EpaperISB_20-12-31

Thursday, 31 December, 2020 I 15 Jumada Al-Awwal, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 182 I 12 Pages I Islamabad Edition

Pakistan's Covid-19 deaths Cross 10,000 mark Govt to cancel Nawaz's passport on February 16, says interior minister ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

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He death toll due to the coronavirus pandemic in the country crossed the grave mark of 10,000 and reached 10,047 after 55 more people died of Covid-19 during the last 24 hours, said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) issued on Wednesday.

A total of 2,155 new infections were reported during the last 24 hours, surging the national tally of cases to 477,240. Almost 4,619 patients have recovered from the virus in a day and 2,219 patients are in critical condition. The total count of active cases is 37,080 as 430,113 people have recovered from the deadly disease.

A total of 36,390 tests were conducted across the country during the last 24 hours, while so far 6,656,373 samples have been tested.

The positivity rate of Covid-19 cases has been recorded highest in Karachi up to 13.84 per cent and lowest in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region up to 0.62 per cent. The overall

positivity rate of novel coronavirus cases stands at 5.92 per cent.

The positivity rate was recorded 2.14 per cent in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), 4.95 per cent in Balochistan, 0.62 per cent in GB, 4.44 per cent in Punjab, 3.98 per cent in Islamabad Capital Territory, 5.87 per cent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and 8.4 per cent in Sindh.

The positivity rate in different cities was reported as; 4.9 per cent in Rawalpindi, 6.12 per cent in Lahore, 4.21 per cent in Faisalabad, 4.85 per cent in Multan, 8.79 per cent in Hyderabad, 7.21 per cent in Peshawar, 7.89 per cent in Swat, 9.94 per cent in Quetta and 1.79 per cent in Muzaffarabad.

Meanwhile, the highest number of oxygenated bed occupancy in the country was in Peshawar at 63 per cent, followed by Multan 39 per cent, Islamabad 35 per cent and Rawalpindi 30 per cent.

The NCOC reported that of the 2.1 per cent fatality rate in the country, 70 per cent of males and 77.5 per cent people over the age of 50 succumbed to the virus; 73 per cent had chronic comorbidities and 91 per cent of the deceased remained hospitalised.

Meanwhile, the NCOC in collaboration

Coronavirus in

Pakistan

CONFIRMED CASES:

477,240

LAST UPDATED AT 8:13 AM ON DECEMBER 30, 2020

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

55

RECOVERED:

NEW CASES:

2,155 DEATHS:

430,113 10,047 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

213,193

137,295

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

57,982

18,118

8,241/4,855 37,556

with the Ministry of Health, National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and National Information Technology Board (NITB) has developed a National Immunisation Management System (NIMS) to ensure efficient supply chain management and administration of the Covid-19 vaccine.

The system will enable automated phase-wise registration of citizens for Covid19 vaccine through SMS/internet, based on CNIC numbers. The immunisation mechanism will be intimated to citizens shortly. NIMS will be made available by mid-January.

The NCOC was informed that the federal government is in close liaison with the world's leading Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers for its early availability in Pakistan.

Furthermore, the NCOC said that a cabinet committee has authorised the procurement of more than one million vaccines.

Asad Umar confirmed on Twitter that the number "will cover all frontline health workers".

He said what remains now is for DRAP (Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan) to approve a vaccine. Umar said that the government aims to deploy the vaccines within the first quarter of 2021.

The government will cancel the passport of deposed prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif on February 16, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed announced on Wednesday.

After spending a year in prison, Sharif, 71, after securing a conditional bail in November 2019, travelled to London on the pretext of medical treatment and has since refused to return.

His party insists that despite being summoned by the courts, that declared him a proclaimed offender in separate corruption probes, the former premier will only return after the completion of his medical treatment.

Speaking to reporters in Islamabad, Ahmed said the opposition had been "exposed" as money launderers and people who obtained iqamas (a residence permit used in Saudi Arabia) because they were not honest with the country.

The minister said all the "thieves" got united when their

Historic Hindu temple in Karak sets ablaze by mob KARAK TLTP

A highly-charged mob on Wednesday, reportedly led by local clerics, vandalised and set ablaze a historic Hindu temple in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's (KP) Karak district, officials said.

The temple in Karak's Terri area was considered a site of pilgrimage for Hindu community due to its importance as a Yogi Astan. However, local residents were resentful due to the ongoing renovation work in the temple and they attacked the building, demolished it and then set it ablaze.

Police and local authorities were unable to prevent the incident due to the large number of people involved. The historic temple became non-functional after the Partition when all local Hindu families migrated to India but four years ago it was handed over to the Hindu community by the Supreme Court (SC) and ever since it was a site for pilgrimage for the community from all over the country especially from Sindh who paid a weekly visit to the site every Thursday.

Local clerics were reportedly not happy over the decision and repeatedly demanded the

closure of the temple.

“There was a weekly bazaar in the area for which people from all the nearby areas come to Terri town and some miscreants took advantage of it and encouraged the visitors to stop the renovation work in the temple,” said Wazir Zada, CM's adviser on minority affairs in KP. Terming the incident as "unfortunate", he said that he was himself on his way to the affected area along with other government dignitaries.

“This a sacred site for the Hindu community and each week and month a large number of people visit it from all over Pakistan,” he said, adding that the provincial government had ordered the inspector general police (IGP) to take strict action against those involved and police had already started raiding houses of the suspects

with the help of the video footage being circulated on social media.

“The IGP has already reached Karak. District police officer is himself leading the police force involved in raids and arrest of the culprits while DC [deputy commissioner] is assisting them,” Wazir Zada said, adding that he asked the IGP to tighten the security for religious places of minorities across the province.

Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari, while condemning the incident, urged the KP government to ensure the culprits are brought to justice.

"MOHR [Ministry of Human Rights] also moving on this. We as a govt have a responsibility to ensure safety & security of all our citizens & their places of worship," she wrote on her official Twitter handle.

5 people arrested in India’s Madhya Pradesh for attempting to damage mosque: report Five people were arrested in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday for attempting to damage a mosque in Dorana village of district Mandsaur a day earlier, Indian media reported.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

wealth obtained through money laundering and corruption was exposed and claimed victimisation.

To a question about potential arrests following Tuesday's detention of former defense minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Khawaja Asif, Ahmed said it wasn't yet known. "[We] will cancel Nawaz Sharif's passport on February 16," he added. However, he did not offer any details.

In October, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) asked the Ministry of Interior to cancel Sharif's passport and national identity card (NIC). The agency also recommended approaching Interpol for Sharif's arrest after he refused to collect his arrest warrants.

Islamabad has since been seeking his deportation. Later in October, Mirza Shahzad Akbar, adviser to the prime minister on accountability, wrote to British Home Secretary Priti Patel, reminding her London was "duty bound" to deport Sharif to serve his jail sentence for corruption.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

more inside

Grenade attack on security vehicle hurts 14 in Balochistan STORY ON PAGE 02

‘I’m with Nawaz’, says Asif before being remanded in NAB custody STORY ON PAGE 02

Maryam holds PM Imran responsible for Kashmir's woes STORY ON BACK PAGE

US ‘grateful’ to Pakistan for challenging acquittals in Daniel Pearl case STORY ON PAGE 03

02

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

NEWS

‘I’M wIth Nawaz’, SayS aSIf before beINg reMaNded IN Nab cuStody ISLAMABAD

a

STAFF REPORT

N accountability court in Islamabad on Wednesday granted National Accountability Bureau (NAB) one-day transit remand of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former defense minister Khawaja Asif and directed for him to be produced before the accountability court of Lahore.

The anti-graft watchdog arrested Asif on

Monday on charges of being in possession of assets disproportionate to his declared sources of income. According to a spokesperson for the agency, Asif had earlier been summoned for an inquiry but failed to provide the required evidence.

Accountability judge Muhammad Bashir in a one-page judgment issued Wednesday recalled Asif was arrested on December 29, and that his arrest warrants were issued on December 23.

The judgment maintains the bureau sought a two-day remand. However, one-day

Indian media trying to divert world’s attention from Kashmir issue: PM ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

transit remand was granted considering the travel distance between Islamabad and Lahore. The former minister was produced before the court wherein his counsel requested for his release, stating there was "no case" against his client.

“Here, the case is of transit remand, so he [Asif] be presented in Lahore,” remarked judge Bashir. "[He] will be shifted to Lahore as soon as the order is received," the NAB prosecutor informed the court.

The accountability judge asked the PML-N leader whether he was informed of

Saudi delegation to visit Pakistan soon: Qureshi ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said a high-profile Saudi delegation would visit Pakistan soon, Radio Pakistan reported on Wednesday. “A high-level Saudi delegation, including the Saudi foreign minister, will be visiting Pakistan soon, which reflects that Pakistan-Saudi Arabia relations are further strengthening,” the report said. The two nations share “deep, historical and fraternal ties,” it quoted Qureshi as saying. The report comes a day after Qureshi reiterated his position regarding the possibility of Pakistan normalising diplomatic ties with Israel and said Islamabad was not under any external pressure to do so. While Pakistan has no diplomatic relations with Israel, a debate was sparked in November after Prime Minister Imran Khan during an interview revealed Islamabad was under pressure from “friendly nations” to accept Tel Aviv. While he did not disclose the identity, many believe the countries to be Arab states including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which has recently formalised its relationship with the Jewish state.In a statement, Qureshi said that Pakistan’s position on Israel — that it will not recognise the country until a just solution of the Palestinian question is achieved — was “clear and unequivocal”, and the government “stick[s] to it”.

Maulana abdul Khabir azad appointed as new rhc chairman

Grenade attack on security vehicle hurts 14 in Balochistan QUETTA STAFF REPORT

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said that the Indian media was trying to divert the world’s attention from the Indian government's illegal steps in occupied Jammu and Kashmir. He said that the Indian media was doing so through negative and baseless propaganda against Pakistan. According to the Prime Minister's Office, the premier was chairing a meeting to review the negative propaganda and disinformation campaign, including hybrid warfare, launched by the Indian media against Pakistan. During the meeting, the prime minister observed that the objective of such nefarious propaganda was to create anarchy in the country. He directed for effective measures to be put into place to foil the Indian media’s negative propaganda. He also stressed the need for public awareness in this regard, saying that such a baseless and concocted campaign should be countered with facts. "The real face of India should be exposed before the international community and the public," the statement quoted the prime minister as saying. He also expressed the hope that Pakistani media would play its imperative role in this regard. The meeting was attended by several federal ministers including Minister for Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz, Minister for Interior Shaikh Rasheed Ahmed, Minister for Communication Murad Saeed, PM’s special assistant Dr Moeed Yousaf, Focal Person on Digital Media Dr Arsalan Khalid, among others.

the reasons for his arrest. At this, Asif responded he was provided an unsigned copy of them. The judge then directed that he be provided a signed document of the reasons.

'I'M WITH NAWAZ': While responding to media personnel's queries before the proceedings began, Asif said he had been facing such cases for the past two years.

“I have been asked to leave Nawaz Sharif,” he said. “Efforts are being made to break up the party for the last two-and-a-half years and weaken Nawaz Sharif. I stand with

Unidentified assailants threw a hand grenade at a security vehicle as it passed through a town in Sorab town of Balochistan on Tuesday, wounding at least 14 passersby, police and officials said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack on a vehicle belonging to the paramilitary Frontier Corps, said Mohammad Aslam, a local police official.

Sorab is 150 kilometers (90 miles) south of Quetta.

Such attacks on security forces and government officials in Balochistan have intensified in recent times, with previous assaults claimed mostly by Afghanistanbased Indian-backed militant groups.

The latest attack came days after militants attacked another Frontier Corps checkpoint in the province, martyring seven troops before fleeing the scene.

his narrative.”

The PML-N leader further added that he was presented a charge sheet that his assets had increased, but the NAB had not conducted any investigation as of yet.

THE CASE: In a press statement issued later, NAB Lahore said that the investigation against Asif was being conducted under Section 5 of the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999, and Section 3 of the AntiMoney Laundering Act, 2010.

According to the statement, Asif was elected as senator in 1991, prior to which he had total assets of Rs5.1 million. By 2018, this figure had ballooned to Rs221 million, which is not justifiable with his known sources of income, said the statement.

Besides, Asif was running a benami company in the name of his staffer, Tariq Mir. A sum of Rs400 million was deposited in the bank account of the company, titled 'Tariq Mir and Company', but there was no information about the sources of income, it added.

NEWS DESK

According to an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement, the post located in the Shahrag town of Harnai came under "terrorist fire raid” late at night.

In October, a gun and rocket attack targeting a paramilitary escort in the town of Ormara martyred seven soldiers and seven private security guards.

The attack comes weeks after the military began the fencing of the Gwadar port to protect the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects and change the security dynamics in the restive city. The Balochistan government has planned to fence off 24 square kilometers of the city, which is at the center of the over $64 billion game-changer project that aims to connect China’s strategic Xinxiang province to Gwadar through a network of roads, railways and pipelines to transport cargo, oil, and gas. Reports suggest there will be two entry points to the fenced part of the city and more than 500 surveillance cameras will be installed.

Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad has been appointed as the new Ruet-e-Hilal Committee (RHC) chairman and will replace Mufti Muneebur Rehman, read a government notification on Wednesday. A newly formed committee will comprise of Chairman Azad, and 18 others, said the notification from the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony. Dr Raghib Hussain Naeemi, Allama Muhammad Hussain Akbar, Moulana Fazalur Rahim, Dr Yaseen Zafar, Mufti Muhammad Iqbal Chishti, Dr Mufti Ali Asghar, Mufti Faisal Ahmed, Syed Ali Karar Naqvi, Hafiz Abdul Ghafoor, Mufti Fazal-e-Jamil Rizvi, Mufti Qari Mirullah, Sahibzada Syed Habibullah Chishti, Mufti Zameer Sajid and Mufti Yousaf Kashmiri have been appointed as members of the committee.

Federal minsters defend NAB after criticism on Asif's arrest ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Rebuking the opposition for its criticism over the arrest of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader Khawaja Asif, federal ministers came to the rescue of the anti-graft body and said that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was not acting on the ruling party's orders.

“NAB is an independent bureau which was formed before the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government came into power,” Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said in a press conference on Wednesday, flanked by Information Minister Shibli Faraz and Advisor to Prime Minister Babar Awan.

Qureshi further said that Asif – who was arrested in an asserts beyond means case – needs to stop hiding behind the excuse of "political vendetta" and face accountability. "It seems as if Asif could not answer NAB's questions," the foreign minister said, adding that Asif had been invited to present

himself to NAB many times already.

The foreign minister said that since yesterday evening — when Asif was arrested — a storm has erupted and Opposition parties have been saying that NAB has been exacting revenge on political rivals of the government. PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz had termed Asif's arrest and 'abduction', terming NAB an institution guilty of "political engineering".

Qureshi rebuked the claims of a so-called nexus between NAB and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

He stressed that no one was above the law and if a state institution summons anyone they are obliged to appear before it. "Only Khawaja Asif can shed light on why he was arrested," he said. "They say, 'If you ask us questions, we will lay a siege around you". The FM added that the opposition, which had asked for a weakening of NAB's power as a prerequisite to holding talks, was trying to find another way to get an NRO. He dared the opposition to expose NAB if the institution was truly "filthy".

"But they do not have answers to NAB's

questions," he said. "Imran Khan brought forth a 40year-old record and appeared before the court," said Qureshi, adding that after weighing the evidence, the Supreme Court declared PM Imran Khan "honest and truthful". Speaking on the occasion, Babar Awan lashed out at Nawaz Sharif and Khawaja Asif for having gotten an Iqamah. He explained that the Iqamah was granted to those that worked abroad, but politicians were using it to launder money.

Awan said that Pakistan was that "unfortunate country" from where billions were stolen and stashed abroad. He accused the opposition of making the NRO an excuse or their resignations from the parliament to escape NAB's accountability.

Furthermore, Faraz stated that, unfortunately, state institutions were used for political gains in the past.

