them.

BALE RETURNS BUT IT’S SAME OLD TOTTENHAM: Gareth Bale’s return to Tottenham Hotspur on loan from Real Madrid offers Jose Mourinho an embarrassment of attacking riches when factoring in the form of Son Heungmin and Harry Kane. Bale never won any silverware during his first six-season spell at Tottenham, although with 56 goals in little over 200 appearances he turned himself into a superstar. But however many goals Tottenham appear capable of scoring, their continued search for a

first trophy since 2008 will be undermined without a ruthless mentality.

NOT SPECTACULAR BUT MAN CITY APPEAR BACK ON TRACK: It has been a troubling start to the campaign for Manchester City but Saturday’s dull 1-0 win over Arsenal would have been hugely satisfying for Pep Guardiola.

City’s attacking firepower is undisputed but since Vincent Kompany left there has been a vulnerability about their defence. On Saturday, however, one goal always looked like being sufficient with Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake and Ruben Dias benefiting from the defensive shield of midfielder Rodrigo.

GOALS CONTINUE FLYING IN: The first four rounds of Premier League fixtures produced 144 goals in 38 matches, an average of 3.79 goals per game — a rate not seen in the top flight for 90 years. And the goal rush continued, if not quite as fast. Two 3-3 draws (between Tottenham and West Ham and Chelsea and Southampton) and a 4-1 win for Manchester United at Newcastle were the high-scoring games over the weekend when 27 goals were netted in eight fixtures.

CMYK

Shinwari so that bowlers like Mohammad Hasnain, Musa Khan and Haris Rauf can get an extended run.”

Sharjeel Khan, Azam Khan and Zeeshan Ashraf will be added to a specialized fitness program, Misbah added.

‘NATIONAL T20 PERFORMERS WHO MISSED OUT WILL BE CONSIDERED IN FUTURE’: Several top performers of the recently concluded National T20 Cup such as Zeeshan Malik and Danish Aziz did not get into the squad but Misbah assured them that they will have their chance in future.

“A few leading performers may feel disappointed that they have been unable to break into the squad,” he stated in the press release. “But, I want to reassure them that they will remain in consideration for the New Zealand tour and early next year’s home series.”

COMPLETE SQUAD FOR ZIMBABWE SERIES: Abdullah Shafique, Abid Ali, Babar Azam (captain), Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Sohail, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imam-ul-Haq, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Rohail Nazir (wicketkeeper), Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan (vice captain), Usman Qadir, Haris Rauf, Zafar Gohar, Fahim Ashraf, Mohamamad Hasnain, Musa Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Wahab Riaz The Zimbabwe national team is expected to land in Pakistan tomorrow (Tuesday).

Following their mandatory quarantine, the threematch ODI series will begin in Rawalpindi from October 30, whereas the T20I series is scheduled to kick off on November 7.

PRE-ANNOUNCEMENT CHATTER: Speculation was rife that veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik and some other regulars will be rested and some standouts of the recently concluded National T20 Cup such as Abdullah Shafique and Khushdil Shah will instead be blooded into the side.

Still a lot more to come from ‘maturing’ Verstappen, says Red Bull boss Horner

AGENCIES When Max Verstappen burst onto the Formula 1 scene in 2015 he instantly impressed with his speed behind the wheel, despite being just 17-yearsold at the time. Since then he has gone on to become one of the most exciting drivers in the sport – but his Red Bull boss Christian Horner says there is still a lot more to come from the talented Dutchman.

Verstappen famously won the Spanish Grand Prix on his debut for Red Bull, after being promoted midseason from the Toro Rosso team, to become the youngest winner in F1 history – he was just 18 at the time – and has since added eight more wins to his tally.

This season he has become the only real challenger to Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, beating the pair to victory in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix at Silverstone, and making the podium in every race he has finished. He also has more than double the points tally of his team mate Alex Albon after 11 races. But Horner says this is just the beginning for his star driver, who is now competing in his sixth full F1

season. “Is there more to come from Max? Look, I think just as he gains experience he’s just maturing as a driver,” Horner said.

“He’s only just literally turned 23 years of age, but he’s got a significant amount of races behind him now and he’s just growing and growing.

You can see that maturity in the car, in his racing and I think there’s exciting times ahead of him.”

