India,Russia talks on fighter aircraft project soon N E W D ELHI —Ahead of
Interpol to arrest Qaradawi NEW YORK – The international police or the ‘Interpol’ has issued a bulletin seeking the arrest of Yusuf Al Qaradawi, the Islamic cleric who chairs the International Union of Muslim Scholars. The bulletin said Al Qaradawi, who holds the Egyptian and Qatari nationalities, is wanted by the Egyptian authorities to serve a sentence for crimes including incitement and assistance to commit murder. He is also alleged to have had a hand in a massive prison break, arson, vandalism and theft. The red notice urged whoever has any clue about Al Qaradawi to inform the local police station in their area.—Agencies
Govt determined to defeat polio virus ISLAMABAD— The Prime Minister’s Focal Person on polio, Ayesha Raza Farooq says the Government has a firm resolve to defeat poliovirus transmission in the country through optimum utilization of this low transmission season. She said this while chairing a review meeting in Islamabad to analyse the level of preparedness of forthcoming anti-polio national immunization days (NIDs). More than 34 million children less than 5 years of age will be administered polio drops in the NIDs. Ayesha Raza Farooq said Polio Eradication Initiative is a national program, therefore, Federal Government is committed to provide an all-out support to ensure satisfactory conduct of campaigns in secured environment.—Online
Biden on nuclear deal with Iran WASHINGTON —U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Saturday there was a “less than even shot” of a nuclear deal with Iran but that it was still worth pursuing. Biden, speaking at a forum on the Middle East at the Brookings Institution think tank, rejected calls for more sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program because “this is not the time to risk a breakdown when we still have a chance for a breakthrough.” Biden said the sanctions imposed by the United States and allies were working by slowing Iran’s economy, as well as its nuclear program. “It’s frozen the program, it’s given us a shot for a peaceful solution,” he said. “I tell you, I think it’s a less than even shot but it’s a shot, nonetheless.”—Reuters
RAWALPINDI: Guo Shengkun State Councillor and Minister for Public Security of People’s Republic of China called on Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif at his office.
Imran pursuing politics of ‘anarchy’: PR SARWAR AWAN ISLAMABAD—The Federal Information Minister, Pervaiz Rashid on Sunday accused Imran Khan of pursuing the politics of ‘anarchy”. Addressing a press conference here, Pervaiz Rashid blasted the PTI chairman through his back-to-back taunts and allegations. He said, “Khan has lost his memory and this he admitted before the election tribunal yesterday by saying that he no longer remembers the happenings of the Elections 2013.” He added that the skipper himself is the greatest hurdle in the way of formation of a judicial commission to investigate the rigging of elections. Rashid said that the PTI chairman is adamant not to accept the electoral results and if the commission after its findings announced a verdict against him, Imran Khan will refuse to accept that as well. H e said that Imran also forgot that he had taken the oath after being elected as an MNA and he had felicitated the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ayaz Sadiq too. The minister questioned the PTI
chairman if the constituencies he demanded were not opened, then what for is he appearing before the tribunals.“Previously the PTI chief used to ask for opening the constituencies, yet today he is demanding for opening the vote bags”, said Rashid. “Khan is repeatedly changing his stance and whatever vote bag was opened, it will expose the lies of the PTI chairman.” Moreover, he said that the entire world acknowledged the elections in 2013 as free and fair, while there were 50,000 observers and none of them supported Khan’s accusations. The Information Minister said that political protests will be dealt in a political manner and Imran Khan must put an end to his sit-in politics and instead move towards resolving issues through discussion. The minister said, “Faisalabad will remain open tomorrow. Children will go to schools, and patients will go to hospitals.” “If anyone takes the law in his hands, then he will be dealt with according to the law,” he said.
Govt should not delay constitution of JC to resolve political crisis: Siraj PESHAWAR—Ameer Jamaat-eIslami (JI) Pakistan, Sirajul Haq has said that if the rulers were not involved in rigging, there should be no delay in the setting up of the judicial commission. Addressing the prize distribution ceremony of a religious seminary here on Sunday, Sirajul Haq said that the government should not be under the misconception that the crisis was over after the exit of Dr. Tahirul Qadri. He said the crisis was still persisting and the government should immediately announce the date for talks with the PTI. He said that the ship of the
Anti-Semitic incidents on rise in France PARIS—Anti-Semitic threats and incidents have more than doubled so far this year in France, said the interior minister at a rally on Sunday to protest a violent attack on a young Jewish couple. Three men were detained by police and appeared before an investigative judge on Wednesday in relation to the day-time home invasion in the Paris suburb of Creteil in which a 19-yearold woman was raped. Her 21-year-old boyfriend, who was tied up during the robbery, said the men targeted the apartment because they knew the residents were Jewish and believed there would be money and valuables inside. Speaking to a crowd France’s Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the government would defend the Jewish community with “all its force”.—Reuters
constitution and democracy was still in troubled waters, therefore the political Jirga had decided to continue its efforts till the crisis was resolved. He said a Federal Minister issued a statement that the talks would be resumed only when the rallies and public meetings were discontinued. He said that rallies and processions were the beauty of democracy, therefore, both the sides should overcome their ego and go ahead with talks. The JI chief said that corrupt elite, comprising feudal lords and capitalists, had been plundering the country’s wealth with both
hands and nobody cared for the poor and the downtrodden. However, he said, it was high time that the status quo was broken. Sirajul Haq welcomed the appointment of Justice (rtd) Sardar Raza Muhammad Khan as Chief Election Commissioner, and expressed the hope that the new CEC would take effective measures to restore the sanctity of the ballot box. He said the JI on coming to power, would ensure justice to the poor and the oppressed, and open the public exchequer to the poor. — INP
Chinese delegation lauds successes in Zarb-e-Azb RAWALPINDI—State Councillor and Minister for Public Security, Peoples Republic of China, Guo, Shengekun called on Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Raheel Sharif at his office here on Sunday. During the meeting, issues of mutual interest, regional security and measures to enhance bilateral defence and security collaboration were discussed, said an ISPR press release issued here. Guo Shengekun and other members of Chinese delegation were briefed about prevalent situation in the region. The Chinese dignitaries acknowledged Pakistan’s efforts towards fighting terrorism and regional stability and appreciated the successes achieved in the ongoing operation Zarb-e-Azb. —APP
APNS gesture to recognize govt’s services ISLAMABAD —APNS President Hameed Haroon in an unprecedented gesture on Sunday requested the APNS members to give a standing ovation to Finance Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar and Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid, and Special Assistant to Prime Minister Irfan Siddiqui. The gesture was made by the APNS President during a luncheon meeting of All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) here in recognition of the services of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government for upholding and protecting the interest of media in the country. —APP
President Vladimir Putin’s visit here, Indian and Russian officials will be holding talks on the multi-billion dollar Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) joint project, Indian media reported on Sunday. Indian Defence officials said talks would be held before Putin’s visit on December 10 as both India and Russia are keen to go ahead with the FGFA. However, there are issues on which both sides have not arrived at a consensus. “There are issues that exist. Talks were held earlier too but nothing concrete has emerged so far,” the sources said, adding that another round of talks will be held on December 9. The preliminary design agreement on FGFA had been signed in 2010 between HAL and Russian Sukhoi Design Bureau to build the jet for use by both countries. But the final R&D contract, which was to be signed by 2012, is still to be finalised. The contract would pave the way for prototype development and flight testing.
Sources said that it is “unlikely” that the contract would be signed during Putin’s visit. Though India is investing 50 per cent of the cost of the multi-billion dollar programme, its work share in the research and development and other aspects of the programme has come down to only around 13 per cent, something which Indian officials are not happy about. They say this will impact
UAE reduces labour permit fines to Dh1,000 ABU DHABI—Accumulated fines for failure to issue or renew labour permits have been reduced to Dh1,000 per employee, the Ministry of Labour has announced. Errant employers will have a six-month grace period starting January 4, 2015, to clear the fines. Once the grace period ends on June 30, an additional Dh500 will be levied for each month of delay. “The grace period is for failure to issue or renew labour permits till the end of the current month. There are 100,000 such cases from 40,000 companies, which is 13 per cent of the total number of companies registered with the ministry,” Humaid bin Deemas Al Suwaidi, Assistant Undersecretary of Labour Affairs at the ministry, said during a Press conference on Sunday. About 95,000 fines were issued for failure to renew labour permits, while 5,000 fines were issued for failure to apply for new permits and failure to cancel existing ones. The total accumulated fines have reached Dh2.85 billion and the decision to slash the fines to Dh1,000 per employee will reduce the net amount to
Dh100 million, Al Suwaidi revealed. “This affirms the government’s keenness to support employers and motivate them to settle fines, which is a tool used by the ministry to control and regulate the labour market and provide protection to the workers.” Some permits have accumulated fines of over Dh50,000, Al Suwaidi said. “The decision effectively slashes that amount to Dh1,000 making it easy for business owners to clear accumulated fines and to remove labour restrictions resulting from them.” Errant companies will not be allowed to obtain further labour permits till they clear existing fines, he warned. Starting January 4, 2015, a Dh500 fine per month per employee will be slapped on employers for failure to provide employment contracts signed by employees to the ministry within 60 days after the employee enters the country. He explained that the decision represents the keenness of the UAE towards protecting labourers’ rights and establishing a stable employer-employee relationship.—KT
India’s indigenous capabilities to develop such an advanced fighter aircraft. Sources also said that there are issues related to other aspects of the plane too. The FGFA project is based on the Russian Air Force’s Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA platform. The Indian version will be tweaked to add some more advanced features. The total programme is expected to cost India about $25-30 billion.—Online
Qaim assures to resolve mutilated bodies issue KARACHI—Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has said thatPakistan Peoples Party (PPP) led provincial government was in contact with Ministry of Interior on the issue of recoveries of mutilated bodies of youngsters which has assured all sorts of cooperation to resolve the issue. Talking to media persons here on Sunday, Syed Qaim Ali Shah said that the IG Sindh was also inquiring into the matter of recovery of mutilated bodies. The chief minister said the inquiry being conducted into the killing of youngsters would be finalised between 15 days to one month. Responding to a question, Qaim Ali Shah said that the Sindh government was ready to hold local bodies elections. “It was a provincial subject and we were holding the elections on party basis but the Supreme Court authorized the Election Commission for the purpose, therefore, elections could not be held,” he said and added that the ECP has given a statement that they could not conduct local bodies election shortly.—INP
Noise pollution: A modern plague One million people in Lahore at risk of losing hearing ability permanently News analysis Muzaffar Ali
LAHORE—If the Punjab government does not execute the noise abatement measures and environment friendly policies on exigent basis to minimise noise pollution there is ample chance that about one million people in Lahore would lose their hearing ability permanently in the coming years,” otolaryngologists have warned. “At early stages, people have to be very careful as they cannot judge if they are slowly losing their hearing ability. They should occasionally consult concerned doctors if they find it difficult to understand speech under audible radius,” they said, adding that owing to high sound intensity of
above 85 decibel (db) in major residential areas of the city, more than 80 percent of the population was exposed to harmful loud sound levels while seven to eight percent adults aging 20 to 50 have permanently damaged hearing. According to standard guideline, the noise pollution should not exceed 55 decibel in residential areas but the available data reveals that the sound levels are 65 to 90 decibel in all the residential areas of the city. The reason behind this nasty noise pollution is lack of staffers at the Environment Protection Department. The traffic police have also failed to control noise pollution and have lost impetus to execute policies for diminishing traffic noise. The major cause of hearing loss is occupational exposure, although
other sources of noise, particularly recreational noise, may produce significant deficits. Studies suggest that children seem to be more vulnerable than adults to noise induced hearing impairment. “Besides exposure to loud noise, congenital disorders and infections like mumps, measles and meningitis and the use of substandard drugs also contribute to the damaging of the ears,” say Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialists. Talking to Pakistan Observer, Dr Irfan Mughal said the noise pollution was a major source of damaging the delicate cells of the inner ear and noiseinduced hearing loss occurs gradually without any pain. He said a person experienced ringing in the ears known as tinnitus or difficulty in hearing and this tem-
porary threshold shift could become permanent if preventive measures were not taken. He said noise pollution not only damage hearing but it could also be a cause of increase in blood pressure, digestive disturbances and a rise in heart beat and breathing. “In some cases, doctors find complaints of migraine headaches among patients due to noise pollution,” he said, adding that the biggest contributors to noise pollution in the city were pressurehorns used in buses, wagons, cars and even motorcycles. Hospital Deputy Medical Superintendent Dr Masood Akhter Sheikh told Pakistan Observer that children were easy victims of noise pollution. He said that children usually watched and listened music in higher volume and this could also cause hear-
ing damage. “Furthermore, noisy environment can harm children when they find difficulty in concentrating their studies and that can naturally lead to long-term learning problems,” he said, adding that some antibiotics that had ototoxic elements could also cause hearing loss. He said youngsters also use headphones to listen music in high volume and this is also another cause of damaging hearing. He said people could check their ability of hearing while using mobile phones as it was experienced by the lot of people that they could not pick the voice of other person while walking in noise places. He said there were many ways to check level of hearing ability and a few of them are that when one
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