Epaper – September 14 LHR 2021

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021 I 6 Safar, 1443 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XII No 75 I 12 Pages I Lahore Edition

Amid opposition’s protests in pArliAment, president Alvi hAils government’s policies

ISLAMABAD APP

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resident dr Arif Alvi on Monday said that owing to the government’s prudent policies, Pakistan had achieved significant progress in diverse areas including economy, human and social development, information technology, foreign policy and defence. the following are the highlights of President dr Arif Alvi’s address to joint sitting of the parliament: • session started at 04:25 pm • Prime Minister imran Khan arrived in the House at 4:20 pm • the treasury benches welcomed the prime minister by thumping desks • national Assembly speaker Asad Qaisar and senate Chairman sadiq sanjrani accompanied President dr Arif Alvi and jointly chaired the session • the national Anthem was played before the Presidential Address • recitation of verses from the Holy Quran followed by Hadith and naat

• Leader of Opposition shehbaz sharif, Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari were present • Joint opposition walked out of the House at 4:53 pm after a 28-minute noisy protest • nA speaker Asad Qaisar read the prorogation order at 1723 hours after the president concluded his speech Addressing the joint session of parliament, he mentioned increase in exports from $23.7 billion in fiscal year 2019-20 to $25.3 billion in 2020-21; workers’ remittances recorded at the historic $29.4 billion, vibrancy in stock market, improvement in ease of doing business and enhanced investors’ confidence as some of the government’s achievements. the president said that with 18 percent growth in revenue collection recorded at rs4,732 billion in 2020-21, the Federal Board of revenue has registered an increase of rs160 billion revenue collection as against the target during the first two months of the current fiscal.

Amid loud protest by the opposition benches, the president paused to say:

coronAvirus in

pAkistAn

CONFIRMED CASES:

1,207,508

LAST UPDATED AT 10:03 AM ON SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

67

2,988

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

SINDH:

PUNJAB:

1,090,176 26,787

445,369 414,390 KPK:

BALOCHISTAN:

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

168,748

33,379/10,168

32,591

102,863

“despite you making noise, you will have to accept the reality.”

He said that with the record sale and purchase of 2.21 billion shares in one session in May 2021 alone, Pakistan’s stock market got the distinction of best market in Asia and 4th in the world. the president further said that Pakistan, which had got 28 points of improvement in the World Bank’s ranking of ease of doing business two years back, has also won the confidence of overseas investors through 60 percent increase in the Business Confidence index in the survey of Overseas investors Chamber of Commerce and industry. the president said that enhanced revenue collections and workers’ remittances indicated full confidence in the government’s policies. the president said that the government had passed laws to protect rights of special persons and women as well as to eliminate sexual crimes. He further stated that unfortunately, some cases of sexual crimes were reported from different parts of the country but the government made legislation to curb the evil which needed to be enforced. the president added that, beside the government, it was also the societal responsibility to help stop the crime by being watchful against such elements.

He said the refusal of property rights to women still pervaded in some parts of the country which was unfortunate for a Muslim country as Allah Almighty had guided the followers in details on the subject. He again urged the society particularly Ulema to play role for awareness and counter the societal traditions.

President Alvi maintained that while considering the risks posed by global warming to Pakistan, PM imran Khan launched Billion tree tsunami in KP and later countrywide 10 Billion tree tsunami as well as Clean and Green Pakistan Program to help steer the country out of the challenge.

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Bilawal, Shehbaz join civil society to protest curbs on media NEwS DESk Pakistan People’s Party Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League-nawaz senior President shehbaz sharif on Monday joined the protesting journalists and the other opposition leaders who had been holding a sit-in outside the Parliament House since sunday as a demonstration against the government’s proposed Pakistan Media development Authority. several politicians, including senator sherry rehman and raza rabbani of the PPP, visited the protest camp on Monday and addressed the protesters while other politicians, such as former prime minister shahid Khaqan Abbasi, PML-n information sec¬retary Marriyum Aurangzeb and MnA Mohsin dawar had visited the site a day prior.

PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari addressed the protest, saying that journalists in the country had bravely fought against and defeated former president Pervez Musharraf in the past, and they would also put up a fight against the incumbent government and its decisions challenging media freedom. “i believe as far as the legitimacy of the government and media freedom are concerned, all [of us] are on the same page,”

Former skipper Ramiz Raja named new PCB chairman LAHORE Aginces

Former captain ramiz raja has been elected the new chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board for a tenure of three years after winning an unopposed election, the cricket board announced on Monday.

Last month, Prime Minister imran Khan, in his role as patron of the PCB, nominated raja to the governing board. He was unanimously elected during a meeting in Lahore.

Khan and raja were teammates on the 1992 World Cup squad that beat england in the final. raja, who played more than 250 international matches from 1984 to 1997, replaces ehsan Mani who stepped down from his role last month. the prime minister had shortlisted raja’s name after Mani declined to accept a short-term extension when his three-year term expired last month.

After his retirement, raja became a cricket commentator. the 59-year-old served as the PCB chief executive from 2003 to 2004.

He is only the fourth former cricketer after ijaz Butt, Javed

he added. the PPP chairperson said he saw the PMdA as a continuity of measures taken in the past to place curbs on the media. “some people don’t want journalists to think freely and struggle for media freedom. We should not yield to them, and nobody will be able to infringe upon our rights,” he said.

He further stated that in present times, countries had been using the media as a tool to attack their rivals and to tackle the issue in Pakistan, media here needed to be empowered.

Bilawal said independent media was vital for societal improvement, adding that “we will resist any move to gag the media through [the PMdA] legislation”.

He told the protesting journalists that he would approach all relevant forums to oust Prime Minister imran Khan’s government.

PML-n President shehbaz sharif too railed against the bill, terming it a “black law” and expressing solidarity with journalists. “the government doesn’t have the guts to pass it and we won’t allow it,” he thundered. shehbaz warned the government against passing the “black law” otherwise it would have to bear the consequences.

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more inside

PIA plane lands in Kabul in first commercial flight since Taliban takeover STORY ON BACK PAGE

Minister says imran only national leader as Pti leads in Cantonment elections STORY ON PAGE 02

Burki and Abdul Hafeez Kardar to head the cricket body.

“One of my key focuses will be to help introduce in the Pakistan men’s cricket team the same culture, mindset, attitude and approach that once made Pakistan one of the most feared cricket playing nations,” raja said in a PCB statement.

“Obviously, as a former cricketer, my other priority will be to look into the welfare of our past

and present cricketers. “the game has and will always be about the cricketers and, as such, they deserve more recognition and respect from their parent institution.”

Last week, PCB announced that head coach Misbah ul-Haq and bowling coach Waqar Younis had stepped down from their respective roles, shortly after their squad for the t20 World Cup was named.

IHC serves notice to Jaffer’s parents, adjourns hearing until Sept 15 STORY ON PAGE 02

three climbers stranded on rakaposhi mountain during descent STORY ON BACK PAGE

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Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

LAHORE

NEWS

mInIsTer says Imran only naTIonal leader as PTI leads In canTonmenT elecTIons ISLAMABAD

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stAff RePoRt

HE unofficial results of the Cantonment Board elections have revealed Prime Minister Imran Khan was the only national leader in Pakistan, a minister said Monday, as the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf emerged as the biggest winner defeating the hot favourite Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in a closely contested competition.

A total of 1,513 candidates ran on Sunday for 206 general seats in as many wards of 39 cantonment boards nationwide.

While there are 219 wards in 42 countrywide boards, voting was not held in any of the nine wards of Kamra, Cherat and Murree Gallies cantonments where either the candidates were elected unopposed or polling was postponed for a variety of reasons.

According to Radio Pakistan, the ruling party secured 58 seats while the PML-N nabbed 51. Independent candidates surged to the third position claiming 49 wards.

While, on the other hand, the Pakistan Peoples Party could manage only 14 seats, followed by Muttahida Qaumi MovementPakistan with 10, Jamaat-e-Islami with five and Balochistan Awami Party with two seats.

The results have “once again show PTI not only as the largest” political party of Pakistan “but also the only national party,” Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar tweeted.

Prime Minister Imran is the “only national leader”, he added.

RESULTS DEMONSTRATE PUBLIC CONFIDENCE IN PML-N: SHEHBAZ Meanwhile, the president of PML-N, Shehbaz Sharif, insisted that the results showed the confidence the public posed in his party.

The leader of the opposition in the National Assembly assured the people his

party will not disappoint them and strive harder to resolve their issues.

Whereas, Maryam Nawaz, the vice president of the party, declared that it was unprecedented that “despite being a target of the government”, PML-N did exceptionally well in the election.

The PTI never contested any election on its electoral strength but relied solely on scrounged support.

BREAKDOWN OF CANDIDATES: A total of 1,513 candidates ran for 206 seats in as many wards. Though all major political parties fielded their candidates, a close contest among the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-

IHC serves notice to Jaffer’s parents, adjourns hearing until Sept 15 NEwS DESk

PTI legIslaTor secures baIl In sexual harassmenT case LAHORE inP

A district and sessions court in Lahore on Monday granted interim bail to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf MPA Khurrum Laghari in a case pertaining to sexual harassment and blackmail after the petitioner expressed her disinterest in pursuing the complaint.

In a complaint registered with Defence-A police station in August, Amina Yaqoob accused Leghari of developing an intimate relationship with her and forcing her to sign a blank marriage certificate to give legal cover to the purportedly unconsented fling.

She also accused the suspect of storming her residence with armed men. Reportedly, Yaqoob complained to the elders in the Leghari family who urged her to report the matter to the police if the parliamentarian threatened her again. Yaqoob, in a recorded agreement, pardoned Leghari. “I have no objection if the court approves his bail since we have reached a settlement. I’m no more interested in pursuing the matter any further.”

Taliban close Torkham border with Pakistan for pedestrians ISLAMABAD AnAdolu Agency

The Taliban on Monday closed the Torkham border gate, the main crossing point between Pakistan and Afghanistan, for pedestrian movement, an official said.

The move came after the Taliban demanded to allow all Afghan citizens gathered at the border to enter the Pakistan side, which was rejected by the border authorities, an official at the border told Anadolu Agency over the phone, on the condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to talk to the media. Hundreds of Afghan citizens gathered at the border to enter Pakistan after rumours that Islamabad has opened its border, which is closed since July due to a spike in Covid-19 cases. “We are facilitating ailing people and allow them to enter for treatment in Pakistani hospitals,” the official said, adding that Islamabad also facilitates the evacuees who are going abroad. Some journalists on their way to the Afghanistan capital of Kabul via the Torkham border have also been stuck at the border after the Taliban closed it for pedestrians from Pakistan, while the trade activities are going on smoothly. Since August 15, when the Taliban took over the control of Kabul, over 30,000 locals returned to their homeland through the Torkham border from Pakistan and some 4,000 entered Pakistan, according to officials. However, Islamabad is still barring its citizens from entering Kabul after the former Afghan government collapsed and President Ashraf Ghani fled. On August 15, Pakistan closed the border for hours shortly after the Nangarhar province fell to the Taliban followed by a quick grab of Kabul. But they later reopened the point for bilateral trade after reaching an understanding with the local Taliban leaders as hundreds of trucks loaded with fresh fruits and other food items were stranded at the border.

The parents of Zahir Jaffer, the main suspect in the Noor Mukadam rape and murder case, have been served a notice by the Islamabad High Court and the case has been adjourned the hearing till September 15, it emerged on Monday. Justice Aamer Farooq of the IHC was hearing the bail plea of the suspect’s father Zakir Jaffer and of the employees of Therapy Works, reported Geo News.

During the hearing, the court directed Advocate Shah Khawar, the counsel for Noor’s family, to submit a power of attorney today.

The lawyer responded that he would submit a power of attorney on behalf of his client Shaukat Mukadam, Noor’s father, on Monday.

The application for cancellation of bail of the employees of Therapy Works is also being heard, Khawar said, adding that if the court deemed it appropriate, it could hear all the petitions together.

Justice Farooq, however, said that the rules to grant and cancel bail are different. He said the court will hear the two petitions separately.

If the hearing is to be adjourned, then adjourn it till tomorrow, said the petitioner’s lawyer, Khawaja Harris.

e-Insaf, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party was seen.

878 candidates competed for 112 wards of 19 cantonments in Punjab, 418 in 53 wards of eight cantonments in Sindh, 170 in 33 wards of nine cantonments in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 47 in eight wards of three cantonments in Balochistan. PTI fielded over 170 candidates in all four provinces, followed by 140 of the PML-N, 112 of the PPP and 105 candidates of the Jamaat-e-Islami.

Both Muttahida Qaumi MovementPakistan and the Pak Sarzameen Party fielded 41 and 33 candidates, respectively, in Karachi and Hyderabad.

Punjab bureaucracy sees another wave of transfers, postings LAHORE inP

The court then ordered Khawar to submit a power of attorney and adjourned the hearing till September 15. A notice was also issued on the bail application of Zahir Jaffer’s mother Asmat Zakir again.

A protest, meanwhile, was held outside the Islamabad High Court during the hearing by Noor’s family and friends, calling for speedy justice in the case.

The victim’s father Shaukat Mukadam was also present at the protest.

Noor’s friends and family demanded her killer be brought to justice. They also demanded that those who helped the killer not be released on bail.

Days after the appointment of Punjab Chief Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal, Punjab bureaucracy has seen another wave of transfers and postings. In a latest development, Punjab Additional Chief Secretary Irum Bukhari has been transferred from her post and Syed Ali Murtaza has been appointed new ACS of Punjab. Wajiullah Kundi has been appointed as Punjab transport secretary. Moreover, PAS officer Suhail Ahmed Khuwaja and former registrar of Usman Moazzam services have been surrendered to the federal government. Earlier, the federal cabinet on Tuesday approved the appointment of Kamran Ali Afzal as the Punjab chief secretary and Sardar Ali Khan as Punjab inspector general of police (IGP) with immediate effect according to a notification from the Cabinet Secretariat.

Tajikistan to host summits of regional players to discuss Afghanistan LONDON AnAdolu Agency

Tajikistan will host two important summit meetings of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the Collective Security Treaty Organisation at its capital Dushanbe on Thursday to discuss issues related to Afghanistan.

Pakistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, India, and Afghanistan — which has observer status at the SCO — will attend the Dushanbe meeting.

This will be the first major meeting of regional countries since the Taliban announced their interim government in Kabul on September 7.

Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon will host the CSTO session, scheduled to be attended by presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Russia, and the Armenia prime minister.

Prime Minister Imran Khan is also set to attend the meeting along with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The grouping which includes Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan (who are also SCO members) along with Armenia, Belarus (SCO observer states) was founded in 1992.

Following the August 23 virtual meeting, CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas said that the leaders had agreed to join efforts with the SCO member countries and other international organisations on the Afghan issue.

Russia is keen to reclaim and assert its role as the protective power for the Central Asian states to keep them under its wings promising to upgrade its weapon system.

According to CSTO Deputy Secretary-General Valery Semerikov, the

AnAlysis leaders will approve a plan to equip the Collective Rapid Reaction Force with modern weapons and equipment.

Set up in 2009, the CRRF is a joint task force comprising independent military units from the CSTO, with the purpose to counter limited military aggression against member states, to fight against terrorism and drug trafficking.

This decision comes amid apprehensions about future developments in Afghanistan and their possible negative consequences on the situation in Central Asia, says Semerikov. He also added that there were also “growing threats to Russia’s strategic defence assets in the Central Asian states”.

The Taliban’s taking of power in Afghanistan has opened many opportunities for Russia and China to expand their influence in South and Central Asia.

Given stability assurances that are being sought by Russia, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan and the prevention of extremist groups crossing over from Afghanistan, there are chances that these countries will try to convince Tajikistan not to support the ethnic Tajik community and their leaders militarily to allow them to continue resistance against the new setup in Kabul.

RUSSIAN INTERESTS: Hence Moscow may not encourage the CSTO to extend support for “tacit military cooperation with the Northern Alliance, as was the case with the Panjshir leader Ahmad Shah Massoud” during 1996-

2001, says Russian defence expert Shamil Gareev.

Russia is keen that Central Asian partners do not get distracted or wavered

by US requests to allow its military presence to conduct operations in Afghanistan. In August, Russian forces conducted bilateral military exercises with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

These were followed up by the Frontiers-2021 — joint exercises of the CSTO Collective Rapid Deployment Force (CRDF) held in Kyrgyzstan from September 5-9. The manoeuvres were also participated by servicemen from Kazakhstan and Russia.

Moreover, special forces units of the Kyrgyz Interior Ministry also took part in the exercises, which involved manoeuvres by Sukhoi-25 attack

aircraft, Mig-8 helicopters, and Orlan-10 drone planes.

The ZU-23-2 air-defence unit of the Kyrgyz army also took part in the exercises. The BM-21 Grad Multiple Rocket Launcher System was also tested in addition to Orlan-10 drone planes and “Arrow-2M” shoulder-fired missiles.

The Su-30 SM planes of Kazakhstan coordinated ground and air combat operations.

It is expected that the two high-level significant meetings of regional and two world powers in Dushanbe will come up with a clear understanding of dealing with Afghanistan and the ways to proceed with issues of recognition, bilateral relations, and multilateral cooperation with the Taliban in the coming months.

