Epaper – October 2 KHI 2020 by Pakistan Today

Friday, 2 October, 2020 I 13 Safar, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 93 I 12 Pages I Karachi Edition

IndIa helpIng nawaz In ‘attempts to weaken army’, says Imran g

Premier says civil-military dePartments working within sPheres, leading to a relationshiP which is ‘best in history’

ISLAMABAD staff report

rime minister imran khan has accused Pakistan muslim leaguenawaz (Pml-n) supreme leader nawaz sharif of acting on the behest of india and has said the former premier is playing a “dangerous game” by levelling allegations against the army. Prime minister imran said that the military and the civil government departments are working within their spheres and this has led to relations that are “best in history” between them. the above was said during an interview with a local news station, wherein the premier also added that one shouldn’t hate the army because of the actions of a few past dictators. the premier remarked that nawaz’s speech was an attempt to weaken the relationship between the government and the Pakistan army, which only harms the country in the end. “whose interest is it that our army weakens? our enemies,” he added, saying

some “foolish liberals” were agreeing with nawaz’s narrative. “look at libya, syria, iraq, afghanistan, yemen; the entire muslim world is ablaze [so] why are we safe? if it weren’t for our army, our country would have been in three pieces. india’s think-tanks say that they want to break Pakistan,” Pm imran said, reiterating the fact that it is the army which has saved us otherwise the country will have been disintegrated in three parts as per indian designs. the prime minister went on to say that the “military’s job is not to run the government. if a democratically elected government is performing poorly, it does not mean martial law should be imposed; it means the government should be improved”. Pm imran compared the military to the judiciary and said that it has evolved. he added that “contemporary civil-military relations are the best in history because they are all working in their spheres”. he said nawaz was creating “huge fitna (mischief)” by attacking the army. “he [nawaz] is becoming the next altaf hussain,” he said. Furthermore, the prime min-

CoronavIrus In

pakIstan

CONFIRMED CASES:

312,806

LAST UPDATED AT 7:27 AM ON OCTOBER 1, 2020

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

RECOVERED:

NEW CASES:

543

DEATHS:

297,497 6,484 SINDH:

137,106

PUNJAB:

99,479

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

37,811

15,281

2,731/3,787 16,611

ister said nawaz has problems with the army because “they come to steal, and our world-class agencies detect their theft”. the Pm stated that nawaz had taken control of various institutions of the country during his tenure, including in the legislative and judiciary departments, but added that the Pml-n supremo could never control the army. he also spoke on the claim reportedly made by nawaz that former inter-services intelligence (isi) chief Zaheerul islam had asked him to resign. Pm imran said, “you were the prime minister, [how] does he have the courage to say that to you?” “[nawaz] has no moral authority,” he said while adding that in security matters the army has the biggest say in any country in the world. “india has become a security issue,” he added. “we know india sponsors terrorism in Pakistan but since we were aiming to bring peace because we wanted to lift our economy, the army stood by me.” answering a question about nawaz’s return to Pakistan, the premier remarked, “i am so angry that he went abroad by lying shamelessly. all kinds of lies were told that he is about to die, [his] platelets are low, etc.” the prime minister said that his government was asking the british government to “send him back” and that there was a “plan in place”. “we allowed him to leave on humanitarian grounds … and now that he is there he has started politics. we know he is meeting different people and is conspiring against the nation,” he said. “to make the public come out, you need to pick something that interests the masses. they [opposition] can never lure masses out,” he said in reply to a question regarding the Pakistan democratic movement’s (Pdm) claims of removing Pti from power., reiterating his lack of fear in face of the opposition’s threats, the Pm said that nawaz was targeting institutions by sitting abroad so he could get an nro-like deal.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

Law enforcement should recover missing persons within 2 weeks, directs SC QUETTA staff report

the report submitted by balochistan police on five missing persons was declared as “unsatisfactory” by the supreme court (sc) and the department has been directed to recover the people within two weeks. chief Justice of Pakistan (cJP) gulzar ahmed, Justice ijazul ahsan and Justice Faisal arab were on the bench at this occasion and oversaw the hearing of the case at sc’s Quetta registry. the top court had earlier taken suo motu notice of the disappearances. senior superintendent of Police (ssP) operations Quetta ghulam asghar informed the bench that the law enforcers have not yet been able to conclude whether the this was a case of abduction or if the five people had gone missing. according to the submitted report, police had eyewitnesses who identified the cars in which the missing persons were being taken. the report further stated that investigators had sent a letter to the excise and taxation department to

PEMRA bans broadcast of proclaimed offenders’ speeches ISLAMABAD staff report

Pakistan electronic media regulator y authority (Pemra) on thursday barred television channels from airing the speeches of the absconding accused and proclaimed offenders. the regulatory body in a handout barred to broadcast the speeches and interviews of proclaimed offenders and absconders on national television. Pemra also barred the broadcast of any sort of debate on the possible outcome of the undergoing trials. the decision has come after the speeches of the absconding three-time prime minister and Pakistan muslim league-nawaz (Pml-n) supreme leader nawaz sharif were broadcast on the national television and the government demanded the authorities to take notice of it. in october 2019, Pemra directed all satellite television channels licensees to form an in-house committee to ensure compliance with the electronic media code of conduct, 2015. the directives issued by Pemra said that tv channels

obtain details of the vehicles. “issuing a letter is not the job of the police,” the cJP remarked. “it is the police’s job to visit the spot and conduct a thorough investigation.” “every other car in Quetta is a non-custom paid car. aerial firing is being carried out. all this is being done under the nose of the police,” he observed, adding that people had chased after the police when these persons had gone missing. “you [police] do not know how to investigate cases. a case of disappearance should have been registered by the police which could not be done,” he added. “in any case, action should be taken on legal matters,” he said. the hearing of the case was adjourned for four weeks, with direction for balochistan inspector general of Police (igP) mohsin abbas butt to appear through video-link in the next hearing to be held at sc islamabad. additional chief secretary hafiz basit, member of balochistan assembly Qadir nayal and ssP asghar were also present at thursday’s hearing.

more inside

Nawaz slams PTI govt for failure to control inflation STORY ON PAGE 03

Pm imran to chair nFc meeting after shaikh’s removal STORY ON PAGE 02

should ensure deployment of effective time delay mechanism and an impartial and independent monitoring committee or editorial board be constituted, as required under clause 17 of electronic media (Programs and advertisement) code of conduct 2015, radio Pakistan reported. the news channels’ owners have been asked not to allow their platform to be used by anyone to mislead the public

through disinformation conjecturing and speculations. Pemra warned the media owners that licencees shall be held responsible for any biased, unfair analysis or propaganda against the judiciary and state institutions by their employees. it also advised media channels to invite participants with due care, having credibility as fair and unbiased analysts with requisite knowledge and expertise on the subject matter.

Pakistan demands to hold India accountable for crimes in IOK STORY ON BACK PAGE

nagornokarabakh: deadly fighting rages for fifth day STORY ON BACK PAGE

Friday, 2 October, 2020

NEWS

PM IMran to chaIr nFc MeetIng aFter ShaIkh’S reMoval ISLAMABAD

GHULAM ABBAS

S the federal government has removed Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr Hafez Shaikh from the newly-constituted National Finance Commission (NFC), Prime Minister Imran Khan would now chair the meeting of the commission as the minister in charge. According to a source in the Finance Ministry, a summary for the meeting of NFC under the chairmanship of the prime minister has been prepared as the adviser cannot even attend the meeting now as a member due to the reconstitution of the commission following strong opposition from provinces like Sindh.

“The summary related to the first meeting of the 10th NFC is likely to be held at the Prime Minister Secretariat instead of the Finance Ministry. However, arrangements related to the meeting are being made by the finance ministry,” the source said, adding that the summary was revised multiple times to confusion related to the new body of NFC. Reportedly, the prime minister wants to hold an NFC meeting soon and has directed the ministry to complete the due process. PM Imran, according to the source, would be the second prime minister to chair NFC after the late Benazir Bhutto as the minister in charge. The NFCs are normally chaired by finance ministers. Since the constitution does not allow advisers to chair the meeting, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had strongly ob-

lhc hears arguments on formation of judicial commission in motorway rape case LAHORE: Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday conducted a hearing on a case pertaining to the formation of a judicial commission to probe into the motorway rape case. During the hearing, LHC Chief Justice Muhammad Qasim Khan asked who will pay the blood money if anybody gets murdered on state land, to which the government lawyer replied that he will present a complete report on this matter in the next hearing. Previously, LHC had ordered the investigation authorities to arrest suspects involved in raping and looting of a woman in front of her children on the motorway near Gujjarpura as quickly as possible. LHC CJ had also sought an inquiry report, a copy of the show-cause notice to Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Inam Ghani by Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, a record of security arrangements and the notification regarding the formation of a committee for probe into the incident. Earlier, a petition had been filed in the LHC to form a judicial commission regarding the case wherein the Punjab government, CM Buzdar, IGP Ghani and Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Umar Sheikh were made parties. The plaintiff took the stance that Punjab police had completely failed in providing protection to the people. The crime ratio has increased due to the negligence and non-professional behaviour of the police, the petitioner said, while requesting the court to form a judicial commission. On September 9, 2020, mother of two children was looted and raped at gunpoint on the motorway near Gujjarpura area of the Punjab province. The woman was reportedly travelling in a car along with her two children when some unknown accused overpowered her. After raping and robbing the victim of valuables and cash, the suspects escaped from the scene. On receipt of the information, the police reached the spot and shifted the woman to a hospital. INP

Pakistan changes visa policy for afghan nationals ISLAMABAD: The federal government has changed its visa policy for Afghan nationals after modifying the number of visits, entries and validity period. The new policy was introduced to facilitate Afghan nationals for the issuance of visas at border crossing instead of visiting the Pakistan embassy in Kabul. The relevant authorities modified the number of visits, validity period and entries under the new visa policy. The Pakistani embassy in Kabul and consulates will issue visit visas to Afghan nationals with multiple entries for one year. Moreover, they can also get business visas for a period of five years that will be extendable in Pakistan. Under the new policy, Afghan students could acquire visas till the completion of their studies in Pakistan instead of renewing it every year, whereas, six-month visas will be issued to Afghan patients at Torkham border. INP

jected to the composition of the 10th NFC, in which the adviser on finance was empowered to chair the meeting. The incumbent government did not make Shaikh a senator to enable him to chair the important body, they said. On July 22, 2020, Shaikh was removed from the chairmanship of the commission after opposition from provinces and the Balochistan High Court’s (BHC) verdict against the composition of the NFC. Since Shaikh’s removal from the commission, matters related to NFC require the approval of PM Imran, who is now also the chairman of the commission. According to a Finance Ministry’s official, under the existing composition of NFC, letters to provinces are also sent through the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Recently the prime minister himself responded to a

letter written by the Sindh chief minister, who had raised objections on the new composition of NFC. While the NFC’s meeting is yet to be held, Pakistan PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has accused the Centre of withholding Sindh’s rightful share to NFC Award for last three years several times. In the last 10 years, the Centre and provinces have failed to reach a consensus which led to both the eighth and ninth NFCs being inconclusive, and the extension of the revenue distribution mechanism set in the seventh NFC Award, which was given by the PPP in 2010. According to sources, the provinces are also largely in favour of keeping the mechanism of seventh NFC intact, as they are wary of changes in their respective shares due to demographic fluctuations iden-

tified in the latest population census. The 7th NFC Award, after a thirteen-year gap, became effective under PPP’s rule in 2010-11. The NFCs that followed remained indecisive. The award’s noticeable features include the vertical increase in provincial share to 56 per cent in the first year and to 57.5 per cent thereafter. Under the fiscal mechanism in the 7th NFC Award the federation withholds too little, compared to its colossal needs and financial commitments, forcing it to run a deficit. The federation has to service unilateral and bilateral debt after distributing the due shares of the provinces. The debt servicing only leaves behind a sum that finances a part of the military budget. Non-tax revenue and additional loans fund the remaining expenditures.

CORONAVIRUS KILLS ANOTHER 5, INFECTS 534 ISLAMABAD TLTP

The coronavirus disease (Covid-19) has claimed five more lives during the last 24 hours, pushing the death toll from the disease to 6,484, said National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Thursday. According to the NCOC, 34,239 samples were tested for the infection during the aforementioned period, out of which 543 turned out to be positive. The number of Covid-19 cases across the country has reached 312,806 with the addition of these new cases. So far, 297,497 patients have recovered from the infection across the country. The number of active Covid-19 cases stands at 8,825. More than 3.5 million tests have been conducted in the country. As many as 490 patients under treatment at various hospitals across the country are said to be in critical condition. So far, Sindh has reported 137,106 cases of the coronavirus, Punjab 99,497, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 37,811, Balochistan 15,281, Islamabad 16,611, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) 3,787, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) 2,731.

DC MIRPURKHAS DIES OF COVID-19: BALOCHISTAN REPORTS 24 MORE CASES: LOCKDOWN IN MORE KARACHI AREAS RECOMMENDED Meanwhile, Mirpurkhas Deputy Commissioner Zahid Memon lost his life battling the novel coronavirus on Thursday. According to details, Memon was admitted to a private hospital in Karachi after contracting coronavirus. He was put on a ventilator by the doctors due to worsening condition. The body of the deceased DC was handed over to his heirs by implementing the standard operating procedures (SOPs) set to contain coronavirus spread. Meanwhile, the total count of coronavirus has reached 15,281 after detection of 24 new infections in Balochistan. The province conducted 1,254 tests during the last 24 hours, whereas, one patient died of coronavirus. Overall, 146 deaths were reported due to Covid-19 in Balochistan. Two cases were reported in educational institutions of the province.

Overall, 543 cases have been reported in the educational institutions so far, confirmed the provincial health department. A total of 137 patients have recovered from the virus, taking the total count to 13,915. On Wednesday, the health officials had detected 16 more cases of novel coronavirus at educational institutions of Balochistan. It is to be noted that in the final phase, primary classes in the province also resumed after the closure of more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to SOPs issued by the government, masks had been made mandatory for all teachers and students, while educational institutions were required to ensure the availability of sanitizers at their entrances. The decision to reopen primary schools across the country had been taken by the NCOC. Meanwhile, the health officials on

Faraz accuses Nawaz of inciting public revolt by targeting state institutions ISLAMABAD MIAN ABRAR

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz on Thursday accused the former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif of inciting public for revolt by targeting state institutions but asserted that the people can’t be fooled anymore. Addressing a press conference, Shibli Faraz termed Nawaz Sharif as an absconder who was trying to put the country into jeopardy just to save himself by accusing the state institutions. He said that the speeches that are being made suggest that the country is being avenged by those who have spoken against the country and made billions. Faraz said that Nawaz had obtained properties abroad at the expense of the country. He asked how Nawaz had accumulated wealth to buy Avenfield flats and other properties. The minister asserted that the PML-N supremo was criticising the institutions to save his stakes and his family. He accused Nawaz of targeting Pakistani economic profile for petty personal gains. He also accused the former PM of raising prices of daily-use commodities. The minister added that Rs23 billion was wasted to artificially maintain the dollar price while the local industry was shut down because imports were cheap and local

production was expensive. “Exports did not increase by a single rupee during his tenure. Nawaz did not spend money on the poor because he did not have time. His policies led the country to inflation,” he asserted. Faraz said that Nawaz had become another Altaf Hussain and was targeting the national interest of Pakistan while absconding from the courts. He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had won elections after struggling for 23 years and his ideology is still based on anti-corruption policies. He added that today Nawaz was targeting the state institutions and that the former PM had been on great terms with the same institutions when they served his cause. Faraz said that after the 2013 elections, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had demanded the opening of four National Assembly constituencies despite the fact that its members had filed 485 petitions for election irregularities. “In 2018 elections, 281 petitions were filed out of which half were filed by the PTI. In Punjab, there were 13 petitions of PTI and 11 petitions of PMLN. The PML-N filed only 11 petitions,” he said. He added that Nawaz has tried to make the democratic system controversial in order to

Thursday recommended imposition of micro smart lockdown in more areas of Karachi. District health officers (DHOs) of Karachi’s central and east districts have sent lists of the areas to concerned deputy commissioners to impose lockdown. In a letter, it was said that 46 cases of novel coronavirus have been reported in four neighbourhoods of the city’s central district. The central district’s North Karachi, North Nazimabad, Gulberg and Liaquatabad localities have been pointed out in the letter. Moreover, scores of Covid-19 cases have also been reported in East district of the port city, according to the letter. The letter pointed out Gulshan Iqbal Town UC-14 and UC-06, Jamshed Town’s UC-07, UC-10, Al-Khaleej Tower and Al-Mustafa areas for immediate imposition of micro smart lockdown to curb spread of coronavirus infections. It is to be mentioned here that the Sindh government on Wednesday imposed micro smart lockdown in several areas of the metropolis to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

save himself, and remarked that the ex-premier has become the enemy of democracy by making speeches against the system from which he himself benefitted. Faraz reminded Nawaz that PM Imran would not allow him to go scot-free from accountability as PTI had gotten a public mandate on the promise of holding the corrupt accountable. He said that if Pakistan is blacklisted due to Nawaz’s accusations, it would be damaging for Pakistanis and PM Imran, while insisting that the assets of Nawaz were stashed out of the country. Faraz said that today Nawaz was slandering Pakistani courts, its armed forces and Election Commission. He reminded the former premier that accusing state institutions would not help his cause as PM Imran plays better under pressure. “A person who is running away from the courts is inciting people to revolt. Should he be allowed to incite public for revolt? No one would be fooled anymore. Neither we nor the people will allow you. No one will be fooled by his blackmail. Nawaz Sharif is wearing a watch worth Rs70 million and says he has sympathy with the people,” argued the minister. The minister asked Nawaz to surrender himself to the law and to bring back the looted money. Talking about the food situation, Faraz said, “We have an abundance of wheat reserves today. Our imports are on time, sugar is being imported, and food supplies are satisfactory. The crushing season is starting in November and strategy is being formulated to make food items cheaper.”