Meanwhile Horner said he was encouraged by the team’s performance last time out at the Eifel Grand Prix, where he felt Red Bull were “a step closer” to pace setters Mercedes.

And with three unfamiliar circuits coming up on this revised 2020 calendar, Horner said the team were keen to finish this year on a high, but were already looking ahead to next year, when they will be running a ‘Bspec’ version of their current car.

“We’ve got Portimao, we’ve got Istanbul, we’ve got Imola – they’re all circuits that will be quite interesting for us and we’re keen to finish the season with positive momentum, having understood quite a few of the issues that we’ve had with RB16, so that that’s addressed going into RB16B,” he said.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2020

PrAyEr TImINGS

NEWS BAKU AGENCIES

a

new ceasefire in the mountain territory of Nagorno-Karabakh was in jeopardy on Monday with Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces reporting shelling and heavy fighting.

Among accusations on both sides, Azerbaijan said it had “neutralised” a missile fired by Armenian forces at an oil pipeline in Azerbaijan on Sunday, several hours after the ceasefire went into force. Armenia denied firing it.

The ceasefire was agreed on Saturday after an earlier deal brokered by Russia failed to halt the deadliest clashes in the South Caucasus since the 1990s. So far, the main driver of diplomacy between the exSoviet enemies has been Russia. Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev both told Russia’s TASS news agency in separate interviews on Monday that they were ready to come to Moscow for talks.

The failure to stop the fighting has raised fears of a humanitarian crisis, and put new strains on ties between Turkey, which strongly backs Azerbaijan, and its NATO allies which want the conflict to end.

Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway enclave of Azerbaijan that is populated and controlled by ethnic Armenians, said 729 of its military personnel and 36 civilians had been killed in fighting that began on Sept.

27. Azerbaijan said 61 Azeri civilians had been killed and 282 wounded. It has not dis-

FAJR SUNRISE

ZUHR

ASR MAGHRIB ISHA

5:16

12:17

4:24

6:32

6:01

7:17

figHTiNg aNd recrimiNaTiONs sHaKe NagOrNO-KarabaKH ceasefire HOpes closed its military casualties.

Officials in Nagorno-Karabakh said Azeri forces were shelling their positions in northern and southern areas of the line of contact that divides them.

They said Azeri forces had shelled civilian settlements including the town of Martuni and four villages – charges that were denied by Azerbaijan. They reported one civilian killed and one wounded in Martuni.

The Azeri defence ministry said Armenian forces were shelling the Agjebedin, Tovuz and Dashkesan regions far from the conflict zone – accusations denied by Armenia.

The ministry also said Terter and Aghdam regions were under shelling. AzTV state television said one of its journalists was wounded in Terter.

The Azeri prosecutor general’s office said Armenia had targeted a pipeline in the Khizi district of Azerbaijan, more than 300 km (186 miles) from the conflict zone, on Sunday afternoon. The pipeline, which carries oil to Novorossiisk in Russia, was not damaged but some missile fragments fell about 250 metres (820 feet) away, it said.

Dismissing the report, Armenian defence

ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan said: “It’s a total lie.”

ANGRY RHETORIC: A ceasefire brokered in Moscow earlier this month was aimed at letting the sides swap detainees and bodies of those killed, but it had little impact on the fighting.

The new ceasefire was announced on Saturday after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov talked to the Armenian and Azeri foreign ministers by telephone.

In a fresh appeal for peace on Monday, Lavrov said it was vital to stop the angry rhetoric around the conflict, a step, he said, that “does not require any great effort”.

Russia, France and the United States chair a body called the Minsk Group, which has attempted to help resolve the conflict under the umbrella of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

Turkey says their mediation has failed, and Azerbaijan wants a role for Ankara in peacemaking. Baku seeks an Armenian withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh, but Armenia rules this out and accuses Azerbaijan of making a land grab.