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

LAHORE

hec sTarTs TraInIng Programme for Vcs LAHORE

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shAhAb omeR

training programme for vice chancellors (VCs) of Punjab’s public and private universities has been launched under the auspices of Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC).

The opening ceremony of the fiveday training workshop was held at a local hotel here on Monday with Dr Amjad Saqib, head of the Akhuwat Foundation, as the chief guest.

Higher Education Commission Secretary Syed Javed Bukhari, Punjab Higher Education Commission Chairman Prof Dr Fazal Ahmad Khalid, members of the commission, heads of provincial universities and a large number of education experts attended the

ceremony.

On the occasion, Dr Saqib said that the problems of Pakistan are more moral than economic and teachers should create a spirit of brotherhood and selflessness in students. “Universities need to focus on education and moral training and character building of students. The future of this country is in the hands of teachers. Teachers have to step out of their caste barriers and train students. Our job is to create a society in which everyone has equal opportunities for development and everyone has the right to live.”

The Higher Education Commission secretary said that universities need to create new knowledge as well as education, and improve the quality of public service. “The government is providing full support to the universities

in this regard. The performance of universities is linked to performance of vice chancellors. We have developed key performance indicators. The government has introduced the Model Act for universities under the reform agenda, which has brought uniformity in financial and administrative matters,” he said.

Addressing the event, the Punjab HEC chairman said that the nature of teaching and administrative problems in the universities has changed due to coronavirus. “Universities are facing new challenges and only with effective leadership and management skills, universities can meet the emerging challenges in higher education. The fiveday training programme aims to introduce new dimensions to the heads of universities to assist them in carrying out leadership and professional matters

in line with modern requirements so that the problems can be dealt effectively.

One of the purposes of the training workshop is for the vice chancellors to benefit from each other’s practical experience in administrative matters,” the chairman said.

He added that vice chancellors have a key role to play in universities for good governance. “This programme, in which the heads of private and public universities are participating, will help in the commitment to improve the financial and administrative affairs of the educational institutions and ensure the quality of education. The five-day training programme will acquaint the vice chancellors with various aspects and issues of leadership and management.

The training programme will end on September 17,” Dr Fazal concluded.

Amid opposition’s protests in parliament, President Alvi hails government’s policies CONtINuED fROM pAgE 01 Coming to the democratic system, the president said the electoral reforms were essential which could not be achieved through commotion.

He said the Electronic Voting Machine would ensure transparency, voters’ privacy and swift results as it also featured a counter to calculate votes. Moreover, the government is also taking measures like i-voting to grant voting rights to overseas Pakistanis.

Touching the subject of foreign policy, the president said India had been committing genocide of Kashmiri people as well as targeting Indian Muslim minorities.

He said Imran Khan, who had called himself as Ambassador of Kashmir, exposed the real face of India globally. He said Pakistan always strived to maintain friendly ties with the world which was also manifested by the prime minister in his maiden speech. But it was construed as Pakistan’s weakness by India, he added.

Moreover, Pakistan’s gesture of releasing captured Indian pilot in 2019 was also taken as country’s weakness, he added. President Alvi asked India to end its atrocities in IOK and abide by the UN resolutions.

He also assured the Kashmir people that Pakistan was committed to its stance and thanked China, Turkey, Iran and Azerbaijan for supporting Pakistan’s stance on the issue. He told the House that fascist ideology of RSS was a threat to regional peace and that India had also been involved in sponsoring terrorism in the region.

Moreover, he said the repeated incidents of uranium sale were deadly for regional security but unfortunately, the world media was keeping mum on it.

About Afghanistan, he said, since the beginning, Imran Khan called for political settlement in Afghanistan and opposed the military solution.

He said even after decades of war and spending trillions of dollars, peace could not be revived in Afghanistan. Calling the Taliban’s announcement for amnesty were encouraging, he urged the world community not to leave the Afghan people in lurch rather make efforts to avert humanitarian and economic crisis. President Alvi said Pakistan had been playing humanitarian role in Afghanistan with its flag carrier PIA being at forefront for evacuation.

He said the world should acknowledge that

Pakistan’s stance on Afghanistan had proved correct and suggested the world to follow Imran Khan’s political acumen in other matters too.

The president said that different regional fora like Shanghai Cooperation Organization should be utilized for the promotion of regional linkages. China Pakistan Economic Corridor, he said, would further strengthen the linkages among the regional economies.

The president said peace in Afghanistan would be a good omen for all the neighboring countries.

He said Pakistan attached high priority to its ties with China that had played a vital part in the economic development and prosperity of Pakistan.

Expressing his confidence, the president further said that ill designs of certain elements in the region to harm these time-tested ties were doomed to fail. “I want to remind India that the friendship bonds between Pakistan and China will grow further,” he added.

The president also thanked all the brotherly Muslim countries for supporting Pakistan including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Iran, etc.

The president said Pakistani nation had proved its mettle in trying times. “Never consider yourself as weak,” he said and enumerated five basic characteristics of the nation’s strength. He said the nation on the basis of its intellect, developed nuclear deterrent within a period of seven years after India conducted nuclear tests during 1974. Pakistan very generously hosted 3.5 million to 4 million Afghan refugees on its soil for decades. The countries which had been championing for the cause of human rights even did not accept refugees and let them drowned in the Mediterranean.

The president also paid rich tributes to the sacrifices of the armed forces, law enforcement agencies, civil forces and the nation who had jointly defeated the scourge of terrorism. During the Covid 19 pandemic, the nation had contributed with huge donations and the prime minister took decisions on the basis of compassion that they would not impose complete lockdown and save the livelihood of the poor segments of society. The government opted to enforce smart lockdown on the basis of data and rolled out Ehsaas programme, he added.

The president said by mingling of all these qualities with an honest leadership, the result would be ‘a

shining, rising and smiling Naya Pakistan’.

The president also thanked media and Ulema for creating awareness about the pandemic, adding mosques were kept opened during the pandemic.

The president also highlighted the need to discourage the trend of fake news which had brought destruction in the world.

Referring to certain Quranic verses, the president urged the nation to seek guidance from these teachings and exercise caution over the fake news.

The president also emphasised upon the importance of family and school systems where training was imparted to the young generations.

He also called upon media to meet its responsibility in this regard and work for the training of society, adding mosque and pulpits were very important pillars of society. The president appealed to the whole nation especially the political leadership, Ulema, media and young generation work collectively to face the social, economic and security challenges.

President Dr Arif Alvi congratulated government for removing the objections of Financial Action Task Force and for promulgating and implementing the necessary laws and procedures to this effect.

He said the government announced a construction package for citizens particularly for the vulnerable sections of society. Naya Pakistan Housing Programme was announced for providing shelter to the homeless people, he said adding that the government announced a subsidy of Rs.36 billion for the construction sector and gave tax exemptions. The banks gave loans for construction and as a result of this the housing and construction’s finance portfolio crossed Rs260 billion, he informed. The agriculture sector grew by 2.77 percent while the exports of information technology sector grew to 2.12 billion increasing by 47 percent as compared to the last year. The government took steps for the employment and skills of youth and started programmes of online trainings like Digiskills, he told adding it was appreciative that 1.7 million youth had got training under this programme.

The freelancers of Pakistan had earned Rs200 million. The President said the world was going through fourth industrial revolution which was a revolution of thought and mind.

Thar Desert boasts rich architecture kARACHI AnAdolu Agency

The Thar Desert, otherwise famous for its frequent famine spells and treacherous weather, boasts a spectacular architectural treasure which authorities are finally trying to preserve.

Surrounded by crowded streets, in the midst of Umerkot city, stands a vast fort described as a transitional point of the Mughal dynasty that ruled India for over three centuries. Vendors repeatedly make loud chants about their wares to attract buyers at a bustling bazaar just a few meters away from the fort entrance.

Scores of auto-rickshaws are also parked in a long line near the outer wall of the fort, turning it into a permanent and illegal transport terminal.

Located some 60 kilometres (37 miles) from the Indian border, the 11thcentury citadel is the birthplace of Akbar, the third emperor of the Mughal dynasty, who was born in 1542, when his father was on the run after being defeated by Afghan King Sher Shah Suri.

On his way to Iran, Humayun was given refuge by the Hindu Rajput ruler of Umerkot, Rana Parshad Sodha, until the defeated emperor regained his strength and raised an army to snatch his kingdom from Suri’s successors just four years after Akbar’s birth.

According to another account, Akbar was born in the middle of a jungle located five kilometres (around three miles) from the fort, where a monument has been constructed.

Once crumbling due to the ravages of time and years of neglect, Umerkot Fort is currently in a relatively presentable state following its restoration by the heritage authorities that began in 2016. A newly repaired wide staircase made of burnt red bricks leads to a high platform overlooking the Umerkot city.

The platform is dotted with seven discarded brass canons in a circle with a green and white Pakistani flag fluttering in the middle. The site was also used for executions by the British army following the capture of Sindh in 1843.

The fortification wall, as high as 45 feet, is made of burnt bricks. The fort houses a jail, guest house, and museum.

Surrounded by heaps of broken bricks, the jail and guest house, constructed during the British colonial era, are currently in ruins. But the museum is well-maintained and has long been the central attraction for visitors.

It contains ancient manuscripts, coins, paintings, specimens of calligraphy, royal documents, jewellery, Mughal-era arms, and Jain and Hindu sculptures that shed light on different periods of history.

“No doubt, there has been some improvement in the otherwise crumbling condition of this historic fort during the past few years,” said Noor Ahmed Janjhi, who often writes on the history and architecture of Thar. Speaking to Anadolu Agency, he noted that much more is needed, however, to restore the fort to its original state, including the removal of illegal settlements.

IMMORTALISED UMAR MARvI FOLKTALE: A part of the museum has been dedicated to depicting the popular Sindhi folktale Umar Marvi about Marvi Maraich, a girl from Thar who resists the overtures of the powerful Soomro King Umar and the temptation to live in his palace as a queen, preferring to be in a simple rural environment with her own village folk.

Inside a large room, life-size statues of Marvi, Umar, and his maidservant are erected. Attired in a swanky gown and sporting a turban, Umar is shown asking Marvi for her hand as his maidservant is seen holding jewellery in a piece of cloth. The jewellery is meant for Marvi, who, however, sitting on the floor, is rejecting the king’s proposal with a sombre face. Umerkot is one of two cities where Hindus make up nearly half of the local population.

Both Hindus and Muslims have conflicting claims to Umerkot or

Amarkot fort and the city itself.

According to one account, the city and the fort were constructed by Maharaja Amar Singh, who came to power in the middle of the 13th century.

Some historians say the fort was built by King Umar, the founder of the Soomro dynasty, in the middle of the 11th century. The fort was later held by different rulers until 1843 when the British army captured Sindh. After the partition of India in 1947, the fort was taken over by the government. No matter who built the fort, visitors recall the tale of Marvi, who was incarcerated in the fort for refusing the king’s proposal.

Often referred to as “Marvi of Malir” (prosperous and green in the Thari language), Marvi was immortalised by Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a mystic Sufi saint and poet, in his celebrated poetic compendium Shah Jo Risalo, depicting her as a symbol of courage and patriotism. Shah Latif also named one of the seven musical notes he invented after Marvi, commonly known as “Sur Marvi.”

Marvi later returned to her home village, Bhalwa, untouched.

SHIv TEMPLE: The southern Thar region comprises six towns and spans more than 22,000 square kilometres (8,494 square miles) with a population of 1.5 million. Located some six kilometres (over three miles) from Umerkot, Shiv temple is one of the oldest and revered temples for Hindus living in Sindh. Shiv or Shiva, one of the main deities of Hinduism, is worshipped as the supreme god.

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retired civil servant passes away ISLAMABAD Web desk

Dr Safdar Mahmood, retired federal secretary and columnist, passed away in Lahore, his nephew said through a Facebook post on Monday. The funeral will be held after Zuhr at Masjid Allah-o-Akbar in the Defence neighbourhood in Lahore, Huzaifa Sarfraz shared. Mahmood graduated from Government College in Lahore before joining the civil service and retired in BPS-22 after serving on many key posts. An avid historian and leading political commentator, Mahmood was best known for his book Pakistan Kyun Toota — a scholarly work discussing at length the breakup of former East Pakistan, and the events that contributed towards the discontent among its people.

According to his profile on the website of the Institute of Policy Studies, an Islamabad-based think-tank, his more than one dozen books have been favourably reviewed by the local and foreign press and are widely quoted by research scholars. Some of his books have also been translated into German, Chinese, Bengali, Uzbek and Sindhi languages. Mahmood had also received the Pride of Performance award for his contributions in the field of history.

coas briefed on Karachi corps' operational preparedness NEwS DESk Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa visited the Corps Headquarters in Karachi on Monday.

"Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa was given a detailed update on operational preparedness, training regime, and administrative matters of the Corps," said the Inter-services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement. The army chief was apprised of the prevalent internal security situation in the province, especially the Army and Pakistan Rangers' efforts to assist other Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) in maintaining law and order.

Keeping in view the latest developments in the region, General Bajwa emphasised effectively guarding against hybrid threats and the need to respond collectively. He was also briefed on multifaceted assistance being rendered by the Army for the implementation of the Karachi Transformation Plan (KTP) — a critical mega initiative underway to uplift Pakistan’s biggest metropolis, Karachi — through various developmental projects in the aftermath of Karachi urban flooding in August last year. "COAS appreciated Karachi Corps for all-out support to civil administration ensuring timely and efficient action on key projects of KTP," it read. The army chief also visited Khatoon-e- Pakistan Government Girls School Karachi — an initiative of Zindagi Trust. According to the statement, the COAS praised the school administration for providing state-of-the-art facilities and a high standard of education for underprivileged girls at par with any modern education system of the day. Later, General Bajwa also interacted with the families of martyrs of the Army, Pakistan Rangers Sindh, and other LEAs including intelligence, Sindh Police, the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) and the Airport Security Force (ASF). The army chief directed the formation to take all necessary measures for the welfare of martyrs' families.

covid-19 vaccinations opened to 15- to 18-year-olds: official ISLAMABAD APP

Walk-in vaccination centres opened their doors to 15to 18-year-olds for the first time on Monday, an official announced, as the government announced plans to offer jabs to all teenagers in that age group. “Teenagers will have to produce their B-form to register for the jab,” Parliamentary Secretary for National Health Services Dr Nausheen Hamid said. Talking to a news channel, Hamid recalled National Command and Operation Centre has already approved the emergency use of the Pfizer doses for teenagers. She said sufficient stocks of vaccines were available and additional consignments will arrive soon. The health ministry has also arranged mobile Covid-19 vaccination centres with an objective to increase coverage in slums, schools and colleges, she added. Young people in the 15-18 age group can register by sending a message on 1166. Hamid urged the people to get themselves vaccinated and adhere to the precautionary measures laid by the government for the safety of the public. While appreciating the efforts of the Islamabad administration, she observed the capital become the first city in Pakistan to fully vaccinate 50 percent of its eligible population.

Responding to a question, the official said the positivity ratio was still above the safety levels, but the health experts were of the view that once the country achieves herd immunity, the number of cases will start to come down. She said restrictions would continue to be in place if people fail to take the vaccination seriously.

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

04 NEWS

LAHORE

SC oPen to talKS with lawyeRS on judGeS’ elevation CRiteRia: CjP ISLAMABAD

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TLTP

HILE terming the recent protest of legal fraternity against junior judges’ elevation to top court “uncalled for,” Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed said that the Supreme Court (SC) and superior judiciary are open to talks with lawyers to chalk out an effective and objective criteria for the elevation of judges.

The chief justice remarked this while addressing the ceremony of the new judicial year on Monday.

He further said that he is always ready

to meet the representatives of the lawyer community for an amicable solution to their problems. He pointed out that this time no one approached him over the issue of judges’ appointment. Expressing his astonishment, he asked what the motive was behind the lawyers’ agitation in the top court premises on September 09. Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed informed that as many as 20,910 fresh cases were instituted whereas 12,968 matters were decided during the last judicial year.

The CJP said that according to overall institution and disposal of cases in the top court during the last judicial year, a total of 45,644 cases are pending, as many as

Rupee depreciation continues as dollar reaches Rs168.1

20,910 fresh cases were instituted, while about 12,968 cases were decided, including 6,797 civil petitions, 1,916 civil appeals, 459 civil review petitions, 2,625 criminal petitions, 681 criminal appeals, 37 criminal review petitions and 100 criminal original petitions. A ceremony of the new judicial year during every September in the Supreme Court provides an opportunity to take stock of performance of the previous year with a view to formulate future policies on how to advance the cause of justice and protect the rights of people.

It is pertinent to mention that during his tenure in 2009, former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry had established a

Pakistani rupee continued struggling against the US dollar on Monday and shed 08 paisas (-0.05 percent) in the interbank. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the US dollar opened at Rs168.02 and closed at Rs168.10.