He further said that a Senate session has been called on the requisition of the opposition.

“We will ask them the same questions in the Senate tomorrow, and the nation can see their response through the live session,” he said.

Qaiser to decide on PML-N resignations today ISLAMABAD TLTP

National Assembly (NA) Speaker Asad Qaiser on Wednesday dropped a hint about conducting a forensic audit of the resignations of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmakers after the two declared them as fake.

Speaking to the media at the National Assembly, Asad Qaiser said that the two PML-N lawmakers met the secretary of the lower house of the parliament and conveyed that the resignations were fake and not

submitted by them. “I will give my opinion on the matter by tomorrow (Thursday),” he said.

When asked if a forensic audit of the resignations would be conducted to ascertain if they were fake or not, Qaiser said that he would mull over the legal aspects of the matter and would announce a decision on Thursday. When asked what action would be taken if other resignations will be received, the NA speaker said that he would act according to the law.

It is pertinent to mention here that MNAs Sajjad Awan and Murtaza Javed Abbasi of the PML-N, earlier in the day, have written to the speaker requesting not to

accept their resignations as they renege from the party’s stance of en masse resignations.

Other than the written plea to the NA speaker, MNA Abbasi met in private with the speaker in his chambers as well. It may be noted that earlier the PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz had claimed in her address that her lawmakers will chuck their resignations to the speaker.

The NA secretariat had written to both MNAs for the confirmation of their resignations and directed them to furnish their response of confirming or denying the development within seven days.

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

NEWS

US ‘gratefUl’ to PakIStan for challengIng acqUIttalS In DanIel Pearl caSe WASHINGTON

t

STAFF REPORT

HE United States Justice Department released a statement on Wednesday, thanking Pakistan for its appeal against a Sindh High Court (SHC) order acquitting prime suspect in the 2002 beheading of the Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

Last week, the SHC declared “null and void” the detention of Ahmed Omer Saeed Sheikh in the case. The court in April turned the death sentence awarded to Sheikh in a seven-year jail term in addition to acquitting other three suspects — Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil — earlier handed life sentences.

However, the Sindh government has opposed Sheikh’s release, saying it

would endanger the public. He was to remain in custody until the separate appeals from the government and Pearl’s parents in the Supreme Court are resolved.

The verdict was announced on an appeal from the family of Sheikh against his detention despite the acquittal. In its verdict, the court ordered the immediate release of Sheikh and other suspects but said their names be added to the Exit Control List (ECL).

The men have been in rotting in jail for 18 years without committing any crime, the judge said.

“We understand that Pakistani authorities are taking steps to ensure that Omar Sheikh remains in custody while the Supreme Court appeal seeking to reinstate his conviction continues,” a statement issued from the office of acting US Attorney General Jeffrey A Rosen

said. “The separate judicial rulings reversing his conviction and ordering his release are an affront to terrorism victims everywhere.”

“We remain grateful for the Pakistani government’s actions to appeal such rulings to ensure that he and his codefendants are held accountable. If, however, those efforts do not succeed, the United States stands ready to take custody of Omar Sheikh to stand trial here." "We cannot allow him to evade justice for his role in Daniel Pearl’s abduction and murder.”

Pearl, 38, the South Asia bureau chief for the publication, was abducted on January 23, 2002, in Karachi and beheaded the next month, reportedly by Al-Qaeda. Sheikh had been convicted of helping lure Pearl to a meeting in Karachi in which he was kidnapped.

Prior to his kidnapping, the journalist

had been investigating the link between reportedly Pakistan-based militants and Richard Reid, the notorious “Shoe Bomber” who attempted to blow up a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives hidden in his shoes.

In July 2002, following the hearings, an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Hyderabad had sentenced to death Sheikh and life term to other co-accused.

However, all four convicts had moved the SHC in 2002 challenging their convictions.

In his autobiography, In the Line of Fire: A Memoir, former president Pervaiz Musharraf had claimed that Sheikh, a British national and a student at the London School of Economics (reports claim that he did not graduate), was hired

by MI6 to engage in “jihadi operations”, adding that “at some point, he probably became a rogue or a double agent”.

PIA starts probe into irregularities in daily wagers’ recruitment KARACHI TLTP

A four-member investigation committee has been constituted to probe into irregularities in recruitments of daily wage employees in Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).

The management of the national carrier on Wednesday constituted a four-member investigation committee led by PIA General Manager Wing Commander Kamran Anjum to probe into irregularities in hiring of service provider staff in previous tenures, according to the notification. The other members of the investigation committee include PIA Manager Human Resources (HR) Nasir Hussain, Assistant Manager Legal Services Haroon Rasheed Abbasi and Senior Officer IT Syed

new Ihc judges take oath

Muhammad Ahsan.

The committee will start an investigation against the officials of Skyrooms Private Limited pertaining to the irregularities while hiring daily wage employees besides finding responsible persons in the institutions.

Moreover, the committee will also devise a mechanism to prevent from illegal hiring of daily wage staff in the future. The national carrier’s management gave special authorities to the probe team to directly contact concerned departmental management to seek related documents.

After concluding its probe, the team will present its report within three days, besides tabling recommendations to the PIA’s chief executive officer (CEO).

Earlier on December 24, it emerged that Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) had executed

an introspection drive wherein it was reported on Wednesday that at least 300 flight attendants, either physically unfit, incapable or both, are set to be fired.

Three hundred attendants whose list has been compiled by the national flag carrier include those who attained their promotions and appraisals illegitimately or are substandard in terms of their services.

Separately, the compiled list of employees who are to be sacked includes 70 pilots who cheated the tests, according to the PIA internal investigation.

Earlier, PIA had ordered to prepare a list of its pilots showing poor performance as the national airline plans to retire them under mandatory separation scheme (MSS) after the expiry of the voluntary separation scheme (VSS).

SC grills CBC over failure to provide drinking water to DHA residents

ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The two newly-appointed additional judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) took the oath of office on Wednesday. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah administered the oath at a ceremony held on the court's premises. Babar Sattar and Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri were notified as judges of the high court on Monday.

Earlier this month, a meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed approved the nominations which came from Justice Minallah for appointment as judges. The meeting — which comprises besides the chief justice of Pakistan senior-most judges of the Supreme Court, chief justice and senior-most judge of the IHC, Minister for Law and Justice, Attorney General of Pakistan, members of the Pakistan Bar Council and Islamabad Bar Council — was held in the Supreme Court building under Article 175-A of the Constitution. Sattar has studied Master of Law (LLM) at the Harvard School of Law. He is also a writer, columnist and analyst. While Jahangiri, a former advocate general for Islamabad, is an expert in criminal, constitutional and civil laws.

KARACHI TLTP

Hearing a suo motu case pertaining to the provision of drinking water in Karachi’s Defence Housing Authority (DHA) area on Wednesday, the Supreme Court (SC) came down hard on the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) over its failure to provide clean drinking water to the residents in Karachi.

A three-member bench, led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed and comprising Justice Sajjad Ali Shah and Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin Ahmed heard a case. During the hearing, CBC chief executive officer (CEO) informed the bench that it relied on the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) for water supply. “You say you rely on the Water Board, but are you aware of what happens at the water board? When an army major finds no water at his home, he goes and closes the water board. They even get water for their gardens. Let us see what happens when a major gets no water supply living in DHA,” remarked the top judge.

“Lines have been drawn. There are two pipelines: one remains dry while the other supplies water. People like us have been given the waterline with no supply, forcing us to buy water tankers,” he further remarked.

The court sought a detailed report on the matter from

the KWSB within two weeks and directed CBC to appraise the bench on water requirements for the area’s residents. Separately, the apex court on Wednesday issued a notice to Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Javed Khan after being irked by Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) selling federal land.

A three-member bench led by CJP Gulzar, comprising Justice Sajjad Ali Shah and Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin Ahmed heard a case related to the P&T Colony in Karachi’s Gizri area. The apex court questioned how the cantonment could sell land that belongs to the federal government and allow the building of a private housing society on it. “In what capacity did the CBC allow a naval society on land owned by the federal government? How can the cantonment board sell land to a private owner? Is there no law in the country? Is nobody keeping track of the CBC? Is this why the land was allotted to Karsaz?” questioned the top judge. The chief justice observed that the Delhi Colony, Punjab Colony and P&T Colony areas have deteriorated over the years. “After every second house there is a building compromising peoples’ privacy. We come to the city every two months and see a new 10-story building.

They construct buildings but there is no water or electricity.”

Encroaching residents of Karachi’s Kidney Hill Park served eviction notices NEWS DESK Residents of the Farhan Society built in Karachi’s Kidney Hill Park have been served eviction notices, Karachi Commissioner Navid Ahmed Shaikh informed the Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday.

The notices were issued by the authority’s senior director of land antiencroachment on the orders of Karachi Municipal Commissioner Afzal Zaidi

and were pasted to house walls and handed to people inside the houses. The move comes a day after the Supreme Court ordered the land to be cleared.

During the hearing, Shehri CBE — a citizens rights foundation— informed the court that 24 houses in Farhan Society were illegally constructed on four plots of Kidney Hill Park and that part of the park’s land was also illegally occupied by the Overseas Co-operative Housing Society. The notices were served by a

team from the Gulshan-e-Iqbal antiencroachment department.

However, when Shaikh informed the court that the notices had been issued, the court asked why the action was taken now when the ordered to do so had been issued earlier. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed remarked, “All of you have colluded on the matter.”

The court sought an implementation report from the commissioner on the evacuation of the park’s land and issued

notices to Farhan Society and Overseas Co-operative Housing Society.

The park, located near Rangoonwala Hall in Karachi’s Dhoraji Colony, is spread across 62 acres. It was once a recreational site for the residents of the area. The park was commonly known as the Kidney Hill Park because of its shape which is similar to the human organ.

Some portions of the park were, however, encroached by land grabbers after 2006 and residential units and dairy farms were set up.

03

Soldier martyred in exchange of fire with Indian forces RAWALPINDI STAFF REPORT

A 35-year-old Pakistani soldier, Sepoy Fazal Elahi, embraced martyrdom on Wednesday night when Indian forces initiated unprovoked firing in Khuiratta Sector along the Line of Control (LoC), to which Pakistan responded befittingly, inflicting heavy losses to the Indian side. According to the InterServices Public Relations (ISPR), Indian Army had deliberately targeted the civilian population in Kotkotera Sector. Due to indiscriminate firing in Phalni Bazar, a 34-year-old man suffered critical injuries. Pakistan Army responded effectively and targeted those Indian posts which had initiated fire.

In Hotspring Sector, Pakistan Army shot down an Indian Army quadcopter. The quadcopter had come 100 meters inside Pakistan’s territory. The unprovoked act was responded to in a befitting manner. In 2020, 16 Indian quadcopters have been shot down by Pakistan Army.

ncoc develops national vaccine management system NEWS DESK The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has developed the National Immunisation Management System (NIMS) to assure the effective and efficient supply and administration of the Covid19 vaccine. The NIMS was developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and National Information Technology Board (NITB). The forum further said that the government was in close liaison with leading Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers for its early availability in the country. NIMS will function based on an automated registration system through SMS/ internet portal based on CNIC numbers and will be available from mid-January, the NCOC said. The centre was informed that Pakistan's current positivity ratio stands at 5.92 per cent. The highest positivity ratio was observed in Karachi at 13.84 per cent, followed by Hyderabad 8.79 per cent and Swat 7.89 per cent.

committee formed to review census process, data collection ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar has constituted a five-member committee headed by Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Muhammad Jehanzeb Khan to review the census process, data collection and field operation methodologies used for Census 2017. The committee will recommend the modern methodologies being adopted for censuses in region and globe for the conduct of the upcoming census. TLTP

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

04 NEWS

POliCe fail tO reduCe Crime rate iN lahOre LAHORE

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SHAHAB OMER

ESPITE several transfers of Inspector Generals (IGs) and other senior officers, the Punjab police have failed miserably in reducing heinous crimes in the provincial capital during the current year, Pakistan Today learnt on Wednesday.

According to the data compiled by the police, a total of 15995 cases of heinous crime were reported in Lahore this year, out of which 7852 remained under investigation while 2914 untraced.

From January 1 to November 30, a total of 371 murder cases were reported, out of which 153 cases are under investigation while three are untraceable besides cancel-

15995 HEINOUS CRIMES REPORTED IN PROVINCIAL CAPITAL DURING 2020 are under investigation while 353 are untraceable.

Out of 75 cases of dacoity, 13 are under investigation while two are still untraceable.

A total of 17 cases of car snatching were reported this year and the police officials were able to solve only seven cases, as nine are under investigation and one is still untraced.

The cases of motorcycle snatching were at peak this year with 484 incidents and the police authorities were able to solve only 220 cases, as still 37 are untraced and 227 are under investigation.

lation of 33.

When it comes to blind murders, a total of 33 cases were reported, out of which 21 are under investigation while one is untraceable besides cancellation of seven cases.

A total of 25 cases of robbery cum murder were reported to the police, out of which eight cases are still under investigation. Out of 12 cases of kidnapping for ransom, two are still under investigation.

The police also failed in controlling robberies, as a total of 3013 cases of robberies were reported this year, out of which 1290

CNG stations in Sindh, Balochistan to remain closed till Saturday: SSGC KARACHI: The Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) on Wednesday announced that the compressed natural gas (CNG) stations in Balochistan and Sindh will remain closed till Saturday. The SSGC said that the CNG stations will remain closed till Saturday due to an increase in demand and low pressure of gas. Citizens have lamented gas shortage and low pressure in several areas of the country.

Speaking to the media, some civil society members complained of feeling cold all day and having severe difficulties in cooking food. In Punjab, citizens complained about the issue and said that they are being forced to buy expensive LPG gas and use compressors due to low pressure of gas. “Due to lack of gas, houses, flats, hospitals, and mosques have become cold storages,” they added. In Quetta, low pressure of gas was reported in Raisani Town, Arif Road, Mir Ahmad Khan Road, Najamuddin Road, Kawari Road, and adjoining areas. In Karachi, residents of Lyari, Chakiwara, Lee Market, Agra Taj, Garden, Shoe Market, Usman Abbad, Purana Golimar, City Railways Colony, Burns Road, Kharadar, Gulshan-e-Hadeed, Bhains Colony, Malir, and others complained about the shortage of gas and low pressure. “We are forced to buy LPG cylinders and use wood for burning,” they said. Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Petroleum Nadeem Babar had announced on Tuesday that the government has arranged twelve liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes for the upcoming month of January. The SSGC spokesperson said, “Demand was increased by more than nine percent in the SNGPL last week on account of a severe cold wave, which resulted in low pressure of gas.

The SSGC faces similar low pressures in Karachi and Quetta. The people are requested to use gas responsibly and report domestic consumers, who are using compressors, as the use of compressors is a major reason of low pressure. It may be mentioned that the country will be moving 30 per cent more LNG molecules this January, compared to January 2018, at the cheapest ever price of $6.34. TLTP

LAHORE TLTP

Special Assistant to Punjab Chief Minister (SAPCM) on Information and Culture Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has said that the unnatural Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) alliance has met a natural death, as Pakistan Poeples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has checkmated Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Chief Fazl-ur-Rehman and Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz.

In a statement, Firdous said that both Fazl and Maryam are perturbed now. She advised Maryam to stop day-dreaming and realise the facts. “The PDM cabal has been cut to size, as Prime Minister Imran Khan has devastated the hereditary politics with the support of the people. The opposition parties are struggling for their political survival,” she said.

Separately addressing a training workshop

arranged under the auspices of Insaf Welfare Wing (IWW) at a local hotel, Firdous said that the IWW is endeavouring to carry forward the vision of the PM and contributing towards the uplift of the society.

“The IWW is functioning as a think tank at the party level and providing valuable advice to the government on public welfare initiatives. Moreover, its members are enthusiastically participating in the public welfare projects. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is pursuing people-friendly policies as the welfare of masses is the priority of the government,” she said.

Later talking to the media, Firdous said that the PM is the biggest obstacle in the way of corrupt politicians, who miserably looted the public exchequer in the past. The PTI believes in the supremacy of law and strives hard to form such a system, in which rule of law prevails.

Commenting on the arrest of PML-N’s Khawaja

Navy conducts demonstration of missiles’ firing from surface to air

ISLAMABAD TLTP

Pakistan Navy on Wednesday conducted a successful demonstration of missiles’ firing from surface to air.

According to a press statement, Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Mohammad Amjad Khan Niazi observed the demonstration of missiles' firing from surface to air.

Speaking on the occasion, the CNS said that the

excellent demonstration of missiles’ firing speaks of Pakistan Navy's operational capabilities and war preparations. He expressed satisfaction over the operational preparedness of Pakistan Navy.

Admiral Amjad said that the Pakistan Navy is fully capable of giving a befitting response to any aggression. He said the officers and officials of Pakistan Navy are ever ready to defend maritime boundaries of the country and the naval installations.

Earlier on December 24, the CNS had chaired the Command and Staff Conference (CSC) of Pakistan Navy and expressed confidence over combat readiness of the force.

The conference at Naval Headquarters had reviewed matters related to geostrategic issues, national security, operational preparedness, training and welfare of troops. In the conference, the CNS was briefed on various ongoing and future development projects of the Pakistan Navy.

The CNS had emphasised on strengthening maritime security and effectively responding to any aggression against the country. He had also lauded initiatives taken towards capability development through acquisition of emerging technologies. The forum had also discussed the Covid-19 situation and reaffirmed the implementation of government policies to restrict the spread of the pandemic.

Rescue 1122 reviews performance during 2020 LAHORE PR

Rescue 1122 Director General Dr Rizwan Naseer on Wednesday reviewed annual performance of the emergency service and said that the year 2020 brought a paradigm shift in the lifestyles of people and the management of emergencies.

Presiding over Annual Performance Review meeting at Rescue headquarters here.

Rizwan said, “No one ever thought that we shall have to perform rescue operations in protective gears.”

All heads of different wings, senior officers of Rescue headquarters and academy, and some others were present at the occasion.

Rizwan appreciated the rescuers, who had shifted over 14000 suspected coronavirus patients and provided dignified burials to over 24000 corona deceased.

He said, “In view of the increasing num-

crimes to population growth, but there are also some other reasons, including unemployment and economic woes.

The officer believed that one of the main reasons for the increase in crimes is also the decline in moral values. He admitted that the police have failed to control crime so far.

The official added that the provincial capital has seen a slight decline in crime rates since the change of capital city police officer (CCPO). The city has seen a decline in cases of land grabbing by influential people, robberies and thefts. Since there are many factors behind murders, so it is important to control them first in order to control murders.

Several attempts were made to obtain comments from Punjab IG Inam Ghani and Lahore CCPO Omer Sheikh regarding the situation, but they could not be contacted.

Bilawal checkmates Maryam, Fazl: SAPCM Firdous

Gilgit-Skardu road opened for traffic after three days SKARDU: The Gilgit-Skardu Road was opened for all types of traffic on Wednesday after a closure of three days. According to official sources, the road was closed for its expansion near Shango. The road remained closed for three days due to rocks falling from the mountains.

Gilgit, Skardu and several other areas in the region were cut off from other parts of the country and multiple vehicles were stuck on the road due to its closure. The authorities said that the road has now been cleared and opened for all types of traffic. TLTP

As many as 11 incidents of snatching of other vehicles were reported, out of which six cases are under investigation while one is untraced.

This year, as many as 7621 cases of motorcycle theft were reported in the provincial capital, out of which 1,544 remained untraced while 3908 under investigation.

A total of 400 cases of vehicle theft were reported, out of which 41 remained untraced and 218 under investigation. A total of 3218 burglary cases were reported, out of which 1610 remained under investigation while 783 untraced.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a senior police official informed that the police officers have not been able yet to determine the main reasons of the rise in crimes.

Most police officers attribute the rise in

MORE THAN 1.1 MILLION VICTIMS RESCUED IN THE YEAR, SAYS DG RIZWAN ber of calls at Emergency Helpline 1122, the department immediately launched Corona Rescue Helpline 1190 to facilitate the people and made arrangements for corona emergency response.”

“The department provided specialised corona response training to 1037 rescuers of Punjab, KPK and Balochistan, prepared training videos regarding safety guidelines and made arrangements of personal protective equipment for rescuers.”

The director general revealed that despite the corona fear, Rescue 1122 rescued over 1.1 million victims and responded to

over one million emergencies with an average response time of seven minutes across Punjab in 2020. These emergencies include 0.31 million accidents, 0.572 million medical emergencies, 15500 fire incidents, 31100 crime incidents, 1400 drowning incidents, one hundred cylinder blasts and 115,000 miscellaneous emergencies.

He further revealed that the Motorbike Ambulance Service (MAS) managed over 0.197 million emergencies in 2020 with an average response time of four minutes, which is an achievement even according to international services.

Paying tributes to the martyred rescuers, Rizwan said that the services of martyred rescuers will always be remembered.

“The department always take care of the families of martyred rescuers, as it has so far provided financial assistance worth Rs47.1 million to 23 families of martyred rescuers,” he concluded.

Asif, she said that another imposter, who robbed the people in the guise of a leader, has been exposed. “On which tractor-trolley these illegal assets were loaded and brought to the country?” she asked from Asif.

Talking about Maryam’s address on the eve of PML-N Foundation Day at Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), she said that Maryam claimed to be a daughter of a brave man, but in reality she is the daughter of an absconder. “How PML-N leaders can ask the Kashmiris to fight for independence bravely when they themselves escaped the country to avoid hardships,” she asked.

“Standing among the Kashmiris, unfortunately, Maryam was promoting the narrative of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Maryam mentioned PM Imran more than her father during her address in the AJK. If Maryam runs an election campaign in the AJK, the results would not be different than GilgitBaltistan elections,” she concluded.

Opposition’s narrative exposed badly: Buzdar LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Sardar Usman Buzdar has said the nefarious narrative of the opposition parties has been badly exposed, as they have no programme for the masses. In a statement issued on Wednesday, the chief minister said that corruption is the hallmark of the opposition leaders and asserted that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is disappointed because of lack of public interest. He said, “The opposition parties have side-lined the national interest to achieve their temporal political objectives. The looters cannot hoodwink the masses.” Buzdar added that the opposition parties’ political stance is wholly undemocratic and the PDM is bent upon obstructing the development process. He stressed that politics of chaos is totally unwise and against the national interest. “It is deplorable that the opposition parties are trying to achieve a personal agenda by spreading anarchy in the country. The threat of resignations and long march is nothing more than a political stunt. On the other side, the people want the country to move forward,” Buzdar said. Meanwhile, senior doctors of Mayo Hospital declared the health of the chief minister as satisfactory after a detailed check-up at the hospital. In this regard, the CM said that his health condition is improving. He thanked the people for their prayers and appealed them to strictly follow the government’s SOPs to save their lives, as the second wave of coronavirus is critical. TLTP

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

NEWS

PuNjab GoVt to ENGaGE loCal It CoMPaNIEs For soFtWarE DEVEloPMENt LaHore

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TAIMOOR HASSAN

uNJAB Information Technology Board (PITB) Chairman Azfar Manzoor on Wednesday initiated the ‘Partners in Development’ programme, aimed at supporting the local software industry by engaging them in public sector software development work, with a special emphasis on digitally powered public services.

In this regard, PITB’s Software

Engineering Wing arranged a conference with 14 pre-qualified software houses from the private sector for deliberation on the appropriate collaboration framework.

“The idea is to engage the private sector in public sector digitisation through staff augmentation which will help the private sector companies to diversify their portfolio and strengthen their eligibility to successfully target and win international business,” a statement from the Board read.

Outsourcing government projects to local software companies had been a

perpetual demand for the information technology (IT) industry to outsource government projects to the local industry, instead of the government doing the projects itself.

Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), the official representative of the IT industry, had earlier floated a proposal urging the federal and respective provincial governments to create demand for the local IT industry by outsourcing government projects to private software houses.

The industry representatives had underlined that if government institu-

tions were competing with local software houses, it would hinder the industry’s growth.

“Partners in Development” programme is in line with increasing the country’s IT exports prowess by supporting local software houses to increase their capacity as well as competence. According to the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB), Pakistan’s IT remittances for the year 2019-20 were $1.23 billion.

According to industry experts, Pakistan’s IT sector has the potential to increase exports to an estimated $10 billion by 2025.

Pakistan, UAE working on new economic roadmap iSLamaBad APP

Pakistan and the uAE are working on a new economic roadmap to boost bilateral trade volume and establish joint ventures between the two nations’ businesses and chambers of commerce.

This was announced by Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) President Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan, who met with uAE’s Ambassador to Pakistan Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Alzaabi last week.

“We want to establish a new economic roadmap with the uAE for enhancing bilateral trade, manufacturing through joint ventures, alliances and exchange of services. “As the next step to this meeting, we are going to the Emirates next month for a meeting with the uAE chamber of commerce and other

officials. We are also going to ask uAE government through the chamber to facilitate us in business visas,” he informed.

Khan said that the main focus of the meeting was to establish ways to enhance bilateral trade, alliances and joint ventures in different sectors. “Our bilateral trade is only $14 billion which is much less than its actual potential,” Khan said in an interview with Arab News. “Both the countries have potential in multiple things like hospitality, retail, services and manufacturing. We are working to find the missing areas so that we can fill those gaps to boost bilateral trade,” Khan said, adding that many international brands based in uAE were not present in Pakistan, so both sides could collaborate to bring them here.

“There are a lot of companies in the uAE which are operating in the manu-

facturing of tiles and many other products. Their distribution is going through European and Chinese. We are looking at the prospects of getting distribution of such companies to bring their products and services in Pakistan,” he further added. He also said many big hotel chains, based in uAE, could be brought to Pakistan to boost the tourism sector.

Earlier, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment, Abdul Razak Dawood, had said that there was good potential to enhance trade between Pakistan and uAE, adding that Pakistani businesses needed to be more aggressive and push hard to market their products in the uAE. “The Emirates can be

SAPM Babar rejects Sindh CM’s claim of gas shortage iSLamaBad APP

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Petroleum Nadeem Babar has said the Sindh government is trying to give political colour to a serious economic issue by presenting distorted and misleading figures about the production and supply of gas in the province.

As per the June data, he said, Sindh was producing around 2,025 MMCFD gas, out of which 1,562 MMCFD was being consumed in the province directly through the network of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC), while around 463 MMCFD gas was allocated to the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), out of which 202 MMCFD gas was returned to Sindh in the form of supply to two power plants and a fertiliser production unit. The SAPM said the remaining

Govt to cancel Nawaz's passport on February 16, says interior minister Continjued from page 01 The former premier “has been responsible for pillaging the state and I trust that you will be supportive of our efforts to bring those responsible for corruption to account”, read the letter dated October 5. In July 2018, an accountability court handed Sharif 10 years as jail time in the Avenfield House case, related to the purchase of upscale apartments in London, and one year for not cooperating with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) during the probe. Later in December, another accountability court handed him seven years and a $25 million penalty in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills reference wherein he was unable to prove the source of income that had led to his ownership of a steel mill in Saudi Arabia. In September this year, an Islamabad High Court (IHC) bench issued his non-bailable arrest warrants after he failed to appear before the bench for hearing of his appeals against his conviction in Al-Azizia and Avenfield cases. Later, the bench started the process of declaring him an absconder and ordered authorities to publish the summons directing Nawaz to appear before the court on November 24 in British publications -- a directive he failed to respect.

only 261 MMCFD gas of Sindh was going out of the province. “I have mentioned the figures for June 2020.

Today, the gas production in Sindh has declined due to depletion in the existing reserves,” he claimed.

Besides, he said, around 150 MMCFD Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) was being provided to the province if this too was detected from the 261 MMCFD gas, then only around 100 MMCFD gas of Sindh was going out of the province. He said the Sindh government was not ready to recognise the gas supply being provided to the captive power and fertiliser plants operating in the province, which was “not less than any joke”.

Further, while claiming that there was no planned load-shedding for domestic, commercial or industrial sectors in any part of the country, the SAPM said that pressure dropped, especially at tail ends of the line, due to severe cold wave.

CDWP refers K-IV project to ECNEC ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has referred the Greater Karachi Water Supply Scheme (K-IV) worth Rs25.5 billion to the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) for approval, according to the Ministry of Planning and Development. The development came during a meeting of the CDWP chaired

by Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan. Senior officials from the Planning Commission and federal ministries participated in the meeting, while representatives from provincial governments participated through a video link. Noting that there was “extraordinary delay in execution” of the K-IV project, designed with to meet the demand of 18.5 million inhabitants of Karachi city, the CDWP approved the change in ownership of the project from the Sindh government to the federal government. The execution agency of the project has now been taken from Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) of the government of Sindh and handed over to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA). However, the meeting was told that WAPDA could execute such projects as per the WAPDA Act, therefore, the sponsoring and executing agency was changed to ensure implementation of the project on a fast-track basis.

The Planning Commission deputy chairman emphasised that there is a severe water shortage in Karachi, which is why the project needs to be carried out on a fast track and all the agencies involved must prioritise the project. STAFF REPORT

CMYK

the biggest market for Pakistani halal food products, meat, poultry, rice, fruits and vegetables,” he said. “Another area which picking up in Pakistan is processed food and Gulf countries are the biggest markets for these products.”

“We have got to get into a strategic alliance with uAE so that the Emirates must look to Pakistan for their food security,” he added.

05

5 people arrested in India’s Madhya Pradesh for attempting to damage mosque: report Continued form page 01 According to Indian publication The Print, the incident occurred when people from right-wing organisations took out a rally in the village to inform residents about a fund for the Ram Temple in Ayodhya — being built on the ruins of the Babri Mosque destroyed by a mob in 1992. Videos shared on social media showed participants carrying saffron flags and raising slogans surrounding the mosque. Some of the participants also climbed atop the mosque. A police official told The Print that some of the participants also damaged houses of Muslims in the area. No residents were injured because they fled into surrounding fields, he added. More people aside from the five already arrested are being identified from the videos on social media. Those arrested have been charged under sections related to rioting, criminal intimidation and obscene acts, the official said. Mandsaur Superintendent of Police Siddharth Chaudhary said the mosque was not damaged in the incident. The publication reported another such incident in Indore on the same day. The people who had taken out the fundraising rally allegedly tried to damage a mosque and recite Hanuman chalisa — a Hindu devotional hymn dedicated to Lord Hanuman, a Hindu god — outside it.

Police said it resulted in stone-pelting and gunshots which injured some people participating in the rally.

Four first information reports (FIRs) were registered and 27 people were detained in connection with this incident, police added.

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

06 COMMENT

Father-daughter duos compared

Arm-twisting is not paying off Opposition remains united despite pressure

Bhutto-Benazir versus Nawaz-Maryam

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RESSURES continue to be mounted on the PDM to force it to change its anti-government stance.

PML(n) stalwart Khwaja Asif was arrested on Tuesday in a case of assets beyond known sources after he reportedly refused to dissociate himself from his party’s position. nAB has meanwhile opened another enquiry against PML(n) senior vice president Khaqan Abbassi. A new faction has suddenly emerged in the JUI(F) which opposes Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s policy of confrontation with the government and the establishment. nAB has announced that it is going to summon the JUI(F) chief in corruption enquiries.

The pressure has failed to produce the desired result. The government’s spokespersons were predicting that the PPP was about to part ways with the PDM. On Tuesday the PPP Central Executive Committee (CEC) announced instead that it would hold no talks with the government till resignation by the PM. Further that the party would follow the decisions taken by the PDM. Last week Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah informed that PPP lawmakers had submitted their resignations to the party chairman and now it was for the leadership to decide when and how to use them.

Gradually a consensus appears to be emerging over the issue of contesting the bye-polls and taking part in Senate elections. It is feared that a boycott would provide the PTI a chance to dominate the Senate and introduce constitutional amendments of its liking, thus wreaking havoc on the country’s federal and democratic structure, beginning with rescinding the 18th amendment. As PML(n) leader Khurram Dastgir put it, the matter is under discussion in his party also with quite a few supporting participation in the Senate elections. This could put the issue of resignations on the backburner for the time being. The PPP’s Central Executive Committee visualizes challenging the PTI government at every forum from the streets to courts and through no confidence votes in the national and Punjab Assemblies .

As the political crisis deepens by the day there is a need on the part of those who matter to realize the failure of pressure tactics and instead seek its resolution by opening up to the opposition.

Dr FariD a Malik

I

n november 1967 Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (ZAB) launched his PPP in Lahore. During his mistrial he had wished to be buried here as he considered it the Leningrad of Pakistan. It was against his wishes that his funeral after his execution in Rawalpindi was hurriedly arranged in his native Larkana in April 1979. His first wife received his remains and arranged the burial as both his second wife and daughter were in jail while his two sons were in exile.

PPP was the first country’s first real political party. ZAB took on the antidemocratic regime of the first dictator. His struggle paid off with a great election victory in the 1970 elections. After his physical demise, his daughter Benazir ably led the movement for the restoration of democracy.

ZAB was the architect of the 1973 Constitution.

By inserting Article 6, he was convinced that military overthrow of elected governments would not take place in future as its violation carried the death penalty.

Ziaul Haq was the first violator of this article. It did not stop here, after getting rid of an elected PM through a manipulated judicial trial, he launched an unknown political entity Mian Muhammad nawaz Sharif of Gawalmandi, Lahore, to consolidate his grip on power.

Like all King’s Parties the Pakistan Muslim League (nawaz) was launched from the ‘ Freemasons Hall of Democracy at 33 Davis Road. Riding the bandwagon of anti-democratic forces he was first inducted as Punjab Finance Minister, then CM. He was then given the task of challenging the elected PM, Benazir Bhutto.

After failing to dislodge her through a vote of no-confidence, he had her dismissed by his mentor, President Ishaq Khan, who had replaced Zia the tyrant.

Through the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad ( IJI ) he was launched for the second time at the centre to take on the Daughter of the East, the only warrior of democ-

The new variant Stopping the spread is crucial

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HERE is a new variant of the coronavirus which is taking over the UK and Europe, which has caused the government to ban flights from the UK in the hope of stopping its spread. The first case of the variant has now been confirmed in Karachi. It should be noted that the new variant is cropping up all over the world, which implies that it is a variant which is better than the original strain at replicating itself. The first information about the new strain is that it is more infectious, but not directly more deadly. Of course, greater infectiousness would give the impression of greater deadliness, because the fatality rate remains the same.

This greater infectiousness means a faster spread, and thus the greater number of infections and thus deaths. An increased rate of infections would also place a greater strain on medical resources, as the same number of medical professionals would have to face a greater surge in infections with the same amount of equipment.

The government needs to learn from past experience, and needs to throw its memory back less than a year, when quarantine measures taken on pilgrims returning from Iran, which was a centre of infection, were rendered ineffective by the release of people into the general population who had not yet proven their freedom from infection. One problem with inadequate quarantine provision, including near impossible living conditions, is that people seek premature escape. This time around, there must be strict quarantine, without exception based on how powerful is the person asking for premature release, or the healthcare system may just collapse. It should not be forgotten that this new variant, which represents a new challenge, is coming at a time when the weather conditions are such that an increase in the number of infections is certain. Though there has never been a relaxed time since the pandemic began, this is perhaps a worse time than, say, midsummer. The government must ensure that this time it is part of the solution. That way, it may make up for the past sins which led to such fumbling when the coronavirus arrived.

Indian farmers protest India is facing a full-blown crisis Dr Zeeshan khan

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OR most of the world, every place and country is recognized for its different things ranging from its culture, people, language, food, history, landscape to other things worth remembering. But when India was remembered in the past, its Hindi film industry, Bollywood, used to pop into the head. Even Indian secularism was highlighted and at times ethnic diversity was one of the main things to appreciate.

However in recent times, circumstances have changed on the world stage regarding the Indian image. The Hindutva regime actually changed things entirely. Good news about India has ceased from quite some time. After the rise of Modi and his RSSbacked regime, the global image of India has become tarnished a lot. The new hassle is Indian farmers’ protests. The protests began in September when tens of thousands of farmers from different states of India, and especially from Indian Punjab, left their homes and took to the streets to protest against the farm reforms passed by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

The farmers are afraid the legislation will eventually dismantle India’s regulated markets. These steps would stop the government from purchasing wheat and rice at guaranteed prices, leaving farmers to negotiate with private buyers.

In fact, the recently enforced farm reforms have left many farmers in troubled waters.

In India, agriculture makes up approximately 15 per cent of the $2.9 trillion economy and employs about half of the world’s second largest population of 1.3 billion people.

Farmers are trying to call the government to repeal the legislation and retain mandatory government purchases among other demands. It can be a stimulus to add to the disturbing rash of farmers’ suicides across India. A large number of farmers, in particular Sikh farmers from Indian Punjab, have joined these

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

Umar Aziz

Asher John

Joint Editor

Executive Editor

Deputy Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

racy of her times. Despite all pressures and manipulation she stood her ground and did not boycott the elections in 1990, and the blunder of the 1985 walk over was avoided this time. now nawaz had it all, total control of Punjab and the Centre. While Ghulam Haider Wyne, an ordinary worker of the party, was the dummy CM, real power was exercised by his younger brother Shahbaz. The loot and plunder now reached the centrestage, ably assisted by the provincial goons of his party, mainly the Gullu Butts of Gawalmandi.

So blatant was the misrule that President Ishaq Khan had to intervene and dismiss the government of his protégé using Zia’s draconian 8th Amendment.

The Bhutto’s struggle for democracy is legendary.

ZAB had all the opportunity to escape the wrath of the establishment but he decided to fight his case like a true leader. The Lahore High Court under Mr Justice Maulvi Mushtaq Hussain was clearly biased yet he appeared in his trial with his team of lawyers hoping to get relief from the Supreme Court in appeal. Party workers were not asked to pack the court rooms or intimidate the Judges. Even after his judicial murder Benazir followed the legal course while her brothers decided to use force to topple the regime. The establishment, supported by unscrupulous civilians like the Sharifs of Lahore and Chaudhry’s of Gujrat, were responsible for the launch or extension of the Zia Dark Ages that continues to haunt us till today.

The presence of Maryam Safdar, daughter of nawaz Sharif, in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh for the death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto on 27 December was a slap on the face of all anti-democracy forces like the Sharifs. There is nothing in common between the two father-daughter duos. This time they were not as obnoxious as Captain (retd) Safdar was at the Mazar-eQuaid but their presence in the Temple of Demcoracy where the Shaheed-e-Jamhuriat rests in peace was totally unwanted, unnatural and undesirable. Bhutto was given the title of Quaid-e-Awam as he served the masses with honesty and integrity. As there were no dossiers of corrupt practices against him, he had to be physically eliminated through a manipulated judicial process. His daughter was made to suffer through false cases registered by Sharifs all over the country under influenced judges. But Benazir gallantly fought on for democracy till her last breath. She went into self-exile twice but was there to face all the charges against her.

Compared to nawaz-Maryam, Bhutto-Benazir received world class education in the best global institutions. Bhutto attended the Bar in London while Benazir had to cut short her academic career after graduating from Oxford University to carry on the political mantle of her father. nawaz-Maryam educational credentials are very ordinary. While nawaz managed to get his degrees with very little learning, Maryam could not even get admission in the prestigious Kinnard College Lahore. Dr Mira Phailbus, the Principal, was removed

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daily indefinite sit-in protests at a stretch of the national highway at Singhu border, Tikri border, Kundli border and Ghazipur border (all marking Delhi Union Territory boundaries). Farmers as protesters are carrying food and other daily commodities and are ready to prolong the duration of protests and the government is deploying hundreds of security personnel to block the roads leading towards new Delhi. Due to increasing protests, the railway is suffering owing to blockages of railway tracks with a recent loss of more than $298 million in a month. Furthermore, with more than one month of ongoing protests, rage is rampantly increasing and protesters are being confronted with water cannons, tear-gas and baton charge. Moreover, protesters are not in a mood to call off the protests and are calling the BJP government promises regarding the farm reforms just exploitation of poor farmers.

More than six rounds of talks have failed between protesters and the BJP government.

Many farmers have even burnt their fields in defiance of anti-pollution laws. PM narendra Modi is trying to overhaul the way many of country’s 146 million farms do business, but with no approval from the farmer community. In the meantime, protests are spreading beyond new Delhi in the southern states of Kerala and in the northeastern state of Assam. Additionally, sugar farmers in Utter Pradesh have set up a protest camp in solidarity with fellow farmers.

Times are hard but farmers are determined to protest.

Their fertile lands of myriad acres are turning into barren lands due to the anti-farmer policies of the BJP government.

Meanwhile, farmers fear lower prices, even less than half of present ones, when small farms will be taken over by renowned corporate giants. Farmers are showing their resentment by burning stubble without being afraid of the pollution-focused Indian government ordinance prescribing prison, a fine of up to about $135,000 or both. new Delhi’s air quality is also suffering already and a third wave of coronavirus is haunting all too bleakly. This stubble burning defiance is contributing to the pollution which is severely choking new Delhi and the rest of northern India. According to satellite data, India recently registered the worst

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from her position on refusing to admit her, and by the way nawaz had got into Government College on a seat reserved for wrestling when he could not make it on merit. Bhutto struggled for three years (1967 to 1970) before leading his party to a well-deserved victory in the Western wing. The PPP is the only party to have won five elections despite a clear anti-establishment stance.

The PML(n), being an establishment-launched party, was able to create its own establishment through its long stints in power. The party has twice managed to secure an absolute majority in Parliament and has the unique distinction of getting its government restored after dismissal through the 8th Amendment. It has also dared to attack the Supreme Court when the PM was summoned for his unconstitutional practices.

Double standards is the hallmark of PML(n) politics. While two usurpers have violated Article 6, a case has been filed only against one of them and that too partially. It was Zia-ul-Haq who was the first one to cross the line and kept on disfiguring the constitution together with creating third-rate leadership like the Sharifs and Chaudhrys. In other words the Sharifs were born out of this violation in July 1977. Pervez Musharraf first violated this article in October 1999 and then again in november 2007. The President acts on the advice of the PM, who then relies on the Law Minister for preparation of the ordinance. As PM, nawaz invoked the article only against the President, while the others went scot free. Why? The dictator who derailed democracy and eliminated the Quaid-e-Awam remains their political mentor while the one who spared their life and then gave them an nRO (national Reconciliation Ordinance) has been targeted. Sins against democracy committed by nawaz-Maryam cannot be condoned. While the sacrifices for democracy by Bhutto-Benazir cannot be ignored. Their paths have been very divergent, one is the antithesis of the other.

Offering fateha at the Bhutto shrines by Maryam carries no meaning. On the contrary, Bilawal’s visit to the deserted grave of Zia in Islamabad will have disastrous political consequences for Bhutto’s party.

The PPP remained an ideological political entity till it was taken over by Asif Zardari after the assassination of Benazir, while the PML(n) lacks ideology, being a party of interests where making money through misuse of power is considered kosher. While there are few corruption cases against the PPP leadership, that too mostly initiated by the PML(n), nawaz-Maryam both have been convicted already. Appeal and bail does not mean exoneration. Delay is their only defense as they cannot produce money trails. The show at Gari Khuda Bakhsh was impressive, but with the corrupt and pirates of democracy sharing the stage with the party that has the blood of the martyrs in its foundations, I am sure the Bhuttos must be turning in their graves. Which raises the question, is Bilawal a Bhutto or Zardari?

Dr Farid A Malik is ex-Chairman, Pakistan Science Foundation. He can be contacted at: fmaliks@hotmail.com.

farm fires in four years. Protesters are sleeping on hay in tractor- trailers covered with canvas tarps in freezing cold with temperatures of 2°C in the protests.

More than 40 protesters have died in a month.

The worsening pollution makes it harder for asthma and corona patients to breathe in clean air.

Pollution and the cold waves worked like splashing petrol on burning building. There has also been a devastating economic slump affecting livelihoods after the corona lockdowns.

All the major opposition parties, including the Indian national Congress and Aam Admi Party Chief Minister Arwind Kejriwal with government in new Delhi, are supporting the protesters ‘ demands of repealing the farm reforms. According to CM Arvind Kejriwal the three agricultural reforms were passed from the upper house which is Rajya Sabha without following any voting procedure.

Farmers’ protests are not the only thing worsening or adding fuel to the fire, but but severe human rights violations in Indian-Occupied side of Kashmir and Delhi riots are other insults added to injury. Even European Union Disinfolab reports published between December 9 and 11 have exposed Indian fake news and disinformation network through which India was exploiting local media worldwide. World leaders, artists and organisations have also voiced concerns for farmers especially Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also included himself in this cause. Drmonstrations have been set up in different parts of the world by Sikh communities in solidarity with farmers of India and such incidents are presenting trickier challenges.

Farmers are vital for bringing India out of its debilitating, coronavirus-driven recession. Agriculture has been a rare bright spot, for the revival of common man’s livelihood after Mr. Modi locked down the country to stop the pandemic earlier this year.

Farmers traditionally play a major role in the annual pollution. Many set fire to large swaths of land to clear fields ahead of the winter wheat sowing season which have been estimated to contribute betweentwo and 40 percent of Delhi’s air pollution during the period. It is important to address the actual concerns of farmers in consultations with agricultural scientists and experts to liberate people from the severity of future food scarcity.

The writer can be reached @eDrZeeshanKhanA1 dr.zeeshan.alias.ghazikhan@gmail.com

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

at and

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

COMMENT 07 Editor’s mail send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan. e-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Practice social distancing THE country is currently enduring the second wave of the pandemic. In comparison to the first wave, the public has to act more responsibly during the second wave of coronavirus. Shockingly, there is no social distancing in the country. The educational institutions are closed, however, there is still rush in markets, buses and other public transports. Likely, the pandemic will remain interminable. The government should look forward to maintain proper social distancing so as to eliminate corona soon.

Farahnaz Farooq ahmed TurbaT

Depression

The hard work of healing in the New Year Making 2020 better than 2021

Washington Watch Dr JaMes J Zogby

T

HE traditional refrain on new Year’s Eve is “ring out the old, ring in the new.” It is intended as an expression of our hope that no matter what hardships we have endured, the new Year will be better. To be quite honest, I’m having some difficulty feeling that way this year.

I clearly have some personal reasons that account for my somber mood. The loss of Eileen, my beloved wife of 52 years, has cast a pall over everything. But I don’t want to focus here on the personal as much as on the larger picture– the impact of two distinct but related crises that have taken a toll our nation in 2020 and will, I believe, continue to have an impact in 2021: the Trump presidency and coronavirus pandemic.

In my 75 years, I can’t remember any events that have been more traumatic and life-altering than these two combined. My generation experienced multiple wars, political and social movements, assassinations, and terrorist attacks. Each of them, in their time, had a profound impact on us. But none have been as potentially transformative as Trump and the pandemic.

In confronting most of these past crises, we came together as a nation, addressed the challenges they presented, and healed. That has not been the case this time since Trump and the pandemic have left us more deeply divided than before.

To be clear, the ascent of Donald Trump and Trumpism did not occur in a vacuum. There were antecedents that led to his election in 2016.

A significant part of the American electorate felt ignored by elites whom they believed had no understanding of their grievances. They had lost their moorings to rapid social, political, economic, and cultural change. And they looked for a champion who would speak to their resentments and feelings of dislocation.

As incongruous as it might have appeared, Trump, the high-living controversial billionaire entertainer, became their champion. He not only spoke to their fears, he exacerbated and preyed on them using appeals to racism and xenophobia. And he not only identified with their resentments, he added to them a mix of his own grievances, calling into question the legitimacy

of some of our foundational institutions. Ever the entertainer, Donald Trump won them over, not only defeating some of his more establishment GOP opponents, but in the end transforming the Republican party into the party of Trump.

Though he will not be president after 20 January 2021, the impact of Donald Trump will be with us for years to come. We’re seeing it play out today.

Despite losing this election, he has continued to make false claims about winning “by a landslide,” and making outrageous and evidence-free charges of fraud that have been repeatedly rejected by state and federal courts.

Fearing the wrath of the President, 126 Republican Members of Congress signed up to endorse his failed court cases.

Most recent polls show that 77 percent of Trump voters believe that he won the election and that victory was stolen from him. As unseemly as it may be, he is encouraging members of Congress to vote against certifying the election’s outcome when Congress meets on January 6 and his faithful are planning disruptive mobilizations on both that date and January 14th.

With over 50 million voters viewing a Biden presidency as illegitimate and Republican members of Congress lining up behind this claim, it will be difficult for the incoming President to govern effectively.

Let’s be clear, Trump didn’t create the hyper-partisanship that has paralyzed Washington for decades. He has, however, taken it to new levels. He didn’t introduce the poisons of racism and xenophobia into our political discourse. But he has given license to his supporters to freely use such vile speech. He also didn’t create American’s lack of confidence in media, but his constant claims of “fake news,” his 30,000 untruths in tweets and speeches, and his projection of what an aide once referred to as “alternative facts” have resulted in a divided polity that not only disagrees on policy, but on reality. We have unfolding before us not so much a political movement, as a messianic cult of true believers.

Will the GOP remain in Trump’s thrall or will Trumpism morph into something more destructive – a more potent form of the QAnon cult or the dangerous Proud Boys white nationalist movement? Whatever the answers, the damage done to our politics and our shared sense of common purpose is real and will last for the foreseeable future. An indication of how this divisiveness can affect our civic life can be seen from reactions to the pandemic.

When we first became aware of the magnitude of the novel Coronavirus in March of this year, health experts’ issued warnings and called for dramatic steps to be taken. The President, however, downplayed its seriousness and has continued to. While several Democratic governors imposed various degrees of lockdown and mandated the wearing of masks, Republican governors, taking their cues from the White House, resisted. At one point, Trump called on his faithful to storm the state capitols governed

by Democrats demanding an end to the lockdown– and they did, many armed.

What should have been a crisis that brought the nation together, has become a partisan battle– with those whose leaders call for restrictions on gatherings called “traitors,” and those who wear masks derided as weak liberals. Despite the nation’s death toll reaching 330,000, it remains

divided with a substantial minority refusing to obey health warnings, insisting they infringe their personal freedoms. And even more disturbing, many among Trump’s loyalists, echoing his charges, are claiming that the entire pandemic is overblown and was used by Democrats to scare voters into casting absentee ballots which Trump believes enabled the fraudulent counts that resulted in his defeat.

The pandemic’s lasting impact, however, will not only be to exacerbate our political divide. It will also produce other changes. In the beginning, we warned that the longer to this pandemic lasted, the greater the economic and social consequences. We foresaw businesses closing, neighborhoods impacted by the closures, a drain on city and state governments as they saw revenues declining while demand for essential services continued to grow, and a devastating impact on educational institutions and the children they serve. We also envisioned the disparate impact that this would have on the poor and those with special needs and the increase in stress-related problems including depression, agoraphobia, addiction, and suicide. nine months later, our worst fears have been borne out.

Even with the vaccine, the disease will continue to take its toll for months to come. And even, God willing, when it is brought under control, it will be a different country. Our cities and daily life will have changed. Many office workers who’ve learned to work remotely, will not return to their offices. And downtown businesses that once served them and have since closed, will not reopen. With half of all Americans having developed a fear of disease, many social gatherings will continue to be curtailed. Children, especially the poor and those with special needs, will have a difficult time recovering from a lost year of learning and social development.

And beyond all this, are the accumulated impacts of prolonged unemployment, depleted savings, and debt resulting from the dislocation brought on by a changed economy.

Facing down these two plagues, many had the naïve hope that defeating Trump and a vaccine would be silver bullets returning us to normal. It will not be so simple. Despite Biden’s victory and the availability of a vaccine, the country is deeply divided and the economy and society changed.

And so, it feels naïve to just say “ring out the old, ring in the new.” Hope must be coupled with resolve and hard work. Because I have an incurable faith in our resilience and in fundamental goodness of most people, I do believe that we will find a way forward. It won’t be easy, and even with our best efforts, there won’t be a return to the “normal” that was.

But if we can address the fears and resentments that have led so many to be so alienated they became so easily preyed upon; if we can address the social, economic, and political inequities that have left so many vulnerable; and if we can, as Abraham Lincoln once advised, listen to “the better angels of our nature,” we may be able to create a “new normal.” This is the challenge Biden will need to meet head on. If we can come together as a nation, we will heal as we have after other searing national crises we’ve been forced to confront in years past.

The writer is President of the Arab American Institute

BEInG depressed can make you feel helpless. Along with therapy and sometimes medication, there is a lot you can do your own to fight back.

Changing your behaviour, your physical activity, life style and even your ways of thinking, all are natural depression treatments.

If you are depressed, you need a routine. You may feel like you can’t accomplish anything. That makes you feel worse about yourself. To push back, set daily goals for yourself. Exercise regularly, regular exercise seems to encourage the brain to rewire itself in positive ways. It can also improve your sense of well-being. Push yourself to do something different. Go to a museum, pick up a book and read it on a park bench, take a language class, make time for things you enjoy. What if nothing seems fun anymore? That is just a symptom of depression. You have to keep trying any way. dilshad baluch sajidi awaran

UAE Visas LAST week, Pakistan’s foreign office confirmed that the UAE had suspended the issuance of new visas to Pakistani nationals in other countries due to coronavirus health restrictions. It was later clarified that the suspension does not apply to holders of valid visas.Meanwhile, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari has denied media reports that the UAE has suspended work visas for Pakistanis.

Bukhari said UAE Minister of Human Resources and UAE nasir bin Thanwi al-Hamli had confirmed that “it is clearly stated that there are no restrictions on the export of Pakistani manpower.”He added that the UAE is also giving preference to those workers registered in the Virtual Labor Market database and encouraging applications for 10-year Golden Visa.

FaTima imam baksh TurbaT

Rooting out corruption We are a strange country where corruption is rooted deep in society, but nobody ever gets punished. Whenever a politician officeholder or a government officer is apprehended for corrupt practices, they claim that the case is politicized. The party of the politicians decries that the corruption cases are political victimization. Even the government officers would take a stand that they are being victimized because they served with the outgoing government. no accused ever responds to the charges in a manner that would satisfy the law. They instead hide behind the slogan of victimization. I wonder if all the corruption charges are bogus and based on malintent, who is responsible for massive corruption in Pakistan. We all know that it is almost impossible to have work done in any department without a bribe or a strong reference (sifarish), but somehow nobody is responsible for it. Another issue with our system is the weak prosecution.

The departments responsible prepare weak cases based mostly on circumstantial evidence that does not stand in the court of law and the accused go scot-free. I wonder if this farce is intentional to make us (the public) fools. Corruption can only be rooted out if there is zero-tolerance for any transgression by anyone. The department responsible for accountability prepares and presents strong evidence in the court to get strong sentences. I remember from my days in service in the early days of Pakistan that an official working in the commissioner Rawalpindi office was apprehended by the anti-corruption department. The commissioner appointed an inquiry officer who asked the accused for his plea. The accused instead of refuting the evidence or providing proof of his innocence took a stand that other officials in the office also took bribes.

The inquiry officer asked the accused to defend himself rather than blaming others. He was eventually found guilty and the inquiry officer sent his findings to the commissioner who gave the defendant one last chance. raja shaFaaTullah islamabad

Unemployment FIRST of all let me tell you about unemployment it is a state when a person who is qualities and eligible for job but does not find any job but the problem of unemployment has many countries from many years and it is still major issue for every person who is willing to find a job in a country like Pakistan it becomes such a difficult task for a government to provider job to every job skeer. On the other hand, there are many reason for the lack of employment in Pakistan. One of the reason for unemployment is that Pakistan is also developed country and getting developed for moderanize it is also lacks job because of the excess using technology machines industries start using heavy machine in the place of many workers and the workers are getting laid off and unemployment. Especially old people who lives alone are a lot of problem due to modernizate and using of technology ,there are many reason such one of country education system which focus only on bookis knowledge and much less on practices knowledge ,this kind of education system is called as degree orient system be we actual need a system which career oriented .If a person has completed many years in school and college and is still for a job then what is outercame of those years and therw is a need of change in our education system ,there must be some vocational studies which help enchain the skill of study. Everybody are thinking to have a government job and this is quite impossible one of the main reason of lack of unemployment of our country Pakistan. In last, i hope that government will solve this issue soon. zubair zahid awaran

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

08 WORLD VIEW

fIVE books tHat ExplaIn tHE WoRld

BloomBerG

E

JameS StavridiS

VeRY time I set out to visit a country in the NATO alliance when I was Supreme Allied Commander, I’d try to read a book that could help me understand the history, culture and zeitgeist of the place. It could be a novel by a native writer, a history or a work of historical fiction. Can you really understand France without reading Camus and Sartre?

To comprehend Russia, including the mindset of Vladimir Putin, I’ve found more illumination in Pushkin, Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy and above all Gogol than in most CIA reports, with all due respect to the agency. So as 2020 ends, I want to offer five books that have helped me make sense of a confusing world in the past year.

Let’s start with a sweeping look at some of the most important global trends: “The New Map: energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations” by Pulitzer prize-winning analyst Daniel Yergin (disclosure: Dan is a colleague of mine at the private equity firm Carlyle Group). Yergin’s 1990 book about the oil industry, “The Prize,” is a standard text in most graduate schools of international relations. By

the way, the world still depends on oil, gas and coal for 80% of its energy — roughly the same as it did when he wrote the book 30 years ago. But so much else has changed.

In “The New Map,” Yergin weaves geopolitics into his energy and climate analysis. Consider, for instance, his study of the Chinese territorial claims in the South China Sea. In that massive body of water, we find vast deposits of oil and gas, close to 40% of the world’s shipping, warming water, overfishing, and increasingly dangerous military competition between the U.S. and China.

Yergin lays out the need to shift to greener sources of energy, but points out how hard this is going to be — and how the competition (perhaps the conflict) between the U.S. and China will color the next two decades.

This should be mandatory reading for President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming team.

A second powerful read is “The Missionaries,” a novel about Colombia by Phil Klay. A combat veteran, Klay won the 2014 National Book Award for “Redeployment,” a collection of short stories about the Iraq War, in which he participated as a U.S. marine. In “The Missionaries,” he sets his sights on the supposedly successful American intervention in Colombia over

HoW safE Is RussIa’s sputnIk V CoRonaVIRus VaCCInE? 19fortyfive.com

o

the past several decades. Having spent three years as head of Southern Command, in charge of U.S. support for the Colombian military, I can attest to the lethal accuracy of Klay’s depiction.

The novel portrays the ugly 50-year war against the FARC, a Marxist guerrilla group. It contrasts the views of a hardened, yet somehow naïve, American female journalist, an American contractor serving as liaison to the Colombian military, a couple of FARC insurgents, and a Colombian military officer. There are no clear winners here and, by the end, the reader is left to strongly question U.S. intervention. Was the point to create a cadre of true believers in the benefits of an interventionist foreign policy?

This will be a central question for the new administration, and “The Missionaries” can help officials understand the costs involved.

Scott Anderson’s history about the founding of the CIA, “The Quiet Americans: Four CIA Spies at the Dawn of the Cold War — a Tragedy in Three Acts” is another important 2020 book. As we grapple with the direction of our country’s espionage efforts in this new era of great power competition, it pays to look back at how we undertook the same missions in communist

Ethen Kim Lieser is a Minneapolis-based Science and Tech Editor who has held posts at Google, The Korea Herald, Lincoln Journal Star, AsianWeek, and Arirang TV.

“Thank You for Smoking” and more than a dozen other fine novels, skewers the present administration with style. The book is ostensibly written by President Donald Trump’s seventh chief of staff (he’s actually getting close to that number), who remains improbably loyal to his ex-boss even as he writes from prison, serving time for his actions in the White House. Unlike the many unfunny Trump memoirs published this year, this novel had me laughing out loud and, by the end, shaking my head at what we’ve come to accept as normal. This book contains the answer to one of the few enduring Trump mysteries: Why does he continue to pander so remarkably to Vladimir Putin? Buckley’s answer is very funny. And after 2020, boy do we need a laugh.

James Stavridis is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is a retired U.S. Navy admiral and former supreme allied commander of NATO, and dean emeritus of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He is also an operating executive consultant at the Carlyle Group and chairs the board of counselors at McLarty Associates.

If the Church of England worships online, how can its historic buildings survive?

ethen kim LieSer

N Saturday, even as the country surpassed three million confirmed coronavirus infections, Russia decided against reimposing an economy-crippling national lockdown. Instead, Moscow gave the green-light to mass vaccinate its population with its controversial homegrown Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine. Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said on public TV over the weekend that the vaccine is both “safe and effective” for general use, later authorizing it to be administered to seniors over sixty years old.

In a further show of confidence, a Kremlin spokesman added that Russian President Vladimir Putin will also receive the Sputnik V vaccine.

Last week, Russia sent out about 300,000 doses to Argentina, the country’s first large international shipment. They, however, consisted of only the first dose of the two-shot vaccine, which is believed to be easier to make.

Unlike other vaccines currently on the market, the Sputnik V vaccine relies on two doses delivered using different inactive viruses, which are known as vectors. According to the vaccine developer Gamaleya Institute, the shot is 91 percent effective after the two-dose course.

International medical experts, however, have raised concerns about the speed at which Russia has worked, giving the regulatory approval for its vaccine and launching mass vaccinations before full trials to test its safety and efficacy had been completed. Dr. Wes Van Voorhis, professor of allergy and infectious diseases at the University of Washington and director of the Center for emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases, told me that he remains cautious about the Sputnik V vaccine. “It is an adenovirus (cold virus) vaccine, and thus, has more potential than the Pfizer, Moderna (mRNA vaccines), and Sinopharm (inactivated) vaccines to cause adverse reactions,” he said. “I am uncertain whether it is safe because the data for large scale safety have not been released yet. … The issue for experts to endorse the Sputnik V safety is the lack of access to safety data from the large number of people that have gotten the vaccine.”

For Dr. Lee Riley, a professor and chair of the Division of Infectious Disease and Vaccinology at the University of California, Berkeley, he is especially concerned about individuals with underlying medical conditions getting the Sputnik V vaccine. “The Sputnik V vaccine … uses two different types of adenovirus—Ad26 and Ad5—each one given as a separate dose three weeks apart. These viruses do not cause any serious disease in people—maybe mild cold-like symptoms in some. So, for the general population without any underlying medical conditions, the vaccine should be relatively safe,” he explained. “However, because this approach uses live viruses, it could potentially cause complications in some immunocompromised individuals. There’s not much information coming out of Russia about which groups of people have so far received the vaccine, so we don’t have any data regarding its safety.”

times. Four fascinating characters, including the legendary edward Lansdale, demonstrate both the successes and failures of the CIA’s early days. This is a book about finding a moral compass along with success in a vital mission, a balance that the U.S. has yet to achieve. The Biden administration will certainly wrestle with these challenges in traditional geopolitics and intelligence, as well as in the new frontiers of cyber, outer space and biotech. Then there is veteran historian Margaret MacMillan’s broad look at conflict and the human spirit, “War: How Conflict Shaped Us.” Why has war been such a defining characteristic of human life on earth? Drawing on history, political theory, literature, anthropology, biology and a dozen other disciplines, MacMillan seeks to answer what in many ways is humanity’s existential question: Why are we so fascinated with killing one another at scale? And what does it cost us? A book like this may teach us how to essentially “reverse engineer” the phenomenon of war, and prevent more mayhem ahead. Let’s hope so.

Finally, because every book list should include a work of satire, I offer Christopher Buckley’s hilarious “Make Russia Great Again.” Buckley, the brilliant author of

Guardian

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Simon JenkinS

e all know the future. It is online, home delivery, click and collect, view on demand. It is goodbye high street; farewell butcher, baker and Bricklayer’s Arms. But is it also goodbye church? Normally Christmas is bumper season, not just for toyshops and turkey farmers. Three times more Britons – 2.3 million – go to church on Christmas Day than on any normal Sunday. Families who never attend parish church all year don their Sunday best and troop to a carol service. Teenagers party before midnight mass. It is churchgoing’s Black Friday.

Christian worship in Britain continues to plunge, down over the past decade by between 15% and 20%. Barely 2% of the nation regularly go to their Church of england parish church, and a third of them are over 70. Only Pentacostalists have shown any buoyancy. Lockdown 2020 brought incipient disaster, with Boris Johnson putting churches on a par with steamy nightclubs and sweaty gyms. This was despite the clergy pleading that empty churches had been socially distancing for years.

That said, lockdown has not been all bad news. Dynamic churches have turned the online boom to their advantage. Zoom praying, livestreaming and social media posting have soared. Almost 17,000 services and events were

added to the website A Church Near You in 2020, according to church figures reported in the Church Times. Questions about churches to Amazon echo’s Alexa rose from 75,000 in 2019 to more than 250,000 this year. The church’s easter social media content was seen 3 million times, and the Time to Pray podcast has had 200,000 downloads so far this year. Only holy communion was a challenge, met by some churches via drive-in services in the open air.

Many parish churches have become film sets with production companies attached. My local vicar has seen her meagre attendance at daily morning prayers more than double on Zoom.

Sunday services and Sunday school are posted on YouTube to be viewed on demand by double her normal turnout. Sermons and prayers can be recorded at home and interspersed with choirsung hymns, pictures and children’s readings.

Remembrance Day was prepackaged with a video of poppy fields and visits to war memorials.

The Church of england statistician Ken eames accepts that no one can tell the true value of such online “worship”. It stands to reason that not having to dress up and travel to church is a huge convenience, especially for families. There is no social commitment to place, but so what? eames says that Covid “may have permanently changed the way attendance is recorded in future”, and wonders “when, if ever, churches will return to normal”.

The question of what is normal could clearly be traumatic for the church. Churches are in the same bind as other institutions in the local high street. Why drive and park when you can surf and click? According to the Archbishops’ Council, 2,000 Anglican churches now have congregations of fewer than 10 people. The 2015 Inge report on the subject found that nine churches grouped round Asterby, in Lincolnshire, were serving a total population of just 1,319. Now these worshippers can choose online between high or low church – traditional, ardent or uncommitted – and in their own time.

The clerical response to this is fierce. A church is not an event but a family, and at a time such as this it is a boon to its community. Some 90% of churches have been involved in food

banks and deliveries, in caring for vulnerable and elderly people, in organising visits and phone conversations. The local church is a neighbourhood bond and a bulwark against loneliness. As Archbishop Justin Welby said last week, in normal times it answers to the “human hunger for touch and affection”. You don’t get hugs online. every community needs supportive institutions, but it is odd when they represent such a tiny minority, and one seen by most people as based in a cold, inconvenient building quite alien to their daily lives. Many churches have indeed found a new purpose during lockdown, and deserve the nation’s thanks. But if the internet does meet a sizeable share of the demand for religion in Britain – as it does in the US – this will only worsen the plight of its oversupply of buildings.

Online shopping has transformed the way we acquire goods and services. Shops and offices have had to review their use of space – mostly downwards. But some 70% of england’s churches are listed and undestroyable, including 45% of england’s Grade I historic buildings.

Churches cannot be left to collapse like medieval castles, to become picturesque ruins. They were built as the most prominent feature of Britain’s local ceremonial and collective life.

They are testaments to history and works of art.

We are stuck with them for ever – and church lovers will say, thank goodness.

Somehow these structures must recapture their traditional role in the local community. Some are already showing imagination. They are finding new uses as social enterprises, as post offices, cafes, bookshops, concert halls, farmers’ markets and even campsites – sometimes with the chancel still in use for worship. As pub numbers plummet under lockdown, there must be scope for exchurches to become social hubs for the neighbourhood, as Nottingham’s pioneering Pitcher and Piano has done. If the church really means to serve the village “family”, it may occasionally be as the Archers’ Bull rather than St Stephen’s.

I am sure most churches will struggle on as they are, but thousands must soon succumb to high street disease. The opportunity should be grabbed. Turning these buildings from a towering liability to a community asset should be a challenge to every town and village in the country.

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

BUSINESS 09 corporate corner PCJCCI, Punjab governor discuss trade, investment issues between Pakistan, China

GOvt ORDERs PRObE INtO aUtOmOtIvE FIRms’ FaILURE IN PRODUCtION ISLAMABAD GHUlAM ABBAS

t

LAHORE: Pakistan-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) President SM Naveed held a meeting with Punjab Governor Chaudhary Muhammad Sarwar to discuss the hurdles in promoting trade and investment relations between China and Pakistan. He was accompanied by PCJCCI Senior Vice President Daud Ahmed, PCJCCI Vice President Khalid Raffique Chaudhary, PCJCCI Senior Executive Member Moazzam Ali Ghurki and PCJCCI Executive Member Zaki Ijaz. PrESS rElEASE

NCCPL, IDENFO join hands to provide front-end application to authorised intermediaries

HE federal cabinet has asked the Ministry of Industries and Production (MoIP) to probe the failure of automotive firms in increasing production capacity as they are unable to meet market demand, causing black marketing of locally produced vehicles and price hikes, Profit learnt on Wednesday.

The shortage of vehicles and increasing demand have caused black marketing, usually known as the business of premium or ‘on-money’.

According to sources who confided in Profit, the Cabinet, which met here on Tuesday, discussed the shortage of locally manufactured vehicles despite increasing demand. "Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has asked Minister of Industries Hammad Azhar to investigate the matter," they informed.

They said that members of the Cab-

TAX ON FIRST RESALE OF NEW VEHICLES INTRODUCED LAST WEEK inet had shown concern over major auto companies including Honda, Toyota and Suzuki not enhancing the capacity of production despite running businesses in the country for 30 to 40 years.

The Cabinet was informed that as per the auto policy, the Japanese companies had also failed to localise vehicles parts and were still importing the majority of parts from Japan.

However, a representative of an auto firm, while talking to this scribe, said that auto companies have long been suggesting the government to impose taxes on the resale of new vehicles for a given time period to discourage premiums.

The representative further said that setting up manufacturing plants of various parts needs huge investment which could be made according to space in the

market, keeping in view the long term policy. "Unfortunately, policies in the country keep changing which risk the major investment of investors."

Interestingly, officials of the Engineering Development Board (EDB) were unaware of the Cabinet’s direction. Despite repeated attempts, secretary Industries did not attend the phone to comment on the issue.

Further, sources said that the demand for vehicles in the country has increased after the government’s decision to restrict the import of used vehicles through imposing strict conditions.

"The restrictions on the import of used cars through the baggage system have almost halted imports."

When contacted, Indus Motors Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ali As-

Petrol price likely to go up by Rs2.96/litre

ISLAMABAD TlTP

Fuel prices in the country are likely to be raised by over Rs3 per litre with the start of 2021.

According to sources, the federal government is likely to increase the prices of petroleum products from January 1, 2021, whereas the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has sent a summary to the Petroleum Division regarding future oil prices, seeking an increase in prices of petroleum products for the

first fifteen days January.

Sources said that OGRA has suggested raising the price of petrol by Rs2.96 per litre and Rs3.12 per litre in high speed diesel (HSD) price.

Sources also said that the hike in the prices of kerosene and light diesel oil (LDO) was under consideration and the Finance Ministry, after getting consent from Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, will announce oil prices on new year night.

Earlier, the Ministry of Finance on December 15 had announced prices of petro-

leum products for the remaining days of the month.

At present, petrol is available at Rs103.69/litre, HSD at Rs108.44/litre, kerosene oil Rs70.29/litre and LDO at Rs67.86/litre in the open market.

Sources said that the government can maintain oil prices at the current level, whereas it can also reduce the prices of petroleum products by decreasing the ratio of various taxes, levy etc., already imposed on the per litre price of petroleum products.

FBR to keep track of property dealing transactions worth Rs2m, above LAHORE: EFU Life Assurance Ltd. Annual Report 2019, ‘The Art of Evolution’ ranked second in the Best Corporate Report (BCR) Award 2019 in the insurance category including life, non-life and takaful companies.

This is the eight consecutive year that the company has been recognised in the BCR Awards for best presented accounts, with focus on transparency, accountability and governance. EFU Life’s Annual Report 2019 can be accessed on Company’s website www.efulife.com under ‘Investor Relations’. PrESS rElEASE

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has said that every cash transaction worth Rs2 million or above for the purpose of sale or purchase of property is required to be reported.

According to a report by ARY News, FBR has issued guidelines for real estate agents (REAs) under the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF) regime brought in to meet the requirements of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

According to the guidelines, real estate developers and agents are required to file currency transaction report (CTR) on every transaction of Rs2 million or above for sale or purchase of immovable property. However, any transaction through banks for this purpose is not required to be reported.

According to the FBR, the step is aimed at checking money laundering and meeting the FATF requirements as there are instances of black money invested in the real estate sector through cash transactions. MONITOrING rEPOrT

Bitcoin jumps to record $28,600 as 2020 rally reaches new heights LONDON AGENCIES

Bitcoin on Wednesday jumped to a record $28,599.99, after the digital currency almost quadrupled in value this year amid heightened interest from bigger investors.

The world’s most popular cryptocurrency was last up 2.3% at

Honda to stop auto sales in Russia in 2022 MOSCOW: The Russian subsidiary of Japan’s Honda Motor Co said on Wednesday it would stop supplying new cars to official dealers in Russia in 2022 as part of the company’s efforts to restructure its operations. The company said it would keep its presence on the Russian market with motorcycle and power equipment sales, and retain its activities related to the after-sales service of its vehicles. Honda, which has no plants in Russia unlike other Japanese carmakers such as Toyota and Nissan. AGENCIES

Finja disburses over 50,000 loans to businesses and salaried individuals

kARAcHi: The NCCPL has taken a huge step in announcing its collaboration with Idenfo, a trailblazer UK based fintech specialising in Anti-Money Laundering “AML”, FATF and compliance solutions. Through this collaboration a seamless intuitive digital platform will be made available for authorized intermediaries. The digital platform will facilitate authorized intermediaries including securities brokers to increase accuracy and volume of applications by providing pre-checks on the client. With this, both companies aim to make investing through brokers a frictionless experienc. PrESS rElEASE

EFU Life wins best corporate report award 2019

ghar Jamali said that they were open to any investigation. “Though I am not aware of the development, I welcome any investigation as we hide nothing.

The relevant ministry is aware of the investment and localisation by our company,” he said.

“I had requested the prime minister to introduce taxes on the resale of new vehicles within 90 days to discourage on-money. The government's decision in this regard would hopefully address the issue of premium,” he added.

It may be noted here that the government introduced a tax on the first resale of new vehicles within 90 days last week.

As per sources, since automotive companies and the government will negotiate the new auto policy in January 2021, issues related to the rising prices of locally-assembled vehicles and illegal premiums would also be discussed.

The auto industry would be renegotiating the Auto Policy 2016-21, which expires on June 30, 2021.

$28,012. It has surged by nearly half since breaking $20,000 for the first time on Dec. 16.

Bitcoin has increasingly seen demand from larger U.S. investors in particular, attracted by its perceived inflation-hedging qualities and potential for quick gains, as well as expectations it would become a mainstream payments method.

Investors said limited supply of bitcoin – produced by so-called “mining” computers that validate blocks of transactions by competing to solve mathematical puzzles – has helped power upward moves over recent days.

Many recent entrants to the market are holding onto positions, they said.

“The supply side to the bitcoin market will remain tight,” said Jacob Skaan-

CM YK

ing of crypto hedge fund ARK36.

The latest gains took bitcoin’s market capitalisation past $518 billion, according to industry website CoinMarketCap. Other major cryptocurrencies, which tend to move in tandem with bitcoin, were flat. Ethereum, the second-biggest, was down 0.4%, on track for a 2020 gain of around 465%.

LAHORE: Supported by the credit books of its partner banks, Finja has disbursed over 50,000 unsecured digitally scored Islamic and conventional loans to businesses and salaried individuals. Small business and consumer lending represents a Rs10 market in Pakistan of which less than 4pc is currently penetrated. As a result of this sector being neglected, small businesses have largely struggled to grow due to unavailability of capital. Finja also announced that it has closed $9 million of a $10 million Series A1 financing round. This latest round brings in new investor ICU Ventures, with all previous institutional investors participating again including BeeNext, Vostok Emerging Finance, Quona Capital and Gray MacKenzie Engineering Services (a Descon company). Under the terms of the financing, the company has the flexibility to raise an additional $1 million as a part of this round. PrESS rElEASE

meezan bank recognised as Islamic finance entity of the year kARAcHi: Meezan Bank has been recognised with the Gold Award – Islamic Finance Entity of the Year by Islamic Finance Forum of South Asia (IFFSA) in recognition of its immense contributions to the Islamic banking and finance industry in South Asia, at the fifth awards ceremony of the Islamic Finance Forum of South Asia held online. The bank has also been recognised with the IFFSA awards for demonstrating the best overall performance over the period 2019-2020, including the Gold Award – Islamic Bank of the Year, Gold Award – Islamic Investment Bank of the Year, Gold Award – Islamic Finance Advisory Services Provider of the Year,Silver Award – Islamic Finance Deal of the Year. PrESS rElEASE

Kashf Foundation wins UN Women’s asia-Pacific WEPs award for Covid-19 action kARAcHi: Kashf Foundation has earned the recognition of being the only Pakistani organisation to be honored at the recently held first edition of Asia-Pacific Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Award hosted by UN Women and funded by the European Union. Over 400 entries from 17 countries were received while Kashf Foundation was the only Pakistani organisation to win for its ‘Don’t let corona impact your business’ initiative in the ‘Covid-19 action’ award category. PrESS rElEASE

soneri bank Limited maintains PaCRa rating for tFC-II LAHORE: Soneri Bank has been able to maintain the rating of A+ (Single A Plus) for its unsecured, Subordinated and listed term finance certificates (2nd issue) of Rs3,000 million. This rating has been accredited by the Pakistan Credit Rating Agency Ltd. (PACRA) on 18th December 2020. The rating is a function of bank's ability to maintain its market position in the banking industry while strengthening its overall risk profile. Soneri Bank continues to serve its customers through a network of over 300 branches and ATMs across the country. PrESS rElEASE

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

10 FOREIGN NEWS Turkish court gives 92 life sentences in 2016 coup trial: report

US STATe DepARTmeNT AppROveS pOTeNTIAL SALe Of 3,000 SmART bOmbS TO SAUDI ARAbIA WASHINGTON

ISTANBUL AGENCIES

A Turkish court sentenced 92 defendants including former high-ranking army officials to life in jail on Wednesday for their roles in the 2016 attempted coup, state-owned Anadolu news agency reported. More than 250 people were killed in the attempt to overthrow the government on July 15, 2016 when rogue soldiers commandeered warplanes, helicopters and tanks and sought to take control of key state institutions.

Life sentences without parole were given to 12 defendants including some department heads of the land forces, Anadolu said. Last month, a court handed separate jail sentences to leaders of the coup attempt, which Ankara blamed on supporters of the US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen. He has denied having any role. Some 292,000 people have been detained over alleged links to Gulen, nearly 100,000 of them jailed pending trial, Anadolu cited Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu as saying. Some 150,000 civil servants were sacked or suspended after the attempted coup. Courts have handed down more than 2,500 life sentences and the defence ministry said 20,833 people were expelled from the military.

T

AGENCIES

HE US State Department has approved the potential sale of 3,000 precision guided munitions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in a deal valued at up to $290 million, the Pentagon said on Tuesday.

The sale comes in the final days of US President Donald Trump’s term.