NagOrNO-KarabaKH: UN cHief cONdemNs aTTacKs ON pOpUlaTed areas NEW YORK: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned “all attacks on populated areas” in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh zone of conflict, as Armenia and Azerbaijan reportedly accused each other of violating the latest humanitarian ceasefire agreement. In a statement released by his spokesperson, Guterres described the “tragic loss of civilian lives, including children, from the latest reported strike on Oct. 16” on Azerbaijan’s second-largest city of Ganja, as “totally unacceptable.” The UN chief reiterated that “indiscriminate attacks on populated areas anywhere, including in Stepanakert/Khankendi and other localities in and around the immediate Nagorno-Karabakh zone of conflict,” were likewise totally unacceptable. Both sides agreed a truce to begin at midnight on Saturday, local time, reportedly following interventions by Russia, and other leaders of the Minsk Group of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which was created in 1992, to encourage a peaceful resolution to the NagornoKarabakh conflict, between the two nations at the centre of the conflict. The group is co-chaired by the United States, France and Russia, and its permanent members are Belarus, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan. “The secretarygeneral deeply regrets that the sides have continuously ignored the repeated calls of the international community to immediately stop the fighting,” said the statement released midmorning on Sunday, New York time. Guterres underscored again in his latest calls with the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan that both sides have the obligation under international humanitarian law to take constant care to spare and protect civilians and civilian infrastructure in the conduct of military operations, said the statement. AGENCIES

WHO chief Tedros says 184 countries signed up to vaccine facility

India army apprehends Chinese soldier amid military stand-off AGENCIES The Indian army said it apprehended a Chinese soldier on Monday in the remote Ladakh region, where the two countries are locked in a monthslong military stand-off along their disputed mountain border.

The soldier, Cpl. Wang Ya Long from China’s People’s Liberation Army was apprehended inside Indian-controlled Ladakh’s Demchok area and was to be released soon, the army said in a statement. It said the soldier “had strayed” across the de facto border along the eastern section of what’s known as the Line of Actual Control, a loose demarcation separating Indian- and Chinese-controlled areas.

“As per established protocols, he will be returned back to Chinese officials at the Chushul– Moldo meeting point after completion of formalities,” the statement said.

China did not immediately comment on the soldier’s apprehension. The high-altitude standoff between the Asian giants began in early May with a fierce brawl and exploded into hand-to-

hand combat with clubs, stones and fists on June 15 that left 20 Indian soldiers dead. China is believed to also have had casualties but has not given any details.

The nuclear-armed rivals have accused each other of crossing into a rival territory and of firing shots for the first time in 45 years. The Indian army statement said the Indian side had received an inquiry from China’s military “about the whereabouts of the missing soldier.”

The soldier “has been provided medical assistance including oxygen, food and warm clothes to protect him from the vagaries of extreme altitude and harsh climatic conditions,” the statement said.

India and China have each stationed tens of thousands of soldiers backed by artillery, tanks and fighter jets and are bracing for a harsh winter in the cold-desert region, where temperatures can fall to minus 50 degrees Celsius (minus 58 Fahrenheit). The sides have held several rounds of talks by the military, diplomatic and political officials, including negotiations between their foreign ministers and defense ministers in

Moscow last month. Although the standoff has persisted, the talks seem to have calmed the situation along the border, with no new military aggression reported for over a month now.

The fiercely contested Line of Actual Control separates Chinese-held and Indian-held territories from Ladakh in the west to India’s eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims in its entirety. It is broken in parts where the Himalayan nations of Nepal and Bhutan border China.

India claims the Chinese-controlled Aksai Chin plateau as part of the Ladakh region. According to India, the control line is 3,488 kilometres long, while China says it is considerably shorter. The line divides the areas of physical control rather than territorial claims. Relations between the two countries have often been strained, partly due to their undemarcated border. They fought a border war in 1962 that spilt into Ladakh and ended in an uneasy truce. Since then, troops have guarded the undefined border and occasionally brawled. They have agreed not to attack each other with firearms.

swiss company Novartis acquires manufacturing facility to produce medicines in pakistan Novartis, a Swiss multinational company with a multi-decade presence in Pakistan, has acquired a manufacturing facility to produce medicines in the country, said Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razaq Dawood on Monday.Taking to Twitter, the PM’s aide said, “Novartis has expansion plan that will bring investment of about $20 million.”He said the investment signifies that the regulatory reforms and competitive local landscape is being recognized as an opportunity by investors, adding that this acquisition also shows the confidence of international companies to invest in the future of Pakistan’s pharma industry. NEWS DESK

GENEVA: World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that 184 countries have now joined the COVAX facility, which aims to finance Covid-19 vaccines to be distributed fairly to both rich and poor countries. “Equitably sharing vaccines is the fastest way to safeguard high-risk communities, stabilise health systems and drive a truly global economic recovery,” Tedros told a news briefing in Geneva. Ecuador and Uruguay were the most recent countries to join, he said. AGENCIES

glObal cOrONavirUs cases sUrpass grim 40m milesTONe NEW YORK/LONDON: Worldwide coronavirus cases crossed 40 million on Monday, according to a Reuters tally, as the onset of winter in the northern hemisphere fuelled a resurgence in the spread of the disease.