This is the lowest level of the local currency against the greenback since August 26, 2020. The dollar made the historic high against the rupee at Rs168.44 on August 26, 2020. Within the open market, the rupee was traded at Rs168.20/169.20 per dollar. Overall, Pakistani rupee shed Rs1.11 against the US dollar last week, while depreciation during the fiscal year 2021-22 has been Rs10.66. The local unit has shed Rs7.83 against the US dollar in the current year 2021. The currency experts said that the dollar’s demand remained high as the market opened after two weekly holidays. They said that external payment remained high which resulted in increased dollar’s demand. According to currency experts, the rupee is under immense pressure due to unfavourable macro economic data and Afghanistan’s situation. They said that the rising deficit in the current account is also a major concern for the market.

Gold price increases to Rs96,900 per 10gm NEWS DESK Gold prices snapped three-day losing streak and edged up in the international market on Monday. Gold in the international market was available at $1,792 per ounce after gaining $4.20 at 1215 hours GMT. Meanwhile, the price of 10 grams of yellow metal in Pakistan increased to Rs96,900 after gaining Rs300. The closing prices of the yellow metal in the country remained Rs96,600 on Friday last. According to experts, despite the dismal US jobs report for August, investors seem convinced that the Fed would begin rolling back its massive pandemic-era stimulus sooner rather than later. The speculations were further fuelled by Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker’s comments on Monday, who joined a chorus of policymakers keen to trim $120 billion in monthly bond purchases. That said, a modest pullback in the US Treasury bond yields helped limit the downside for the non-yielding gold.

This, along with worries about the fastspreading delta variant and a global economic slowdown, extended some additional support to gold, they said.

20,032 cases and 117 model civil appellate courts decided 21,472 cases. “In this way, total modal courts decided a huge number of 55,694 cases”, the CJP added.

The CJP said that Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan has disbursed Rs64.2 million to 124 district legal empowerment committees (DLECs) in order to provide free legal aid to deserving litigants. He added that among other trainings, the Federal Judicial Academy has trained the first batch of prosecutors from the Federal Investigation Agency amid training of judges on money laundering and terrorist financing in collaboration with the National FATF Secretariat.

PSX gains 72 points in range-bound volatile session KARACHI TLTP

NEWS DESK

separate human rights cell at the Supreme Court that received thousands of human rights complaints from poor victims across the country.

The incumbent Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed said, “The Human Rights Cell, established in the Supreme Court, has continued to function. However, very few new cases were registered and an effort was made to regularly hear the pending cases and pass appropriate orders to protect the fundamental rights of the people.”

The CJP informed that during the year as many as 171 model criminal trial courts has decided 14,190 murder and narcotic cases, 149 model trial magistrate courts decided

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) started the week with a range-bound volatile session, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining 72.17 points (+0.15 percent) to close at 47,270.46 points on Monday.

The market switched between the green and red zones throughout the session. The KSE-100 Index moved in a range of 201.2 points, showing an intraday high of 47,369.9 points and a low of 47,168.7 points.

Among other indices, the KSE All Share Index gained 114.9 points (+0.35 percent) to close at 32,503.33 points, while All Share Islamic Index remained

flat and gained 0.6 points (+0.00 percent) to close at 23,383.05 points.

A total of 379 companies traded shares in the stock exchange, out of them shares of 165 closed up, shares of 197 closed down while shares of 17 companies remained unchanged. Out of 94 traded companies in the KSE-100 Index, 40 closed up, 52 closed down, while two remained unchanged.

The overall market volumes decreased by 31.61 million to 395.84 million shares. Total volume traded for the KSE100 Index was 130.02 million shares. The number of total trades decreased by 4,641 to 137,051, while the value traded decreased by Rs1.99 billion to Rs16.19 billion. The market capitalisation increased

by Rs21.23 billion. Among scrips, BYCO

traded the most with 44.97 million shares, followed by SERFR (42.15 million) and TPLP (41.02 million). Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include BYCO, SERFR, TPLP, TELE and TPL, which formed around 45 percent of total volumes.

The sectors propping up the index were commercial banks with 85 points, oil & gas exploration companies with 21 points, power generation & distribution with 20 points, pharmaceuticals with 16 points and oil & gas marketing companies with 15 points. The most points added to the index were by UBL which contributed 66 points followed by HBL with 33 points, AGP with 20 points, COLG with 18 points and HUBC with 18 points. Sector wise, the index was let

Minister seeks ITFC financing facility for food imports NEWS DESK Minister for Economic Affairs Omar Ayub Khan has urged the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) - a subsidiary of the Islamic Development Bank - to increase financing facility for import of food related commodities.

The minister expressed these views during a virtual meeting with ITFC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Engr Hani Salem Sonbol on Monday.

The meeting discussed the scope of ITFC financing and how this financing facility may also be utilised for import of food related commodities. It was discussed how ITFC can arrange financing for broader trade activities in Pakistan under commodity financing.

The minister appreciated ITFC for arranging financing of about $7 billion for import oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from 2008 to 2021. He highlighted that Pakistan’s POL financing requirement is much bigger, therefore, ITFC can get a bigger portion of financing from the

existing $1.5 billion each year.

Engr Hani Salem Sonbol thanked the minister for economic affairs and appreciated the interest of the Economic Affairs Division in ITFC to meet the short-term trade financing needs. He also encouraged the ITFC to include other commodities in addition to POL under the 4th Framework Agreement to be commenced from January 2021 and to increase annual financing from $1.1 billion to $1.5 billion.

He further added that ITFC arranged two warehouse receipt financing workshops in Islamabad and Karachi during 2019 in collaboration with EAD and the State Bank of Pakistan and will provide technical assistance for capacity building in the agriculture sector.

The ITFC CEO updated that the ongoing syndication is about to complete and $600 million will be available to Pakistan during this month. The ITFC further assured that Pakistan is the top priority for the Corporation to invest in trade financing and meet the country’s POL procurement requirements.

Punjab to have 8,000 revenue centres by June 2022: Buzdar NEWS DESK Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has said that 850 revenue centres have been established to provide revenue services at the doorstep of the people and the number of revenue centres would be increased to 8,000 during the current financial year.

All the sub-registrar offices and ekhidmat centres are providing a onewindow registration facility and mutation of property services across the province, the chief minister further said in a statement issued on Monday.

He said that district gazetteers are also being published to collect up to date and concise information of all the districts throughout Punjab.The CM said revenue khidmat kutcheries are providing great relief to the ordinary people by redressing their complaints and grievances.

The government is following the vision of transparency and believes in prompt service delivery, he said.

In order to make a correct assessment of agricultural crops production, a digital girdawari system has also been launched, he stated.

The chief minister said mobile centres have been introduced for the provision of revenue services to the people of far-flung areas. Revenue court case management system is providing speedy justice, he continued. People would benefit from 100 per cent digitization of revenue records in the province.

The chief minister said that state land measuring more than 180,000 acres of land has been retrieved amounting to Rs462 billion. In the urban areas of Punjab, land measuring 4,056 acres has been retrieved from the grabbers; while in rural areas,

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more than 176,000 acres of land has also been retrieved, the CM stated.

The government has proved its writ by retrieving the state land. The CM said consolidation of land was being carried out with the help of information technology, GPS based satellite systems. The crackdown against the land grabbers would continue without any discrimination and no stone would be left unturned to curb the menace of the land grabbing, he assured.

He said that Punjab Board of Revenue has shown a tremendous increase in revenue collection during the last financial year. Against a target of Rs59.8 billion, the BOR collected more than Rs62 billion government dues/taxes during the last financial year and work on launching software bills is also under process, said the chief minister.

down by technology & communication with 44 points, cement with 17 points, fertilizer with 12 points, investment banks/ investment companies/ securities companies with 10 points and automobile parts & accessories with 8 points.

The most points taken off the index were

by TRG which stripped the index of 36 points followed by MEBL with 35 points, BAHL with 14 points, PIOC with 8 points and MLCF with 8 points.

According to market experts, expectations of a hike in interest rate in the upcoming monetary policy scheduled for 20th September (Monday) coupled with expectations of higher CPI due to 13.7 percent increase in Sensitive Price Index (SPI) based weekly inflation kept the market gains in check.

Kuwait awards permanent contracts to 140 Pakistani doctors NEWS DESK The Ministry of Health of Kuwait has awarded permanent contracts to nearly 140 doctors from Pakistan who were working in the emirate on a temporary basis to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, a senior official at the ministry of overseas Pakistanis and human resource development said on Monday.

The doctors previously worked under Kuwait’s “lokum” system for a period of three months, which was extended for an additional three months, reported Arab News on Monday. Now, after the permanent appointment, they will have similar contracts and job titles as other non-Kuwaiti doctors.

Under the locum system, a doctor is hired on a temporary basis and fills a rotation gap at a hospital, clinic or practice. “Till date, 239 doctors have been dispatched [to Kuwait] in a total of nine batches through chartered flights since October 2020 in different specialities,” Kashif Ahmed Noor, the director-general of the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment, told Arab News. “All 140 doctors till the seventh batch got permanent contracts by the ministry of health in Kuwait, out of which two doctors have come back to Pakistan due to their personal reasons.”

“Kuwait is giving batch-wise permanent contracts to Pakistani doctors,” he said, adding that all Pakistani doctors would get permanent contracts except those who did not receive adequate evaluations from their supervisors. He said Pakistan would send more doctors to Kuwait later in September.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to Kuwait Syed Sajjad Haider said the two countries had signed an agreement on the placement of health care professionals in Kuwait in July last year.

“Under the agreement, around 1,500 paramedics staff are already working in Kuwait including doctors, nurses and technicians,” Haider said. “As our response to COVID-19 was appreciated by the World Health Organization and other entities, Kuwait was very keen to take maximum medical staff from Pakistan and they are satisfied with their performance.”

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

LAHORE

NEWS

05

CArS' SAle SUrge 92.76PC In 2 MonThS

Faysal Islami and Shaheen Shah Afridi Team Up to Forge a Winning Partnership

ISLAMABAD

KARACHI PRESS RELEASE

Faysal Islami, the Best Emerging and fastest growing Islamic bank of Pakistan, has signed Shaheen Shah Afridi, one of the world’s best fast bowlers, as its corporate brand ambassador.

Shaheen Shah Afridi who is Pakistan’s ace strike bowler has also been recently nominated as the ‘Player of the Month’ by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Mr Jaudat Hussain, Head Retail Banking Faysal Bank said, “Alhamdolillah, as a relatively young and fastgrowing Islamic bank, we are proud to announce our partnership with Shaheen Shah Afridi as he is among the youngest, most consistent and reliable Pakistani fast bowlers. He shares these attributes with our Bank and the winner services/products that we provide to our customers. With him on board as our brand ambassador, we look forward to promoting the Islamic banking landscape in the country and expediting our journey to bringing innovative Shariah-compliant products and services to our customers.” Shaheen Shah Afridi, while expressing his thoughts at the union, also added, “Faysal Bank’s transformation to Islamic banking is remarkable and exemplary, reflective of its strong commitment and dedication. I am extremely pleased with the association and look forward to representing the Bank as their brand ambassador.” Faysal Bank Limited is one of the leading commercial banks of Pakistan and is on track to one of the largest conversions of a conventional bank to an Islamic Bank, on a global basis.

IMC Bags Consumer Choice Award for Toyota Yaris

APP

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HE sale of cars during the first two months of the financial year 2021-22 surged by 92.76pc as compared to the same months of last year, the latest data released by Pakistan automobile Manufacturing Association (PAMA) said.

According to the data, as many as 38,568 cars were sold in the period under review as compared to the sale

of 20,008 units in the same period of last year.

The data shows that 4426 units of Honda civic and city were sold during the months as compared to the sale of 4,190 units last year, showing an increase of 5.63pc.

Toyota Corolla cars' sales also witnessed an increase of 77.95pc as it soared to 4,262 units in the corresponding month from 2,395 units in the same period of the previous year.

Suzuki Swift's sales surged by 0.26pc as its sales increased to 379 units from 378 units last year.

K-Electric Announces Financial Results for FY 2021 KARACHI PRESS RELEASE

The Board of Directors of K-Electric Limited in its meeting held on September 10, 2021_at KE Head Office, approved the financial results for the year ended on 30 June 2021. During the period, driven by investments of around PKR 81 billion across the power value chain supplemented by improved economic conditions and revival of economic activity post the COVID-19 lockdown, as well as favourable government policies, the Company showed strong operational performance including T&D loss reduction from 19.7% in FY 2020 to 17.5% in FY 2021 and improvement in recovery ratio from 92.1% in FY 2020 to 94.9% in FY 2021.

In its financial results issued to the PSX, KE declared profits of PKR 11,998 million as compared to a loss of PKR 2,959 million during FY 2020 resulting in earnings per share (EPS) of 0.43 rupees per share in FY21 as compared to a loss per share of 0.11 rupees in FY20. An increase in total assets has also been observed from 703,414 million in FY20 to 835,677 million in FY21.

On the self-generation front, construction works on the 900 MW RLNG fired project, Bin Qasim Power Station-III (BQPS-III) is progressing on a fasttrack basis. Upon completion, the power plant,

equipped with state-of-the-art technology and at an estimated cost of around USD 650 million, will be among the top 5 most efficient plants in the country.

Work on the first unit of 450MW is 90 per cent complete while the second phase of 450MW is also proceeding swiftly. In August 2021, KE entered into a Gas Supply Agreement (GSA) with Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) for the provision of 150 MMCFD RLNG to KE’s Bin Qasim Complex.

Under successful additional power withdrawal of 450-600 MW from National Grid through existing interconnections starting from April 2021, the company has also initiated the process for setting up new grids and interconnections for off-take of further additional power from the National Grid, which will take the total supply from National Grid to 2,050 MW. KE enhanced its transmission capacity through the addition of 5 new power transformers along with a 132kV Mehmoodabad Grid Station, which will help in catering to the rapid demand growth from the residential segment in the area. Further, the addition of power transformers resulted in the net addition of 184 MVAs during the year, taking the total transformation capacity to 6,536 MVAs which is sufficient to meet the peak demand in KE’s serviced area.

So far around 11,000 PMTs have been converted

PRESS RELEASE Indus Motor Company (IMC) has bagged the Consumer Choice Award 2021, for the highest selling sedan in Pakistan, Toyota Yaris and, for showing outstanding results throughout the year. The award was presented at a ceremony held in Karachi, by Syed Amin UI Haque, Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication. Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar, Governor of Punjab also graced the event with his presence. IMC Chief Executive, Ali Asghar Jamali expressed his views on the occasion, saying, "By the grace of the Almighty, it has been a successful year and, we are pleased to have maintained our position as the industry's top automobile manufacturer.

Only a year into the launch, the Toyota Yaris has wooed customers and earned itself the badge of the #1 selling sedan in the country.”

He added, “IMC has, and always will be devoted to the Pakistani market and to our customers whose interest and confidence in our products and services is rapidly increasing every year. Our mainstay has been Toyota’s Customer First principle, which has resulted in our dedication to quality, technology, and innovation, as well as providing the finest possible services to our customers.” One of the primary goals of the Yaris has been to provide consumers with a Toyota at an accessible price.

The model meets all the environmental regulations; it is more fuel-efficient and effectively reduces air pollution. It offers an environmentfriendly motoring experience with cutting edge eco-technology. Consumers Choice Awards are awarded every year to those consumer-friendly companies, traders and organizations who offer their products and services in the best interest of Pakistani consumers.

Similarly, the newly launched Toyota Yaris also witnessed an increase as its sale jumped to 4725 units in the year under review from 3,588 units.

The sale of Suzuki Cultus increased to 7,058 units in the corresponding year whereas, during the same period last year, the sale was recorded at 2,477 units.

The sale of Suzuki Wagon-R witnessed a sharp increase of 193.30pc as it rose to 3,810 units from 1,299 units last year. Suzuki Alto also witnessed a sharp increase as it went up from 4,547 units to 11,141 units.

IFAC and ACCA To Host Third Annual Climate Week NYC Event, “Plugging the Net-Zero Information Gap,” on 20 September 2021 PRESS RELEASE The session will bring together investment and finance and accounting professionals for a thought-provoking discussion on the gaps and needs surrounding climate information and reporting Karachi – 13 September 2021: Many stakeholders, including IFAC and ACCA, have advocated for relevant, reliable, and comparable sustainabilityrelated information, including enhanced climate risk assessments and disclosures. Professional accountants have an essential role to play as companies strive to meet rapidly increasing demands from

investors, policymakers, and other stakeholders for enhanced information addressing the global climate crisis.

To better understand the information gap between business and investors and what might be done to address it, IFAC and ACCA are partnering to host a Climate Week NYC event, Plugging the Net-Zero Information Gap: The role of investors, accountants, and capital markets, to be held virtually September 20, 2021, at 9:00 am EDT. The event will include a panel discussion moderated by Patrick Temple-West, Journalist, Financial Times, and feature: • Merilee Buck-

ley, Chief Accounting Officer, Etsy • Richard Manley, Managing Director, Head of Sustainable Investing, Global Leadership Team at CPP Investments • Munazzeel Riasat, Chief Executive Officer, IBC Power Limited and ACCA member ‘The significant impact of climate-related matters on organisations’ business models, cash flows, financial performance, and resiliency requires immediate attention not only due to increasing pressure from investors, regulators, and policymakers, but the urgency of the climate crisis itself,” said Kevin Dancey, IFAC CEO.

The City School signs MoU with PTCL PRESS RELEASE Photo shows Nauman Durrani, Executive Vice President, Sales, PTCL and Raza Hasnain, Regional Director, North Region, The City School signing MoU to

provide premium ICT services on discounted rates to students, staff and alumni of The City School. Executive Vice President, Business Operations North Zone, PTCL, Aasif ham and other senior officials from both sides are also present on the occasion.

to ABCs across the KE network with full determination to convert the remaining high loss PMTs swiftly and sustainably. During FY2021, the company launched the second phase of Project Sarbulandi; a transformational project of approximately PKR 10 billion that focuses on improving network health. Further, to mitigate power theft and promote a culture of timely bill payments via the provision of easy instalment plans, the ‘Azaadi’ rebate scheme was initiated which played a key role in improving the recovery ratio as mentioned earlier.

K-Electric also launched the first edition of the KHI Awards in FY2021, whereby the company has supported over 30 organizations across various categories which are working for the betterment of the city. The recipients included recognized names such as the Indus Hospital, Hunar Foundation, and others, with the total asset base of the winners standing at PKR 54 billion.

During the year, KE also launched K-Solar, a subsidiary that provides solar energy solutions to industrial, commercial, and residential customer segments with improved access and the latest technologies. Moreover, furthering its customer centricity initiatives, in addition to customer facilitation and interaction platforms, KE also launched complete services for its senior citizens and specially-abled customers via 118 call centers.

Taliban yet to decide currency for trade PESHAWAR AZIZ BUNERI

Traders in Afghanistan face difficulties to continue trade business activities because of lack of currency as the international community has withheld the assets of Da Afghanistan bank after the Taliban took over Kabul on 15 August. On the other hand, the Taliban have also not yet decided which currency should be used for trade, which has created further problems for the traders. The exchange rate of the dollar in Afghanistan fluctuated. The government of Pakistan announced to conduct trade with Afghanistan in Pakistani Rupees while the Taliban said in a statement on its social media that all major and minor commercial transactions in Afghanistan would be carried out in Afghan currency. The Afghan traders have rejected Pakistan's decision to conduct business transactions in Pakistani currency. The Afghan Taliban said the country's identity is more important and no decision will be taken that undermines the interest of the Afghan nation. However, no new mechanism has been formulated for trade and other commercial activities. Besides this, Afghanistan and Pakistan have yet to announce a formal policy for mutual and transit trade between the two countries. According to sources, after the Taliban took control of the banking system in Afghanistan, it is difficult for traders to trade in dollars as the current banking system is shut down. Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin had clarified to the Standing Committee that it had been decided to conduct trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan in Pakistani Rupees. Tarin has told the Standing Committee on Finance that there is a shortage of dollars in Afghanistan after the international community seized its assets. But the Pakistan has also requested the world to unfreeze Afghanistan’s accounts as it can trigger a humanitarian crisis.

Bilawal, Shehbaz join civil society to protest curbs on media ContInuED fRoM PAgE 01 He said the media had a fought a war for its freedom and no one could snatch it . The PML-N president added that he would protest the issue with other opposition leaders in the National Assembly and try to achieve consensus with PPP and other political parties.

Similar, PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal, also visited the protest site on Monday. Addressing the protesters, Iqbal lambasted the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government for “attacking and attempting to muzzle” the media. Referring to the PMDA bill, he dubbed it a “conspiracy” and said if the bill was passed, “democracy will die in this country”.

The PML-N leader vowed to resist the

“fascist law”.

Expressing solidarity with journalists, he added, “You (journalists) have survived gunshots, kidnappings and economic murder as you were fired from your jobs, but you didn’t stop speaking the truth and I salute you for this.” He recalled that journalists had also staged protests when the PML-N was in the government.

“But we took it sportingly,” Iqbal added.

Meanwhile, police remained deployed outside the Parliament House as a security measure. Journalist Hamid Mir plans to host a talk show at the site of the sit-in.

The protest call was given by various journalist bodies, headed by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists.

Meanwhile, the Parlia¬mentary Re-

porters Association had also announced that reporters would boycott the presidential address in protest against the proposed media authority.

A day earlier, PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, while speaking to the journalists, had said that while journalism is becoming more and more independent across the globe, the opposite is happening in Pakistan. “Laws regarding how to control the press are being introduced in Pakistan under the guise of the PMDA,” Abbasi said, adding that if the government had some problems with the content being aired by different channels, then merely phoning the channel concerned would have been enough instead of creating an entity like PMDA. The former premier went on to say that

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in countries where the press is not free, its citizens are not free either.

“It is the constitutional right of the people of the country to express their views; we are not talking about politics here,” Abbasi said. “Was the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority not enough that we needed another media authority?”

He said that different military dictators that ruled Pakistan — from Ayub Khan to Pervez Musharraf — made efforts to suppress the press, adding that the incumbent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government is following the same path by trying to silence journalists. “Today, policemen are standing with sticks in their hands to stop journalists [from protesting]” Abbasi pointed out. “An attempt is being made to bring such a law to

suppress the truth.”

Similarly, his party mate and PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the PTI-led government’s proposed media authority law is “not only devised to suppress journalism but it is an attempt to eliminate journalists.”

“The government has made a dictatorial move and the PML-N stands in solidarity with the journalist community against it,” she said.

On the occasion, Pakistan People’s Party leader Shazia Marri said that the PMDA is solely proposed to control the media.

“All opposition parties reject the PDMA bill,” Marri maintained. “Sadly, the information minister continued to lie that the PFUJ had been supporting the bill.”

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

06 COMMENT Another stick to beat the PTI with

Sohaib ahmad barlaS

T

here was a time when some literary circles debated whether literature could be categorized on the basis of geographical boundaries and if so, then how would a piece of literature possibly qualify as Pakistani literature. The best answer came as any piece of writing which irritates India (or for that matter enemies of Pakistan) would be categorized as Pakistani literature. The definition is not limited to literature; rather covers all other entities, physical as well as conceptual, equally well. At the time of heightened tension, we start hearing words like Pakistani sugar, Pakistani artists, Pakistani music with added disdain from across the border. even the pigeons crossing over to India from Pakistani side are examined under microscopes to determine their Pakistani credentials.

Amongst all the entities which irritate India or for that matter, enemies of Pakistan, Pak Army (read Pak armed forces) and ISI rank at the top, regardless of the nature of relations between the two states. No wonder that both are proportionately considered as the truly strongest symbols of Pakistan on this side of the border. The more one criticizes Pakistan army for its perceived role in civilian affairs or tries to ridicule ISI through terminologies like deep state, sacred cows, khalai makhlooq or agriculture department, the stronger is peoples’ pride and faith in their Pakistani credentials. This emotional relationship needs to be understood and acknowledged while dealing with these two institutions. And it is not peculiar to Pakistanis only. Nations have faith and pride in their armies simply because they have a stark choice between their own army or the other’s army. Iraq, Libya and Syria have in the recent past made their choices.

And the results are so pronounced and visible.

Pakistan, with a history of not-so enviable civilmilitary relationships, was chosen as the next ground for experimentation aimed at weakening its credible defence infrastructure. It was entangled in a prolonged war against terrorism, which was both homegrown as well as exported from across the borders.

The home-grown too, had its support systems and life lines spread beyond its borders. And it was out of genuine apprehensions of our enemies after having witnessed our capabilities and role in Afghan jihad and subsequent war against terrorism. During Afghan jihad, we were told that russians could gate crash Torkham any time to reach the warm waters of Indian ocean. Similarly, during the war against terrorism, the blood thirsty Taliban were reported to be awaiting orders on the other side of Margalla hills to take over Islamabad. But to the utter disappointment of our detractors, that did not happen. General Zia at the very beginning of russian adventures had told BBC that

Along with rising prices, curbs on media

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he proposed Pakistan Media Development Authority (PMDA) is being widely considered a draconian measure to tighten the federal government’s control over the media from one platform.

Initially, opposition to the proposed measure had come from media organizations but now other important sections of society have also begun to realize that if PMDA was allowed to be made into a law it would weaponise the PTI govt’s authoritarian streak, deprive media of freedom and throttle the media industry. On Thursday at the All Pakistan Lawyers Convention, Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) and the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), passed unanimous resolutions rejecting the PMDA for being an attempt on the part of the government to place more curbs on media. The government needs to realise that with the passage of time more sections of society would raise the red flag over the formation of the media body. Another noticeable development is that instead of confining themselves to passing resolutions only the PMDA’s critics have now decided to embark on public protests.

On Sunday PFUJ took out a rally from Islamabad’s National Press Club that turned into a sit-in in front of the Parliament house. Journalist organisations from all the four provinces as well as from AJK and Gilgit- Baltistan were duly represented in the gathering. Both on Sunday and Monday, the sit-in was addressed by top leaders and parliamentarians of major opposition parties. It was suggested that the PTI government had realized that it would not be able to win the next elections without muzzling the media. On Monday strongly worded statements against PMDA and in support of the protest were issued by rights bodies and NGOs. While Bilawal Bhutto Zardari threatened to take the matter to the SC if the PMDA was imposed through bulldozing it through parliament. Mian Shahbaz Sharif called upon PML-N workers to join the protest. Staging protest before the Presidential address, parliamentarians belonging to the opposition left the house to join the sit-in outside.

As the elections draw near the demand for cancellation of laws framed to chain the media would become a major election issue. PTI can save face by reconsidering support for PMDA.

Cantonment board elections PTI and PML-N emerge as winners in respective strongholds

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maheen muStafa

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S minorities in Pakistan continue to face unending violence, intolerance and discrimination with each passing day, more incidents of atrocities against them are being reported from across the country.

In a fresh incidence of systematic state persecution of minorities in Karachi the Metropolitan Corporation demolished a part of St. Joseph’s Church in Sadiqnagar as part of a campaign to demolish encroachments along the Gujjar Nullah.

Karachi Bachao Tehreek (Save Karachi Movement), a group comprising lawyers, human rights defenders, journalists and minority activists said the anti-encroachment squad of the Sindh government tore down the building despite protests from the Christian community.

Abira Ashfaq, a member of Karachi Bachao Tehreek, said, “Govt of Sindh liable under section 295 — injuring or defiling places of worship thereby insulting the religion of any class where such destruction would be considered an insult — two years in jail plus fine maximum sentence. We need the names of all your foot soldiers.”

“We need to demolish their elite sense of worth.

Their industries, their control of the state, their corruption and violence against the poor. We destroy them by shattering the fragile ugly veneer of the labels they wear, their Clifton and London homes, their massive vehicles.”

Mustafa Mehran, a lawyer, said two churches had already been demolished near Gujar Nullah and this last one was remaining for the huge Christian population. A day earlier, the group said it had managed to halt the demolition of the church.

“Thank you for participating in the campaign to #SaveStJosephChurch from demolition,” Karachi Bachao Tehreek said. “Due to our collective resistance, the church did not get demolished today. But residents fear that it will get demolished in the coming days as soon as it loses traction on social media.”

According to UN experts, the anti-encroachment action along the Gujjar Nullah will affect up to 12,000 homes housing 96,000 people. According to

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they would not receive kisses in case they dared cross over to this side. rather they would be treated as the foreign troops deserve to be treated on alien lands.

And this has been the declared and demonstrated policy of Pak armed forces and its intelligence agencies regarding treatment of uninvited guests on our soil. Commander Kulbhushan Jadhav and Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman are two prominent witnesses of this policy. hence, these enemies of Pakistan keep planning engagements for our defenders either directly through their intelligence apparatus or indirectly exploiting our internal fault lines.

Pakistan, like any other country, has its own share of internal fault lines due to misconceived ambitions of individuals, misplaced priorities of our elite groups, mistrust between institutions and betrayal of people’s confidence and oath of office and above all an irresistible tendency to encroach upon, verbally or physically, areas which necessarily belong to others.

In the recent past, some statements at PDM gatherings, politics of dharna, tirade of allegations during and after every election, the mockery of law at the hands of the lawyers, selective justice and accountability, all point towards one or the other fault line.

Those allergic to everything Pakistani, exploit these fault lines to target our state institutions. however, it is very heartening to see that the state institutions, instead of retaliating in every case, have developed an appreciable level of tolerance. Their response in some cases was far more mature than the civilian institutions. every individual and organization need to understand that belligerent posturing does not add to their prestige or stature; patient hear-

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Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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ing and possible accommodation of dissenting voices necessarily does. When the state institutions absorb criticism graciously and magnanimously, even the worst critics soften up. We have recently witnessed how auto correction mode was initiated in the political culture forcing the hardliners to change their stance in the subsequent statements. The political workers and party stalwarts themselves have started questioning the narrative of their erstwhile masters.

Nothing could be more pleasing for ordinary Pakistanis than to see that the fault lines within different stakeholders are being managed internally with a sense of responsibility and self-accountability. however, our enemies certainly find it harder to absorb. The eU Disinfo Lab has recently exposed some of the rAW deeds and deals aimed at damaging Pakistan’s image abroad. The badly humiliated enemy in utter frustration would be contemplating more and more deals to engage our forces and agencies internally as well as externally. Whether we call it 5th generation, hybrid or non-kinetic war, the fact remains that Pakistan and all symbols representing Pakistan are constantly in the line of fire. Our enemies are pooling together all available resources to ensure that we remain confused and divided about our national interests, and skeptical about the capacity of our institutions to safeguard those interests. If we remain steadfast in our support to our institutions, encouraging auto correction and discouraging encroachment upon each other’s territory, ours will be remembered as a truly Pakistani response!

Pakistan, like any other country, has its own share of internal fault lines due to misconceived ambitions of individuals, misplaced priorities of our elite groups, mistrust between institutions and betrayal of people’s confidence and oath of office and above all an irresistible tendency to encroach upon, verbally or physically, areas which necessarily belong to others.

Pakistan’s Christian community persecuted

Dedicated to the legacy of late Hameed Nizami

M. A. Niazi

Army preparedness at its highest and finest

Karachi church demolished in the name of anti-encroachment

N light of partial results of the nationwide Cantonment board elections, Minister from Planning and Development Asad Umar has claimed rather prematurely and inaccurately that the PTI has emerged as ‘the largest and only national party’ in the country, when in fact it has failed to defeat the PML-N in Punjab where the latter leads by at least 22 seats. In KP, the PTI has expectedly dominated with a comfortable margin over all other parties and independent candidates. The contest in Sindh has been particularly interesting where PPP, despite being in power in the province has not managed a victory as comprehensive as the other two major parties have in their respective strongholds. That the PTI has managed not only to match the PPP’s 14 seats, all of them in Karachi, making it the largest party in the province’s capital, is commendable. The political significance of this particular result should serve as a wake-up call for the PPP, whose chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, is eyeing the PM post in the next general elections, a prospect that seems quite unlikely considering it may not even be able to hold onto Sindh in 2023. Its failure to secure even a single seat in Punjab is also a stark reminder that the recent attempts to make inroads into the province through South Punjab have failed miserably.

On the other hand, the PML-N’s success in Punjab is another indicator of PTI’s inability to perform in the province over the past three years. The choice of Chief Minister in Mr Usman Buzdar coupled with a fragile majority largely dependent on the PML-Q and independent candidates, who have time and again publicly aired their grievances with the PTI leadership that did not make good on pre-lection promises nor provided necessary development funds to MPAs from various constituencies, became the primary reason for instability and poor governance in Punjab. Two days back, one of the central figures in Punjab politics and the PTI, Aleem Khan, submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Imran Khan a second time, citing ‘personal reasons’. Unless there is significant improvement in PTI’s performance over the next two years, it will have a tough time at the hustings convincing people to vote them back into power in Punjab.

Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

RAW deals

available data, more than 66,500 people have already been affected, with 4,900 houses demolished in Gujjar nullah and 1,700 in Orangi nullah.

In June, UN human rights experts called on Pakistan to stop evicting close to 100,000 people living alongside the waterways.

The Office of the United Nations high Commissioner for human rights in a statement said, the antiencroachment drive by authorities was carried out “without adequate consultation with the affected residents, no relocation plan, and disparate and insufficient compensation for the displaced.”

The UN experts further said human rights laws do not prohibit resettling people who live along waterways if they are exposed to significant flood risk that cannot be mitigated otherwise. “however, any project to reduce risks of natural disasters requires due process and full compliance with international human rights norms governing relocation and resettlement, and guaranteeing that no one is rendered homeless,” they stressed.

Christians make up 1.27 percent of Pakistan’s population of 207.68 million. In 1998, the official estimate of the figure was 1.59 percent. In 1947, when modern Pakistan was formed, non-Muslims made up 23 percent with 27 million people.

Observers note that many members of the majority Muslim community describe Christians using derogatory terms such as ‘churha’ or ‘kafir’. A large proportion of the Christian community is from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, poorly educated, and takes up low-paid manual labour such as in brick kilns or the sanitation sector.

According to the latest figures (1987-2018) from

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

The writer is a freelance journalist and can be contacted at sabarlas1992@yahoo.com the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), a total of 229 Christians, have been accused under various provisions on offences related to religion since 1987, reported CPFA. The United States Commission on International religious Freedom (USCIrF) in 2020 designated Pakistan as a Country of Particular Concern because of its “systematic enforcement” of blasphemy and other controversial laws against religious minorities.

According to human rights organisations, as many as 1,000 non-Muslim girls, including Christians, are abducted each year. Many of them are forced to convert to Islam because it is widely believed in Pakistan that marriages under the age of 16 are acceptable under Sharia law if both individuals getting married are Muslim.

The United States Commission on International religious Freedom (USCIrF) recently published its 2021 Annual report. In this report, USCIrF once again recommended Pakistan be designated a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ due to its worsening religious freedom conditions for Christians and other religious minorities. “religious freedom conditions in Pakistan continued to worsen. The government systematically enforced blasphemy laws and failed to protect religious minorities from abuses by nonstate actors. There was a sharp rise in targeted killings, blasphemy cases, forced conversions, and hate speech targeting religious minorities,” USCIrF’s 2021 Annual report stated.

Despite this and other severe violations of human rights against religious minorities, Pir Noor-ul-haq Qadri, Minister for religious Affairs and Interfaith harmony, claimed that religious minorities enjoyed total freedom of religion in Pakistan.

International Christian Concern (ICC) documented at least 25 incidents of persecution against Pakistan’s Christian population between January 1 and March 31, 2021. The documented incidents included false blasphemy accusations, abductions, forced conversions, forced marriages, physical violence, religiously motivated murders, and instances of intimidation.

According to human rights organisations, as many as 1,000 non-Muslim girls, including Christians, are abducted each year. Many of them are forced to convert to Islam because it is widely believed in Pakistan that marriages under the age of 16 are acceptable under Sharia law if both individuals getting married are Muslim.

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Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

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Maheen Mustafa is a freelance journalist

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

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

Books over drugs The dream that our children will hold books instead of heroin must not just remain a dream. In Buleda, Kech drugs are supplied so easily under the open sky with no fear, which is why every other person in buleda is a drug addict, including children. The people of Buleda region of district Kech has came out from their homes and took out the third rally on Sunday against the widespread use of drugs. The people had appealed the concerned authorities to take immediate action against the drug dealer and users. Particularly, the new generations who are our future, has to be protected against the use of drugs. The reason behind the unfavorable situations in Buleda is the increasing rate of drug trafficking. We beseech the government to take concrete actions against the smugglers to prevent the future of our youth against narcotics.

Fiza NaSir TurbaT

Voice for justice

Immigration to Europe and War on Terror The choice between death by fire or death by water

Shazia anwer Cheema

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FGhAN War is over after completing its 20 years of devastation and destruction but we still do not know whether the slogan “Global War on Terror” is still saleable or not?

The so-called Global War on Terror started from Afghanistan after the tragic 9/11 incident and spread to Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Somalia, northwest Pakistan, and the Philippines, creating 37 million refugees who had been displaced from their homes where they were living contentedly despite poverty, inflation, political corruption and other routine phenomena of third world countries. The war on terror “thing” turned their life upside down leaving no option but to leave their homes. Devastated Iraqis, Syrians, Yemenis, Libyans, and Somalians had the mighty Mediterranean Sea between their destroyed homes and peaceful europe. Living under constant fear of death by bullets and bombs thrown over them for “peace-seeking”, the majority of them decided to flee by drowning ——A choice between death by fire or death by water. european politicians claim that the phenomenon of waves of refugees and immigrants seeking safety in europe has acted as a poison on eU societies, forgetting the fact that they were compelled to flee their homes in basic instinct of survival from NATO-led massacres.

As a student of Philosophy of Communication, I keenly followed the role of media to encourage refugee’s influx that practically put european governments to the wall, paving a way for non-stop exudes of Syrians, Iraqis, Yemenis, Afghanis, and Libyans to reach european borders. how would a normal person not try to help after seeing photos of a six-year-old boy all dressed up for a voyage but found dead on the shore of the Mediterranean? european media was actually exposing what the european armies under the banner of the War on Terror did with Iraq, Syria, Libya, and Afghanistan producing millions of desperate refugees who overcrowded european beaches with cockle-shell boats. refugees attracted media attention on the last highly visible stages of their journeys be-

tween France and Britain and raising the question of why they were risking detention or death for europe?

There is an instinctive assumption in the west that it is perfectly natural for people to flee their own failed states (the failure supposedly brought on by self-inflicted violence and corruption) to seek refuge in the better-run, safer, and more prosperous countries.

A story that started from launching “global war on terror”, on Afghanistan created no less than 37 million refugees who had been displaced from their homes, according to a revelatory report published by Brown University.

The study, part of a project called “Costs of War”, calculated using the latest data that “at least 37 million people have fled their homes in the eight most violent wars the US military has launched or participated in since 2001”. Of these, at least 8 million are refugees who fled abroad, and 29 million are internally displaced persons (IDPs) who have taken flight inside their own countries. The eight wars examined by the report are in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Somalia, northwest Pakistan, and the Philippines.

The study indicated that the displacement of people by these post9/11 wars is almost without precedent.

They compare the figures for the last 20 (September 2001 to September 2021) years with those for the whole of the 20th century, concluding that only the Second World War produced a bigger mass flight. Otherwise, the post-9/11 displacement exceeds that brought about by the russian revolution (6 million), the First World War (10 million), India-Pakistan Partition (14 million), east Bengal (10 million), the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (6.3 million) and the Vietnam War (13 million).

The traumatic cost of this global war on terror is rightly represented in an article of emma Graham-harrison published in Guardian on September 10, 2021, in which she wrote about collateral damage and insane man slaughtering

committed by foreign forces in countries under attacks. While citing a horrible incident from the Afghan war, she wrote that one of the most notorious massacres of the war, was when US Sgt robert Bales walked out of a nearby base to slaughter local families in cold blood. he killed 16 people, nine of them children. She writes that Afghans who knew little or nothing about the planes flying into towers in New York, and certainly had no link to shady alQaida because of its ambiguous status, were caught up in the war that followed, and that claimed their loved ones’ year after year. It is hard to understand that crafted wars had been imposed on people who then tried to flee their countries and their foremost target was europe because the United States was far away from their lands because they felt that the western world is (was) the only safe place left on earth because death imposed by the west was dancing everywhere except western countries. renowned writer of european politics Patrick Cockburn in his article published last year (September 2020) in the Independent indicates that the willingness to launch wars and to keep them going might be less if American, British and French leaders had to pay a political price for their actions. Unfortunately, voters have never understood that the influx of refugees, to which so many of them object, is the consequence of the vast displacement caused by these post-9/11 foreign wars.

For a skeptical observe one question will always be un-answered; whether the incident of 9/11 created mass destruction and devastation upon innocent soles or the 9/11 incident was designed to destroy the unfavorable humans.

The study indicated that the displacement of people by these post-9/11 wars is almost without precedent.

They compare the figures for the last 20 (September 2001 to September 2021) years with those for the whole of the 20th century, concluding that only the Second World War produced a bigger mass flight. Otherwise, the post9/11 displacement exceeds that brought about by the Russian Revolution (6 million), the First World War (10 million), India-Pakistan Partition (14 million), East Bengal (10 million), the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (6.3 million) and the Vietnam War (13 million).

The writer Shazia Anwer Cheema is a Praguebased Foreign Affairs expert writing for national and international media outlets. She is a Ph.D. Scholar of semiotics and Philosophy of Communication at Charles University Prague. She can be reached at her: Twitter @ShaziaAnwerCh Email: shaziaanwer@yahoo.com

A Baloch from Turbat, hayat Mirza Baloch was killed by a FC personal, after a blast in absor, despite being innocent. Now the question is how many parents have to lose their hayats like this? It was called a mistake but the young man was shoted eight bullets that clearly shows it wasn’t a mistake. he lost his life with the dream of being a CSS officer and serve his country. None of us can imagine the heartbreaking scenario of his parents as he was gunned down in front of them. Undoubtedly, hayat cannot be back but raising our voice is necessary to give him justice.

MahNaz MuShTaq TurbaT

Transgender issue in Pakistan PAKISTAN is the second largest Islamic state in the world. Islam has given equal rights to everyone. Through electronic and print media, we found that being an Islamic state; still transgender are neglected by the government and the local society. There is many NGO’s working for human rights, but also they have ignored the transgender. We found, that in Pakistan the transgender are ignored in every walk of life including, education, government jobs, health care and even security for their life.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan gave certain rights to the trans community, but these rights are still not properly implemented. even their own families do not accept them. One of the most sensitive social issues in Pakistan is discrimination and violence against the transgender community.

Trans people, also known as the “third” gender, are considered an abomination by society.

We stand together in opposition to such abuse and inequality. As believers in human rights and justice, it is our duty to support all marginalised communities as they fight for respect and equality. And as feminists, we believe that we need to keep fighting for gender-based services and resources together. irMa youSuF Karachi

Power problems to continue There is a misunderstanding that recent negotiations between the government and IPPs resulting in signing of MoUs have settled the power issues in favour of the client . As a matter of fact , the contracts signed between the parties still hold good . The government does not gain anything materially through these MoUs , as their contents are not binding on the IPPs as long as the wishes of the client ( the government) as mentioned there in are not converted into fresh contracts between the parties .

IPPs have not given any legal undertakings to undo the previous sovereign contracts already in force .

So there is no occasion of being optimistic prematurely on the final fate of the MoUs .

The problem of continuously rising circular debt haunts us as before and the authorities are silent on this grave issue which is eating away our economy.

The wretched power distribution system continues unattended with its technical and commercial pitfalls .

It is pity that many parts of the country suffer load shedding even in these times of surplus generating capability simply because power can not reach the end consumers because of transmission & distribution bottle necks .

Only God knows when will our power system will be corrected .

ENgr riaz bhuTTa LahorE

Reopening with caution The Government took a bold decision to lift restrictions on many sectors following a drop in Coronavirus cases. This decision was taken for the sake of economic survival. The business community, industrialists, and mill owners and the general public will benefit from this concession as it would likely revive the economy. however, this also puts the responsibility on everyone to do their part to stop the spread of this deadly disease. It is our collective responsibility to avoid social and physical contact as much as possible. We must all do our part by wearing masks, avoiding unnecessary handshakes, hugging, and close interactions to reduce the spread of Coronavirus. The owners of big Stores and Malls should use their influence on their customers to encourage safe behaviors. I would go to the extent that the business community must not only follow all precautions itself but also refuse to entertain anyone not following the SOPs at their business. Similarly, politicians (MNAs, MPAs, and ministers) and prominent personalities should lead by example and follow all precautions in public. We must as a nation understand that the decision by the government to lift the restrictions was to revive the economy and by no means it should be taken as a declaration that the virus is over. The Coronavirus is still lurking around and we all must exhibit responsible behaviors to stay safe while keeping the economy going. raja ShaFaaTuLLah iSLaMabad

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

08 WORLD VIEW

InterpretIng the BIden dOctrIne carnegie MoScow center

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dmitry trenin

He newly unveiled Biden doctrine, which renounces the United states’ post-9/11 policies of remaking other societies and building nations abroad, is a foreign policy landmark.

Coming on the heels of the U.s. withdrawal from afghanistan, it exudes credibility. Indeed, President Biden’s moves essentially formalize and finalize processes that have been under way for over a decade.

It was Barack Obama who first pledged to end america’s twin wars — in Iraq and afghanistan — started under george W. Bush. It was Donald Trump who reached an agreement with the Taliban on a full U.s. military withdrawal from afghanistan in 2021. Both Obama and Trump also sought, albeit in strikingly different ways, to redirect Washington’s attention to shoring up the home base.

It is important for the rest of the world to treat the change in U.s. foreign policy correctly. Leaving afghanistan was the correct strategic decision, if grossly overdue and bungled in the final phases of its implementation. afghanistan certainly does not mean the end of the United states as a global superpower; it simply continues to be in relative and slow decline.

Nor does it spell the demise of american alliances and partnerships. events in afghanistan are unlikely to produce a political earthquake within the United states that would topple President Biden. No soul searching of the kind that americans experienced during the Vietnam War is likely to emerge. Rather, Washington is busy recalibrating its global involvement. It is focusing even more on strengthening the home base.

Overseas, the United states is moving from a global crusade in the name of democracy to an active defense of liberal values at home and Western positions abroad. afghanistan has been the most vivid in a long series of arguments that persuaded Biden’s White House that a global triumph of liberal democracy is not achievable in the foreseeable future.

Thus, remaking problematic countries — “draining the swamp” that breeds terrorism, in the language of the Bush administration — is futile. U.s. military force is a potent weapon, but no longer the means of first resort. The war on terror as an effort to keep the United states safe has been won: in the last twenty years, no major terrorist at-

tacks occurred on U.s. soil. meantime, the geopolitical, geoeconomic, ideological, and strategic focus of U.s. foreign policy has shifted. China is the main — some say, existential — challenger, and Russia the principal disrupter. Iran, North Korea, and an assortment of radical or extremist groups complete the list of adversaries. Climate change and the pandemic have risen to the top of U.s. security concerns. Hence, the most important foreign policy task is to strengthen the collective West under strong U.s. leadership.

The global economic recession that originated in the United states in 2007 dealt a blow to the U.s.-created economic and financial model; the severe domestic political crisis of 2016–2021 undermined confidence in the U.s. political system and its underlying values; and the COVID-19 disaster that hit the United states particularly hard have all exposed serious political, economic, and cultural issues and fissures within american society and polity. Neglecting the home base while engaging in costly nation-building exercises abroad came at a price.

Now the Biden administration has set out to correct that with huge infrastructure development projects and support for the american middle class. america’s domestic crises, some of the similar problems in european countries, and the growing gap between the United states and its allies during the Trump presidency have produced widespread fears that China and Russia could exploit those issues to fi-

From industrialists to hawkers: In India, Muslim livelihoods are coming under increased attack

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shoaiB daniyal

N monday, the food products company ID Fresh released an unusual statement denying that its dosa batter contained animal extracts.

Only “100% natural and vegetarian agri-commodities” was used to make the product, insisted the company.

The message came in response to a large-scale misinformation campaign on social media claiming that the company “mixes cow bones and calf rennet” in its products. The Whatsapp forwards also claimed that the company hires only muslims and is “halal certified”. anyone with a passing acquaintance with the dietary taboos of a large number of Indians would recognise how damaging these allegations could be for a food products company.

A WAVE OF BIGOTRY: It wasn’t difficult to see why these messages were being spread: ID Fresh was founded

by PC musthafa and his four cousins abdul Nazer, shamsudeen TK, Jafar TK and Noushad Ta. It was the latest attack on the livelihoods of India’s muslims, a trend now so far-reaching that even industrialists are not immune to it.

Before this, a series of shocking videos had gone viral showing Hindutva supporters attacking workingclass muslims as they went about doing their jobs. In madhya Pradesh, a muslim bangle seller was beaten up for doing business in a “Hindu area”. In Uttar Pradesh, a dosa vendor’s stall was vandalised simply because he had, as a muslim, named his shop after a Hindu god. In madhya Pradesh, a muslim scrap dealer was surrounded by a gang of men and forced to chant the Hindu religious slogan “Jai shri Ram”. In Lucknow, a horse carriage owner was hounded to chant “death to Pakistan” because of the fake claim that he had painted that country’s flag on his cart. This is just the latest wave of such violence aimed at attacking muslims for simply doing their jobs.

ATTACKING JOBS AND BUSINESSES: The last few years have seen extremist politics around the issue of beef and even meat itself. Just after the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in Uttar Pradesh in 2017, it launched a thinly veiled communal campaign against the informal

meat industry, shutting down slaughter houses and shops that, it alleged, did not conform to laws and regulations. given that a major part of Uttar Pradesh’s economy is informal, the reason for singling out meat was not difficult to miss: it was dominated by muslims. even five years later, the Uttar Pradesh government is continuing along the same lines. On august 30, Chief minister adityanath announced that meat would be banned completely from mathura given the town was holy for Hindus. In one stroke, the BJP had ended the livelihoods of thousands of people associated with the meat industry in mathura, most of them muslim. even worse, officials across North India have winked at mob violence against muslims involved in the cattle and dairy trade. In 2017, a dairy farmer named Pehlu Khan was lynched in Rajasthan with all accused walking free in 2019. In fact, the lynching of muslims transporting cattle is almost a routine occurrence in India now. so entrenched is communal sentiment in India that even the Covid-19 pandemic was weaponised to attack muslim livelihoods. The first wave of Covid-19 in India saw vituperative, bigoted campaigns absurdly blaming muslim fruit vendors for spreading the disease. In mahoba district of Uttar Pradesh, for example, this led to mob action against muslim vegetable vendors, preventing them from selling their goods.

PUSHING MUSLIMS DOWN: The economic marginalisation of muslims in India is not new. In 2005, the sachar committee report pointed out that the economic conditions of muslims lagged even those of Dalits on key parameters. a 2018 study showed that muslims were the only group in India with lower social mobility than even their parents. as a religious group, muslims rank last when it comes to holding jobs which provide regular wages and salaries as per data from the National sample survey 2009-’10. most muslims are involved in low paying, irregular jobs.

Incredibly, rather than lending the community a helping hand, many Indian politicians have concentrated on trying to push down muslims even further. The past few decades have seen a rise in allegations of muslims being “appeased”. The charge is absurd given the community’s dismal socioeconomic indicators but serves to further marginalise them.

To all of this is now added the fact that violent attacks on muslims doing their jobs is now being normalised. at the start of its second term, the BJP had promised a Citizenship amendment act-National Register of Citizens “chronology” that would subject muslims to a communal citizenship test, thus reducing the community to second-class citizens. While that project has faced several obstacles, another equally insidious form of marginalisation is taking place in the economic sphere, with muslims being pushed to the wall by being denied a chance to making a living.

Indian democracy has faced a number of challenges since it was instituted 70 years ago. But attempts to reduce its massive population of 200 million muslims to a life without hope and the prospect, at best, of second-class citizenship, is the gravest danger it has faced till now.

nally end U.s. dominance and even undermine the United states and other Western societies from within.

This perception is behind the strategy reversal from spreading democracy as far and wide as Russia and China to defending the U.s.-led global system and the political regimes around the West, including in the United states, from Beijing and moscow.

That said, what are the implications of the Biden doctrine? The United states remains a superpower with enormous resources which is now trying to use those resources to make itself stronger. america has reinvented itself before and may well be able to do so again. In foreign policy, Washington has stepped back from styling itself as the world’s benign hegemon to assume the combat posture of the leader of the West under attack.

Within the collective West, U.s. dominance is not in danger. None of the Western countries are capable of going it alone or forming a bloc with others to present an alternative to U.s. leadership. Western and associated elites remain fully beholden to the United states.

What they desire is firm U.s. leadership; what they fear is the United states withdrawing into itself. as for Washington’s partners in the regions that are not deemed vital to U.s. interests, they should know that american support is conditional on those interests and various circumstances.

Nothing new there, really: just ask some leaders in the middle east. For now, how-

ever, Washington vows to support and assist exposed partners like Ukraine and Taiwan. embracing isolationism is not on the cards in the United states. For all the focus on domestic issues, global dominance or at least primacy has firmly become an integral part of U.s. national identity. Nor will liberal and democratic ideology be retired as a major driver of U.s. foreign policy. The United states will not become a “normal” country that only follows the rules of realpolitik. Rather, Washington will use values as a glue to further consolidate its allies and as a weapon to attack its adversaries. It helps the White House that China and Russia are viewed as malign both across the U.s. political spectrum and among U.s. allies and partners, most of whom have fears or grudges against either moscow or Beijing.

In sum, the Biden doctrine does away with engagements that are no longer considered promising or even sustainable by Washington; funnels more resources to address pressing domestic issues; seeks to consolidate the collective West around the United states; and sharpens the focus on China and Russia as america’s main adversaries. Of all these, the most important element is domestic.

It is the success or failure of remaking america, not afghanistan, that will determine not just the legacy of the Biden administration, but the future of the United states itself.

Dmitry Trenin is the director of the Carnegie Moscow Center.

Governments and mercenaries

Defence-in Depth

I

Christopher Kinsey and BoB parr

mages of appalling violence and humanitarian distress surrounding the recently completed crisis evacuations from Hamid Karzai International airport in Kabul have brought into sharp relief the failure of the afghan armed Forces to contain a Taliban insurgency mounted by inferior numbers of poorly equipped men. Despite being resourced with a decade or more of training and sophisticated military hardware valued at more than 100 billion Us dollars, soldiers of the afghan state succumbed to a fractionalised force of religious zealots driving pick-up trucks and wearing leather sandals.

The reasons for this failure are manifold, and no doubt will be subject to commentary, analysis and debate for years to come. Whilst it appears self-evident that President ashraf ghani’s decision to flee overseas rather than remain in afghanistan and exhort his soldiers to hold out played a big part in the rapid collapse of state resistance to the Taliban’s advance, the bigger question is why, after so much investment in the country’s armed Forces across such a protracted period, had the insurgents not already been effectively contained, or even defeated?

One answer to this that has some merit is that it is simply impossible to defeat an ideology, particularly one that is driven by religious zealots. It is, however, possible to contain an armed insurgency, no matter what its cause, provided the strategies and tactics employed are appropriate for the situation at hand. History is littered with examples of such containment: communism in malaysia and Colombia; Islamic separatism in the Philippines; and Dhofari separatism in the sultanate of Oman, to name just a few. given the proactive support of the United states and its Coalition partners in the so-called ‘War on Terror’, what appears to have been missing in afghanistan, more than anything else, were appropriate counterinsurgency strategies and tactics.

Could it be fair to argue then, that the West has simply been getting it wrong? That the application of Western counterinsurgency doctrine is inappropriate and, more importantly, ineffective for a place like afghanistan?

Comparisons with other countries where the West is engaged in the training of armed forces facing insurgency can be instructive. Nigeria is a case in point.

The country’s struggle against Boko Haram, a fundamentalist Islamic grouping affiliated with the Islamic state, has ebbed and flowed through its north-eastern region since 2009 with only limited military success, despite the protracted training and arming of its state

forces by the UK, the Us and others. approaching the presidential election of 2015, a private military company (PmC) called specialised Tasks, Training, equipment & Protection (sTTeP) was contracted by the Nigerian government to raise and train a state military force that could push Boko Haram out of the region and reclaim an overrun swathe of the country as large as Belgium. This seemed to be a tall order, given its limited time, budget and resources. But this is exactly what the company managed to achieve, and in less than five weeks. sTTeP’s chairman, former south african Defence Force officer eeben Barlow, is adamant that the reasons for the company’s success were centred around its intimate cultural knowledge of the operational theatre (sTTeP’s men were all africans); the application of an aggressive military doctrine known as ‘relentless pursuit’ aimed at the annihilation of the enemy; and the embedding of sTTeP instructors alongside the Nigerian soldiers as they operationalised their mission. Barlow insists that capabilities taught by Western defence engagement programmes with the Nigerians had been ineffectual, as were UK counterinsurgency tactics taught to sierra Leone’s soldiers in the mid-1990’s. Here, Barlow’s previous company executive Outcomes took the fight to the enemy on behalf of sierra Leone’s government using minimal resources, and in doing so prevented the near certainty of a genocide in the country’s capital city, Freetown. so, what is the inference of all the above?

Firstly, it is very clear from President Joseph Biden’s decision to abruptly withdraw Us forces from afghanistan that his administration intends continuing Trump’s policy of ‘america First’. This inevitably means the withdrawal of Us military forces from low intensity conflict arenas around the world. secondly, the West retains an interest in such arenas, not least because left alone, they historically spawn antagonists such as al-Qaeda. Thirdly, if counterinsurgency strategies and tactics we are teaching our defence engagement partners are ineffectual, even when supported by the provision of resources on an heroic scale such as in afghanistan, is there an alternative model?

Is it in fact time we stopped demonising companies such as sTTeP and executive Outcomes, and instead embrace what they have to offer? That is, to regard them as potential defence partners and force multipliers in a world where the complexities of conflict require the application of hybrid solutions rather than the predictability of outmoded, predictable and, as so tragically evidenced by recent events in afghanistan, failed counterinsurgency doctrines?

Russia is already doing this in Libya and elsewhere with Wagner group, a Russian PmC providing an effective counterinsurgency response in coordination with Khalifa Haftar and the Libyan National army.

We in the West appear to be somewhat behind the curve, more concerned about how such actors might sully our image than countering insurgencies. a new era of cooperation between governments and what we tend to pejoratively term ‘mercenaries’ is upon us.

Crucially, do we embrace the growing market for force and its potential for capacity building in difficult arenas, or do we ignore it?

Christopher Kinsey, Defence Studies Department and Bob Parr, PhD student at King’s College London and a 25-year veteran of UK Special Forces.

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

BUSINESS 09

LAHORE

BUSInESSmEn SEEk UP To 100BPS CUT In PoLICy rATE KARACHI

A

istan’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled later this month, by the Policy Advisory Board of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), according to a statement.

The policy brief issued on the occasion noted with a sigh of relief that the core inflation in Pakistan, the most definitive indicator for setting up the policy rate for any central bank, has significantly subsided to 6.3pc in August 2021, com-

TLTP

ROUND 84 per cent of the businessmen and researchers suggest that there should be no increase in the policy rate and nearly half of them suggest a cut between 50 to 100 bps.

The monetary policy survey was conducted recently before the State bank of Pak-

pared with 6.9pc in July 2021.

FPCCI President Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo said that the policy interest rate must not be over 6pc and if the central bank wants to promote business activities and economic growth in the country, it should be brought down to 5pc. He also pointed out that the policy interest rate in the region is 3pc to 4pc only and “we have to compete with the region”.

The FPCCI in April last announced

the setting up of a top-level policy & research board to support the government for making industry-friendly policies.

The scope of the board includes but is not limited to develop policy position and advocacy material for the president, the FPCCI and his team to assist the federal and provincial governments in the formulation and implementation of policies, budgetary and fiscal measures, financial and inclusion policies and

Govt to approve 10pc Adhoc relief allowance to members of parliament ISLAMABAD ShAhzAd PArAChA

TPL Corp and Bank of Punjab Ink Long-term Investment Financing & Construction Loan PRESS RELEASE TPL Corp, one of Pakistan's leading conglomerates serving diverse fields like Real Estate, Security and Insurance amongst numerous others, has inked an agreement with Bank of Punjab (BoP) to finance the establishment of multiple real estate projects including Sindh’s first Technology Park, Pakistan’s first Gold LEED-certified ultraluxurious residential project “One Hoshang” and TPL Properties upcoming master-planned community project & investment in group subsidiaries. An agreement to this effect was signed on at Centrepoint, TPL's Head office in Karachi between the respective parties. TPL Corp CEO Ali Jameel signed the agreement with BOP President & CEO Zafar Masud while other senior members from both teams were also present.

Pakistan has been cementing its position globally as one of the largest exporters of tech services in the Asian region. TPL Corp aims build the firstever IT Park in Sindh. A 10,002 square yard plot has been acquired for the purpose and the Bank of Punjab has extended financing for the project.

BoP has approved PKR 4.5 billion which will be utilized for fund development of the Technology Park as well as One Hoshang and will also allow land acquisition for TPLP’s upcoming masterplanned community project. Moreover, the amount will also be used to invest in TPL subsidiaries for future growth opportunities. Speaking on the occasion, Jameel stated; "The potential of this country concerning digital services and information technology is quite promising. With effective orientation, this industry can excel taking the country towards new heights. At TPL, we aim to provide not just our customers but the nation in general with the opportunities it needs to broaden its horizons and achieve excellence through a variety of mediums. We are grateful to the Bank of Punjab for extending their support to us for this project as it has taken us a step closer to making the vision a reality." Masud added: “BOP is extremely pleased to have acted as the Lead Advisor and Arranger of PKR 4,575 million facility for development of housing and state of the art technology park projects of TPL Group.

The Federal government is considering approving a 10 per cent Adhoc relief allowance to the members of parliament.

Sources said that the federal cabinet on Tuesday will deliberate on the Parliamentary Affairs Division concerning ‘Grant of 10pc Adhoc relief allowance on the basic pay to the members of parliament and Chairman/Speaker as well as deputy chairman/deputy speaker’.

Earlier, the Prime Minister after the approval of budget 2021-22 rejected the proposal of cabinet division with regard to increasing pay as well as allowances of cabinet members.

The cabinet division had proposed to increase federal ministries, advisors as well as Special Assistant to PM (SAPM) pay and allowances.

In addition, the cabinet will also deliberate on the revenue

division summary pertaining to the declaration of operational emergency in terms of the public procurement rules 2004.

Sources said that the government will amend the PPRA rules and allow the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to purchase the IT equipment for the upgrade of the system without a tendering process. The FBR has requested the government to amend the rules after a cyber-attack on the data centre on August 14, 2021.

The cabinet will also take up the minister of Commerce summary with regard to the reduction of additional customs duties for vendors under SRO 655(1)/2006 and on heavy commercial vehicles.

The Ministry of Finance will also present the report on the remuneration of the Chairman and members of 20 regulatory authorities. Sources said that the cabinet along with other agenda items will discuss the revenue division’ Waiver of panel surcharge.

Govt assures PFVA of resolving their issues on priority PESHAWAR APP

Federal Government assured Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association (PFVA) on Monday to get their issues resolved on priority regarding the export of perishable commodities.

During a meeting of the special committee of the National Assembly on agricultural products, PFVA has been given a month to compile and submit recommendations to the committee, said a press release issued here.

These recommendations would then be reviewed by the committee during its next session and the concerned Ministries would be issued necessary directives to ensure resolution of the issues from that day onwards.

The meeting was attended by PFVA Patron-in-Chief Waheed Ahmed, Malik Muhammad Ahsan Tiwana and representatives of various ministries & departments. The committee was briefed

by Ahmed about the issues highlighted in the Horticulture Vision 2030 a roadmap, developed by the PFVA through extensive consultation with all the stakeholders.

Association in collaboration with the FPCCI took the initiative to address issues of the horticulture sector and developed a realistic road map “Horticulture Vision -2030 " (HV-2030) through

AGENCIES

Oil prices rose for a second session on Monday as concerns over US output following damage from Hurricane Ida supported the market, along with expectations for higher demand.

Brent crude rose 33 cents, or 0.5% to $73.25 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude also added 32 cents, or 0.5%, to $70.04 at 0436 GMT. Both markets were at their highest since Sept. 3 earlier in the session.

About three-quarters of the offshore oil production in the US Gulf of Mexico, or about 1.4 million barrels per day, has remained halted since late August, roughly equal to what OPEC member Nigeria pro-

duces.

"To compound matters, more oil refineries in Louisiana have resumed operations, raising demand for crude oil," ANZ analysts said in a note.

US refiners are coming back faster than oil production from the impact of Hurricane Ida, a reverse of past storm recoveries. Most of the nine Louisiana refineries impacted by the storm have restarted or were restarting on Friday.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the largest oil producer in the US Gulf, on Thursday cancelled some export cargoes because of damage to offshore facilities from Hurricane Ida, signalling energy losses would continue for weeks.

However, the number of rigs in operation in the United States grew in the latest

UAE govt plans to bind private sector to employ 10pc Emiratis DUBAI AGENCIES

Private sector companies in the UAE will have to fill 10pc of their positions with Emirati nationals in five years time, the UAE said on Sunday in its latest tranche of economic reforms. The Gulf state also said it plans to spend 24 billion dirhams ($6.53 billion) to create 75,000 private sector jobs for its citizens over five years. The target for 10pc of private sector workers to be Emiratis will start with a 2pc target in the first year, the UAE government said on its Twitter account. It also said it wanted to have 10,000 Emiratis in the nursing sector in five years time. Oil-rich Gulf countries like the UAE have traditionally relied heavily on expatriate workforces for skilled and cheap labour.

Citizens largely worked in government jobs.

The UAE historically sourced most of its nursing staff from countries such as the Philipines and India. Since the 2014-2015 oil price shock and as Gulf states try to diversify their revenue bases away from hydrocarbons, they have increasingly encouraged their citizens to work in the private sector rather than be on the state’s payroll. The initiatives are part of 50 new economic pojects the UAE is announcing this month to boost the country’s competitiveness.

The UAE, a regional business and tourism hub, has launched several measures over the past year to attract investment and foreigners to help the economy recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

SBP to announce monetary policy on Sept 20 MONITORING REPORT extensive consultation with all concerned stakeholders, in-depth analysis & research work.

The objective of this vision is to enhance yield per acre and improve the quality of the agri-products by adopting modern methods of harvesting so it can further strengthen the agriculture economy and ensure the food security of Pakistan. Ahmed assured the committee that if the recommendations to resolve issues of the sector highlighted in the HV-2030 are implemented in letter and spirit, the export of fruits and vegetables can be enhanced to US$2 billion in three years and US$6bn in 10 years.

“Due to the deadly global pandemic Coronavirus, the cost of sea freight has multiplied many folds imposing a serious barrier in the enhance-

ment of exports, however the chances to avail the opportunity of TIR (International Transit Trade by road) by Pakistan are bright and by using this facility our country can export agriproducts with minimum cost & time to important international markets but to achieve that, the sector needs trailers and reefer containers,” Ahmed explained. “It is need of the hour that the latest techniques of harvesting fruits & vegetables and export business be included in our current curriculum of agriculture for the development of the horticulture sector,” he proposed.

The members of the committee unanimously agreed that to enhance agri-exports, it was imperative to expeditiously resolve structural, operational & policyrelated issues on a priority basis.

Oil rises for a second day as US supply concerns dominate SINGAPORE

regulatory matters of the all government and autonomous agencies.

The FPCCI appointed Mohammad Younus Dagha, former federal secretary for water and power, commerce and finance as the chairman of the Policy & Research Board. Dagha is one of Pakistan's most accomplished and celebrated civil servants and commands an astounding grip over major aspects of the economy and its important sectors.

week, energy service provider Baker Hughes said, indicating production may rise in coming weeks.

Beyond the impact of Ida, market attention will focus this week on potential revisions to the oil demand outlook from the Organization of the Petroleum Operating Countries (OPEC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA) as coronavirus cases continued to rise. OPEC will likely revise its 2022 forecast lower on Monday, two people familiar with the matter said.

"It looks like oil prices may continue to drift in a consolidation range for now, $70-$75 as we mentioned previously," said Howie Lee, an economist at Singapore's OCBC bank.

"Markets still need clarity on the virus impacts beyond the very near term and

until we get that, it seems like most assets, including oil, may continue to drift sideways."

Money managers raised their net long US crude futures and options positions in the week to Sept. 7, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Friday.

Supply risks remain from China's planned release of oil from strategic reserves while the hope of fresh talks on a wider nuclear deal between Iran and the West was raised after the U.N. atomic watchdog reached an agreement with Iran on Sunday about the overdue servicing of monitoring equipment to keep it running.

China said on Monday it will announce details of planned crude oil sales from strategic reserves in due course.

The Monetary Policy Committee of SBP will meet on Monday, September 20, 2021, at SBP Karachi to decide about the Monetary Policy.

Later on, SBP will issue the Monetary Policy Statement through a press release on the same day. The central bank issued an advanced calendar of MPC meetings earlier in May 2021 through a press release and all the meetings are being held accordingly. Earlier on July 27, the SBP had maintained status quo and left the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 7 per cent for the next two months to support businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic. Before that, due to the lockdowns imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19 in the country, the SBP had aggressively slashed the benchmark interest rate by 625 basis points from March to June 2020 to 7pc. The central bank, through monetary policy tatements over the last few months, has repeatedly hinted that it might maintain the rate at the current level of 7pc until the economy recovers from Covid-19 pandemic.

Balochistan’s Juzzak Airport made operational for Chinese engineers MONITORING REPORT The Juzzak Airport in Chagai district of Balochistan has been made operational for flights to and from Karachi for Chinese engineers working on projects in the region. According to details, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) held a ceremony on the border region airport site on Sunday night to inaugurate the strip for Chinese staffers. PIA ATR turboprop aircraft to perform chartered flights between Karachi and Juzzak for the transportation of people working on Saindak Copper-Gold Project. Separately, the first flight of the national flag career landed at the Kabul International airport after the new government in Afghanistan on Monday.

As per details, the flight PK-6249 landed at Kabul airport at 9.45 am local time. Special arrangements were put in place by the Afghan Civil Aviation officials and local PIA staff.

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

10 FOREIGN NEWS

LAHORE

Villagers flee hoMes as sPanish wildfire blazes for fifth day MADRID

P

ReuteRs

EOPLE fled their homes in six more Andalusian towns and villageson Sunday as Spain sent in a military unit to help tackle blazes raging close to a Costa del Sol resort.

A wildfire fanned by strong winds has now driven out close to 2,000 people and killed one emergency worker since it erupted on Wednesday in the mountainous Sierra Bermeja above Estepona, a popular spot with British tourists and retirees.

Huge plumes of smoke rising above the mountains could be seen from miles away.

Footage released by emergency services showed firefighters trying to contain flames in the dry, wooded terrain.

Evacuees, some elderly, sat around plastic tables in a sports centre in the nearby town of Ronda, as volunteers brought in bottled water, chairs and supplies.

"It's all been very fast and efficient to tell you the truth, but we're a bit nervous because we don't know what is going to happen," said computer scientist Abraham Lopez, who was evacuated from his home in Genalguacil.

Emergency crews also cleared people from the towns and villages of Jubrique, Farajan, Pujerra, Alpandeire and Juzcar on Sunday in the hills where the fire is burning amid high late-summer temperatures.

Five other communities were evacuated on Friday.

The fire had an "unusual power and strength" and was advancing in several directions, Alejandro Garcia from the forest fire agency's operational centre told reporters.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the deployment of a Military Emergency Unit to help tackle the blaze. "We will work in coordination and without rest in the face of the fire that is devastating the province of Malaga," he said on Twitter.

The fire covered more than 6,000 hectares according to provisional data from the European Commission's Copernicus satellite, the environment ministry said in a statement.

Andalusia's regional forest fire agency said 365 firefighters were tackling the blaze supported by 41 aircraft and 25 vehicles.

Regional environment chief Carmen Crespo said on Friday the blaze appeared to have been started deliberately and investigators were working to uncover more details.

North Korea tests first ‘strategic’ cruise missile with possible nuclear capability SEOUL ReuteRs

Japan PM contender Kishida aims to boost security with China in mind TOKYO ReuteRs

Japan needs to let its coast guard work smoothly with selfdefence forces, in the face of assertiveness by giant neighbour China, Fumio Kishida, a contender to head the ruling party, and so become the next prime minister, said on Monday. Only lawmakers and grassroots members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party will vote for its chief in a September 29 election, but candidates’ popularity with the public counts, as the winner will lead it into general elections this year. “The security environment around Japan is getting tougher,” Kishida told a news conference. “We need to strive to ensure maritime safety through such measures as bolstering coast guard capability and allowing them to work with the Self-Defence Forces.” Acquiring the capability to strike enemy targets was one option, Kishida said, adding that he would not blindly adhere to holding defence spending below 1 percent of Japan’s gross domestic product if necessary to protect citizens. The remarks follow a surprise announcement this month by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga that he would step down, ending a one-year term in which his support crumbled as coronavirus infections surged. The LDP’s dominant position in the lower house of parliament ensures the post of prime minister for its leader. Kishida stressed the importance of protecting human rights, democracy and freedom, adding that, if elected, he would appoint a prime ministerial aide to monitor China’s debated treatment of its Uyghur ethnic minority.

“Through cooperation with countries with which Japan shares universal values, I would raise high the torch of freedom and democracy,” the former foreign minister said.

In weekend opinion polls on the choice of a successor to Suga as head of the ruling party, the minister in charge of vaccines, Taro Kono, emerged as the favoured candidate.

He was chosen by 33 percent of respondents in a weekend survey by the Asahi daily, followed by 16 percent for former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba and 14 percent for Kishida. The survey also showed that 58 percent of respondents believed the next LDP leader should not take over the policies of Suga and Shinzo Abe, who preceded Suga. A similar poll by the Nikkei business daily also put Kono ahead, backed by 27 percent of respondents, with 17 percent for Ishiba and 14 percent for Kishida. Kono and Kishida have declared their candidacy for the top party post, while Ishiba has not revealed his intention.

North Korea carried out successful tests of a new long-range cruise missile over the weekend, state media said on Monday, seen by analysts as possibly the country’s first such weapon with a nuclear capability. The missiles are “a strategic weapon of great significance” and flew 1,500 km (930 miles) before hitting their targets and falling into the country’s territorial waters during the tests on Saturday and Sunday, KCNA said.

The latest test highlighted steady progress in Pyongyang’s weapons programme amid gridlock over talks aimed at dismantling the North’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes in return for US sanctions relief. The talks have stalled since 2019.

North Korea’s cruise missiles usually generate less interest than ballistic missiles because they are not explicitly banned under U.N. Nations Security Council Resolutions.

“This would be the first cruise missile in North Korea to be explicitly designated a ‘strategic’ role,” said Ankit Panda, a senior fellow at the US-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “This is a common euphemism for the nuclear-capable system.”

It is unclear whether North Korea has mastered the technology needed to build warheads small enough to be carried on a cruise missile, but leader Kim Jong Un said earlier this year that developing

smaller bombs is a top goal.

The two Koreas have been locked in an accelerating arms race that analysts fear will leave the region littered with powerful new missiles.

South Korea’s military did not disclose whether it had detected the North’s latest tests but said on Monday it was conducting a detailed analysis in cooperation with the United States.

The US military’s Indo-Pacific Command said it was aware of the reports and was coordinating with its allies and partners.

“This activity highlights (North Korea’s) continuing focus on developing its military program and the threats that poses to its neighbours and the international community,” INDOPACOM said in a statement.

Rodong Sinmun, the ruling Workers’ Party’s official newspaper, ran photos of the new cruise missile flying and being fired from a transporter-erector-launcher.

The test provides “strategic significance of possessing another effective deterrence means for more reliably guaranteeing the security of our state and strongly containing the military manoeuvres of the hostile forces,” KCNA said.

It was seen as the North’s first missile launch after it tested a new tactical short-range ballistic missile in March. North Korea also conducted a cruise missile test just hours after US President Joe Biden took office in late January.

SERIOUS CAPABILITY: Jeffrey Lewis, a missile researcher at the James Martin Center for Nonprolif-

eration Studies, said intermediate-range land-attack cruise missiles were no less a threat than ballistic missiles and were a pretty serious capability for North Korea. “This is another system that is designed to fly under missile defence radars or around them,” Lewis said on Twitter.

Cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles that can be armed with either conventional or nuclear bombs are particularly destabilising in the event of conflict as it can be unclear which kind of warhead they are carrying, analysts said.

Kim Jong Un did not appear to have attended the test, with KCNA saying Pak Jong Chon, a member of the Workers’ Party’s powerful politburo and a secretary of its central committee, oversaw it.

The reclusive North has long accused the United States and South Korea of “hostile policy” toward Pyongyang.

The unveiling of the test came just a day before chief nuclear negotiators from the United States, South Korea and Japan meet in Tokyo to explore ways to break the standoff with North Korea.

China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, is also scheduled to visit Seoul on Tuesday for talks with his counterpart, Chung Eui-yong.

Biden’s administration has said it is open to diplomacy to achieve North Korea’s denuclearisation, but has shown no willingness to ease sanctions.

Sung Kim, the US envoy for North Korea, said in August in Seoul that he was ready to meet with North Korean officials “anywhere, at any time.”

A reactivation of inter-Korean hotlines in July raised hopes for a restart of the negotiations, but the North stopped answering calls as annual South Korea-US military exercises began last month, which Pyongyang had warned could trigger a security crisis.

A reluctant feminist: Germany’s Merkel still inspires many women BERLIN ReuteRs

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has become a feminist icon after 16 years in power even though the world's most powerful woman has only belatedly accepted that label as she prepares to step down, and conceded that gender equality is still a long way off.

"She is admired by women all over the world, this is her main legacy. That a woman showed what she is capable of and does this with dignity and resolve," German feminist activist Alice Schwarzer told Reuters. A rare woman in the upper echelons of her conservative, male-dominated Christian Democrats (CDU), Merkel, 67, long avoided casting herself as a feminist and has only reluctantly supported some policies pushed by feminists such as quotas for women in boardrooms.

"She hasn't spent the last 16 years carrying out great feminist deeds. To be fair she had quite a few other things on her plate," Schwarzer said, noting Merkel had supported policies that helped women like expanding state-funded childcare.

"The very fact of her existence is a feminist statement."

In 2017, Merkel avoided saying whether she considered herself a feminist when urged to do so at an event with then International Monetary Fund (IMF) director Christine Lagarde and Ivanka Trump, daughter of then-US President Donald Trump.

"I don't want to decorate myself with a title I don't actually have," Merkel said back then.

However, as her time in power draws to a close, Merkel - who grew up in the former Communist East Germany and has a doctorate in quantum chemistry has reconsidered her position.

"I have thought my answer through more and so I can say yes: we should all be feminists," Merkel said to cheers at an event with Nigerian author ChimamandaNgoziAdichie, whose TED talk entitled "We should all be feminists" went viral in 2013.

GERMAN BOYS NOW ASK: CAN A MAN BE CHANCELLOR? At the premiere of a film that tells the story of prominent female politicians in post-war West Germany, Merkel said last month she was disappointed that women still account for only 31 percent of seats in parliament.

"We have not yet achieved equality between women and men in Germany. Much remains to be done," she said.

Schwarzer recalled that Germany wasn't really ready for its first female chancellor when Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) narrowly won the election in 2005, with her predecessor Gerhard Schroeder saying publicly she wasn't up to the job.

But Merkel could even overtake former mentor Helmut Kohl to become Germany's longest serving chancellor if it takes a long time to form a coalition government after the Sept. 26 election.

Schwarzer said she is impressed by how Merkel has held her own among powerful men: "There is a joke in Germany: a small boy asks, mum, can men also become chancellor? One person proved it and now it is out there and no one can take that away now." Despite the fact that Merkel wears unfussy trouser suits that play down her femininity, Schwarzer said the chancellor still has a certain feminine charm that she uses in dealings with world leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron.

"She has something girlish about her and is more than able to flirt. I mean you see it when she meets Macron, for whom she has an unmistakable liking," she said. Women and girls say the impact of Merkel - who is often known as "Mutti", or mum, although she has no children herself, - has been profound in a country where traditional gender roles are only changing slowly.

"She has done a lot to pave the way for others, now it is completely normal to see female chancellor candidates. And this hasn't always been the case," said Maria Luisa Schill, a resident of the southwestern university town of Freiburg.

Lia, a 9-year-old girl in Berlin, said she would like to be chancellor one day. Asked what she would do, Lia said: "Work, I would just get on with it, and earn money!" Her mother Nancy added: "(Merkel) has so much strength and influence on so many people and I do think especially woman."

Tuesday, 14 september, 2021

sporTs 11

lahorE

Medvedev winS US Open tO end djOkOvic calendaR GRand SlaM bid NEW YORK

n

AFP

OVAK Djokovic's quest for a record 21st major title that would have completed the calendar year Grand Slam collapsed at the final hurdle in a stunning 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 defeat by Russian Daniil Medvedev in the US Open final on Sunday.

Medvedev, playing in his third major final, at last hoisted a Grand Slam trophy while avenging a straight sets defeat by Djokovic earlier this year in the Australian Open final.

The 34-year-old Serb was trying to become the first man in over a half-century to win all four majors (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open) in the same year.

It would have made him only the third man to achieve the feat after Don Budge (1938) and Rod Laver (1962 and 1969), who was watching from a courtside seat.

"It's a tough one to swallow, this loss, considering everything that was on the line," said Djokovic.

"I was glad it was over because the build-up for this tournament and everything that mentally, emotionally I had to deal with throughout the tournament in the last couple of weeks was just a lot. It was a lot to handle."

For the fifth consecutive match, Djokovic found himself playing catch-up after dropping the first set.

But this time, there would be no way out as the rampaging Russian kept up the pressure with a barrage of aces while allowing Djokovic a single break. In the second, set Medvedev stepped up the pressure further and Djokovic showed the first signs of cracking — the Serb destroying his racquet in a fit of frustration after missing two break chances.

With Djokovic on the ropes, Medvedev moved in with the knockout punch, breaking to clinch the second then racing to a double break 4-0 lead in the third.

Such was Medvedev's domination that the only tiny bit of suspense came late in the third when the Russian was suddenly hit by a bout of nerves trying to close out the match.

Serving at 5-2, Medvedev double faulted on match point, allowing Djokovic to secure his break.

After the top seed held serve to trim the deficit to 5-4, Medvedev again had match point and again double faulted.

But the 25-year-old did not squander another chance, gathering himself to clinch the title on his third attempt.

Medvedev later revealed there might have been more drama had the match gone any further. He said he was starting to cramp up just as he began to close out the third and feared Djokovic would pounce if he saw any sign of vulnerability.

"At 5-4, my left leg, I almost couldn't walk," said Medvedev.

"When I walked to the towel, my leg was just going behind.

"I was trying not to show it. If Novak feels it, it's not good."

WEIGHT OF HISTORY: Djokovic arrived on Arthur Ashe Stadium court with the weight of history on his shoulders.

An extraordinary women's final on Saturday between teenagers Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez had softened the spotlight's glare on Djokovic but there was no shirking from it on Sunday with tennis fans around the world tuned in to witness history.

The women's final was the first Grand Slam to feature two unseeded players but the men's followed the form book to the letter with number one Djokovic meeting number two Medvedev.

The New York crowd had never really embraced Djokovic the way it wrapped its arms around Swiss Roger Federer and Spaniard Rafa Nadal,

Indian players refused to play fifth Test against England, says BCCI chief

who have also won 20 Grand Slam titles. It had also shown no real love for Medvedev, the lanky Russian who relished the role of US Open villain on his way to the 2019 final.

Perhaps sensing they were about to witness something special, the crowd rallied behind Djokovic from the moment he stepped on court, showering him with cheers and chants of his nickname: "Nole, Nole, Nole".

"I felt something I never felt in my life here in New York," said Djokovic. "The crowd made me [feel] very special. The emotion, the energy was so strong. I mean, it's as strong as winning 21 Grand Slams.

That's how I felt, honestly."

But no amount of support could lift Djokovic's game.

The Serb had said he would treat the final as if it were the last match of his career but never came close to finding his best.

Medvedev was also keenly aware there was a line in the history books for him if he were the player to deny Djokovic the coveted calendar year Grand Slam.

"It definitely makes it sweeter," said Medvedev. "He was going for huge history and knowing that I managed to stop him, it definitely makes it sweeter and brings me confidence for what is to come."

Solskjaer says not impossible to leave Ronaldo out of team MANCHESTER REUTERS

NEW DELHI REUTERS

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President SouravGanguly said their players refused to play the fifth and final Test against England due to Covid-19 concerns and denied that the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) had played any part in the decision.

The Old Trafford Test was cancelled last Friday barely two hours before its scheduled start as the tourists, who were leading the series 2-1, failed to field a side after their physiotherapist tested positive for Covid-19. "The players refused to play but you can't blame them," Ganguly told Indian newspaper The Telegraph on Monday. "Physio YogeshParmar was such a close contact of the players ... he mixed freely with the players and even performed

their Covid-19 tests.

He also used to give them a massage, he was part of their everyday lives. "The players were devastated when they came to know that he had tested positive for Covid-19. They feared they must have contracted the disease and were dead scared," he said.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan has suggested that India's players were "petrified" of testing positive ahead of the IPL, which resumes on September 19 in the United Arab Emirates. But England and Wales Cricket Board CEO Tom Harrison has said the cancellation had nothing to do with the IPL and Ganguly echoed those comments.

"The BCCI will never be an irresponsible board. We value other boards too," he said, adding that the match is likely to be held as a one-off match next year.

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said he will carefully manage Cristiano Ronaldo's playing time but has to balance that with getting the 36-year-old Portugal forward settled into the side. Ronaldo, who has rejoined United after 12 years away, marked his comeback at Old Trafford with two goals in Saturday's 4-1 Premier League win over Newcastle United. United return to action in Tuesday's opening Champions League group stage match against Swiss club Young Boys and Solskjaer said he would not rule out resting Ronaldo. "It's not impossible to leave him out," Solskjaer said. "He is 36. Mason (Greenwood) is 19 so it's the same, I have to manage his minutes and I have to manage a 36-year-old's minutes as well. "The other thing with Cristiano is that he looks after himself so much so I know he will recover quickly and he has had a pre-season.

"Of course, it's important that we get everyone up and running and to get him up and running and to give him 90 minutes."

American Horschel wins PGA title, Wiesberger earns Ryder Cup debut LONDON REUTERS

American Billy Horschel birdied the 18th hole to claim the BMW PGA Championship title in a tense finish on Sunday in a tournament with huge implications for Europe's Ryder Cup team.

Horschel was tied for first in a group on -18 as he stood over his third shot at the par-five 18th at Wentworth but produced a sensational wedge for a nailed-on birdie to complete a sizzling round of seven-under 65.

With Horschel in the clubhouse, Englishman Laurie Canter needed to find a birdie at the last to force a playoff but was unable to do so and ended in a tie for second alongside Welshman Jamie Donaldson and Thailand's KiradechAphibarnrat who shot a superb closing 64.

Horschel, whose bag sports the colours and emblem of English soccer club West Ham United, is only the second American to win the title, following in the footsteps of Arnold Palmer.

Afterwards he said he would celebrate by going to dinner with West Ham's England international Declan Rice.

"I am speechless really, and that's rare," Horschel, who has missed the US Ryder Cup team, said. "To win this event means a lot, this is like the Players' Championship."

"I knew if I could birdie one of the last three holes I could win and one was enough."

Apart from the title at stake in the European Tour's flagship tournament, the race to nail down the four remaining automatic spots on Europe's team for this month's Ryder Cup offered an intriguing sub-plot

throughout the week.

Austrian Bernd Wiesberger, who required a top-50 finish to book his Ryder Cup debut, ended with a level-par 72 which was enough for a share of 20th and a seat on the plane, qualifying after finishing fourth on the European points list.

"It's unreal you know, it was really tough out there today," Wiesberger told Sky Sports. "You try to stay away from all the noise but it was difficult. I had to grind.

But at the end of the day I'm really proud and relieved to make the team."

England's Matt Fitzpatrick also guaranteed his place after a closing 68 earned him a top-20 finish while Tyrrell Hatton, who missed the cut on the defence of his crown, is also in.

Justin Rose did not claim the title which would have elevated him into the Ryder Cup team on merit despite a sizzling last-round 65 which included him coming close to holing an albatros on the 18th hole.

Ireland's Shane Lowry was left sweating on receiving a captain's pick for the Ryder Cup after failing to secure the topeight finish he required to grab an automatic spot.

But he was handed the third captain's pick by captain Padraig Harrington and will make his Ryder Cup debut later this month at the expense of Rose who was left out.

Lee Westwood's dismal round of 77 had opened the door for Lowry to edge above him in the race to grab an automatic place, but Lowry faltered on the back nine.

After moving into a tie for fifth place Lowry bogeyed the 14th and followed that with a double bogey, ending on 12 under in 17th place -- a relief for veteran West-

wood who will make his 11th appearance in the biennial match.

Five players -- Jon Rahm, Rory McIl-

roy, Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland and Paul Casey -- had already qualified on merit for the Ryder Cup at Whistling

Straits from September 24-26.

Harrington's other two picks were Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia.

Tuesday, 14 September, 2021

PrAyer Timings

NEWS

FAJR SUNRISE

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ASR MAGHRIB ISHA

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PIA PlAne lAnds In KABul In fIRsT coMMeRcIAl flIGHT sInce TAlIBAn TAKeoveR IsLAMABAD

A

AFP

commercial passenger flight of Pakistan International Airlines from Islamabad, the first international commercial flight since the Taliban takeover, touched down in the Afghanistan capital Kabul on Monday.

The flight carrying a handful of passengers, most of them foreign journalists, landed at the Kabul airport, which was severely damaged during a chaotic evacuation of more than 120,000 people ahead of the August 31 deadline for US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

“PIA staff took international journalists to Kabul [from Islamabad] and brought back a team from the World Bank and international news agencies,” PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafeez Khan said in a statement.

“This was the first international passenger flight since the new government took of-

fice in Kabul. The purpose of the flight is to promote goodwill between Pakistan and Afghanistan and to strengthen the operation on the basis of humanitarian sympathy.”

Khan said the flight was possible because of the efforts of Pakistan’s ambassador in Kabul, Mansoor Ahmad Khan, and other diplomatic staff, adding special arrangements were made for Afghan Civil Aviation and local PIA staff to restore services at Kabul Airport “Trained airport staff joined duty and handled the flight,” he said.

An AFP journalist who was aboard the flight from Islamabad said: “There was hardly anyone on the plane, around 10 people […] maybe more staff than passengers.”

The resumption of commercial flights will be a key test for the Taliban, who have promised to allow its people with the right documents to leave the country freely.

Many NATO nations admitted that they had run out of time to evacuate thousands of

at-risk locals before the August 31 deadline, which was agreed between the US and the Taliban. A PIA spokesman said over the weekend the airline was keen to resume regular commercial services, but it was too soon to say how frequently flights between the two capitals would operate.

Qatar Airways operated several charter flights out of Kabul last week, carrying mostly foreigners and Afghans who missed the evacuation.

An Afghan airline resumed domestic services on September 3.

A ‘HOPEFUL DAY’: “This is a big moment. We are very excited,” said one airport employee, dressed in a blue shalwar kameez and orange high-visibility vest.

“It’s a hopeful day. Maybe other airlines will see this and decide to come back.”

A bus painted with a “Welcome to Afghanistan” was waiting to ferry the passengers from the plane to the terminal, but in the end, the new arrivals walked. Around

100 passengers were waiting to catch the return flight to Islamabad, mostly relatives of staffers with international organisations such as the World Bank, according to airport ground staff. Passenger halls, airbridges and technical infrastructure were badly damaged in the days after the Taliban rolled into Kabul on August 15, when thousands of people stormed the airport in the hope of fleeing.

Tens of thousands of Afghans fear reprisals for helping foreign powers during the 20-year US-led occupation, but the Taliban insist they have granted a general amnesty to everyone — including the security forces they fought against.

TALIBAN ISSUE EDUCATION RESTRICTIONS FOR WOMEN: While the Taliban have promised a milder form of rule this time, the group has moved swiftly to crush dissent, including firing in the air to disperse recent protests by women calling for the right to education and work.

As West ponders aid for Afghanistan, Pakistan and China quick to provide relief IsLAMABAD reuTers

As international donors gather in Geneva today to discuss humanitarian relief for Afghanistan under Taliban rule, neighbours Pakistan and China have already reached out with aid and discussions of future assistance.

The economy in the war-torn country is in crisis and a humanitarian crisis is looming, experts say.

Yet the United States and other Western nations are reluctant to provide the Taliban with funds until the group provides assurances that it will uphold human rights, and in particular the rights of women.

The country’s roughly $10 billion in foreign assets, held overseas, are also frozen.

“The understandable purpose is to deny these funds to the de facto Taliban administration,” Deborah Lyons, the UN Secretary General’s special representative for Afghanistan, told the Security Council this week.

“The inevitable effect, however, will be a severe economic downturn that could throw many more millions into poverty and hunger, may generate a massive wave of refugees from Afghanistan, and indeed set Afghanistan back for generations.”

Another possible effect could be to drive Afghanistan closer to its neighbours and close allies Pakistan and China, who have already sent planeloads of supplies to Afghanistan. They have also signalled they are open to ramped-up engagement.

China announced last week it would send $31 million worth of food and health supplies to Afghanistan, among the first foreign aid pledges since the Taliban took power last month. Pakistan last week sent supplies such as cooking oil and medicine to authorities in

Kabul, while the foreign minister called on the international community to provide assistance without conditions and to unfreeze Afghanistan’s assets.

MINERALS AND MILITANCY: Pakistan has maintained diplomatic contact with the Taliban throughout the war against terror following the 9/11 attacks.

China, with a strong alliance with Pakistan, has also been engaging with the Taliban. Some analysts said it was enticed by the country’s mineral wealth, including large reserves of lithium, a key component for electric vehicles.

China has also expressed concern about militancy that could spill over from Afghanistan across its border, which it wants the Taliban administration to help contain. Beyond humanitarian aid, some experts and officials in the region say China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative could provide Afghanistan with long-term economic viability.

One possibility is Afghanistan joining the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a central part of the BRI, under which Beijing has pledged over $60 billion for infrastructure projects in Pakistan.

“The Taliban would welcome joining CPEC, China would also be very happy,” said Rustam Shah Mohmand, former Pakistan ambassador to Afghanistan.

China has not made any comment on the BRI but Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said Beijing is ready to actively discuss the resumption of China-Afghanistan freight trains and facilitate Afghanistan’s interaction with the outside world, especially its access to humanitarian supplies.

Pakistan’s Foreign Office and a Taliban spokesperson did not immediately respond to the request for comment.

Afghanistan’s acting deputy PM Mullah Baradar releases audio statement refuting death rumours ReuteRs The Taliban co-founder and now deputy prime minister of Afghanistan released an audio statement on Monday, saying he was alive and well after news of his supposed demise went viral on social media. Abdul Ghani Baradar, who was last week named as a number two to Mullah Mohammed Hassan Akhund, blamed “fake propaganda” for the death rumours in an audio message posted by the Taliban. Social media has been in a frenzy over the speculation — particularly in India, where rumours swirled that he had been mortally wounded in a shootout between rival Taliban factions at the presidential palace. “There had been news in the media about my death,” Baradar said in the clip. “Over the past few nights I have been away on trips.

Wherever I am at the moment, we are all fine, all my brothers and friends.

“Media always publish fake propaganda. Therefore, reject bravely all those lies, and I 100 percent confirm to you there is no issue and we have no problem.” It was not possible to authenticate the message, but it was posted on official Taliban sites — including that of the spokesman of the political office of the new government. The Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, was also rumoured to have died for several years before the group’s spokesman said he was “present in Kandahar” two weeks after they took power. Chatter in Pakistan and Afghanistan had suggested he had contracted Covid or been killed in a bombing.

TALIBAN, CHINA TALK: SOURCE: Taliban leaders in recent weeks have said they want good relations with China.

A senior Taliban source said discussions have taken place with China in Doha about possible investment opportunities. China is interested in mining in particular but any activity in the sector will be open to tender, the source said.

“The Taliban welcomes foreign investment that will benefit the country,” he said.

Two sources in Afghanistan and Pakistan familiar with the matter said China had been proactively encouraging Afghanistan to join CPEC for years but had been met with a noncommittal response from the previous USbacked government.

The Taliban, with a need for economic stimulus and international recognition, seems keener.

“The best way forward and the immediately available alternative option for Afghanistan’s economic development is CPEC, which includes Pakistan and China,” said Mushahid Hussain Sayed, PML-N senator and former chairman of the China-Pakistan Institute. “The new administration in Kabul would also be receptive to this and they are keen on it.”

For China, though, which already has mining interests in Afghanistan that have struggled to get off the ground, any further investment would come with risks attached, given the uncertain security situation in the country.

“Absolutely the security and stability of Afghanistan is also of importance to China,” said Wang Huiyao, president of the Centre for China and Globalisation, a think-tank.

“But also links to Central Asia and the connectivity through the Belt and Road, it’s all related for the regional stability and prosperity [… ] There’s a stake there for China.”

Sunday, the Taliban higher education minister, Abdul Baqi Haqqani, laid out the new policies at a news conference, several days after Afghanistan’s new rulers formed an all-male government.

Restrictions on female university students include compulsory hijabs although Haqqani did not specify if this meant compulsory headscarves or also compulsory face coverings. Gender segregation will also be enforced, he said. “We will not allow boys and girls to study together,” he said. “We will not allow co-education.”

Haqqani said the subjects being taught would also be reviewed. While he did not elaborate, he said he wanted graduates of Afghanistan’s universities to be competitive with university graduates in the region and the rest of the world.

While the Taliban have not ruled out the eventual participation of women in government, the spokesman said “it’s not necessary that women be in the cabinet.”

Three climbers stranded on Rakaposhi mountain during descent IsLAMABAD The AssociATed Press

Three climbers were stranded on Rakaposhi mountain while descending and efforts were being made Sunday to rescue them by helicopter, an official said. Czech climbers Jakub Vicek and Peter Macek and Wajidullah Nagri from Pakistan were stranded in Camp-3 on Rakaposhi at a height of 6,900 meters (22,640 feet). Gilgit-Baltistan Minister for Tourism, Sports and Culture Raja Nasir Ali Khan said in a tweet the government has provided helicopter rescue service. But he did not say whether the rescue operation had begun. Khan also tweeted that the Czech mountaineers began the climb without government permission. “We do expect from everyone going on to such expeditions to comply with laws and regulations for their own safety and well-being in the face of emergencies,” Khan said. Alpine Club of Pakistan officials were not available for comment and did not release a statement. Located in Gilgit-Baltistan, Rakaposhi is part of the Karakoram mountain range and is the world’s 27th highest peak.

Israel hits Hamas targets in Gaza in response to rocket fire JeRusALeM The AssociATed Press

Israeli aircraft struck a series of targets in the Gaza Strip early Monday in response to a series of rocket launches out of the Hamas-ruled territory. It was the third consecutive night of fighting between the enemies.

Tensions have been heightened following last week’s escape from an Israeli prison by six Palestinian inmates, as well as struggling efforts by Egypt to broker a long-term cease-fire in the wake of an 11-day war last May. The Israeli military reported three separate rocket launches late Sunday and early Monday, saying at least two of them were intercepted by its rocket defenses. In response, it said it attacked a number of Hamas targets. There were no reports of casualties on either side. Over the weekend, Israel caught four of the six Palestinian inmates, who tunnelled out of a maximum-security prison on September 6. Its search for the last two prisoners is continuing. Meanwhile, Egyptian-mediated efforts to deliver a long-term truce have struggled with the sides unable to agree on a system to renew Qatari payments to needy Gaza families. Israel has demanded guarantees that Hamas does not divert the money for military use. Gaza is an impoverished territory whose population is overwhelmingly comprised of families who fled or were forced from properties in what is now Israel during the war surrounding Israel’s establishment in 1948.

Mars rocks collected by rover boost case for ancient life WAsHINGtON AFP

NASA’s Perse¬ve¬rance Mars rover has now collected two rock samples with signs that they were in contact with water for a long period of time, boosting the case for ancient life on the Red Planet.

“It looks like our first rocks reveal a potentially habitable sustained environment,” said Ken Farley, project scientist for the mission, in a statement on Friday.

“It’s a big deal that the water was there for a long time.” The six-wheeled robot collected its first sample, dubbed “Montdenier” on September 6, and its second, “Montagnac” from the same rock on September 8.

Both samples, slightly wider than a pencil in diameter and about six centimetres long, are now stored in sealed tubes in the rover’s interior.

A first attempt at collecting a sample in early August failed after the rock proved too crumbly to withstand Perseverance’s drill.

The rover has been operating in a region known as the Jezero Crater, just north of the equator and home to a lake 3.5 billion years ago, when conditions on Mars were much warmer and wetter than today.

The rock that provided the first samples was found to be basaltic in composition and likely the product of lava flows.

Volcanic rocks contain crys-

talline minerals that are helpful in radiometric dating.

This in turn could help scientists build up a picture of the area’s geological history, such as when the crater formed, when the lake appeared and disappeared, and how climate changed over time. “An interesting thing about these rocks as well is that they show signs for sustained interaction with groundwater,” NASA geologist Katie Stack Morgan told a press conference.

The scientists already knew the crater was home to a lake, but couldn’t rule out the possibility that it had been a “flash in the pan” with floodwaters filling up the crater for as little as 50 years.

Now they are more certain

Published by Arif Nizami at Qandeel Printing Press, 4 Queens Road, Lahore, for PT Print (Pvt) Limited. Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk

groundwater was present for much longer.

“If these rocks experienced water for long periods of time, there may be habitable niches within these rocks that could have supported ancient microbial life,” added Stack Morgan.

The salt minerals in the rock cores may have trapped tiny bubbles of ancient Martian water.

“Salts are great minerals for preserving signs of ancient life here on Earth, and we expect the same may be true for rocks on Mars,” added Stack Morgan.

NASA is hoping to return the samples to Earth for in-depth lab analysis in a joint mission with the European Space Agency sometime in the 2030s.