Friday, 2 October, 2020

NEWS

nawaz SlaMS PtI govt For FaIlure to control InFlatIon ISLAMABAD

STAFF REPORT

AKISTAN Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif on Thursday spoke against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government over its apparent failure in controlling inflation and poverty, adding that his part was not acting against the prime minister, but that they were working for the people. The former prime minister said the above while addressing a meeting of PML-N’s Central Working Committee (CWC) via video-link, adding that he was “pained” to see the existing state of affairs in the country where the poor were unable to afford food and send their children to school. “Is this what the ‘state of Medina’ looks like?” he questioned, adding that the PTI government had failed to fulfil its “tall promises”. “You have destroyed Pakistan in

every field,” he said while addressing the government, and asked where the 10 million jobs were that it had promised to the people. “Where are the people who brought you into power? They should answer to the nation as well.” He reiterated that the opposition’s fight was not against Prime Minister Imran Khan, who supposedly “stole the election”. “We do not give any importance to him. He is a selected prime minister which you have imposed upon this country […] Those who brought this gift to us should answer … why did they steal the election and mandate of the Pakistani people?” he questioned. “And no one should try to shut me up. Because I will not,” he said amid applause and cheers from party workers. The former premier claimed that the Pakistani people were prosperous until 2018 and the PML-N had started development projects in all sectors during its tenure. “There was adequate electricity again, terrorism ended, the economy was skyrocketing, poverty was ending, the

gas too became available, people were getting employment [and] Pakistan was on its way to join the G20,” the former premier said. However, he commented that at the moment, Pakistan is the most backwards country in South Asia and that no other country is ready to stand with them. He said the PTI government had spent more funds on the Peshawar Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project than the combined cost of the Lahore, Islamabad and Multan Metro bus projects started by the PML-N. “Our growth rate was 5.8 per cent and today it is nearing -1.4 per cent,” he remarked, adding that the PML-N government had kept the dollar exchange rate and prices of everyday commodities under control. “Those who brought Imran Khan into power are responsible for increasing inflation in the country and ruining the economy,” he said, adding, “Now you are responsible for everything including the power and devastation of the national

economy. You are responsible for why rupee is falling against the dollar. It was Rs100 and now it is around Rs170”. Referring to the motorway and Nankana Sahib rape incidents, he said criminals were “roaming freely” today unlike during the PML-N tenure. Yesterday, the PML-N supremo claimed he has been informed that “someone else” was running the parliament houses, in lieu of its members. The address to the CEC of the PMLN comes almost two weeks after Nawaz, who has been residing in London since November last year on the pretext of medical treatment, marked his return to the political ring almost after two years through a fiery speech to a gathering of the opposition parties, taking the military establishment head-on. In his second virtual address in less than two weeks, Nawaz said, “People tell me that someone else is running the parliament. Other people come and give directions about the day’s agenda and voting on bills, etc.” “However, our spirits will not be dampened by what is happening,” he said, adding that the party would double its efforts. “We are proud that our party workers are facing the current situation with courage. There is no example in the history of the treatment meted out to our children,” he said.

Govt will collapse before long due to its conspiracies, says Maryam LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) Vice President Maryam Nawaz on Thursday said that the weak foundation of the government will not be able to withstand a single shock, and weaknesses will cause the government to fall before long. She said this while addressing a presser alongside PML-N stalwart Javed Hashmi and others. The PML-N VP said that it is not a difficult task to overthrow this government. "The government will collapse before time due to its conspiracies and weaknesses. In the journey of

hardship, people retreat but the people of Punjab did not back down and faced difficulties," she added. Continuing, she said that PML-N is united, and its public support has increased. PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif will lead the movement against the government from London, she added. “He has decided that he will not talk to anyone and fight with the help of people,” she further said. Maryam said that Nawaz could not be compared with "fake rulers", and his words have weight and whatever he said was absolutely right, he became the prime minister three times and will become for the fourth time.

alvi seeks increasing role of MPs, media for breast cancer awareness ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has called upon parliamentarians and media to play an effective role in raising awareness about breast cancer. In his letters addressed to MPs and media representatives including anchorpersons, the president urged them to highlight the disease as October is globally marked as a breast cancer awareness month, aimed at disseminating information on breast cancer prevention, detection and treatment. President Alvi said the disease kills millions of women every year around the globe including some 40,000 deaths in Pakistan. According to a recent report, breast cancer is the second leading cause of death among women. In Asia, the report said, Pakistan has the largest rate of breast cancer. An estimated 83,000 cases are being annually reported in the country which means that one in every nine Pakistani women develops breast cancer at some stage of her life. Pakistan has a higher mortality rate the disease compared to her South Asian counterparts, with the reason being lack of awareness about the disease, the president observed. The president called upon the parliamentarians to carry out awareness campaigns simultaneously at the national level and within their constituencies. He also asked the media to create awareness through public welfare messages, talk shows and newspaper articles during the entire month. APP

naB arrests PPP leader in graft case KARACHI: The National Accountability Court (NAB) on Thursday arrested Makhdoom Jamiluz Zaman, the son of deceased Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Makhdoom Amin Fahim in a corruption case. He was taken into custody by the anti-corruption authorities from his house in Karachi. Reports suggest Zaman is accused of embezzlement of funds during his tenure as taluka Nazim of Hala. He was summoned by the agency in August but he did not show up. APP

“PML-N is not the party of a single province, instead we have a mandate from the entire country,” she said. Maryam demanded that those concerned should respond to the allegations hurled by Nawaz rather than dodging the queries. She announced joining hands with others to remove the "fake government". The PML-N leader, however, clarified that they are political opponents and would fight for their ideologies without crossing the lines. Maryam said that if the government arrests anyone of PML-N leader, the second leadership will come forward. “I am not afraid of arrest as it had happened in the past,” she said, adding that there were many more in the PML-N to

stand for their cause in her absence. "I think the government will fall before the long march arrives in Islamabad," she said. Maryam said, "We will fight the PPP [Pakistan People’s Party] in the elections, we are all together to get rid of the government, and the PPP is a political rival but not an enemy.” She said that dialogue takes place with a force where there are law and justice, it is a government which does not trust the constitution and law. Maryam said, "We do not accept this government, how can we engage in a dialogue with this government. It is a fake government."

Court orders to forfeit Sharif’s properties in Toshakhana case ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

An accountability court on Thursday ordered forfeiting assets and properties of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Toshakhana reference. The accountability court’s Judge Asghar Ali released the orders to forfeit assets and properties including land, luxury vehicles, accounts in local and foreign banks belonging to Nawaz Sharif after the details were presented by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). The assets being used by the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader will be forfeited following the directives of the court which include vehicles (Mercedes, Land Cruisers, tractors); bungalow in Murree, 102 Kanals agriculture land in Sheikhupura.

The anti-corruption watchdog obtained an important record regarding the assets and properties of the absconding Nawaz Sharif during the investigation of Toshakhana reference. The investigators collected the record from Lahore Development Authority (LDA), deputy commissioner (DC) Lahore, excise department, a private bank, administrations of Sheikhupura and Murree. It emerged that Nawaz possesses agricultural land in different cities of Punjab province, including 1,550 kanals in Lahore and Sheikhupura, whereas he is also the owner of a bungalow in Murree. On September 9, an accountability court had declared Nawaz a proclaimed offender in the Toshakhana reference. Sharif, former president Asif Ali Zardari and former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gillani are named in the reference for allegedly obtaining luxury vehicles from the treasury by paying 15 percent of the actual price.

Govt granted time to explain 262pc hike in drug prices LAHORE STAFF REPORT

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday gave the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), the health department and other respondents more time to furnish their comments on a petition challenging the recent 262 per cent hike in prices of essential life-saving drugs. Justice Sajid Mahmood Sethi heard the petition filed by Advocate Nadeem Sarwar, requesting the high court

to declare the government’s September 22 decision of jacking up rates of 94 essential medicines illegal. During the hearing, a lawyer, representing the DRAP, appeared before the court and sought time to submit a response to the petition. The court granted his request and adjourned the hearing until October 7. Earlier, the petitioner stated before the court that rates of essential life-saving medicines have been increased by up to 262 percent by the DRAP in violation of the laws, which has added to the miseries of inflation-hit people. He pleaded with the bench to declare the increase illegal.

Buzdar takeS notIce aFter woMan gang-raPed In nankana SahIB LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar on Thursday took notice of an alleged incident of gangrape in Nankana Sahib and directed the regional police officer (RPO) to submit a report regarding the incident. Six men purportedly raped the woman on the evening of September 24 after picking her up from a bus stop where she was waiting for the bus. The incident occurred in the jurisdiction of Mangtanwala police station. The police have registered a case against the accused, four of whom have not been identified, Nanakana Sahib District Police Office (DPO) Ismail Kharak said. A first information report (FIR), registered on the complaint of the victim’s sister on Sept 29 and includes Section 376 of Pakistan Penal Code (punishment for rape/assault), stated that the woman was travelling home on a passenger bus from Lahore to Jaranwala on Sept 24 at 7:00 pm when the vehicle broke down near Mangtanwala police station limits. While she was waiting for another bus, two men in a white car stopped and offered to drop her off at More Khunda, the complaint said. The men drugged the victim by giving her spiked juice and took her to a dera where four other men were waiting. The accused gang-raped the victim and then left her in a field, the complaint said. After regaining consciousness, the woman went to her sister’s house and told her what happened. Police have constituted three teams to investigate the incident, Kharak said, adding that the victim’s medical report was awaited. He added that police were also looking into the bus the victim had travelled in and why it had broken down. STAFF REPORT

two former corps commanders of karachi pass away KARACHI: Former deputy chief of army staff Lt Gen (r) Muzaffar Hussain Usmani and Lt Gen (r) Naseer Akhtar passed away on Thursday. Both of the ex-military officials were former corps commanders of Karachi. Lt Gen (r) Usmani breathed his last in Karachi while Lt Gen (r) Akhtar passed away in Lahore. According to the Superintendent of Police Clifton Imran Mirza, police had received information of a body lying inside a car near Khayaban-e-Shajar Park. On arrival, the police saw that the car's engine and headlights were switched on and found Lt Gen (r) Usmani dead inside the vehicle. According to SP Mirza, the former general — a resident of Karachi's Gizri area — had died of cardiac arrest. Lt Gen (r) Usmani had been appointed as the corps commander of Karachi during the martial law imposed in Pakistan in 1999. He retired in 2001. Meanwhile, Lt Gen (r) Akhtar's family said the former military officer had passed away at a local hospital in Lahore where he was admitted for a couple of days. The family said that the former corps commander was suffering from a medical condition that caused tremors in his body. Akhtar's funeral prayers will be offered at Lahore Cantt after Zuhr prayer. Lt Gen (r) Akhtar had served as corps commander Karachi from 1992 to 1994. STAFF REPORT

PMl-n expels five MPas for meeting Buzdar LAHORE: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has decided to terminate the party membership of five of its Punjab Assembly members for calling on Chief Minister Usman Buzdar reportedly without prior permission of the party leadership. The decision, approved by senior party leadership, was announced by PML-N General Secretary Ahsan Iqbal. The MPAs include Ashraf Ansari, Jaleel Sharaqpuri, Faisal Niazi, Nishat Daha and Moulvi Ghayasuddin. The inquiry against the aforementioned members came into effect with the approval of PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah Khan. Besides this, a few party leaders were issued show-cause notices for skipping the vote on a Financial Action Task Force (FATF)-related legislation in a joint parliament session. Despite the opposition’s concerns, the bills were passed with a majority vote. Those asked to explain their position include Raheela Magsi, Kulsoom Parveen, Dilawar Khan and Shamim Afridi. APP

Cruise missiles: Chohan demands Shehbaz’s trial under treason charges LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan has demanded to try former prime minister Nawaz Sharif under treason charges over revealing national secrets. “Elder Sharif revealed national secrets

by openly talking on the cruise missiles issue,” Fayyazul Hassan Chohan said in his statement on Thursday. He added how a three-time prime minister revealed national secrets, who took an oath to safeguard these. The Sharif family is unable to think about anyone else rather than its personal interests, he added.

He said that Nawaz has crossed a line in his hatred against state institutions. Chohan said that the former prime minister is targeting every state institution but the masses have turned down his narrative. Talking to the media in London on Wednesday, PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif had claimed that Pakistan

had built its missiles by copying American missiles through reverse engineering and he had given cruise missiles to the country. Nawaz had said, “The United States had fired missiles at Afghanistan during the war which landed in Balochistan. We made our missiles by copying the US missiles.”

Friday, 2 October, 2020

NEWS

PunjaB PolICE dECIdE To CRaCK down on BEggaR maFIa, PRoSTITuTES and dRug addICTS LAHORE

SHAHAB OMER

HE Punjab Police have decided to crack down on one-wheelers, professional beggars, prostitutes, and transgender people involved in crime in the provincial capital, and the inspector general of police (IGP) has also issued instructions to subordinate officers to expedite operations. A meeting on professional affairs and traffic management of Lahore Police was held at the Central Police Office on Thursday, which was chaired by IGP Inam Ghani. The meeting was attended by Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Omar Sheikh, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Legal Jawad Dogar, DIG Operations Ashfaq Ahmed Khan, Lahore Chief Traffic Of-

ficer (CTO) Captain (r) Syed Hammad Abid and Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Operations Faisal Shehzad among others. The meeting discussed the professional begging mafia, transgender people involved in crime, one-wheelers, street crime, traffic management and other issues related to law and order. Issuing orders to the Lahore CCPO to accelerate a crackdown on professional beggar mafia on roads, the IGP said, “Action should be taken against professional beggars in collaboration with the teams of the Child Protection and Welfare Bureau, while special action should also be taken against professional begging men and women who beg from children. An operation against drug addicts should be launched on the streets and in different parts of the city as soon as possible.”

Three dacoits rob FBR official in Islamabad

During the meeting, Lahore DIG (operations), while briefing the IGP, said, “The operation against drug addicts will be launched in a few days. After taking action against the drug addicts, they should be shifted to the 100-bed wards of the health department as the health department is providing facilities for rehabilitation of the drug addicts.” However, the IGP remarked, “They [drug addicts] should not be allowed to leave until doctors or other staff discharge them after recovery.” The top cop further said that steps should be taken in Lahore under a comprehensive strategy to make better use of available resources and modern technology to improve traffic management on roads and in sensitive locations. “The CTO and other senior officers went out in the field to inspect and mon-

Buzdar launches Rs30bn Punjab Rozgar Scheme LAHORE

ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

STAFF REPORT

Three dacoits robbed the house of a member of Inland Revenue (IR) Operations Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Dr Ashfaq Ahmad, in G-10 area of Islamabad. According to the First Information Report (FIR), three dacoits aged 21 to 25 years on last Friday entered into the house in question, which was located in G10/2 Islamabad and looted the family at gunpoint. They run away after taking three laptops as well as three mobile phones along with 15 tola gold and approximately Rs100,000 in cash. According to the FIR, Dr Ashfaq informed the police that the dacoits were speaking Pashto and he can identify them if they are produced. Dr Ahmad, a senior officer of the Income Tax department, is working as a member of IR and his position is considered very important in the tax department. He is regarded as being close to top Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) members. Recently, Sarina Isa, the wife of Justice Qazi Faez Isa, not only alleged Dr Ahmad of illegally accessing and publicly disclosed her information but also demanded to see copies of his tax returns. It is worth mentioning here that crime incidents in the federal capital have increased manifold. Recently, some robbers had also looted the house of Sindh Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Training Nasir Aftab a few days back in the G10 area. Police official said that there is no update on this case while an FBR spokesman said that Dr Ahmad has not commented on this matter.

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has launched Punjab Rozgar Scheme, worth Rs30 billion, which is said to be the largest employment programme, to help educated and skilled youth start new and old functional businesses. Addressing the ceremony held in this regard on Thursday, Buzdar said that soft loans from Rs100,000 to Rs10 million will be provided to skilled youth. He said that men, women and transgender aged between 20 to 50 years can apply for the loan. Buzdar said that the well-being of youth is a top priority of the government and loans will be proved at low mark-up especially to female applicants. The chief minister said that applicants can apply online and get loans from Punjab Small Industries Corporation and Bank of Punjab. He said that the initiative was taken to transform skills of youth into investment by the provincial government. He also said that the provincial government is providing financial relief to the affected businesses

Punjab constantly monitoring Covid-19 situation: Yasmin

Lashing out at former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry has said that his recent speech was aimed at blackmailing institutions. Talking to journalists, Fawad said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader had hatched various conspiracies against the institutions in his tenure. He said that Nawaz wanted institutions to fight with each other. Responding to Nawaz’s recent speech, Fawad asked why he kept silent for three years if he had been ordered to resign. The minister said that Nawaz is reluctant to return to his homeland but he wants PML-N’s workers to take to

LAHORE STAFF REPROT

Punjab Minister for Health Dr Yasmin Rashid has said that the government took steps on war footing to defeat the Covid-19. Talking to media persons on Thursday, Dr Yasmin Rashid said that the World Health Organisation (WHO) is appreciating Pakistan's steps taken to control the pandemic. She said, “We increased medical facilities in the health sector; therefore, infection rate in Punjab is lower as compared to other provinces.” “We are constantly monitoring the Covid-19 situation after reopening all educational institutions in the province,” she added. The minister said that the government has established nineteen BSL-3 labs across the province for testing of coronavirus patients while 32,000 recruitments have also been made in the health department in a transparent way. Earlier it was reported on last Tuesday that as many as 145 students tested positive for the coronavirus at public and private schools in Punjab, according to the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department. A spokesperson for the department had said 70,750 students were tested for Covid-19 at educational institutions after they reopened on September 15, out of whom 145 turned out to be positive.

itor the traffic control plan and its implementation. Warnings should be issued to the traffic wardens who are standing on the sides of roads and showing irresponsibility. Departmental action against negligent wardens should not be delayed. The duty and patrolling of Dolphin and PRU teams on the roads should be further improved to maintain a smooth flow of traffic as well as prevent street crime. Full support should be sought from CCTV cameras to eliminate one wheeling and over speeding. In addition to cracking down on youths involved in one-wheeling, surety bonds should also be taken from their parents so that precious human lives can be protected by ending this bloody game,” IGP directed. Ghani further directed full police action against those involved in various crimes on the roads.

amid Covid-19 crisis. The chief minister said the PTI-led government has started taking practical steps to fulfil the promise of provision of employment and added that this scheme will make the youth self-reliant and job-providers. Youngsters will be provided loans on a priority basis and owners of small and medium enterprises, as well as those economically suffering from coronavirus, would be able to resume economic activities. This facility will promote the cottage industry and interested persons could expand their businesses by benefitting from the Punjab Rozgar Scheme, he said. The CM maintained that the loan process has been made easy and the interested youth can submit their applications through PSIC, Punjab Bank websites, or Punjab Rozgar App. The PTI is committed to making the youth economically self-reliant and the government is enabling the youth as job-providers instead of a job-seeker. The government is transforming skills as an investment as it is the biggest social asset to make the youth prosperous, he further said.

Body shifted in Qingqi after hospital refuses to provide ambulance KARACHI STAFF REPORT

A man in Mirpurkhas, Sindh was compelled to shift the body of his deceased daughter to his residence on a Qingqi rickshaw after the administration of Civil Hospital allegedly refused to provide him an ambulance. According to the family, the girl was admitted to the hospital earlier this week after she developed a high fever. She passed away on Wednesday. “We requested the hospital administration to provide us an ambulance to shift the body but the administration flatly refused,” her father said. “Being very poor, we were not in a position to hire a private ambulance so they were compelled to load the body onto a Qingqi rickshaw and shifted it to their house,” he added. However, the hospital administration says the family never asked for an ambulance. “We did not even know that they took the body home in a Qingqi [rickshaw],” an official said.

Ismail, Bajwa discuss CPEC projects in Sindh KARACHI STAFF REPORT

Governor Sindh Imran Ismail has said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a game-changer for Pakistan and it is an example of great friendship between Islamabad and Beijing. The governor said this while talking to CPEC Authority Chairman Lieutenant General (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa, who called on him at the Governor House on Thursday. During the meeting, the ongoing development projects under CPEC in Sindh and their early completion were discussed. Karachi Circular Railways, China Investment to produce electricity by Thar Coal, and other projects as well as matters of mutual interests were discussed on the occasion.

SHC directs for removal of billboards across Karachi KARACHI STAFF REPORT

Nawaz wants to blackmail institutions: Fawad ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

the streets. The minister said that the government is taking measures to bring the former premier back to the country. Earlier, Nawaz had said that Pakistan was prospering with the efforts of his team during the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government. Addressing the Central Working Committee meeting of the PML-N, the former prime minister had thanked the party leaders for their support in this crucial time. Nawaz had said Pakistan was becoming an Asian Tiger during his tenure of government and people of the country were prosperous, but now the inflation has broken the backbone of the countrymen. Highlighting the achievements of his government, the PML-N supremo had said that his party while being in power completed development projects including the construction of powerhouses with peace to provide relief to the masses.

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday directed the authorities concerned to ensure implementation of the Supreme Court’s (SC) order regarding removal of all billboards and hoardings from public buildings and properties across the metropolis. A two-judge SHC bench disposed of a writ petition seeking removal of billboards. The court instructed the civic authorities to take down billboards from public properties as per the apex court’s directives. It also directed the cantonment boards and private firms to implement the SC order. The petitioner stated before the court that there are many places where billboards are still installed in violation of the SC order and requested the court to order the authorities to bring them down. On August 8, the top court had ordered removal of all advertising billboards all over the city.

Keamari district: SHC seeks reply from provincial authorities KARACHI

Farmers urged to avoid burning crop residues to minimise smog risks OKARA TLTP

Punjab Additional Secretary Agriculture Rana Arshad Khan has urged the farmers that crop residues should not be set on fire but be destroyed by other means in order to minimise smog risks. The additional agriculture secretary said this while talking to media persons during an official visit to Okara. He said that the farmers should

avoid burning remains of previous crops as they are the main source of pollution resulting in smog. Moreover, smog impacts human and animal health and also becomes a reason for traffic accidents. He directed the concerned officials to prepare a comprehensive plan and make collective efforts to control smog in the district. He also said that the government is providing advanced tools to farmers at subsidised rates which are very useful for cultivation. He further said that use of these advanced tools,

which are manufactured locally, will help overcome pollution. Earlier, the additional agriculture secretary visited firms that are manufacturing agricultural machinery which helps remove remnants of crops from the fields. Accompanied by Agriculture Engineer Sahiwal Muhammad Shahid and Deputy Director Agriculture Shahbaz Akhtar, Rana Arshad Khan inspected various departmental activities, including the smog awareness programme.

STAFF REPORT

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday issued notices to the Sindh chief secretary, the local government secretary and others on a petition challenging the provincial government’s decision of carving a seventh district out of Karachi. A two-judge SHC bench was hearing the petition filed by PTI MNA Aamir Liaquat Hussain who questioned the formation of Keamari district. The court directed the official respondents to submit their comments by the next hearing. During the hearing, the petitioner’s lawyer placed on record a notification regarding the creation of Keamari district. At the previous hearing, the SHC had turned down a request by the petitioner to issue notices on his petition saying it can’t do so until the notification is submitted in the court. “Karachi used to be a district and then was divided into four districts.

Friday, 2 October, 2020

NEWS

PrESIdENt AlvI StrESSES bANkING trANSPArENcy tO ENd cONSuMErS' ExPlOItAtION ISLAMABAD

TLTP

RESIDENT Dr Arif Alvi said on Thursday that the use of information technology has given the banking sector a new dimension, but it also requires an appropriate system to cope with complaints of the consumers. Addressing a seminar organised by the banking ombudsman, the president urged the banks to adopt such a pattern that cold effectively address the grievances of consumers in case of disputes.

President Alvi said that procedural transparency in the banking sector is important to keep a control on financial exploitation of consumers, noting that banking ombudsman is playing an important role in mediating between two parties, i.e. banks and consumers, to arrive at an amicable and acceptable solution. He stressed the need to create awareness among the consumers about the role of banking ombudsman. The president termed 'Riba' another form of exploitation and emphasized on finding solutions through proactive planning and improved linkages between fi-

AGP forms team to conduct forensic audit of loss-making SOEs ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has constituted a four-member team to conduct forensic audit of major loss-making state-owned entities (SOEs). According to documents available with this scribe, the forensic audit team would be led by Director Commercial Audit (Karachi) Saqib Bashir (BS-19), whereas its members would include Deputy Director Attiqueur Rahman and Audit Officer Nadeem Masood from Commercial Audit (Lahore), and Assistant Audit Officer Saqib Hussain. Sources said that the finance ministry, on the instruction of Prime Minister Imran Khan, had issued a letter to the AGP, asking it to conduct a forensic audit of those major loss-making SOEs which haven't been audited for several years. Responding to the finance ministry's letter that had asked whether the AGP had sufficient expertise to carry out forensic audit of the entities, the AGP office affirmed that it had the required experience and expertise to conduct forensic audit and that a team had also been formed for this purpose.

nancial service providers and consumers. He said the increase in the number of complaints received by the banking ombudsman is the trust reposed by consumers in the institution. President Alvi recalled that as a parliamentarian, he worked on alternate dispute resolution as a means to discourage litigation among parties. Such a method is a worldwide trusted way to resolve disputes in order to avoid difficulties related to gathering of legal proofs. He stressed the need for ensuring dispensation of speedy justice by the relevant departments of the ombudsman. He gave

reference to an appeal received from a widow through the federal ombudsman on a pending matter since 2006, where he directed for compensation of money along with interest of previous years as well. He urged the workers of banking ombudsman to fulfill their duties considering it a noble job of public welfare. He called upon the banking sector to adopt an inclusive approach towards women and disabled persons in providing employment opportunities. The seminar was attended by members of banking and corporate sectors, and financial experts.

Zainulabideen Qureshi notified as OGRA member oil ISLAMABAD AHMAD AHMADANI

The Cabinet Division on Thursday issued a notification for the appointment of Zainulabideen Qureshi as Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) Member-Oil for a period of three years. "In terms of Section 3 (8) (b) of OGRA Ordinance, 2002, the federal government is pleased to appoint Zainulabideen Qureshi as Member (Oil) in the OGRA for a period of three years with immediate effect and until further orders," said the notification issued on Thursday. Qureshi first headed the oil department of OGRA in 2007, and for the last 13 years, has been working with OGRA in different capacities. He last served as the senior executive director at OGRA. He holds Masters’ degrees in chemical engineering and busi-

ness administration and enjoys 16 years of experience in managerial positions. According to sources, the qualification required for the positions of OGRA member and chairman is the same; a person who is eligible for post of Member is also eligible for the post of chairman. However, the Cabinet Division had recently proposed massive difference in the salaries of OGRA members and chairman, which may affect the working of OGRA. Sources said the Cabinet Division had requested the federal cabinet to fix the salary of OGRA chairman under a special pay scale instead of the salary of MP-I scale. “Salary of an OGRA member was Rs600,000 while Cabinet Division has recommended the federal cabinet to raise the salary to Rs1.5 million per month,” a insider said. It is pertinent to mention that the Cabinet Division had started

the procedure for selection of the OGRA member oil in January 2020, as advertisement in this regard was published on 19th Jan 2020. As many as 18 applications were received by the Cabinet Division within the due date (3rd Feb 2020). The PM had constituted a selection committee under Adviser to PM on Accountability and Interior Mirza Shahzad Akbar to recommend a panel for the post of OGRA member oil. After thorough examination of credentials and detailed interviews, the committee recommended three candidates in order of merit for appointment against the post for a period of three years. The candidates included Zainulabideen Qureshi, Ziaul Haq Mirza and Asim Niazi. The position of OGRA’s member oil was lying vacant since 16th May 2020, following to competition of previous member’s tenure.

Girls’ education top priority of incumbent government: Shafqat ISLAMABAD APP

Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mahmood Thursday said that girls’ education was top priority of the incumbent government. He stated this in a virtual meeting here with Lord Tariq Ahmed of Wimbledon, minister of state for South Asia and the Commonwealth and the United Kingdom, prime minister's special representative on preventing sexual violence in conflict. Lord Tariq of Wimbledon congratulated the government of Pakistan on exceptionally well administering to combat Covid-19 and reopening of Schools after six-and-a-half-month closure. The minister apprised the steps taken by Education Ministry to keep the educational activities continue during closure of schools through teleschools, online classes and workshops from which almost 8 million students benefited on daily basis. He underscored that girls’ education

was the highest priority of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government and to encourage the poor families towards education, our government has introduced a cash transfer programme which pays Rs2,000 per girl for a quarter. Exchanging views on issues of female's education in certain far flung areas of the country, the minister said, if the school is just one mile away from home, the parents feel insecure to send their girls to school, hence the government is providing tablets to them and also arranging online classes by developing informal educational set-up in that community. While discussing the Single National Curriculum (SNC), Shafqat said, “Our educational system was divided into three streams; resultantly producing three different mindset and ultimately causing a divide in the nation.” The SNC will not only bring uniformity in education system of the country but also promotes love, interfaith harmony and tolerance, he added.

India helping Nawaz in ‘attempts to weaken army’, says Imran contInueD on pAge 01 He said that he would prefer to quit power rather than giving any NRO to those, who have plundered Pakistan’s wealth. He also said that the opposition has the right to peaceful protest. “They can do that as much as they want but if they step outside the law, I will put them all in jails,” he added. He further said opposition in a democracy protects public interests and keeps a check on government. But unfortunately, our opposition is focusing on hiding its corruption, he added. Asked about his comment regarding ‘umpire’s finger’ during the PTI sit-in against the PML-N government, the premier said he “never meant the army” when he used the term. “In my eyes, the only umpire is Allah. I went to jail in [Pervez] Musharraf’s time, why would I want the army to take over [during PML-N’s term]?” he said. Regarding his visit to the General Headquarters (GHQ) in 2014, Imran said the PML-N government had “asked [then-army chief General] Raheel Sharif to talk to us. They asked us to end the sit-in; we said no, everyone knows that”. Answering a question regarding a meeting held between prominent opposition leaders and the army chief, Prime Minister Imran said Lt Gen (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa had called the meeting regarding Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) after asking him. “There was a purpose behind [the meeting],” he said. “India is active in GB; it is also part of the CPEC route and … the region is in limbo. The people there want rights and India is exploiting that.” “It was important that the [army] explained to them what security issues are coming up. Whenever there is a security matter, I prefer the army to explain because they have institutional memory,” he added. Furthermore, speaking on former Special Assistant to Prime Minister Bajwa’s family’s recent controversy, he said that Bajwa had “produced a detailed document with all the answers” to the serious allegation hurled against him. “It is a public document; if someone raises any questions over it I will investigate it,” the premier added. “After he [Bajwa] submitted his response, we sat with the law minister and studied his response. If someone has objections to that response, I will pursue the matter,” he further said. In the same interview, PM Imran responded to allegations of putting pressure on media houses. “The conditions were obviously difficult, so they were reported. But then there was fake reporting; it damaged us,” he said. The premier remarked no other government in the past had faced the kind of criticism in the media that the PTI government had in its two years of power, adding that his government nothing to do with the abduction of journalist Matiullah Jan from Islamabad. He said that while some media houses had done “a good job”, some others “played a role in protecting culprits”.

Govt adhering to ease of doing business policy: PM ISLAMABAD TLTP

Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that the government is adhering to the policy of ‘ease of doing business’ to facilitate investors. The PM expressed these views on Thursday while talking to a delegation of investors who are making investments in the New Blue Area project. Separately, Prime Minister Imran Khan met with a delegation of manufacturers from various sectors including pharma, cement, textile, chemicals, and home appliances. Industries minister, adviser to PM on commerce, adviser on institutional reforms and adviser on finance were also present on the occasion.

PARC to produce two million diseaseresistant potato tubers using tissue culture ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Tissue culture technology is being widely used for large-scale plant multiplication and gives a science-based solution for plant propagation, disease elimination and plant improvement, said Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) Chairman Dr Muhammad Azeem Khan during an agreement signing ceremony between PARC and UAE-based Green System Pakistan Pvt Limited. “Due to disease attacks on local potato varieties, the country has to import potato tubers

CMYK

from Holland. From this agreement in coordination with private sector, we will produce virus free potato tubers locally, which will save our valuable foreign exchange,” the chairman said. PATCO CEO Dr Muhammad Amjad and Green System Pakistan CEO Rana Tahawar Ali Khan signed the agreement on behalf of their organizations. Briefing on the agreement, Dr Amjad said this accord is another chapter of cooperation between PARC-PATCO and Green System Pakistan, as the parties will work together to develop screen houses at NARC for expansion

to up to two million potato tubers, which would help to reduce import of potato seeds. PARC is going to arrange its laboratories for the production of healthy and good quality potato, date palm, banana and other plants to farming community, he added. Speaking on the occasion, Rana Tahawar said as a resource provider, his company would provide all required assistance and training to PARC scientists, particularly the provision of tissue culture protocol for date palm. "We are looking forward for multiplication certification and export of healthy, disease free plants," he added.

Friday, 2 October, 2020

06 COMMENT

Staying on the same page

Opposition prepares to fight A test of nerve for the PTI

N his virtual address to the PDM leaders on September 20, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif maintained that the opposition’s struggle was against those who brought Prime Minister Imran Khan into power by rigging the 2018 elections. On Wednesday he once again talked about ‘someone else’ who is running Parliament. A cautious Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, however, affirmed that the Speaker and the government run Parliament, though they have not discussed the problems of the people even once during the last two years. In days to come the PDM leaders might not be as outspoken as the London-based Mr Sharif. They can however justifiably demand that all institutions and government departments need to remain within their limits as defined in the Constitution. They may also continue to criticize Mr Khan for handing over the PM’s responsibility to the establishment to persuade the opposition over the proposed status of Gilgit-Baltistan. The reservations expressed publicly by veteran PML(N) leader Khwaja Asif about former President Asif Ali Zardari amounted to wrecking the alliance at the very start and thus serving the cause of the powers that the PDM intends to fight. Mr Sharif has promptly dissociated himself from Khwaja Asif’s statement, saying he had a great deal of respect for Mr Zardari. Unless outbursts of the sort are duly punished, the PDM could collapse amidst mutual wrangling. Mr Sharif was overly optimistic as he maintained that if the nation stayed together “the change may take place within weeks.” This is a big ‘if,’ as in Punjab, which is going to be the major battlefield, those who vote for PML(N) are not used to street agitation while the PPP had lost jiyalas during its tenure. Much will depend on whether the PDM chooses targets realistically and remains united. Arresting PDM leaders won’t help the government. With Shahbaz Sharif in NAB’s custody, the PML(N)’s leadership has been taken over by a more radical Nawaz. With a second virtual address to the party’s Central Working Committee in two days, Mr Sharif has accused Mr Khan of worsening the plight of common man on account of incompetence. What is more, he has again blamed the establishment for bringing him to power.