The Reuters tally is based on official reporting by individual countries.

Experts believe the true numbers of both cases and deaths are likely much higher, given deficiencies in testing and potential under-reporting by some countries. The Reuters data shows the pace of the pandemic continues to pick up. It took just 32 days to go from 30 million global cases to 40 million, compared with the 38 days it took to get from 20 to 30 million, the 44 days between 10 and 20 million, and the three months it took to reach 10 million cases from when the first cases were reported in Wuhan, China, in early January. Record one-day increases in new infections were seen at the end of last week, with global coronavirus cases rising above 400,000 for the first time. There were an average of around 347,000 cases each day over the past week, compared with 292,000 in the first week of October. The United States, India, and Brazil remain the worst affected countries in the world. Covid-19 cases in North, Central, and South America represent about 47.27 percent or nearly half of global cases.Around 247 cases are seen per 10,000 people in the United States. For India and Brazil, those numbers stand at 55 cases and 248 cases per 10,000 people respectively. New cases are growing at over 150,000 a day in Europe, as many countries including Italy, Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Poland, Ukraine, Cyprus, and the Czech Republic have reported record daily increases in the number of coronavirus infections.

Europe currently accounts for over 17 percent of the global cases and nearly 22 percent of the deaths related to the virus worldwide. Parts of the UK were put into lockdown as Prime Minister Boris Johnson bid to contain a second wave of infections through local measures. France imposed curfews while other European nations are closing schools, canceling surgeries, and enlisting student medics. President Donald Trump called for a big economic stimulus as U.S. infections surpassed eight million, with record spikes in several states. States across the Midwest are seeing a rise in coronavirus cases, with new infections and hospitalizations rising to record levels. India’s cumulative tally of coronavirus infections stood at 7.43 million on Saturday, with the number of active infections slipping below 800,000 for the first time in 1.5 months. AGENCIES

First commercial passenger flight from UAE lands in Israel TEL AVIV AGENCIES

The first commercial passenger flight to Israel by a carrier from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) landed near Tel Aviv on Monday, further cementing a normalization deal between the two states.

Etihad Airways Flight No. 9607 landed at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport just after 7:00 am. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner departed for Abu Dhabi later Monday with an Israeli travel and tourism delegation on board, according to an Eti-

had statement.

Etihad said it plans regular passenger flights between the countries in the future and was launching a dedicated Hebrew website.

Etihad previously sent to Tel Aviv an unmarked cargo plane flying aid to assist the Palestinians in fighting the coronavirus. In August, a Star of Davidadorned El Al plane flew from Israel to Abu Dhabi, carrying a high-ranking American and Israeli delegation in the first-ever direct commercial passenger flight between the two countries.

Israel and the UAE announced in August they had agreed to normalise ties, setting off a flurry of business, banking and intergovernmental agreements, along with an end to a longstanding boycott by the UAE against Israel.

Nearby Gulf monarchy Bahrain also signed an agreement on Sept 15 at the White House alongside the UAE to normalise relations with Israel. The UAE and Bahrain are the third and fourth Arab states to establish ties with Israel. Egypt and Jordan signed peace treaties with Israel in 1979 and 1994, respectively.

An Israeli delegation flew to Bahrain on Sunday to formalise that deal.

The so-called “Abraham Accords” brought long-clandestine ties between Israel and several Gulf states — forged in recent years over a shared concern over regional rival Iran — into the open.

The US-brokered normalisation agreements have outraged the Palestinians, whose leaders have called the deals a “betrayal” of a longtime Arab stance that recognition of Israel would come only after Palestinians obtain an independent state of their own.

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot No 66-C, 1st Floor, 21st Commercial Street, Phase-II (Extension), DHA Karachi and printed at Ibn-e-Hassan Printing Press, Hockey Stadium, Karachi, for PT Print (Pvt) Limited. Ph: 021-35381208-9. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk