EpaperKHI_21-02-13

Saturday, 13 February, 2021 I 30 Jamadi-ul-Sani, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 226 I 12 Pages I Karachi Edition

SENATE ELECTIONS

Political Parties shortlist Potential candidates as lobbying intensifies for tickets g

PTI nomInaTes Hafeez sHaIkH, sanIa nIsHTar for senaTe elecTIons

ISLAMABAD Mian abrar

P

olITIcal parties on friday shortlisted potential candidates for the upcoming senate elections, which are to be held on march 3, as per the announcement of the election commission of Pakistan (ecP). sources told Pakistan Today that muttahida Qaumi movement-Pakistan (mQm-P) leader mohammad ali saif met Prime minister Imran khan and has been invited to join the ruling Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf (PTI). They said that the mQm-P leader is likely to get the ruling party’s ticket from khyber Pakhtunkhwa (kP) or sindh and will be rewarded with a cabinet slot once he is elected to the upper house of the parliament. saif would be the third senator to switch his party as Dr ashok kumar of the national Party (nP) and sitara ayaz of the awami national Party (anP) have already joined the Balochistan awami Party (BaP) and have been awarded tickets from Balochistan. similarly, abdul Qadir would be PTI’s

candidate from Balochistan, where the party is a position to win a single seat. He is a property tycoon who moved to lahore a decade ago. according to the party sources, PTI Balochistan President sardar Yar mohammad rind has strongly opposed this candidature. PTI has six mPas from Balochistan, and only needs 7.5 votes for the general seat, which it can manage easily by supporting its ally, BaP, on technocrats and women’s seats. sources said that rind has summoned a party meeting in Quetta, wherein he is likely to oppose Qadir’s nomination.

The party’s secretary-General saifullah niazi, Dr zarqa and Barrister ali zafar will be the party’s candidates from Punjab. The party’s candidates for the remaining seats from Punjab will be announced later.

It has been learnt that the party’s parliamentary board has finalised Dr abdul Hafeez sheikh and fauzia arshad from Islamabad while Dr Babar awan and amir mughal are also being considered.

Babar may contest from Punjab and a final decision in this regard would be

coronavirus in

Pakistan

taken by Prime minister Imran khan. mna faisal Wavda or Barrister mohammad ali saif are set to contest from sindh on the only general seat available for the PTI and saifullah abro will be the PTI candidate for the technocrat seat.

The women’s seat is likely to be given to the mQm-P. moreover, in a series of tweets, federal minister for science and Technology fawad chaudhry also disclosed PTI’s candidates for the upcoming elections.

The complete list of candidates who have been confirmed by fawad so far is as follows: Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh: Islamabad Fauzia Arshad: Islamabad Faisal Vawda: Sindh Saifullah Niazi: Punjab Dr Zarqa: Punjab Barrister Ali Zafar: Punjab Abdul Qadir: Balochostan Shibli Faraz: KP Mohsin Azeez: KP Dost Mohammad: KP Sania Nishtar: KP Farzana: KP Under the given schedule, candidates will be able to submit their nomination papers between february 12 and 13, while the list of candidates will be released on february 14.

In this regard, the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) secretary-General (sG) nayyar Hussain Bukhari expressed concerns about the schedule of the senate elections, deeming it difficult to file nomination papers within two days and wrote to the election commission after consultation with the party's leadership and therein asked the electoral body whether it will be possible to scrutinise the candidates within the deadline.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

CJP asks Justice Isa to refrain from hearing cases involving PM Imran ISLAMABAD staff report

chief Justice of Pakistan (cJP) Gulzar ahmed, in a move purportedly to uphold the impartiality of the supreme court (sc), has said in an official order that Justice Qazi faez Isa “should not hear matters involving the prime minister”.

This move comes shortly after Justice Isa submitted a written petition filed, in a personal capacity, against Prime minister Imran khan, wherein the cJP said that Justice Isa must not be involved in cases concerning the premier “to uphold the principle of un-biasness and impartiality”.

“It would be in the interest of justice that the honourable Judge [Justice Isa] should not hear matters involving the Prime minister of Pakistan,” the written order reads.

In his personal petition, Justice Isa “sought to place on record photocopies of certain documents statedly received by him from some anonymous source through a Whatsapp message”. These documents were concerning the recently dismissed case against the rs500 million uplift grant for lawmakers allegedly approved by the Pm. The petition regarding the

4 soldiers martyred in South Waziristan after terrorist open fire: ISPR

CONFIRMED CASES:

560,363

33

RECOVERED:

NEW CASES:

1,270 DEATHS:

518,164 12,218 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

252,719

162,875

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

69,164

18,916

9,359/4,929 42,401

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

more inside

6.4 magnitude quake jolts country, region STORY ON PAGE 02

LAST UPDATED AT 7:51 AM ON FEBRUARY 12, 2021

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

aforementioned case had been heard by a five-judge larger bench headed by cJP Gulzar.

The decision came as the ministry of finance submitted a signed undertaking of the premier, denying such an action being taken by him.

The order by the cJP further adds that Justice Isa submitted before the court copies of some documents that he said were sent to him by someone through Whatsapp.

The copies of those documents were handed over by the judge to other members of the bench. a copy was also handed over to the attorney general of Pakistan (aGP). The Justice Isa also said that he was unsure if the documents were genuine. aGP khalid Jawed khan asked the court to not include the documents in the record of the case as their authenticity was questionable, the order states, adding that the aGP further pointed out that if these documents were made part of the record, “the Hon. Judge [Justice Isa] would become a complainant in the matter and in that capacity it would not be appropriate for the Hon. Judge to hear the matter”.

RAWALPINDI staff report

four soldiers were martyred while thwarting terrorists’ fire raid on security forces post in makeen area of south Waziristan late Thursday night, the military’s media affairs wing said on friday.

In a statement, the Inter-services Public relations (IsPr) said that troops responded promptly and killed four terrorists. “During the exchange of fire, four soldiers embraced shahadat,” the statement added.

During the exchange of fire, four soldiers had embraced shahadat (martyrdom), including lance naik Imran ali, sepoy atif Jahangir, sepoy anees-urrehman and sepoy aziz. “area sanitisation in progress,” the IsPr statement said.

President Dr arif alvi condemned the terrorist attack and

expressed grief over the martyrdom of army personnel. He expressed his condolences to the grieving families and prayed for their strength. minister for Information and Broadcasting senator shibli faraz also expressed deep grief and sorrow over the martyrdom of four soldiers in south Waziristan.

In a tweet, he said that they were proud sons of this brave nation, who sacrificed their lives for the great cause of the defence of the homeland and peace in the country.

The minister presented a salute to the courage and patience of the families of the martyrs.

He said that the nation was committed to eliminating the remnants of the terrorists. similarly, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-zardari offered condo-

lences for the martyred officials and expressed solidarity with their families.

“The sacrifices of our martyrs will not be forgotten,” he said, adding that implementation of the national action Plan was essential for rooting out terrorists and their facilitators. last month, security forces had conducted an intelligencebased operation (IBo) in the nargosa area of south Waziristan, killing two terrorists and injuring one, all of whom were reportedly a part of the proscribed terrorist cell, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan’s (TTP) sajna group “security forces conducted an IBo in nargosa area of south Waziristan district,” the military’s media wing had said at the time, adding that all three had been active members of the TTP and experts at making improvised explosive devices (IeDs).

country must work together to reverse effects of smog, says Pm Imran STORY ON BACK PAGE

Chinese CanSinoBio becomes fourth Covid-19 vaccine to get emergency approval STORY ON PAGE 03

IHc Justice kayani recuses himself from hearing ex-IsI chief’s ecl plea STORY ON PAGE 02

02

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

KARACHI

NEWS

6.4 Magnitude quake jolts country, region

a

NEwS DESk

N earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale was felt countrywide late on Friday night, particularly within the Northern areas of the country.

The quake occurred at approximately 10:02 pm on Friday, the Pakistan Meteorological Department said. The epicentre of the quake was reported to be Tajikistan. Specifically, it originated at 38.08N, 73.31E; 256km southwest of Kashgar, China and 35km west-southwest of Murghob, Tajikistan. It was reported to have a depth of 80km.

Citizens from Islamabad, Rawalpindi,

A LARGE NUMBER OF PEOPLE LEFT THEIR HOMES FOR SAFETY Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta, Swat, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Dera Ghazi (DG) Khan and other localities all reported feeling the tremors, with aftershocks lasting for minutes after the initial quake.

A large number of people left their homes for safety. No loss of life and property was reported due to the earthquake so far.

Many people took to Twitter and began sharing verses from the Holy Quran in fear, praying to be kept safe.

Meanwhile, reports emerged that the earthquake also occurred within India.

Provision of quality, affordable healthcare facilities to masses, govt’s foremost priority: PM

According to the Indian news agency, ANI, the earthquake was felt in parts of Dehli, occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Noida.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) Vice President Maryam Nawaz on Twitter said: “Mighty earthquake. Hope and pray everyone is safe. May Allah protect us all.

Ameen.” Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah said that he had not felt tremours this bad since the 2005 earthquake, adding that he only had time to grab a blanket and run from his house.

Maryam takes shots at govt over Attaullah Tarar’s arrest

LAHORE APP

LAHORE

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that the provision of quality and affordable healthcare facilities to masses, especially the downtrodden and social protection, was the foremost priority of the present government. As the health and education sectors were neglected in the past, the health system became ineffective and badly hurt the poor in particular, he added. The prime minister was presiding over a meeting held to review progress regarding the provision of universal health insurance in Punjab. Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, Minister for Economic Affairs Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Advisor to PM Shehzad Akbar, Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Climate Change Malik Ameen Aslam, Provincial Finance Minister Makhdoom Hasham Jawan Bakht, Special Assistant to CM Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan and senior officers were in attendance. Prime Minister Imran said that the health card will not only provide the common man with healthcare protection, from which the masses had remained deprived over the last 70 years, but it will also bring about revolutionary and durable change in the health system.

Assuring all possible cooperation of the federal government, he directed for continuous monitoring for the achievement of targets, set for universal health insurance in the province.

The meeting was apprised about the progress made so far after Punjab cabinet’s approval for the provision of universal health insurance to 100 per cent population of the province by the end of the current year. Giving a detailed briefing to the participant on the feasibility of Sehat Sahulat Programme, budget estimates and phase-wise implementation, the meeting was told that under a shortterm plan, the provision of health cards will be ensured in seven districts of Sahiwal and Dera Ghazi Khan Divisions.

By December 2021, 100 per cent population of Punjab would be provided with the healthcare facilities under the universal health insurance, it was told. Last week, Prime Minister Imran had congratulated the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) for providing free healthcare coverage to people of the province. In a tweet on Monday, Imran had said about 40 million people will receive free healthcare worth Rs1 million every year in more than 400 public and private hospitals across the province under the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government’s flagship Sehat Sahulat Programme introduced in August last. He had noted KP was the first province in the country to provide universal health coverage for its residents. In addition, State Life Insurance Corporation (STIC), which has been selected after a competitive bidding process, will be paid Rs2,849 per family annually. The first phase of the project was launched in 2015, covering three per cent of the population (100,000 families in four districts) of the province. It was extended to 51 per cent of the population (1,791,930 people in all districts) in the second phase in 2016. The third phase of the programme was started in 2017, covering 64 per cent of the population (3,200,000 families). So far, the government has spent more than Rs10 billion on free treatment of 250,000 people.

Akif RAshid

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz struck out against the federal government over the arrest of PML-N leader Attaullah Tarar, who was arrested during election campaign of his party’s candidate Syeda Nosheen Zahray Shah in Daska for by elections of NA-75.

“The way [Attaullah Tarar] was arrested and released is reflective of extreme fear, confusion and disarray in the jaali govt camp,” the party vice president said on popular micro-blogging site, Twitter.

Similarly, PML-N leader Tallal Chaudhry called Tarar’s arrest an attempt by the Punjab government to hurt the party’s campaign.

“This arrest without any allegation or FIR is a kidnapping,” Chaudhry said. “We will give a massive reaction over it.”

PML-N stalwart Marriyum Aurangzeb termed his arrest an act of “kidnapping” as the police booked him “without an arrest warrant”, adding that the “fascist government” was taking such steps as they were aware of their “failure” in the byelections.

She claimed that the PML-N leader was not nominated in any case, adding that the government was trying to harass the opposition.

It is pertinent to mention that the federal government had the PML-N have offered conflicting reports on the incident.

The police had stopped a PML-N convoy in Gujranwala, in which MNA Javed Latif, Tarar, and other leaders were present.

Reportedly, the police had found a gun in the

PML-N LEADER TALLAL CHAUDHRY CALLS TARAR’S ARREST AN ATTEMPT BY THE PUNJAB GOVERNMENT TO HURT THE PARTY’S CAMPAIGN possession of the PML-N Gujranwala president and had shifted him into their car. In reaction to this move, Tarar and the other leaders had asked to go with their party member.

The PML-N leader, along with his workers, has been taken to City Police Station Wazirabad.

According to the government, the PML-N leaders had come along voluntarily, while the PMLN has taken the stance that it was an arrest.

The superintendent for operation in the city had told a local news station that “only the people bearing weapons were arrested, however, the PMLN leaders came voluntarily”.

Following the so-called arrest, PML-N workers and MPAs staged a sit-in outside the City Police Station demanding their workers and leaders’ release.

Tarar was released shortly after his arrest. He vowed that he would respond to “every injury in kind” after he was released. “[Police] attacked us as they stopped [our convoy] for checking the weapon’s license,” he said, adding that the officers allegedly assaulted a party leader’s employees. He claimed that along with him and his coworkers, the police had tortured those bystanders who attempted to record the incident.

Tarar lamented the fact that the police were becoming a player within the elections, but asserted that the PML-N knew how to deal with them.

On the other hand, Special Assistant to Chief

Minister of Punjab Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan claimed that Tarar had never been placed under arrest, further issuing the rhetoric that a person who has not been arrested cannot be released.

She claimed that the PML-N deputy secretarygeneral had forced his way into the police van to create the illusion of an arrest. “The police had summoned a PML-N leader Abid Raza after they found an unlicensed weapon from his possession during a PML-N rally,” she maintained.

She said that the “drama” orchestrated by the PML-N had resulted in a “siege” at the police station.

Earlier in the day, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senior leader Usman Dar stepped down from his role as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) On Youth Affairs to contest the campaign for the upcoming by-election in a National Assembly constituency in Sialkot (NA-75) – the same constituency as Tarar’s arrest.

He will resume his official duty as the prime minister’s special assistant after the election.

Earlier, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) served him a notice over running the campaign for the by-poll despite holding a government post. He decided to relinquish his post in light of the election rules to run the campaign.

Meanwhile, the PML-N is planning to hold a rally in Sialkot on Saturday where party VP Maryam Nawaz will address her party’s supporters there.

Dar quits as SAPM to participate in NA-75 electioneering ISLAMABAD TLTP

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Usman Dar stepped down as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Youth Affairs on Friday.

The Cabinet Division subsequently de-notified him as the prime minister’s aide at his wish.

Dar has sought Prime Minister Imran Khan’s nod to run campaign for the upcoming by-election in a National Assembly constituency in Sialkot (NA-75) slated for February 19.

Dar said that he decided to step down after holding consultations with Prime Minister Imran when he

started receiving notifications from the ECP. "I will fully take part in the NA-75 by-elections," he said.

Earlier, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) served him a notice over running the campaign for the by-poll despite holding a government post. He decided to relinquish his post in light of the election rules to run the campaign. Sources said that he can be re-appointed as the SAPM on youth affairs after the by-election is over.

The NA-75 seat fell vacant after Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Syed Iftikharul Hassan Shah died of Covid-19 on August 2. The by-elections on NA-75 and a provincial assembly seat (PP-51 Gujranwala) are scheduled to be held on February 19.

IHC Justice Kayani recuses himself from hearing ex-ISI chief’s ECL plea NEwS DESk Islamabad High Court (IHC) judge Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani on Friday recused himself from further hearings in the case of former spymaster Lt Gen (r) Mohammad Asad Durrani regarding the former InterServices Intelligence (ISI) chief’s name in the Exit Control List (ECL).

“It is unfortunate, but there are reasons for that I cannot tell,” he said while explaining his withdrawal from the case, adding that he knew the “whole background” of the case and had reached the stage of writing down his verdict.

He said: “the [IHC] chief justice will form a new bench to hear the case.”

Durrani landed in trouble after coauthoring a book titled “The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace” with former RAW chief AS Dulat in 2018. In his petition, Gen Durrani claimed that the government had put his name on the ECL in connection with an inquiry related to a book he co-authored.

Last month, the defence ministry through its response had opposed the removal of Durrani’s name from the ECL, informing the court it had evidence suggesting that the former spymaster remained in contact with India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

The ministry further stated that Durrani had been a part of the Pakistan Army for 32

years and had worked in key and sensitive positions.

While noting that Durrani had remained part of the army for 32 years and served on important and sensitive positions, the ministry said: “it was inappropriate of his stature to co-author a book that too with [an] ex-Indian RAW chief and Indian journalist on matters concerning the national security of the country”.

Last year, the IHC had reserved its verdict on a plea seeking removal of the former spymaster from the ECL, wherein Justice Kayani heard the case.

A representative of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Brigadier Falak Naz had submitted a sealed inquiry report to the

court. The inquiry was conducted on the former spymaster’s writing a book along with a former Indian spy agency chief AS Dulat. Justice Kayani had read the report and returned it to the representative of the ministry.

Brig Naz had apprised the court that inquiry against Asad Durrani had been completed, which included recommendations for not removing Asad Durrani’s name from the ECL. The counsel of the former-ISI chief, Umer Farrukh Adam, had asked the court at the time if it would court-martial his client for writing a book. In reply, Kayani had said there was no such thing in the report.

Umer Farrukh Adam had also said his

client had retired from his post in 1993, while he wrote the book on the basis of analysis in 2018. He had maintained there was nothing wrong with this as former president Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf had also written a book.

Durrani had been summoned to Pakistan Army’s General Headquarters (GHQ) in May 2018, where he was asked to explain his position on views attributed to him in the book, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) had confirmed in a statement last year.

Durrani has been found guilty of violating the military code of conduct after he co-authored the book, the ISPR had said in 2019, adding that “his pension and other benefits have been stopped”.

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

KARACHI

NEWS

03

ChINese CANsINoBIo BeComes fourth CovId-19 vACCINe to Be Approved for emergeNCy use IN pAkIstAN

t

newS DeSk

HE government has approved China’s CanSinoBio Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use in Pakistan, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan said on Friday.

“Yes, Correct,” Sultan texted Reuters after being asked to confirm that the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) had met and approved the vaccine.

DRAP has already approved three other vaccines for use in Pakistan — China’s Sinopharm, Russia’s Sputnik-V and the Oxford University-AstraZeneca vaccine.

CanSinoBIO last week released interim efficacy results of a multi-country trial, which included Pakistan, showing 65.7 per cent efficacy in preventing symptomatic coronavirus cases and a 90.98pc success rate in stopping severe infections.

In the Pakistani subset, the efficacy of the vaccine at preventing symptomatic cases was 74.8pc and 100pc at preventing severe disease.

Although Covid-19 vaccines from Chinese developers have shown lower protection rates than some Western ones, and no detailed study results are publicly available yet, they have already been

approved in several developing countries battling a surge in coronavirus infections.

Besides Pakistan, the CanSinoBIO vaccine is being tested in Mexico, Russia, Argentina and Chile, according to clinical trial registration data, and the company has supply deals with some of those countries, including Mexico.

SAPM Faisal had said that Pakistan could receive “in the range of tens of millions” of the vaccine under an agreement with the Chinese firm. On another occasion he said the country is entitled to receive 20 million doses of CanSino’s vaccine, “provided the results are positive and the vaccine proves to be effective”.

Hassan Abbas, head of the CanSinoBIO trial at AJ Pharma in Pakistan, earlier said it had already applied to the government for permission to import the vaccine.

“The initial set of vaccines will come in vials already filled, but we hope in the future to get them in the form of concentrates from CanSino, and do the filling here in Pakistan,” he told Reuters.

No serious safety concerns were raised in the study, Sultan said.

SINGLE-DOSE REGIMEN: While the vaccine’s protection rate trails the more than 90pc efficacy of shots developed by Pfizer Inc and its partner BioNTech SE and

Moderna Inc, its single-dose regimen and normal refrigerator storage requirement could make it a favourable option for many countries.

CanSinoBIO’s vaccine — which was approved for use in the Chinese military last year and has since been given to at least 40,000-50,000 people — uses a modified common cold virus known as adenovirus type-5 (Ad5) to carry genetic material from the coronavirus protein into the body.

However, researchers in an early and mid-stage trial report expressed concern the vaccine may not work in those previously exposed to Ad5, as the pre-existing antibody against the common cold virus could weaken the vaccine-triggered immune response.

CanSinoBIO is also testing a two-dose regimen of the vaccine in China including on participants aged between six and 17 and older than 55.

Shots from Chinese companies Sinovac and state-backed Sinopharm have shown efficacy of between 50pc and 91pc.

The three firms have applied to join the global vaccine sharing scheme Covax for approval and China plans to provide 10m doses to the initiative, which is backed by the World Health Organisation and GAVI vaccine alliance.

ZF2001 TRAILS FROM NEXT WEEK:

The University of Health Sciences (UHS) in Lahore has approved holding a phase-III trial of ZF2001, another Chinese recombinant coronavirus vaccine, from next week.

UHS Vice-Chancellor Professor Javed Akram has said that after the trial’s approval from the DRAP, the recruitment of volunteers will start. He said that 1,000 volunteers would be registered for the trial.

Every volunteer will be given three doses of the jab in three months. They will have to visit the trial site seven times in these three months, he added.

He maintained that Rs16,000 will be paid for travel and food expenses. The trial will be completed in 18 months, he added.

He said its efficacy in the Pakistani subset at preventing symptomatic cases is 74.8 per cent, adding it is 100 per cent for preventing severe disease.

The VC said the National Bio-Ethics Committee had approved a phase-III randomised, double-blind, placebocontrolled trial of ZF2001 in people over 18 years of age. A double-blind study is one in which neither the participants nor the experimenters know who is receiving a particular treatment. The procedure prevents bias in research results.

ZF2001, trade-named RBD-Dimer, is a Covid-19 vaccine candidate developed by

‘Pleased’ over Biden admin’s unchanged Kashmir policy: Qureshi ISLAMABAD

FM TERMS AMAN-21 A GREAT SUCCESS FOR PAKISTAN

APP

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Friday expressed his pleasure over the clarification issued by the United States wherein it stated that there had been no change in their policy on Kashmir as they still considered it a disputed territory.

The foreign minister, in a statement, said that Pakistan immediately presented its stance following a tweeted by the US State Department.

He was referring to a State Department’s tweet on February 10 about the resumption of 4G service in which Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) was referred as “India’s Jammu and Kashmir”, a move that Pakistan viewed was “inconsistent” with the disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir as recognized by numerous United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions and the international community.

“We welcome the resumption of 4G

mobile internet in India’s Jammu and Kashmir. This marks an important step for local residents and we look forward to continued political & economic progress to restore normalcy in J&K,” tweeted the South and Central Asia Bureau of the State Department.

However, the matter was later cleared by a spokesperson for the governmental body. “I want to be very clear there has been no change in US policy in the region,” State Department Spokesperson Ned Price told reporters, clarifying the views expressed in the abovementioned tweet.

Moreover, FM Qureshi said that like elsewhere in the world, the economy in the Gulf countries was also hit by Covid19 which resulted into layoffs and consequent repatriation of many people.

Likewise, the pandemic also adversely impacted aviation, hoteling

and restaurant businesses as well as the construction industry.

He said that during his recent visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), he had discussed the matter in detail with his counterpart. The UAE’s reservations were not Pakistan-specific, though the latter was trying to address those, he explained.

The foreign minister said that the discussion was underway and hoped for a better outcome.

Referring to Naval Exercise AMAN21 being hosted by Pakistan Navy and participated by 40 international navies, the foreign minister termed it a great success of Pakistan.

The exercises would also provide an opportunity for discussion on blue economy, Qureshi said and also hinted at visiting Karachi on the invitation of the naval chief.

Earlier this week, India ended an 18month-long ban on high-speed internet services in occupied Kashmir, where opposition to the Indian rule has deepened after New Delhi revoked the region’s semi-autonomous status in August 2019.

According to a 2019 Congressional Research Service report of August 2019, a longstanding goal of US policy in South Asia has been to prevent India-Pakistan conflict from escalating to inter-state war. This meant the United States has sought to avoid actions that overtly favoured either party. Over the past decade, however, Washington has grown closer to India while relations with Pakistan continue to be viewed as clouded by mistrust, CRS report said.

Therein, Pakistan on Thursday had expressed “disappointment” over a tweet by the United States State Department for making a reference regarding Jammu and Kashmir “inconsistent” with its disputed status.

AMAN-21 in line with Pakistan’s vision for regional peace: President Alvi ISLAMABAD APP

President Dr Arif Alvi on Friday said that Pakistan was again showing its commitment to global cooperation as Pakistan Navy organises multinational AMAN Exercise 2021. On Twitter, the president said that the naval exercise, being participated by over 42 naval forces, was line with the government of Pakistan’s vision for regional peace and stability.

“Congrats all participants on being part of this flagship event,” the president said.

Separately, Pakistan Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Naveed Ashraf said on Friday that around 45 countries have gathered for the Multinational Maritime Exercise AMAN-21, with the mutual goal and commitment to make the seas safer. The increasing number of participants reflects growing trust in the value of the exercise, he added.

Rear Admiral Naveed Ashraf was addressing the participants of the flag hoisting ceremony of AMAN 21 at the Karachi dockyard where the senior representatives of the 45 participating countries also graced the official flag hoisting ceremony with their presence.

Ashraf welcomed all the participants who had travelled from all across the globe and gathered to participate in the AMAN-21, and expressed profound gratitude to the countries for their participation in despite the challenges of the pandemic.

He expressed hope that the interaction between the participating countries will be memorable and

professionally rewarding.

Elaborating the title “AMAN”, Rear Admiral Ashraf pointed out that the literal meaning of Urdu word “AMAN” is peace, which draws the motto of the exercise “Together for Peace”, and represents therein the spirit of collaborative maritime security.

He stressed that today is a proud moment for Pakistan Navy as they began the 7th edition of the biennial multi-national maritime exercise.

The purpose of the AMAN-21 is to let us come together and understand each other so we can fight with the common enemies, thereby achieve peace and stability at sea, he said.

He added that the exercise has encouraged the process of collaborative maritime security among countries across the globe to demonstrate a joint resolve against the threats emanating within the maritime domain, and to enhance interoperability among the participating navies.

Furthermore, he stated this exercise helps to achieve sheer understanding of maritime security operations, counter-terrorism operations and humanitarian and disaster relief operations.

Rear Admiral Naveed Ashraf said that the salient activities of AMAN-21 include professional interactions, cross cultural events, and exercises at sea.

He added that Pakistan is a firm believer in collaborative maritime security and therefore has been actively participating in maritime security and counterpiracy operations along with other partner navies since 2004. The rear admiral explained that Pakistan has institutionalised a taskforce (TF-88) for seaward

security of Gwadar Port and the adjacent sea area.

He maintained that, since 2018, Pakistan Navy has been undertaking the initiative of Regional Maritime Security Patrol, which is aimed at making sea safer for maritime community and contributing to the freedom of navigation at sea in the Indian Ocean region.

He said that the concept of maritime navy is vast and multidimensional, ranging from traditional security issues like state sovereignty matters, territorial disputes as well threats from conventional forces and more.

No country can single handedly tackle the diverse threats that exist or the new ones that emerge on daily basis, he added.

The Pakistan fleet commander said that some of the prominent activities of AMAN-21 include anti-piracy tactics, counter-terrorism operations, search and rescue maneuvers as well as the international fleet review.

Commander of 25th Destroyer Squadron Commodore Imtiaz Ali, reading the message of the Chief of the Naval Staff (CONS) Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi, welcomed the participants of AMAN-21.

In his message, the naval chief said that this exercise provides “not only a medium to develop doctrinal synergy to tackle maritime security challenges, but also serves to enhance interoperability amongst navies at different pedestals of technological prowess to secure a safe and sustainable maritime environment.”

In this regard, Pakistan Navy continues to actively contribute towards regional maritime security, the chief of Naval Staff said his message.

Anhui Zhifei Longcom in collaboration with the Institute of Microbiology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. As of December 2020, the vaccine candidate was in Phase-III trials with 29,000 participants in China, Ecuador, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan.

If the trials are successful, the company plans to make 300 million doses of the vaccine each year.

33 LOSE BATTLE AGAINST COVID: The coronavirus claimed 33 more lives during the last 24 hours, surging the overall death toll to 12,218, said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Friday.

According to the latest statistics, 1,270 fresh infections were reported during the aforementioned period, lifting up the national tally of cases to 560,363. As many as 1,481 patients recovered from the virus during the last 24 hours, while 518,164 people have recovered from the deadly disease so far.

Around 1,743 patients were stated to be in critical condition. The total count of active cases is 29,981 and the positivity rate stands at 3.59oc. A total of 35,280 tests were conducted across the country during the last 24 hours, while 8,360,823 samples have been tested so far.

Justice Isa’s wife seeks info about Broadsheet probe from NAB ISLAMABAD TLTP

Seeking Broadsheet probe details under the constitutional right to information, Sarina Isa, wife of the sitting judge of the Supreme Court (SC), Justice Qazi Faez Isa, filed an application on Friday to top anti-graft body raising as many as 17 questions for response. In her application to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), a copy of which is also available with TLTP, Sarina Isa claimed that shocking things are being reported about the Bureau and an assets recovery company ‘Broadsheet’. She said, “Huge amounts have been recovered by Broadsheet and a large amount, embezzled of taxpayers money, including mine.” She alleged that NAB has not disclosed any of the facts but a worker of a political party, Mirza Shahzad Akbar who she said has made statements on the media and appears to be involved in a cover up. Urging the bureau to provide information she asked through the application, “Is Mirza Shahzad Akbar NAB's spokesman, if so, please provide a copy appointing him, what if any is the relationship between NAB and Mirza Shahzad Akbar.” She further asked the NAB to respond whether Akbar met with the representative/owner of Broadsheet on behalf of the NAB, and if he did, what transpired in such a meeting or meetings. “Was appointment of assets recovery company advertised? If so please provide copy,” she asked.

She also sought a copy of a decision from the NAB under which a selection committee has chosen Broadsheet. She also asked the NAB if the appointment of the assets recovery company advertised then provide a copy of the advertisement. Raising another question, she said, “Broadsheet was introduced to NAB/Government of Pakistan by whom and when Broadsheet was selected and appointed by whom, who drafted the agreement to be entered into with Broadsheet.” She also sought a copy of agreement with broadsheet, names and nationalities of the owners of Broadsheet and their respective expertise. She further said, “Did Broadsheet help in recovering any money/assets and if it did”, she sought their particulars, the amount paid to and recovered by Broadsheet. She asked the NAB to provide particulars of payment to an unauthorised entity and where was it remitted who authorized the making of the payment mentioned above and who (if any) verified the credentials of the company /person to whom it was to be paid. “Has NAB checked if a bribe was paid to anyone in in NAB/Government of Pakistan- Did NAB conduct an inquiry to determine who was responsible for making the payment, the amount paid to lawyers (in Pakistan and abroad) in this matter” Applicant Sarina Isa urged the NAB to provide the detail on the grounds that accountability, transparency and truth requires NAB to provide the information.

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

04 NEWS

KARACHI

FOrMer rulers leFt nO stOne unturned tO destrOy cOuntry: Buzdar LAHORE

P

INP

UNJAB Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar on Friday said that the former rulers had left no stone unturned to devastate the country by playing havoc with its economy.

In a statement, the chief minister regretted that the institutions were weakened in the past for the sake of personal interests while national interests and public needs were neglected during the formulation of policies.

Every child is indebted today due to the

wrong policies of the past governments as nothing was done for the welfare of the indigent classes, he said.

Buzdar reiterated that the incumbent government has to make difficult decisions to rectify institutional discrepancies. It is sanguine that decisions are being taken in the larger interest of the country and to attend to public needs, he said, adding that good future is knocking at the doors as Pakistan is fast moving towards its real destination.

The dream of a new and prosperous Pakistan is being transformed under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The country will move forward and the political opponents will be left behind as their conspiracies have been frustrated, he maintained. The CM said that the needs and requirements of every district have been identified and a separate development package is being devised for every city in consultation with the concerned parliamentarians.

He reiterated that every citizen will be provided free medical facilities in the province under universal health coverage

by December this year.

It is the flagship initiative as the PTI

government is committed to serve every citizen while fulfilling every decision made with the people, he continued.

He further said that an agreement has been signed with the NESPAK for a study of dams over 13 hilly areas to store water in tribal areas of Rajanpur and DG Khan. The government has provided a sum of Rs1.25 billion for this purpose, he added.

Giving further details, Buzdar said that four intermediate dams will be constructed in Koh-e-Suleman area to irrigate more than 0.20 million acres of land. The pilot project will be started in the month of June as water

reservoirs will be constructed in the areas of Hathi Morr, Jalebi Morr, Khar Munroe and Thalang in the first phase, he informed.

The chief minister also said that the network of shelter homes and almonries has been established to facilitate the hoi polloi while the scope of almonries is being expanded in remote areas because the impecunious stratum deserves special attention of the society. The PTI government is the strong supporter of the disfranchised segments and the responsibility of the welfare of the homeless persons will be fulfilled, he concluded.

LAHORE: Construction work of Do-Moria bridge is underway in the provincial capital. Zubair Mehfooz

Masood urges Muslim states to fight Islamophobia, stop genocide in IOK ISLAMABAD TLTP

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has urged Muslim states to unite against the worst Islamophobia and stop the genocide of Muslims in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IOK). Addressing a webinar, organised by the Malaysian Consultative Council for Islamic Organisation (MAPIM) on the latest situation of IOK, Masood said, “We are thankful to the government and the people of Malaysia, particularly former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and the MAPIM, for unequivocally declaring their support to Pakistan and the people of IOK.” “Mahathir Mohamad in his address to the UN General Assembly had strongly denounced India's invasion and reoccupation of Kashmir, and called for the settlement of the dispute under the UNSC resolutions. Civil society organisations, like the MAPIM, have been acting as a catalyst for internationalising the issue of Kashmir and garnering support for the Kashmiris,” he added.

“The main issue we should focus on is the mass settlement of Hindus from all over India into IOK. Over two million Hindus have been given state citizenship. This level of importation of foreign nationals in a disputed territory has not been seen in modern history. Demographic change in IOK is the prime objective

LG polls cannot be held on provisional census results, Sindh tells ECP KARACHI TLTP

The Sindh government on Friday once again excused from holding local government (LG) elections on the basis of provisional census results. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja conducted a hearing regarding LG elections in Sindh, where Advisor to Sindh Chief Minister Murtaza Wahab appeared on behalf the Sindh government.

Murtaza told the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) that LG elections could

not be organised on the basis of provisional census results. He adopted the stance that delimitations on the basis of provincial census results will be unconstitutional. The ECP again issued directives to notify the census carried out in 2017 before March 1. The Inter Provincial Coordination Division’s secretary will contact Prime Minister Imran Khan, the ECP spokesperson said in a statement.

The CEC announced that the ECP will conduct next hearing in the first week of March in order to discuss the matters related to LG polls. The ruling political party in Sindh, Pakistan Peoples Party

(PPP), had adopted the stance since September last year that it would be an unconstitutional move to initiate fresh delimitation and organise LG polls on the basis of provincial census results. On January 29, the ECP had sought recommendations from the Sindh government regarding the date of LG elections following the orders of the Supreme Court (SC).

However, the PPP kept insisting for the issuance of final report of the census for moving ahead to organise LG polls and fresh delimitations in the province. On the other hand, Punjab and Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa (KP) had agreed to organise LG polls. In its reply to the SC on February 5, the ECP had informed that LG elections in Punjab will be held in three phases with the first phase to be held on June 20, the second on July 16 and the third on August 08.

The schedule for polls in KP will also be announced in phases. The ECP had said that the polling in KP will be held in two phases with the first phase to be held on April 08 and the second on May 29. Moreover, the ECP had added that the Cantonment Boards’ elections will also be held on April 08 and May 29.

Zaamin Group to set up three technology parks in Lahore LAHORE PR

The recently-promulgated rules of the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) are apparently gaining traction by allowing developers to plan innovative large projects along main arteries of Lahore.

In this regard, the LDA’s governing body had approved two projects, 101-kanal and 88-kanal, in a meeting.

Zaamin Group, a developer of a private housing scheme called Zaamin City, has announced its intention of setting up three technology parks with an area of 150-kanal each to support the government’s efforts to increase IT exports to 10 billion dollars per annum over next five years.

Prime Minister Imran Khan had set up the Special Technology Zone Authority and announced incentives for

development of technology zones.

In a recent conference, Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce & Industry (OICCI) President Haroon Rashid had suggested that Pakistan needs to bring 5 to 10 million square feet space quickly underutilisation. According to Zaamin Group, its project of technology parks in Lahore will be a purely private sector initiative with no financial assistance from the government. According to the group’s statement, the construction industry, represented by the ABAD, is grateful to the government for creating an enabling environment as it is now up to private sector companies to carry the ball.

According to Zaamin Group Chairman Engr. Akber Sheikh, land for all the three zones has been procured while for the first zone, located at Raiwind Road near Ali

Town’s metro station, permission from the LDA for setting up a technology park has also been obtained.

Akber said, “Now detailed designs will be submitted under the LDA's recentlyapproved rules. The parks will be developed on a hub and spoke concept, where, instead of one very large park, small parks of up to 200-kanal area will be constructed and connected with some technology related institutions.

Similar facilities are also planned in Multan and Rawalpindi to cover south, central and northern Punjab.

If there is a good response, we can adopt a franchise model in future to share expertise with other provinces.”

Zaamin Group is reportedly also looking for international linkages for attracting big names to its parks. Lahore with its excellent connectivity is stated to be ideal for Za-

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

KARACHI CJP asks Justice Isa to refrain from hearing cases involving PM Imran cONtiNueD frOm page 01 Regarding the suo moto case itself, the SC stated that the queries raised by the court had been addressed and there was no reason to further proceed with the case.

During a prior hearing on the case, Justice Isa had asked if funds could “be given to certain constituencies? Is it in accordance with the law to give funds for the road”. AGP Khan at the time had responded to the apex court judge, saying the WhatsApp documents “are your complaint and would be reviewed”. “I am not the complainant, I am just pointing [it] out; perhaps, you did not listen to me,” the judge had replied. In response, the AGP had said: “You have been sharing your observations for a long time. It is I who has not been heard. You received a message on your WhatsApp, so you are a complainant,” he had added. Earlier this week, Justice Isa had questioned Prime Minister Imran’s stance on the grant of development funds to members of the national and provincial assemblies after the apex court had constituted a five-judge bench, headed by CJP Gulzar.

“The letter does not have answers to the court’s questions. It seems the prime minister has not read the court’s order properly,” the judge had said at the time.

The bench had served notices on the prime minister’s principal secretary, Cabinet Division secretary, finance secretary, federal and provincial advocate generals, and provincial chief secretaries. In January, Prime Minister Imran announced a grant of Rs500 million for each member of the national and provincial assemblies under sustainable development goals to enable them to carry out development schemes for their voters. However, last week, Justice Isa took notice of the development, warning of legal proceedings if the move was found to be in contravention of the Constitution. On the occasion, he had asked AGP Khan to update the court on the issue based on the government’s response.

However, the AGP responded that he would update the court after receiving instructions from the government and further reassured that “whatever action is taken will be in the light of the law, Constitution and legal precedent”. Subsequently, Justice Isa referred the matter to the top judge for the formation of a bench. On Wednesday, all provinces had submitted written replies to the court except for Sindh. When asked, the Sindh government’s counsel informed the court the provincial government had not given development funds to any lawmakers. “Sindh government should have submitted a written answer,” CJP Gulzar had replied. Meanwhile, AG Khan had told the court the grant of development funds was “linked to the Constitution”, adding that the prime minister knew that “government funds cannot be used wrongly”. “No member of the National Assembly will be given money [directly],” he had added. Justice Isa had questioned who had drafted the reply submitted

by Principal Secretary Azam Khan. To this, Khan replied that it was “a matter between the lawyer and his client”. “The letter does not have proper English, it does not answer the court’s questions. It seems like the prime minister has tried to keep the door open for [granting] funds,” Justice Isa had said. “Either the prime minister should remain firm on what he said or admit he had made a mistake. Why is the prime minister hiding behind his secretary? The entire media published the news and the prime minister is silent,” the judge had said.

Weekly inflation up 0.81pc

NEWS

NEPRA APPRovEs Rs1.95 PER uNIT hIkE IN PoWER TARIff iSLamaBaD

T

STAFF REPORT

HE National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on Friday approved an increase of Rs1.95 per unit in power tariff, putting an additional burden of Rs200 billion on consumers.

According to media reports, the tariff hike will be applicable to all consumers, including lifeline consumers using 50 units in a month. K-Electric consumers have been exempted from the tariff increase.

The approval came on a request of the federal government for application of uniform schedule of tariff for

all distribution companies of ex-WAPDA along with "targeted tariff differential subsidy of Rs185 billion" to ensure uniform tariff. Following the increase, the per-unit average power tariff has gone up to Rs16.13 from Rs14.38.

The new power rates will be applicable after issuance of a notification by the federal government in this regard. On Thursday, NEPRA had allowed another 83-paisa per unit (kWh) increase in electricity rates of ex-Wapda distribution companies (DISCOs) under quarterly tariff adjustment (QTA) mechanism to generate over Rs84 billion revenue.

This came a day after the power regulator had notified about Rs1.54 per unit increase in power rates for these DISCOs under monthly fuel cost adjustment

(FCA) to generate about Rs11.6bn additional revenue.

On top of these two decisions, the regulator on Friday issued its determination on the request of the federal government to jack up base electricity tariff by Rs1.95 per unit for the same Discos to charge yet another Rs200bn to consumers. The government had already announced the said increase, but would notify the same once cleared by NEPRA. All put together, the total tariff increase, therefore, works to be about Rs4.32 per unit (around Rs296 billion). The average tariff for DISCOs, however, comes out to be Rs16.13 per unit instead of Rs13.35 at present given the fact that FCAs are applicable in tariff on monthly basis and replaced by FCA of next month.

Senate elections: Political parties shortlist potential candidates as lobbying intensifies for tickets cONtiNueD frOm page 01 He appealed to the chief election commissioner (CEC) to take appropriate measures in view of the situation.

The PPP parliamentary board interviewed some of its candidates in Sindh Chief Minister’s House on Friday. The party is likely to submit its nominations in the next few days.

A source in the PPP told Pakistan Today that former law minister Farooq H Naek, Taj Haider, Karim Khwaja and Shahadat Awan, Salim Mandviwalla, Jam Mahtab, Abdul Ghani Talpur, Sadiq Memon and Sherry Rehman are likely to be awarded the election tickets by PPP. The PPP has already asked Raja Azeemul Haq, a close relative of Raja Pervez Ashraf, to contest from Punjab Assembly where the party does not have the required numbers to win a seat. Palwasha Khan and Khairun Nisa Mughal are likely to contest for women seats on PPP tickets.

The party is also likely to award ticket to Farhatullah Babar from KP where the party does not have the required number of votes to win a seat.

According to sources, former prime minister and PPP Vice-Chairman Yousaf

Raza Gilani has decided to contest the Senate elections as the joint candidate for the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). Previously, it had been rumoured that he would not run.

Gilani – who served as the longest tenure as PM – said that he would only contest if all parties agree to get him elected as Senate chairman and has been assured of consensus for the polls. In this regard, he is likely to file his nomination papers Saturday morning by 11 am.

Gilani would be elected unopposed unless the PTI fields its own candidate.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Senate has two seats within the federal capital, wherein the treasury seat generally goes to the ruling party. It was expected that the opposition seat would go to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) due to its majority in the Senate. However, it now appears that the PML-N has agreed to back the former premier in the Senate.

PML-N has also announced tickets as hopefuls throng Lahore. While more than a dozen PML-N candidates are lobbying for the Senate election on PML-N tickets, the only people the party has named so far is Mushahidullah Khan, Pervaiz Rasheed, Allama Sajid Mir,

Azam Nazeer Tarar, and Saadia Abbasi.

However, parliamentary affairs experts say no PML-N candidate from Sindh, KP, Balochistan or the federal capital is likely to win.

The only chance the PML-N stands is Punjab where the party is likely to win an expected four seats. Five PML-N senators from Punjab -- Raja Zafarul Haq, Pervez Rasheed, Mushahidullah Khan, Chaudhry Tanveer and Lieutenant General (r) Abdul Qayyum -- retire in March.

According to sources, Haq, Rasheed and Khan have already been given a green signal from the party Vice President Maryam Nawaz to contest the elections.

Former Sindh governor Muhammad Zubair has also shifted his vote from Karachi to Punjab and is lobbying for the party ticket.

PML-N Sindh President Shah Mehmood Shah has also shifted his vote to Punjab and claims that the party president, Shehbaz Sharif, has promised to elect him from Punjab. Attaullah Tarar and Saud Majeed are also hopeful for Senate tickets.

Moreover, Pakistan Muslim LeagueQuaid (PML-Q), MQM-P and BAP are also in process of finalising their candidates, Pakistan Today learnt on Friday.

Oil retreats further as demand fears set in LONDON

iSLamaBaD

AGENCIES

STAFF REPORT

Oil prices dropped for a second day on Friday, pulling further back from a one-year high after OPEC again lowered its demand forecast and the International Energy Agency said the market remains oversupplied.

The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI)-based inflation for the combined group increased 0.81pc during the week ended Feb 11, compared to the previous week. According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday, the combined index was recorded at 142.85 compared to 141.7 on February 4. The index was recorded at 130.85 a year ago, on February 13, 2020. Out of 51 monitored items, the average price of 24 items increased, six decreased, while that of 21 items remained unchanged. The weekly SPI percentage change by income groups showed that inflation increased across all quantiles ranging between 0.7pc and 0.94pc. The lowest income group witnessed a weekly increase of 0.77pc, while the highest income group recorded an increase of 0.7pc. On a yearly basis, analysis of SPI change across different income segments showed that the SPI increased across all quantiles ranging between 8.31pc and 10.26pc.

Yearly SPI for the lowest income group increased by 10.14pc while the highest income group recorded an increase of 8.31pc. As per PBS, recurring surge in petroleum prices has reflected adversely on prices of the essential commodities, as inflation statistics expressed an incremental rise attributable to the costs of transportation.

"Prices of poultry meat, eggs, sugar, and wheat, among other things, recorded a significant rise during the week," PBS stated. Poultry meat, one of the most essential food items reflected valuable on inflation basket, went up Rs17 per kilogramme, while a eggs (dozen) are now Rs6 costlier. The price of sugar also surged Rs3 per kilogramme. The PBS also recorded an increase in prices of cooking oil, condiments, ghee, toiletries, and power utility. The cost of 2.5kg tin pack of ghee went up Rs10, according to the weekly price monitor report, while rice, lentils, powdered milk also rose. On the other hand, the commodities that recorded a decrease in their prices included tomatoes, potatoes and domestic LPG cylinder.

05

Brent crude was down 34 cents, or 0.6pc at $60.80 a barrel by 1051 GMT, having dropped 0.5pc in the previous session. US oil was down 39 cents, or 0.7pc at $57.85 after falling 0.8pc on Thursday.

Both contracts were still on course for weekly gains, however.

Oil closed on Wednesday at its highest since January 2020 after coming close to a record-setting run of consecutive daily gains.

Prices have risen over recent weeks partly owing to oil production cuts from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers in the group known as OPEC+.

This week, however, OPEC said it expects global oil demand to recover more slowly than thought in

2021, trimming its forecast by 110,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 5.79 million bpd.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said that oil supply was still outstripping global demand, though Covid-19 vaccines are expected to support demand recovery.

“The [IEA] report paints a more pessimistic picture than market participants have presumably been envisaging given the current high prices,” Commerzbank said.

Demand data from the world’s biggest oil importer also paints a bleak picture.

The number of people who travelled in China ahead of Lunar New Year holidays plummeted by 70pc from two years ago as coronavirus restrictions curbed the world’s largest annual domestic migration, official data showed.

ABN Amro revised its 2021 Brent oil prices forecast slightly higher to $55 a barrel but warned of demand headwinds.

“The biggest recovery in demand will have to come from the aviation sector,” the bank said. “Especially for aviation, we do not yet see a major recovery this year.”

Only Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) lags behind in making its nominations public.

From Balochistan, BAP has also shortlisted names of Sarfraz Bugti, Dr Kumar, Hussainul Islam, Shah Zaman Kakar, Mir Behroz Raiki while ANP’s former Senator Sitara has been named for woman seat.

NP has named Dr Inayatullah Khan and Nizamuddin Kakar while Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) has finalised Sajid Tareen, Malik Abdul Wali Kakar, Lashkari Raisani and Dr Jahanzeb Jamaldini.

JUI-F has named Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri for general seat and Kamran Murtaza for technocrat seat.

MQM-P leaders, including Amir Khan, Faisal Sabzwari, Rauf Siddiqui, Zafar Jamali and Abdul Qadir Khanzada, are set to file their nomination papers but they have little to no chance of getting elected.

Nasreen Jalil and Khalida Tayyab are vying for the one women’s seat that MQM-P is likely to win thanks to the support from allied parties, the PTI and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA).

Kamil Ali Agha has been awarded a ticket from PML-Q and is likely to win with support from PTI.

Trailer carrying electric cars overturns in Nawabshah At least 13 electric cars imported from South Korea were damaged after a trailer on which they were loaded overturned near Nawabshah on Friday. The speeding trailer overturned on the national highway near Dino Machine area of Daulatpur in Nawabshah. The truck, according to the motorway police, was loaded with electric cars. Sharing further details of the incident, motorway police said that the trailer was on its way from Karachi to Lahore when it overturned, adding that no loss of life was reported due to the accident. The value of each car is estimated at Rs9 million. Footage of the spot shows the trailer and other vehicles turned turtle on the highway. In December, the federal cabinet had approved Pakistan’s first Electric Vehicle Policy. The EV Policy and the Mobile Manufacturing Policy were endorsed by the federal cabinet following their approval by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) on December 16. NEWS DESK

Large-scale manufacturing expands 11.4pc in December iSLamaBaD GHULAM ABBAS

Large-scale manufacturing (LSM) in Pakistan grew 11.4 per cent in December 2020 as compared to December 2019, data released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday showed.

LSMI Quantum Index Number (QIM) was recorded at 167.21 points in 2020 against 150.11 points in December 2019.

As per the data, the overall LSM output increased 8.16pc during the first half (July-Dec) of the current fis-

cmYK

cal year (FY21), compared to the corresponding period of last fiscal year. Industrial production during July-Dec FY21 was recorded at 143.30 points against 132.49 points last year.

The highest increase of 6.23pc was witnessed in the indices monitored by the Ministry of Industries, followed by 1.63pc increase in indices monitored by the Provincial Board of Statistics and 0.29pc increase in the products monitored by the Oil Companies Advisory Committee (OCAC).

Meanwhile, on a month-on-month basis, the country’s industrial output witnessed an increase of 13.51pc

in December 2020 when compared with November 2020.

Major sectors that showed a positive growth during the month under review included textile (3.54pc), food, beverages and tobacco (17.72pc), coke and petroleum products (23.91pc), pharmaceuticals (13.82pc), chemicals (16.95pc), automobiles (43.91pc), non-metallic mineral products (17.52pc), fertilizers (11.98pc), paper & board (8.93pc) and rubber products (8.24pc).

On the other hand, LSM industries that witnessed a negative growth in December included electronics (35.59pc), leather products (40.55pc), engineering products (23.93pc) and wooden products (30.20pc).

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

06 COMMENT

Hapless Rohingya Muslims

Preparing for Senate polls

System can’t be run without opposition’s support

They have no access to even basic things such as nutritious food, sanitation or healthcare. The future of their children is uncertain and bleak as they have not tionals of any country. it means that the stateless been provided with schooling. Until and unless the should be provided with the fundamental rights which problem of their return to their native place is solved, include right to education, housing, justice and health- the international donor agencies have to take some care. But Myanmar has openly defied the laws deny- concrete initiatives for their permanent housing along ing all the rights to the Rohingya Muslims. with the provision of their basic needs.

For the past five decades, due to their religion and in the military crackdown of 2017, flagrant human ethnicity the Rohingya people have been made victim rights violations— extrajudicial killings of innocent of the deadliest outbreaks of violence and systematic people, rapes and gang-rapes with women and childiscrimination in Rakhine state by the majority Bud- dren— had taken place in Rakhine state. The UN factdhist Bumars of this southfinding mission had wanted East Asian nation. They to unearth atrocities commitwere maliciously and horted against people of the Roridly attacked by military hingya community.

The forces in 1978, 1992, 2016 Myanmar regime had refused Following the military and lastly in 2017. the mission access to the peooperations in October 2016 Although there has been ple. Following the refusal, the a series of the government human Rights Wing (hRW) in August 2017 against and crackdowns on the minority had warned that Myanmar group, a heavy-handed milthe Rohingya, Islamabad had would be declared a pariah itary crackdown on them state if the country did not sturdily condemned the was started in 2017. Thouchange its mind and policy. sands of state troops asAround three and a half ethnic cleansing of the saulted the Rohingya’s years have passed, Myanmar Rohnigya, and some political has yet neither been declared village of Chein Khar Li in Rathedaung Township in pariah state nor the country and religious groups had held ataken Rakhine state and burned any effective measaround 700 buildings. in the ures, nor has it been penalsolidarity rallies across damaging crackdown, durized in any way by the Pakistan. Yet all this is not ing just five days, at least international community.

400 people were brutally The country is still continusufficient to address the killed; hundreds of women ously strengthening its deplight and challenges the and girls were raped; and an fence and political ties with enormous number of chilneighbours and friends.

Rohingya have been facing. dren and women were cruFollowing the military elly tortured. This was a operations in October 2016 gross violation of human and in August 2017 against rights by any count. the Rohingya, islamabad had Presently, in the world, the Rohingya Muslims are the sturdily condemned the ethnic cleansing of the Rohnimost oppressed Muslim minority community. gya, and some political and religious groups had held The Cox’s Bazar refugee camps in Bangladesh is solidarity rallies across Pakistan. Yet all this is not sufthe world’s largest refugee camp that hosts more than ficient to address the plight and challenges the Rohingya a million Rohingya refugees. A great majority of the have been facing. To find a way out of this humanitarian 750,000 refugees had fled their homes in Myanmar cataclysm, committed and dedicated political, social and to the camp after the devastating attack, which is cultural efforts are to be made by the UN, the OiC and called a campaign of ethnic cleansing of the Ro- other international bodies. As Pakistan holds a signifihingya community, was made on them in 2017. The cant position in the islamic Military Alliance, islamabad Nayapara camp hosts around 22,500 refugees includ- has to ensure that the matter of Myanmar’s state-sponing 17,800 children and women. sored terrorism will be included in its agenda and a voice The Cox’s Bazar refugee camps consist of will be raised from time to time for the rights of the most shanties which have been made from timber and persecuted community on this powerful platform. other combustible substances. The living conditions of the refugees in the shanty houses are not good.

The writer is a freelance columnist

The Rohingya’s plight requires out-of-the-box solutions

T

hE Election Commission of Pakistan has announced the holding of senate polls on March 3. The election schedule has been announced. The supreme Court is likely to render its advice on the issue of the ballot being secret or open in the next few days.

Everything is all set to go for the election of 48 senators.

This time the issue of having an open ballot for senate elections has suddenly emerged as the top concern of the PTi on account of a peculiar need of the party leadership which had never raised the issue in the past. A secret ballot suited Prime Minister imran Khan when he got the present senate Chairman selected and when he foiled the opposition’s no-confidence move against Mr sanjrani. had the PTi taken a principled stand then and worked together with the opposition, an open ballot would have replaced the secret ballot by now. The PTi’s sudden opposition to the secret ballot is motivated by the apprehension that party legislators who resent allotting senate tickets to the PM’s unelected favourites might vote against the official nominees, causing embarrassment to the leadership. Despite agreeing to an open ballot in the Charter of Democracy, the PPP and PML(N) opposed the PTi on the issue in the hope of getting an extra seat or two in the senate at the expense of their rival. it is time political parties stop ignoring long term interests on account of political exigencies. irrespective of whether the senate polls are held with open ballot or secret ballot, the results will by no means be much different. in the case of the PTi even the most favourable estimates do not give it more than 29 seats in a house of 100. Even with the support of all its allies the party will find it difficult to pass a law without the support of the opposition while it will not be able to enact any constitutional amendment during the rest of its tenure. it is time the PTi leadership realized that it is futile to continue to call opposition leaders thieves and dacoits and still hope for cooperation from the opposition, which is vital to run the system.

Shaikh abduR RaShid

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N January 14, a massive fire that started by a gas cylinder used at the camp to cook food swept through the crowded Nayapara refugee camp of the Rohingya at the town of Cox’s Bazar in southeast Bangladesh.

The fire demolished around 550 ramshackle shelters and forced at least 3500 refugees, including children and women, to flee their homes. No lives were lost.

The most recent blaze is also the latest catastrophe to strike the Rohingya community.

To know who the Rohingya are i googled and found out that the Rohingya are Muslims. Rakhine, a state of Myanmar, is the native place of the Rohingya Muslims, where they have been living for centuries.

The overall population of the Muslim community in Rakhine state stood some 1.1 million in 2017. What havoc life has played with the Rohingya is that Myanmar has yet not recognized the Muslim community as one of its 135 official ethnic groups. The Rohingya have never been granted nationality by the country under its citizenship law 1982.

The Rohingyas have been systematically rendered a stateless people. however, Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of human Rights clearly specifies that everyone has the right to nationality. Moreover, the 1954 UN Convention relating to the status of stateless Persons and the 1961 UN Convention on the Reduction of statelessness, the two treaties that form the foundation of the international legal framework to address statelessness, strictly instruct member states that the stateless are to be treated in same the way as na-

Signs of recovery Faint signs of a broad based recovery

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hOUGh as yet very initial, there have been signs that the economy is beginning to make something of a recovery from the blow it got because of the covid-19 pandemic. The recovery has not penetrated the whole economy, and probably will not until demand picks up in the Western economies, which constitute the country’s largest export markets. however, where the first increase in automobile sales was marked in the first seven months of the current fiscal year. Nott only have vehicles sales risen, marking a rebound to pre-pandemic levels, but an increase in tractor sales indicate the farmers are paying more attention to BMR (Balancing, Modernization and Replacement) activities than heretofore. One sign that there is room for greater recovery is that there has not been an increase in the number of trucks sold, indicating that there has not been an increase of BMR among goods transporters it should be noted that this increase in sales is occurring despite the challenge that is proposed by electric vehicles, as well as by vehicle imports One aspect that has received encouragement from the recent pandemic has been ecommerce, as people have turned to shopping online for their needs (and often enough merely their whims). in the first quarter for the current fiscal, the revenues reached Rs 96 billion, a yearon-year growth of 35 percent over the previous fiscal. The revenue increase has been paralleled by the increase in the number of ecommerce–capable merchants (as measured by those with the capacity for prepayment) from 1410 to 2164 in the past 12 months, according to information given to the National Ecommerce Council,, whose fourth meeting recently was attended by representatives of both public and private sectors and which was chaired by PM’s Commerce Adviser Razak Dawood.

A parallel development has been the test of 5G technology conducted by PTCL, at which a data transmission speed of 1.685 GB per second was achieved.

Though 5G technology has a wide range of applications, it is particularly relevant to ecommerce, which will demand not just instantaneous communication between buyer and seller, but parallel and secure communication between the clients and their banks, as well as between the banks themselves. it should not be forgotten that ecommerce depends, on a strong backend, and it is the promotion of this is where the role of the state becomes crucial.

An agricultural emergency needed before it’s too late Pakistan should learn from China

Rehan Saeed and SumeeRa aSghaR Roy

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his world is going through a sensitive time, and already enough has been written about the causes, problems, and possible and predictable damages from climate change, global warming, and potential biological threats to human existence. here, we will talk about timely measures. if we can apply these suggestions, we can mitigate the possible damages of climate change; instead, this is the best time to declare an agricultural emergency across the globe and particularly in Pakistan. since the time of its creation, Pakistan’s economy has been agriculture-based, as more than 70 percent of our population is directly or indirectly related to agriculture. Agriculture remains the main contributor to the GDP for our economy, as it has been for a long time. But, now, unfortunately, this sector is damaged, and its contribution is as low as 18.9 percent. The agriculture sector was handled so roughly in the past few decades that our hearts must cry while looking at the present situation. Despite having all the potential, the agriculture sector fails miserably to uplift our economy or our people’s right to enjoy a good and healthy life.

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

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Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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emergency if we want to survive and become self-dependent. Kitchen gardening, rooftop gardening, tunnel farming, crop rotation, ruler reforms modification, Ruler /urban imbalance, and optimal land use helps us gain that independence.

Let’s look at the example of China’s government.

Agriculture experts analyze the situation for the upcoming five years and recommend the policy and plan for the coming five years that crops the country Why do our people not enjoy good health condi- needs the most. Farmers and growers are bound to tions in general? The main reason is nutritional defi- follow the government plan. An annual evaluation of ciencies. Even when they are in their 40s and early the policy and recommendations meeting in a year 50s, people start complaining about pain in the mus- with strict rules and regulations with the idea of recles and bones. The majority of our country’s popu- ward (to those who implemented the plan and guidlation does not enjoy the ance in its real sense). very basic fundamental Nations make progress and human right of access to a emerge as great nations balanced diet. when government, people, if one cannot get that, and institutions are on one In comparison to China and then deficiency symptoms We need to learn from India, where is the agriculture page start appearing in the human the great Chinese wisdom body; and the symptoms inand development models, sector? How much are we clude feeling weakness, mainly rural development adding to our economy? Our models, which are being pain in muscles and bones, and so on. in particular, vegpraised across the globe, and government should think etables are a vital source of these models helped China many key nutrients, includovercome poverty. seriously about agriculture, ing vitamins A and C, potasin comparison to China science, and technology, as sium, folic acid, and dietary and india, where is the agrifiber. several factors are inwe are already far behind the culture sector? how much volved in the shortage. are we adding to our econrest of the world.

Among all aspects, a few of omy?

Our government them are as follows: the should think seriously about Appointment of the people non-availability of a suffiagriculture, science, and cient amount of vegetables who know modern agriculture technology, as we are alin the market. ready far behind the rest of and those who understand And on the other hand, the world. Appointment of we are spending our millions the people who know modthe agricultural economy of rupees to buy these vegern agriculture and those dynamics would indeed etables where we have the who understand the agriculpotential to produce and tural economy dynamics bolstering the nation’s grow them in our own counwould indeed bolstering the try. Our farmers are not fonation’s agrarian sector. agrarian sector cusing much on the Engr. Rehan Saeed is a production of vegetables. postgraduate researcher at The possible reason is the the College of Agricultural high cost of production, as the government has never given due importance to Engineering, China Agricultural University, the agriculture sector and any significant subsidies to Beijing, China farmers as they should have been given. Now, as a Sumeera Asghar Roy is a Ph.D. candidate at the result of that, growers are getting out of this business and shifting their interest somewhere else. And the National key laboratory of Fruit Sciences, at the area production is getting decreased annually. These China Agricultural University, at the college of are agricultural aspects we need to work on in an Horticulture Biotechnology, Beijing.

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Saturday, 13 February, 2021

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

Discarding disinformation

Constitutional provisions and Panchayati Raj system in India scheme of decentralisation was conceived as a means to facilitate programmes of development, the middle tier of Panchayat samiti at the block state of an economy, development, in the modern level was to be the basic institution in the entire sense, refers to a relatively stable long-range in- scheme of Panchayati Raj. The establishment of crease in real national income that is accompa- a three-tier system of local self-government with nied by a change in the attitudes of the people, full powers to assume responsibility for local detheir motivation, institutional set-up, production velopment was the core of the Mehta Committee techniques, and son on. From another angle it recommendation. may also refer to the production and utilisation The new pattern and practice of Panchayati of material resources or to the development of Raj witnessed a substantial transfer of power into human resources. Enrichment of human capital local hands but this revolution was not accomparefers to the un-economic factors such as the so- nied by any social or economic revolution. The cial, political, ethnic or educational background process of its decline was started after the midof the people who participate in the development 1960s and it continued for almost the next two tasks. Thus, the goal of development clearly decades. in fact the non-devolution of the sources means the enrichment of the total quality of life of revenue proved to be the greatest stumbling and its availability to all sections of the commu- block in the performance of Panchayati Raj bodnity. Development is not merely the provision of ies. The PR institutions were not regarded either opportunities but also their actual utilisation by as a political means to bring about change in rural the people for whom they are intended and in- india, as part of the overall political process in volves the creation of facilities necessary for the country, or as institutions reflecting social disuch utilisation. visions in society. indian politics in the 1970s Like other Afroshowed a shift towards Asian countries the centralisation of power large majority of the on the one hand, and on population lives in the other hand, an effort In the regime of Rajiv Gandhi on the part of the central rural india which became the main thrust of to reach out it was considered necessary leadership the national developto the people directly. ment effort. Different The first non-Conto further the organisation of countries adopted, with gress government of the these local units by inserting Janata Party was a view to develop rural areas, different apformed in 1977 which specific provisions in the proaches and strategies appointed a high-powConstitution itself on the depending on the ideoered committee under logical orientations of the chairmanship of basis of which the the elite, the structure Ashok Mehta to examof political power and ine the whole issue and legislatures of the various the perception of namake suitable recomStates might enact detailed tional needs. in india mendations. its report about four-fifths of the represented a landmark laws according to the population lived in the because it treated the guidelines provided by the rural areas, and as PR as an extension of Gandhi rightly says. democracy, it declared constitutional provisions “india lives in vilthe need of providing lages”. in this context constitutional sanction india laid particular of Panchayati Raj and emphasis on people’s suggested to transfer institutions because the programmes of develop- substantial quantum of powers from the state ment, it is generally agreed, are to be carried out Government to the local bodies. The major not only by the state bureaucracy but also thrust of the report was on decentralisation. through effective public participation.

At a later stage, during the period of 1985The actual working of the Community De- 92, some serious thinking was done at the navelopment Programme and the National Exten- tional level in favour of giving constitutional sion service did not deliver desired results, and status to Panchayati Raj institutions. in the the lack of peoples’ participation was considered regime of Rajiv Gandhi it was considered necas the greatest weakness of the system. The need essary to further the organisation of these local to examine the whole issue in comprehensive units by inserting specific provisions in the Condetail with a view to evolving a system to enlist stitution itself on the basis of which the legislapeoples participation and make the Panchayats tures of the various states might enact detailed more effective was felt, which resulted in the laws according to the guidelines provided by the formation of a study team in 1956 under the constitutional provisions. simultaneously the chairmanship of Balwantray Mehta. phase of Globalisation and Liberalisation came The report of the team contained a three-tier in the world and india as well, which made the scheme of democratic decentralization and was Constitutional Amendment regarding Panchayati endorsed by the National Development Council Raj institution an essential factor for the develin 1958, which followed its implementation by opment of rural india. several states in one form or another.

The Village Panchayat, Panchayat samiti The writer is head of the political science and Zila Parishad constituted the three tiers of department of the B.N.Mandal University, Panchayati Raj, located at the village, the block Madhepura, Bihar, India and can be reached at and the district levels respectively. since the rajkumarsinghpg@gmail.com

India has struggled with local bodies

dR RajkumaR Singh

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hE framers of the indian Constitution heavily cut short the Gandhian concept of Panchayats and rural development while providing for different arrangements. Despite the fact that they were not very satisfied with the working of these local bodies as institutions of popular government, they simply gave a directive in Article 40 of the Constitution, “The state shall take steps to organise village Panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them for function as units of self-government.” Under the heading of Directive Principles of state Policy (Articles 36 to 51) different guidelines of rural development were given to state government with no binding to implement the ideals. in initial years, in order to achieve rural development and strengthen Panchayati Raj institutions the Community Development Programme was launched in the country on a large scale with the National Extension service as an agency through which the social and economic transformation of village life was to be brought about. it was implemented with assistance from the Technical Cooperation Programme Agreement between the Government of india and the UsA which was signed in May 1952. The Programme was initiated with a great deal of enthusiasm and hope, being different in style and orientation of administration, the structure of new development administration and the element of people’s participation that was a part of the basic assumptions and objectives. Earlier the district and the village levels of local bodies had existed for long, but blocks at the intermediate level was the new introduction in the administrative structure of development.

The above arrangements were made in the light of changed circumstances which were signalled in the post-World War ii phase. The liberation of many Afro-Asian nations from the clutches of colonial rule was a catalytic phenomenon in this direction. These countries, which were poor and underdeveloped, adopted different strategies for development. Even development which earlier was mainly associated with economic growth now acquired broader meaning.

Unlike in a technical sense in which development refers to qualitative and structural changes in the

ThE latest turn of events from the indian farmer protests has been disturbing to say the least. By all the means possible, the people anywhere in the world have the freedom of expression and all the rights constituted. The current tussle due to some controversial tweets on the farmer protests has been getting hotter with each passing day. Just as in the UsA, Twitter has been facing the pressure from the indian government to stop the so-called disinformation, the latest being the “all-celebrities posts” on the social media. Unfortunately, all these things add to the confusion, even creating suspicions over the ongoing protests. straight from my college days in the millennium year of 2000 in my native areas like Korkai, Tiruchendur, Tuticorin, Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, i having a Master’s in computer applications have been using the internet and its related platforms, all for using the beautiful and effective email communication, spreading the correct information and sharing social messages. But even then, my love of print media has been going on nonstop because i have been easily attracted to the newspapers, either Tamil or English right from my 1998 college days in Tiruchendur. Furthermore, my various observations and study point to the fact that the farmers from the Punjab region have been hard-working and innovative, contributing a lot to the farm produce. hats off to them all! in fact our family and others have been into various and rigorous agriculture activities in Korkai, Tuticorin, Tirunelveli and Tiruchendur. if all those protesting farmers are really genuine and serious-minded about their needs, they should not allow the possible vested interests to take advantage of the situation. The worrying fact that all those external elements may create disturbance and unnecessary tension in the region and even among the neighbourhoods cannot be taken lightly.

P Senthil Saravana Durai MuMbai

Corruption i would like to highlight the main issue of this society named Corruption.

Corruption affects our lives greatly as it is not only bad for economy and business operations but also hurts the people, especially the poor.

Unfortunately, this problem is getting worse with every coming day, especially in Pakistan. Corruption in Pakistan is widespread and extends to every sector from government to judiciary, police, health services and education. in our society this problem is rising day by day due to high levels of political monopolization, dilapidated conditions of democracy and weak civil participation. Corruption makes the elite class more elite and poor class poorer. so i request the government for the implementation of law against corruption. People should make the public sector honest, transparent and accountable because power doesn’t corrupt people, people corrupt power. niShat JaFar QureShi lahOre

Horsetrading reactions PRiME MiNisTER imran Khan on Tuesday reacted to a leaked video showing PTi lawmakers allegedly selling their votes in exchange for money handed out by a former MPA of the PPP, saying that his government was determined to “stop the cycle of money laundering and corruption” A video filmed around the time of the senate elections 2018 started doing the rounds on social media earlier today, showing a couple of PTi MNAs allegedly taking money from former MPA of the PPP, Mohammad Ali Nacha . The Prime Minister said that the video showed how successive ruling elites drowned the country in debt and destroyed the country’s morals . The video was showing the shameful way in which politicians buy & sell votes in senate reflects the total destruction of the nation’s morality by successive ruling elites as they drowned the nation in debt.

SaMeen abiD turbat

Our dramas DRAMAs and films are made for the purpose of entertainment, conveying a lesson to others and so on. Needless to say today’s world we are witnessing only a few of dramas with a complete purpose or moral but the rest of them are opposite to the facts. sorry to say recent drams released by Pakistani Film industry are full of abusive language, husbands paying di divorce to the wives, characters attempting suicide, being disrespectful to the parents and what not. Every nation and its culture can be evaluated by its productions. its time be aware of our responsibilities as an islamic state.

Our film industry should incare its liabilities upon it and our respective producers and script writers are requested to produce dramas like Dirlis Ertugral to make generations aware of our national heroes.

Meer aFzal hub

Sindh CM’s remarks ON 8/2/11 a mind-boggling debate took place between the chief minister and the leader of the opposition in the sindh assembly. The opposition leader accused the CM of having his house wrongly demolished under the anti-encroachment drive by the sindh government. he termed it as political vendetta by the PPP government. in response to the accusations of the leader of the opposition, the CM alleged that the opposition leader was mentally incapable with abilities no more than a Lower Division Clerk. having worked as an LDC back in the 1940s, i was shocked and perturbed by this statement and the derogatory way the worthy CM compared an elected member to a lower division clerk. The elected members are there to serve the people. They are supported by the civil servants accompanied by lower division government employees. in his arrogance and narcissism, the CM forgot that his entire secretariat is run by government officers who are supported by PAs and clerks. May i also remind the CM that many of the high-ranking civil servants in the past started their careers at lower lever clerical positions with one making it to the president of Pakistan. While politicians are very sensitive about their privilege, i would request them to refrain from degrading government servants at any level. raJa ShaFaatullah iSlaMabaD

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

08 WORLD VIEW

Modi regiMe is seT To disManTle public secTor and The Welfare sTaTe THE WORKING CLASS MUST PUT UP A STRONG RESISTANCE AGAINST MODI REGIME AND ENSURE THAT INDIA CONTINUES AS A WELFARE STATE and the Narendra Modi government wants to dismantle the welfare state by privatising the public sector. a steep decline in the health of the nation’s economy has been a distinguishing feature of seven years of Modi rule. this process has been exacerbated by the suicidal policy of privatisation of the economy and the dismantling of profit-making public enterprises, both strategic and non-strategic, which have a sterling record of contributing to the emergence of self-reliant India. the Prime Minister, who talks of atmanirbhar Bharat, is doing exactly the opposite by pushing the privatisation of public sector enterprises and pursuing neoliberal policies that would make India critically dependent on international finance capital. the finance minister has announced that the government will work with the RBI for implementing the bank privatisation plan announced in the Budget. It indicates the gov-

indiAn exPress

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D RAJA

OlItICS and economics are inseparable. It is the political economy which shapes the character of a State. the Constitution defines India as a secular state and provides for public welfare. the BJP–RSS combine has been aggressively making efforts to transform the secular state into a theocracy.

Modi’s India has gone from intolerant to insecure nationalism Print PRITHVIRAJ CHAVAN

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hat India and the world are witnessing right now are two fascinating yet obnoxious sides of our democracy. On one side, close to a million farmers are agitating in nail-biting cold against the three farm laws that were hurriedly passed by the Narendra Modi government flouting all democratic procedures and norms. On the other side, Prime Minister Modi and his ministers are trying to demean, defame and demonise agitating farmers by all possible means. the latest jibe came directly from the Prime Minister mocking certain protesters as “andolan jivis” — loosely translated as those thriving on agitation.

None of the responsible elected representatives in the history of India has ridiculed agitators from the floor of Parliament. In fact, peaceful agitation is the bedrock of Indian democracy and a tool used by freedom fighters during the struggle for independence from British rule. this farmers’ agitation is turning out to be unique in many ways. Since November last year, farmers, mostly old, have marched towards Delhi.

Roads have been blocked, national highways dug up, water canons deployed and tear gas shells burst to prevent farmers from reaching Delhi. they have been branded as ‘Khalistani’, ‘anti-national’, and ‘secessionist’. at several protesting sites, water supply and access to basic hygiene facilities have been cut off due to blockades by State authorities. the agitation has gone on for over 70 days and has caused the death of more than 130 farmers. Yet, the Union government remains adamant. More vitriolic steps have been undertaken — borders barricaded using concrete walls, iron nails on roads and concertina wires installed by police authorities. No previous peaceful agitation in India has ever been met with such brutality and repression.

Clearly, this has dented our standing as a liberal democracy. India is rapidly descending into the category of a “flawed democracy” according to the recently published 2020 Democracy Index by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Interestingly, India’s slide in the Democracy Index coincides with the political rise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 2014, India ranked 27 with a score of 7.92. Gradually, it fell to the 53rd position last year with a score of 6.61. the sustained stifling of dissent, the introduction of a religious test for citizenship, the emergence of a pliant media, a passive judiciary and the Centre’s discernible apathy towards parliamentary deliberations have raised the spectre of serious democratic backsliding in India. this inhumane brutality with the farmers has attracted the attention of global leaders and celebrities. Canadian Prime Minister Justin trudeau and some British MPs raised their concern about the prolonged farmers’ agitation. But the Ministry of External affairs (MEa) was quick to dismiss these concerns by terming the protest as an internal matter. however, recent tweets

by Rihanna, a US-based pop star, and Greta thunberg, a teenage climate activist, rattled the Indian government. the MEa’s response was unprecedented. It is clear evidence of disquiet at the highest echelons of power.

In a democracy, agitation is aimed at collective self-determination. Freedom of speech and expression form the basic tenet of any democratic agitation. Each citizen is entitled to a vote and voice in democratic governance. Stifling the collective voice of the people will only further destroy democracy in India.

Prithviraj Chavan is the former chief minister of Maharashtra.

ernment’s resolve to hand over public sector banks to private hands. this would take India to the pre bank-nationalisation era and deepen inequality and poverty and intensify the concentration of wealth and means of production in a few hands. this would prove disastrous and go against the constitutional vision that aims at progressive reduction of poverty and realisation of justice and equality. B R ambedkar, while participating in the discussion in the Constituent assembly on Objectives Resolutions on 17th December 1946 presciently said: “I do not understand how it could be possible for any future government which believes in doing justice socially, economically and politically, unless its economy is a socialistic economy.” the constitutional vision of social and economic justice for citizens has been jeopardised by the promotion of market forces and corporates. the aggressive privatisation programme of the Modi regime affect-

ing railways, banks, public sector enterprises including navaratna companies is seriously compromising the principle of social and economic justice enshrined in the Constitution. the Directive Principles of State Policy is clear that “the ownership and control of material resources are so distributed as best to subserve the common good” and that “the operation of the economic system does not result in the concentration of wealth and means of production to the common detriment”.

Privatisation is a direct attack on the policy of reservation. It deprives access to employment and education in the public sector for the SC/Sts, OBCs and differently-abled persons. there is no law to provide reservation in the private sector. Privatisation of the economy is deepening the existing fault lines and structured forms of inequality such as caste, patriarchy and gender.

In the context of the 2008 financial crisis

that originated in the US then prime minister, Manmohan Singh has said that India could withstand it because of the resilience of public sector enterprises and public sector banks. India will hereafter be more vulnerable to multiple crises of national and global dimensions. India would be susceptible to manipulation by those who have monopoly over international finance. It aggravates crises at multiple levels of economy, society and polity and makes India an easy target for control by global powers. India will lose its economic leverage and vast masses of people would slip into more poverty and deprivation at a faster pace. the COVID crisis has underlined the point that it is the public sector which can rise to the challenge and save people and society from the dangers threatening life, livelihood, safety and security. Policy makers world over have realised this since the advent of the pandemic. the Modi government needs to learn from the renewed emphasis on the public sector at the global level.

India’s public sector has played a key role in nation-building. Instead of strengthening it, the Modi regime is committing the egregious blunder of dismantling it. It will prove fatal for the country. the working class must put up a strong resistance against Modi regime and ensure that India continues as a welfare state that provides economic and social justice. Political parties that have a commitment to save the Constitution and the nation must come together and build popular movements across the country.

How should social media be regulated?