President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to halt arms sales to Saudi Arabia, the Mid-

dle East’s biggest buyer of American weapons, in a bid to pressure Riyadh to end a war in Yemen that has caused the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

The package would include 3,000 GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb I (SDB I) munitions, containers, support equipment, spares and technical support, the Pentagon said.

“The proposed sale will improve Saudi Arabia’s capability to meet current and future threats by increasing its stocks of long-range, precision air-toground munitions,” the Pentagon said

in a statement. It added that “the size and accuracy of the SDB I allows for an effective munition with less collateral damage.”

The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of the possible sale on Tuesday. Members of Congress have been angered by steep civilian casualties in Yemen and earlier this year tried and failed to block the sale of F-35 warplanes to Riyadh.

If Congress cannot block the munition sale, the Biden administration should do so when it takes office,

Russia summons UK envoy, expands visa ban list, in response to Navalny sanctions

Trump pardon of Blackwater Iraq contractors violates international law: UN

Iran allocates $150,000 for families of each victim of Ukraine plane crash: IRNA TEHRAN: Iran’s cabinet on Wednesday allocated $150,000 for the families of each of the 176 victims of a Ukrainian plane downed in Iranian airspace in January, the official IRNA news agency reported. “The cabinet approved the provision of $150,000 or the equivalent in euros as soon as possible to the families and survivors of each of the victims of the Ukrainian plan crash,” IRNA quoted a government statement. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they accidentally shot down the Ukraine International Airlines plane shortly after take off, mistaking it for a missile when tensions with the United States were high. Five days earlier, the US had killed Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani with a drone strike in Iraq. Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami told state television on Wednesday that the final report on the crash had been sent to the countries participating in the investigation. Many of the victims were Canadian citizens or permanent residents. AGENCIES

One killed, three soldiers injured in Israeli attack in Syria: report CAIRO: One person was killed and three soldiers injured as a result of “Israeli aggression” in the Damascus countryside, Syrian state news agency SANA said on Wednesday, quoting a military source. The source said the “Israeli enemy” carried out an attack from Northern Galilee and targeted an air defence unit in the Nabi Habeel area, said SANA. A spokeswoman for the Israeli military declined to comment on the SANA report. AGENCIES

US congressman-elect Letlow dies of Covid-19 WASHINGTON: US Representative-elect Luke Letlow of Louisiana died on Tuesday of Covid-19, his campaign said.

Letlow, 41, announced on December 18 that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus. “Congressman-elect Luke Letlow, 41, passed away this evening at Ochsner-LSU Health Shreveport due to complications from Covid-19”, his campaign manager, Andrew Bautsch, said. “Letlow was admitted into a Monroe hospital on December 19 after testing positive for the coronavirus and was transferred to OchsnerLSU Health on December 22 and placed in intensive care”, he added. Letlow, a Republican, won a runoff election on December 5 for the 5th District seat, which represents Northeast and Central Louisiana, and was due to be sworn in on Sunday. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards and US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi were among those that expressed sorrow and paid tribute to Letlow. AGENCIES

GENEVA AGENCIES

US President Donald Trump’s pardon of four American men convicted of killing Iraqi civilians while working as contractors in 2007 violated US obligations under international law, UN human rights experts said on Wednesday.

Nicholas Slatten was convicted of first-degree murder, while Paul Slough, Evan Liberty and Dustin Heard were convicted of voluntary and attempted manslaughter, over the incident in which US contractors opened fire in busy traffic in a Baghdad square and killed 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians.

The four contractors, who worked for the private security firm Blackwater owned by the brother of Trump’s education secretary, were included in a wave of pre-Christmas pardons announced by the White House.

“Pardoning the Blackwater contractors is an affront to justice and to the victims of the Nisour Square massacre and their families,” said Jelena Aparac, chair of the UN working group on the use of merce-

William Hartung, the Director of the Arms and Security Program at the Centre for International Policy, said in a statement. Adding, “It is particularly concerning that the Trump administration is trying to ram through these controversial deals when it has less than a month left in office.”

Despite approval by the State Department, the notification does not indicate that a contract has been signed or that negotiations have concluded.

The Pentagon said Boeing Co was the prime contractor for the weapons.

MOSCOW: Russia said on Wednesday it had summoned Britain’s ambassador to tell her it was expanding the number of British citizens banned from entry in response to London sanctioning Russian officials over the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny. Navalny is convalescing in Germany after being poisoned in Russia with a Novichok nerve agent, an attack about which Britain and other Western countries have said Russia, which denies wrongdoing, has serious questions to answer.

The Kremlin has said it has yet to see evidence that Navalny was poisoned and President Vladimir Putin has suggested the way the incident has been presented in the West is part of a US-backed plot to try to discredit him.

Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday it had been forced to respond to what it called unfriendly and unconstructive steps by Britain in October. It said it had handed Deborah Bronnert, Britain’s ambassador to Russia, a note explaining its position. Britain and the European Union imposed sanctions on top Russian officials close to Putin in October in a response to Navalny’s poisoning. Moscow on Wednesday called those sanctions unacceptable and unjustified. It did not publicly name the British officials, politicians and individuals it was banning from Russia, but said they were united by the fact that they had been complicit in whipping up what it called anti-Russian sanctions. AGENCIES

naries, said in a statement.

The Geneva Conventions oblige states to hold war criminals accountable for their crimes, even when they act as private security contractors, the UN experts said.

“These pardons violate US obligations under international law and more broadly undermine humanitarian law and human rights at a global level.”

By allowing private security contractors to “operate with impunity in armed conflicts”, states will be emboldened to circumvent their obligations under humanitarian law, they said.

The pardons were strongly criticised by many in the United States. General David Petraeus and Ryan Crocker, respectively commander of US forces and US ambassador in Iraq at the time of the incident, called Trump’s pardons “hugely damaging, an action that tells the world that Americans abroad can commit the most heinous crimes with impunity”.

In a statement announcing the pardons, the White House said the move was “broadly supported by the public” and backed by a number of Republican lawmakers.

Landslide hits residential area in Norway, 10 hurt, 21 unaccounted for OSLO AGENCIES

Ten people were injured, one of them critically, and 21 people remained unaccounted for after a landslide in southern Norway swept away more than a dozen buildings in the early hours of Wednesday, police said.

The landslide struck a residential area in the municipality of Gjerdrum, about 30 km (19 miles) north of the capital Oslo.

Photos of the site showed a large crater with destroyed buildings at the bottom of it. Other buildings hung on the edges of the crater, with one house seen collapsing, TV footage showed.

Helicopters hovered over the area, at times lowering emergency responders towards the debris of collapsed houses.

About 700 people have been evacuated from the area so far, police said.

“There were two massive tremors that lasted for a long while and I assumed it was snow being cleared or something like that,” Oeystein Gjerdrum, 68, told broadcaster NRK. “Then the power suddenly went out, and a neighbour came to the door and said we needed to evacuate, so I woke up my three grandchildren and told them to get dressed quickly.”

The missing people were from homes in the innermost area of the landslide but it was not clear whether they had been trapped in their houses, were away at the time or had managed to escape, the police said.

“It is a catastrophe,” Prime Minister Erna Solberg told reporters after visiting the site.

“There could be people trapped... but at the same time we cannot be sure because it is the New Year’s

holiday which means people could be elsewhere,” she said, warning that rescue operations could take a long time.

“This could take days,” she said. “The situation is still so unstable that it is impossible to do any (rescue) effort other than from helicopters.”

The area remains unstable for now and can only be accessed by helicopter, said Roger Pettersen, head of the police operation at the site.

Masses of earth were still moving in what has been one of the largest clay slides in recent Norwegian history, Torild Hofshagen, the regional head of the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate, told a news conference.

Southern Norway has seen large amounts of precipitation in recent days, which may have caused the clay soil prevalent in the area to shift, broadcaster NRK said.

WHO, marking year since Covid-19 began, urges fair vaccine distribution to all GENEVA AGENCIES

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO), marking a year since the first cases of the novel coronavirus were reported by China, urged countries on Wednesday to ensure that vaccines are made available to people at risk everywhere, not just in rich nations.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, appealed for $4 billion to

buy Covid-19 vaccines for distribution in lower and middle-income countries through the COVAX vaccine facility.

“This is the challenge we must rise to in the New Year,” Tedros said in a video message issued a day before the first anniversary of China reporting the first cases of pneumonia of unknown origin to the UN health agency.

“Vaccines offer great hope to turn the tide of the pandemic. But to protect the

world, we must ensure that all people at risk everywhere - not just in countries who can afford vaccines - are immunised,” he said.

He also urged countries to combat conspiracy theories and attacks on science, saying “The choice is easy,” and the world can “walk the last miles of this crisis together, helping each other along the way, from sharing vaccines fairly, to offering accurate advice, compassion and care” to all who need them.

The COVAX alliance, which aims to secure fair access to Covid-19 vaccines for poor countries, said on December 18 it had agreements in place for nearly 2 billion doses, roughly doubling its supply, with the first deliveries due in early 2021.

A WHO-led international mission of experts is due to visit China in the first week of January to investigate the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that emerged in the central city of Wuhan in December 2019.

More than 81.84 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 1,788,443 have died, according to a tally.

“The likely scenario is the virus will become another endemic virus, a virus that will remain somewhat of a threat but a very lowlevel threat in the context of an effective global vaccination programme,” Mike Ryan, WHO’s top emergency expert, told a press conference on Monday.

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

SPORTS 11

NZ WIN NAIl-bITINg fIRsT TesT AgAINsT PAkIsTAN, becoMe ToP-RANked sIde MOUNT MAUNGANUI

N

AGENCIES

EW ZEALAND beat Pakistan by 101 runs in the first Test, which ended very late on the fifth day on Wednesday, achieving their third straight win in three home Tests this summer and taking a 1-0 lead in the twoTest series.

At the same time, New Zealand overtook Australia to claim the No 1 world ranking in Tests for the first time in its history.

The victory was not the emphatic one New Zealand likely had envisaged when they came to the fifth day of a Test match for the first time this season holding a sizeable advantage. Having been set 373 to win, Pakistan was 71-3 still 301 runs behind and the New Zealand bowlers, who had dismissed Pakistan for 239 in its first innings to give the home side a 192-run lead, still held the upper hand.

Pakistan finally was out for 271 at 6:36pm local time with fewer than five overs left in the day's play and a draw beckoning.

Left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner dismissed No 11 batsman Naseem Shah to clinch the win after Naseem and Shaheen Afridi had defied New Zealand for almost eight overs as the number of balls remaining in the day dwindled.

"There was a huge effort from the bowlers to get us across the line but a lot of credit goes to Pakistan for the way they fought in that second innings," New Zealand captain Kane Williamson said.

"For all money it was going to be a draw until late in the piece. We were lucky to be on the right side of the result when we were up against a very tough side."

The final day did not unfold in quite the way New Zealand had hoped or even begun to expect when Trent Boult dismissed the overnight batsman Azhar Ali (38) in the secNEW ZEALAND 431 ond over of the day.

(WILLIAMSON 129, WATLING The early blow seemed to make a TAYLOR 70, AFRIDI 4-109, YASIR 73, quick resolution 3-113) AND 180 FOR 5 DEC (BLUNDELL more likely. But Fawad Alam and 64, LATHAM 53, NASEEM 3-55) BEAT Mohammad PAKISTAN 239 (ASHRAF 91, RIZWAN 71, Rizwan, who JAMIESON 3-35) AND 271 (ALAM 102, came together when Azhar was RIZWAN 60, SOUTHEE 2-33, JAMIESON out, took the script 2-35, SANTNER 2-52, WAGNER New Zealand had conceived for the day 2-55, BOULT 2-72) BY bowled when the day and almost turned it on its 101 RUNS began, more than enough for head. Far from capitulating New Zealand to achieve the quickly, the fifth wicket pair esseven wickets. For the batting side, a long tablished a magnificent partnership under pressure and led one of the finest acts of re- day stretched ahead and an effort an effort of sistance a New Zealand Test has produced enormous character would be required to survive the day. A Pakistan win likely was on its last day.

In conditions which were never congen- off the table even at the start. With more than ial for batting the ball still occasionally 300 runs needed for victory on a wearing day reared from a length or jagged from a crack pitch, an attempt to reach the winning target in the Bay Oval pitch in Mount Maunganui likely would have wise.

Instead, Fawad and Rizwan put on 165 they batted through all of the first two sessions and into the last to fuel Pakistan's for Pakistan's fifth wicket. More importantly, they defied the New Zealand bowlers for hopes a draw.

There were a minimum of 90 overs to be 285 minutes–almost five hours–taking Pak-

Manchester United go second as late Rashford winner sinks Wolves

AGENCIES

MANCHESTER AGENCIES

Manchester United climbed two places up to second in the Premier League after Marcus Rashford scored deep into stoppage time to give them a fortuitous 1-0 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday.

The result left United on 30 points from 15 games, two behind champions and leaders Liverpool who visit Newcastle United on Wednesday, while Wolves stayed 12th on 21 points. Rashford gave United the win when it seemed the game was heading for a goalless stalemate, with his left-footed shot taking a deflection off Romain Saiss and beating goalkeeper Rui Patricio at the near post.

Rashford acknowledged United ground out the win after a laboured performance although manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer deployed an adventurous formation with three forwards behind striker Edinson Cavani. “Today was tough but we expected a tough game and managed to get over the line,” Rashford told the BBC. “It is the deciding goal. Probably not the most beautiful but we will take what we can get and move on. “We cannot look too far ahead.

We are a team that is still doing a lot of work on ourselves. We have to take it one game at a time but if we can keep finding ways to win like this we will see where we are at the end of the season.” The visitors missed several chances in the first half as they stifled United with crisp one-touch passing but the best opportunity fell to the home side when Patricio kept out a Fernandes sitter in the 34th minute. At the other end, United keeper David De Gea parried shots

by Ruben Neves and Pedro Neto while Saiss headed a Joao Moutinho free kick onto the top of the crossbar. Patricio also clawed out a vicious long-range effort by Paul Pogba in the 75th minute and Wolves seemed to have done enough to earn a point after soaking up United pressure in the closing stages. But they were undone from a seemingly innocuous move as Rashford picked up a long Fernandes pass on the right, cut inside and with little support in the penalty area, he hit a hopeful shot which wrong-footed Patricio. Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo rued his team’s lapse of concentration in the dying minutes but added they needed to put the disappointment behind them quickly amid a busy festive schedule.

“This is football and a learning process,” the Portuguese told Amazon Prime. “It is cruel in the moment but you cannot stay feeling sorry.

You have to move forward. We created chances. Sometimes we should finish more.”

istan into the final session with six overs still intact. At that point the match seemed in the balance. New Zealand had taken only one wicket of Azhar in the first two sessions and that had become a remote memory when the last session began.

Fawad and Rizwan's stand had begun to seem impregnable.

They had assembled a 50 partnership from 132 balls, their century stand from 270, 150 runs together from 328. Throughout the day there were moments of alarm or danger when the ball beat the edge or grazed the stumps. But the pair batted on and on and their endurance lifted Pakistan's spirits.

Boucher backs top six batsmen for second Test against Sri Lanka PRETORIA South Africa will go into the second Test against Sri Lanka with the same top six batsmen but coach Mark Boucher acknowledges the return of fit-again fast bowler Kagiso Rabada is no certainty.

The home side will look to wrap up the two-match series in the second Test that starts in Johannesburg on January 3, having completed a convincing innings and 45-run victory in the first in Pretoria. South Africa had not scored more than 284 in any of their previous 13 Test innings, leading to questionmarks around a number of their top six, but an impressive first innings total of 621, albeit against an injury-depleted

Sri Lanka attack, has cemented Boucher’s thinking for now. “We just got 600, why would I want to change our batting order?” he told reporters.

“In Test cricket, you wait for your opportunity to come. We have got a couple of very good batters waiting in the wings and we will keep working with them so they are ready.

“For now, it will be very difficult for me to swap a batting order that has been through a couple of tough times of late and played well. I will take the 600 and keep working on that. We have got tough Test series coming up against Pakistan and Australia. It is no time to start experimenting.” Boucher admits there will be the temptation to include leading strike bowler Kagiso Rabada

but says they will have to be “smart” over their use of him this season.