Midnight meetings make a mess At Penpoint M A NIAZI

S the military involved in politics? That the question can be asked at all in Pakistan indicates that it can be asked, indicates that it is. It is not supposed to be, so any suggestion that it is, is met with strenuous denial. However, that cover is sometimes stripped off, not so much by the operation of institutional restraints as by the sheer intrusiveness of that involvement. The pretence did not wear thin so much because Mian Nawaz Sharif indulged in a rant against the establishment in his address to the All-Parties Conference, as because the counter was a statement by the DG ISPR that the Chief of Army Staff had met opposition politicians on the issue of Mian Nawaz’s and his daughter Maryam’s cases. While in the democratic world, senior executive officials (including service chiefs) do meet opposition leaders and brief them on matters of national importance, this is usually done before an election, and they are made to only those leaders who may come to power. They do not cover political issues, though it can be argued that national security is a political issue. Decisions about war and peace, and thus about the conduct of diplomacy, are essentially political. However, matters related to domestic electoral politics are clearly not a fit subject for discussion. The military says it does not wish to be dragged into politics, which is correct, but it sees no harm in the COAS meeting a delegation of businessmen, following which came the ending of NAB’s right to pursue them for tax evasion cases. There is nothing really more political than economics, and if businessmen can approach the COAS with a grievance, so can politicians, or so the reasoning goes. Part of the problem is the very human propensity to see people who can solve one’s problem. No one has gone to the Agriculture Department to solve a tax problem, for instance, so if that is why they see the COAS, then they have somehow got the idea that he can help. That impression was reinforced when the COAS asked politicians to see him in his office about the status of Gilgit-Baltistan. The government wants to change its status, something it cannot do without op-

Not caring about inflation

position help, because it requires constitutional amendments. Even if the government gets a legislative majority in the Senate in next March’s Senate elections, it will still lack a two-thirds majority in both Houses and thus it will need opposition help. The Gilgit-Baltistan issue could have been handled by politicians being briefed in Parliament House by the Defence Minister, but politicians prefer dealing with the real decision-makers. There is also the possibility of a briefing by the Prime Minister, but he has painted himself into a corner by insisting that he will not deal with ‘corrupt elements’ and calls a statement of position by it as an attempt to ‘seek an NRO’ and to blackmail him. Imran Khan has put himself in a position where he cannot do what he should be doing, and which the military cannot do: handle the opposition. If indeed the COAS has to pull irons out of the fire, what purpose does Imran serve? Much as the President does nothing, the PM and the civilian government now do nothing except fulfill the letter of the Constitution. The readiness of the COAS to talk strengthens those who in their parties are arguing for cooperation with the Army, rather than the confrontation Nawaz seemed to propose. The argument is now not about whether the military should have a role, but about who should it pick. A question that does not seem to have been asked is why this revelation has taken place at all. Is it some sort of whip to be held over the politicians involved? Or was it pre-emptive? Could it have been meant to create doubts in Mian Nawaz’s mind about the loyalty of the emissary, former Sindh Governor Muhammad Zubair, who is a party insider, having been a former Cabinet minister, but who is linked to the government by being Planning Minister Asad Umar’s brother, and to the military by being the son of Maj Gen Ghulam Umar, who was President Yahya Khan’s National Security Adviser. One of the more interesting aspects of the whole episode is that both the major parties have shown that meeting military men in secret is more consistent with their origins than confrontation. PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto rose under Ayub Khan, though it was against him that he also founded his PPP. Mian Nawaz Sharif too owed his rise to Ziaul Haq. His break with the establishment came after the latter’s death, in the course of his confrontation with President Ghulam Ishaq Khan, who was the quintessential insider, having been Yahya’s Cabinet Secretary, Bhutto’s Defence Secretary General and State Bank Governor, and Zia’s

Finance Minister, Senate Chairman and ultimately successor. As one was hanged by a military ruler, and the other overthrown, they have been forced on the path of confrontation. It is almost as if the main objection the two have is not that the military is backing the PTI, but that it is not backing them. It is a paradox that the PTI’s frequent claims of being on the same page as the military, which have gone without contradiction, or even an objection like the present one, that have led to the military finding itself in its present situation, where it seems that the arrest of PML(N) chief Shehbaz Sharif has left the leadership of the party in the hands of Mariam Nawaz, who stands for confrontation. The Gilgit-Baltistan briefing also showed another important element in the current dispensation: that the Prime Minister is adamant about not talking to the opposition, even where the military feels that it needs the opposition on board. However, that this briefing occurred around the time Mian Nawaz was blasting the establishment shows that this was also being taken into account. That may not be the meeting which prompted both government and opposition to issue instructions about meetings with military officers. However, it is interesting to see that both government and opposition leaders want procedures for meetings which keeps them informed. It is also worth noting that the government is also involving itself in the process. This may reflect the problem that the military-opposition contacts pose for the PTI. If, as its leaders have often said, they are on the same page as the military, what happens if the opposition too comes on the same page? The metaphor might be strained, but the book that might be written might make a worrying reading for the PTI. The PTI will have noted that both the PPP and the PML(N) saw their founders turn on the military, and try to exercise power alone, even though they were initially brought to power with help. It may have climbed the same ladder to power, but now it must avoid kicking the ladder away, or even giving the impression that it has done so. It is worth noting that dependence is supposed to have been growing. The PPP has never been accused, for example, of getting help in the 1971 election. The help for the PML(N) dates back to the IJI days. The support for the PTI ignores the genuine support it had among voters. If the PTI does not continue to stay the same page, what will happen?

The writer is a member of staff.

The ECC decides on inflationary measures

A continuing mandamus order

HE Economic Coordination Committee took two decisions in its meeting on Wednesday that would fuel inflation. The first is the decision to increase the gas tariff for industrial units. This is a longstanding demand of the International Monetary Fund, and had been postponed for the duration of the covid-19 pandemic. Though the pandemic is not over, the IMF has already begun cracking the whip, leading to the price rise. One of the direct consequences will be to stop foreign exchange being earned by those industries which use gas as a fuel, or a raw material, and which export their production. The gas tariff increase would affect agriculture through the inevitable rise in fertilizer prices, which will be passed on by the grower to the consumer. The ECC also decided on a closer monitoring of wheat supplies. As the body which had sanctioned its export, thus resulting in the shortage a little while ago, this is a little like bolting the stable door after the horse has bolted. Without an indigenous heat crop due until next May (with the current season’s wheat yet to be sown), keeping supplies constant will require imports. Those imports will come at a higher price than locally available wheat. The ECC’s decision to reduce the commission of the Trading Corporation of Pakistan from two percent to 0.75 percent will not make much of a difference, and it almost seems as if the decision was made in pursuit of the maxim “every little bit helps.” Whether agricultural products like vegetables and pulses are concerned, or the staple of wheat, it seems that prices are inevitably going to spiral soon because of the ECC decisions. These decisions require Cabinet approval, which is virtually an inevitability. The inflation in food items is politically damaging, but this government seems to have developed a track record of taking politically damaging decisions. However, it should be more careful with food. Inflation is bad for the consumer, but when it affects food, there can be none of the postponement of consumption that might be possible with virtually anything else. And that cannot mean anything good for an elected government.

Such orders can help the judiciary deliver true justice

AkhtAr Aly kureshy

fascinating civilized society may be attractive to everybody but it identifies through the writ of law (supremacy of law) and values of humanity. The governments which compromised on executing their policy, law and discipline usually failed to deliver and were involved in corruption, nepotism, meritless and nontransparent policies which resulted in the evaporation of justice. There is no secret that legislation, policymaking and its execution is sole responsibility of the government and its departments and if there is lawlessness, fear, insecurity and distrust, then it is not a popular civilized society as generally we seen in the societies of the Europe. Once ZA Bhutto said that our Courts are becoming the third House to legislate the law through its novel interpretations. There is no argument that the Court are playing a vital role to create a peaceful civilized society. Recently two powerful regimes of Supreme Court suo motu actions repaired a number of lacunae and shortfalls of government, and Present Chief Justice of akistan, Mr Justice Gulzar Ahmad, also taken up a few matters through suo motu, but compared to the problems of our society, the ratio of suo motu are very less, because a huge question of capacity building of governments is apparent. How-

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ever, once a suo motu action taken by the Surpeme Court, then government functionaries instantly busy themselves to resolve only that issue, so we can easily say that suo motu actions are blessings for this nation. Recently the Lahore High Court’s Mr Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh passed a judgment (PLD 2020 Lahore page 534 Muhammad Sulman Vs SHO and others), which escaped media attention, in which the doctrine of Continuing Mandamus was introduced to pave the way of government and its departments. Continuing Mandamus is a relief given by a court of law through a series of ongoing orders over a long period of time, directing an authority to do its duty or fulfill an obligation in the general public interest, as and when a need arises over the duration a case lies with the court, with the court choosing not to dispose the case off in finality. This happens in a situation which cannot be remedied instantaneously but requires a solution over a long time, at times going on for years. With this procedural innovation of the writ of mandamus a mandatory order, the court monitors compliance of its orders, seeking periodic reports from authorities on the progress in implementing them. The Court may enlist senior advocates to assist it as amici curiae, or as court commissioners in the field, and subject experts or expert bodies to report back to it on the facts and ground realities of the case. It may appoint a court committee or a court commission, independent from the executive, as its oversight or monitoring agency. It may require the subject-matter covered by the case be taught in schools and universities, as part of textbooks and syllabi, or be given wide publicity through the media. It may use contempt against people in positions of power or authority as a remedy in case of non-compliance or poor implementation of its orders. It may recommend that the legislature frame a policy for the future. Mr Justice Tariq converted that application into a constitutional petition of public interest litigation as it consisted of the wider question of enforcement of fundamental rights of a downtrodden section of society and implementation of a number of laws including Bonded Labor System, Child labor at brick kilns which may be employed to produce the relief or remedy or social effect which would be most advantageous or result in the greatest good of the public as a whole or a significant section of it.

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Social justice in the preamble of our Constitution has been given pride of place, and for good reason since it is perhaps the most important and significant form of justice. The doctrine of Continuing Mandamus serves several functions, especially where the Executive does not carry out its function effectively and either does not implement a statutory function or duty or does not exercise its discretion wisely. The judiciary has been seen as an effective tool by the citizens to enforce the law and uphold justice when the executive has not done that. The remedy is often considered useful especially in children’s rights where the executive has continuously failed to implement. Thus the only remedy left is for the court to use its power under continuing mandamus to address the issue. Our superior courts are highly regarded by legal community, public at large and media, precisely for their social and instant justice function when the country suffers a crisis and the Supreme Court takes suo motu action. There is no reason why the Court should deviate from that path when a number of public issues are seeking the Court’s indulgence and government cannot resolve these issues. Now there is an urgent need for our poor society to follow the doctrine of Continuing Mandamus where governments and its departments have miserably failed to fulfill the basic requirements of the citizens. Our leader and politicians are making money and involved in corruption to destabilize the government which has already failed to deliver anything. Every department of government including, police, revenue, executive, labor, anti-corruption ( the most corrupt department) health, education, agriculture, fisheries, tax etc. are corrupt and champions neglecting legal obligations. Naturally the public looks towards the leaders and government functionaries to give them a better system. if governments failed, or cannot, then our Superior Courts come forward to support the government and rescue the public by following the doctrine of Continuing Mandamus to give relief to the general public, especially the poor. The scope of Continuing Mandamus is wide and ablessing for our society, and all superior court judges should follow Mr Justice Sheikh in creatingg more milestones towards prosperity and wellbeing. Akhtar Aly Kureshy is an Advocate of Supreme Court of Pakistan, Law Professor, member International Bar Association and former Assistant Attorney General for Pakistan.

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Friday, 2 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

Balochistan jobs BALOCHISTAN is the biggest province of Pakistan by area, which is located in south western of Pakistan and it is the lowest province of Pakistan by population. But it does not mean that any people from Pakistan can take the jobs of Balochistan. It has come outside before some days that 22766 people has made duplicate local certificates and taken the jobs of Baloch people. Actually from these most of them are from Punjab and Sindh, so it is my and all Balochistan’s people request to the government of Punjab and Sindh take them out from Balochistans people jobs if not government of Balochistan knows well to take them out. If these people are kicked out from their jobs then no one will be jobless in Balochistan. So in conclusion, I would request to the government of Balochistan and also to the Deputy Commissioners of every district of Balochistan please take urgent action against these e people to take them out from Balochistani’s jobs. NAbEEl IqbAl AwARAN

Drugs price hike and inflation

An opportunity for Pakistani agriculture China’s barley import Suspension from Australia suMeerA AsghAr roy ANd rehAN sAeed

ITH the advancement in the nuclear field and the invention of more deadly and speedy nukes, a trend of confrontation is shifting from the battlefield to trade wars to avoid destruction on a massive level. In this globalized world, interdependence has become an unavoidable element. No matter how large and diverse a state is, it can never be that large and varied that it may not have to import any kind of raw material or full-fledged entity. So to threaten a country or to teach a lesson, sanctions or imports of a concerned government are halted temporarily or permanently. Recently, China has halted its import of barley from Australia’s largest barley exporter, CBH Grain Pvt Ltd in the midst of the US-China trade war, as the latter has shown its inclination towards the USA by sending its ships to the South China Sea for joint naval exercises with the USA and India. The suspension was brought into action on the basis of pest contamination in the imported stuff. It has not only put the credibility of Australia’s barley exports at risk but also has shrunken the graph of barley export as China had been importing barley on a large scale, which was not less than $500 million per annum. The tussle had already started when China imposed 80 percent tariffs on Australia’s barley export. The need of the hour is that Pakistan should capitalize from the present condition by mounting a production of barley on a massive scale to export barley to its all-weather friend, i.e., China, as it will not only help Pakistan to exploit China’s enormous market but also will help China to reduce transportation costs, which it had been consuming on cargo ships. China has to cover a distance of more than 7000 kilometers to reach the market of Australia and then another 7000 km to reach back to China. CPEC could prove instrumental as it has a number of advantages, including cost effectiveness, time effectiveness, and much greater security. The sea route is not as potent as the land route, owing to the risk of being looted by pirates and some disputed islands. With the help of barley’s export, Pakistan would not only be able to reduce the trade deficit between China and Pakistan, but it would also help Pakistan to deal with Chinese debts. To grow barley does not include any rocket science process and Pakistani soil is also suitable for the production of barley. The only need is to make people realize how much they can gain after growing barley. It may also assist in doing away with unemployment. According to a report which was published by Japan, the US-China trade war could lead to countries like Chile, Vietnam, Malaysia, and other countries to fill the vacuum, but what about Pakistan? It may prove itself a dark house of this race. Undoubtedly, India is a massive market.

Had there been no stand-off in Laddakh region, Once Pakistan will start exploring it, it alone is India would have massively capitalized on sufficient to absorb the exports of Pakistan and China’s farewell to Australia’s barley exports. It to reduce the prevailing deficit in the Pakwill be a disgraceful and extreme level of inef- China trade. Both countries must take CPEC ficiency if Pakistan still does not learn to exploit seriously and make efforts for its immediate completion so that it may become functional the US-China trade war. Pakistan has been hapless in exploiting its for trading purposes. Barley production reduction from 157,000 own resources owing to a lack of proper technique, as well as of good governance. Without tons (1980-1990) to 63,000 tons (2019) raised any doubt, Pakistan is a country abundant in salt. serious questions related to our agricultural poliIt contains one of the world’s largest salt mines. cies. In 1994-1995, the barley yield in Pakistan Himalayan Pink salt, which has become national was 993 Kgs. Current yield? However, barley matures earlier than wheat pride for Pakistan, is sold at very cheap rates to and also susceptible countries like India, to waterlogging and which using the tacis salt-tolerant. Due tic of value addition to this favorable besells it to foreign For international trade, grain haviour of barley, countries, where it we could substitute sells like hot cakes. quality is as important as the it for other crops Once awareness like wheat, maize, is brought, the next yield. Hence, there is a dire need and rice to increase phase would be to the yield in the make farmers aware to use soil sampling and testing saline soils. It also of methods that will helps to repair the help them to obtain machines, and grain moisture soil. By using the maximum produclatest equipment, intion per acre of barequipment to ensure quality and cluding high preciley. required shelf-life. There are sion drill machines Unquestionably, for barley transplanso far, Pakistan has subsidized irrigation projects tation, high-effibeen utilizing obsociency irrigation lete and traditional running in the Pakistan, but the techniques like the methods. The consprinkler, and nection between regovernment should also focus on drip, rain gun, and coms e a r c h e r s , bine harvesters for extensionists, and other equipment, hybrid highreaping, threshing farmers at the public and winnowing, sector level is not yielding seeds, and create a could help in yield that impressive as it linkage between research enhancement. For is in the case of the international trade, private sector. The institutions and farmer grain quality is as private sector has important as the been performing communities yield. Hence, there well since its incepis a dire need to use tion. A dire need is soil sampling and to improve the pubtesting machines, lic sector of agriculand grain moisture equipment to ensure quality ture People belonging to Neo-Luddism have held and required shelf-life. There are subsidized irthe reins of the institution since the country’s in- rigation projects running in the Pakistan, but the dependence, which has an aggressive approach government should also focus on other equiptowards automation, revolution, and technology. ment, hybrid high-yielding seeds, and create a Owing to the lack of introduction of technology, linkage between research institutions and farmer yield per acre is stagnant and static. Pakistan can communities. double yield per acre with the introduction of Sumeera Asghar Roy is a PhD candidate at technology. Interestingly, the introduction of technology the National key laboratory of Fruit Sciences, in the agriculture sector has the part of the Beijing, China. She holds a master’s degree from agenda list of the second phase of the China- the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which can Engr. Rehan Saeed is a postgraduate student be manipulated to improve barley production in Pakistan. Technological advancement has beat the College of Agricultural Engineering, come so vital that we can’t escape this very fact China Agricultural University, Beijing, China. that Third World countries are leading the world Rehan’s areas of interest are water and irrigation systems along with the modern on the basis of this sole factor. Unquestionably, China is a massive market. mechanization of Agriculture.

I strongly condemn the Government for allowing an increase in the prices of 94 life- saving drugs. This decision would not only add to the woes of the general public but also endanger the lives of already ailing poor. Such regressive decision came in the midst of pandemic which is already struggling to cope with the impact of Covid-19, locust attack, floods and resulting unemployment and ever-increasing prices of fuel and daily commodities. It seems that the government is forgetting the fact that the vast majority of population of Pakistan is poor and lower-middle class. Since the government has taken the reign of the country, every other day inflation rate is accelerating and has reached at an unprecedented level. Instead of giving structural relief to general public, it is apparent all attempts are made to further pushing public into poverty. Issues emanating from extreme inflation are mental health issues, suicides and crimes. It is general public who is paying the price of government’s mistake of going to IMF and subsequently bearing the greatest burden of it. Question of good governance seems a distant dream in Pakistan. Hence, good governance requires evaluating policies. Moreover, it is advisable while formulating policies, government should take the general and poor public in mind. There may be many priorities, but giving structural relief to public should be of paramount importance. It is hoped the federal government will reverse its decision soon and control inflation and make the price of medicines affordable and accessible. M. ShAhjAhAN MEMoN KAMbER AlI KhAN

Cricket tour THE New Zealand Cricket (NZC) announced the dates of matches plus venues against Pakistan in their home. The series involves three T20 matches, including two Test matches. According to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the squad would leave for Auckland on November 23. The players would be quarantine for fourteen days in Christchurch, and the players will not be taking part in any cricket related activities during the days of quarantine. In addition, Pakistans’ last tours to New Zealand were in 2016, Pakistan lost both Tests, but at the tour of 2018, they defeated black caps in the shortest format of the game, but suffered a 5-0 whitewash in the One Day Internationals (ODIs) series. As per the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Test rankings, New Zealand occupies the fourth place, just ahead of Pakistan. I wish our team best of luck and hope that they will break down the winning streak of New Zealand in the longest format of the game against them. hAMMAl NAEEM MAKRAN

Systematic change THE CCPO Umair Sheikh in his recent briefing over the case of the woman who was gang-raped in front of her children near the Lahore motorway said that the women had gone without the permission of her husband and was fearlessly coming back at 1:30 am to home while got victim of rapists. PPP Senator Krishna Kumari Kohli rebuked Mr Sheikh over his comment, saying he should not make such assumptions. He asked him whether the victim had herself told that she had gone outside without the permission of her husband, then shockingly he replied to the question that he guessed like so. Instead of catching the second suspect involved in this heinous crime, the CCPO is blaming the women. Being on such a position, it does not suit him to give such statements. It is unacceptable to task such a top police officer for solving this issue who fuels rape culture. Systematic revolution is required to be brought as soon as possible so that women should feel safe to go outside. They should believe that a loyal and responsible plus caring officer is standing for their protection, as police is often the first responders when it comes to violance against women. hAMMAl NAEEM TuRbAT

Stray dogs IT is a well known fact that they are creating multiple problems for human beings. Dogs are damaging their bodies very dangerously. Recently on September 28 World Rabies Day 5 people mauled by dogs. Among them two are children one is seven years old namely Samer second one is nine years old namely Karan, 35 years old Nawaz Khan, 60 years old Chaman Lal and 70 Rajesh Jai Chand who were attacked by dogs and they were sent to JPMC where Dr Seemi Jamali treated them, according to her all bitten mostly their hands and faces are effected. This year more than 6,700 people were treated and five fresh cases received. It is a very serious disease mostly hospitals do not maintain any ideas or data about this. According to expert many patients loose their lives before diagnosis. In Karachi in a day 150 cases reported. Last year 24 death were reported because of rabies, it is a viral infection diseases which is a big challenge for Sindh because in Sindh no vaccine for this disease that’s why they come in Karachi for treatment. It is a very dangerous thing for people to face it.The government of Pakistan has to pick up such dogs from the cities soon, in order they must live properly. AbIdA dIljAN TuRbAT

Friday, 2 October, 2020

08 WORLD VIEW

PomPeo’s PrinciPles TALKING POLICY, PARADIGMS AND TURNING TRUMP’S INSTINCTS INTO REALITY

specTaTor, UK

‘c

Dominic Green

oMe in.’ Burly, brisk and maskless, Mike Pompeo indicates a chair before the marble fireplace. ‘It’s all right if we’re six feet — or two meters — apart.’ We are meeting at the State Department the day after Pompeo’s return from Qatar, where US negotiators have opened discussions with the Taliban and other Afghan factions on an end to the war in Afghanistan. It’s also the day before the signing of the Abraham Accords between Israel and the UAe and Bahrain. Cheerful and perhaps a little tired, Pompeo exudes forceful confidence: a man who knows what needs to be done. As Secretary of State since 2018, Pompeo has been the strategist who has translated Trump’s generalities into the specifics of policy. He has played a key role in redefining American policy towards China. He has overseen the undoing of Barack obama’s pro-Iran tilt and the securing of a diplomatic breakthrough in the Middle east between Israel and the Gulf Arab states. He has refurbished alliances with old allies and sought to bind new ones into an Americanled order. Pompeo calls this strategy ‘principled realism’, but it’s also quite radical. Pompeo was a China hawk before it was conventional: ‘It’s something that I’ve known for a long time.’ Trump, he says, saw it too. ‘If you go back and look at his comments from the [2016] campaign, there was this deep understanding that 40 years of policy was failing to protect the American people and, frankly, Western institutions: that the fundamental building blocks of international security were being undermined by the Chinese Communist party.’ The administration’s national security policy, Pompeo says, recognizes China’s challenge as more than military: ‘In every dimension, whether it’s diplomatic, economic…trade issues, intellectual property protection and the commercial aspects of the destruction of economic wealth in the West.’ Is China the new Soviet Union? ‘I think that turns on decisions that the Chinese Communist party makes in part, and how the West responds. If we are serious about caring about the rule of law and sovereignty. If we’re serious about requiring every nation that participates in the commercial marketplace to operate under a set of rules and understand that predatory economic activity won’t be acceptable.’ The Soviet Union’s leading exports were AK-47s and Marxism-Leninism. The Soviets never came close to matching America’s growing edges in technology and production. In the 2020s, by contrast, Xi Jinping has committed China to challenging the US in every sphere. China is the world’s biggest exporter. It is reconfiguring the physical infrastructure of eurasia and the digital infrastructure through exports like Huawei’s 5G. It is using cheap goods and cheap loans to turn American allies into Chinese clients and, eventually, dependents. If this happens, europe will be converted from a platform for the projection of American power through Nato into a captive market as the western terminus of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. China’s neighbors, Pompeo says, ‘un-

derstand the risk that they become tributary states, the vassal states of China’. The europeans are ‘now coming to realize’ it, too — Britain, sharply prodded by the Trump administration, has canceled its deal with Huawei. African countries are also ‘beginning to see that this Belt and Road Initiative was, in fact, too good to be true’, just as it seemed from the small print. ‘I think there is a global awareness that has been raised. I think the US has led on this in important ways and will continue to do that.’ The political scientist Graham Allison described in Destined for War: Can America and China escape Thucydides’s Trap? how the interests of a rising power necessarily conflict with those of a declining power. It’s not obligatory, of course, that they actually go to war. But Xi Jinping has committed to China having a ‘world-class’ military by 2050 — and it’s the US that sets the global standard. Can America avoid armed conflict with China? Pompeo leans forward. ‘I studied Graham Allison when I was a cadet at West Point many, many moons ago. I admire him.’ He smiles. ‘He’s just wrong. Just wrong. The fundamental assumption that he has is that the United States is a declining power. It’s just false…the United States continues to rise. We continue to improve. We continue to innovate. It continues to be the place people want to come study, where people want to come learn.’ The response to the challenge of a rising power should not be ‘appeasement’ or ‘weakness’ or ‘conciliation’, he adds. ‘It is demonstrating resolve and demonstrating strength.’ Not just the strength of the United States, but also in enhancing the capacity to build coalitions. ‘This is something that I’ve spent a lot of time on rethinking: how the multilateral elements of the world ought to operate, how the existing institutions, the post-Cold War institutions, may well not all be fit for prime time, for the challenges of the day.’ Pompeo reminds me of the diplomatic achievements that the Trump administration has already accumulated, most of which the media have ignored or diminished. The push for Nato members to meet their funding commitments. The calls for the United Nations and its subsidiaries to ‘understand the threat from Chinese infiltration’, and blocking China from controlling the World Intellectual Property organization. The US and its allies would, he says, be ‘nuts to have a Chinese candidate in charge of world intellectual property’. But as recently as ‘six years ago’, he says, the US would have let that happen. ‘We’ve fundamentally rethought how we work to build our coalitions,’ he explains. ‘You’ll see India, Japan, South Korea, China — I think you’ll see increasingly Israel and europe — you’ll see them all come to a set of shared common understandings about how we respond to China.’ In early 2018, the US was ‘a lone voice in the wilderness’ when it came to 5G. ‘And now I don’t think there’s a country in the world that doesn’t understand that having Huawei technology in your backbone presents a security risk. Some of them will struggle to get them out for economic reasons. But they all know that that risk exists, and that alone is a sea change.’ Preventing Russia from allying with China was vital to America’s Cold War strategy. Does he feel that relations with Russia, which declined steadily from 1990 to the

2016 elections, have improved? ‘It’s a mixed bag,’ he answers. The allegations of Russian collusion with Trump in 2016 have, he says, ‘tempered our capacity’ to engage with Putin, and there are areas such as Syria or Ukraine where Russia ‘continues to exert malign influence’. But there are also areas of productive engagement: ‘We have important strategic dialogue working successfully today on nuclear proliferation issues — we may well be able to have some success there before the end of the year — and we’ve worked with them on counterterrorism very successfully. ‘So it’s a complicated relationship. We want to have a successful, constructive relationship with the Russians, but it needs to be on terms that make sense for the people of the United States. And in a multipolar world, which is where we are, traditional things like spheres of influence return into play.’ Russia, he allows, has legitimate interests in eastern europe, its his-

toric sphere of interest, just as Iran has ‘legitimate security concerns’ and interests. ‘What you can’t do is run around the world as a sponsor of terror. You can’t run around the world poisoning people. You can’t run around the world undermining efforts for basic human rights… You can’t have probably the worst human rights violation of the century ongoing in western China today. It is just unacceptable.’ The principle that tempers Pompeo’s realism is Christian and constitutional. Pompeo believes in ‘fundamental ideas’ about ‘basic rights that every human being has because they’re created in the image of God’. He has created the Commission on Unalienable Rights, which goes ‘back to America’s founding principles’. ‘And I think the world sees that,’ he tells me. ‘And I think the Chinese Communist

party is going to have to confront how they’re going to respond. If they truly want to maintain their power and their influence, they’re going to have to consider that the world is going to take these things seriously and there will be costs that are imposed on them when they behave in that way.’ The ‘Wuhan virus’, he says, could have arisen anywhere. Instead of ‘maximum transparency and maximum coordination’, the Chinese authorities ‘did just the opposite: they closed the system’. Key Chinese witnesses have been ‘disappeared’ or been ‘shut up’, including ‘the doctors who would most likely have known precisely where this came from’. Responsible global powers, Pompeo insists, ‘don’t engage with the world through obfuscation’. China, like the Soviet Union and other authoritarian regimes, has defaulted to ‘maximum coercion’ at home and isolation abroad. And that, he intimates, is where China will remain if it doesn’t adjust itself to US assertion of moral leadership. Meanwhile in the multipolar world, the Trump administration is still trying to extricate itself from the George W. Bush administration’s War on Terror. The Doha talks were ‘really remarkable’, he says. ‘That doesn’t seem like much, to have people sitting in a room together and talk. But it’s been 19 years, and multiple administrations trying to achieve that very meeting. And it was a successful day. There are conversations that were had [that] moved us further in the right direction.’ The goal, Pompeo said, is ‘to reduce our footprint’ in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria: to ‘reduce the risk to American lives and treasure’, and those of Nato allies, while ‘still delivering the security’. He is ‘very confident that we can achieve that’, and that it can be done in Iraq without a permanent US military presence. ‘Watch the Iraqi protesters and watch the protesters in Lebanon and what they’re asking for, and the protesters in Belarus. People have now found footing, found their voice in each of these places. And I think that’s certainly true in Iraq, that they’re tired of Iranian influence. The protests are demanding Iraqi sovereignty… I’m convinced it’s trending in the right direction.’ More than 60 percent of Iraqis are Shia, and Iran insists that it is their patron. Compared with this, reconciling the Gulf Arab states to Israel looks almost simple. But it is, of course, remarkable. Trump has a gambler’s luck — or did until the CoVID-19 pandemic — and the Middle east’s framework had already shifted in his favor. Iranian satellites have veto powers in Arab capitals like Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus and Sana’a. Turkey is also attempting to revive its imperial past. New leaders like Mohammed bin Zayed of Abu Dhabi and Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia are determined to push the Arab nations past the impasse of religious terrorism. If Israel and the Gulf Arabs are being pushed into an alliance of convenience by old fears, they are also being pulled together by new opportunities. Still, Pompeo insists, recent breakthroughs could not have happened without Trump’s personal commitment. ‘He reset the conditions. He recognized Jerusalem as the rightful capital of Israel. He recognized that the Golan Heights was part of it. ‘We announced that the settlements were per se not illegal.’

‘You know, we’ve flipped it on its head,’ Pompeo says. ‘That theory was you had to solve the Palestinian problem before nations could recognize Israel. We’ve said, “No, we have to break the mold. We need to move forward in a different direction.”’ The pushback has already begun, and not just from Iran, the Palestinian Authority, Hezbollah and Hamas. The only eU foreign minister to attend the signing at the White House was Peter Szijjarto of Hungary. Britain, France and Germany have, remarkably, rejected the Trump administration’s push for ‘snapback’: restoring sanctions on Iran’s nonnuclear military programs when UN Security Council Resolution 2231 expires on october 18. And the Democrats are committed to reviving the Iran Deal and returning to the dead end of predicating regional policy on Israeli-Palestinian peace. ‘[Biden] said on day one he’d return to the previous agreement and return what would amount to hundreds of billions of dollars to a theocratic, corrupt regime,’ Pompeo says. ‘President Trump obviously believes that’s the wrong policy.’ So, Pompeo adds, do ‘our Gulf partners’ — a phrase that implies the biggest Gulf partner of all, Saudi Arabia, which is not a party to the Accords but now permits Israeli planes to pass through its airspace. ‘They realize it is in their shared interest to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist and to have normal relationships, commercial relationships with them, security relationships with them. I think all of that would be at risk if the United States’s foreign policy were to return to where it was four years ago. I think there’s real risk that this common threat from the Islamic Republic of Iran would undermine all the good work that has been done to date — that the normalizations won’t continue.’ Pompeo supports emmanuel Macron’s recent intervention in Lebanese politics, but warns that the United States cannot accept a trade-off in which France stabilizes Lebanon in return for tacitly supporting Iran’s regional aggression and nuclear ambitions. ‘We’re happy [that Macron has] become as involved as he is, but it is very difficult to reconcile support for the Iranian arms embargo to expire in october with wanting good things for the people of Lebanon. Those weapons systems, that money, that wealth will flow directly to Hassan Nasrallah, right? It will flow to Hezbollah.’ In mid-August, Britain, France and Germany rejected the United States’s call for renewing sanctions against Iran’s nonnuclear military programs. Pompeo repeats his blunt message for european allies: the United States expects their support when the Security Council votes again on Iran sanctions in october. ‘We hope europe and France and the United Kingdom, and Germany in particular, will reconsider,’ he says, firmly. Pompeo insists he has conducted ‘a very realistic, very restrained American foreign policy’ of ‘peace through strength’ and sizable doses of deterrence. The US ‘recognizes the sovereignty of every nation, recognizes the reach and responsibilities of the United States, and recognizes our capacity to improve human rights all across the world’. But it should do so in a way ‘very consistent with how our Founders thought about it, how President Reagan thought about it’. The Trump administration’s success will, however, lead to Chinese countermoves, and it is already clear that longstanding American allies, especially in western europe, are unwilling to cooperate in the hardening of the lines in what would become a bipolar world, divided into American and Chinese spheres. Success will also depend on the results of November’s elections. This will be the most consequential election for American foreign policy not just since 2004, but perhaps since the victories of Truman in 1948 and Reagan in 1980. Those results led to the implementation of the Marshall Plan and the outpacing of the Soviet Union. The bureaucratic apparatus and the foreign ministries of some old American allies are banking on Biden, and a return to business as normal — even if the business, as Pompeo suggests, has long gone bankrupt.

No one felled it? The Babri Masjid demolition was a criminal act. But CBI fails to prove a conspiracy Times of india Twenty-eight years is a long time but in India that is how long it can take the wheels of justice to turn. In keeping with its many failures in high profile cases, CBI’s prosecution of a criminal conspiracy in the Babri Masjid demolition fell flat. The trial court found no evidence of conspiracy while acquitting LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti and other leaders of the Ram Mandir agitation. The

FAILURE TO UNCOVER THE “SERIOUS VIOLATION” OF 1992 WILL REMAIN A BLACK DAY FOR INDIAN DEMOCRACY court concluded that accused persons like Ashok Singhal actually tried to stop the “anti-social elements” who brought down the mosque. The Justice Liberhan Commission report had rejected the claim of a spontaneous riot.

Despite CBI filing its first chargesheet in 1993 and a supplementary chargesheet in 1996, the case drifted for two decades between trial courts, Allahabad high court and Supreme Court. In 2017, a SC bench led by Justice Rohington Nariman revived the

criminal conspiracy charges and kept making decisive interventions to prevent further delays. SC must review unacceptably long procedural delays that plague important cases in the trial stage. Justice delayed is justice denied. The judicial process is still not over: Appeals before Allahabad HC and later SC could happen. Last year, the five-judge SC bench adjudicating the mandir-masjid title dispute dubbed the Babri Masjid destruction a “serious violation of the rule of law”. India’s

track record of prosecuting communal riots is abysmal, which is a key reason they recur with disturbing regularity. Rarely are riot leaders brought to justice. CBI must also examine its failure to prove documentary evidence like audio and video clips it brought to trial. Authorities are fond of saying the law will take its course. Such a lengthy course doesn’t bode well for the rule of law. Failure to uncover the “serious violation” of 1992 will remain a black day for Indian democracy.

Friday, 2 October, 2020

BUSINESS 09 CORPORATE CORNER PepsiCo, Bank Alfalah WWFlaunches join hands e-ticketing to replenish services on groundwater 120+ cash resources deposit KARACHI: PepsiCo, machines in partnership with WWF, has

launched theIn‘Community Stewardship: KARACHI: an endeavorWater to further digitize payments in Replenishing Groundwater Resources Lahore’ Pakistan, Bank Alfalah has announcedinthat they project. have Some of the key focus areas of the project include launched e-ticketing services across its 120+ Cash rechargeMachines wells, rainwater and floating Deposit (CDMs) harvesting deployed insystems Pakistan. This treatment wetlands. These ainterventions are accessible being partnership aims to create convenient and einstalled in the PepsiCo’s Snacksaccessing Plant watershed in theIn ticketing experience for anyone these CDMs. Sundar Estate, withthe a focus urbanto order toIndustrial access these CDMs, userson areboth required housing schemes and rural settings. PepsiCo Pakistan enter their valid CNIC number, and a thumbprint scan and for Afghanistan CEO Furqan Ahmed Syed said,striving “Long term biometric verification. “We are constantly to sustainable of water is critical to the continuity and of our provide our use customers with the most user-friendly business, our payment license tosolutions. operate, and the health of with our secure digital By collaborating communities.weOur water are focused BookMe.pk, have the replenishment opportunity to efforts offer our towards thea same whereservice the extraction has customers quick watershed and hassle-free to purchase occurred. The partnership with WWF is another step tickets. We attach great importance to leveraging the PRESS RELEASE forward achieving thistogoal.” potentialtowards of new technologies continue simplifying the transaction processes for our users, and this partnership is yet another example of it,” stated Yahya Khan, Group Head - Digital Banking, Bank Alfala. PRESS RELEASE

FBR, PSMA Sign ACCoRd FoR eleCTRoniC MoniToRing oF SugAR PRoduCTion ISLAMABAD

STAFF REPORT

HE Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) to operationalize Video Analytics Rules, 2020, for the sugar sector. FBR Member (IR-Operations) Dr Muhammad Ashfaq Ahmed and PSMA Central President Iskandar Khan signed the MoU on behalf of their respective organizations during a ceremony held at

the FBR headquarters in Islamabad. FBR had recently issued Video Analytics Rules, 2020, vide SRO 889(I)/2020, for electronic monitoring of specified goods. Welcoming the PSMA central chairman and other members, Dr Muhammad Ashfaq Ahmed said that the board believes in minimizing the contact between tax collector and taxpayer to ensure ease of doing business. "For this purpose, a 'video analytics technology' has been introduced to monitor the production of specified

goods through high-tech video cameras to be installed on the production lines of sugar industry," he informed. He said the introduction of new technology would enable FBR to receive real-time video analytics data of production from manufacturing sites and use it for tax collection purposes. PSMA Central President Iskandar Khan termed the signing of the MoU "a historic event", as the association is the first trade body in Pakistan which voluntarily joined the process of electronic monitoring of production activities.

MARKET DAILY

Late buying helps benchmark index close in green KARACHI STAFF REPORT

KARACHI: Fashion Pakistan Council has announced its annual Fashion Pakistan Week (FPW), to be held on 5th and 6th of December 2020 at a beautiful, tropical garden. FPW 2020 in December will be a two-day intimate, exclusive affair aimed at highlighting fashion and design. PRESS RELEASE

ISLAMABAD: The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI), during the 8th FPCCI Achievement Awards – 2020, has bestowed two achievement awards to National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) for its outstanding services in the categories of ‘Contribution to National Economy (Corporate & Investment Banking)’ and ‘Best Corporate & Investment Banking Services’. PRESS RELEASE

LAHORE: Brand & Communication Strategy Consultant Omer Azeem poses for a group with Marketing Association of Pakistan-Lahore Vice President Malik Amir Salam and other members after a seminar on "Future Challenges for Brands". PRESS RELEASE

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed volatile activity on Thursday, with the benchmark index taking a beating in early trade before bouncing back on late buying to close in green. Equity markets around the world also displayed a positive trend, whereas crude oil prices slipped further from the previous close; WTI crude price declining 1.22pc to $39.73 while Brent crude price falling 1.21pc to $41.79. “The market remained under selling pressure for most part of the day, owing to which the index slipped over 450 points intraday. However, sporadic buying in bluechip stocks, especially in cement and banking sectors, brought the index back into the positive zone,” said a report issued by AHL Ltd. MARKET SUMMARY: The KSE-100 Index hovered in the red

for almost the entire session, recorded its intraday low at 40,113.95 (-457.53 points). The index, however, changed its direction during the final trading hour, touching its intraday high at 40,735.84 (+164.36 points). It settled higher by 105.44 points at 40,735.84. Among other indices, the KMI30 Index gained 156.36 points to end at 64,894.43, while the KSE All Share Index added 23.71 points, closing at 28,993.69. The overall market volumes shrunk from 473.73 million shares in the previous session to 371.66 million shares (-22pc). Average traded value also dropped by 19pc, from $93.2 million to $75.8 million. Hascol Petroleum Ltd (HASCOL -7.48pc), K-Electric Ltd (KEL -1.43pc) and Unity Foods Ltd (UNITY -2.94pc) led the volume chart, exchanging 67.64 million, 28.89 million and 26.06 million shares, respectively.

Sectors that helped the benchmark index close in the green included banking (+82.90 points), cement (+47.33 points) and oil & gas exploration (+26.52 points). Among the companies, Habib Bank Ltd (HBL +27.82 points), MCB Bank Ltd (MCB +27.51 points) and United Bank Ltd (UBL +24.25 points) remained the top contributors. Adding 0.74pc to its cumulative market capitalization, the cement sector ended as the session’s top performer, with DG Khan Cement Company Ltd (DGKC 4.91pc), Fauji Cement Company Ltd (FCCL +1.06pc) and Maple Leaf Cement Factory Ltd (MLCF +1.84pc) posting decent gains. Meanwhile, in a notification to the exchange, Jahanghir Siddiqui & Company Ltd (JSCL +1.95pc) announced that its wholly-owned subsidiaries, JS Fuel (Pvt) Ltd and Energy Infrastructure Holding (Pvt) Ltd, have approved amalgamation.

Italy-Pakistan Footwear Technological Centre inaugurated in Lahore BUSINESS DESK The governments of Pakistan and Italy, through the Pakistan Footwear Manufacturers Association, have inaugurated the Italy-Pakistan Footwear Technological Centre (IPFTC) in Lahore. The establishment of IPFTC was made possible by PFMA with the cooperation and support of Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economic Development, Italian Embassy in Islamabad, Italian Trade Commission, Assomac and PISIE, said a statement issued on Thursday. “IPFTC is equipped with a CAD-CAM pattern grading/cutting and a mechanical-physical testing laboratory for footwear,” the statement read. “All the machinery and technical assistance for this project has been provided by the Italian government, while Pakistan arranged premises and paid costs of transportation and customs duty.” The inaugural ceremony was graced by Punjab In-

dustries Minister Mian Aslam Iqbal, Italian Ambassador to Pakistan Andreas Ferrarese, Italian Trade Commissioner Dr Amadeo Scarpa, Deputy Commissioner A R Daudpota and IPFTC & Footwear Design Studio Consultant Mario Pucci. Speaking on the occasion, PFMA Chairman Muhammad Younas said, "I'm grateful to the Italian ambassador whose personal efforts have made this project a success. PFMA will always remember the great contribution and efforts of His Excellency Andreas Ferrarese for his great support to the country’s footwear industry." He said the IPFTC would strengthen industrial ties between the two countries, besides helping local manufacturers to enhance the quality their productivity and bring it at par with international standards. PFMA will fully utilise this facility for development of the local footwear industry so that high quality shoes are exported from Pakistan, he added.

He assured that his association would continue to support the efforts of FBR for digitalization of economic activities in the country. The introduction of technology would help both organisations improve their image, he added. Project Director Tariq Hussain Shaikh on the occasion gave a brief introduction on video analytics technology, saying that equipment in this regard would be provided by the FBR’s authorized vendors to the sugar manufacturers, connecting their production lines/manufacturing sites to the central control room of FBR.

Silkbank posts Rs4.1bn of for 2nd quarter of 2020 The Board of Directors (BoD) of Silkbank Ltd on Thursday declared a pre-tax profit of Rs4.1bn for the 2nd quarter of 2020. The bank’s strong performance continues despite the economic slowdown from the shutdown due to Covid-19 and as the bank continues to restructure for profitability, growth and improved controls. During the quarter under review, revenues were boosted by the partial sale of the PIB portfolio of the bank. The bank also declared a pre-tax profit of Rs3.2bn for the first half ending June 30, 2020, which is Rs2.9bn better than the first half of 2019. Expenses were lowered by 7pc YoY while the bank continued with prudently providing for weak accounts. In a demonstration of customer confidence, this growth is led by the bank’s consumer division with credit cards and personal loan products registering a growth of 12pc profit before taxes over the same time last year. Deposits grew by Rs8.4bn over June 30, 2019; and in line with the bank’s strategy, total loans reduced to Rs108bn at June 30, 2020 from 112bn in December 2019. Mystery shopping showed that satisfaction levels increased to 91pc vs 85pc for the first half of 2020 over 2019. Silk Bank Limited is owned by an international consortium led by senior banker Shaukat Tarin. PRESS RELEASE

$497m Thar coal power project achieves financial close Another Thar coal-based power generation project achieved financial close during a ceremony held at the Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB). According to a statement issued on Thursday, the financial closing documents for the 330MW mine mouth lignite coal power project at Thar Block-II were signed by PPIB Managing Director Shah Jahan Mirza and Thal Limited Chief Executive Officer Saleemullah Memon. The project is being sponsored by Thal Limited, Novatex Limited and Descon Engineering Limited under the framework of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The total cost of the project is $497 million. China Development Bank (CDB) is the lead arranger for the foreign financing from China whereas Habib Bank Limited is the lead arranger for local financing. NEWS DESK

ECNEC approves road infrastructure, other development projects worth billions ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Thursday approved nine development projects worth billions of rupees. The ECNEC meeting was chaired by Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on Finance and Revenue Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh. The forum accorded approval to various road infrastructure projects including several sections the Indus Highway (N-55), rehabilitation and upgradation of Jhaljao--Bela Road, Peshawar Northern Bypass as well as the Madian Hydropower Project, Gabral Kalam Hydropower Project, and a power evacuation project. The committee also approved in-principle the 'Locust Emergency and Food Security Project'. World Bank (WB) shall provide $200 million for the project. According to details, the 221km N-55

FORUM APPROVES REHABILITATION AND UPGRADATION OF SEVERAL SECTIONS ON INDUS HIGHWAY, JHALJAO-BELA ROAD AND PESHAWAR NORTHERN BYPASS Additional Carriageway Project (ShikarpurRajanpur section) will be completed at a total rationalised cost of Rs44.7bn -- to be shared by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The project envisages the construction of two additional lanes besides the widening of the existing two-lane carriageway. The federal government's Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) had allocated Rs1bn for the project in 2020-2021. Similarly, the construction of RajanpurDG Khan Section as a four-lane highway of 9,121km would be completed at a total rationalised cost of Rs33.17bn with ADB putting in a share of Rs28.52bn. The road that starts from Rajanpur

passes through Fazilpur, Muhammadpur Dewan, Jampur and terminates at DG Khan. The federal PSDP has allocated Rs0.5bn for the completion of this project in 2020-2021. The dualisation and rehabilitation of DG Khan-DI Khan section would be completed at a total rationalised cost of Rs52.27bn with ADB throwing in Rs44.95bn. The project road starts from DG Khan then passes through Shah Sadar Din, Kala, Shahdan Lund, Taunsa, Tibi Qasrani, Mahra, Paroa and terminates at DI Khan. The federal PSDP had allocated Rs0.5bn for the project in 2020-2021. The rehabilitation and upgradation of the 80km Jhaljao- Bela Road would be done at

CMYK

a total rationalised cost of Rs11.11bn without any foreign exchange component. The road starts from Jhaljao, traverses through towns of Augani, Sipai sing, Chauki and finally terminates at Bela. The project is of huge significance, as besides saving travel time and vehicle operating costs of commuters, it will also ensure the efficient movement of trade, goods and traffic in a relatively shorter time. It may be mentioned here that all of the above projects are expected to be completed in a period of three years whereas their execution, operation and maintenance would be undertaken by the National Highway Authority (NHA). The meeting approved the 32km Peshawar Northern Bypass Project at a revised cost of Rs21.33bn; the four-lane bypass would have service roads on either side. The total distance of the bypass road has been divided into three packages for construction purposes.

Meanwhile, the construction of the 157MW Madian Hydropower Project, under the WB assisted Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Hydropower and Renewable Energy Development Programme, was approved by ECNEC at a total rationalised cost of Rs79,374.85 m with Foreign Exchange Component (FEC) of Rs57,339.33 m. On the other hand, the construction of 88 MW Gabral Kalam Hydropower Project was approved at an estimated cost of Rs36.43bn, including FEC of Rs8.81bn. Moreover, the ECNEC approved the Evacuation of Power Project from 2,160MW Dasu HPP stage-I (Dasu to Islamabad via Mansehra) at a total cost of Rs132.24bn with FEC of Rs112.22bn. The project is expected to be completed in five years and is proposed to be financed by the World Bank. Lastly, the meeting okayed the “Simplification of Planning Commission/Planning Division Development Processes/Procedure to improve Project Management (Guidelines)”.

Friday, 2 October, 2020

10 FOREIGN NEWS Israel delivers Iron dome anti-rocket system to us TEL AVIV: Israel has delivered an Iron Dome air defence system battery to the US army, Israel's Defence Ministry said. The battery is the first of two Iron Dome batteries that Israel has agreed to provide the US army, said a statement issued by the ministry. The second battery will be delivered "in the near future within the framework of the agreement," the statement added. In August 2019, the Israeli Defence Ministry and the US Department of Defence signed an agreement for the procurement of two Iron Dome defence system batteries. The Iron Dome system was declared operational in 2011. Israel has used the system to intercept rockets fired toward its territory by militants in the Gaza Strip. AGENCIES

IaEa inspects 2nd Iranian site after standoff over access VIENNA: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has inspected the second of two suspected former secret atomic sites in Iran, the UN nuclear watchdog said. “As part of an agreement with Iran to resolve safeguards implementation issues specified by the IAEA, the agency this week conducted a complementary access at the second location in the country and took environmental samples," it said in a statement. Neither of the two sites were identified in the statement, but the agency said the suspected activities are thought to have taken place there back in 2003. Samples taken during the IAEA visits to both sites will be sent to labs and analyzed for traces of nuclear material. Tehran says it has never had a nuclear weapons program. After the first site inspection, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said earlier this month that a visit to a second site was imminent. He also said that analyzing the environmental samples collected at the first site would take “two or three months maybe.” The site visits had been held up for several months after Tehran refused access, but Iran said it would allow IAEA inspectors in after a visit to Tehran by Grossi in late August. The trip came after the UN agency’s board of governors passed a resolution in June urging Iran to comply with the agency’s requests. Under the 2015 deal between Tehran and major powers, the IAEA monitors Iran’s nuclear activities. In early September, the watchdog said that the country’s stockpile of enriched uranium now stands at more than 10 times the limit agreed in the nuclear deal. President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the US out of the deal in 2018, insisting it needed to be renegotiated, and Washington has more recently pushed to ‘snapback’ sanctions on Tehran, a move rejected by the UN Security Council. The remaining parties to the 2015 deal – Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia – have called on Iran to meet its commitments, while Tehran says it has yet to realize the economic benefits from the agreement. AGENCIES

Japan govt, tEPco ordered to pay damages over fukushima crisis TOKYO: A Japanese high court has upheld the ruling of a lower court and ordered the government and the operator of the disaster-hit Fukushima nuclear power plant to pay 1 billion yen (USD9.5 million) in damages to residents affected by the 2011 tsunamitriggered nuclear disaster. The ruling by the Sendai High Court marked the first time a high court has recognized the government's responsibility for the nuclear disaster in around 30 similar lawsuits that have been filed across Japan since the crisis. The Sendai High Court handed down the ruling holding the state and Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. (TEPCO) liable and ordered compensation to be paid to 3,550 plaintiffs. According to local media, Sendai High Court Presiding Judge Satoshi Ueda said it was a violation of the law for the state not to take regulatory and other necessary measures when the risk of a massive tsunami could be predicted before the accident. The ruling was in line with that initially made by the Fukushima District Court in 2017, which included the conclusion that a massive tsunami hitting the plant was foreseeable. The lawsuit was initially filed in 2013. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a press briefing on the matter that the government will decide how to respond to the ruling after it has reviewed it. AGENCIES

KrEMlIn claIMs navalny ‘WorKIng WIth cIa’ aftEr dIssIdEnt lEadEr accusEs PutIn of allEgEd PoIsonIng MOSCOW

AGENCIES

ESTERN intelligence agencies – in particular, agents from the American CIA – are working with Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s spokesman alleged on Thursday. "Probably, it is not the patient [Navalny] who works for the Western special services, but that the Western intelligence services work with him, this would be more correct (to say)," Dmitry Peskov explained. “I can even be specific - these days, specialists from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States of America are working with him.” "This isn't the first time he's been given different instructions," the spokesman continued. "The instructions given to the patient are obvious. We have seen such patterns of behavior on more than one occasion." The bombshell allegation comes just hours after Navalny claimed Putin was behind his alleged poisoning in August. He told Germany's Der

Spiegel magazine that he had “no other explanation for what happened." Peskov took umbrage at the activist's comments about Putin's involvement in the incident, dismissing them as "baseless" and "insulting." He told reporters "we believe that such accusations against the Russian president are absolutely unfounded and unac-

ceptable." German officials alleged, last month, that Navalny was targeted with a nerve agent from the 'Novichok' family. "We want to investigate the case of the Berlin patient [Navalny] and establish the cause of what happened," Peskov explained, expressing doubt about the veracity of the German

Belgian parties reach agreement on forming govt BRUSSELS AGENCIES

The seven political parties involved in the formation of the new Belgian federal government reached an agreement on Wednesday, ending the long absence of a fully-fledged federal government in Belgium. Alexander De Croo (Open VLD) and Paul Magnette (PS), who were appointed by King Philippe of Belgium last week to set up the federal government, were received by the king at 10:00 a.m. at the Royal Palace of Brussels, where they made their report on the agreement, according to a press re-

lease from the Royal Palace. According to the agreement, Alexander De Croo will be the new prime minister. After their meeting with the king, De Croo and Magnette made a statement to the press. De Croo thanked Magnette for his tireless work, saying it was the key to the successful implementation of the agreement. "We are going to need everyone to make our society work again," said De Croo. Magnette expressed his relief after 16 months of crisis, which, according to him, "has damaged the confidence of our citizens in politics." Belgium has not had a fully-

Middle East's aviation sector set to lose 1.7m jobs this year DUBAI: The extended impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the Gulf and Middle East aviation sector will mean about 1.7 million jobs being lost this year itself. Out of that, 323,000 jobs will be lost in aviation alone, which is about 46 per cent of the region’s total aviation-related jobs. And aviation sector’s contribution to the regional GDP will fall by up to $105 billion, according to the Geneva-based Air Transport Action Group (ATAG). “This latest research highlights the urgency of restarting aviation in the Middle East," said Muhammad Albakri, IATA’s VicePresident for Africa and the Middle East. "Normally aviation contributes $213 billion to the region’s GDP. Closing borders has reduced this to $108 billion.” IATA (International Air Transport Association) has called for systematic testing of passengers instead of the current quarantine system. AGENCIES

fledged government since December 2018, and negotiations to form a new coalition had been at an impasse since the parliamentary elections of May 26, 2019. The swearing-in of the prime minister and the members of the government will take place on Thursday, according to the same press release from the Royal Palace. Belgium is made up of the Flemish Region, Walloon Region, and Brussels-Capital Region. The formation of a federal government is generally a long process of negotiations. From 2010 to 2011, Belgium had set a record of 541 days without a federal government.

European funds see 9pc revenue decline BRUSSELS: Revenues for European asset managers fell 9% year-on-year during the first half as the sector’s assets under management declined 1.5% as a result of a Covidinduced slump. Figures from ratings agency Moody’s show that the average earnings margin (Ebitda) of European asset managers dropped 27% during the first half of 2020, reflecting lower management fees during the period while costs remained broadly unchanged. Despite the negative numbers, Moody’s said in a statement that European assets managers had shown resilience as financial markets rebounded from a sell-off. The figures showed that assets under management at European asset managers declined by 1.5% to €10.4 trillion in the firsthalf of 2020, compared with December 2019. A slump in financial markets in the first quarter was largely reversed in the second quarter with the help of central bank intervention and government stimulus. “The positive performance of financial markets since the first quarter of the year means management fees and margins could recover in the second half of the year,” said Marina Cremonese, a senior analyst at Moody’s. AGENCIES

analysis. "For this, we need to get information from those who found traces of poisoning." The Kremlin has previously complained that Berlin has been uncooperative in providing evidence that the Moscow protest leader was indeed attacked with Novichok. Peskov also commented on Navalny's intention to return to Russia, as expressed to Der Spiegel, observing that he saw no heroism in his declaration. "Any citizen of Russia can return to his homeland at any time," the spokesman outlined. "Treatment can take place in our country, in fact, almost all people avail of this. Lives are saved in our country, and the life of this patient was also saved in Russia (when he was initally hospitalised in Siberia)." Alexei Navalny was in a coma from August 20 to September 7, after falling ill during a flight to Moscow from Tomsk. First, he was hospitalized in Omsk, after an emergency landing, before being transported to Berlin's Charité clinic. After making a speedy recovery, given the alleged lethality of Novichok, the anti-corruption activist was discharged from the hospital last week.

Iraq's economy set to shrink by 9.7pc: WB WASHINGTON AGGENCIES

Iraq needs to refocus the country's political system towards the development of its private sector to overcome its socioeconomic challenges and to strengthen its formal institutions to restore authority over non-state actors, according to the World Bank. In a study, Breaking Out of Fragility, the Washington-based lender argued that the country needs to strengthen the management and allocation of its oil wealth and improve accountability so that its leaders can effectively respond to public concerns about corruption. Iraq's economy is set to shrink 9.7 per cent this year, its worst performance since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, the World Bank said in the 175-page report. “Given current oil prices and the persistent drop in global demand for oil because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the country will have a tough time addressing the needs of its people in the short term,” the World Bank said. “It can, however, embark on a long but much-needed path toward structural transformation and reform, one that could leave its economy less dependent on oil and more driven by private sector activity.” Iraq’s growth path over the past four decades has been characterised by conflict, political instability, and oil price volatility. These periods include the conflict with Iran (pre-1990), former president Saddam Hussein's regime and an international sanctions period from 1990 to 2003, the new regime starting in 2004 (2004–14), and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant attacks alongside the oil price collapse in 2014. Iraq is the world’s sixth-largest oil producer and the world’s third-largest oil exporter. In 2019, it exported about 4 million barrels of oil per day of the estimated 4.7 million barrels per day it produced. Over the past decade, Iraq’s hydrocarbon sector has accounted for more than 95 per cent of the country’s exports, provided 90 percent of government revenues and 57 percent of its gross domestic product. "Iraq is on the brink of catastrophe.

EU takes legal action after UK approves controversial Brexit bill BRUSSELS AGENCIES

While issuing a formal notice to UK over breaching obligation under the Withdrawal Agreement on Thursday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it has sent a letter of formal notice to the UK over its plan to override the Brexit divorce deal, marking the first step in legal proceedings. A press release issued by the EU said, “This marks the beginning of a formal infringement process against the United Kingdom. It has one month to reply to today's letter”. During a brief message, the EU President said, “As you know, we had invited our

British friends to remove the problematic parts of their draft Internal Market Bill by the end of September. This draft Bill is – by its very nature – a breach of the obligation of good faith laid down in the Withdrawal Agreement (Article 5). Moreover, if adopted as is, it will be in full contradiction to the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland. The deadline lapsed yesterday. The problematic provisions have not been removed. Therefore, this morning, the Commission has decided to send a letter of formal notice to the UK government. This is the first step in an infringement procedure. The letter invites the UK government to send its observations within a month. The Commission will continue to work hard towards a full and timely

implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement. We stand by our commitments”. On 9 September 2020, the UK government tabled a Bill (‘United Kingdom Internal Market Bill') that, if adopted, would flagrantly violate the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland, as it would allow the UK authorities to disregard the legal effect of the Protocol's substantive provisions under the Withdrawal Agreement. It is pertinent to mention if the UK has until the end of this month to submit its observations to the letter of formal notice. After examining these observations, or if no observations have been submitted, the Commission may, if appropriate, decide to issue a Reasoned Opinion.

The Withdrawal Agreement was ratified by both the EU and the UK. It entered into force on 1 February 2020 and has legal effects under international law. Following the publication by the UK government of the draft ‘United Kingdom Internal Market Bill' on 9 September 2020, Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič called for an extraordinary meeting of the EU-UK Joint Committee to request the UK government to elaborate on its intentions and to respond to the EU's serious concerns. At the meeting, Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič stated that if the Bill were to be adopted, it would constitute an extremely serious violation of the Withdrawal Agreement and of international law. He called on the UK government to withdraw these measures

from the draft Bill in the shortest time possible and in any case by the end of the month of September. At the third ordinary meeting of the Joint Committee on 28 September 2020, VicePresident Maroš Šefčovič again called on the UK government to withdraw the contentious measures from the bill. The UK government on this occasion confirmed its intention to go ahead with the draft legislation. The Withdrawal Agreement provides that during the transition period, the Court of Justice of the European Union has jurisdiction and the Commission has the powers conferred upon it by Union law in relation to the United Kingdom, also as regards the interpretation and application of that Agreement.

Friday, 2 October, 2020

SPORTS 11

Real MaDRID MISS eDeN HazaRD aS VINICIuS JR SNeaKS wIN oVeR Real VallaDolID PARIS

AGENCIES

EAL Madrid missed the creativity of the injured Eden Hazard as only a fortuitous goal from substitute Vinicius Junior earned them a 1-0 victory over Real Valladolid in La Liga on Wednesday. Vinicius capitalised on some chaotic defending in the Valladolid penalty area after coming on for Luka Jovic, Madrid's misfiring striker who was committed but ultimately fruitless again in front of goal. "We know we have to improve and we are going to," said Zinedine Zidane. Jovic could yet be allowed to leave before the end of the transfer window on Monday and he must have looked on enviously as a simple chance fell to Vinicius to give Madrid their second win of the season. But the lack of goals only served to highlight the absence of Hazard, who had been due to make his first appearance of the season only to pull out of the squad earlier on Wednesday

with a muscle injury in his right leg. Hazard sat out Madrid's opening two games, with Zidane adamant the Belgium midfielder needed to be fully fit and completely pain free from the troublesome ankle problem he struggled with last term. Yet a separate injury means Hazard is now expected to be out for at least another two weeks, leaving Madrid to cope without their 100 million euros ($117 million) signing, just as they had to for prolonged periods during his opening year. "It's a little thing," said Zidane. "I don't know if it will be days or weeks but it isn't much." With Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez gone, the attacking onus will fall on the likes of Vinicius, even if Zidane preferred to start with the Brazilian on the bench and give Jovic another chance to impress alongside Karim Benzema. "We lacked a bit of rhythm, we needed to the move the ball faster," added Thibaut Courtois. "If you don't move the ball fast, it's easy for them to defend. In the second half we

Neymar, Gonzalez cleared of making 'discriminatory remarks', avoid disciplinary action PARIS AGENCIES

The discipline Commission of the Ligue de Football Professionel (LFP) confirmed on Wednesday that they will not take any action against PSG forward Neymar and Olympique de Marseille defender Alvaro Gonzalez for discriminatory comments made during a Ligue 1 match. "After examining the file, hearing the players and representatives of the clubs, the Commission notes that it does not have sufficient evidence to prove discriminatory comments made by the player Alvaro against Neymar during the match or by Neymar against Alvaro," the committee released a statement. Neymar had reported that a racist slur was targetted at him during the French champions' 1-0 defeat by Olympique de Marseille in Ligue 1. Neymar, 28, one of five players sent off during the match at the Parc des Princes, informed the fourth official he had heard a racist comment while walking off the pitch. However, the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) investigation has established there was insufficient evidence to reach a conclusion and to sanction either player. PSG's Neymar, Laywin Kurzawa and Leandro Paredes as well as Marseille's Dario Benedetto and Jordan Amavi were sent off after players aimed punches and kicks at each other. Reports later emerged claiming Neymar had directed alleged homophobic abuse to Gonzalez in the incident, while there have been further claims the former Barcelona player made a racist comment towards Marseille full-back Hiroki Sakai.

Kimmich winner helps Bayern Munich outclass Borussia Dortmund 3-2 in German Super Cup final BERLIN AGENCIES

German champions Bayern Munich outclassed a strong Borussia Dortmund outfit 3-2 to clinch the Super Cup trophy, their 5th title of this year. Corentin Tolisso opened the scoring for Bayern in the 18th minute before Thomas Muller doubled their lead in the 32nd minute. But Dortmund fought back and cancelled out Bayern's lead twice in the 39th and 55th minute thanks to goals from Julian Brandt and Erling Braut Haland respectively. Kimmich then snatched the ball in midfield in the 82nd minute, played a one-two with Robert Lewandowski and had his shot blocked before the ball bounced back off his foot and into the net to win the game for Bayern. For Bayern it was a morale-boosting recovery after losing 41 to Hoffenheim on Sunday to end a 32-game unbeaten run. It also marked the third win in a row against Dortmund. “It was not that easy especially in the second half. We led 2-0 but then made our own life difficult,” said Bayern coach Hansi Flick, who took over in November and has enjoyed a sensational 10 months in charge. “What counts is that we won the game. Everything else we will need to do better on Sunday (against Hertha),” he added. Bayern has played for five trophies since coach Hansi Flick took charge in November and won them all, but all that success has made for more fixture congestion in the already packed 2020-21 season.

were better." Jovic, who has scored only two goals since joining from Frankfurt for 60 million euros in July 2019, could not be faulted for a lack of effort and was arguably Madrid's

busiest attacking player in the first half. But two good chances went begging and Zidane finally brought on Vinicius just before the hour. Seven points from nine continues a solid

BCCI to remove players from tournament for bio-bubble violation DUBAI AGENCIES

Players face ouster from the tournament and their teams, a hefty fine of Rs10 million besides deduction in points if they breach the bio-bubble put in place for the IPL. In a notification sent to all the eight participating franchises by the BCCI, a player will have to undergo a six-day quarantine for an "unauthorised departure" from the bubble. It will be a one-match suspension if it is a second offence and a third violation will lead to his removal from the tournament with no replacement to be provided. The players could be fined as much 3000 AED (60,000 INR approx) for not completing their daily health passport, not wearing GPS tracker and missing a scheduled Covid-19 test. The same rules apply for family members and team officials. All players and support staff are being tested every fifth day of the tournament in the UAE.

The team officials too need to be very careful in ensuring that the strict bio-bubble is not breached. If a franchise allows "any person into the bubble to interact with players/support staff", it will have to pay a fine of Rs 1 core at the first offence, a point will be deducted at the second offence and two points (equivalent to one win) for the third violation. In an unlikely but possible scenario when a team is unable to field a playing XI as less than 12 players are available, the BCCI will try to reschedule and if that is not possible, the match would be deemed lost. Teams also face a BCCI inquiry in case of repeated violations of health and safety calls put in place for the event taking place amid the pandemic. There have been no positive cases reported ever since 13 members of the CSK squad, including two players, failed their Covid tests and recovered after the mandatory quarantine. The Covid-19 pandemic has claimed over a million lives globally since its beginning in China's Wuhan.

Ferrari junior drivers prepare for F1 practice debut SOCHI AGENCIES

Mick Schumacher and fellow Ferrari juniors Callum Ilott and Robert Shwartzman prepared for Formula One practice debuts by trying out a 2018 Ferrari at the Italian team’s Fiorano test track. Schumacher, 21year-old son of seven times world champion Michael who won five of his titles with Ferrari, is due to take part in

Friday first practice at the Nuerburgring next week with Alfa Romeo. He will replace Italian Antonio Giovinazzi for the session with the Ferrari-powered team. “It was very useful to get used to all the procedures again, which are pretty complex and also with how a team works in this top level of the sport,” said the Formula Two championship leader. “I can’t wait to jump into the cockpit in Germany and it will be nice to take part in a practice session for the first time in front of my home crowd.

start for the reigning champions, with Barcelona due to play away at Celta Vigo on Thursday. Earlier, Atletico Madrid followed up their 6-1 thrashing of Granada on Saturday with a much less spectacular goalless draw away at Huesca. Valladolid are still without a victory after four games, having only managed draws at home to Real Sociedad and Celta Vigo. Jovic was involved early for Madrid, his driving run down the left giving Marcelo a sight of goal, before a speedy counter-attack ended with Fede Valverde sliding the ball across, but he fired over. Jovic lashed into the side-netting after some good work by Luka Modric and then saw a header saved early in the second half, with Casemiro smashing the rebound against the crossbar. With the game in the balance, Valladolid sniffed an opportunity. Waldo Rubio dragged wide from close range and then Shon Weissman raced forward and forced Courtois into a smart save. But as the visitors were gaining in confidence, Madrid struck, Vinicius taking advantage of a string of defensive errors, the last committed by Bruno, his attempted clearance falling to the feet of the 20-yearold, who made no mistake. Raul Garcia and Waldo went close to an equaliser before Modric hit the post late on.

'I've always put pressure on myself': Davis shines in Finals debut LOS ANGELES AGENCIES

Los Angeles Lakers All-Star forward Anthony Davis has waited his entire career to reach the NBA Finals, and in Game 1 on Wednesday, he showed he’ll be making the most of it. The leading scorer in the Lakers’ 116-98 win over the Miami Heat, Davis put up 34 points - tied for the third-highest Laker debut in the Finals - nine rebounds and five assists, adding heft to a formidable Los Angeles offense. “Obviously (I) want to come out and play well and you want to come out and win. I’ve always put pressure on myself,” Davis told reporters. “Your adrenaline is going early because you’re so excited just to be here and get ready to go out there and play.” Davis came to the Lakers in the most recent off-season after a public rift with the New Orleans Pelicans, who had drafted him first overall in 2012, joining forces with 16-time All-Star LeBron James, whose camp Davis attended here when he was a teenager. While Davis’ performance undoubtedly impressed many, 35-year-old James, who is gunning for a fourth NBA title this year, said it’s simply what he’s come to expect from his teammate. “He’s been preparing for this moment all season. I’m happy to be on the same floor with him and in the same uniform,” said James. “He was, once again, a force in every facet of the game, offensively and defensively.” The Lakers face the Heat in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Friday.

‘Bradman considered me as the fastest bowler’, says Akhtar LAHORE AGENCIES

The record for the fastest ball bowled by a cricketer is held by retired quick Shoaib Akhtar. Akhtar fired in a ball bowled at 161.3 kph (100.2 mph) at England batsman Nick Knight during the 2003 World Cup, which till date is the quickest ball recorded. However, if former fast bowler Farooq Hamid is to be believed, the record for the fastest ball bowled should belong to him. Hamid played only one Test for Pakistan, in 1964 against Australia. Hamid claims he became the first bowler to clock 100-miles an hour, touching the 110115 m/h mark and floored some of the best batsmen of that generation, including the great Rohan Kanhai. “Many international cricket personalities such as great Sir Don Bradman besides or [our] own Imtiaz Ahmed, Zaheer Abbas and others considered me as the fastest bowler, even faster than Charlie Griffith of the West Indies,” Hamid said in an interview. “On that tour [playing for the Commonwealth XI in Pakistan], great batsman Rohan Kanhai was floored by my lethal bouncer. Later, the commentators said that I was much quicker than Griffith. I must have been bowling at around 110-115 miles per hour I think.” Hamid went on to reveal how he would have gone to play a lot more cricket for Pakistan but was forced out of cricket at the age of 25. “When I took seven wickets for 16 runs against Wellington in a match (on a New Zealand tour), they were dismissed for 53 runs in just ten overs,” he said. “However, everyone was surprised to see that I

CMYK

was not in the Pakistan team for the Test match that was played at the same venue after a couple of days. And neither was I included for the other two Tests played against New Zealand in that series. “In 1963 when I was part of the Pakistan Eaglets team touring England, I had taken five wickets in three overs but my captain Wazir Mohammad did not give me the ball for further bowling against Lan-

cashire at the old Trafford ground,” Farooq said. “Later, Secretary MCC Mr Howard told my manager that, ‘today Farooq bowled a yard quicker than Trueman at his best.’ “This and much more of the same treatment disheartened and demoralised me so much that I decided to quit cricket at the young age of just 25. Yes, the same politics is going on and harming our cricket.”

Friday, 2 October, 2020

PrAyEr TImINGS

NEWS

NagOrNO-KaraBaKh: DeaDly fIghTINg rages fOr fIfTh Day BAKU

AGENCIES

EAvy shelling between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces has been reported around the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region as fighting raged for a fifth day, with both sides refusing to back down and heed international calls for talks. The fiercest clashes between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in years over the breakaway region were ignited on Sunday, leaving scores from both sides dead. Azerbaijan’s general prosecutor’s office said on Thursday that Armenian shelling killed a civilian in its city of Terter, about 90km from NagornoKarabakh, in the morning and badly

damaged the train station there. Separately, the country’s defence ministry said its forces had carried out “crushing artillery strikes against Armenian forces’ positions in the occupied territories”, throughout the night. In the city of Stepanakert in Nagorno-Karabakh, known also as Khankendi, two explosions were heard around midnight as sirens sounded, media reported, adding that residents claimed the city had been attacked by drones. Ethnic-Armenian officials in the region described the overnight situation along the front line as “tense” and said both sides exchanged artillery fire. “The enemy attempted to regroup its troops, but Armenian forces suppressed all such attempts,” they said. Armenian authorities also claimed

Next Trump-Biden debate to have new rules to aid ‘orderly discussion’ WASHINGTON

that two French nationals working as journalists for Le Monde were injured on Thursday during shelling by Azeri forces in the Armenian town of Martuni, west of the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The reporters were being taken to hospital, authorities said in a statement. Nagorno-Karabakh’s declaration of independence from Azerbaijan sparked a war in the early 1990s that killed 30,000 people, but it is still not recognised as independent by any country, including Armenia. The two sides claim to have inflicted heavy losses on opposing forces in the conflict that carries the threat of drawing in regional powers Turkey and Russia, which support opposing sides. yerevan, which is in a military alliance of former Soviet countries led by

IMF chief for urgent reforms as global debt soars to record high WASHINGTON

AGENCIES

The group that manages US presidential election debates said on Wednesday it would take steps to bring order to the final two contests between President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden, following widespread criticism of their first encounter. The 90-minute debate on Tuesday night was chaotic, marred by the Republican president’s constant interjections and interruptions of both his Democratic rival and the host, as well as Biden’s angry rejoinders. The Commission on Presidential Debates, a nonpartisan group that has organised the events since 1988, said it would make unspecified changes to the format to prevent chaos. “Last night’s debate made clear that additional structure should be added to the format of the remaining debates to ensure a more orderly discussion of the issues,” the group said in a statement, adding it was “carefully considering the changes that it will adopt and will announce those measures shortly”. Biden said in a campaign stop on Wednesday that he hoped organisers of future debates would be able to turn off the microphone of the candidate who is not speaking. “It was a national embarrassment,” Biden said of the debate and Trump’s performance. “I am not going to speculate what happens at the second or third debate.” The Trump campaign accused the organisation of “moving the goalposts and changing the rules in the middle of the game”. Trump also was critical of the debate’s moderator, Fox News anchor Chris Wallace. “Chris had a tough night,” Trump posted on Wednesday morning on Twitter, calling the debate a “two on one” fight. The debate commission defended Wallace, thanking him “for the professionalism and skill he brought to last night’s debate” and promising “additional tools to maintain order.” The candidates for vice president will debate next Wednesday, followed by two more presidential debates between Trump and Biden later in October.

Moscow, has accused Turkey of dispatching mercenaries from northern Syria to bolster Azerbaijan’s forces in the conflict, adding it was concerned that members of illegal armed groups, including from Syria and Libya, were being deployed to the fight. The claims were refuted by Azerbaijan. yerevan also said earlier this week that a Turkish F-16 flying in support of Baku’s forces had downed an Armenian SU-25 warplane, but Ankara and Baku denied the claim. Russian President vladimir Putin and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, in a telephone conversation late on Wednesday, issued the most recent call for a complete halt to fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh and said they were ready to intensify diplomatic efforts to help resolve the conflict.

Urgent reforms are needed to prevent a debt crisis among emerging markets and low-income countries as the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbates international debt levels to record highs, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said. Average debt ratios in 2021 are projected to rise by 20 per cent of gross domestic product in advanced economies, 10 percent in emerging market economies, and about 7 percent in low-income-countries compared to the end of 2019, Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF's managing director said in a blog post on Thursday coauthored with IMF officials. The fund's director of strategy, policy and review department Ceyla Pazarbasioglu and its legal department director Rhoda WeeksBrown contributed to the blog. Emerging markets and low-income countries face "much tighter limits" on carrying additional debt, with half of them already already in or at high risk of a debt crisis, making the further rise in debt "alarming," the authors said. Many of these countries could suffer a second wave of economic distress, triggered by defaults, capital flight and fiscal austerity just as they start to recover from the pandemic, the IMF officials said. "Preventing such a crisis can make the difference between a lost decade and a rapid recovery that puts countries on a sustainable growth trajectory," the coauthors said. Current policy actions by central banks, bilateral lenders and international financial institutions implemented during the early days of the pandemic have prevented a debt crisis so far but are quickly becoming insufficient. That is because initiatives such as the G20's debt relief programme, are temporary and the measures have so far focused on providing liquidity. "As the crisis continues, solvency problems— the inability to repay debts—increasingly come to the forefront," the authors said. "Preventing a developing country debt crisis requires urgent additional steps." The IMF called for an extension of the G20 Debt

Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) into 2021, warning that its current beneficiaries will be forced to adopt austerity measures to resume debt repayments, which could compound the suffering caused to their populations during the pandemic. The programme, which helps poorer nations cope with the economic fallout from Covid-19, expires at the end of this year. "The extension of the initiative should provide incentives to tackle unsustainable debt problems early," Ms Georgieva and the IMF officials said. "The length of the extension could be linked to IMF and World Bank programmes designed to reduce debt vulnerabilities." The Washington-based lender also called on debtladen countries to urgently tackle their debt through a combination of debt management and measures to stimulate growth. "Where debt is unsustainable, it should be restructured, the sooner the better," the authors said, adding that private sector claims should be included. "Ignoring solvency problems only makes them worse." In a 52-page report released on Thursday, the fund also emphasised the need to reform international debt "architecture", which includes sovereign debt contracts, frameworks that support debt restructurings and institutions such as the IMF and the Paris Club – a group that represents private sector creditors of debtor nations. The report says although more than a dozen sovereign debt restructurings since 2014 "have generally proceeded smoothly", others have been protracted, incomplete and non-transparent. Total sovereign debt has increased as a share of GDP, debt instruments have become more diverse and the creditor base has become more fragmented, which has caused challenges in some recent restructurings. The IMF report also called for increased debt transparency so creditors can make more informed lending or restructuring decisions. Official bilateral creditors should agree on a common approach to restructure bilateral debt, the IMF said. That can include a common term sheet that requires debtors to transparently lay out their debts and seek restructuring agreements from all creditors on comparable terms.

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Pakistan demands to hold India accountable for crimes in IOK ISLAMABAD INP

Pakistan has once again demanded to hold India accountable for its crimes against the Kashmiri people in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK). Addressing the media at his weekly news briefing in Islamabad, Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez said Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has addressed another letter to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) president as part of efforts to apprise the world body of the grave situation in occupied Kashmir as well as peace and security in the region. The spokesperson said that the recent crackdown against Amnesty International by the Indian government is another manifestation of its extremist agenda and inability to hear the truth from independent human rights organisations. The spokesperson condemned the shameful acquittal of all thirty-two criminals responsible for demolishing the centuries-old Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992. Commenting on the Prime Minister Imran Khan’s speech at the UNGA forum, Zahid said that the premier covered all important issues in his speech including Kashmir and Palestine.

UN chief seeks $35bn donation to fund anti-Covid-19 programme NEW YORK AGENCIES

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged the international community to donate 35 billion U.S. dollars to the Access to Covid-19 Tools (ACT)-Accelerator programme. Two days after his deputy made the same call, the UN chief told a virtual high-level side event that the project -- the only global mechanism with the full spectrum of partners and tools to beat the Covid-19 pandemic, he said -- "needs a quantum leap in support." "The 3 billion dollars it has received has been critical for the startup," said the secretary-general. "Now we need to scale-up and ensure maximum impact -- and that requires an additional 35 billion dollars." "That must begin with an immediate infusion of 15 billion dollars," he added. Launched at the end of April at an event co-hosted by World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the WHO's ACTAccelerator brings together governments, scientists, businesses, civil society, philanthropists and global health organizations to deliver the tools needed to accelerate the end of the pandemic. Guterres said that these resources are crucial now to avoid losing the window of opportunity for advancing purchase and production, to build stocks in parallel with licensing, to boost research, and to help countries prepare to optimize the new vaccines when they arrive. "We cannot allow a lag in access to further widen already vast inequalities," he said. "But let's be clear: We will not get there with donors simply allocating resources only from the official development assistance budgets." Official development assistance is a term coined by the Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development to measure aid. "We need to think bigger. It is time for countries to draw funding from their own response and recovery programs," the secretary-general said. "By helping others, they will help themselves," he said. "Investing in the ACT-Accelerator will accelerate every country's own recovery." UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed on Monday called on countries to help fill the gap with 35 billion dollars in order to meet the global goals of Covid-19 vaccine production, treatments and tests.

With water scarce, Pakistan helps farmers grow more with less LAHORE AGENCIES

Obaid ur Rehman hoped to grow water-hungry cucumbers and capsicum peppers on land he had bought in an arid area of the country — but the available water was not sufficient for traditional irrigation. So, the 56-year-old farmer tried something new: A drip irrigation system, supported by a government initiative. The system delivers small amounts of water only where needed, and has helped him get higher yields on his farm near Mari, in Punjab than on flood-irrigated land he owns elsewhere in the province. The switch, besides allowing him to farm with 60 percent less water, has cut the fertilizer he needs in half as less is washed away and wasted, Rehman said. “Drip irrigation has come as a divine help to me in this arid area,” he said, sitting in a shed on his farm.

Rehman is among a growing number of farmers who are turning to water-saving drip irrigation and sprinklers, which agricultural experts say can support yields in regions where seasonal rains are no longer a reliable source of water. Pakistan uses 90 percent of its water for agriculture, mainly as farmers flood their fields to irrigate their crops, said Pervaiz Amir, director of the Pakistan Water Partnership (PWP), a non-governmental organisation. A nine-year government effort to cut water waste, launched in 2012-2013, has so far helped 7,000 small-scale farmers make the move to water-efficient irrigation, said Malik Muhammad Akram, head of the Punjab Agriculture Department’s water management program. ‘MORE CROP PER DROP’ Over the past 30 years, the country has gone from a country enjoying an abundance of water to one facing increasing water stress. Between 1990 and 2015, the amount of

water available per person dropped from just over 2,170 cubic meters to about 1,300 cubic meters, according to a 2017 report by the United Nations Development Programme. That was the result of rapid population growth, urbanization, industrialization and water-intensive agricultural practices, combined with growing climate impacts, the report said. Agriculture today contributes about one-fifth of the GDP, according to a study published last year by the World Bank. But Muhammad Arif Goheer, an agriculture expert at the Global Change Impact Studies Center in Islamabad, a climate change think-tank, said changing patterns of monsoon and winter rains are a big problem for rain-fed farms in arid areas. Increasingly, farmers either do not get rain when they need it or get too much rain when their crops need dry conditions, he said. But access to water-efficient irrigation can give farmers in arid regions a reliable water source and also allow them to grow

high-value crops, such as olives and grapes, that often require more water, Goheer said. The Punjab government’s Rs67.5 million ($407,300) project provides subsidies for small-scale farmers to install sprinklers and drip irrigation systems, some using solar power to run them. With the motto “more crop per drop”, the Punjab Irrigated-Agriculture Productivity Improvement Project, run in partnership with the World Bank, aims to have new irrigation systems installed on 120,000 acres of farmland by next year. Akram, of the agriculture department, said so far 66,000 acres of land have been switched to water-efficient systems. Nearly half of that was barren land that has been put back into use as a result of the project in three water-scarce areas — Potohar, Thal and Cholistan — he said. Work has already started on converting another 11,000 acres of land over to new irrigation methods, he added. On average, drip irrigation and sprinkler systems use at least 50 percent less

water than flood irrigation, Akram said. DRAWBACKS: But sprinklers and drip irrigation do not work for all farmers, noted Amir of the PWP. After farmers lay the pipes for the irrigation systems, they must remain undisturbed for four or five years because digging them up and moving them is so expensive, he explained. With vegetable and orchard farming, farmers can leave the pipes where they are, but for other popular crops — like rice, wheat and cotton — pipes need to be removed for plowing and land preparation prior to each new crop, he said. According to Amir, only 4-5 percent of all the agricultural land in Pakistan is used for vegetables and fruit orchards. Farmers who grow low-value crops also struggle to afford water-efficient irrigation systems, even with government subsidies, he said. But installing the systems can allow farmers to grow higher-value crops that bring in more income, Amir said.

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