Al JAzeerA

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NANJAlA NyAbolA

hE first month of 2021 was marked by two pivotal political moments across two continents, united by a curious feature of modern communication. In the United States, right-wing extremist groups successfully radicalised, organised and militarised on social media, managing to invade the seat of Congress, while refusing to accept the result of a recent election and threatening the lives of the country’s senior-most lawmakers. and in Uganda, a highly contentious election pitted an increasingly cruel octogenarian president, who refuses to cede power, against a charismatic musician turned politician, young enough to be the former’s grandson. although the Ugandan incumbent promised a “scientific” election in which tech would be a key factor, instead he flung the entire country back into the pre-digital era for a week using his preferred weapon of late – a national internet shutdown. two elections united by the changing role of technology in our public spheres more broadly, and specifically the role of social media, in hosting and moderating political conversations. In the US, social media has been an enabler of rampant misinformation and hate speech that incubated groups like Qanon who infiltrated the US Capitol. In Uganda, social media was the main platform on which the opposition was able to document the violence of the ruling party, to advocate for social change, and to organise against the excesses of power.

In the US, the social networks de-platformed the now-former president and disabled his accounts. In Uganda, they did the same and the president retaliated by banning social media for removing accounts allied to his party before turning off the internet wholesale.

Within the first two weeks of 2021, the two extremes of what social media represents in the public sphere were on full display, underscoring how the same approach on the same platforms in different social contexts can have wildly disparate outcomes and implications.

Predictably the aftermath of both elections has seen calls to enhance regulation of the social networking platforms. Unfortunately, now that the harms caused by content moderation fails are finally affecting US national politics, the calls for regulation are also being shaped by US perspectives and interests. It would be a tremendous mistake for rule-making around social networking sites to only take the US experience into account, particularly because activists and analysts from other parts of the world have not only been flagging these issues just as long if not longer, but would have to live with the consequences of any new regulations without the social or economic capital to make them sensitive to local contexts.

Basically, we are facing a situation where a choice to ban politicians in the US leads to a choice to ban a dictator who then cracks down on the public sphere in Uganda, while a choice to do nothing results in genocide in Myanmar.

Based on their origin myths and in their own descriptions of what they do, the founders of these sites certainly did not see them evolving into the big, global political players that they are

REGULATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA SHOULD NOT BE ESTABLISHED ONLY WITH US INTERESTS IN MIND today.

In my 2018 book, Digital Democracy, analogue Politics, I analyse how these sites evolved into key pillars of the public sphere in Kenya where they insert themselves into spaces left open by the retreat of traditional media and constraints on organising and mobilising in the analogue public sphere. Kenya is the example but the principle holds across all societies: the internet is an intensifier of whatever energies exist in the analogue public sphere and you cannot understand the role that these platforms will play in various societies if you do not understand the society in question first.

Until recently few countries – like Germany – actively pushed for regulations that went beyond corporate accountability to place guardrails on the kind of speech that would be allowed on these platforms. the rest perceived the US approach to free speech as the best approach and thought that whatever restrictions were needed would be provided by users coming together to volunteer to flag negative content.

But the US approach to free speech is a political value grounded in a specific socio-political history: it only makes sense in the US in the context of US history and other provisions in US law more broadly that outline the limits to absolute free speech in order to prevent large-scale harm.

Even in the US, there is no such thing as absolute free speech, certainly not without consequences.

When these corporations went global they took the US approach to free speech but not the guardrails that came with it. What has been evident is their willingness to cosy up to powerful politicians in fraught political contexts in order to secure market access. In India, Facebook’s chief lobbying officer declined to deal with hindu nationalist hate speech at the risk of damaging the platform’s business prospects in the country. this in the context of rising tensions between the country’s two main religions that analysts argue is being incubated and disseminated through social media. Social networking sites need to remember that free speech is not a standalone value. It is a value that has to be protected in social context, and that understanding and responding to a social context requires more substantial investment than merely relying on community-driven content moderation.

It is not unreasonable to demand a localised, historically sensitive approach to moderating the content these platforms allow. the German approach to regulating Nazi speech on social media has been the most visible example of making these primarily US corporations bend to local realities.

While the prohibition on creating and sharing Nazi sympathetic material online has not stopped the rise of the far right in Germany, it has certainly slowed it down in a way that would make the US jealous. the point is that German regulators had a clearly articulated red line for the kind of content that the social networking sites could permit and perhaps because of the po-

tentially large market, the sites listened.

Still, Germany is an example where communities can trust regulators to be acting in the public interest. the story is different in countries like Uganda where the regulator is primarily acting in the interest of those in power. In countries where regulation has been historically lax and primarily focused on curbing freedom of expression and criticism of the state, merely bowing to the pressure from the government without asking why can consolidate authoritarianism. all the more reason to think critically about what we want the regulations that come out of this fraught moment to reflect and to address. For the last 15 years, digital rights activists outside the US have been calling for social networking sites to be more proactive in their approach to entering societies around the world. activists have pointed to the way these platforms incubate extremist rhetoric that is difficult to analogise to the Western audience, eg how a few Facebook posts in Oromo in Ethiopia can fuel violent clashes that leave 78 people dead in one weekend. But also, in societies where traditional media is hamstrung by state censorship and interference, and where the government can pressure mobile networks to take the entire country offline at the drop of a hat, activists have similarly argued that the freedom of expression on social networking sites is a key pillar for the democracies they are trying to build.

Both of these positions are valid, and regulations emerge from this period of reflection should ideally incubate the good and make it possible for activists to find voice and community while curbing the bad and preventing saboteurs and extremist groups from mobilising and organising. this is the heart of the regulatory challenge around social networking sites, and only working with the US experience will not address it. Whatever rules and regulations come from this period of re-evaluation must as far as possible work for the US and the Ugandas of this world.

Rule-making for multinational corporations that have socio-political interests in 197 different countries cannot only reflect the policy or political priorities of one. One dreadful outcome would be for the rules made in Washington to enable dictatorship and atrocities in countries that are already vulnerable to authoritarianism and censorship. there are no easy answers, but one sure way of making the situation worse would be to ignore what activists and thinkers from outside the US have been saying for the last 15 years. the US is right now going through experiences that countries in other parts of the world have already navigated and learned from. It is important to create platforms where they can be heard.

Nanjala Nyabola is a writer and political analyst based in Nairobi, Kenya. She is the author of "Digital Democracy, Analogue Politics", a book on the impact of the internet on Kenyan politics (Zed Books, 2018).

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

BUSINESS 09

KARACHI corporate corner TPL wins nine awards at 10th Annual CSR Summit KARACHI: TPL won nine awards at the '10th Annual Corporate Social Responsibility Summit & Awards 2021' held at the Marriot Hotel, Karachi, on 4th February, 2021.

The prestigious national award event is the first and only platform in Pakistan registered with the Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan (IPO-Pakistan).

Commenting on the Company’s achievement, Muhammad Aminuddin, CEO, TPL Insurance, said, “I would like to express my gratitude to The Professionals Network for recognizing our efforts on a national platform and presenting TPL with these highly prestigious awards. CSR is at the core of everything we do at TPL, platforms like these motivate us to reach out to a wider network and create more impact in Pakistan.” PRESS RElEASE

LAHORE: UBL recently signed an agreement with Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (SKMCH&RC) through which UBL Debit and Credit Card holders can avail up to 20pc off at 200 SKMCH&RC facilities nationwide. PR

PRoPoSeD TRADe ACCoRDS wiTh CenTRAL ASiAn CounTRieS LARgeLy in fAvouR of PAkiSTAn: DAwooD ‘PAK-AFGHAN TRANSIT TRADE AGREEMENT TO BE SIGNED WITHIN THREE MONTHS’ ISLAMABAD

A

GHUlAM ABBAS

S Pakistan is currently in talks with Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries to explore the possibility of preferential trade agreements, Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce Razak Dawood has claimed that the proposed PTAs, once completed, would be largely in favour of Pakistan.

Talking to media after the launch of Coca-Cola Pakistan's Socio Economic Report on Friday, the adviser said that new avenues of trade would open for Pakistan through agreements with Central Asian states, adding that Afghanistan had offered a PTA that was largely in favour of Pakistan.

"There are industrial projects for us

LAHORE

ISLAMABAD: Coca-Cola Beverages Pakistan Limited (CCI Pakistan) revealed its latest socio-economic impact report at an event held on Thursday. The event was graced by the presence of Chief Guest Abdul Razzaq Dawood, Advisor to the PM on Commerce, along with Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan İhsan Mustafa Yurdakul. PR

like refrigerators, chemicals, motorcycles etc. that can be exported to these countries," Dawood stated. "There are three priority areas regarding trade with Central Asian states; firstly, there should be free movement of trucks; secondly, transit trade must be ensured; and thirdly, there should be [signing of a] PTA." On free trade agreement with China, he said that the FTA was effective from January last year, but due to Covid-19, no progress was made on the accord, as delegations from both sides were unable to hold meetings.

"Pakistan and China will have to wait for another year to make some progress on the FTA," he added.

On a query regarding Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA), he said the accord had expired on February 11,

2021, “but has been extended to three months by the cabinet”.

He said the revised APTTA would be signed within the next 90 days, which was a sufficient period to finalise the new agreement.

Responding to another question, the adviser said the government has no plan to allow duty free import of cotton from India to bridge shortfall, adding that the country was currently facing a shortfall of one million bales due to low production this year.

He hoped that the country would have a better cotton crop next year.

Earlier, while addressing the Coca Cola event, Razak Dawood said, “Pakistan is looking forward to expanding the footprint of foreign companies in the country by creating effective policies that ensure ease of doing business.

The goal is to expedite economic activ-

LHC allows growers to sell sugarcane to other provinces STAFF REPORT

LAHORE: Concordia Colleges achieved eight positions in Annual Prize Distribution of Inter College Games Session, organized by Lahore Board Sports Department at Govt Post Graduate College, China Scheme. PR

‘NO PLAN TO ALLOW DUTY-FREE IMPORT OF COTTON FROM INDIA TO BRIDGE SHORTFALL’

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday allowed sugarcane growers to sell their crops to other provinces.

Sugar mills had challenged the Punjab cane commissioner’s decision regarding lifting of interprovincial ban on sugarcane export to other provinces.

Declaring the act of selling sugarcane to other provinces by growers “a right move”, Justice Jawad Hassan in the judgement maintained that sugar mills have no right to weaken the farmer financially.

"Farmers' rights are protected under the Constitution of Pakistan and there is no law that stops them from selling their sugarcane to other provinces," the judgement read.

Earlier, in a bid to snub the practice of ‘off the book’ purchase, the

Punjab cane commissioner had directed the deputy commissioners of all districts to inspect sugarcane procurement being carried out by sugar mills in their respective localities.

On the other hand, the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) had informed the Ministry of Industries that millers were facing serious shortage of raw material and could shut down their operations in the near future.

In a letter addressed to Industries & Production Minister Muhammad Hammad Azhar, titled ‘non-availability of sugarcane due to high prices demanded by farmers’, PSMA Chairman Iskander Khan had stated that farmers were trying to manipulate their position by holding cane supplies.

"Sugar mills all over the country had commenced the sugarcane crushing season for 2020-2021 as per

the directions by the respective provincial governments. However, growers had not started sugarcane harvesting in most regions in the country," the association complained.

"Farmers are demanding higher sugarcane prices compared to the government notified sugarcane price of Rs200 per 40kg," the letter read. "Owing to the current scarce supply of sugarcane, it is feared that the sugar mills facing shortage of cane will be forced to shut down their units within a week."

However, I&P Minister Hammad Azhar had observed that there was no shortage of sugarcane in Punjab. "When the government negotiates with mills on high prices of sugar, they say that it’s a result of demand and supply, but when it comes to the pricing of sugarcane for farmers, they [millers] depart from the same logic," he maintained.

Jordan desires enhanced trade ties with Pakistan: envoy

KARACHI: Bahria Town and K-Electric have signed an agreement for the conversion of 220KV GIS grid station and transmission line into Common Distribution System (CDS). With the signing of this contract, Bahria Town’s existing grid station has become a part of the national grid. PR

ISLAMABAD: Jordanian Ambassador to Pakistan Ibrahim Almadani on Friday vowed to facilitate Pakistani businesses that want to explore investment opportunities in Jordan and form joint ventures with Jordanian companies.

The comments come a day after the Jordanian envoy, along with Dr Maen Khareasat, minister plenipotentiary at the Jordan embassy, visited the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI).

Taking to a foreign news agency, the envoy said that Jordan is a free market economy with free economic zones, which have passed through major reforms during the last two decades. "We would like to increase the volume of trade with Pakistan. Our meeting with the ICCI delegation was part of this and remained very positive. We will facilitate the movement of Pakistani business community to Jordan as much as possible," he added.

Almadani said that Jordan has strong and historic relations with Pakistan based on mutual respect and

shared values. "We intend to enhance bilateral trade ties by intensifying our relationship with the private sector in Pakistan," he maintained.

He said both the countries have great potential to increase trade ties in the manufacturing, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, defence and tourism sectors. The most important way to enhance bilateral trade is through business-to-business cooperation and people-to-people contacts, Almadani opined. "There will be high level visits of trade delegations in the coming months," he said. "We are promoting Jordan in Pakistan and at the same time Pakistan in Jordan because benefits will not be gained unless both sides are not interested."

The envoy informed that the total volume of bilateral trade currently stands at around $50 million, while the trade balance is in favour of Pakistan. He said that Pakistani products that can be exported to Jordan include fabric, garments, agriculture seeds, machinery and spare parts, oil, juices, cotton, fibre optics, paper and leather. STAFF REPORT

ities and facilitate the corporate sector as much as possible so that more companies like CCI can establish a strong presence locally.”

He appreciated the company for their immense contribution to the economy of Pakistan. “Private sector plays a very important role in strengthening the economy of a country, whether it is through generation of employment opportunities or their overall contribution to GDP. Today, CCI’s impact on employment in Pakistan is around 28pc which is monumental.”

CCI’s report highlighted its contribution to the national economy as well as the impact of its domestic social investments. It also underlined massive employment opportunities generated by CCI Pakistan to engage the local workforce through 2,500 direct and over 10,000 indirect employments.

Tractor production up 50pc in seven months ISLAMABAD: The production of farm tractors in the country surged 50.7pc year-onyear to 26,848 units during the first seven months (July-Jan) of the current financial year (2020-21), as against the production of 17,354 units in the corresponding period of last year.

According to data released by the Pakistan automobile Manufacturing Association (PAMA), the production of pickups increased 20.01pc to 10,417 units from 8,680 units last year. As many as 5,389 units of LCVs, vans and jeeps were manufactured during 7MFY21 as compared to 2,480 units in the same months of last year, showing a significant increase of 117.29pc YoY. Meanwhile, the production of passenger cars also increased by 4.87pc, from 72,337 units in 7MFY20 to 75,867 units in the ongoing fiscal. The production of trucks, however, declined 16.6pc to 1,738 units as compared to 2,084 units last year, while the output of buses plunged to 332 units during the period under review from 364 units last year, showing a decrease of 8.79pc. On the other hand, the production of motorcycles and three wheelers in the country increased to 1,112,058 units during the period under review from 949,547 units last year, showing a growth of 17.11pc. APP

$480m deposited in Roshan Digital accounts: SBP chief State Bank of Pakistan Governor Dr Raza Baqir said on Friday that as many as 86,000 Pakistanis living in 97 countries have opened accounts through Roshan Digital. “As a result, nearly $480 million have been parked into these accounts,” he said. “This signifies a noteworthy jump from $425 million that were deposited by overseas Pakistanis as of February 4, 2021.” Roshan Digital Account is a major initiative of the State Bank of Pakistan, in collaboration with commercial banks operating in Pakistan. These accounts provide innovative banking solutions for millions of Non Resident Pakistanis (NRPs) seeking to undertake banking, payment and investment activities in Pakistan. NEWS DESK

MARKET DAILY LAHORE: Federal Minister for Production and Industry Hammad Azhar and United Motor Managing Director Chaudhry Sanaullah inaugurate United Group’s 1000cc car “Alpha”. PR

Stocks lose 247 points as selling pressure persists KARACHI STAFF REPORT

LAHORE: Members of the senior management pose for a group photo during the launch of National Washing Machine. PR

Investors of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed another tug of war between bulls and bears on Friday, with the indices swaying both ways in search of a direction before closing in the red.

Global equity markets also showed a negative pattern, whereas crude oil prices slipped further from the previous close; WTI crude price falling 1.00pc to $57.65 while Brent crude oil price dropping 0.79pc to $60.66 (as at 4:54pm PST).

"Reminiscent of yesterday, the mar-

ket continued to remain under selling pressure, which was particularly evident in E&P, O&GMCs and banking sectors. The cement sector, however, continued with the uptrend, with DGKC, LUCK, PIOC moving up, helping the index post gains in early trade," a report issued by Arif Habib Ltd read.

SUMMARY: The benchmark KSE100 Index endured a volatile session on Friday, registering its intraday high at 46,358.08 (+302.56 points) and low at 45,731.88 (-323.64 points). It settled lower by 247.16 points at 45,808.36.

Among other indices, the KMI-30 Index lost 167.72 points to end at

CMYK

75,470.77, while the KSE All Share Index dropped 151.98 points, closing at 31,552.69.

The overall market volumes contracted from 1.12 billion shares in the previous session to 442.55 million shares (-61pc). Average traded value also declined by 41pc, from $224.1 million to $131.7 million. Worldcall Telecom (WTL -7.95pc), Telecard Ltd (TELE -7.40pc) and TRG Pakistan Ltd (TRG -0.20pc) led the volume chart, exchanging 58.59 million, 37.83 million and 17.99 million shares, respectively.

Sectors that dragged the benchmark index lower included banking (-114.38

points), oil & gas exploration (-109.00 points) and power generation & distribution (-63.53 points). Among the companies, Oil and Gas Development Company Ltd (OGDC -42.00 points), Dawood Hercules Corporation Ltd (40.23 points) and Hub Power Company Ltd (HUBC -37.02 points) dented the index the most.

Shedding 2.04pc from its cumulative market capitalization, the oil & gas exploration sector ended as the session’s worst performer, with OGDC (2.55pc), Pakistan Oilfields Ltd (POL -2.88pc) and Pak Petroleum Ltd (PPL 1.50pc) ending in the negative.

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

10 FOREIGN NEWS

KARACHI

Three woUnded In MyAnMAr As hUndreds oF ThoUsAnds oF proTesTers deFy jUnTA NAYPYITAW

s

AGENCIES

UPPORTERS of ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi clashed with police on Friday as hundreds of thousands joined nationwide pro-democracy demonstrations in defiance of the junta’s call to halt mass gatherings.

The United Nations human rights office said more than 350 people, including officials, activists and monks, have been arrested in Myanmar since the February 1 military coup, including some who face criminal charges on “dubious grounds”.

The UN rights investigator for Myanmar told a special session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva that there were “growing reports, photographic evidence” that security forces have used live ammunition against protesters, in violation of international law.

Special Rapporteur Thomas Andrews urged the UN Security Council to consider imposing sanctions and arms embargoes.

Myint Thu, Myanmar’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the session that Myanmar did not want “to stall the nascent democratic transition in the country,” and would continue international cooperation.

Friday’s mostly peaceful protests were the biggest so far, and came a day after Washington imposed sanctions on generals who led the takeover.

Three people were wounded when police fired rubber bullets to break up a crowd of tens of thousands in the southeastern city of Mawlamyine, a Myanmar Red Cross official told Reuters.

Footage broadcast by Radio Free Asia showed police charging at protesters, grabbing one and smashing him in the head.

Stones were then thrown at police before the shots were fired.

“Three got shot – one woman in the womb, one man on his cheek and one man on his arm,” said Myanmar Red Cross official KyawMyint, who witnessed the clash.

Several people in Mawlamyine were arrested but later released when a strong crowd stood outside the police station and demanded they be freed, according to live footage broadcast by Radio Free Asia.

Doctors have said they do not expect a 19-year-old woman shot during a protest in the capital Naypyitaw on Tuesday to survive.

She was hit in the head with a live round fired by police, witnesses said.

In the biggest city Yangon on Friday, hundreds of doctors in white duty coats and scrubs marched past the golden Shwedagon pagoda, the country’s holiest Buddhist site,

At least 12 killed in fire at Indian firecracker factory: police CHENNAI AGENCIES

At least 12 people were killed in a fire at a firecracker factory in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu on Friday, police said. Raja Narayanan, a regional police official, said an investigation was under way into what caused the blaze at a factory in the village of Achankulam in the Virudhunagar district. “Twelve people have died and 26 have been hospitalized following the accident at the factory this afternoon,” he said. The Virudhunagar district is India’s firecrackers capital, and hundreds of thousands of people in the region are dependent on the pyrotechnics industry for a living. Accidents are common. At least 11 people were killed in two separate incidents in the region just before nationwide Covid-19 lockdowns were enforced in March. Fires in firecracker factories in 2009 and 2012 killed nearly 40 people each.

France, Germany, UK: condemn Iran's production of uranium metal PARIS AGENCIES

The ‘E3’ group of leading European powers - France, Germany and the United Kingdom - on Friday condemned Iran’s decision to produce uranium metal, which they said was in breach of commitments made by Iran to the international community. The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog had said earlier this week that Iran had followed through on its plan to make uranium metal, after Tehran had alarmed Western nations with its intent to produce the material with which the core of nuclear weapons can be made. “We strongly urge Iran to halt these activities without delay and not to take any new non-compliant steps on its nuclear programme. In escalating its non-compliance, Iran is undermining the opportunity for renewed diplomacy to fully realise the objectives of the JCPoA,” said the E3 in a statement.

while in another part of town, football fans wearing team kits marched with humorous placards denouncing the military.

Other demonstrations took place in Naypyitaw, the coastal town of Dawei, and in Myitkyina, the capital of northern Kachin state, where young men played rap music and staged a dance-off.

Social media giant Facebook said it would cut the visibility of content run by Myanmar’s military, saying they had “continued to spread misinformation” after seizing power.

The generals have sought to justify

their takeover by saying there was fraud in an election last November won by Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), a claim rejected by the country’s election committee.

In a letter read out to the rights council in Geneva, some 300 elected parliamentarians from Myanmar called on the United Nations to investigate “gross human rights violations” committed by the military since its coup.

CALL FOR ‘MORE ACTIONS’: Supporters of the NLD welcomed the US sanctions but said tougher action was needed.

“We are hoping for more actions than this as we are suffering every day and night of the military coup here in Myanmar,” Suu Kyi supporter Moe Thal, 29, told Reuters.

Myint Thu, Myanmar’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the special council session that his government wanted “better understanding of the prevailing situation in the country, and constructive engagement and cooperation from the international community.”

“We do not want to stall the nascent democratic transition in the country,” he said. The coup has prompted the biggest demonstrations since a 2007 “Saffron Revolution” that ultimately became a step toward the democratic change that has now been halted.

Friday’s protests marked the seventh consecutive day of protests, including one on Thursday outside the Chinese embassy where NLD supporters accused Beijing of backing the junta, something China has denied. Security forces carried out more arrests overnight Thursday.

PRISONER AMNESTY: The junta remitted the sentences of more than 23,000 prisoners on Friday, saying the move was consistent with “establishing a new democratic state with peace, development and discipline” and would “please the public”.

The Frontier Myanmar news magazine reported the prisoners given amnesty included four supporters of a gunman who shot dead a prominent Suu Kyi ally and constitutional lawyer in 2017.

The protests have revived memories of almost half a century of direct army rule, punctuated by bloody crackdowns, until the military began relinquishing some power in 2011.

The generals have promised to stick to the 2008 constitution and hand over power after elections, but on Friday the junta said it would “work for the emergence of a constitution that is in alignment and harmony with the Democratic Federal Union”. No date has yet been set for elections.

At least 400,000 Yemeni children under 5 could die of starvation this year: UN agencies DUBAI AGENCIES

At least 400,000 Yemeni children under 5 could die of starvation this year without urgent intervention amid soaring rates of severe malnutrition driven by war and the coronavirus pandemic, four UN agencies said on Friday. The warnings come nearly six years after the outbreak of war that rendered 80 per cent of the population reliant on humanitarian aid.

In a report published on Friday, the agencies projected a 22 per cent increase in severe acute malnutrition among children under 5 in Yemen, compared to 2020. Severe acute malnutrition means there is a risk of death from lack of food. Aden, Hodeidah, Taiz

and Sanaa are among the worst-hit areas, the report said. “These numbers are yet another cry for help from Yemen where each malnourished child also means a family struggling to survive,” World Food Program (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley said in a joint statement with the Food and Agriculture Organisation(FAO), UNICEF and the World Health Organisation (WHO). Another 2.3 million under 5s are expected to suffer acute malnutrition in 2021. Acute malnutrition among young children and mothers in Yemen has increased with each year of the conflict, they said, driven by the high rates of disease and rising rates of food insecurity. Around 1.2 million pregnant or breastfeeding women are projected to be acutely malnourished this year. Famine has never

been officially declared in Yemen. The UN says the country is the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.

Along with conflict, economic decline and the pandemic, a shortfall of donations last year is also contributing to the worsening humanitarian crisis.

Nutrition and other services that keep millions from starvation and disease are gradually closing across Yemen amid the acute funding shortage.

The agencies said they had only received $1.9 billion of the $3.4 billion required for the country’s humanitarian response. Programmes have started to close and scale down. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 to restore the Yemeni government ousted from power in the capital Sanaa by the Houthi movement in late 2014.

Australia to introduce landmark Google, Facebook legislation to parliament next week CANBERRA AGENCIES

Australia will next week introduce landmark legislation to force Alphabet’s Google and Facebook to pay publishers and broadcasters for content, a senior government official said on Friday.

The legislation, which Google says will be “unworkable”, will make Australia the first country to require Facebook and Google to pay for news content.

“The bill will now be considered by the parliament from the week commencing 15 February 2021,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said in an emailed statement. The legislation is being closely watched around the world. With bipartisan support, it could come into law this month despite the misgivings of Google, which says the law will force it to withdraw its search function. Software giant Microsoft Corp said was confident its search product Bing could fill the gap in Australia if Google withdrew. Lucinda Longcroft, director of government affairs and public

Policy for Google in Australia and New Zealand, said the company had proposed amendments to a Senate enquiry but they were rejected. Nevertheless, the company still hoped to discuss the law with members of parliament.

“We look forward to engaging with policymakers through the parliamentary process to address our con-

cerns and achieve a code that works for everyone publishers, digital platforms, and Australian businesses and users,” Longcroft said in an emailed statement.

Facebook did not immediately respond to requests for comment when contacted by Reuters.

The US search and social media giants have pressed Australia to soften the legislation, with senior executives from both companies holding talks with Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Frydenberg.

Google last week launched a platform in Australia offering news it has paid for, striking its own content deals with publishers in a drive to show the proposed legislation is unnecessary.

Last month, Reuters said it had signed a deal with Google to be the first global news provider to Google News Showcase. Reuters is owned by news and information provider Thomson Reuters Corp.

Google and a French publishers’ lobby group also agreed in January to a copyright framework for the tech firm to pay news publishers for content online, a first for Europe.

Saturday, 13 February, 2021

SporTS 11

kArAChi

WInDIeS PuT BAnGlADeSh unDer PreSSure In DAy TWO Of SeCOnD TeST DHAKA

S

AGENCIES

HANNON Gabriel claimed two wickets and Alzarri Joseph complemented his brilliant batting with a prized scalp to put the West Indies firmly on top in the second Test against Bangladesh in Dhaka on Friday. The West Indies reduced Bangladesh to 105-4 at stumps on the second day after posting 409 runs in their first innings on the back of half-centuries from Joshua Da Silva (92), Nkrumah Bonner (90) and Joseph (82).

Mushfiqur Rahim was batting on 27 alongside Mohammad Mithun at the close, helping Bangladesh prevent further embarrassment after the early damage.

The hosts still required 104 runs to avoid the follow on.

Gabriel dismissed opener Soumya Sarkar for a duck in the first over of the innings and then removed onedown Najmul Hossain for four in the next over.

Tamim Iqbal and Mominul Haque repaired the damage with 56-run for the third wicket before off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall struck.

Da Silva took the catch as Mominul fell for 21 runs.

Joseph dismissed Tamim in the next over for 44 runs to aggravate Bangladesh's problems.

Da Silva, Joseph and Nkrumah Bonner all came close to centuries earlier as the West Indies dominated

Bangladesh to add 186 runs in two sessions they batted before being all out.

Pakistan to tour South Africa in April for 3 ODIs, 4 T20Is CAPE TOWN AGENCIES

Pakistan will play three one-day internationals and four Twenty20 internationals in South Africa during April, Cricket Africa announced on Friday. The touring team will stay in a bio-secure environment and matches will be confined to two venues — SuperSport Park in the Centurion and the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. For South Africa, the series will bring to an end a home international season heavily affected

by Covid-19. England cut short a white-ball tour in December over fears about the virus and Australia withdrew from a planned three-Test tour which was due to take place in March. The only home international matches played by South Africa during the 2020-21 season so far were three Twenty20 internationals against England and two Test matches against Sri Lanka. South Africa recently completed a two-Test series in Pakistan and are currently involved in a Twenty20 series.

Cricket South Africa director of cricket Graeme Smith thanked the Pakistan Cricket Board for agreeing to play an additional T20 international after it had originally been planned that just three matches in that format would be held.

“Pakistan has proved their status over the years as one of the most dangerous limited-overs teams and I'm sure they will give the Proteas a stern test on the Highveld,” said Smith.

FIXTURES: April 2, first one-day international, Centurion April 4, second one-day international, Johannesburg April 2, third one-day international, Centurion April 10, first Twenty20 international, Johannesburg April 12, second Twenty20 international, Johannesburg April 14, third Twenty20 international, Centurion April 16, fourth Twenty20 international

Tokyo Olympics chief quits, apologises again over sexist remarks TOKYO AGENCIES

Tokyo 2020 Olympics chief Yoshiro Mori resigned on Friday and apologised again for sexist remarks that sparked a global outcry, leaving the troubled Olympics searching for a chief five months from the opening ceremony. The resignation of the 83year-old former prime minister further erodes confidence in organisers’ ability to pull off the postponed Summer Games during a coronavirus pandemic. A selection committee made up of an equal number of men and women, and centred around athletes, would choose a new president for the Tokyo 2020 organising committee, the group’s chief executive Toshiro Muto told a news conference. “We need to pick the next president urgently,” Muto said, without saying when. The new president needed experience in the Olympics or Paralympics and a “really high-level understanding” of gender equality, diversity and inclusion, he said. The issue has focused global attention on gender disparity in the world’s third-largest economy. Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe championed a policy of “Womenomics” but activists and many women say Japan still has a long way to go–especially in the workplace. Mori sparked a furore when he said during an Olympic committee meeting this month that women talk too much.

on converting his overnight half-century, falling for his career-best knock.

BANGLADESH 105 Seamer Abu Jayed and left-arm FOR 4 (RAHIM 27 NOT OUT, spinner Taijul Islam finished with 4-98 and 4-108 respectively helpMITHUN 6 NOT OUT, GABRIEL ing Bangladesh dismiss the West 2-31) TRAIL WEST INDIES 409 Indies on the stroke of the tea break.

ALL OUT (DA SILVA 92, BONNER Off-spinner Mehidy Hasan de90, JOSEPH 82, JAYED 4-75) nied Bonner his maiden Test century, dismissing him for 90 off 209 BY 304 RUNS balls after the right-hander resumed on 74.

Mithun took a good catch at leg slip as Bonner departed after hitting seven boundaries, securing his second fifty in as many innings.

Da Silva brought up his 50 in 86 balls with a reverse sweep off Mehidy before being bowled by Taijul for 92.

Joseph, who batted aggressively followed him soon afterwards, nicking Jayed to wicketkeeper Liton Das. He struck eight fours and five sixes in his 108-ball innings.

Jayed and Taijul soon wrapped up the West Indies innings by picking the wickets of Jomel Warrican (two) and Shannon Gabriel (eight).

The visitors won the first Test in Chittagong by three wickets in a sensational fashion, making 395-7 in the After resuming on 223-5, Da Silva and Joseph added fourth innings in the fifth-highest successful run chase 118 runs for the seventh wicket after Bonner missed out in the 144-year history of Test cricket.

Club World Cup: Bayern Munich beat Tigres to claim 'six pack' of titles AL-RAYYAN AGENCIES

Bayern Munich won the Club World Cup final in Qatar on Thursday as Benjamin Pavard’s secondhalf winner sealed a 1-0 victory over Mexico’s Tigres, the Germans claiming a “six pack” of titles within 12 months.

Pavard’s close-range tap-in was enough to give European champions Bayern their sixth title in quick succession. This is the eighth year in a row that the Champions League winners have gone on to win the Club World Cup, as Bayern follow in the footsteps of last year’s champions Liverpool. Bayern are the second side to win all six available titles within a year after Barcelona managed the feat in 2009.

Hansi Flick’s men had already won the Champions League, Bundesliga, German Cup, UEFA Super Cup and German Super Cup last season.

“It feels good to have the six pack – six titles in a row is something very special for us,” said Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski, who helped set up Pavard’s goal.

“I think this is one of the biggest achievements in football, how we played will be remembered for a long time.”

VICTORY A ‘STATEMENT’: Since Flick took charge of Bayern in November 2019, the European champions have lost just five games, giving him more titles than defeats as boss. “I hope there won’t be any defeats in the near future and there will be more victories than defeats,” said Flick.

“In terms of the title, this was a statement. It’s amazing what the team was able to do. It was really impressive how everyone played.”

Defeat meant heartbreak for Tigres, the first Mexican side to reach the Club World Cup final as CONCACAF champions.

Bayern grabbed the winner when Joshua Kimmich’s cross – intended for Lewandowski – bounced off the hands off Tigres goalkeeper Nahuel Guzman and into the path of Pavard on 59 minutes.

The goal stood after a lengthy VAR review, while Bayern also had a first-half goal by Kimmich ruled out with Lewandowski offside.

Bayern were forced into two changes to their starting line-up after a double blow in the build-up.

Thomas Mueller dropped out after being quarantined having tested positive for Covid-19, while defender Jerome Boateng flew back to Germany for “personal reasons” amid reports his former girlfriend was found dead in Berlin.

“Thomas feels good, he has no symptoms,” said Lewandowski. “It was bad news (that) he tested positive for Covid, but we knew we had to not think about the situation and win for Thomas.”

Serge Gnabry took Mueller’s place, with Lucas Hernandez and Niklas Suele forming a new centreback partnership.

After a strong start, Bayern looked to have gone ahead when Kimmich let fly with a long-range strike, but Lewandowski saw the flag go up.

After Pavard gave Bayern the lead, Bayern midfielder Corentin Tolisso hit the post.

3rd Chairman WAPDA Amateur Golf Tournament begins LAHORE: WAPDA Chairman Lt Gen (r) Muzammil Hussain hit an opening tee shot to start the 3rd Chairman WAPDA Amateur Golf Tournament at Lahore Gymkhana Golf Club on Friday. The WAPDA managing director and other senior officials, and a number of golfers were present at the opening ceremony. Speaking on the occasion, the chairman said that sports is not only an activity but a phenomenon itself, which has the potential to cope with all the issues being faced by the country. “Sports has the potential to overcome economic problems, create harmony and put the nations together. Sports is the essential part of life for the future generations. We feel proud of the WAPDA teams that have been bringing international awards to the country. The WAPDA has been patronising sports in the country for more than five decades and is national champion in 35 disciplines and runner up in 18 sports,” he said.

“The WAPDA as an organisation aims to inculcate spirit in the young generation to compete in national and international sports events. This golf tournament is a part of such efforts. Many prominent golfers from across the country are participating in this tournament.” As per format, the categories of amateurs (54 holes), senior amateurs, ladies, and veterans and invitational (9 holes) are included in the tournament. PR

FA Cup: Chelsea beat Barnsley to reach quarter-finals, Southampton see off Wolves LONDON AGENCIES

Chelsea’s impressive start to Thomas Tuchel’s reign continued with a 1-0 win at Barnsley to move into the FA Cup quarter-finals on Thursday, while Southampton put their miserable Premier League form behind them to reach the last eight by beating Wolves.

Tuchel has won four and drawn one of his five games in charge since replacing the sacked Frank Lampard, but the Blues were lucky to escape after a lacklustre first-half display at Oakwell against the Championship side.

“Not enough courage and it was too deep for a long, long time,” said Tuchel. “We clearly can play better, so yes I expected more but not in terms

that I am frustrated. “If you lack a rhythm and a bit of self-confidence and you have to show on this pitch, against an opponent that takes all the risk and plays the game of his life, that is not easy. We can do better but I don’t want to be too hard on the players.”

The much-maligned Kepa Arrizabalaga started in goal as one of 10 changes to the team that won 2-1 at Sheffield United on Sunday. And the Spaniard produced a brilliant save to prevent Callum Brittain opening the scoring. Tuchel introduced Reece James as one of two substitutions at the break and the right-back created the winning goal as his low cross on 64 minutes left Tammy Abraham with a simple tap-in for his 12th goal of the season.

Barnsley were beaten 6-0 at Stamford Bridge when the sides met in the

League Cup earlier in the season, but Valerien Ismael’s men were far more competitive this time and were unfortunate not to force the game to extra-time when Abraham did brilliantly at the other end with a goalline clearance from Michael Sollbauer’s shot. Beaten finalists last season, Chelsea will fancy their chances of a return to Wembley after drawing Premier League strugglers Sheffield United at home in the quarter-finals.

Southampton’s reward for seeing off Wolves 2-0 is a south coast derby against the only non-Premier League side left in the competition, Bournemouth, in the last eight. Goals from Danny Ings and Stuart Armstrong offered some relief for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men after five consecutive league defeats, including a 9-0 thrashing by Manchester United.

“It has been a tough few weeks.

The hard work has been going in but the results haven’t been coming,” said Ings. “To win tonight was huge for our confidence.” Hasenhuttl was rewarded for naming a stronger side than Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo, who made six changes.

Ings had fortune on his side to open the scoring when he broke through and, although his shot was saved by John Ruddy, it came back to hit the England striker and roll in. Armstrong sealed the tie in stoppage time when he curled in after Ruddy made a mess of Leander Dendoncker’s back pass.

Everton will host Premier League leaders Manchester City, while Leicester entertain Manchester United in the other quarter-final ties to be played on the weekend of March 20 and 21.

saturday, 13 February, 2021

prayer timings

News

FAJR SUNRISE

ZUHR

ASR MAGHRIB ISHA

5:36

12:14

3:07

7:01

5:27

6:52

COUnTry mUST wOrK TOgeTher TO reverSe effeCTS Of SmOg, SAyS Pm ImrAn 'YOU CAN'T QUANTIFY THE LONG TERM EFFECTS OF SMOG ON SOCIETY,' SAYS IMRAN ISLAmAbAD

P

staff report

RIME Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that the country needs to work together to reverse the harmful and threatening effects of smog that plagues cities like Lahore as a consequence of its urbanisation.

“The forest cover of Lahore has been reduced by 70 per cent in the last 12-13 years,” said the premier, due to which Lahore now faced the issue of smog particularly during the month of February. “If this kind of consistent smog remains, it reduces the [average] lifespan by 6-11 years.”

“Global research has shown that you can’t quantify the long term effects of smog on society,” he said, and also expressed the government’s resolve to change this practice and reverse the negative effects of rapid urbanisation.

PM Imran said that he has seen the city transform right before his eyes, lamenting that as the population grew, planning was not done to accommodate

the city’s burgeoning needs.

“No one ever cared before, and now all these effects are before you which we are setting out to reverse,” he said.

The above was said during the launch of the countrywide spring tree plantation drive wherein PM Imran urged the whole nation to join it for their children’s future.

“We need to bring in a culture which encourages tree plantation,” the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Lahore branch said in a tweet.

“The whole nation should take part in it because this is a question of our children’s future. All including school children, university and college students should be made part of it. Allocate them specific areas for protection of plants,” the prime minister said while addressing

the launching ceremony of spring tree plantation at Miyawalki Urban Forest at Jilani Park.

Advisor to Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, Punjab Minister Mian Mahmood Rasheed and Special Assistant to CM Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan attended the event.

The prime minister unveiled a plaque and planted a sapling to launch the plantation as part of government’s efforts to accomplish the target of 10 billion trees during the five-year term.

The premier said that the children’s participation in 10 Billion Tree was essential to protect their future.

On the occasion, PM Imran lamented that in parliamentary democracies, the previous governments had

been more concerned with their election victory and so they had only executed short-term projects to win votes.

He maintained that long term planning was needed for any country’s development and cited the example of China, which had started massive plantation in the country and also introduced green cities to suppress the pollution caused by massive development.

He also quoted the example of Singapore, where the main river there was “nothing but sewerage” before but now lies transformed today the the country’s prime minister set out on a mission to make the city state more environmentally friendly. “That same river has fish swimming in it today,” he said.

“You have chosen 50 sites to implement the Miyawaki concept whereby a jungle that grew in 50 years previously will now grow in 10 or 20 years. So this is an excellent first step,” he said.

The Jilani Park’s Miyawalki Forest is one of the 51 sites being developed in Lahore to revive the city’s greenery and address the issues of pollution, particularly the smog.

Pioneered by a Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, Miyawalki is a unique technique that helps build native forests 10 times faster and 30 times denser.

Under the approach, dozens of native species are planted in the same area, close to each other, which ensures that the plants receive sunlight only from the top, and grow upwards than sideways.

Nasir hands over compensation grants to affectees of Ramzan Building incident

KARACHI staff report

Sindh Minister for Information & Local Government Syed Nasir Hussain Shah distributed compensation cheques among the 24 affected families of Al Ramzan Centre Building incident during a simple ceremony organised at Timber Market on Friday.

Addressing the ceremony, Shah

stated that it was the responsibility of Sindh government to rehabilitate the affected families and they have done their duty by providing financial assistance to the affectees.

In regard to the reimbursements, he said that a committee had been constituted, headed by late Siraj Qasim Teli, comprising members of the local business community. He appreciated the role of Sharjeel Goplani in rehabilitat-

ing the Al Ramzan Center affectees and added that Sharjeel has acted well after picking up the mantle of the late Siraj Qasim Teli.

He added that Sindh government had identified land for the shifting of Timber Market from the city after a report prepared by Senator Taj Haider on the Timber Market issue that was presented to Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah.

He added that consultation meeting would soon be held with the Timber Market Association and various options of identified land would be presented to them. The final decision would be taken with the consent of trader’s community of timber market.

The minister said that the Sindh government has come up with a plan to demolish dilapidated buildings in the old city area which were deemed unsafe, adding that hundreds of lives were in danger. Unwanted incidents could happen at any time, he added.

He said that, as per the plan, affected families of the demolished building would be provided with alternate residences or

monthly rent payouts. He maintained that one-window facilities would be established to aid the affected families.

Hussain Shah stressed that the Sindh government had always resolved the issue of traders community on priority-basis and added that they were standing with the business community.

He further said that the Sindh government was well aware of the difficulties faced by the business community due to Covid-19 and wanted to improve the condition of businesses. He maintained that the Sindh government would take all measures in this regard.

Addressing the ceremony, Timber Traders Association Chairman Sharjeel Goplani thanked the Sindh government for the rehabilitation of the affectees and presented issues of timber market traders.

Former Korangi Association of Trade & Industry (KATI) president Sajid Soomro, Umar Shaikh and others also addressed the ceremony. Deputy Commissioner (DC) (South) Irshahd Ali Sodhar, PPP General Secretary (South) Khalil Hot, LG Advisor Minister Karamullah Waqasi and timber market traders were also present.

COAS, UK envoy discuss Afghan peace process RAWALPINDI agencies

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa and British High Commissioner Dr Christian Turner discussed Afghan peace process on Friday. Dr Turner called on the army chief at General Headquarters (GHQ), said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). Matters of mutual interest, overall regional security situation and Afghan peace process were discussed during the meeting, said the military’s media wing. The COAS thanked the high commissioner for the United Kingdom’s contribution towards fight against Covid-19 in Pakistan. Earlier in December last, Dr Turner called on General Bajwa and praised the Army’s role in the Afghan peace process.

According to ISPR, “The visiting dignitary appreciated Pakistan Army’s role in Afghan peace process and maintaining peace and stability in the region.” Earlier on January 29, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had said that the Afghan peace process must be protected from the elements that are trying to disrupt it. Addressing a webinar through a video link, Qureshi had said that the positive momentum of the inter-Afghan dialogue must be maintained and this historic opportunity must not be missed. He had also underlined that the world community should urge all parties to agree on ways to reduce the violence that could lead to a ceasefire.

Trump's defence team calls impeachment trial 'political vengeance' WASHINGTON agencies

Donald Trump’s lawyers on Friday began laying out their case for why the former president should be acquitted of inciting last month’s deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol, arguing the impeachment trial was an act of “political vengeance”

by Democrats. The defense is expected to take three to four hours to argue that Trump was not responsible for inciting the Jan. 6 riot, which sent lawmakers scrambling for safety and resulted in the deaths of five people, including a police officer. Trump’s lawyers have said his rhetoric was protected by the U.S. Constitution’s free speech guarantee and that prosecutors had not directly connected the actions of the rioters to Trump. “The article of impeachment before the Senate is an unjust and blatantly unconstitutional act of political vengeance,” Trump lawyer Michael van der Veen said in his opening argument, adding that it was a “politically-motivated witch hunt” by Democrats.

Democratic prosecutors wrapped up their case on Thursday, arguing that Trump knew what would happen when he exhorted supporters on Jan. 6 to march on the Capitol and “fight like hell” as Congress gathered to certify Democrat Joe Biden’s victory in the Nov. 3 election, and that the Republican former president should be held accountable. rump has falsely claimed that Biden’s victory in November was the result of widespread fraud. Van der Veen said the entire premise of Trump’s remarks to his supporters was that the democratic process would and should play out according to the letter of the law.

Twitter suspends 280 accounts speaking up for Kashmiris; Pakistan wants answers ISLAmAbAD staff report

Pakistan has sought a response from Twitter administration for suspension of accounts “tweeting about the right to self-determination” of Kashmiris.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) said that 280 valid handles had been suspended, alleging that “under Indian influence, the social media platform is not only depriving Pakistani users of their fundamental rights but also violating its own community guidelines”.

The development comes days after Pakistan observed Kashmir Solidarity Day on February 5, an annual day for the support of the Kashmir cause. The Muslim-majority Himalayan region is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. The nuclear-arch rivals have fought two wars over the disputed region.

But this is not the first time Pakistan has contacted Twitter over the suspension of users’ accounts. A similar response was sought from the tech giant in September

2019, days after New Delhi stripped Kashmir of its semi-autonomous status.

In November 2020, the federal government had notified the Removal and Blocking of Unlawful Online Content (Procedure, Oversight and Safeguards) Rules, 2020,” which have been framed under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 (PECA) to counter the flow of illegal, blasphemous, obscene or defamatory content on social media.

The rules, among other things, mandate a majority of social media platforms to register with the PTA and establish a permanent registered office, with a physical address.

Under the rules, PTA would not restrict or disrupt the flow or dissemination of any online content except in the case of removing and blocking access to an online content which goes against the interest of Islam, integrity, security and defence of Pakistan, public order, public health, public safety, decency and morality. It would also remove or block content that constitutes an offence under different sections of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), 1860 or of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CCP), 1898.

Arsalan Khalid, the prime minister’s focal person on digital media, told Anadolu Agency that “there is lack of clarity and communication on part of Twitter” and “such actions build the perception that Twitter is biased against Pakistan especially on

topics like Kashmir.”

Urging social media companies to open offices in Pakistan, Khalid said: “There should be a permanent representation of these companies in Pakistan for better connectivity with the government and the people

of Pakistan.”

“Rules shouldn’t be seen as an effort to impose anything, rather should be seen as an invite to increase their digital footprint in Pakistan,” he added.

Last month, Pakistan’s federal government told the Islamabad High Court (IHC) it is ready to review the new social media rules and will consult all stakeholders in this regard.

The Asia Internet Coalition, an industry association that promotes the understanding and resolution of internet policy issues in the Asia Pacific region and whose members include Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, and Twitter, welcomed the development.

“We stand ready to participate in consultations, and look forward to hearing from your government regarding the consultation framework, timeline and plan,” it said in a statement on February 4.

Twitter is also accused of muzzling voices in India, particularly those linked to farmers’ protests on agricultural reforms. It said on Wednesday that a portion of the accounts identified by New Delhi was withheld in India only.

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