“Sometimes with bowlers you want to play a guy for the sake of playing him because he is your top bowler, but you need to consider his workloads, from a mental and physical side.

“We want to play KG (Rabada) all the time, but he has got to get his workloads up or there is a high risk of him getting injured.” South Africa have included left-arm seamer Beuran Hendricks in their squad for the second Test after he passed Covid-19 protocols having tested positive before the team went into camp for the series.

Uncapped seamer Migael Pretorius has been released after suffering a shoulder injury in training.

Barty to partner American Brady for Australian Open doubles MELBOURNE AGENCIES

Women’s world number one Ash Barty will partner US Open semi-finalist Jennifer Brady of the United States in doubles at the 2021 Australian Open in a high-profile pairing between top singles players, organisers said on Wednesday.

Australian Barty played with now-retired German Julia Georges in this year’s tournament in Melbourne where they lost in the second round to eventual winners Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic.

Crowd favourite Barty’s singles run in this year’s tournament ended in the semi-finals with a defeat to American

Fawad, who bats out of an unorthodox full frontal stance with his back to his stumps and almost directly facing the bowler, was still able to produce a full array of shots. He reached his half century from 149 balls early in the second session, then his century richly deserved his 102 coming from 236 balls with 14 boundaries.

It was his second century in only his sixth Test. Rizwan, whose 71 in the first innings helped Pakistan avoid the follow-on, posted his second half century of the match, 60 runs from 156 deliveries.

New Zealand finally made the breakthrough and separated the pair near the middle of the final session when Kyle Jamieson trapped Rizwan lbw. His appeal was declined by the on-field umpire but upheld under review.

Fawad followed quickly for 102, caught by wicketkeeper B.J. Watling from the bowling of Neil Wagner, still laboring with two broken toes.

Jamieson removed Yahir Shah (0) and Wagner dismissed Faheem Ashraf (19) who had top-scored in the first innings with 91 and was the last recognised batsman. Santer trapped Mohammad Abbas (1) lbw.

Naseem and Shaheen rattled New Zealand's nerves with their late partnership but Santner finally broke through, dismissing Naseem caught and bowled.

"I am not disappointed, that is the beauty of Test cricket," said Rizwan, who captained Pakistan for the first time. "The New Zealand team did more hard work than us so they deserved to win."

Sofia Kenin, who went on to win her maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne. World number four Kenin has changed her doubles partner for the 2021 edition of the Australian Open and will play with Swiss world number 12 Belinda Bencic.

Hsieh Su-Wei and Barbora Strycova, who lost the 2020 final, are the top-ranked women’s duo for the Grand Slam, which has been delayed by three weeks due to Australia’s strict border rules to curb the spread of Covid-19 and will start on February 8. American Rajeev Ram and Joe Sailsbury of Britain will return to defend their men’s doubles title with the field headlined by the top-ranked Colombian duo of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, who won the Wimbledon and US Open trophies last year.

Australia adds Warner, Pucovski in squad for third India Test MELBOURNE AGENCIES

Opening batsmen David Warner and Will Pucovski have been included in Australia’s 18man squad for the third Test against India in Sydney but Joe Burns has been dropped after twin failures in Melbourne. Regular opener Warner missed the first two Tests with a groin strain while the uncapped Pucovski was ruled out after suffering concussion when hit on the helmet by a short ball in a tour match before the series started. Burns was out for a duck and four at the Melbourne Cricket Ground where Australia crashed to an eight-wicket loss on Tuesday that levelled the four-Test series at 11. “Joe Burns has been released from the squad and will return to the Brisbane Heat,” selector Trevor Hohns said in a media release on Wednesday. “Unfortunately, Joe’s returns have not been what he or the selectors would like or what we consider he is capable of.” Hohns said Warner had made strong progress in his recovery and would be given every chance to play in the third Test, which starts on January 7 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. “Will is in the final stages of the graduated return to play protocols and has been symptom free for some time,” he added. “He will be fit to play in Sydney subject to completing the return to play protocols and an independent assessment.” Allrounder Sean Abbott was also included in the squad after recovering from a calf strain.

Squad: Tim Paine (captain), Pat Cummins, Sean Abbott, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Will Pucovski, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner.

Windies' Holder, Pollard opt out of Bangladesh tour on Covid-19 concerns SAINT JOHN'S AGENCIES

Cricket West Indies (CWI) said Test captain Jason Holder and limited-overs skipper Kieron Pollard are among 10 players who have chosen not to travel to Bangladesh for their upcoming tour due to concerns about the novel coronavirus.

West Indies are due to play three oneday internationals and two Tests in Chattogram and Dhaka starting from January 20. Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer and

Nicholas Pooran are the other players who opted out of the series.

Fabian Allen and Shane Dowrich are also unavailable due to personal reasons.

This will be West Indies’ third tour since the resumption of international cricket after the Covid-19 hiatus, following their trips to England and New Zealand.

Bravo, Hetmyer and Keemo Paul had opted out of the tour to England due to concerns about Covid-19.

Kraigg Brathwaite will captain the Test team in Holder’s absence, while Jason Mohammed will lead the limited overs side.

Top-order batsman Kavem Hodge has

CMYK

received his maiden call-up to the Test squad, while all-rounder Akeal Hosein and left-handed batsman Kjorn Ottley earned their first ODI call-ups.

“Although a number of the senior players are missing in both formats, I expect our teams to be very competitive,” CWI Lead Selector Roger Harper said.

“I expect our players to play with purpose, with passion and with the desire to prove that they belong at this level.”

West Indies are scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on January 10. The ODI series is to be played from January 20 followed by the Test series from February 3.

TeST Squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, John Campbell, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Kavem Hodge, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Shayne Moseley, Veerasammy Permaul, Kemar Roach, Raymon Reifer, Jomel Warrican.

OdI Squad: Jason Mohammed (captain), Sunil Ambris, Nkrumah Bonner, Joshua Da Silva, Jahmar Hamilton, Chemar Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Andre McCarthy, Kjorn Ottley, Rovman Powell, Raymon Reifer, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh jr.

Thursday, 31 December, 2020

PRAyER TImINGS

NEWS

FAJR SUNRISE 5:43 7:11

MaryaM holds PM IMran resPonsIBle for KashMIr’s woes ‘WE HAVE TO STOP PAKISTAN FROM DESTRUCTION’, AHSAN LAMBASTS PTI

P

NEWS DESK

AKISTAN Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday held Prime Minister Imran Khan responsible for for the suffering the citizens of Kashmir.

Addressing a gathering of party workers at Kashmir House Islamabad on Wednesday to mark Kashmir’s founding day, the PML-N VP expressed her sympathies with Kashmir, and said: “when your sons are martyred, our souls are hurt.” “When a weak prime minister comes into power who does not come with people’s power and votes [...] when there is a weak government, then an enemy like India strikes,” she said.

“When there is a government like that of Mian Nawaz Sharif then someone like Modi himself walks and comes [to Pakistan]. This is the difference between a real and fake prime minister. This is why it is necessary to give respect to the vote,” she added.

Maryam alleged that the reason be-

hind her arrest had been to prevent her from exposing PM Imran’s “incompetence”. She said that her father and party supreme leader Nawaz’s voice had been “muffled” but his “struggle and his narrative” along with the people’s support had spread awareness of his message to every corner of the country.

“Nawaz Sharif is not just an ideology. His voice is booming in Pakistan today because behind his ideology is a history of service and actions.”

She accused PM Imran of being an army apologist and hypocrite. She pointed out that for 12 years, Imran had spoken against the army, but now that he

was in power, he would not let anyone speak up.

“If you want to make a case on anyone speaking against the army, then there is Imran Khan’s history of 12 years. With what face do you say we [and] Nawaz talk against the army?” she questioned. She said that the country was more prosperous under Nawaz Sharif, and this made sure that the “soldier at the frontier was content knowing that if I am sacrificing my life then the stove at my house will continue to burn.”

“There are many honest and patriotic people in the Pakistan Army,” she said. “Not everyone has haram income.”

“This is such an unjust government that perhaps for the first time the salaries of soldiers have not been raised,” she added.

PML-N senior leader Ahsan Iqbal said that PM Imran needs to be separated from the country’s government in order to “stop Pakistan from destruction”.

Ahsan said that the PML-N would not bargain on the Kashmir issue, and accused PM Imran of having betrayed the people of the disputed territory.

Ahsan said that if the PML-N came into power, they would file a case of treason against Imran. Ahsan pointed out that the United Nations had classified the area as a disputed territory and that “no Indian government had the courage to change the disputed status of the territory” until last year.

He said that under the leadership of PM Imran, the country’s defence had been “weakened so much” that Indian Prime Minister Modi was able to invade Kashmir. He accused the premier of having “bargained away” Kashmir in a meeting with United States President Donald Trump.

He further said that the armed forces of both countries kept track of the movement of troops in the others’ territory and the PM had been informed of India’s plans but he did not act on the advice of “intelligence agencies”. Ahsan said that the ruling party had been “deaf and dumb” and that the PML-N “will fight, our children will fight until we gain independence for Kashmir.”

PAF inducts 14 dual-seat JF-17 aircraft; begins Block 3 production

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ASR MAGHRIB ISHA 3:31 5:09 6:38

BJP-ruled Indian state bans Islamic schools, drawing criticism GUWAHATI: An Indian state ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist party on Wednesday passed a law abolishing all Islamic schools, saying they provided "sub-standard education."Opposition politicians criticised the move and said it reflected the government’s anti-Muslim attitude in the Hindu-majority country.More than 700 of the schools, known as madrasas, in northeastern Assam will be shut by April, the state’s education minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told the local assembly.“We need more doctors, police officers, bureaucrats, and teachers, from the minority Muslim community rather than Imams for mosques,” said Sarma, a rising star in Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).The government would convert them to regular schools as education provided in the madrasas could not prepare anyone for “the temporal world and its earthly concerns”, he said.Opposition politicians said the move was an attack on Muslims.“The idea is to wipe out Muslims,” said Wajed Ali Choudhury, a lawmaker from the opposition Congress party.More than 100 retired senior civil servants and diplomats on Tuesday urged the BJP government in India’s largest state of Uttar Pradesh to repeal a new law criminalising forced religious conversion of brides, which is seen as aimed against Muslims. AGENCIES

India can’t defeat Pakistan militarily, says former Indian cop ISLAMABAD: India has no clarity about its military and strategic objectives vis-à-vis its stated adversaries, Pakistan and China, and can defeat neither of them in a war, said NC Asthana, a former Indian police officer, in his book ‘National Security and Conventional Arms Race: Spectre of a Nuclear War.’ In a review by The Wire, a YouTube channel of famous Indian journalists, on December 29, Siddharth Varadarajan, the editor of the news and opinion website quotes Asthana’s book as saying: “India has no clarity about its military and strategic objectives vis-à-vis its stated adversaries, Pakistan and China, and can defeat neither of them in a war.” The review further quotes the book as seeing “a huge mismatch between the militaristic official and media rhetoric, on the one hand, and the reality, which is that India cannot defeat either country militarily”.

“Instead of pouring vast sums of money into expensive weapons imports, India would be better served by finding solutions to the security challenges both Pakistan and China present by strengthening itself internally and pursuing non-military solutions, including diplomacy,” The Wire stated, quoting Asthana. The author of the book also puts an emphasis on India’s ‘warmongering politics’ that has consumed the Indian public over the past six years. TLTP

India says no headway in China talks to end border standoff as troops brave freezing cold

ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) marked a major progress in its national air defence arsenal as it announced beginning the production of the state-of-the-art JF-17 Thunder Block 3 fighter jets, besides inducting 14 dual-seat JF-17 aircraft in the fleet.

According to reports, the JF-17 Thunder Block 3 of the PAF will be operational with a new radar and will be better than the Raphael aircraft acquired

by India. At the same time, 14 dual-seat aircraft, manufactured with PakistanChina cooperation were also handed

over to the PAF. These will also be used for training.

Speaking during the induction ceremony, Chinese Ambassador Nong Rong said that China congratulates Pakistan for the 17th Block-II Dual Seat joining its air defence fleet.

“Pakistan Air Force Block III is a very important project,” he said, adding “Cooperation in defence production is an example of our friendship.”

Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan also informed of the inclusion of the dual-seat JF-17 aircraft in the PAF’s fleet. The air chief thanked China for helping Pakistan in achieving this milestone.

Despite its meagre defence budget, Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) Kamra has delivered more than 100 home-made JF-17 Block One and Block Two aircraft to the Pakistan Air Force since November 2009. In the recent Pakistan-India tensions, this aircraft played an important role in the national defence by shooting down two superior Indian technology aircraft along the Line of Control (LoC).

Separately, Pakistan Navy on Wednesday conducted a successful demonstration of missiles fire from surface to air and the missiles successfully hit their targets.

Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral

Amjad Khan Niazi observed demonstration of the missiles firing, said a press statement issued on Wednesday.

Speaking on the occasion, the naval chief said that the excellent demonstration of missile firing speaks of Pakistan Navy’s operational capabilities and war preparations. He expressed satisfaction over Pakistan Navy’s operational preparedness.

Admiral Niazi said that the Pakistan Navy is fully capable of giving a befitting response to any aggression. He said that the jawans and officers of Pakistan Navy are ever ready to defend maritime boundaries of the country and the naval installations.

NEW DELHI: Talks between India and China have yet to make headway to end a standoff on a disputed section of their Himalayan border, India’s defence minister said on Wednesday, as thousands of troops from both sides faced a freezing winter in the mountains. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said there had been “no meaningful result” from several rounds of diplomatic and military talks aimed at de-escalating the worst border confrontation between the nuclear-armed neighbours in decades. “If the status quo continues, it is obvious that the deployment won’t come down,” Singh said during an interview with Reuters partner ANI. But, he said, both sides were still exchanging messages over the border situation and another round of military talks was in the offing. Tensions soared in June, after troops clashed in hand-to-hand combat in the Galwan valley in Ladakh, abutting the Chineseheld Tibetan plateau. 20 Indian soldiers were killed, with China suffering an undisclosed number of casualties, and both sides ramped up their military presence, moving men, weapons and supplies to the high-altitude desert region. Officials in New Delhi said last month that Indian and Chinese officials had held several parleys to discuss ways to implement a staggered withdrawal. AGENCIES

New coronavirus variant does not cause illness more severe than others: study AGENCIES A new variant of the novel coronavirus does not appear to cause more severe illness than other variants, according to a matched study by Public Health England.

Scientists say the new variant can spread more rapidly. It was found in England in mid-December and led to other countries imposing travel restrictions to the United Kingdom. Several other countries have reported variants, including Pakistan, where the three cases were

confirmed on Tuesday. Under the study, researchers compared 1,769 people infected with the new variant with 1,769 who had what they described as “wild-type” virus. The two groups were matched 1:1 on the basis of age, sex, area of residence and time of testing.

Of the 42 people who were admitted to hospital, 16 were infected with the new variant while 26 cases had wild-type infection, according to the study. In terms of fatality, there were 12 deaths in variant cases compared to 10 deaths in wild-type cases.

“Preliminary results from the cohort study found no statistically significant difference in hospitalisation and 28day case fatality between cases with the variant and wildtype comparator cases,” the study said. There was no significant difference in the likelihood of reinfection with the new variant as compared with the other variants, it said.

The study, however, added that the “secondary attack rate”, or the proportion of contacts of confirmed cases that develop disease themselves, was higher in people infected with the new variant.

Earlier on Tuesday a leading epidemiologist who advises the UK government, Andrew Hayward, warned that Britain was heading for “catastrophe” over the coming weeks if it did not take tougher action against the more infectious variant of the disease. Britain reported 53,135 new cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday, the highest number since mass testing started in mid-2020. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has approved placing more parts of the country into the highest level of restrictions, known as tier four, The Times reported.

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad, for PT Print (Pvt) Limited. Ph: 051-2204545. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk