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Continued on Page 7

Pentagon report reflects USagenda................................................Shaking confidence ofoverseas investors................................................Beating and burning:Muslims too are victims

See Page 04

AMANULLAH KHAN

KARACHI—The KSE-100 indexbroke its all-time high Thursdaywhen it touched the unprecedentedlevel of 30821. The bullish hypewas noticeably persistent in themarket during trading Thursday.

However the market senti-ment showed a slide touching thelow of the day at 30593 yet resil-ience helped to move up to closeat 30663 points with a gain of 70points. The index could test the31,000-31,200 area, which is itsupper weekly Bollinger band as ithas been trading above its 20WMA for quite sometime. Cement sector and banking sector were look-

KSE-100 index breaksits all-time high

ing attractive at current levels as the volume alsogained weight at 293 million also touching thehigh of the current spell. Jehangir Siddiqi Com-

pany, Engro Fertilizer and Bank Al-Falah werethe respective top volume leaders of the day.

Today’s issue of PakistanObserver carries one pageSpecial Report on KoreanNational Day and Korea Weekon Page 13.

STAFF REPORTER

RAWALPINDI—Army ChiefGeneral Raheel Sharif, duringhis one-day visit to Kabul,sought closer security ties in-cluding intelligence sharingand provision of training andequipment to Afghan troops ina bid to combat terrorism.

The COAS held separatemeetings with Afghan PresidentAshraf Ghani, CEO AbdullahAbdullah, NSA Hanif Atmar,Defence Minister GeneralBismillah Muhammadi, and Af-

Gen Raheel for closer securityties with Afghanistan

Offers training courses, facilities to Afghan forcesSeeks better border management Ghani meeting ends

on a ‘great deal of good will and positivity’

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SHC extends stayon 2 new nuclear

power plantsIRFAN ALIGI

KARACHI—Sindh High Court(SHC) had extended stay orderagainst construction of 2 NuclearPower Plants in Karachi till Nov12, 2014. The stay was sanc-

Continued on Page 7

ISLAMABAD—Syed Khur-sheed Shah, Leader of the Op-position in the National As-sembly, said Thursday that hehas proposed three names forthe post of Chief ElectionCommissioner.

Talking to media after ameeting with Prime Minister

Khursheed proposes threenames for CEC slot

Nawaz Sharif, he said that heput forth names SaeeduzZaman Siddiqui, RanaBhagwan Das and Ajmal Mian.

He said that he would takeinto confidence different politi-cal parties including PTI andMQM as well on the issue,

Continued on Page 7

Navy SEALRob O’Neillshot OsamaWASHINGTON—The U.S.Navy SEAL who shot andkilled Osama bin Ladenduring the daring 2011 raidon the terror leader’scompound in Abbottobad,Pakistan, has been identifiedas Rob O’Neill.

According to the DailyMail, O’Neill, a 38-year-oldButte, Montana, native, isexpected to reveal himself asthe shooter in a Fox Newsspecial, “The Man WhoKilled Osama bin Laden,”later this month. But

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Pakistan rejectsconditionson dialoguewith IndiaMIAN ARSHAD

ISLAMABAD—Pakistancountered India’s toughstance on dialogue, saying onThursday that it does notaccept conditions oncomposite dialogue with theneighbouring country.

Foreign Office Spokes-person Tasneem Aslamduring her weekly briefinghere said, “Dialogue withIndia is not a favour, but anecessity for peace anddevelopment in South Asia.”

The statement came a dayafter the Indian defenceminister drew a new “redline” by saying that Pakistanwould have to choosebetween talking to the Indiangovernment or KashmiriHurriyat leadership.

Responding to ArunJaitley’s statement, thespokesperson said, “AllParties Hurriyat Conferenceleaders are not separatists, butfreedom fighters who are

Pak-Chinaeconomiccorridor to getAIIB fundingBEIJING—Pakistan-Chinaeconomic corridor project islikely to get funding from theAsian Infrastructure Invest-ment Bank (AIIB), which isto be functional by the end ofnext year. The bank is beingset up on the proposal of theChinese President Xi Jinpingto support the developingcountries for construction oftheir basic infrastructure.

In this connection,twenty-one countriesincluding Pakistan that arewilling to join the AIIB havesigned an MoU last week inBeijing.—INP

KABUL: Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani during his visit toAfghanistan.

ghan Chief of General Staff, Gen-eral Sher Muhammad Karimi.

Enhanced bilateralism be-tween both countries — withparticular emphasis on the Pak-Afghan border coordinationmechanism, intelligence shar-ing and transparency — weredeliberated upon.

Matters to enhance bilat-eral military-to-military rela-tions were also discussed dur-ing the meeting, says ISPR.

General Raheel offered a fullrange of training courses and fa-cilities in Pakistan’s training in-

stitutions to Afghan securityforces, as well as an enhance-ment of an infantry brigade andprovision of equipment.

The army chief said treat-ing terrorism as a common en-emy would be the only way toensure regional security. Fur-ther, he congratulated the newlyelected Afghan president, andreiterated that a peaceful andstable Afghanistan was inPakistan’s best interest.

The army chief expressedhope that the new governmentin Afghanistan would prove to

be a historic opportunity totransform Pak-Afghan rela-tions into a ‘warm and mutu-ally beneficial’ relationship.

SARWAR AWAN

ISLAMABAD—Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hassaid that his forthcoming visit to China would bemonumental as he would be entering into con-tracts with Chinese companies for projects worth45 billion dollars including Pak-China EconomicCorridor which would revolutionize the infra-structure and energy availability.

This was stated by the Prime MinisterMuhammad Nawaz Sharif while presiding overCabinet meeting here on Thursday during sec-ond phase of Cabinet Ministers’ performancereview presentations.

Out of 45 billion dollars, 34 billion dollarswould be spent on energy and power sectorsand 11 billion dollars would be allocated to in-frastructure. The completion of these projectswould bring a big break-through in energy sec-tor and would be a game changer in Pakistan’seconomy, he added.

The Prime Minister further said that theseprojects would be completed in three and halfyears. Prime Minister categorically said that wewould not let corrupt elements allow to createany hurdles in the fast pace of completion. The

$45b projects to be signedduring China visit: PM

Directs completion of development projectsin specified time; Leaves for Beijing today

Prime Minister also directed Planning MinisterIhsan Iqbal to prioritize these reforms in the nextcabinet meeting which would develop the coun-try on modern lines.

Prime Minister also said that exports wouldhave to be increased manifold and we wouldhave to boost it up by 150 billion dollars by2025, targets given by Planning Commission.

The Prime Minister pointed out thatNeelum-Jhelum power project was delayed dueto negligence of officials which has not onlywasted time but also has increased its cost from70 to 300 billion rupees. The Prime Ministersaid that such corrupt practices would not beallowed in future. The Prime Minister also di-rected Ministry of Commerce to take immedi-ate steps with the help of Foreign Office to ex-port rice to Iran and to provide immediate reliefto the farmers and to stabilize rice prices in themarket.

The Prime Minister appreciated perfor-mance of Railways Ministry who brought Pa-kistan Railways back in action from a standstillorganization. The Prime Minister expressed hishope that if these efforts continued Pakistan

Continued on Page 7

OUR CORRESPONDENT

KASUR—Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharifon Thursday visited the family of a Christiancouple burnt alive by a mob in Kot Radha Kishannear Lahore for allegedly desecrating pages ofthe Holy Quran.

The chief minister announced Rs5 millionfrom the provincial government as compensa-tion for the family of the deceased as well as 10acres of land.

Condoling with the family for their loss,Shahbaz also announced that the Punjab govern-ment will take care of the couple’s three childrenand provide for their education and well-being.

“There is no limit to which this dreadful act

can be condemned. The perpetrators will be triedunder anti-terrorism and will be given harsh pun-ishment,” he said.

Shahbaz announces Rs5m forfamily of Christian couple

Imran for poll riggingprobe under SC

STAFF REPORTER

I S L A M A B A D — P a k i s t a nTehreek-e-Insaf chairman ImranKhan on Thursday demandedthat the election rigging beprobed by someone like Justice(retd) Aslam Zahid and said that

he will quit the sit-in protest andgo home if the rigging is notproved. Otherwise, he said, hisparty won’t leave the sit-in with-out Prime Minister’s resignation.

Addressing the sit-in pro-testers, Khan said that those

Humanity humiliatedby lynching: Vatican

ROME—A top Vatican official has describedthe lynching of a Christian couple in Pakistanas a humiliation for all of humanity.

Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, the chair of theRoman Catholic church’s council for interfaith

Continued on Page 7

Govt readyfor talks

with PTI: PRISLAMABAD—Federal Minis-ter for Information, Broadcast-ing and National HeritageSenator Pervaiz Rashid Thurs-day said the government wasready to resume talks with Pa-kistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

Continued on Page 7

IS L A M A B A D—Governor KhyberPakhtunkhwa Sardar Mehtab AhmedKhan Thursday urged all segments ofthe society including media, parents,teachers and rel igiousscholars to play their role toeradicate polio from thecountry.

Talking to media per-sons after the meeting withUNICEF Regional DirectorKarin Hulshof, he said im-munization drive will be car-r ied out in al l KhyberPakhtunkhwa distr icts onthe pattern of Peshawarmodel in the next threemonths.

Mehtab Ahmed saidthat polio was a national is-sue and the government willevolve joint s trategy toovercome polio cases intr ibal areas and KhyberPakhtunkhwa.

He said that under thestrategy every child in thetribal areas as well as thoseresiding in the InternallyDisplaced Person (IDPs)camps wil l be immunizedagainst polio.

“We will leave no stoneunturned to eradicate polioin the shortest possibletime,” he added.

Mehtab Ahmed Khansaid polio virus has not onlyput the future of our children at stakebut is also bringing embarrassment tothe country.

Keeping in view the current situation,the prime minister has directed all theprovinces to pursue a robust strategyto deal with the issue.

To a question, the governor said theareas of North and South Waziristanwere not accessible in the last two years.

80pc polio cases from inaccessible areas in FATA: Ayesha

Mehtab wants society role for polio eradication

ISLAMABAD: Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan, Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa flanked by Karin Hulshof, RegionalDirector UNICEF talking to media after meeting at Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House.

However, s ince the launch of NorthWaziristan operation, the children of mi-grating families have been vaccinatedagainst polio. Similarly, children belong-ing to Khyber Agency and South

Waziristan are also being immunized. He said that polio was not a political

issue and collective efforts are neededto eradicate the disease from the coun-try.

About the security of polio workers,Mehtab Khan regretted killing of thirtyworkers in tr ibal areas and adequatesteps have now been taken for their se-

curity. The governor said that immunization

in North and South Waziristan will becarried out with the help of PakistanArmy officials.

Mehtab Ahmed Khan urged the me-dia to arrange programme regarding Po-lio awareness among the general publicto tackle the issue.

To another question regarding non-availability of budget, he said that thereis no shortage of budget to address thePolio and in the emergency situation al-locations has increased to meet the cri-

sis .On the occasion, Karin Hulshof said

all the development partners of Pakistanincluding UNICEF will stay in Pakistanand work jointly with the government to

eradicate polio. She appreciated the

government’s commitmenttowards polio programmeand expressed the confi-dence that this will makethe difference in eliminat-ing the virus from the coun-try.

Earlier, the governorheld a meeting with theUNICEF delegation anddiscussed the strategy tobe implemented inKhyber Pakhtunkhwa andthe tr ibal areas for theeradication of crippling po-lio virus.

Meanwhile, PrimeMinister’s Focal Person onPolio Eradication AyeshaRaza Farooq has saidthat eighty percent po-l io cases in Pakistan be-long to inaccessible areasin FATA.

Talking to media, shesaid operation Zarb-e-Azbin North Waziristan pro-vides a golden opportunityto reach out to childrenwho yet have to be immu-nized.

She said besidesreaching out every child, the govern-ment also has to ensure security offrontline polio workers.

She said Prime Minister NawazSharif has already constituted Cabi-net Committee on Immunization to en-sure access of polio workers to everychild in security compromised areas.—APP

IUB to launchstudent

satellite withSUPARCO help

OBSERVER REPORT

BAHAWALPUR—Prof Dr.Rao Muhammad AfzalKhan, Vice-Chancellor,IUB/GSCWU, Bahawalpur,has said that the IslamiaUniversity of Bahawalpur ispreparing a student satel-lite in collaboration withnational space agencySUPARCO which will soonbe launched in the Spaceand hence Islamia Univer-sity of Bahawalpur willachieve another rare dis-tinction in the field of spacetechnology.

The Vice Chancellor wasaddressing the inauguralsession of World SpaceWeek which started in theIslamia University ofBahawalpur.

He said that our stu-dents are at par with stu-dents of developed coun-tries as far as the intelligenceand capability is concernedand the advancement in theSpace technology is thevery obvious proof of thisfact.

Deputy Director GeneralSUPARCO Lahore, EngineerShakeel Zahid said thatthrough space technologythe students will reap im-mense benefit as this tech-nology has erupted a revo-lution in the field of science.Now through the satellitepresent in the space Televi-sion Channel Broad Cost,Mobile Technology, ClimaticChanges, Drought and natu-ral disasters will be predicted.

FC seizes3,055 liters

smuggled dieselQUETTA—Frontier CorpsBalochistan has seized 3,055liters of smuggled Iraniandiesel in Hub town ofBalochistan, FC sourcessaid here on Thursday.

FC spokesman, KhanWasey said “paramilitaryforce personnel recovered3,055 liters of Iranian dieselfrom two passenger coacheson RCD Highway which wasbeing smuggled to Karachifrom Turbat and Gwadar dis-tricts”.

The seized diesel hasbeen handed over to Cus-tom authorities.—APP

Govt denies PM seteradication polio deadline

ISLAMABAD—The federal government Thursday deniedthat the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif gave a six-monthdeadline to eradicate polio from the country.

Media Reports said a spokesman of the Prime MinisterHouse that during a high-level meeting of the SteeringCommittee for the Eradication of Polio at the PM Office onWednesday the prime minister did not give any six-monthdeadline as reported in the national media.

Instead, the spokesman said, the prime minister orderedthat during the November-April, which is considered as alean period for polio, concerted efforts should be made tocontrol and eradicate the disease.

Nawaz Sharif had said that Pakistan was committed toeradicate the deadly polio virus and would fulfill all itsinternational obligations in this regard.—Online

Shah Rukn-e-Alam mausoleum’srepairing work starts

MULTAN—Punjab archaeology department has startedrepairing 680-year old mausoleum of Hazrat Shah Rukn-e-Alam after Auqaf department released Rs 1 million fundingto rectify the damage caused by water penetration fromtwo ablution points to its two walls and floor.

Front wall of the mausoleum was subsided, the wallrunning west-ward tilted by two inches towards north whilefloor of the mosque inside the mausoleum witnessed cracksdue to water penetration from two ablution points (WuzuKhana). One ablution facility was built in 2010 inside themausoleum and the other in 2012 outside it but right adja-cent to the first one with front wall of the mausoleum sepa-rating them.

The historical edifice, a pre-Mughal era masterpiece,can safely be dubbed as the symbol of Multan.

Officials said that damaged part of the front wall of themausoleum would be rebuilt after laying a concrete foun-dation and then a raft foundation that will also penetrateinto the tilted wall to support it. The damaged part of thefront wall has been dismantled and workers have startedcleaning the tiles.

Work on wall’s foundation strengthening would beginon Saturday. The floor of the mosque inside mausoleumwould also be restored, however, before doing this, a con-crete raft would be laid that would also penetrate into thewall with the tilt to give it further support. Strong bastionsof this wall kept it stable with tilt despite the fact that itrests on the edge of the slope of city’s highest mound,officials said.—APP

ABBOTTABAD—Customers of NationalBank of Pakistan’s (NBP) Auto Teller Ma-chines (ATM) are facing severe problemdue to malfunction the of ATM network inthe country and particularly in Hazara divi-sion. According to the details from 5th ofNovember the country wide ATM networkof NBP is out of order due to technical is-sues.

After entering the ATM card into themachine Customer has no response and atthe end ATM machines give “host not re-sponding or time out error” ,customer areworried about the situation.

Shared networks of ATM inHazara collapse

Regional Headquarters NBP and otherbranches received hundreds of complaintregarding the ATM machines.

General Manager Credits National BankHazara region Daud Jan while talking tonewsman said that our IT team is workingto settle the issue but still we are unable togive the dead line for the resolve, custom-ers can withdraw amounts through cheque.

Giving the details of the problem DaudJan said that due to the failure of computersoftware, the operations of NBP networksof ATM is facing problem but soon it wouldbe resolved.—APP

Widespread rain inmost parts of country

ISLAMABAD—The met office Thursday forecast widespreadrain in most of parts of the country including federal capi-tal during next 24 hours.

Widespread rain-thunderstorm associated with gustywinds and snowfall over thehills is expected in Rawalpindi,Malakand, Hazara, Peshawar,Kohat, Mardan divisions,Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Scattered rain-thunder-storm is expected in Lahore,Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Sargodh, Multan, Sahiwal andDera Ismail Khan divisions. However, mainly dry weatheris expected in Sindh and Balochistan. Meanwhile, a west-erly wave is affecting western parts of the country andlikely to persist during next 24 to 48 hours.—APP

Strict actionagainst illegal

medical collegeson cards

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan Medi-cal and Dental Council(PMDC) will take strict actionagainst illegal medical anddental colleges, operatingacross the country withoutapproval from the council.According to official sources,doctors having acquired ad-ditional medical or dentalpostgraduate qualifications,will only be authorized topractice as specialists in theirrespective specialty and canrender expert opinion.

The registered medicalor dental practitioners hav-ing only basic medical ordental qualification are notauthorized to carry out spe-cialized procedures and alldoctors have been directedto display their PMDC reg-istration certificate promi-nently at the place of prac-tice, they added. They saidthat PMDC will make sur-prise inspections to checkthe implementation of thisdecision. They said thesemeasures have been takenin order to check quackery.

They said that in futureall the doctors having post-graduate degrees will bementioned in their PMDCregistration certificates alongwith their degree awardingand training institutions tomaintain all the data of thespecialist doctors.

Sources said all post-graduate students will haveto provide a transcript of theirtraining, to endorse profes-sional education of the doc-tors and to ensure they haveprofessional knowledge ofthe specialty, and requisiteskills to carry out proceduresand medical ethics.

They said PMDC willalso issue a license for prac-ticing medicine for which alldoctors will have avail man-datory credit hours of Con-tinuous Medical Education(CME) to stay updated withthe new medical technologiesand innovations. They saidthat all doctors using unreg-istered degrees or additionalqualification of any specialtywith their names which are notregistered with PMDC, will bedealt with strict disciplinaryaction.—APP

ISLAMABAD—The World Health Organization(WHO) has handed over ambulances, medicaland diagnostic equipment to health departmentsof Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and FederallyAdministered Tribal Areas (FATA) to helpstrengthen their health sector.

The government of Japan has provided theassistance under WHO RAHA which is a jointprogramme component within the UN “Deliver-ing as One.”

In this regard a handing over ceremony washere on Thursday at WHO country office andwas attended by senior officials from federal andprovincial governments, health developmentpartners, UN agencies and Embassy of Japan.The project cost US$ 1.8 million.

The medical equipment provided will en-hance the capacity of basic health units, hospi-tals and rural health units and ambulances wouldstrengthen the referral system of the area.

As per details, the inception of RAHA in2009 owes to presence of three million AfghanRefugees in Pakistan in the preceding three de-cades, resulting in social, economic and envi-ronmental consequences.

The aim of the programme is to provide thebasic health facilities, education, shelter andhygiene living conditions to the Afghan refu-gees and the hosting communities.

The larger aim is to help refugees to repatri-ate to Afghanistan and lead a better life in theirown country. On the occasion, Dr MichelThieren, WHO Representative in Pakistan ex-tended his gratitude to government and peopleof Japan for supporting the RAHA interventionsthrough which WHO has been able to achievethe desired outcomes.

WHO being specialized agency in health hasenthusiastically participated and contributed instrengthening the health system delivery.

WHO hands over ambulances, medicalequipment to strengthen KP, FATA health sector

Dr Michel also commended the support pro-vided by the sister UN agencies UNHCR, UNDPand extended deep appreciation to the govern-ments of FATA and KPK.

He hoped for a safe and peaceful return andsettlement of the Afghan refugees into their home-land and that the host communities, who havehosted for more than three decades, live in amore conducive environment having access tohealth and the communities will have increasedaccess and better health service delivery afterprovision of the latest medical equipment.

Dr Shahzad Khan Bangash, Secretary Plan-ning and Development, FATA appreciated theefforts of WHO under their RAHA programme.

He thanked the government of Japan fortheir immense support to the people of Pakistanand appreciated the efforts of the WHO-RAHAmanagement who had smoothly implemented theproject in Khyber Agency.

He expressed his desire for continuation ofsuch programmes that do not only strengthenthe health infrastructure and health delivery sys-tem of FATA health directorate but also affordhuge benefits to the host community and localpopulation.

He urged that concerted efforts are neededsince the local health infrastructure needsstrengthening through such RAHA initiativeswhich would not only ensure access to healthbut also help catering the health needs of Af-ghan refugees.Thanking the government of Ja-pan for their generous support, Tariq HayatKhan, Additional Secretary SAFRON appreci-ated WHO interventions under RAHAprogramme. He ensured his support to WHORAHA programme in continuing their humani-tarian and developmental work.

Naoaki Kamoshida, Counsellor, Embassy ofJapan expressed satisfaction over witnessing the

support extended by people of Japan for makinga real difference on the ground to improvepeople’s lives in KPK and FATA.

Japan provided USD 12.8 million to fund theactivities of six UN agencies to promote socialcohesion and peace building for the areas adja-cent to Peshawar-Torkham Express Way.

The WHO component is a part of thisprogramme. He appreciated that the medical fa-cilities and access to health in FATA and KPKhave been improved through their grant and a70 % increase was achieved at the Out-PatientDepartment (OPD) through provision of essen-tial medicines.

Mr. Kamoshida also appreciated dedicatedefforts and collaboration between WHO, FATASecretariat and the government of KPK whichresulted in such impressive outcomes.

Commending WHO on successful comple-tion of the health component of the project, hehoped donated equipment and ambulances willbe fully utilized to save lives of people and thatthe FATA Secretariat and the government of KPKwill build on positive outcome of the project tofurther improve the health services.

Later, WHO presented the Way Forwardunder Pakistan government and UNHCR Solu-tions Strategy in which WHO is supporting ashare of interventions under WHO RAHAProgramme for FATA and Balochistan refugeeaffected areas.

This is in line with the government’s repa-triation strategy for Afghan refugees emphasiz-ing on the strengthening of local health infra-structure and health service delivery, with promi-nence to host communities who have beenequally affected in hosting the Afghan refugeesfor the past three decades. Donors’ support isrequired for continuation of RAHAprogramme.—APP

RTA, PTAcheck

transport faresPESHAWAR—On the direc-tives of the Special Assis-tant to Chief Minister forTransport, Malik ShahMohammad, the Secretary,Regional Transport Author-ity (RTA) Niamatullah andofficials of the ProvincialTransport Authority (PTA)conducted a joint operationand checked several ve-hicles on motorway.

On this occasion, theychecked each commuter ve-hicle and collected informa-tion regarding transportfares. They impounded 48vehicles for overchargingthe commuters and can-celled the permits of 33 ve-hicles.

Furthermore, the pas-sengers of 15 vehicles werereturned the additionalfare.—APP

Passing-out ofKP rescuers

LAHORE—The Rescuerstrained for Peshawar &Mardan (KPK) will be pass-ing out on Friday from theEmergency Services Acad-emy.

These rescuers havebeen trained at the Emer-gency Services Academyfor professional manage-ment of emergencies, so thatthe basic right to timelyemergency care can also beprovided to the people ofother provinces.

These Rescuers set topass out include EmergencyMedical Technicians, FireRescuers, Rescue & SafetyOfficers have been givenspecialized training of res-cue, firefighting, rescue fromheight and management ofmedical emergencies in firstphase then the specializedtraining courses were ar-ranged for them in the fieldsof Communication, MedicalFirst Responder (MFR),Collapsed Structure Search& Rescue (CSSR), Commu-nication Enhancement andIncident Command System.

This Academy has al-ready trained Rescuers fromKhyber Pakhtoon Khawa,Gilgit Biltistan, Azad Kash-mir and Karachi.

The Punjab govern-ment has been providingtechnical assistance toother provinces for estab-lishment of emergency ser-vices under the visionaryleadership of Chief Minis-ter Punjab and the Gover-nor Punjab Ch.Mohammad Sarwar.—APP

PESHAWAR—The acute shortage of medicalequipments like Magnetic Resonance Image(MRI), CT Scan, Ultrasound and X-Rays inLady Reading Hospital (LRH) that bore mostload of patients of Khyber Pakthunkhwa andFata, has further aggravated the miseries ofpatients forced to acquire treatment fromprivate laboratories and clinics.

Official sources in LRH told APP the loneCT scan machine at Lady Reading Hospital,Peshawar in Emergency Department hasbeen closed from the last nine months andwas laying non-functional, leaving peoplewith no option but to buy treatment fromprivate clinics and laboratories at high prices.

Most of poor patients returned backempty handed due to heavy rush on the loneavailable MRI machine and wait for severalweeks to get their turn on fixed appointmentdate. The lone morning shift in MRI Depart-ment has added to the mental agony of thepatients and their relatives due to acute scar-city of trained radiologists, technical staffand MRI machines.

“The test of MRI is very expensive anda patient has to pay about Rs. 7000 for thistest in private clinics against Rs. 2900 paidat Govt hospitals,” the official said, adding

Scarcity of CT scan, MRIs, X-Raysmachines in LRH irks patients

most of the private hospitals and clinics atDabgari Garden, a hub of medical and labo-ratories in Peshawar City, were charging upto Rs. 10,000 for an MRI test that was be-yond the purchasing power of common man.

Patients’ problems referred to LRH fromother hospitals of KP and Fata, were fur-ther increased after the doctors asked themfor X-Rays test as out of nine X-Rays ma-chines, three are out of order. The single X-Ray machine at Casualty Ward could notbear load of patients during emergency situ-ation like bomb blasts, accidents or naturalcatastrophe.

The two CR machines of X-Rays alsoremained dysfunctional most of time dueto heavy load of patients, the official said,adding about 150 patients are being de-prived of treatment daily due to shortageof CR machines which was question markon the health policy of PTI government.

He said about 1, 50,000 patients of KPand Fata including that of Temporarily Dis-placed People (TDPs) of North Waziristanand Khyber Agencies were coming everyyear for X-Rays test in LRH for which threeadvanced X-Rays and six CR machines areimmediately required.—APP

HEC urged tomake Haripur

varsity functionalPESHAWAR—The delay onpart of the Higher EducationDepartment KhyberPakhtunkhwa to send thesummary of the Haripur Uni-versity about formation ofthe statutory body to theGovernor causing hin-drance in the award of de-grees to the M.Phil and PhDstudents of the varsity.

Haripur campus ofHazara University was con-verted into full fledge Uni-versity during the reign ofANP led coalition govern-ment in the province.

For reasons unknownthe higher education depart-ment KPK was not forward-ing the summary, sent bythe university administra-tion for formulating rulesand regulations to the Gov-ernor, argued some of theaffectees to this scribe.

Unless the summary wassent to the Governor andapproved, no meeting of thesyndicate body the only fo-rum that constitute thestatutory body, could becalled and as such their fu-ture would linger on in limbo.

The affectees further ar-gued that if the provincialhigher education depart-ment has any objection overthe proposals mentioned inthe summary of the univer-sity administration, couldrecommend to the Gover-nor, rules and regulationsalready enforced in otherpublic sector universities ofprovince for applying thesame upon Haripur Univer-sity. The unnecessary anduncalled for wait in conven-ing meeting of the syndicateof University of Haripur putthe pursuit of PhD scholarsfor higher studies at stakedespite the fact that manyof them have submitted theirthesis in February 2013.

The VC is on recordhaving said that until thesenate meeting is not heldno degree can be awardedand no thesis can be pro-cessed.—APP

KSA eulogises PIA forefficient post Hajj operation

KARACHI—Pakistan International Airlines Post-Hajj op-eration is continuing successfully with on time arrivals inthe coutntry.

The airline has till November 5, carried more than 46,900hajjis from Saudi Arabia to Pakistan through 104 Post Hajjflights and its regular scheduled flights, a press release ofPIA said here on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the General Authority of Civil Aviation(GACA), King Abdul Aziz International Airport, has is-sued certificate of appreciation for excellent services andcooperation during Hajj. Certificates have been issued toChief Hajj Coordinator and Director Airport Services PIA,Aijaz Mazhar and Country Manager PIA, Shahbaz Ahmed.

The airline made special arrangements to provide guid-ance and assistance to hajjis at check-in counters, fillingof immigration forms and guidance before security screen-ing at Hajj terminal including information and guidanceprovided at PIA offices in Saudi Arabia.

PIA has so far, carried 3,942 hajjis through 12 Post Hajjflights to Karachi, 6,715 hajjis through 18 Post Hajj flightsto Lahore, 5,224 hajjis through 12 flights to Islamabad,6106 hajjis through 19 flights to Peshawar, 9,113 hajjisthrough 29 flights to Quetta, 3,594 Hajjis through 11 flightsto Multan and 1,498 Hajjis to Sialkot through 03 Post Hajjflights.

The airline is also carrying hajjis on its regular sched-uled flights to the major cities of Pakistan and has carriedmore than 10,700 hajjis.

PIA’s Post Hajj operation which commenced on Octo-ber 8 will conclude on November 7, 2014. Multan: PakistanInternational Airlines (PIA) post Hajj operation is con-tinuing as the airline has so far transported more than46,900 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia to Pakistan through 104flights and its regular scheduled flights.

PIA has so far, transported 3,942 pilgrims through 12Post Hajj flights to Karachi, 6,715 pilgrims through 18 PostHajj flights to Lahore, 5,224 pilgrims through 12 flights toIslamabad, 6106 pilgrims through 19 flights to Peshawar,9,113 pilgrims through 29 flights to Quetta, 3,594 pilgrimsthrough 11 flights to Multan and 1,498 pilgrims to Sialkotthrough three Post Hajj flights.

PIA carried pilgrims on its regular scheduled flights tothe major cities of Pakistan and has carried more than10,700 pilgrims.—APP

KMU studentsget laptops

PESHAWAR—Post and un-der graduate students ofKhyber Medical University(KMU) Thursday receivedlaptops under Prime Minis-ter Laptop schemes.

Provincial Minister forHealth Sheram Khan Taraqaiwhile distributing thelaptops among the studentssaid appreciated the curricu-lar and research activities ofthe university in health sec-tor.

He said the provision oflaptops would not only helpimprove knowledge basedabilities of the students butenable them to further ex-pand their vision in researchfield.

The Minister saidKMU can help provincialgovernment in bringing re-forms in health sector toimprove health facilities inthe province besides cop-ing with emerging chal-lenges and diseases.—APP

NAB files formalreference againstHERA officials

PESHAWAR—National Ac-countability Bureau (NAB)Khyber PakhtunkhwaThursday filed a formal ref-erence of Rs. 3.746 millionagainst Gulzar Ali Ex-Secre-tary to Chairman HigherEducation Regulatory Au-thority (HERA) in the Ac-countability Court,Peshawar.

NAB (KP) authorized aninquiry against Gulzar Ali Ex-Secretary to ChairmanHigher Education Regula-tory Authority (HERA) andothers on 12.03.2014, alleg-edly involved in embezzle-ment of public money bydepositing the same in hispersonal bank account.Later on, the inquiry wasconverted into investiga-tion.

The accused person de-stroyed the office record tohide this embezzlement.

HERA being unable torecover the looted moneyrequested the NAB (KP) toconduct an inquiry againstthe accused and recover themoney so embezzled.

It is worth mentioninghere that Gulzar Ali was ar-rested by NAB (KP) on03.06.2014 and currently ison bail granted by PeshawarHigh Court since23.07.2014.—APP

Solid measures stressed for basichealth facilities at Gomal varsity

DI KHAN—Vice Chancellor Gomal University MajorGen(r) Hamid Shafiq has underlined the need for takingsolid measures to ensure basic health facilities in thecampus.Chairing a meeting in this regard here on Thurs-day, the vice chancellor said steps were being taken toensure availability of medicines at the campus as per rel-evant laws as part of efforts to provide basic health facili-ties to students, teachers and residents of the colony.

He said it had been decided that basic health unit ofthe health department and the university’s healthcare cen-ter would make joint measures for providing healthcarefacilities to the people of adjoining areas.

He said efforts had already been initiated in this regardand meeting were held with Director General and Secre-tary Ministry of Health of the province, adding such planwould soon materialize for the benefit of people of closeproximity areas.

He said the university administration would take mea-sures for provision of equipments to those facilities andthe health department would provide technical support, inthis regard, he added.Meanwhile, according to an officialsource, the Gomal University would distribute laptopsamong its students under the PM laptop scheme at themain campus here on Friday.

Focal person of the scheme in a notification says thatall M.Phil/MS and Ph.D students who have been selectedfor scheme by the Higher Education Commission(HEC)are informed that, laptop distribution ceremony will be heldon Nov 7th and 8th at Dr Abdul Qadeer Aduitorium Miancampus of the university.—APP

HYDERABAD: Activists of Civil Society and Christian community demanding actionagainst culprits who murdered a Christian couple the other day.

LARKANA: Prof Dr Muhammad Wasay and others of Neurology, Department ofMedicine Agha Khan University addressing a Press conference about stroke diseaseawareness.

LAHORE/SHEIKHUPURA—At least sevenpersons were killed and 38 others injuredin two separate road accidents in Lahoreand Sheikhupura on Thursday.

According to police souruces, at-leastfour people died and 28 others sustainedinjuries in head-on collision between twopassengers buses on Motorway nearFaizpur Interchange in Lahore.

The passengers were going to attendthe ’Tableegi Ijtima’ in Raiwind fromPeshawar, when the accident occurred.Rescue teams arrived at the scene andshifted the injured passengers to Lahore’sMayo Hospital and Jinnah Hospital.

One of the drivers of a bus fled awayfrom the spot. Passengers said that the driverlost control due to over speeding and col-lided with other bus. Meanwhile, theMotorway remained closed for three hoursdue to which traffic was badly disrupted.

In another accident in Sheikhupura,three persons were killed and ten otherswounded when a van collided with a trac-

tor trolley near Kot Abdul Malik.Faisalabad: Three persons were killed indifferent incidents in city on Thursday.

According to police, Iqbal of Chak No224-RB was going on his motorbike when itcollided with a speedy car coming from op-posite side. As a result, he died on the spot.Inanother incident, Sabir (45) son of Haleemwas going on donkey cart when it was hit bya rashly driven bus which caused his death.

A youth Arshad of Dhandra was killed withsharp edged weapon by unknownaccused.Police have registered saperate cases.Meanwhile, it is reported from Sheikhpura thatan accused was allegedly killed in MuridkeyCity Police custody on Thursday.

Police was investigating Sajid, an ac-cused involved in a 457/380 case and laterhe was shifted to hospital where he suc-cumbed to the injuries.District Police Of-ficer Afzal Kousar directed Additional Su-perintendent Police Jawad Tariq to look intothe matter and submitt a report in this re-gard within 12 hours.—Agencies

10 killed in roadaccidents in Punjab

Pentagon reportreflects US agenda

ADVISOR to the Prime Minister on National Security and ForeignAffairs Sartaj Aziz has done well by summoning the US Ambassador and lodging a strong protest over uncalled for report by the US

Department of Defence (Pentagon) that contains “unwarranted” and “unsub-stantiated allegations” against Pakistan. The report alleged that terrorist “sanc-tuaries” inside Pakistan were operating against Afghanistan and India.

The Foreign Office has rightly pointed out that the allegations werelevelled without any evidence and the facts were mutilated. The UnitedStates has been levelling such allegations time and again despite the factthat Pakistan is seriously and comprehensively engaged in war againstterror and has rendered more sacrifices than any other country of the world.How a country can support or sponsor terrorism when it itself is the worstvictim of terrorist activities being carried out almost on daily basis? Andit is an open secret that some so-called friendly countries and known en-emies alike are mutilating internal security situation of Pakistan throughdifferent tactics and machinations as part of their regional and globalagenda. What an irony that a coalition partner in the war against terror islevelling such serious allegations against another partner playing a leadrole in this battle! The latest mischief comes at a time when Pakistan is inthe midst of a decisive operation against terrorists and that too in an area,which was previously dubbed by Americans and others as epicentre ofterrorism. Pakistani Armed forces have scored successes and almost 80%of the area has been cleared and terrorists are on the run. There are rea-sons and evidence to believe that majority of terrorists has fled to theAfghan provinces neighbouring Pakistan, enjoying complete hospitalityof both Afghan Government and US-led occupation forces there. TheUnited States is seeing terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan but is unable tospot sanctuaries under its nose from where anti-Pakistan activities areplanned and executed. It is also known and repeated at the highest level inPakistan that Indian hand is involved in terrorist activities especially inBalochistan and that Indian consulates across the Durand Line are doingnothing but planning and sponsoring terrorist acts in Pakistan but theUnited States never spoke against India. We believe that by releasing thislatest report, the United States has deliberately tried to incite both Indiaand Afghanistan against Pakistan, which is nothing but sheer mischiefand that too at a time when tension prevails between Islamabad and NewDelhi because of unilateral and unprovoked firing and shelling on theLoC and the Working Boundary. Pakistani authorities should give deeperthought to the entire scheme of things and designs of those who are strik-ing at the security and solidarity of the country on different pretexts.

Shaking confidenceof overseas investors

A warning from the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry that the confidence level of members, representing foreign in-

vestors, slipped to 16% in September from 31% in March this year de-serves to be taken with all seriousness not only by the Government but alsothe opposition especially those still relying on politics of sit-ins. Despiteclaims by Imran Khan that his dharna has nothing to do with the slide ineconomy, ground realities confirm that the strategy adopted by PTI to grabpower is inflicting unprecedented harm to the country.

There are no two opinions that the business environment was not con-ducive even throughout five year rule of PPP and that is why the countryreceived only negligible foreign investment during that period. But peoplepinned great hopes on PML-N government, which was believed to be busi-ness and industry friendly. In fact, the Government took a good start andinitiated a number of reforms and their positive impact had hardly startedappearing albeit on macro level (and not at the micro level as desired bypeople of Pakistan) that the focus of the government shifted from economyto politics. Apart from politics of sit-ins, the Government has to blame itselftoo for the current state of affairs as it miserably failed to strengthen institu-tions and the system; and as a result, some of the key institutions and organi-zations are almost dysfunctional, as we are witnessing in the case of PakistanSteel Mills these days. Conditions of Pakistan Railways, PIA, WAPDA, SuiNorthern and Sui Southern are no different where inefficiency, leakages andcorruption have become a bleeding wound for the national economy. Securitysituation is also discouraging investors to come to Pakistan in a big way butstill prospects are there as is evident from willingness of China to invest $35billion, provided we put our own house in order and readjust our priorities.

Beating and burning:Muslims too are victimsTHE tragic incident of beating and burning to death of a Christian couple

in Kasur has drawn condemnation from all sections of the society. Itwas brutality of the worst order and Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif hasdone well to ask the Punjab Chief Minister to show no mercy and law shouldtake its course to punish those who are responsible for this heinous act.

Full facts about the whole episode would come to light when the in-quiry is complete but we would point out that it is not only the Christiansthat are made target over desecration of the “Holy Pages” but Muslims tooare victims of the high handedness of the powerful and mighty in Pakistanisociety. Stories about killings on sectarian basis, rapes, kidnapping and kill-ing for honour, breaking the legs and limbs and cutting of hands of poorpeople by the landlords on petty charges like cutting crops and throwingpeople before hungry hounds are common. These incidents are reportedin the media for a few days as and when they happen and then forgottenand those indulging in such inhuman acts go scot free by using their influ-ence. This is because Pakistani society has been brutalized while the lawenforcement agencies are too busy with other affairs of the State includ-ing security for the political activities and to check acts of terrorism.Anyhow, in our view the whole scenario should not be presented by ana-lysts and media as discriminatory treatment of Christians or other minori-ties but manifestation of the brutalisation of the entire society. Therefore,we would say that it is responsibility of the State not to tolerate mob ruleand public lynching with impunity and act strongly to protect its citizenswhether they belong to the minority or majority communities.

Modi’s deadly troika targets Wahga

Obamamust pickup piecesand lead

THE results of the US midterms have been a clear blowto Barack Obama. It is true

that midterm elections are rarelya pleasant experience for anypresident, and Mr Obama had al-ready lost a majority in the Houseof Representatives in 2010. Healso took care to manage expec-tations – reportedly remarkingthat his party was defending itsmost difficult set of seats sincethe Eisenhower era. ButTuesday’s vote comes across asa watershed for a US presidentwho staked so much, since hiselection in 2008, on a messageof hope and change for his coun-try and the wider world. TheDemocrats have been shattered.

They come out even weaker inthe House of Representatives, aswell as losing the seven Senateseats that have handed the Repub-licans a comfortable majority of atleast 52-48. For his last two yearsin office, Mr Obama is now facedwith a fully Republican-dominatedCongress. Things are made worseby the fact that the campaign hasoften resembled a referendum onMr Obama as a person. The domi-nant Republican narrative has beento reignite attacks on his personal-ity and his leadership style, not justhis policies. Mr Obama’s openfrustration at being sidelined byDemocratic candidates as theycampaigned (he only travelled tofive states) has testified to his dam-aged image, a mixture of aloofnessand a lost capacity to inspire. Care-fully thought-out, beautifully writ-ten speeches seem to have lost theironce-magical power.

What should a prospectivelylame-duck president do next? Hewill promise to reach out and fos-ter bipartisanship in an effort topush through issues of common in-terest with the Republicans. Thenew Senate leader insists he willbe responsive, though the recordinduces scepticism. Still, free tradeagreements are one area wherethere is at least potential for realcooperation, and in a field thatEurope will want to follow closely.Immigration reform could alsobring minds together, although thepolarisation of American politicsmakes that more of a hope than acertainty. Overall, Republicanswill have to decide whether theywant to prioritise concrete achieve-ments over permanent intransi-gence and sabotage. The presidentmay well resort to wielding hisveto, or using that other powerfultool of presidential authority, ex-ecutive orders. But these instru-ments only go so far and could in-crease divisiveness. SalvagingObamacare will require more thanarm-wrestling. In this new Ameri-can political landscape, what theUS president will need more of ispeople skills – the art ofschmoozing and alliance-buildingwith people he may hold in lowregard. This is not a talent MrObama has in abundance. On theinternational scene, the midtermdefeat will strengthen the image ofa US foreign policy lacking clar-ity and purpose.

The man who once promisedto reinvent American power in achanging world has seemed over-run by events and crisis, in effectending up with a whack-a-molestrategy. Thus it was in latterlydealing with Russia’s new aggres-siveness, after the initial “reset”.And again in launching anotherwar in the Middle East, after hav-ing made a virtue of withdrawingfrom Iraq. Mr Obama’s hesitationsover Syria, where the Assad re-gime seems on the verge of retak-ing Aleppo, may come to haunt MrObama in the new Senate. Againstthis backdrop, the president will betempted to make a breakthrough onthe Iran nuclear issue part of hislegacy. That requires first a solidagreement with Tehran, then Capi-tol Hill agreeing to sanctions re-lief. On this, as on climate changeand all the other fields where theUS role is indispensable, the worldneeds Mr Obama to keep trying –and not waste his last two years inoffice with a slide into defeatismand lethargy. — The Guardian

MEDIA WATCH

THE Occident, which had oncebarred the entry of NarendraModi for his alleged role in

the Gujarat carnage which com-prised the planned genocide ofover 2000 Muslims, is now wel-coming him with open arms, her-alding him as the star of “RisingIndia”. Modi has a split personal-ity. His venomous upbringing wasin the lap of the Sangh Parivar, hisindoctrination and programmingby the Rashtriya SwayamsevakSangh (RSS) a fanatic and radicalextremist group paramilitarygroup, which turned him into acold blooded killer. His alter egois the leader of corporate India.

Modi’s mentors at RSS and theirmilitant wing the Bajrang Dal havebeen known for inciting riots andexecuting violent attacks targetingMuslims, Christians and the lowercaste Hindus. One of their cadreswas responsible for the assassinationof Mahatma Gandhi only because hehad started a “fast unto death to stopthe killing of Muslims in the postIndependence communal riots aswell pressing India to releasePakistan’s share of the assets.

Thus after quenching his thirstwith the blood of over 2000 Muslimsin Gujarat, Modi turned his attentionto building the commercial potentialof the province where he was ChiefMinister. When he contested 2014elections as head of the BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP), the political wing

Amnesty needed to bring back ‘black money’

IN past decades, much of thevoting public believed - correctly – that they would have

little influence over big politicians,and hence there was no point re-acting to news that the latter werecorrupt. However, since then twochanges have occurred. The first isthat the greed of the political classhas reached the stratosphere. Goneare the days when even a ChiefMinister or a Union Cabinet Min-ister thought that making about Rs200 crores was enough for himselfand his family to face the future,which of course it was, and contin-ues to be. These days, the spousesand children of politicians spendvastly more time abroad than athome, and consequently believethat they need to compete with BillGates or the Walmart Waltons toreally be sure they have enough.

The centrality of the prevalenceof “Black Money” ( i.e. unac-counted wealth) to his party’s vic-tory has meant that Prime MinisterModi needs to show significant re-sults in his drive to bring back thedollars secreted away in tax havens,most of whom are run from the Cityof London, hat presumed oasis ofrectitude. The PM has done a lot toensure that the system gets cleanedup, such as by placing more andmore decisions under the publicgaze through taking them online.He has also reduced the number ofsteps needed for a proposal to getcleared, from an average of 16 tomuch less in many departments.

One must neverlose time in vainlyregretting the pastnor in complainingabout the changeswhich cause usdiscomfort, forchange is the veryessence of life.

Each layer results in a freshdose of graft, as yet anotherpalm has to get greased forthe file to resume its on-ward progression to thetop. By reducing thesestages, Prime MinisterModi is promoting notmerely speed and effi-ciency in decision-making,but less of an opportunity

for graft. He has also moved outfrom sensitive positions those sus-pected of lining their pockets, suchas a high official who has a collec-tion of expensive watches, each ofwhich would account for his annualsalary,and who was known to callthe heads of financial institutionsin order to order them to eitherchoke funds ( to those companieshe disliked) or to lavish loans oncompanies which ought not to havebeen given such funds, as theirrecord of propriety was dismal. Thenew PM has quietly moved out sev-eral such officials into positionswhere they cannot do as muchharm, and has sought to replacethem with officials of integrity .

The point, however, is that allsuch action has a prospective effect,and what voters in India expectfrom Modi is that he redeem hispledge of recovering past loot, ofcourse in addition to ensuring thatfresh looting gets avoided. In thecontext of such high expectations,there was disappointment whenUnion Finance Minister ArunJaitley told the Supreme Court ofIndia that his government did notwant to reveal the names in the listshanded over to the Government ofIndia by the French and Germangovernments. The measured pace ofofficials and lawyers may not besuch as to be optimal in electionbattles, and it is clear that shouldthe Finance Minister not succeed inbringing back substantial amountsof money now placed in offshore

tax havens, the BJP is likely to faceconsiderable flak. In particular, theAam Aadmi Party ( AAP), whichthis columnist had mentioned in anearlier column) has been allegingsince its inception a year ago thatthe Congress and the BJP wereidentical in their zeal to protect in-fluential looters of the public purse.

Interestingly, the BJP govern-ment handed over all data given toit by France and Germany to a Spe-cial Investigation Team (SIT)brought into being by it because ofan order of the Supreme Court whichhad been ignored by the previousgovernment. Should the hunt for“black” money be outsourced to anSIT controlled by the Supreme Courtand not by the Modi government, itwould mean that a crucial aspect ofthe functioning of the governmentwould have been taken away fromthe government, seemingly with itsconsent. The Manmohan Singh gov-ernment had been derided for sur-rendering executive discretion to theSupreme Court, and the way inwhich the Union Finance Ministryhas relied on the SIT seems to indi-cate that it is not concerned aboutthe danger to the cohesion of gover-nance of such outsourcing of corefunctions to an authority over whichit has little power.

Although such a course may beunpalatable politically in the shortrun, it has long been the view of thecolumnist that the only way in whichPrime Minister Modi and Union Fi-nance Minister Arun Jaitley an ful-fil their party’s vow of bringing backtens of billions of dollars into thecountry would be to declare an am-nesty scheme. First, a law wouldneed to be passed that would makeit a serious criminal offence (ratherthan simply a matter of tax evasion)to hold money abroad that has notbeen declared to the Reserve Bankof India. Next, a full amnesty (withno questions asked about the sources

of the Sangh Parivar, he wasable to garner support on twoaccounts, firstly to the corpo-rate India; he promised to takeIndia to unprecedented heightsof prosperity provided theygave up the pretence of secu-

larism. To the hardliner Hindu extrem-ists, the pledge was for regainingHindu supremacy by crushing Mus-lims, and cutting Pakistan down tosize. Both constituencies welcomedModi, voting him into power with amargin that BJP would not be bur-dened by coalition partners.

The script prepared by his ven-omous troika to unleash Hindutvafury on Indian Muslims and Pakistanis being followed in letter and inspirit. But first a few words about hisvenomous troika. Leading the bandis Ajit Doval, India’s national secu-rity adviser since 30 May 2014. Ear-lier he served as Director of the In-telligence Bureau and has been in-volved in crushing so called insurgen-cies in Mizoram, Kashmir, Punjaband Assam. He has served undercoverperforming espionage activities inChina, Pakistan and UK.

Doval retired from service onJanuary 31, 2005 and was promiseda lucrative post by Modi but unfortu-nately BJP did not come into powertill 2014. To while away his time andmachinate more heinous plots, he wasenabled to become the founder Di-rector of the Vivekananda Founda-tion, a think tank set up by the RSS.

The second member of the troikais the brutal spymaster, SanjeevTripathi, Former chief of India’s spyagency RAW (Research and Analy-sis Wing). Tripathi was the co-authorof the deadly script for the Gujaratmassacre, which was organized as a

well thought out conspiracy by thetop Hindutva leaders and the masterplanners of Hindutva, Ajit Doval andSanjeev Tripathy while both wereworking in IB and RAW respectively.

The troika is completed by ChotaRajan, an underworld Don and a coverRAW asset whose real name isRajendra Sadashiv Nikalje and he isthe boss of a major crime syndicatebased in India and is wanted for mur-ders, extortion and smuggling. Thetroika has remained in close contactwith its mentor, preparing to unleashthe demon of Hindutva as soon asModi came to power. It is pertinent toquote here a classified US diplomaticcable (declassified by wikileaks), sentfrom US Embassy in New Delhi toWashington, in 2005, informing thatAjit Doval had very close relationswith terrorists and top criminal rack-ets like the high profile Chota RajanGang and he was arrested by Mumbaipolice in a raid on the roads of NewDelhi as he was accompanying VickyMalhotra, number 2 of the ChotaRajan Gang, in a car. The US embassyhad shown its deep concerns over thefact that the IB Chief of India had suchdeep-rooted connections with MostWanted criminals.

The heinous script to rewriteIndia’s history and regain Hindu su-premacy was initiated many yearsback by indoctrinating the Hinduyouth joining the armed forces andwreaking havoc. The perpetrators ofthe Samjhota Express carnage,Malegaon and other massacres ofMuslims showed the depth of penetra-tion of these disciples of Hindutva.

The plot hatched by Modi’s ven-omous troika is to unleash a reign ofterror on Muslims residing in IndianOccupied Kashmir (IOC). The first

step in this regard was rescinding Ar-ticle 370 of the Indian Constitution,which grants special status to Jammuand Kashmir and merge it with Indiain complete disregard of UN Reso-lutions to the effect of resolving theKashmir issue. Efforts are at hand toget a Hindu elected as the Chief Min-ister of IOC. Although Indian mediareports that former Chief of IndianArmy, General V K Singh, now aMinister in Modi’s government, hadcreated the illegal Technical SupportDivision (TSD), with the help ofSanjeev Tripathi, then RAW chief.TSD was an intelligence unit clan-destinely set up to buy the loyaltiesof politicians especially Kashmiris.

The second step is to assume anaggressive posture on the LOC andworking boundary with Pakistan.Reuter report of 12 October, 2014,reveals that the current spat on LoCand Pak-India Border was result of amore assertive posture by the Indiangovernment. “The message we havebeen given from the Prime Minister’soffice is very clear and precise,” saida senior Indian Home Ministry offi-cial. “The Prime Minister’s office hasinstructed us to ensure that Pakistansuffers deep and heavy losses,” theReuters’ report says.

Operation Zarb-e-Azb hasbroken the backs of the TTP, whoare known Indian assets but thesplinter groups have been re-equipped and tasked to carry outodious tasks like the suicide attackon Wahga Border. Pakistan has itstask cut out to expose Modi’s saf-fron terrorism and his venomoustroika before they achieve theiragenda of destabilizing Pakistan.—The writer is retired PAF GroupCaptain and a TV talk show host.

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Anatole France —French writer

of funds parked abroad) can get de-clared, where the money can bebrought back provided (i) a 30%tax be levied in cases where thenames of the offenders would bekept secret and a 15% tax in caseswhere there would be no objectionto the names being made public or(ii) the funds be invested in IndiaInvestment Bonds which would belocked in for five years at an inter-est rate which would be muchlower than that paid by banks todomestic investors but at a higherlevel than the interest such depos-its would get in tax havens.

Such a move wouldincentivise most individuals intodeclaring their assets. A one-time10% tax on capital assets abroadcan also be levied. After the am-nesty, all such wealth held abroadwould become the property of theGovernment of India, whichwould send letters to each of theseveral hundred banks abroad inwhich such funds get parked, in-forming them that deposits be-longing to citizens of India or toobvious nominees now belong tothe state, and should be returned.

If around $100 billion of suchassets return to India, and a fur-ther $ 150 billion get identifiedand expropriated ( targets whichare possible in view of the accu-racy of computer transactions), itwould bring the country back intothe realm of financial stabilityfrom the morass in which PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh and hissuccessive Finance Ministers leftit. Declaring an amnesty is bittermedicine that needs to be taken,and the longer this gets delayed,the more the pain that the economywill suffer.—The writer is Vice-Chair,Manipal Advanced ResearchGroup, UNESCO Peace Chair &Professor of Geopolitics, ManipalUniversity, Haryana State, India.

M D NalapatEmail: mgnalapat@gmail.com

GeopoliticalGeopoliticalGeopoliticalGeopoliticalGeopoliticalnotes from Indianotes from Indianotes from Indianotes from Indianotes from India

Sultan M HaliEmail: sm_hali@yahoo.com

Voice of the People

RememberingKhwaja Nazimuddin

RAJA GHAZANFAR ALI

The 51st Death Anniversary of thesecond Governor General of Pa-kistan (From 14th September, 1948to 17th October, 1951) and thenthe 2nd Prime Minister of Pakistan(19th October 1951 to 17th April1953), Khwaja Nazimuddin wasobserved in the last week of thelast month. He was born in 1894and died on 22nd October, 1964. Hewas one of the most experiencedpolitician before partition and hebecome Minister of Education in1929 and then become Home Min-ister in 1937. He also remained anactive member of All India Mus-lim League Working Committeefrom 1937 to 1947.

His one exclamatory slogan(which was said in 1948) becamevery popular in the Pakistan i.e.(Woo Maraa Paperh Waley Ko);and his this slogan is till popu-lar and has become a proverb evenpassing of 66 years since 1948.He was most generous, bold andnoble man and enjoyed respect ofthe people as their Prime Ministerand remembered on saying this his-toric slogan. He was against thedictatorial policies of GhulamMuhammad who was 3rd GovernorGeneral of Pakistan; and his viewsgot established and proved to betrue that Ghulam Muhammad wasnot sincere to Pakistan and he willharm this country.— Rawalpindi

Muharram& Muslims

AFAQ AYUB

We are quarrelling with each otheron sectarian basis while our enemyknow only one thing about us that“We are Muslims”. If we do notlearn from our past/history then atleast we should take a look at thestance of our opponents. ImamHussain’s (R.A) martyrdom is farmore than just a lesson. It’s the fin-est example of sacrifice, fortitude,patience, courage and strengthagainst adversary.

We should learn from the in-stance of Karbala. We should uniteat least on the common terms asQuran shows us the way: “Sayyou, O people of the Book, Cometowards such a word which iscommon between us and you, thatis we worship none but Allah andassociate no partner with Him; andnone of us make one another asLord beside Allah; then if they donot accept then say, ‘bear witnessthat we are Muslims.” Yes we areMuslims but Islam definitely gotaway from us.—Via email

Urban planning& land mafiasTAHIR IQBAL JADOON

The Federal Capital is considered tobe one of the pre-eminently plannedcity in the world but with the pas-sage of time and due to populationexplosion and faulty planning is setaside owing to many reasons.

Urban areas attract people fromrural areas and other smaller townsand cities, mainly because of a per-ception that greater economic oppor-tunities exist in large cities or ‘specu-lation of better prospects’. CDA by-laws (Ordinance, 1960) of construc-tion are not enough or are not fullyenforced due to lack of willingnesson part of the authorities. It was dueto failed administration or due toblack sheep amongst the Law en-forcers that need for new airport wasfelt in the year 2007 and IslamabadAirport was planned at 45km awayfrom Federal Capital, owing tomany reasons one of the foremostwas housing societies around theAirport. Thickly populated areasaround Islamabad Airport were cre-ating Security issues as well as Traf-fic jams. New Islamabad Airport’sconstruction is in full swing and it

Tragedy on Wahga BorderALI ASHRAF KHAN

The attack on the flag lowering ceremony at Wahga border is just another proof of the fact that thereis no security as such. How much money is even spent, how many people are ever employed –

suicide attacks cannot be checked because of basic flaw in keeping the Police and security personnelbusy and vigilant 24 hours on VIP Protocol mobiles duties, instead of public security. The special trag-edy of the attack lies in the fact that it happened on the 8th of Muharram when Shias and Muslims atlarge remember the sacrifice of the grandson of the Holy prophet of Islam (SAW). The death of 60people and the injuries of over a hundred are an unwelcome way to remember that sacrifice. Given thevolatile security situation during the first ten days of Muharram the authorities could have consideredto cancel the ceremony during these particular days instead of announcing three days of mourning forthe victims and start afresh bickering over in which jurisdiction the territory belongs – Police or Rang-ers? It was strange, rather inspiring, to see on Monday the 9th Moharram again a sizeable crowd on thePakistani side of Wahga arriving to witness the flag lowering ceremony which was also witnessed byCorps Commander and D.G. Rangers, which reflected the resolve of the people of Pakistan to standsteadfast in all odds. Even the Indian administration was stunned on this, as they had also announceda 3 day close of the flag lowering activity to mourn the loss of life on the Pakistani side. However, thesanctity of Ashura should be observed and upheld despite all odds and conditions and the nation de-serves a good pat for showing sectarian harmony and ensuring peace during this Muharram.—Karachi

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View From Abroad

Agriculture in India hit by air pollution

AIR pollution in India has become so severe that yields ofcrops are being cut by almost

half, scientists have found. Research-ers analysed yields for wheat and ricealongside pollution data, and con-cluded significant decreases in yieldcould be attributed to two air pollut-ants, black carbon and ground levelozone. The finding has implicationsfor global food security, as India is amajor rice exporter.

Black carbon is mostly caused byrural cookstoves, and ozone forms asa result of motor vehicle exhaust, in-dustrial emissions, and chemical sol-vents reacting in the atmosphere inthe presence of sunlight. Both are“short-lived climate pollutants” thatexist locally in the atmosphere forweeks to months, with ozone dam-aging plants’ leaves and black carbonreducing the amount of sunlight theyreceive. The study looked at both the

effects of climate change and the twopollutants on crop yields.

“While temperature’s gone up inthe last three decades, the levels ofsmog and pollution have changedmuch more dramatically,” says Jen-nifer Burney, an environmental sci-entist at University of California, SanDiego, and co-author of the paper,published in the journal PNAS. “Butthis was the first time anyone lookedat historical data to show that thesepollutants are having tremendousimpacts on crops.”

Comparing crop yields in 2010to what they would be expected tobe if temperature, rainfall and pol-lution remained at their 1980 levels,the researchers showed that cropyields for wheat were on average36%lower than they otherwisewould have been, while rice produc-tion decreased by up to 20%. Insome higher population states, wheatyields were as much as 50% lower.

Using modelling to account forthe effects of temperature increaseand precipitation changes in that time,

they were able to show that 90% ofthis loss is attributable to the impactof the two pollutants. The results arespecific to India’s seasonal patterns,the crops, and its high pollution lev-els, but may extend to other placeswith similar problems, such asChina. Chinese scientists warned inFebruary that severe air pollution isslowing photosynthesis in plants,with effects “somewhat similar to anuclear winter”.

Previous studies had used ex-perimental data looking at the im-pacts of ozone on plants to extrapo-late potential losses, but this is thefirst ever study to use actual histori-cal agricultural and emissions datato account for lower crop yields.“Overall I think it’s a great paper,”says Stanford agricultural ecologistDavid Lobell. “I think in both Indiaand China there is growing recogni-tion of the toll that poor air qualityhas on agriculture. This study willcertainly add to that recognition.”

Lobell and Burney both pointout that because black carbon and

Azeen Ghorayshi

Human nature in Islamic perspectiveHOLY Qur’an is the Best,

most Excellent, Complete,and Comprehensive Book,

containing guidelines and message,rules and guiding principles ofTruth, concerning all aspects of hu-man life—religious, social, political,economic, moral, spiritual, etc.Speaking from the Islamic perspec-tive, the personality of an individualis created upon his Nafs (Inner self/part) and in general terms, it is that‘inner part’ of man which refers tohis ‘qualities and character’. Islamraises man to the highest and utmostposition and place of Ashraf al-Makhluqaat. His creation is distin-guished and pure, notable andwholesome, and there is no flaw orfault in his creation.

According to holy Qur’an, manhas been created as a distinguishedBeing, Ahsan al-Khalq (the bestamong the creation), and enjoys thesuperiority among all other cre-ations of Allah. In various versesholy Qur’an proclaims: “Verily, Wecreated man in a best stature(moulds)” (Surah at-Tin, 95:4);“Allah’s Fitrah with which He hascreated mankind” (Surah Ar-Rum,30:30); and “Who made everythingHe has created good and He beganthe creation of man from clay.”(Surah As-Sajdah, 32:7). Man iscreated on the very nature of Fitrat

The butterfly in a caterpillar.!

A writer arrived at a monastery to write a book aboutthe master. “People say you

are a genius. Are you?” he asked.“You might say so,” said the mas-ter none too modestly.“And what makes one a genius?”“The ability to recognize,” said themaster. “Recognize what?” “Thebutterfly in a caterpillar; the eaglein an egg; the saint in a selfish hu-man being!” said the master witha smile. How true, isn’t it? Howoften we fail to look beyond the

façade! How often we are put off bysomething annoying we see in an-other and later realize how foolish wewere that if we had only seen fartherwe would have beheld a heart of gold.

Author Francine Klagsbrunasked a select group of successfullymarried couples the secrets of theirhappy marriages. Often they replied,“We don’t expect perfection.” Eventhough their spouses had qualitiesthey would like to see changed, theyhad learned to accept those qualitiesbecause, as one woman said, “Thepayoff is so great in others areas.”

Former president Jimmy Carterdiscovered a surprising benefit whenhe chose NOT to try to change hisspouse. He once told how NOT criti-

cizing Rosalyn actually enhanced hismarriage (READER’S DIGEST, July1989). This is what he said:

“Perhaps because of my Navytraining, punctuality has been almostan obsession. Rosalyn has alwaysbeen adequately punctual, except bymy standards. A deviation of fiveminutes or less in our departure timewould cause a bitter exchange.

“One morning I realized it wasRosalyn’s birthday and I hadn’tbrought her a present. What could Ido that would be special for her? Ihurriedly wrote a note: ‘Happy birth-day! As proof of my love, I will nevermake an unpleasant comment abouttardiness.’ I signed it and delivered itin an envelope, with a kiss. “More

than four years later, I still keep mypromise. It has turned out to be oneof the nicest birthday presents forRosalyn — and for me.”

His last sentence is telling. Itturned out good for Rosalyn ANDfor him! The surprising benefit ofaccepting others without wishingthat they were different is thatyou, too, will be happier. What awonderful present to give tosomebody — complete and un-conditional acceptance! And itsjust too good a gift to wait for abirthday isn’t it? How soon willyou also see a butterfly in a cater-pillar; an eagle in an egg; a saintin a selfish human being?—Email:bobsbanter@gmail.com

was supposed to be completed in De-cember 2013 but delay in work hasresulted into loss of billions of rupees.Beside, that Land mafias became ac-tive and have started housing societ-ies at massive scale around newIslamabad Airport. One wonders atthe sluggish behaviour of concernedauthorities as to why they are silentand granting NOCs. Though underthe law, no housing society can startcarving out plots and selling thembefore it acquires a no-objection cer-tificate (NOC) from the Capital De-velopment Authority (CDA), the lawhas always been trampled by power-ful societies.

The minimum required land forlaunching a housing scheme is 100acres. However, it has been observedthat most housing societies start de-velopment work without purchasingthe required land claiming that theyhave met all the requirements. In July2014 the Senate Standing Commit-tee on Cabinet was assured that theGovernment will not allow housingsocieties around new airport.

Committee Chairperson SenatorKalsoom Parveen said that it shouldbe the responsibility of the con-cerned departments and district gov-ernments to stop the construction ofhousing societies near the airports.Presently there are more than 12Housing Societies around newIslamabad Airport. However, PrimeMinister Nawaz Sherif was heardin 2014 July as saying that the CivilAviation Authority (CAA) hasplanned to cancel no-objection cer-tificates (NOCs) issued under theNational Airfield Clearance Policyto the housing societies. This newsis likely to raise some eyebrows,especially of those who had in-vested in any of the housing soci-eties in the new neighbourhoodsaround the airport.

One can’t say exactly whichhousing societies will have theirNOCs revoked, but apparently itlooks that Pakistan Employees Co-operative Housing Society(PECHS), Graceland, Airline City,Khudad City, Shalimar Town, TopCity, Mumtaz City, and Green Citymay be the societies the CAA willfocus on. According to CDA thereare about 47 illegal hosing societ-ies in and around Islamabad, whileRDA has declared 27 housing so-cieties as illegal. This speaks of per-formance and efficiency of the con-cerned departments. Business ty-coons are always at the forefront tospend their money for buying theBig-wigs and grab the lands in thesuburbs of the bid towns and cit-ies, including Islamabad. Anothercommon factor of investing inHousing societies is whitening ofblack money.

Land reforms in all aspects arerequired in order to prosper and forthe equal distribution of wealth inPakistan. The big question is as towho will enforce? Surprisingly someof the illegal societies are owned andbacked by our Politicians.—Islamabad

Khosafollows Qadri

MEHRAN LEGHARI

Sharif brothers’ bad luck is thatthose who benefit by them the mostultimately betray them. TahirulQadri was an unknown entity be-fore Mian Sharif patronised him.Later Nawaz Sharif, as chief min-ister of Punjab, allotted Qadri valu-able land in the heart of the city andhelped him establish his grandMinhaj u Quran structure. Qadri’srise from a non-entity to recogni-tion was beholden to the Sharifs.Allama was to damage the Sharifsthe most. Now comes PML(N)Senator Zulfiqar Khosa who ap-peared on various TV channels witha main gripe, among others, againstthe Sharifs that they did not givetickets to his son Dost Khosa. Dostdid not get the ticket because hefaced a criminal charge of murder-ing his wife Sapna.

It seems the Khosas have settledSapna’s murder case by payingblood money to her family. Withmurder charge no more, ZulifiqarKhosa and son have suddenly

popped their heads to malign theirparty leaders. Senior Khosa shouldhave resigned his senator-ship be-fore assailing his party men. ZulfiqarKhosa claimed that Sapna is livingand drives around in a black landcruiser. He will do well to produceher so that his son Dost Khosa comesclean on the murder charge. SeniorKhosa claimed in a TV talk showthat he should not be compared withJaved Hashmi who changed manyparties while he (Khosa) stood byone party. How would he explain hisson Dost becoming a Naib NazimDera Ghazi Khan during PervezElahi government?

Moonis Elahi claimed in the As-sembly that Zulfiqar Khosa met hisfather many a time to appoint his sonas Naib Nazim. A debate betweenKhosa and Saad Rafiq is in place tolet the people know the truth. Thisis the true face of our politicians. Italso provides a big food for thoughtto the Sharifs as to why they couldnot provide political training or ho-mogeneous politics to their col-leagues in the party and why theycould not sustain the support of thepeople who once gave them a blankcheque of trust and a big mandate torule them with grace and justice.—Lahore

Well donePak team

M OSAMA AFNAN HANAFI

Pakistan completed a stirring winover Australia in the second Test tosweep the series 2-0, recording itsfirst Test series win against Austra-lia in 20 years. Misbah-ul-Haq, theCaptain, led the way in Pakistan’shuge 356-run win in Abu Dhabi, andcomplete a memorable two Tests forPakistan, who had won the first Testin Dubai by 221 runs.

Several records were broken andnew benchmarks set over the two-Test series. Younus Khan led the waywith successive centuries in the firstTest, and a double century in the firstinnings of the second Test. Misbahjoined the party in the second Test,setting a record for the quickest Testhalf-century and equalling the recordfor the fastest Test century.

I think this is the remarkable vic-tory in the history of Pakistan TestCricket, resulted from tremendousperformance of Pak cricket team. Atthis happiest moment all Pakistanisshould support team Pakistan andgive them a big hand for their dra-matic and historic win.—Karachi

Polio awarenessWARISHA NAJAM

According to World Health Organi-zation (WHO) Pakistan is the onlycountry who has failed to eradicatethe polio virus and thus the world cannot be declared as Polio-free. Theother developing countries like Indo-nesia and Bangladesh have managedto eradicate polio completely. Out of178 cases of polio worldwide, 166cases were from Pakistan.

It’s high time that polio shouldbe eliminated from Pakistan. Thegovernment should facilitate andprovide security to polio workersand vaccinators because they areunder severe threat. Also, hospitalsshould be built in the rural and ur-ban areas so that people can get theirchildren vaccinated easily. Anothermajor step to be taken is to createawareness amongst the masses aboutpolio. And clear any such doubtsthey have against Polio, as declar-ing it as un-Islamic.—Karachi

ozone are short-lived pollutants,they present a clear opportunity fortackling climate change. Whilelong-lived greenhouse gases likecarbon dioxide and nitrous oxidecan persist in the atmosphere fordecades to centuries, addressingsources of the short-lived pollutantswill have more immediately per-ceptible effects.

Measures such as improvedcookstove technology for rural ar-eas, or cleaner coal consumptionand diesel filters on trucks in ur-ban ones, could go a long way toimproving the impacts on agricul-tural yields. “Our thought is thatthese are more politically tractablepoints of entry for making mean-ingful change in climate,” saysBurney. “There’s a really local ben-efit for taking on some sort ofcostly action.” Burney also pointsout that because of India’s key rolein exporting rice, such efforts couldplay a critical role in helping glo-bal food security.— Courtesy: The Guardian

Public in Islamic Republic

MUCH has been said andwritten about the public ofIslamic Republic of Paki-

stan, especially about their prob-lems, woes and worries. The statemachinery fails to work or is notworking at all to settle the mostpressing issues of the public con-cern. The politicians make highclaims only before general elections,but after coming into power, theyforget about their manifestos, agen-das to work and promises they havemade through print and electronicmedia and in the public gatheringsduring their political campaigns.

On failing to perform as per theexpectation of the people, the rep-resentatives start blaming their pre-decessors and rivals for covering uptheir failures and shortcomings. Theuseful time they get to perform, usu-ally fades away from them in use-less criticism. Thus they get no timeto make any worthy contribution touplift the socio-economic conditionof the people. It is only realized at

the end of the five-year termthat the long standing issueshad left un-addressed.

Reading the manifestosof all political parties, onewonders, how clear, deter-

mined and focused the parties are forresolving the public issues. But ac-tion and performance speak louderthan spoken or written words of adocument. The promises and mani-festos of these political parties standin absolute contrast with the reali-ties of the existing situation.

The people have been facing thesame problems over the years – thechanging government does notchange anything except the faces ofpoliticians. The common people re-main under the same deterioratinglaw and order and socio-economicconditions even after successivegovernments and successful transi-tion of one democratic governmentto another.

The public pay tax for every-thing they buy including goods andservices. But what they get in returnposing a serious question for thosewho are at helm of affairs. What ef-ficient service or prompt responsethe public get in return of their tax?Naturally, over the years, a kind ofgap and trust deficit has been devel-

oped between the state and its citi-zens. The mutual bond that holds thecitizens’ trust on the state institutionshas been eroded. The people are notonly feeling insecure and facing lifethreats on daily basis but have alsobeen deprived from their very basicrights and necessities of life.

The public instead getting facili-ties in return of the tax they pay fromtheir hard earned money, their prob-lems and worries have been multi-plied deliberately in shape of pricehike, overbilling and load sheddingwith each passing day.

The term ‘public’ seems to havelost its value in the Republic - thepublic institutions ranging from pub-lic sector hospitals and healthcarecenters to public sector educationalinstitutions, parks, pavement, roads,public transport, offices and nationalintuitions, speak volume about thepoor governance and mismanage-ment of the stakeholders.

The violation of public rights iscommon in the country: the publicrights are violated firstly in failingto provide unadulterated food andedibles, genuine medicines and ef-ficient public transport. Likewise,the unfair policy and unfriendlyterms and conditions of the mobilecompanies have also added to the

problems of the public. Secondly,the rights are very often violatedin failing to ensure peace and se-curity to public and theirprosperities. Thirdly, the publicrights are also violated in accessto justice, education, job opportu-nities and healthcare facilities. Andat times, it is felt that the concernedauthorities had become dysfunc-tional, and if functional, these ei-ther lacking will or leadership inplanning, management and promptresponse to the current mess up.

The access to the basic ameni-ties and public rights have not onlydenied but consistently ignored -whether it is access to clean drink-ing water, gas, electricity or ser-vices of the national institutions forpublic facilitation. The survival ofthe citizens has been made diffi-cult due to the growing cases ofextremism and terrorism and highgrowth in inflation, unemploymentand poverty. The system wouldonly improve if the criterion forelecting a representative couldsolely become performance-ori-ented instead of getting politics ininheritance or individual’s familyaffiliation with a political party.—The writer is Islamabad-basedfreelance columnist

Allah, and, therefore, is not createdin vain, but with purpose and re-sponsibility. Holy Quran, in vari-ous verses, mentions this; for ex-ample: “And I (Allah) created notthe jinn and mankind except thatthey should worship Me (Alone)”(Surah Adh-Dhariyat, 51:56; seealso Surah Az-Zumar, 39: 64-66).

Man is bestowed with su-preme and special blessings, skills,tools, work, and the goal of hiswork is to submit to Allah and isexpressed in terms of Khilafah(Caliphate/ Representativeness/Stewardship). He is representativeof Allah on earth and His creationis purposeful: “Verily I am goingto place mankind generation aftergenerations on earth” (surah al-Baqarah, 2:30). As Khalifah ofAllah on earth, he is responsible,and is given a high status.

A human being is created toserve and worship Allah; and thisresponsibility makes him “Crownof the creation”. He has to trans-form this world according to Allah’sWill. To realize the Will of Allah ispurpose of his creation and is‘Ibadah (or Ahsan al-Amal). Worldis the means and agent to realizethe purpose. Islam regards worldworth living for man and for hiscomfort. This persuades that life isworth living. He has been advised

to strive for economic prosperity,unity in society, political stability,etc. World is used in a proper wayas it is source of his living and en-joyment and source of benefit and

this is the “dictum of Islam”. Worldis for the benefit and prosperity ofmankind. Holy Qur’an proclaims:“See you not that Allah has sub-jected to you (mankind) all that ison the earth”, “Verily, Allah is, formankind, full of Kindness, MostMerciful.” (Surah Al-Hajj, 22: 65).Allah has made everything, onearth, subservient and submissiveto humans. World becomes sourceof his gratefulness: “And He it is

Who has subjected the sea (toyou)” (surah al-Nahl, 16:14). Al-lah has subjected, for a human be-ing——who is created as Ahsanal-Khalq (the best among the cre-ation), and “in a best stature” (Q.95:4)——“whatsoever is in heav-ens and whatsoever is in the earth,and has completed and perfectedHis Graces” upon mankind, both“apparent” as well as “hidden”,evident and concealed, seen andunseen, known and unknown(Surah Luqman, 31:20).

To sum up, Islam’s focus is hu-man being in general and in total-ity, in common and in entirety.Earth is meant for all humans. Itsendeavor is for whole mankind.Neither isolation nor particularismis endorsed in Islam. Similarly, nei-ther tribalism nor nationalism andrelativism have any place in Islam,as holy Qur’an, in clear and cat-egorical words, says: “O mankind!We have created you from a maleand a female, and made you intonations and tribes, that you mayknow one another.” (Surah Al-Hujurat, 49:13).— The author has a PhD inIslamic Studies from AligarhMuslim University (India), andserved recently as “Iqbal (PostDoc) Fellow” at InternationalIslamic University, Islamabad.

The Spirit Of Islam

Tauseef A ParrayEmail:tauseef.parray21@gmail.com

Taj Nabi KhanEmail:tnkhan672@gmail.com

MICHAEL JANSEN

THE US is fighting a “phoney war”against Daesh in Iraq and Syria becauseit is using minimal force against an en-

emy that has taken over about 30 per cent ofthe territory of Syria and 40 per cent of Iraq.

Daesh (known as the Islamic State) troopsare entrenched in cities and towns they hold,and expanding their area of conquest.

The current “phoney war” is comparableto the first phase of World War II, which wascharacterised by the failure of NaziGermany’s antagonists to engage its groundforces in any meaningful way. This phasefollowed Germany’s invasion of Poland anddeclarations of war by Britain and France,which held back from launching a groundoffensive for eight long months.

If British and French divisions had goneon the offensive in September, they mightwell have defeated the German army andended the war in its first year. German gen-erals on trial after the war testified that theirarmed forces would have lasted only weeksif Britain and France had acted early.

US President Barack Obama has his rea-sons to adopt a “phoney war” approach. Anopponent of George W. Bush’s 2003 Iraq war,Obama pulled US troops out of that countryand is in the process of withdrawing USforces from Afghanistan. It remains to be seenif he will decide to go along with his gener-als by ordering US troops to go to Iraq, if not

‘The vain hope that Daesh will be contained’to Syria, where he would have no mandate totake such action.

The deployment in the Syrian Kurdish en-clave of Kobani of “penny packets” ofpeshmerga militiamen and fighters said to be-long to the Free Syrian Army (FSA) will notturn the tide of battle against Daesh in favour ofSyrian Kurdish defenders who are outmannedand outgunned. widely advertised arrival of the202 armed men, three quarters of them Kurds,is too little, too late.

Their deployment coincided with pub-lication of a UN report that 1,000 foreign fun-damentalist fighters have been entering Syriaevery month, totalling 16,000. Local groundforces are simply not available.

The peshmerga cannot afford to send a sub-stantial number of fighters to Kobani as IraqiKurdish forces are stretched thin along the bor-der between the Iraqi autonomous Kurdish re-gion and the Syrian-Iraqi frontier. Less welltrained and less well armed than thought, thepeshmerga fled when confronted by Daesh inJune in the Sinjar Mountains.

Peshmerga are currently holding their ownat the Iraqi oil city of Kirkuk, which has beenringed by Daesh fighters for weeks. Guerrillasclaiming to belong to FSA but having no linksto it are also stretched thin fighting the Syrianregular army, the Jabhat and Daesh.

These “Free Army” forces are fundamen-talist Daesh rivals which are seeking to estab-lish their own version of an “Islamic caliphate”in Syria and Iraq. To complicate the situation,

last weekend, Al Qaeda affiliate Jabhat Al Nusraunits were joined by Daesh fighters in a cam-paign to capture strategic towns and villages inSyria’s northwestern Idlib province from West-ern-supported guerrillas belonging to the Hazimmovement and the Syria Revolutionaries Front,which were formerly allied to the Jabhat.

Since July, Jabhat has turned against theWestern-backed factions and, on occasion,joined Daesh in local campaigns. Jabhat is esti-mated to have 5,000-6,000 fighters in its ranksand is one of the most motivated and best trainedand equipped in Syria. It attracts the second larg-est number of foreign fighters after Daesh,which is estimated to be able to muster 30,000-50,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq, with the larg-est number being in Iraq, where Daesh emergedas Al Qaeda in Iraq following the 2003 US in-vasion.

Both Daesh and the Jabhat regard the USas their main enemy. Consequently, US inter-vention seems to be forcing the rivals to joinforces in certain battles if not to unify their ranks.The battle for Kobani has been drawn out. Onthe one hand, because Turkey refused to haltthe flow of foreign fighters into Syria and Iraq,stop insurgents from crossing back and forthacross the border to obtain medical care, visitfamilies based in Turkey, and interdict the trans-fer of funds and weaponry to insurgents.

On the other hand, Ankara refused to allowfighters from the Syrian Kurdish DemocraticUnion Party (PYD) or allied Turkish Kurds be-longing to the separatist Kurdish Labour Party

(PKK) to enter Kobani from Turkish territory.Turkey is more worried about the PYD con-nection with the PKK than the threat of Daesh,with which Ankara continues to believe it canreach a deal as both sides are religious funda-mentalist.

This is, of course, a foolish dream be-cause jihadists may make opportunistic arrange-ments with other forces, but do not concede theiragendas or yield their objectives. Jihadists alsoregard Muslims who do not subscribe to theirnarrow beliefs as apostates and crush anyonewho opposes them or expresses dissent.

Iraqi Kurdish and phoney “Free SyrianArmy” troops have been permitted to cross inlimited numbers because Ankara wants tomaintain good relations with MassoudBarzani, president of the Iraqi Kurdish autono-mous region, and to boost the prospects ofFSA, a Turkish creation. The US ditched FSAin its campaign to contain and counter Daesh.

Instead of continuing to pour moneyand donate arms to it, the White House is setto recruit and train 5,000 new fighters. ThePentagon argues that 15,000 are needed assoon as possible and contends that there is notime to start training fresh recruits urgentlyneeded on the ground now. So far, there hasbeen no recruitment, so it could be monthsbefore the 5,000 miracle fighters are deployed.

Meanwhile, the US and its allies will con-tinue to bomb Daesh in the vain hope that itwill be contained.

—Courtesy: Jordan Times

Palestinians prayed as Israeli police officers stood guard during prayers in East Jerusalem.

MA LIRONG

COVERING about 8,000 kilometers and a series of tradeand cultural transmissions, the Silk Road was an interconnected network connecting Asia with the Mediterra-

nean world, as well as North and Northeast Africa and Europe.Recently, China updated this term to the “new Silk Road” and

launched a corresponding strategy, which includes the establish-ment of the Silk Road economic belt as well as the Maritime SilkRoad, which is known as the “one belt, one road” strategy.

This strategy has received an active response from manycountries along the road and once again made the Silk Road aglobal focus. Studies on the topic have surged and a new disci-pline called “Silk Roadology” has emerged.

Ma Lirong, professor and deputy director of the Middle EastStudies Institute under Shanghai International Studies Univer-sity, recently published a book, Silk Roadology Studies: An In-terpretation Based on China’s Humanistic Diplomacy, in whichshe discusses this newly emerged discipline from the perspec-tive of the humanities.

Ma highlights the importance of humanistic diplomacy, say-ing that the essence of international exchange is the communica-tion and contests between different humanistic values becausehumanistic diplomacy is the most direct and common means ofcommunication. Hence, the Silk Road, in Ma’s eyes, is not onlya public good, but also a cultural route.

Currently, problems, including unclear strategic intentions,a distorted national image and a lack of capability in providingpublic goods, confine China in carrying out its new Silk Roadstrategy.

Unlike Western powers such as the US or the UK, who con-trol global media discourse and have an advantage due to thewide use of English, China is just an emerging country withoutmedia discourse control or a heritage of colonization on the glo-bal stage.

Against such backdrop, Ma points out that humanistic diplo-macy can help China in creating a healthy soft environment forthe carrying out of its new Silk Road strategy.

Guided by humanistic diplomacy, the relationships betweenChina and countries along the road will be more like partner-ships instead of alliances, which seems much less threateningand more easily understood.

Actually, since China put forward the new Silk Road strat-egy, external misunderstandings and suspicions have becomeincreasingly rampant. Some Western analysts claimed that thenew Silk Road strategy represents China’s “ambitious” goal ofeconomic expansion. In such a case, Ma’s points unconvention-ally shift the focus of the strategy from economics to culturalcommunication.

Nonetheless, the building of the “one belt, one road” is agrand strategy and its implementation process calls for detailedplans and research. Therefore, it remains to be seen whether hu-manistic diplomacy can really play a substantive role.

—Courtesy: Global Times

New Silk Roadpotential of Beijing’shumanistic diplomacy

JERUSALEM—Israel’s prime ministerhas emphasized there will be nochange in the status of a contentiousJerusalem holy site amid spiking ten-sions in the area.

The statement by BenjaminNetanyahu came a day after a Hamasmilitant slammed a minivan into acrowd waiting for a train in Jerusalem,killing one person and wounding 13before being shot dead by police, anda Palestinian motorist drove into agroup of soldiers in the West Bank,wounding three.

The second motorist turned himselfinto Israeli security forces on Thursday,the army said. The attacks came afterPalestinians clashed with police at theholy compound — known as theTemple Mount to Jews and the NobleSanctuary to Muslims — over a pushby Israeli activists to widen access toJews visiting the site.

The clashes, which erupted as Pal-estinians threw stones and firecrackersin response to a demonstration by Is-raeli activists, prompted Jordan —which has custodial rights to the site aspart of its 1994 peace agreement with

No change at Jerusalem holy site: IsraelIsrael — to recall its ambassador in pro-test at the actions of Israeli securityforces. And the wife of the first attackersaid he had been angered by the con-frontation at the site earlier in the day.

“There will be no change in the sta-tus quo at the Temple Mount,” govern-ment spokesman Mark Regev quotedNetanyahu as telling security officialslate Wednesday. “Anyone saying oth-erwise is expressing a personal opinionand not the views of the government.”

recent weeks hard-line Israeli poli-ticians have stepped up demands for theremoval of restrictions preventing Jewsfrom praying at the site.

Such demands have been raised al-most from the day the government im-posed restrictions on Jewish prayerthere in the immediate wake of the 1967Middle East war. That conflict saw Is-rael seize east Jerusalem — which in-cludes the holy site — as well as theWest Bank and Gaza, territories wherethe Palestinians want to establish an in-dependent state.

The durability of the restrictionsreflect a longstanding Israeli desirenot to inflame Muslim sensitivities

and a formal rabbinical ban on pray-ing in an area that tradition holds wasthe site of Judaism’s ancient holytemples. But in recent weeks tensionshave increased substantially, buoyedby claims and counter-claims issuedby both Israelis and Palestinians overthe explosive issue.

Last month, a Palestinianrammed his vehicle into a crowded trainstop in east Jerusalem, killing a 3-month-old Israeli-American girl and a22-year-old Ecuadorean woman. Dayslater, police shot and killed the sus-pected gunman behind a separate drive-by attack on Yehuda Glick, a rabbi andactivist who has pushed for greater Jew-ish access to the sacred hilltop com-pound. Glick remains hospitalized.

Reacting Thursday to commentsfrom Israeli security officials that anychange in the status of the site couldratchet tensions well past the breakingpoint, Moshe Feiglin, a lawmaker fromNetanyahu’s Likud Party, said that thestruggle there was directly related toIsraeli efforts to achieve overall secu-rity throughout the country.

“Any pullback from the Temple

Mount will not end just at its gates,” hesaid. “This society has to decidewhether it is willing to pay the price tomaintain its control, not only at the site,but in Israel as a whole.” Israel’s For-eign Minister Avigdor Lieberman saidthat Israeli politicians pushing forgreater Jewish access to the site werebehaving irresponsibly, without refer-ring to anyone by name.

“I think these are people seekingcheap headlines in this very sensitiveatmosphere, trying to cynically exploita very complex situation,” he told Is-rael Radio. Lieberman himself is a secu-lar ultra-nationalist who in the past hasmade incendiary remarks about Pales-tinians and Israeli Arabs, but he hasmoderated his tone in recent months.

Overnight Wednesday, workcrews erected barricades along theroute of Jerusalem’s light rail systemto prevent the kind of vehicular at-tack that occurred on Wednesday.Once seen as a symbol of the Jerusa-lem unity that Israeli officials havelong sought to project, it is now be-coming am increasing focus of thecity’s political tensions.—AP

Unclear,Yemenex-presidentto leave or

face sanctionsSANA’A—The United Stateson Thursday denied deliveringany threats to former YemeniPresident Ali Abdullah Salehover what Washington suspectsis his role in destabilizing theWestern-allied country.

An official source at Saleh’sGeneral People’s Congress(GPC) party said on Wednesdaythat the US ambassador toYemen had delivered a messagethrough a mediator for Saleh toleave the country by 5 o’clock(1400 GMT) on Friday or faceinternational sanctions.

“The GPC statements aboutthreats to Saleh from the US areuntrue,” the State Departmentsaid in a statement. “There havebeen no meetings between theambassador and GPC officialsat which any such statementshave been made.”

The GPC official said Wash-ington had delivered an ultima-tum for him to leave or face sanc-tions that the UN Security Coun-cil is expected to impose on himin line with requests by PresidentAbd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi andthe US State Department.

The United States last weekrequested the UN SecurityCouncil impose an asset freezeand global travel ban on Salehand two leaders of the Shi’iteMuslim Houthi group whichcontrols Sanaa, on the groundsthat they threatened the peaceand stability of Yemen and ob-structed the political process.

US sanctions requeststated that since he steppeddown in 2012 following wide-spread protests, Saleh “report-edly become one of the primarysupporters of the Houthi rebel-lion” and that he was behindattempts to cause chaosthroughout Yemen.

Saleh has denied seeking todestabilize Yemen. A UN sanc-tions committee had been sched-uled to discuss the US requeston Tuesday, Nov. 4. SeveralWestern diplomats say the curbsare expected to come into forceon Friday.

“The source urged mem-bers of the General People’sCongress and its allies and themasses of the Yemeni people tobe alert and to prepare to con-front all possibilities thatthreaten the security and stabil-ity and unity of Yemen,” itsaid.—Reuters

WASHINGTON (US) prosecu-tors have launched a money-laundering investigation into amember of Russian PresidentVladimir Putin’s inner circle,the Wall Street Journal reportedThursday, citing people famil-iar with the matter.

According to the report, theU.S. Attorney’s Office for theEastern District of New York isprobing whether billionaire Rus-sian gas trader and Putin associ-ate Gennady Timchenko trans-ferred funds related to allegedlycorrupt deals in Russia throughthe US financial system.

The prosecutors are investi-gating transactions in whichGunvor Group, a commoditiesfirm founded by Timchenko,bought oil from Russia’s OAO

US money-launderingprobe involves Putin’s

inner circle: WSJRosneft and sold it to third par-ties, the newspaper reported. Thereport said that the transactionspredate US sanctions againstRussia introduced in March onTimchenko and others over theUkraine crisis. Timchenko is alsoco-owner of Russia’s No. 2 gasproducer Novatek.

Transfers of funds related tothe transactions could constituteillegal money laundering if thefunds were found to have origi-nated from illicit activity suchas, for example, irregular salesof state assets like oil, the news-paper said. The newspaper citedone source as saying the probeis also examining whether anyof Putin’s personal wealth isconnected to allegedly illicitfunds.— Reuters

EU to imposemore sanctionsagainst MoscowWARSAW—The EuropeanUnion’s new foreign policy chiefcondemned the recent rebel-heldelections in eastern Ukraine as“illegal and illegitimate” and saidthat the bloc could pursue furthersanctions against Russia as itseeks to preserve Ukraine’s ter-ritorial sovereignty.

Federica Mogherini said inWarsaw that “the issue of sanc-tions is always on the table.” Shestressed that any decisionswould reflect the will of all 28EU members.

She said the “so-called”elections in eastern Ukraine Sun-day, which Moscow has praised,“were a very negative sign,” andthat “the situation on the groundis extremely negative.

She said the EU’s strategytoward Russia and Ukraine wouldbe discussed Nov. 17 at a meet-ing of EU foreign ministers.—AP

MYIN HLUT (Myanmar)—The small woodenboats leave the shores of western Myanmarnearly every day, overloaded with desperateRohingya Muslims who are part of one the larg-est boat exoduses in Asia since the Vietnam War.

Helping them on their way: Myanmar’sown security forces, who are profiting off themass departure of one of the world’s most per-secuted minorities by extracting paymentsfrom those fleeing. A report to be releasedFriday by the Bangkok-based advocacy groupFortify Rights, and reporting by The Associ-ated Press, indicate the practice is far morewidespread and organized than previouslythought, with Myanmar naval boats going sofar as to escort asylum seekers out sea, wherelarger ships operated by transnational crimi-nal networks wait to pick them up.

“Myanmar authorities are not only mak-ing life so intolerable for Rohingya that theyhave to flee, but they’re also complicit in theprocess — they’re taking payments and prof-iting off their exodus,” said Matthew Smith,director of Fortify Rights.

Myanmar aidingRohingya trafficking

Rakhine state spokesman Win Myaing dis-missed the allegations as “rumors,” saying hehas not “heard of anything happening like that.”He said any naval boats approaching such ves-sels were likely aiming to help fishermen inneed. More than 100,000 Rohingya have fledMyanmar’s western shores by boat since Bud-dhist-Muslim violence erupted in Rakhine statetwo years ago, according to estimates providedby experts tracking their movements.

Chris Lewa, director of the advocacy groupArakan Project, said increasing desperation isbehind a huge surge since Oct. 15, with an aver-age of 900 people per day piling into cargo shipsparked offshore. In Rakhine state, an aggres-sive campaign by authorities over the last fewmonths to register family members and officiallycategorize them as “Bengalis” — implying theyare illegal migrants from neighboringBangladesh — has aggravated their situation.

The deepening crisis comes ahead of avisit by President Barack Obama to Myanmarnext week for a regional summit, his secondin two years. —AP

DAOUD KUTTAB

FOR a few days last week Gaza Strip turned into a largeprison. Ever since October 24, the Rafah crossing pointhas been closed by the Egyptians following the huge attack

on the army in north Sinai. Israel has also closed all its crossingswith Gaza on November 2, allegedly following the launch fromGaza on that same day of a single rocket that landed in a de-serted area.

The Israelis reopened their crossing points Tuesday, butRafah continues to be closed. Egypt, which was stunned bya horrific series of attacks that caused the death of over 30soldiers, has been searching for answers, and the army ar-gues that the problem lies in Gaza. Not only has the Rafahcrossing been totally and completely closed since then, butEgyptian engineers have also been busy destroying houseson the Egyptian side of Rafah in order to create a 500-metrebuffer zone that they hope will forever end the problem ofthe tunnels to Gaza.

The closures come at a time the reconstruction process ismoving at a very slow pace. While the donor conference in Cairoproduced better than expected pledges, the crucial unity betweenFateh and Hamas has yet to produce a major breakthrough. Hamasis still holding off turning over control of its side of the Rafahcrossing to the joint presidential guards and EU monitors. Thisfailure has allowed Egypt to continue its narrative that Hamas ispart of the problem.

As a result, the Egyptian army and political leader-ship have had little problem in justifying this hermetic clo-sure of the only crossing point enabling Gazans to leaveand return. The biggest problem today is the weather. Thethousands of Gazans who lost their homes as a result of the51 days of Israeli bombings last August will not be able todeal with the cold and rainy season in the tents or other adhoc housing units that have become home for the repeat refu-gees.

Turkey’s promise to send 3,000 prefabricated houses to Gazaseems to have fizzled out, most likely because of the cold rela-tionship between Ankara and Tel Aviv. Palestinians in Gaza havebeen extremely frustrated by the Egyptian and Israeli closures.A look at social media entries of many Gazans shows commentsof extremely irritated, highly discouraged and near suicidal indi-viduals.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has not been ableto deal with the Gazans’ frustration, as he has focused mostof his effort and time on the diplomatic mission of getting theUN (especially the Security Council) to recognise Palestine.Abbas, who has been urged for months to visit Gaza, hadpromised to do so once the conciliation government meets inthe strip. That happened, but Abbas has shown little interestin making the one-and-a-half-hour car journey to what is of-ficially called the southern districts of Palestine.

Attention to Gaza was also diverted by the problemsand violence in Jerusalem and the unprecedented Israeli de-cision to close Al Aqsa Mosque on October 29. A Gazawoman who five months ago was running a newly estab-lished women’s radio station (nisaagaza.com) had her dreamsshattered when the Israelis demolished, on the last days ofthe war, the 14-storey Pasha Building housing her Internetradio studio.

No one has come forward to help her rebuild her dream me-dia outlet despite setting up a crowd funding call on indigogo. Inaddition to her hope to re-establish her destroyed studio is anunusual dream, simply the chance to go for a visit to the nearbyWest Bank. Her home in north Gaza is literally a 20-minute drivefrom the south West Bank city of Hebron. The 27-year-old Gazanhas never been to the West Bank.

The 1.8 million Palestinians who make Gaza their homeare calling for help from anyone that is willing to hear them.What they need is not only a roof to live under, but, moreimportantly, a horizon that can give them hope for the future.Gazans, especially the young, want to know what they canlook forward to and what they can plan for. Most Gazans seetheir future in emigration to a third country, whether legallyor illegally.

Neither Hamas nor the PLO has done much to give people inGaza have a goal. The total sum of all these frustrations can besummarised in one phrase repeatedly echoed by the Palestinianstrapped in the strip: Don’t forget Gaza.

—Courtesy: JT

‘Don’t forget Gaza’

O’Neill’s father confirmed hisson, who retired from the Navyin 2012, was the SEAL who fa-tally shot the al Qaeda leader— and supports his decision togo public.

“I support him in every-thing he is doing,” Tom O’Neilltold the U.K. newspaper.“People are asking if we areworried that ISIS will comeand get us because Rob is go-ing public. ... I say I’ll paint abig target on my front door andsay come and get us.”

Twenty-three members ofthe SEAL Team 6 and an inter-preter participated in the historicOperation Neptune Spear justafter midnight on May 2, 2011,storming the compound andkilling bin Laden and four oth-ers, including one of binLaden’s sons, bin Laden’s twobodyguards and the wife of oneof the bodyguards. According tothe Daily Mail report, O’Neillshot Bin Laden three times inthe forehead.—Agencies

Navy SEALFrom Page 1

carrying out their movementfrom an occupied territory.”

Jaitley, who holds theportfolio of defence and fi-nance, also said, while ad-dressing the India EconomicSummit in New Delhi, that“unless Pakistan makes a con-scious choice, a dialogue withPakistan will not be possible.”

In August, India called offthe foreign secretary-leveltalks with Pakistan, a day af-ter Pakistan’s envoy penciledin meetings with Kashmir’sAll Parties Hurriyat Confer-ence leaders in New Delhi.

Since then, both sides havealso engaged in border skir-mishes, killing dozens along thecontentious Line of Control be-tween the two nuclear arch rivals.

PakistanFrom Page 1

Govt ready for talks with PTI: PRFrom Page 1

KhursheedFrom Page 1

hoping that consensus wouldbe developed over one particu-lar name. Shah said that he hasmet Jamat-e-Islami leadershipover the issue and would dis-cus the matter with other par-ties like ANP, PPP Sherpao andothers.

PPP leader said that hewould also contact PTI leader-ship for consultation added thathe still considered PTI as a Par-liamentary party as their resig-nations have not been acceptedso far.—Online

tioned with regard to a constitu-tional petition filed by OscarAward winner Pakistani docu-mentary film producer SharmeenChinoy and Pervez HoodBhoywhile the petition was heard bya 2-member bench headed byChief Justice, Justice MaqboolBaqar Thursday.

Anwar Mansoor Khan onbehalf of Pakistan Atomic En-ergy Commission had filed thejoinder in the higher court inwhich it was stated that nopublic hearing was conductedprior to commencing theprojects because the matterwas extra-sensitive and wasstarted on instructions of fed-eral government. Federal gov-ernment had in this regardsought more time from thehiger court for filing an appro-priate reply on the matter.

The petitioners in theirconstitutional petition claimedthat the 2 Nuclear Power Plantswere being started with a newtechnology- ACT-1000, whichdid not carry any prior tests toascertain its efficacy.

SHC extendsFrom Page 1

Later, during his meetingswith the Afghan defence min-ister and chief of general staff,the delegation from Pakistanwas briefed on the latest secu-rity situation in Afghanistan byAfghan military officials.

During the meeting, thetransfer of security responsibil-ity to the Afghan National Se-curity Forces in the wake of theUS, ISAF drawdown were alsodeliberated upon. DG ISPRGeneral Asim Bajwa tweetedthat the meeting between thearmy chief and President Ghaniended on a “great deal of goodwill and positivity.”

He reiterated that peaceful

Gen RaheelFrom Page 1

and stable Afghanistan was inPakistan’s best interest and theonly way to ensure regionalsecurity was to treat terrorismas our common enemy.

An official said, “We areready to work with the new Af-ghan government. The twoneighbours can bury the pastand enter into a new partnershipagreement.” Relations betweenthe two sides have been tenseover the past few months andmarked by suspicion due to thegrowing distrust. GeneralRaheel Sharif offered full rangeof training courses and facilitiesin Pakistan’s training institu-tions to Afghan security forces.

KASUR: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif consoling the grieved family of burnedChristian couple on Thursday at Kot Radha Kishan.

On Wednesday, police ar-rested 50 villagers who werebelieved to be part of themob that beat the couple todeath.

The arrests included theowner of the brick kiln where25-year-old Shama, who waspregnant at the time of the in-cident , and her husbandShahzad Masih worked asbonded labourers.

Kasur District Police hasregistered a case against 660villagers, including 60 whohave been nominated in theFIR, under sections 302, 436,201, 148, 149, 353 and 186of the PPC and 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

ShahbazFrom Page 1

Railways would become an effective transpor-tation facility in the region.

Meanwhile, spokesman to the Prime Min-ister Dr Musadik Malik, briefing newsmen onfederal cabinet meeting said that governmenthas initiated the process of self-accountabilityaimed at providing maximum relief to the peopleparticularly the poor segment of society.

He said in future, the yardstick to judgeperformance of any ministry would be the stepsit had taken to facilitate the general public.

He said the ministries of Planning and Devel-opment and Railways briefed the cabinet abouttheir functioning, performance and future projects.

Musadik Malik said in response to the Plan-ning Ministry’s briefing, the Prime Minister saidinstead of making political decisions, country’sprogress and prosperity must be given prefer-ence in decision making. He said the govern-ment has already introduced advisory councilsand appointed qualified persons in the PlanningCommission as institutional strengthening andplanning were going on simultaneously.

The spokesman said the Prime Minister alsoordered the completion of half-done projects

$45b projects to be signedFrom Page 1

who rose to power through rigging cannot holdtransparent investigation. He said the investi-gation should be overseen by the Supreme Courtand not by the government. He demanded thatthe alleged rigging be probed by ‘impartialpeople’ who are trusted by all stakeholders.

Khan said that those who are taking turnsfor the power have led the country to ‘destruc-tion’. PTI chief said regardless of Indian PrimeMinister Narendra Modi’s reputation, Modi issincere with its people and that he is bringing

Imran for poll rigging probeFrom Page 1

the looted wealth back to the country. He saidPakistani leaders should also learn from Modi.

Khan said that children are dying inTharparkar, claiming that Chief Minister SindhQaim Ali Shah doesn’t have a clue. He claimedthat Sindh has been looted in the name of Paki-stan People’s Party founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

PTI chief said that Sindh is not the ‘inher-ited property’ of former president Asif AliZardari and that he will hold a public gatheringin Larkana on Nov 21.

dialogue, said he had been pro-foundly shocked by accounts ofthe horrific death of ShehzadMasih and Shama Bibi.

“How can we remain im-passive before such crimes, jus-tified in the name of religion?,”Tauran said on Vatican Radio,urging Muslim leaders in Pa-kistan to vigorously condemnthe killings.

“It is all of humanity thatis humiliated,” he said, adding:“The first victims are in factMuslims because these mis-deeds give an image of Islamthat is terrible.”—AFP

HumanityFrom Page 1

PTI counselFrom Back Page

maintainable, it would bequestioned as to how an ap-plicant could approach thecourt for the premier’s dis-qualification.

It said that a meeting be-tween the army chief and theprime minister is a routine af-fair, and on the basis of theirmeetings, whether the casescould be made.

The court also rejectedAttorney General for Pakistanto refer this matter before thelarger bench, and said nolarger bench was constitutedregarding the interpretation ofArticle 63. The hearing of thecase will be resumed on Nov10 at the Quetta registry.

All three petitionersclaim the premier had firstasked army chief GeneralRaheel Sharif to act as a ‘me-diator’ between the govern-ment and protesting parties –PTI and Pakistan AwamiTehreek – and to serve as a‘guarantor’ to any agreementwith the parties.

which could not benefit the people despitespending huge public money.

The Prime Minister directed the planningministry to shift the tilt from debt servicing todevelopment projects and exports to increasethe country’s foreign exchange reserves.

The spokesman said the Prime Ministerlauded the railways ministry’s decision to re-duce rail fares even before the lowering of pe-troleum prices to provide relief to the people.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifis leaving for Beijing on an official visit today.Nawaz Sharif is scheduled to attend the AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation Informal Lead-ers’ Meeting.

However, on the sidelines, he will meet theChinese leadership and signs various memoran-dums of understanding.

According to official diplomatic sources theagreements for the projects are named “Early har-vest projects” which are to be completed in a shortspan of two to three years. Moreover, 23 agree-ments would be signed during the Chinesepresident’s visit to Islamabad once the politicalsituation improves, the officials said.

DOHA, QATAR—Ms Ann Cot-ton, OBE, Founder and Presi-dent of Camfed, the Campaignfor Female Education, has beennamed the 2014 WISE Prize forEducation Laureate. Ms Cottonspearheaded an internationallyacclaimed model for girls’ edu-cation, which has placed edu-cation at the heart of develop-ment in Africa. The WISEPrize for Education was estab-lished in 2011 to raise the sta-tus of education by giving itsimilar prestige to other areasfor which international prizesexist, such as literature, peace,and economics. The Laureatereceives an award of $500,000(US) and a specially mintedgold medal.

The WISE Prize for Edu-

cation was presented by HerHighness Sheikha Moza bintNasser, Chairperson of QatarFoundation, at the OpeningPlenary Session of the sixthWorld Innovation Summit forEducation in Doha, Qatar, be-fore more than 1,500 expertsfrom diverse fields and over100 countries.

For more than two decades,Ann Cotton has focused on im-proving opportunities for chil-dren at the margins of education.Cotton’s commitment to girls’education in sub-Saharan Africabegan in 1991, when she real-ized that poverty, rather thancultural barriers, was the mainreason for girls’ low school en-rolment in rural areas. Camfed’sinnovative education programs

2014 WISE prize for educationawarded to Ms Ann Cotton

have already benefitted over 3million children in Zimbabwe,Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania, andMalawi and are implementedacross 5,085 partner schools in115 rural districts.

Ms Ann Cotton said: “I amhonoured to join education in-novators like Ms Vicky Colbert,Dr. Madhav Chavan, and SirFazle Hasan Abed as the fourthWISE Prize for Education Lau-reate. I accept this prize on be-half of the million girls Camfedis committed to supportingthrough secondary education inthe next five years - a milliongirls whose poverty has so farrobbed them of confidence andagency, and who do not yetknow what an amazing transfor-mation awaits them.”—PR

Uzair wagesFrom Back Page

war against PPP for its supportto his rival group Baba Ladla andkilling of his followers in ongo-ing raids of police and Rangers.

In the past, Uzair supportedPPP and rendered several sacri-fices for his party. Not onlyUzair, but PPP too has soft cor-ner for him and the party drewimmense criticism from its rivalpolitical parties for its all out sup-port to Uzair Jan Baloch.

However, the scenariochanged before PPP show ofpower at Bagh-e-Jinnah on Oc-tober 18 when his rival groupstarted mobilizing the residentsof the town for participation inthe rally.

“Lyari has become nurseryfor the criminals over the periodof time,” Senior Superintendentof Police (SSP) City TownSheeraz Nazeer said. “The situ-ation of the town turn worsenedafter PPP blue-eyed gangsterUzair Jan Baloch waged waragainst his own party,” the SSPadded.

“At least six workers of PPPwere shot dead in five days andthey all were killed by Uzair’sgangsters,” the SSP maintained,adding that “The security agen-cies took over the control of townduring ongoing targeted opera-tion at one stage but the situa-tion again slipped out of ourhands.”

“However, we are conduct-ing targeted operation and raidsneutrally in the town against bothwarring group and arrested ac-tivists of both gangs in recentdays,” the SSP claimed.

Talking to media, he wel-comed the statement of ImranKhan that he would call his sit-in off if rigging in general elec-tions was not proved. PervaizRashid said the government wasready to go anywhere, anytimeto hold negotiations with PTI,whenever the latter would desire.The government did not ever bar

Ishaq Dar from dialogues, hesaid, adding, the process wouldresume upon return of Ishaq Dar.

“Government did not canceltalks with PTI, instead, it wasImran Khan who prevent ShahMehmood Qureshi from furtherdialogues,” the minister added.

He said Imran Khan should givepermission to Shah MehmoodQureshi to restore talks.

Pervaiz Rashid stated thatthe demand of Imran Khan re-garding electoral reforms wasalready accepted by the gov-ernment as a committee in thisregard was functioning.—APP

PM acceptsAdvisorAmir’squittanceISLAMABAD—Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifhas accepted the resignation ofAmir Bakhsh Bhutto, who hadbeen working as his Advisor.According to reports, AmirBakhsh Bhutto resigned fromhis position after his fatherMumtaz Ali Bhutto practicallydissociated from the PML-Nand announced is expected anytime. A drop scene is expectedon the occasion of PTI’spublic meeting in Larkana on21st November. Sources saidthat Mumtaz Ali Bhuttojoined the PML-N hoping toget some key position and topersuade the PML-Ngovernment for the account-ability of PPP leaders. Havingfailed to get his demandsaccepted, Mumtaz Bhutto hasdecided to bid farewell to theparty. They said that thePrime Minister is expected toappoint Advisor from InteriorSindh soon.—INP

McCaincan shakeup U.S.defenseWASHING-TON—Senator JohnMcCain’s voice just got awhole lot louder. One ofPresident Barack Obama’snoisiest detractors, McCainis expected to take the helmof the powerful ArmedServices Committee in thenew Republican-controlledU.S. Senate when the U.S.Congress convenes inJanuary. The Arizonasenator, a critic of the $399billion Lockheed MartinCorp F-35 fighter jetprogram, is likely to push fortougher congressionalscrutiny of costly U.S.weapons programs, defenseanalysts say. He has in thepast launched investigationsinto waste in the U.S. defenseindustry and shaped legisla-tion to end cost overruns onmajor arms programs as asenior member of the Senatecommittee. —Reuters

ISLAMABAD: Leader of Opposition Syed Khursheed Shah meeting Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at PM Office.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’scounsel has refused to appear before the Su-preme Court’s Quetta registry for hearing of thePrime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s disqualificationcase scheduled for November 10 .

As a three-judge bench of the apex court,headed by acting Chief Justice Jawwad SKhawaja, on Thursday decided to resume PrimeMinister Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification caseat the Quetta Registry on Nov 10, Irfan Qadir— counsel for PTI leader Ishaq AhmadKhakwani — stated that their matter is differentfrom that of Gohar Abbas Sindhu’s case whohad challenged the Lahore High Court’s deci-sion to reject his plea, seeking the disqualifica-tion of the prime minister.

The counsel, while referring the court’s ear-lier order, said the bench had delinked their casefrom the plea of the Insaf Lawyers Forum se-nior vice president. However, it has been listedwith his appeal this week again.

Qadir, while expressing dissatisfaction overthe court’s proceedings in this case, stated thatdespite sitting in the courtroom the whole day,he was not heard in the matter. The counsel fur-ther contended that justice is not being done inthis case.

He reiterated his stance that their appeal

PM’s disqualification case

PTI counsel refuses toappear at Quetta registry

against the registrar office’s decision to rejectthe plea regarding the recusal of JusticeKhawaja is not being fixed so far. The counselcomplained that he has not been heard for 65days.The bench, however, rejected his stance. Andupon this, the counsel said that they would notappear before the bench at the Quetta registry.

To this, the bench said it would give itsverdict whether or not the disgruntled counselappears at the Quetta registry. In response, theQadir said he would challenge the court’s Oc-tober 6 order in this matter.

Meanwhile, Qadir, told media he is wait-ing for the court’s October 6 order in this casefor filing a comprehensive review petition,which has already been drafted.

He questioned how the bench could giveits ruling in one day in the Quetta registry if ithas been unable to do so in the past 66 days atthe Islamabad registry.

The counsel further said that while thebench is hearing cases of local people, this caseshould not be heard at the Quetta registry.

During the hearing, the court observed thatit would first examine whether the allegationof liar against the premier is correct or not. Thecourt maintained that if the charge is not

PTI MNASirajrefuses toresignObserver ReportISLAMABAD—PakistanTehreek-e-Insaf MNA, SirajMuhammad Khan has refusedto resign. Siraj Khan’s requestfor his resignation not beapproved has been granted byNational Assembly SpeakerAyaz Sadiq. Siraj MuhammadKhan was elected from NA-6(Nowshera) during the 2013general elections. A deadlockpersists over the acceptance ofPTI MNAs resignations. NASpeaker Ayaz Sadiq says thatthe resignations will have tobe individually verified, whilethe PTI states that there shouldbe collective verification.

ZUBAIR QURESHI

ISLAMABAD—Islamabad High Court (IHC) hereon Thursday while hearing a petition filed by DrBabur Zahiruddin, an eye specialist and a retiredcolonel, against the privatization of Oil & GasDevelopment Company Lt (OGDCL) sought re-ply from the government within two weeks.

Justice Athar Minallah of the IHC issuing no-tices to the Federation through Secretary Minis-try of Petroleum and Natural Resources, FinanceSecretary, Cabinet Secretary, ChairmanPrivatization Commission and Council of Com-mon Interests (CCI) directed them to submit re-ply within two weeks’ time.

Advocate GM Chaudhry while representingDr Babur said Oil & Gas Company is the com-mon property of the centre as well as the prov-inces and the centre cannot take a decision single-handedly on it without consulting provinces. Ac-cording to the petition, there was no informationavailable to general public through any mediumabout the approval of the Council of CommonInterests (CCI) or there was any approval byCouncil in this regard.

Arguing before the court, GM Chaudhry saidthe petitioner who is also a shareholder of thecompany is concerned about its privatization asin the past thetrack record of the PrivatizationCommission has not been reliable, transparentor satisfactory as all appointments including theappointment of the Chairman (of PrivatizationCommission) and its members by the Prime Min-

ister who is also the Chairman of the Counciland all such appointments are in violation ofguidelines and observations of the HonourableApex Court. He referred to a number of judg-ments by the apex court in this regard.

He further said that previously, there were anumber of cases of privatization of state-ownedorganizations wherein discrepancies and irregu-larities had been pointed out and the worst vic-tims of such mala fide privatization were no oneelse but the stakeholders and employees.

He regretted that the government was bentupon privatizing the OGDC without taking intoconfidence the employees, stake/shareholders andthe general public as the money collected throughtaxes of general public was spent to raise andgrow the company.

During the last fiscal year OGDCL regis-tered a record profit of Rs220 billion and “it isincomprehensible how the privatization of profit-making organization is in the best public interestwhereas there are so many organizations whichare making huge losses on monthly basis to thenational exchequer.” The petition claiming “theentire process regarding sale of commitments andobligations in “mineral oil and natural gas” wasjoint and equal ownership of the provinces andthus without their proper participation and con-sent is unconstitutional, illegal,” prayed the gov-ernment might be restrained from privatizationof the OGDCL. The judge after hearing the ar-guments sought reply from the respondents andadjourned hearing with date in office.

Privatization of OGDCL challenged in court

IHC seeks reply from govt within two weeks

OBSERVER REPORT

WAGAH—Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf vice chairman ShahMehmood Qureshi, while vis-iting the Wagah Border be-tween India and Pakistan onThursday, accidentally steppedacross the boundary line intoIndian territory.

Qureshi stepped forward togreet Indian citizens and BSFtroops on the other side of theborder and accidentally crossedthe marked line.

However, Pakistan Rang-ers informed Qureshi and hemoved back. Soon after, thePTI leader joked, “I steppedinto India” as someone in thebackdrop added, “Without avisa.”

Crossing the border lineand stepping into territory nor-mally results in the trespasser’sarrest. The PTI vice chairmanwas visiting the border to con-demn the suicide blast at thesite that killed 61 people onNovember 2.

Qureshi accidentallysteps into Indian territory

Continued on Page 7

Uzair wages waragainst PPP in Lyari

AAMIR MAJEED

KARACHI—Uzair Jan Baloch,who has had a love-hate rela-tionship with Pakistan People’sParty has waged a war againsthis own party to avenge deathof followers in the recent raidsand operation of Law Enforce-ment Agencies in Lyari.

At least six workers of PPPwere shot dead in various inci-dents of violence and bloodshedin the city’s most troubled area,Lyari in just five days. ThreePPP activists were shot dead inChakiwara, an area of Lyari,during a night between Wednes-day and Thursday.

Innayatullah, AbdulShakoor and Aijaz Lodhi, whowere killed by gangster outsidea pharmacy shop in Chakiwarawere the workers of PPP. An-other party worker Haider Alialso got bullet wounds in thisattack but his condition was de-clared stable after treatment.

As per details, the ongoingwar of turf in Lyari betweenUzair Jan Baloch and NoorMuhammad alias Baba Ladlaintensified and one of the war-ring groups has started target-ing workers, supporters andsympathizers of PPP.

Uzair Jan Baloch, whoworked for Karachi City Alli-ance (KCA) defunct People’sAman Committee, has waged

Continued on Page 7

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Pakistan People’sParty Chairman Bilawal BhuttoZardari on Thursday issuedshow cause notices to SindhChief Minister Qaim Ali Shahand the Sindh Minister for Pris-ons Manzoor Wassan over themismanagement of Thar situa-tion.

According to a statement ofthe party, Shah, who is also theprovincial president of the PPPand Wassan the deputy generalsecretary of the party in Sindh,

have been asked to file a writ-ten response to the notice.

According to the PPP, thenotices were issued after tele-vision reports of a report beingfiled about the crisis in Thar.

Anti-corruption depart-ment in its report had listedmassive irregularities, negli-gence on the part of variousgovernment departments indealing with droughts inTharparkar district.

The drought in Thar hasclaimed 234 lives, includinginfants and children.

PPP issues show-causenotices to Qaim, Wassan

GREEN tea has been hailed for manyhealth benefits, including its effectsagainst cancer, heart disease and

type 2 diabetes. Now, new research sug-gests the beverage can enhance our brain’scognitive functions, par-ticularly the workingmemory. The researchteam - including Prof.Christoph Beglinger andProf. Stefan Borgwardt ofthe University Hospital ofBasel in Switzerland - saystheir findings suggest thatgreen tea could be prom-ising in the treatment ofcognitive impairments as-sociated with neuropsy-chiatric disorders, such asdementia.

They recently pub-lished their findings in thejournal Psychopharmacol-ogy. Green tea, native toChina and India, is pro-duced from the leaves ofthe Camellia sinensis bush. Unlike otherteas, green tea is made from unoxidizedleaves. This minimal processing means it isrich in antioxidants. Past research has as-sociated the beverage with many healthbenefits. Last year, for example, MedicalNews Today reported on a study suggest-ing that green tea may reduce stroke risk,while another study found that it could helpfight prostate cancer.

Previous studies have also suggestedthat green tea may have a beneficial impacton the brain’s cognitive functions. How-ever, according to the researchers of thismost recent study, the exact mechanisms

behind this claim have been unclear.Green tea ‘boosts connectivity betweenparietal and frontal cortex of the brain’Green tea leaves Researchers say greentea may be useful in the treatment of

disorders involving cogni-tive impairments, such asdementia. To further inves-tigate, the team conducteda study using 12 healthymale volunteers with a meanage of 24.1 years.

Participants were givena milk whey-based soft drinkcontaining 27.5 g of greentea extract, while others weregiven a soft drink withoutthe green tea extract. Volun-teers were unaware of whichdrink they had been given.The participants were thenrequired to carry out a se-ries of working memorytasks.

During these tasks,their brain act ivi ty was

measured using magnetic resonanceimaging (MRI). The researchersfound that the participants who con-sumed the soft drink with the greentea extract showed increased connec-tivity between the right superior pa-rietal lobule and the frontal cortex ofthe brain. This activity correlated withimproved performance on the work-ing memory tasks.

“The present study shows thatgreen tea extract enhances functionalconnectivity from the parietal to the fron-tal cortex during working memory pro-cessing in healthy controls.

Green tea may boost ourworking memory

Outgoing Ambassador of Qatar, Sayar Abdul Rahman Al-Mawdah paid a farewell call onPresident Mamnoon Hussain at Aiwan-e-Sadr.

A view of black clouds and lightening on the sky during rain in the Federal Capital.

CITY REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—BrigadierGeneral Qasem FadeelNahar Tanashat, Com-mander Royal JordanianNaval Forces is on a 5days official visit to Pa-kistan on the invitationof Chief of the NavalStaff.

Upon arrival at NavalHeadquarters, the Jorda-nian Naval Forces Com-mander was received byAdmiral MuhammadZakaullah, Chief of theNaval Staff . A smartlyturned out contingent ofPakistan Navy clad inceremonial dress, pre-sented him the Guard ofHonour. The visiting dig-nitary was then intro-duced to Principal StaffOfficers at Naval Head-quarters.

Later, Brigadier Gen-eral Qasem Fadeel Nahar

Jordanian Naval Force commander visits Naval headquarters

Brig Gen Qasem Fadeel Nahar Tanashat Commander Royal Jordanian Naval Forces isbeing received by Chief of the Naval staff Admiral Muhammad Zaka Ullah on his arrivalat Naval Headquarters.

Tanashat, called on Chiefof the Naval Staff in his of-fice, where he held detaileddiscussion on professionalmatters with his counter-part. Various avenues ofcooperation between thetwo navies were also dis-cussed in detail. A com-prehensive brief on Paki-stan Navy’s Role in Re-gional Maritime SecuritySituation and Operationaldevelopments was alsogiven to the visiting digni-tary. During the visit ,Brigadier General is sched-uled to call on DefenceMinister and Minister forDefense Production.

The honourable digni-tary joined the JordanianNavy in 1977. Besidesholding the appointmentas Commander Royal Jor-danian Naval Forces, theCommander has had theprivilege to serve on cov-eted appointments includ-

ing Commander Mainte-nance Battalion, Head ofPlanning and Program-ming Branch, Head ofTraining and Human Re-source Branch, Head ofProduction Division,Deputy Commander ofKing Hussein MainWorkshop and Com-manding Officer of PrinceHussein Bin AbdullahMilitary Technical Col-lege.

Brigadier GeneralQasem Fadeel NaharTanashat, is a graduate ofRoyal Jordanian NationalDefence College and hasalso done Defence Re-sources ManagementCourse from USA. Heholds Masters degree inManagement and Strate-gic Studies. This visit isexpected to greatly aug-ment the bilateral coopera-tion between both theNavies.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Governmentof Pakistan has promotedAir Commodore SyedFurqan Ahmad Zaidi to therank of Air Vice Marshal andhe has been appointed asAir Officer Commanding,Air Defence Command.

Air Vice Marshal SyedFurqan Ahmad Zaidi wascommissioned in October,1983 in the Air DefenceBranch of Pakistan AirForce. During his illustriouscareer, he has commandedvarious Air Defence Unitsincluding a Mission ControlCenter and also served asSector Commander.

In his staff appointments,he has served as AssistantChief of the Air Staff (Air De-fence) at Air Headquarters,Islamabad. He is a graduate

of Combat Commanders’School, Air War College andNational Defence University

(NDU). He holds Master’sdegrees in Strategic Studiesand War Studies. He is also arecipient of Sitara-i-Imtiaz(Military).

Air Commodore Syed FurqanAhmad Zaidi promoted torank of Air Vice Marshal

RAZA-UR-REHMAN

ISLAMABAD—The Institute of Stra-tegic Studies, Islamabad (ISSI)organised a seminar on “The Jour-ney to Peace and Co-Prosperity:The United Nations, Pakistan andThe Republic of Korea” in collabo-ration with The Embassy of Repub-lic of Korea (ROK) on Thursday.Welcoming the guests, ISSI Chair-man Ambassador (R) KhalidMahmood extended words of con-gratulation to the people of Koreaon the occasion of the country’sNational Foundation Day andArmed Forces Day. He was of theview that while diplomatic ties be-tween the two countries are of re-cent origin, the linkages betweenPakistan and Korea are deep-rootedin history.

In his welcome remarks, theAmbassador of Republic of Koreato Pakistan Dr. Song Jong-Hwan

placed special emphasis on the corephilosophies of peace, harmony,unity and cooperation, which alsoform the basis of the Charter of theUnited Nations, and hoped for thepromotion of international co-op-eration, peace and security. In lightof these core philosophies, hehoped for a roadmap for the futureunification of the Korean Peninsula,which would make unified Korea abig player on the world stage, giv-ing it the opportunity to contributeto world peace and prosperity.

A message from the UN Secre-tary General Ban Ki-Moon wasgiven on his behalf by Mr. TimmoPakkala, the UN resident co-ordinator in Pakistan. He expressedhis pleasure at the organising of thisevent, which he believed was astrong ground for the exchange ofknowledge, ideas and experiences,and simultaneously a good oppor-tunity to increase the understand-

ing of UN’s activities in both thecountries. Ban Ki-Moon delineatedthat both Korea and Pakistan havegrowing prominence on the worldstage- their ever-growing interac-tions with the UN are a testament tothis.

Dr. Song Jong-Hwan presenteda congratulatory message by For-eign Affairs Minister Mr. H.E YunByung-Se, in which the latterpraised the initiative of arrangingof such an event. He pointed outthat ties between the two countriesstretched as far back as the 8th cen-tury, and the two nations have al-ways supported each other in timesof need, from war time to natural di-sasters.

Ambassador Shamshad AhmedKhan, the former foreign secretaryof Pakistan, presented the inaugu-ral address. He started off by men-tioning that Korea and Pakistanshare a similar birth process, hav-

ing emerged from the ravages ofwar and partition respectively. Hepointed out that the UN came intoexistence as “mankind’s last besthope”, and even though in contem-porary times it is no longer the solemeaningful authority on global is-sues, it is still accepted as such.

UN Representative in PakistanMr. Timo Pakkala enlightened thegathering regarding UN’s activitiesin Pakistan. He informed the audi-ence that UN has its presence inevery province and region of thecountry.

Speaking on Pak-ROK relations,Senator Mushahid Hussain high-lighted similarities between the two,including similar histories of legitimacygrounded in UN resolutions, theirpartnership with the US, history ofconflict and war, strong military-domi-nated societies, as well as the nuclearissue on the Korean peninsula andbetween India and Pakistan.

The Journey to Peace and Co-Prosperity

Pakistan, Korea have growing prominenceon the world stage: Ban Ki-Moon

ZUBAIR QURESHI

ISLAMABAD—Federal government inconsultation with the provincial gov-ernments will chalk out a comprehen-sive and foolproof security plan forsecurity of the ‘polio’ teams’ to en-sure each child in far and wide of thecountry is vaccinated against polio-virus.

This was resolved in a follow-upmeeting co-chaired by Minister ofState for National Health Services,Regulations and Coordination(NHSRC) Saira Afzal Tarar and PrimeMinister ’s Focal Person on PolioAyesha Raza Farooq.

The meeting discussed in detailschallenges being faced by polio teamsespecially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa(KP) and FATA and expressed the re-

solve that Prime Minister’s directionto make the country polio-free will beimplemented in letter and spirit.

It may be mentioned that primeminister Nawaz Sharif in the NationalTask Force meeting had directed allofficials and stakeholders to make thepolio vaccine drive result-oriented. Hehad made it clear that no laxity in theimplementation of the polio campaignsshall be allowed.

Prime Minister further directed tostrengthen the systems and addressall issues that hinder the way of PolioFree Pakistan.

In the follow up meeting that heldon Thursday, the participants dis-cussed the implementation plan of thedecisions issued by the Prime Minis-ter. Secretary Health Ayoub Sheikh andother senior officials also participated

in the meeting.It was decided that a series of vis-

its to the provinces would be under-taken to review the low transmissionseason plans of the provinces and thepace of work. In this context, first meet-ing is planned in Karachi on Novem-ber 12, 2014 to review the progress ofPolio campaign in Sindh. A compre-hensive strategy for focusing onabout 500 high risk Union Council forpolio eradication was also plannedduring the meeting. Besides, a com-prehensive security plan would alsobe evolved for ensuring fool proofsecurity during the campaign.

The participants expressed theirdetermination that under the leader-ship of the Prime Minister no stonewill be left unturned in achieving ourgoal of a Pakistan free of polio.

Follow-up meeting to PM’s anti-polio speech

High risk union councilsto be first target

Pakistan wishes to furtherstrengthen cooperation with Qatar

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—President Mamnoon HussainThursday commended the services of Am-bassador of Qatar in Pakistan Sayar AbdulRahman J.Al-Mawdah, for providing fur-ther impetus to bilateral ties during his stayin Pakistan.

The outgoing ambassador paid a fare-well call on the President here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr after serving in Pakistan for four anda half years.

Discussing Pakistan-Qatar bilateral re-lations, the President said Pakistan at-tached great importance to its close andcordial relations with Qatar and wished tofurther strengthen cooperation in all fieldsof mutual interests including trade and

defense. The President expressed hopethat Qatari Investment Authority (QIA)would invest in different sectors of Paki-stani economy by taking advantage of itslucrative business and investor friendlypolicies.

The President also offered to providemanpower as per the requirements of Qatarfor the projects Qatar intended to under-take in its preparation for hosting FIFA 2022World Cup.

Sayar Abdul Rahman J. Al-Mawdahthanked the President for the support hewas extended by the Government of Pa-kistan during his stay as ambassador inPakistan. The President wished the out-going envoy good health, happiness andsuccess in his future life.

French Embassy tohost film festival

on S Asian cultureSTAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—French Em-bassy in Pakistan is hostinga 2-day film festival in thefederal capital on November21 which would bring intospotlight the neglectedtransgender issues and so-cial aspects of life in SouthAsia. The festival intro-duces a new generation ofFrench directors’ featuredfilms inspired by social as-pects of South Asia. Thefirst film to be screened is‘Noor’, based on the storyof a real life Kushras (eu-nuch). Noor who wants tobe a man and find a girl whowill accept him as he is, saida press release of the em-bassy here Thursday. Thisroad-movie is a poetic andpolitical exploration oftransgender issues, set inPakistan’s breath-takinglandscapes.

The film is co-directedby agla Zencirci & GuillaumeGiovanetti, who will presenttheir film for the first time tothe Pakistani audience onthe November 21, 2014.

05:40 01:3004:15

07:45

Zohr

Asr

Isha

Fajar

Meghrab at Sunset

Brothers in Islamestablish regularprayers & charity

September 7

CERTIFICATE awardingceremony of the 5-day longscript-writing workshop onradio and television produc-tion will be held today (Fri-day 7th November) at 8:30am in Council Hall of theAllama Iqbal Open Univer-sity (AIOU). Director Gen-eral, Pakistan BroadcastingCorporation(PBC) /MemberAIOU Executive Council,Ms. Samina Pervaiz will beChief Guest while Vice-Chan-cellor, AIOU Prof. Dr. ShahidSiddiqui will preside over thefunction.

November 8

PAF Retired Officers’ Asso-ciation (PAFROA)Rawalpindi / Islamabadchapter is holding monthlymeeting at 1600 hours on 08November, 2014 at Officers’Mess, PAF Base Nur Khan.

November 10

A lecture by archaeologistAlper Yurdemi on ‘OttomanEmbroideries: Meeting Pointif Ottoman palace and popu-lar culture’, will be held atLok Virsa on November 10at 4:00 pm. The lecture isorganised by Turkey’s em-bassy.

November 13

NATIONAL Institute ofPsychology is holding a In-ternational conference onEducation Psychology on13th November, 2014. It willbe held at National Centreof Physics (NCP), Quaid-I-Azam University Campus,Islamabad time 9:00-18:00.

November 14

ALUMNI Association-Na-tional Institute of Psychol-ogy (AA-NIP) will hold an-nual Alumni Dinner, 2014 on14th November , 4:00 p.m. to8:00 p.m. at Geo Physics Au-ditorium, QAU.

Hiroshi Inomata, Ambassador of Japan after signing agreement for four projects as government of Japan has decidedto extend financial support to four Pakistani NGOs.

RAZA-UR-REHMAN

IS L A M A B A D—Japan has provided US$377,920 to four Pakistani Non-Governmen-tal Organization (NGOs) for the improve-ment of educational facilities in disadvan-taged areas of the country.

According to a statement received hereon Thursday the financial assistance wasprovided to Al-Asar Development Orga-nization, Iraj Education and DevelopmentFoundation, Khadija Zaib Welfare Foun-dation and Friends Welfare Associationfor the improvement of educational facili-t ies.

The Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan,Hiroshi Inomata and the heads of the fourorganizations signed the agreements.

Al-Asar Development Organizationwill utilize its grant of US $ 102,110 for theconstruction of a girls’ school District DeraGhazi Khan, including a basic health cen-ter in that will cater primarily for studentsbut also be open to the community.

The grant of US $ 102,470 to Friends’Welfare Association will be used for theconstruction of a girls’ high school in Dis-

Japan provides $377,920 forimprovement of educational facilities

trict Mansehra.The grant to Iraj Education and De-

velopment Foundation amounting toUS $ 75,623 on the other hand will beused for the construction of a girls’middle school in District Pakpattan.

Last ly, a school and vocationaltraining center for women will be es-tablished in District Jhelum through thegrant of US $ 97,717 to Khadija ZaibWelfare Foundation.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambas-sador Inomata said that Japan has givenhigh priority to empowerment of womenboth in Japan and other countries un-der the strong leadership of Prime Min-ister Shinzo Abe. He emphasized the im-portance of improving access to basiceducation in the country, particularly forgirls and expressed the hope that theprojects would contribute to Pakistan’sgoal of eliminating gender disparities interms of educational opportunities. Hefurther said that the agreement wouldcertainly strengthen the friendly rela-tions between the people of Japan andPakistan.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan Space andUpper Atmosphere ResearchCommission’s Institute of TechnicalTraining (SITT) Thursday organizedfifth Annual National Water RocketCompetition 2014 here. According toa press release issued here, over thepast four years, SITT has successfullyarranged Water Rocket Training Work-shops at eleven different cities acrossthe country namely Karachi,Hyderabad, Lahore, Islamabad,Faisalabad, Multan, Bahawalpur,Peshawar, Gilgit, Abbotabad, andQuetta.

During these workshops, teachers

from all over the country were briefedabout the construction and applica-tions of water rockets. Then, theteachers passed on this knowledge totheir students and these students par-ticipated in the 5th Annual NationalWater Rocket Competition 2014 atSUPARCO Headquarters.

Around 33 students participatedin the competition, including eight stu-dents from various schools for spe-cial children.

During competition, the studentswere required to build two water rock-ets and launch them three times. Thelaunches were judged on the basis ofaccuracy. The rocket which landednearest to the 80 metre target was de-

clared the winner.It is worth mentioning here, water

rockets, having first been introducedin Pakistan in 2007, are now a house-hold name all over the country.

Water rocket demonstrations,workshops and competitions havebecome a regular feature of WorldSpace Week celebrations and are or-ganized annually by SUPARCO Insti-tute of Technical Training (SITT).

Apart from the water rocket eventsarranged nationally, Pakistan also par-ticipated in the annual water rocketevents organized by Japan AerospaceExploration Agency) (JAXA) at theAsia Pacific Regional Space AgencyForum (APRSAF).

SUPARCO conducts water rocketcompetition 2014

CITY REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Supreme Court (SC) hasgranted permission for filing review petitionin Asghar Khan Case. Justice Sarmad JalalUsmani of SC has allowed petitioner ShahidOrakzai to file review petition in view of thefacts stated in an affidavit which was sub-mitted in Asghar Khan case.

It was said in the affidavit that formerChief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saeed ulZaman Siddiqui reopened Asghar Khancase on October 12, 1999 on the plea offormer DG ISI Lt Gen (Retd) Zia ul Din whoinformed the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifabout it at 1200 hrs October, 12. Upon itNawaz Sharif had sacked Gen PervezMusharraf. Mian Nawaz Sharif has admit-ted before Sindh High Court (SHC) that hehad come to know about the conspiracy by

army against his government through histrusted aide.

It has been further stated in affidavitcourt can confirm about it from Tahir Kheliformer political secretary of Nawaz Sharif.The petitioner made it clear during the courseof hearing which took place in chamber aday before that the decision given by formerChief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) IftikharMuhammad Chaudhry in Asghar Khan casestands inconclusive in practical term and hehas not been made party in the wake of factsstated by him. His affidavit was given thecolor of defamation of judiciary.

Justice Sarmad Jalal Usmani said to thepetitioner he can file review petition in AsgharKhan case if he wills and he has every rightto proceed further as per law but his appealto become party in the case is not workablebeing the case disposed off.

SC grants permission for filingreview petition in Asghar Khan case

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Installation of 1400 security cam-eras in twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabadhas been started under Safe City project tocleanse these cities from terrorists and crimi-nals.

Police sources said this project wasevolved by interior ministry which was ap-proved by federal government. Under thisproject over 1200 security cameras are be-ing installed in federal capital. The cam-

eras will be installed on GT road from Sihalato Zero point, Satra mile to Serena hotel,Tarnol to Kashmir highway, Golra chowk,IG Principal road, Rawalpindi-Murree roadand Islamabad-Murree road. In Rawalpindi,the security cameras are being installed fromSadar to Murree road.

Cameras installation work is underway fromAabpara to Kashmir highway and other high-ways. Monitoring of Islamabad and other high-ways will be conducted through these cam-eras from central control room.

Installation of 1400 securitycameras under Safe City project STAFF REPORTER

R A W A L P I N D I — C o m m i s s i o n e rRawalpindi has sent summary to chiefminister Punjab for his approval inconnection with a long term plan forsupplying water from river Indus tothe citizens of twin cities ofRawalpindi-Islamabad.

Earlier CDA had moved a summaryunder the directives of Prime Minister

on this project and secretary water andpower had issued instructions formaking headway on this project but itwas shelved.

Now Raja Hanif MPA Raja Hanifapprised the chief minister Punjab thatunderground water reservoirs are de-pleting fast in twin cities of Rawalpindiand Islamabad and water issue can ag-gravate into worst crisis in comingdays.

The chief minister Punjab sum-moned summary in this respect fromMD WASA Raja Shaukat Mehmoodimmediately. The relevant recordbased on progress achieved so far onthis project and other planning wassent to chief minister Punjab throughcommissioner Rawalpindi. Sourcessaid a feasibility to determine howmuch project will cost is likely to beprepared soon.

Supply of water from riverIndus to twin cities

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—The launching ceremonyof book ‘Taire Liye’ wil l be held atMarriot on November 10 at 5 P.M. Thebook is an Urdu rendering of long Ara-bic poem written by renowned Lebanesepoet and writer Al-Huda Noomani. Pro-fessor Qaiserah M Alvi has translated

the poem in her peculiar style for thebenefit of the people of South Asia.

Lebanese Ambassador Mona El-Tannirwill attend the ceremony to be held underthe auspices of Rotary Club Islamabad.Professor Fateh Muhammed Malik, AtaulHaq Qasmi, Dr. Tauseef Tabassam and Dr.Inam ul Haq Javed will be among the promi-nent speakers.

Book ‘Taire Liaye’ to belaunched on Nov. 10

Elderly mancommitssuicide

STAFF REPORTER

RAWALPINDI—A 76-year-old man committed suicidehere the other day in the ju-risdiction of Airport policestation.

According to reports,ex government employeeFakhar Ul Din committedsuicide by shooting him-self. Police recovered thedead body and shifted tohospital for furthermedico-legal formali t ieshowever the reason be-hind suicide couldn’t beascertained.

ISLAMABAD—CDA administration has im-posed ban on payment of medical allowanceto the surplus staff comprising 65 employeesat capital hospital here.

Sources said chairman CDA has slappedban on payment of medical allowance to doz-ens of employees who were appointed in capi-tal hospital beyond the sanctioned posts.

As many as 65 surplus lower staff mem-bers and officers are working in the hospi-tal and are receiving double salary. Capi-tal hospital administration while keepingin view their limited funds requested CDAchairman that it can not make payment ofmedical allowance to these surplus staffmembers. —Online

Payment of medical allowance R A W A L P I N D I — E l e c t r i c i t yloadshedding in Rawalpindi continueswhich is affecting routine life of the resi-dents and creating problems for them.

The residents of many localities ofRawalpindi, including Mumtaz Colony,Adiala Road, Bakramandi, DhokeSyedan, Tali Morri, Chaklala Scheme-III, Waris Khan, Mohanpura, Dhoke

Ratta, Chur, Dhoke Mangtal, Pirwadhai,Dhoke Munshi, Mohallah Chah Sultan,Asghar Mall, Bagh Sardaran, KurriRoad, Sadiqabad and Muslim Town,College road, Waris Khan, Naz Cinema,Dhoke Elahi Bukush, Nadeem Colonyare facing long break down.

The residents of different localities,talking to APP, said that the unsched-

uled loadshedding has disrupted theirroutine life, but the concerned are notready to resolve the agonizing prob-lem.

One of the complainants fromSaddar area Rana Azhar said we arepaying bills regularly but we are notgetting the facility as loadsheddingmade life miserable.—APP

Loadshedding continues in city

ISLAMABAD—Chairman Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus ProjectMuhammad Hanif Abbasi Thursday saidconstruction work on the multi-billionmass transit scheme would hopefully becompleted by January 30, next year.

The project, initiated on March 23 thisyear, is being executed at a cost of Rs 44billion, will be completed in around 10months to provide speedy and decenttransport service to the residents of the

twin cities. Talking to media, he said paceof the construction work was going on afast pace and the much-awaited publictransport project would be completedwithin the given schedule.

He expressed the confidence thatbuses would start plying on the route onJanuary 30 and the decent public trans-port service would facilitate around1,60,000 commuters shuttling betweenthe twin cities daily at the nominal fare of

Rs 20 per passenger. Abbasi said the con-struction companies were carrying outwork at their respective sites in accor-dance with the required speed despitedifficulties being faced due to the sit-insof Pakistan Tehree-k-Insaf and PakistanAwami Tehreek. “The sit-ins caused amonth-delay in completion of the project,which was planned to be inauguratedahead of the schedule in December thisyear,” he observed.—APP

Metro Bus project to be completedby Jan 30: Hanif Abbasi

431 NUMLIANS get laptops under PM scheme

Rector NUML Maj Gen (R) Masood Hasan giving away a laptop and internet Evo device to a student at laptop distribu-tion ceremony at NUML.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—National Uni-versity of Modern Lan-guages (NUML), Islamabad,gave away laptops to 431 stu-dents of PhD, MS/MPhil andMBA (3.5 years) provided byHigher Education Commis-sion (HEC) as part of the PrimeMinister’s lap top scheme onthe first day of a three-daylong laptop distribution cer-emony.

A total of 1698 laptopsand internet Evo have beenprovided by HEC which willbe distributed among stu-dents on three consecutivedays. Rector NUML Maj Gen(R) Masood Hasan and Di-rector Examination BashirAhmed handed over thelaptops to the students in asimple but graceful ceremonyheld at Johar Black hall ofNUML. The ceremony wasalso attended by DirectorAcademics Col (R) Syed

Jawaid Ahmed, Director Ad-ministration Brig (R) TariqQureshi, Director IT Syed AliRaza and other officials of theuniversity. Addressing thelaptop distribution ceremony,the Rector NUML Maj Gen (R)Masood Hasan said it was per-spicacious insight of the Govtthat it initiated laptop schemefor the students and scholarsof the universities which wouldfacilitate and research cultureon the campuses and encour-age students for more andmore research work.

He said that all those whohad received laptops it wasnow their responsibility tomake full use of the facility andproduce a research work thatshould not only bring goodname to the country and insti-tution but also be a guidingstar for others.

Director ExaminationBashir Ahmed while talking toscribe said that there was cer-tain criterion for the laptop dis-

tribution. Firstly, student mustbe registered in a discipline in-cluding PhD, MS/MPhil, MBAand MA/M.Sc programmes ofthe university. Secondly, stu-dents shouldn’t be employeeof any private or governmentorganizations. Lastly, studentswho have already receivedlaptops from any other schemeare not eligible for this scheme.

He said a total of 431 out1698 laptops would be distrib-uted today among the schol-ars and students while rest ofthem would be given away inthe next two days accordingto the guidelines of HEC.

Students who received thelaptops expressed their jubila-tions and gratitude to the uni-versity, HEC and Govt for fa-cilitating students and schol-ars in their pursuit of knowl-edge and higher education.

A PhD Management Sci-ences scholar Sajid Rehmanwhile talking to scribe said thisavailability of laptop and

internet Evo device wouldhelp them to have a joint leapin terms of getting access to awide treasures of knowledge,books, dissertations, thesis,research articles and then todetermine one’s own path ofresearch.

Another student of MPhilInternational Relations AsiaZafar said that her area of in-terest was ecological politics.There were dearth of booksand work available in local li-braries but now she would beable to get access to the elec-tronics books (e-books), otherresearch material, newspapersand magazines which wereavailable online and it wouldhelp her to get better under-standing of the field.

The distribution oflaptops at NUML will con-tinue for three days and helpdesks have been establishedfor the students to guide andvalidate their data and receivetheir laptops in the university.

BRADFORD: Ex-Prime Minister of AJK Barrister Sultan Mehmood Choudhry address-ing Press Conference here on Thursday.

ISLAMABAD—Hurriyet Conference Jammuand Kashmir leader and Vice Chairman ofJammu and Kashmir Islamic Political Party,Abdul Hamid Lone has strongly condemnedthe detention of party Chairman, MohammadYousuf Naqash and other Hurriyet leaders andkilling of two civilians by Indian troops atChattargam in Badgam.

Abdul Hamid Lone in a statement, express-ing solidarity with the victim families of FaisalAhmad Butt and Mehraj-u-din Dar, appealedto the international human rights bodies includ-ing UNHRC and Amnesty International to takenotice of the on going human rights violationsin occupied Kashmir. He said that the senti-

Detention of Hurriyet leadersin IOK condemned

ment of the people of Kashmir couldn’t beweakened through killings, arrests, detentions,restrictions and other repressive tactics.

He deplored that India had convertedKashmir into a military garrison where itsforces under black laws were committinggross human rights violations.

He, while expressing serious concernover the deteriorating health of the detainedHurriyet leaders, Shabbir Ahmad Shah,Mohammad Yasin Malik, Nayeem AhmadKhan, Mohammad Yousuf Naqash, ZafarAkbar Butt and Shabbir Ahmad Dar urgedthe world community to take strict notice ofit.—KMS

SRINAGAR—Kashmiris on both sides ofthe Line of Control and world over observedJammu Martyrs’ Day, on, to reaffirm theresolve to continue their liberation struggletill they achieve their inalienable right toself-determination. During the first week ofNovember in 1947, hundreds of thousandsof Kashmiris were killed by the forces ofMaharaja Hari Singh, Indian army andHindu extremists in different parts ofJammu region while they were migratingto Pakistan. The All Parties Hurriyet Con-ference Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooqand other Hurriyet leaders in their separatestatements paid rich tributes to the 1947martyrs of Jammu.Mirwaiz Umar Farooqsaid that the memories of the massacre and

Jammu Martyrs’ Day observedMartyrs’ sacrifices an important asset, Mirwaiz & others

BUDGAM, IHK—Rights watchdog Amnesty Inter-national has said the Indian Army must cooperatewith police in Jammu and Kashmir in the investiga-tion into the killing of two Kashmiri youths. “Thearmy must cooperate fully with Jammu and Kash-mir state police investigations into the shooting andkillings of Faisal Yusuf Bhat and Mehrajuddin Dar,and injury to two others in Budgam, Kashmir Nov3,” Amnesty said in a statement.

“If sufficient evidence is found, suspectsmust be prosecuted in a civilian court, and theArmed Forces (Special Powers) Act must notbe used to shield soldiers from prosecution,” itsaid. The army said it had received intelligencethat militants were travelling along theNowgam-Pulwama highway in a white car.

The army set up barricades. When a whitecar refused to stop at the first two check points,the army personnel fired at it at the third check

AI asks Indian army to cooperatewith probe in youths killings

point, resulting in the death of two people, andserious injuries to two others. While police fileda first information report and began investiga-tion, the army established a Court of Inquiry andsaid those found guilty will be dealt with severely.Amnesty said that it has documented cases since1990 in which the army “has refused to cooper-ate with police investigations, and failed to holdits personnel accountable for human rights vio-lations based on the findings of Courts of In-quiry”. “Courts of Inquiry are known to some-times be based solely on testimony from armypersonnel and contradict the findings of inde-pendent police investigations, and have contrib-uted in the past to impunity for security forces”in Kashmir, it said. Amnesty urges the Indiangovernment to ensure that “those responsible arebrought to justice in fair trials meeting interna-tional standards in civilian courts”.—KD

RAFIABAD, IHK—Sr. Vice President J&KPCC, Former Minister and Member AICCMr. Abdul Gani Vakil today accused regionalparties of exploiting the sentiments ofpeople. Whenever elections are in sight theseregional parties exploit innocent people onissues of accession with India, autonomy orself rule and during elections these forcesbecome more active and come to forefrontto attract the people by selling dreams thatare far from reality.

They leave no opportunity to befoolpeople but once they come to power they for-get all these issues and adopt dormancy tillthey rule. “He urged masses to understandregional politics of emotional exploitationwhich can never be beneficial to them. He saidthat neither self rule proposal of the People’sDemocratic Party nor autonomy of NationalConference can resolve Kashmir issue.

They have to understand that Kashmir is-sue can only be resolved when all the par-ties including Hurriyat Conference leaderswill sit together; taking into considerationthe aspirations of all the three regions, thenonly a genuine solution will come out byconsensus. He hoped that people of this state

BJP’s politics polluted withhatred, bigotry: Vakil

cannot be exploited on these elections man-tras anymore as they understand nefariousdesigns of regional parties which leave themat the mercy of God after grabbing power.Mr. Vakil was addressing public meetings inRohama and Nowpora Rafiabad today.

While taking on BJP Mr. Vakil said BJP’spolitics is polluted with hatred and discrimi-nation. BJP’s origin lies in exploitation ofreligious sentiments and prevails upon inno-cent and poor masses through divisive andexploitive measures but Congress is deter-mined to give befitting reply to such forces.

He said it is only Congress party who be-lieves in equitable development of all thethree regions of the State as people of J&Kis witness to the fact that when Mr. GhulamNabi Azad was Chief Minister of the StateJ&K witnessed a humongous growth in ev-ery sector.On the occasion Sr. NC leader and SarpanchRohama Panchayat Abdul Hamid Bhat joinedcongress with his 500 workers. He said thatit is only congress party who always stoodfor the people and which represents the as-pirations of all the sections of the society.—KW

DR. GHULAM NABI FAI

ONCE again, Kashmir is a living proof that it isnot going to compromise, far less abandon, itsdemand for Azaadi (freedom) which is its birth-

right and for which it has paid a price in blood andsuffering which has not been exacted from any otherpeople of the South Asian subcontinent. Compared tothe sacrifice Kashmir has had to endure, India and Pa-kistan themselves gained their freedom through a highlycivilized process. That is a most poignant truth. Buteven more bitterly ironical is the contrast between thecomplex and decades-long agony the Kashmir issuehas caused to Kashmiris, to Pakistan and to India itselfand the simple, rational measures that would be neededfor its solution. No sleight of hand is required, nosubtle concepts are to be deployed, and no ingeniousdeal needs to be struck between Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif withthe endorsement of the more pliable Kashmiri leaders.

Don’t deploy arguments to justify the somersault on KashmirThe time for subterfuge is gone. All that is needed

is going back — yes, going back — to the point ofagreement which historically existed beyond doubtbetween India and Pakistan and jointly resolving toretrieve it with such modifications as are necessitatedby the passage of time. That point of agreement isthe one India as well as Pakistan, each independently,brought to the United Nations Security Council whenthe Kashmir dispute was first internationalized. Infact, the Security Council itself took that point as thebasis of the resolutions it later formulated.

The point was one of inescapable principle-— that the future status of the State of Jammu andKashmir shall be decided by the will of the peopleof the State as impartially ascertained in condi-tions free from coercion. The two elements of apeaceful settlement thus were, first, the demilita-rization of the State (i.e. the withdrawal of theforces of both India and Pakistan) and a plebiscitesupervised by the United Nations.

With propositions of such clarity and charac-ter accepted, what room was left for the dispute toarise? This question is bound to evoke divergentanswers and it entails the risk of reopening oldrecriminations. However, it would be disingenu-ous to avoid it altogether. It is apparent from therecord of the Security Council that India articu-lated the principle, accepted the practical shapethe Council gave to it and freely participated innegotiations regarding the modalities involved.

However, when developments inside the Statemade her doubt her chances of winning the plebiscite,she changed her stand and pleaded that she was nolonger bound by the agreement. Of course, she de-ployed ample arguments to justify the somersault. Buteven though the arguments were of a legal or quasi-legal nature, she rejected a reference to the World Courtto pronounce on their merits. This is how the disputebecame frozen with calamitous consequences for Kash-mir most of all, with heavy cost for Pakistan and with

none too happy results for India itself.However, despite the passage of decades, noth-

ing has been irretrievably lost. The principle thatthe disposition of the territory in dispute must bein accordance with the will of its people can stillbe implemented as truly as it would have been in1950. As a matter of fact, it can be done betternow because we are not as oblivious now as allsides seemed to be earlier of the unique heteroge-neity of the State of Jammu and Kashmir —one ofthe most bizarre products of 19th century Britishcolonialism. Recognizing the existence of sev-eral different ethnicities, each with its own his-tory and its affiliations, and the right of each todetermine its future without constraint not onlyfrom India or Pakistan but also from one domi-nant region within the State on another, we are notlikely to commit the fallacy of one-size-suits-all.

The plan of action that would ensure for all com-ponents of the State as it existed on August 15, 1947

equal representation and equal freedom to decidewhether to continue the status quo or to opt for a newdispensation is not difficult to work out. It can bedone by a joint committee composed of the rightlyqualified people from India and Pakistan who wouldconsult Kashmiri representatives and also, as neces-sary, experts from the United Nations. What is visu-alized here is not a charade to be enacted by therespective Foreign Offices of India and Pakistan andthe pretense of a so-called peace process, whichmerely means the bureaucratization of the dispute.What is desperately needed is an affirmation by PrimeMinister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister NawazSharif of the necessity of taking new measures toeffect the settlement of the dispute within a reason-able time frame. To that end, India and Pakistan musttogether prepare a plan for the demilitarization of theState with safeguards for security worked out together.[Dr. Fai can be reached at gnfai2003 @yahoo.com]

India committinggenocide in

occupiedKashmir: JKPM

JAMMU—In occupied Kashmir,the Jammu and Kashmir PeoplesMovement (JKPM), a constituentof the All Parties Hurriyet Con-ference (APHC), has said thatIndia is committing genocide inthe territory by Killing innocentpeople especially the youth.TheAPHC leader and Senior ViceChairman of the JKPM, MirShahid Saleem, addressing ameeting of the party at Banihal,said killing of Merajuddin andFaisal Yousaf by India forces atChattargam in central Kashmirwas cold-blooded murders of theyouth. He said that Indian forceshad long been pursuing a policyof genocide in Kashmir and hadmurdered more than 100,000 in-nocent people mostly the youthduring the last over two decadesin Kashmir. The JKPM leadersaid, India despite committing theworst acts of oppression and sup-pression against the innocentpeople in Kashmir, has miserablyfailed to crush the indigenousstruggle of people for their in-alienable right to self-determina-tion.—KMS

MUZAFFARABAD: AJK Electricity Minister Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore presiding an executive meeting of his depart-ment here on Thursday.

genocide would continue to haunt our his-tory for the ages to come. The Mirwaiz, whocontinues to be under house arrest, said thatsacrifices of Jammu martyrs were an im-portant asset of the freedom struggle, add-ing, their sacrifices have a historical sig-nificance as far as the freedom struggle ofJammu and Kashmir is concerned.

“The hearts of the people of Jammuand Kashmir beat together and their inter-ests are inter-related and inter connected,a fact which can’t be overlooked,” headded. The APHC chairman asked the cler-ics to organize protests and raise their voiceagainst the injustices committed by Indiantroops on Friday, tomorrow, at Masjids,shrines and Imambarahs. He also appealed

lawyers, respectable and other civil soci-ety members to raise their voice in protestagainst the bloodshed in Kashmir.APHC leaders Mukhtar Ahmad Waza,Javed Ahmad Mir and APHC-AJK leaderTufail Altaf Butt in their separate statementspaying glowing tributes to the Jammu mar-tyrs expressed their resolve that the sacri-fices of these martyrs would not be allowedto go waste. They said that these peoplestood for freedom and their only crime wasthat they raised their voices for their right.The APHC leaders termed the massacre bythe forces of Maharaja and communal ele-ments backed by India as a tragedy and theblackest chapter in the Kashmir’s historyof liberation struggle.—KMS

Seminar held atPak Consular

General inJeddah

ISLAMABAD—A seminar washeld at the residency of ConsularGeneral in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia,which was attended by the Paki-stani women community settledin Jeddah. A young Kashmiri ac-tivist from Baramulla, Ms. ShaistaSafi represented Youth Forum ForKashmir there, YFK is Pakistan’sfirst youth led pro-Kashmir lob-bying group. While addressing theseminar Shaista Safi shared herpersonal experiences of forced ex-ile from her land and told the au-dience what women and childrenof Indian-occupied Kashmir arefacing since this conflict startedand what Kashmiris are goingthrough after the recent floods, theworst in a century. Audience waskeen to know how Kashmiris areliving under occupation and raisedmany questions and gave com-ments to show their love and af-fection towards Kashmir andpeople of Kashmir. The wife ofPakistani Ambassador to SaudiArabia and women from allwalks of life participated in theevent. The YFK is a grassrootslobbying group led by youngKashmiris and Pakistanisworking to ensure justice toKashmiris living under Indianmilitary occupation.—KMS

SRINAGAR—In occupied Kashmir, Chief Pa-tron of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front-R(JKLF-R), Barrister Abdul Majeed Tramboo,while expressing deep anguish over theChattergam Killings, said that killing innocentpeople was the grave violation of the basic hu-man rights.

Barrister Abdul Majeed Tramboo in a state-ment issued in Srinagar said the fact has beenonce again proven that the draconian laws, whichare giving a free hand to the Indian troops to killanybody they want and such incidents will con-tinue to happen until the laws are not repealed.

He said that India would never succeed

Killing innocent people graveHR violation: Tramboo

in suppressing the liberation struggle. Healso impressed upon the world communityto take strong notice of the grave humanrights violations happening in Kashmir andput pressure on India to repeal all such dra-conian laws in the territory.

Tramboo, while condemning the arrest ofHurriyet leaders included Shabbir Ahmad Shah,Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Muhammad YousufNaqash and many others who have been arrestedor the police is in their search, said that suchtactics would not deter the Hurriyet leaders fromstruggling for securing the Kashmiris’ right toself-determination.—KMS

SRINAGAR—In occupied Kashmir, Chief Pa-tron of Jammu Kashmir Mahaz-e-Azadi (MeA),Muhammad Azam Inqilabi, has condemned theBudgam incident in which two Kashmiri youthwere killed by the Indian troops. MuhammadAzam Inqilabi in a statement issued in Srinagardemanded exemplary punishment for the Indianforce personnel involved in killings.He also de-manded immediate release of Hurriyet leaders,Shabbir Shah, Nayeem Ahmad Khan,

Azam Inqilabi condemnsBudgam incident

Mohammad Yousuf Naqash, Zafar Akbar Butt,Mohammad Yasin Malik and others.He said that the authorities should allow peace-ful election boycott campaign. He said that theIndian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, shouldnot visit Kashmir to run election campaign. Heurged the Indian Prime Minister to take Paki-stan and Kashmiri Hurriyet leadership into con-fidence and initiate tripartite talks for settlementof the lingering Kashmir dispute.—KMS

JAMMU MARTYRS DAYISLAMABAD—Speakersat a function have demanded the opening of Line ofControl (LoC) for flow of relief to the flood victimsin occupied Kashmir, release of all Kashmiri lead-ers and repeal of draconian law from the territory.The demands were made at the event organized byAPHC-AJK in Islamabad, today, to pay tributes tothe martyrs of Jammu. The APHC-AJK Convener,Syed Yousuf Naseem presided over the function.The speakers included the President of Azad Jammuand Kashmir, Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan,

APHC-AJK holds function inmemory of Jammu Martyrs

Chaudhry Lateef Akbar, Muhammad FarooqRehmani, Mehmood Ahmad Saghar, Ghulam NabiNowshehri, Syed Faiz Naqshbandi, Altaf HussainWani, Sheikh Yaqoob, Rafiq Dar, Abdul MajeedMalik, Khateeb Hussain, Athar Wani, Nisar Mirza,Syed Ali, Raza Bukhari, Sheikh Tajammul-ul-Is-lam and Sardar Abid. A resolution was passed, onthe occasion, besides making above demands ap-preciated Prime Minster Nawaz Sharif, Army ChiefGeneral Raheel Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto Zardarifor their bold stance over Kashmir.—KMS

Hurriyet leadercondemns killing

of youth, detentionof Hurriyet leadersSRINAGAR—Hurriyet Confer-ence Jammu and Kashmir leaderand Vice Chairman of Jammuand Kashmir Islamic PoliticalParty, Abdul Hamid Lone hasstrongly condemned the deten-tion of party Chairman,Mohammad Yousuf Naqash andother Hurriyet leaders and kill-ing of two civilians by Indianarmy’s Rashtriya Rifles firing atChattergam in Budgam few daysago. Abdul Hamid Lone in astatement expressing solidaritywith the victim families of FaizalAhmad Bhat and Mehraj-u-dinDar has appealed to the interna-tional human rights bodies in-cluding UNHRC and Amnestyto take notice of the going onhuman rights violations in Kash-mir. He said that the sentimentsof the people of Kashmircouldn’t be weakened throughkillings, arrests, detentions, re-strictions and other repressivetactics. He deplored that Indiahad converted Kashmir into amilitary garrison where its forcesunder black laws were commit-ting gross human rights viola-tions. He while expressing seri-ous concern over the deteoratinghealth of the detained liberationleaders including Shabir AhmadShah, Mohammad Yasin Malik,Nayeem Ahmad Khan,Mohammad Yousuf Naqash,Zaffar Akbar Bhat and ShabirAhmad urged world communityto take strict notice of it. Hurriyetleader also appealed to UnitedNations General Secretary BankiMoon to resolve the Kashmirdispute for ensuring economicprosperity of the region and theworld at large as per theKashmiris’ aspirations.—KMS

DAK to observeFriday as Black

Day againstyouth killings

SRINAGAR—In occupied Kash-mir, the Doctors AssociationKashmir (DAK) will observeNovember 7th, as black day toprotest the killing of two inno-cent youths in Indian troops fir-ing at Chattargam a few daysago.Dr Nisar-ul-Hassan, Presi-dent DAK, in a statement inSrinagar said “Doctors and para-medics in Kashmir hospitals willwear black bands to register theirprotest against the brutal civiliankillings by Indian forces.” Hesaid that youths in Kashmir arebeing targeted by Indian armedforces in a well-planned con-spiracy. “India has deprivedKashmiris of all civil liberties,and by killing innocent civiliansshe has crossed all limits of hu-man rights violations,” DrHassan said. He added that theDAK would file a petition be-fore United Nations HumanRights Council seeking its inter-vention to stop civilian killingsby Indian forces in Kashmir.—KMS

ISE-10 indexwitnesses

bearish trendI S L A M A B A D — T h eIslamabad Stock Exchange(ISE) on Thursday wit-nessed bearish trend as theISE-10 index was down by88.58 points to close at4027.24 points. A total of302,000 shares were traded,which showed a negativegrowth of 288,500 shares,when compared with previ-ous day trading of 13,500shares.

Out of 157 companies,share prices of 78 compa-nies recorded increasewhile those of 79 compa-nies decreased. The shareprice of Siemens PakistanEngineering increased byRs.55.51, while that ofSanofi Aventis Pakistandecreased by Rs 25.92.Askari Bank, Byco Petro-leum, Nishat ChunianPower Ltd remained thetop trading companieswith 151,000,149,000,1,500shares respectively.—APP

Mobicashpartners withSOS Village

ISLAMABAD—Mobicash,the fastest growing Mo-bile financial service inPakistan, has signed anagreement with SOS Vil-lage, Islamabad to facili-tate donation collections.The service allows collec-tion of donation as low asRupees 10 throughMobicash Retail outletsand Mobicash MobileAccounts. Contributionsare routed throughMobicash’s secure finan-cial management networkdirectly in to SOS Village’saccount ensuring maxi-mum transparency.

Aniqa Afzal SandhuDirector Mobile FinancialServices, Mobilink com-menting on the partner-ship said, “Mobilink as asocially responsible cor-porate organization hasalways been at the fore-front when it comes tosupporting the commu-nity. The partnership withSOS village is reflective ofour commitment to thesociety.—PR

3 ships berthat Port Qasim

KARACHI—Three shipscarrying containers andcement were berthed atQasim International Con-tainers Terminal and MultiPurpose Terminal respec-tively. Meanwhile six moreships carrying containers,furnace oil and edible oilalso arrived at outer an-chorage of Port Qasimduring last 24 hours.

Berth occupancy was55% at the port on Thurs-day where six shipsnamely Maersk Pitts-burgh, CGM Rablais,Danos-Z, DynamicOcean, Glory Trader andAble Sallor are currentlyoccupying berths to load/offload containers, ce-ment, seeds and edible oilrespectively during last 24hours. A cargo volume of43796 tonnes comprising24317 tonnes imports adnd 19479 tonnes exportsinclusive of containerisedcargo carried in 693 con-tainers (TEUs) werehandled at the port duringlast 24 hours.—APP

Currency Selling Buying

USA 102.80 102.60

UK 164.17 163.85

Euro 128.44 128.19

Canada 90.18 90.01

Switzerland 106.69 106.48

Australia 88.20 88.03

Sweden 13.95 13.92

Japan 0.8944 0.8927

Norway 15.03 15.01

Singapore 79.42 79.26

Denmark 17.26 17.23

Saudi Arabia 27.40 27.34

Hong Kong 13.26 13.23

Kuwait 353.40 352.72

Malaysia 30.76 30.70

Newzealand 79.17 79.02

Qatar 28.23 28.18

UAE 27.99 27.93

Kr Won 0.0942 0.0941

Thailand 3.133 3.127

Daily opening& closing ratesPMEX Index 2,770Total Volume (Lots): 18,299Traded Value (Rs): 3,568,693,780

Commodity -------------------- Price Quotation --------------- Open ---------- CloseCRUDE OIL ------------------- $ Per Barrel --------------------- 77.16 ----------- 78.86SILVER ------------------------- $ Per Ounce -------------------- 15.978 --------- 15.352GOLD --------------------------- $ Per Ounce -------------------- 1,167.1 -------- 1,144.4GOLD --------------------------- Rs Per 10 gms ------------------ 38,735 --------- 37,969MTOLAGOLD --------------- Rs Per Tola --------------------- 46,452 --------- 45,575GOLD --------------------------- Rs Per Tola --------------------- 46,452 --------- 45,575RICEIRRI6 --------------------- Rs Per 100 kg ------------------- 3,312 ----------- 3,311PALMOLEIN ----------------- Rs Per Maund ----------------- 3,964 ----------- 3,963SUGAR ------------------------- Rs Per kg ------------------------ 48.35 ----------- 48.34ICOTTON --------------------- US Cents per pound --------- 62.99 ----------- 62.86WHEAT ------------------------ Rs Per 100 kg ------------------- 3,414 ----------- 3,413

The total value traded was PKR 3.56 billion and number of lots traded was 18,299.PMEX Commodity Index closed at 2,770. Major business was contributed by crudeoil amounting to PKR 2.22 billion followed by gold (PKR 1.16 billion) and silver(PKR 187 million).

ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecommunication,Anusha Rahman chairing a meeting to review ministry progress.

PESHAWAR: President Peshawar Fruit Traders Association, Haji Alif Jan is briefingFawad Ishaq, President KPPCI regarding the problems of fruit traders of city.

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for National Food Security & Research SikandarHayat Boasan meeting with farmers’ delegation to discuss the matter regarding lowprice of rice.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan TelecommunicationCompany Limited (PTCL) has introduced ahighly lucrative Voluntary Separation Pack-age for its employees. This scheme shallbe available for one month, effective fromNovember 5th 2014. The VSS scheme isvoluntary and highly rewarding and offersa wide array of benefits to the employeesincluding transition bonus, transition pay,allowance benefits, health fund and leaveencashment etc. As part of retirement ben-efits, multiple options have been offeredwhich allow employees to select the op-tion, most suitable to their future aspira-tions. Besides reducing retirement age from20 to 18 years, the additional two years’benefit has also been added to eligible pen-sioners. In addition to these benefits, em-ployees are topped up with Early Bird Bo-nus (Rs. 200,000) and Group Bonus (Rs.150,000), fulfilling the requisite conditions.

As PTCL truly adheres to its commit-ment for its people even after their exit, the

Chairman Shari’aBoard of DubaiIslamic Bankvisits Pakistan

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Dr. HusseinHamed Hassan, Chairman of

Shari’a Board for Dubai Is-lamic Bank (DIB) the world’sfirst Islamic Bank visited re-cently visited Pakistan tomeet various Shari’a Schol-ars, Government Dignitaries,senior Islamic Bankers, StateBank of Pakistan officials (in-cluding Mr. Saeed Ahmed,Deputy Governor State Bankof Pakistan), prominent Paki-stani businessmen and DubaiIslamic Bank Pakistan(DIBPL) management. Dr.Hussein during his visit heldvarious crucial meetings onIslamic Banking and Shari’acompliance with major stake-holders in the country.

He is considered as oneof the founding fathers of Is-lamic finance due to his im-mense contribution to devel-oping structures for the dayto day running of Islamicbanks and financial institu-tions. He is also known forhis extensive contribution forthe institutionalization of Is-lamic banking and the financeindustry. With a career span-ning more than 50 years, Dr.Hussein has played the roleof an economic and educa-tion advisor in various Is-lamic Republics includingformulating new laws on Is-lamic Finance.

Azeem Qureashiappointed new GMR AWA L P I N D I — H a s h o oGroup recently announcesthe appointment of Mr.Muhammad Azeem Qureashias General Manager at thePearl Continental Hotel,Rawalpindi, Azeem has built

a 20+ years career in hospi-tality, a career that has takenhim to various parts of Paki-stan and overseas. With hisgreat expertise, vision, andpassion in the hospitality in-dustry, “he brings a deep un-derstanding of Project Man-agement, Public Relations,Events and making the Ho-tel a happening place.

He will lead the team ofPearl Continental,Rawalpindi to continuallyprovide a higher level of thewarm and caring service toboth the business and lei-sure.”—PR

PTCL introduces highly lucrativeVoluntary Separation Scheme

company is also providing outplacementservices to the employees, where theywould be helped in their transition to newcareer streams, with the help of externalsourcing companies.

The Financial Advisory Services shallbe provided to the Optees for better cashmanagement through external financial in-stitutes. Besides these benefits, VocationalTrainings shall also be offered to them atPTCL’s cost. These measures shall helpthem manage their future in an effective andefficient manner.

Syed Mazhar Hussain, Chief HumanResource Officer PTCL commented, “ThisVoluntary scheme offered by PTCL ishighly people centric. Being a responsiblecompany, we always consider our employ-ees welfare, the first and foremost priority.The scheme is specially designed for thepeople, aspiring to shape their future whiletaking advantages from multiple benefitsoffered by the company. We hope that thisscheme shall shape the future of PTCL andits people in the best possible manner.”

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Sub-standardcooking oil and vegetableghee being sold and con-sumed frequently is shoot-ing up number of patientssufferings from fatal diseasesin Pakistan! Each and everyfood item need to have a fit-ness certificate before allow-ing to go the market.

Chairman PakistanVanaspati Mills Association(PVMA), Atif Ikram saidthat the government shouldcontrol the production ofsubstandard ghee/cookingoil in the country and thespread of food items not fitfor human consumption is aserious crime and should beeliminated from the societyby activating the depart-ments responsible to checkquality and standards offood items. According tolaws and guidelines, it ismandatory by the govern-

Sub-standard cooking Oil &Ghee causing fatal diseases

ment of Pakistan that allcooking oils must be regis-tered with PSQCA, said. Headded that majority of cook-ing oils are not registeredwith PSQCA, yet carry thePSQCA quality assurance.

Ikram complained theopen sale of substandardghee and oil in the countrywhile the concerned au-thorities have turned a blindeye towards the hazardousmatter. Atif said that sub-standard and contaminatedproducts are rampantly soldand consumed in the coun-try as there is no nationalbody or legislation on foodsafety. He demanded con-cerned authorities to takestern action against theghee mills that were produc-ing and selling low qualityproducts. PVMA requestedthe government to ensureselling of standard oil in thecountry so as to save con-sumers from exploitation.

AMANULLAH KHAN

KARACHI—High cost of export of riceand erosion of its competitive edge inglobal market such as non-availabil-ity of sound containers especially forrice; ever increasing container termi-nal charges viz-a-viz poor services;inordinate delay in refund claims onSale Tax paid by the rice exporters ontheir electricity bills; Development ofinfrastructure from Export Develop-ment Fund (EDF) for uninterruptedpower supply; passing of trickledowneffect to industry in fuel adjustmentcharges due to reduction in POL pricesin international market etc,

This was highlighted by the riceexports while discussing the prob-lems faced in the process of rice ex-port with President FPCCI ZakariyaUsman at FPCCI today. The delega-tion of Rice Exporters Association ofPakistan (REAP) led by its ChairmanRafique Suleman held a meeting withits President, Mr. Zakaria Usman andhighlighted various problems re-sponsible for Khurram Sayeed and

Ismail Suttar, Vice Presidents ofFPCCI, Saquib Fayyaz Magoon,Chairman FPCCI Standing Committeeon Customs and others were alsopresent on the occasion.

The FPCCI Chief, Zakaria Usmanresponding to the poor services ex-tended by the container terminal op-erators (CTOs) during examinationof goods by Anti Narcotic Force(ANF) at ports informed that FPCCIhad recently organized two jointmeetings of all the stakeholders in-volved in these processes at portsviz Traders; Regional Directorate ofANF; Port Operating Companies(KICT, PICT and QICT); KPT; PQA,SBP etc., wherein it was mutuallydecided that CTOs would either hiresufficient trained and skilled man-power for improvement in their ser-vices or outsource it to a third partyhaving professional expertise in re-packing of goods and re-stuffing incontainers.

Regarding problems related to ex-port proceeds and charging of differ-ent freight rates at different rupee-dol-

lar parity rates by each shipping com-pany due to non monitoring of For-eign Exchange Policy by the StateBank of Pakistan, the FPCCI Presidentinvited the REAP delegation to pre-pare its proposals and take them-upin the meeting with the Governor SBPwho is scheduled to visit FPCCIshortly. He also urged the shippingcompanies to reduce the containerscharges for rice as it is a low value andhigh volume item as compared to othervalue added goods like textile etc.

In response to charging GST onelectricity bills of rice exporters,Zakaria Usman advised the REAPmembers to prepare a comprehensiveproposal for including rice as a tradi-tional item in zero rated sales tax re-gime like textile, leather, surgicalgoods, sports goods and carpet in-dustrial sub-sectors. The FPCCI Presi-dent further asked the delegation toprepare its proposal for seeking finan-cial assistance from EDF for the de-velopment of dedicated line from K-Electric feeder to their cluster area toensure smooth supply of power.

OBSERVER REPORT

LAHORE—PakWheels.comhas closed one of the largest,disclosed, venture capital in-vestment deals into a Paki-stan technology venture.Frontier Digital Ventures, aMalaysia based venture capi-tal fund focused on onlineclassifieds businesses in theemerging and frontier mar-kets, will invest US$3.5 Mil-lion into PakWheels.comOver the last 10 years,PakWheels.com has helpedmillions of Pakistanis buy &sell cars and bikes, read auto-motive reviews and news,check automotive prices andfind solutions to their auto-motive needs.

Despite the introductionof competing classifiedswebsites by giants likeNaspers, Schibsted and otherinternational internet firms,PakWheels.com has managedto grow its market share ow-ing largely to the cult-like fol-lowing of its brand, a veryloyal user base, great execu-tion by the management teamand marketing programs thatare inclusive of the brick and

Pakwheels.Com raises$3.5m to fuel further growth

mortar car dealerships in thecountry. Muhammad RazaSaeed, Co-Founder and CEOof PakWheels.com, said whilecommenting on the deal,“Pakistan’s Internet user baseis expected to grow to 100million users by 2019 and wewant to be the go-to place foranything and everything todo with wheels for this onlinepopulation. This round offunding will help usstrengthen our leadershipposition, improve existingservices and build new offer-ings. Think Wheels, ThinkPakWheels.”

CEO and Founder ofFrontier Digital Ventures,Shaun Di Gregorio, re-marked, “PakWheels.comepitomizes the kind of busi-ness that Frontier DigitalVentures is seeking to in-vest in. We love frontier andemerging markets and havea wealth of expertise and aproven track record of ex-tracting value in the oppor-tunities these marketspresent, so we are reallylooking forward to workingwith the team to take theportal to its full potential.”

Bank Alflah winstop Islamic

finance awardAMANULLAH KHAN

KARACHI—Bank Alfalah’sIslamic Banking Group hasbeen awarded the ‘Best Is-lamic Banking Window of aCommercial Bank in Pakistan’by Global Islamic FinanceAward (GIFA). The award isconsidered to be one of themost prestigious awards inthe world of Islamic bankingand finance, developed by‘Edbiz Consulting’, an Islamicfinance consultancy divisionof the London based EdbizCorporation UK. Speaking atthe award ceremony, Mr.Rizwan Ata, Head of BankAlfalah’s Islamic BankingGroup said, “By focusing onevolving Islamic financial so-lutions, we continuouslystrive to fulfill our commit-ment to our customers usingthe trust we have gained overthe years and this has beenpivotal to our success.”

Bank Alfalah Islamic Bank-ing began in 2003 with 5branches in 4 cities and be-came profitable within threeyears of commencing opera-tions and since then hasshown steady year-on-yeargrowth. Today it is the sec-ond largest Islamic BankingOperation in the country with147 dedicated Islamicbranches offering a completerange of Shariah CompliantIslamic Banking solutions forCorporate SME/Commercialand Consumer Banking cus-tomers. Bank Alfalah began itsoperations in 1997 and hasgrown rapidly to become thesixth largest player inPakistan’s financial servicesindustry, the second largestIslamic Bank and the largestissuer and acquirer of creditcards in the country.

Conversion ratesKARACHI—The followingrates will be applicable forconversion into rupees ofForeign Currency Deposits,Dollar Bearer Certificates,Foreign Currency BearerCertificates, Special U.S.Dollar Bonds and profitsthereon by all banks and forproviding Forward Coveron Foreign Currency Depos-its (excluding F.E- 25 depos-its) by the State Bank onNovember 7, 2014.—APP

ISLAMABAD: Chairman PARC, Dr Iftikhar Ahmad, Prof. M.N.M. Ibrahim, ILRICountry Representative-Pakistan, Dr. Shahid Rafique, Member (ASD) PARC and Dr.Ben Lukuyu of ILRI together at inaugural session of four-day training of facilitatorson farmer-centred diagnosis using the feed assessment (FEAST) tool under AIP-Pakistan at local hotel.

High rices export prices erodingcompetitiveness in Int’l market

KHULNA: Hamilton Masakadza was bowled for 158 during Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe 2nd Test’s 4th day on Thursday.

PARIS: Barcelona’s Argentinian forward Lionel Messi shoots during the UEFA Champions League football matchbetween Ajax Amsterdam and FC Barcelona in Amsterdam.

Misbah-ul-Haq receiving the Zong award for equalling the record for the fastest testinnings against Australia in UAE.

BRUSSELS—Belgium coach Marc Wilmotsrecalled striker Christian Benteke on Thurs-day for next week’s friendly against Icelandand a Euro 2016 qualifier against Wales.

Benteke last played for Belgium inMarch before an Achilles tendon ruptureput paid to his chances of appearing at theWorld Cup.

The big Belgian has returned to actionwith Aston Villa in the past few weeks, al-though he was sent off on Sunday in a 2-1defeat by Tottenham Hotspur.

Belgium recall Benteke forIceland friendly, Wales qualifier

Wilmots has also recalled Anderlechtright back Anthony Vanden Borre after in-jury and selected for the first timeAnderlecht midfielder Dennis Praet. The 20-year-old has been in fine form for the Bel-gian champions this season.

Belgium will be without midfielderSteven Defour, who also plays forAnderlecht, due to a calf strain.

Belgium play Iceland in a friendly inBrussels on Nov. 12 and a Group B qualifieragainst Wales on Nov. 16. Both matchesare in Brussels.

Squad: Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois(Chelsea), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool),Jean-Francois Gillet (Torino) Defenders:Toby Alderweireld (Southampton),Sebastien Pocognoli (West BromwichAlbion), Vincent Kompany (ManchesterCity), Jason Denayer (Glasgow Celtic),Laurent Ciman (Standard Liege), NicolasLombaerts (Zenit St Petersburg), AnthonyVanden Borre (Anderlecht), Jan Vertonghen(Tottenham Hotspur) Midfielders: AxelWitsel (Zenit St Petersburg), MoussaDembele, Nacer Chadli (both TottenhamHotspur), Radja Nainggolan (AS vRoma),Kevin De Bruyne (VfL Wolfsburg),Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United),Dennis Praet (Anderlecht) Forwards:Dries Merten (Napoli), Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco (AS Monaco), Eden Hazard(Chelsea), Adnan Januzaj (ManchesterUnited), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), DivockOrigi (Lille), Christian Benteke (AstonVilla).—APP

SAFF Women’sFootball fromNovember 11

ISLAMABAD—The 3rd SAFFWomen’s Football Champi-onship will be staged hereat Jinnah Stadium of the Pa-kistan Sports Complex fromNovember 11 to 20 with in-ternational teams competingin the event to vie for thetop honour.

A Pakistan Football Fed-eration (PFF) official toldAPP that the countries ofAfghanistan, Bangladesh,Bhutan, India, Maldives,Nepal, Pakistan and SriLanka will be participatingin the mega event.

“The IPC Minister hasassured his all-out supportto PFF in hosting theevent,” he said PFF Presi-dent Makhdoom Syed FaisalSaleh Hayat’s tireless ef-forts, as he worked day andnight to ensure this high-profile event’s allocation toPakistan.—APP

Shah Gymkhanabeat Iqra in

Shahjee CricketGold Cup

P E S H A W A R — S h a hGymkhana defeated Iqraclub by one wicket in theongoing 5th Shahjee GoldCup Cricket Tournamentbeing played here atGymkhana ground onThursday.

Shah Gymkhana won thetoss and invited Iqra club tobat first. Iqra club battingfirst scored 106 for the lossof all wickets after playing27.3 overs of the allotted 35overs. Only Zahir Shah (26)and Salahuddin (26) werethe key contributors, noneof the other batsmen couldcross the double figures.For Shah Gymkhana Alamgirand Adil took two wicketseach while Adil Karim andHanif got one wicket each.

In reply, ShahGymkhana chased the targetfor the loss of nine wicketsin which Yousaf Yaqoob (36)with three boundaries, Nasir(26) and Hamid (18) were the

Trials forselection of

BISE cricketteam tomorrow

FAISALABAD—The open tri-als for selection of cricketteam of Board of Intermedi-ate and Secondary Educa-tion Faisalabad (BISE) forinter-boards cricket (boys)competitions for sports ses-sion 2013-14 will be held onNov 8 at GovernmentIslamia College SargodhaRoad here.

The regular students 14to 20 years of age from allhigh schools and collegesfrom Faisalabad, Chiniot,Tobe Tek Singh and Jhangare eligible to participate intrials, said Director SportsBISE, Imtiaz Ahmed.

He added that inter-col-legiate boys’ cricket compe-titions for sports session2014-15 have been post-poned till third week of Janu-ary next year. All Pakistaninter-boards girls hockeychampionship 2014-15 willbegin at hockey stadiumhere from November 12,Imtiaz said.—APP

KHULNA (Bangladesh)—On Wednes-day, Shakib Al Hasan had laid down adifficult blueprint for Bangladesh, ifthey were to force a win in Khulna:get five wickets in an hour, score quickruns, then take the ten Zimbabwe wick-ets quickly. On Thursday, he did notveer too far from his plans in the firsthour, striking early and registering his13th five-wicket haul, but thenBangladesh were made to wait byRegis Chakabva’s maiden Test cen-tury.

The Bangladesh innings, despitethe middle-order wobble and lack ofenergy, was not too far off either fromthe second objective of Shakib’s plan:

to set atarget andleave theirb o w l e r sw i t he n o u g htime totake tenZ i m b a -bwe wick-ets. Theyseesawedfrom peri-ods ofs l o w -scoring tohigh-scor-ing, fromp a r t n e r -ships toq u i c kl o s s e s ,but by theend of the

BD 1st innings: ......... 433Zimbabwe 1st innings:368Bangladesh 2nd innings:Tamim c & b Panyangara 20Shamsur b Waller .......... 23Mominul b Waller ......... 54Mahmudullah not out .. 63Shakib lbw b Waller ........ 6Mushfiqur b Waller ........ 0Shuvagata Hom not out 23Extras: (b 4, lb 4, w 3, nb 1)12Total: (5 wickets) ......... 201Fall of wickets: 1-28, 2-75, 3-131, 4-145, 5-145Bowling: ........... O-M-R-WE Chigumbura ...... 6-2-13-0T Panyangara ...... 8-2-34-1TL Chatara ........... 7-3-19-0Waller .................. 21-4-48-4Sikandar ................ 6-0-22-0M’shangwe ........ 16-1-57-0

SCOREBOARD

Shakib puts Bangladesh ontop in Zimbabwe Test

day, they had a healthy lead of 266.With the pitch demons showing signsof waking up, Bangladesh will alreadybe comfortable with what they have.

Tamim Iqbal made an encouragingstart, lacing four boundaries beforebeing brilliantly caught and bowled byTinashe Panyangara. But the inningswent into a depression thereafter.Mominul Haque had opened his ac-count with a supremely-timed wristydrive through midwicket before goinginto a shell during a 47-run stand withShamsur Rahman, who scored a pains-taking 71-ball 23. The two had, how-ever, ensured the overall lead at teawas 144.

In the last session, Mominulshowed urgency from the start andruns came quickly. With Brendan Tay-lor hoping to cut down the boundarieswith fielders in the deep, there wereplenty of easy singles. Both Mominuland Mahmudullah found the oddboundary as well to keep growing thelead. From 15 runs off 47 balls,Mominul raised the tempo to reach his50 off 88 balls. It was his seventh Testfifty, but just like the first Test, hewasn’t able to build on it, falling for 54to a bat-pad catch to a Malcolm Wallerdelivery.

Waller, who had dismissedShamsur earlier, jolted Bangladeshwith the wickets of Shakib andMushfiqur Rahim off consecutiveballs. But the stylish Mahmudullahfound support in Shuvagata Hom.Mahmudullah was solid in defenceand severe on anything loose. Hestarted slowly, scoring 13 runs off 34

balls before hitting his first boundary,but picked up the gaps from time totime thereafter. He reached his thirdhalf-century of the series off 104 ballswith a neat push down the ground.By the end of the day, his partnershipwith Hom had swelled to 56.

Zimbabwe’s hopes of minimisingthe first-innings lead had dependedon the overnight pair of HamiltonMasakadza and Chakabva. But Shakibgot a lucky break, getting one to stayextremely low on Masakadza and hit-ting the middle stump. Masakadzacould only add four to his overnightscore.

Shakib struck again to get Waller,who had been dropped on 0 and 1,caught behind with one that spunaway.

Rubel Hossain was rewarded forhis perseverance in the morning andhe picked up the wickets of TendaiChatara and Natsai M’Shangwe in thesame over. Chakabva was on 85 whenZimbabwe lost their ninth wicket, butwith Mushfiqur offering him singleson the fifth and sixth balls of the over,he managed to farm the strike com-fortably. He reached his century in the134th over, exactly 10 overs after lastman Panyangara had joined him. Hewas the last batsman to be dismissedbut by that time Zimbabwe had re-duced the deficit to 65.

Chakabva’s last-wicket partnershipate up almost an hour and added someuseful runs. Zimbabwe will need a simi-lar effort from their batsmen in the sec-ond innings if they are to save thismatch.—AFP

AMANULLAH KHAN

KARACHI—Zong, a subsidiary of ChinaMobile Communications Corporation(CMCC) and Pakistan’s first and only 4Gmobile service provider, congratulatedMisbah Ul Haq & team Pakistan on an ex-ceptional test series victory against themighty Australians. The operator of thefastest 3G network with Zong ‘Super 3G’also hailed Misbah ul Haq for equaling SirViv Richards’ iconic fastest test centuryrecord set in 1986.

Zong was a proud cosponsor for theseries between Pakistan and Australiawhich took place in the UAE. After a set-back in the lone T20 and ODIs, Pakistantriumphed over the Aussies in the Test se-ries with an overwhelming win after a pe-riod of 20 years.

“Zong is pleased to be associated withPakistan Cricket Board, we are extremelyproud of our boys in green for over-power-ing the no.2 ranked test team in the world.

Zong celebrates team Pakistanoutstanding win against Australia

We are a regular patron of cricket in Paki-stan and look forward to many more recordsto be made in the near future. Misbah ulHaq’s fastest test century is something wecan have close association with consider-ing we are the fastest 3G mobile internetservice providers in Pakistan.”, said Mr.Babar Bajwa, Executive Director MarketingZong. “Pakistan is a cricket loving nation,Zong sponsored this series as part of ourcommitment to promote this great game atall levels. We wish the team all the best fortheir upcoming series against NewZealand.”

Over time, Zong has established astrong association with sports as a brand.As the fastest growing cellular network ofPakistan, Zong continues to make a lastingimpact on the lives of every Pakistani. Thecompany has previously taken many ini-tiatives to support various sports activi-ties in Pakistan, the most notable one be-ing their collaboration with Football, Poloand Golf.

PESHAWAR—Abaseen club Mardan movedinto the final after registering victory againstNational club in the semi-final of the ongo-ing 7th NBP District Mardan Inter-ClubFootball Championship being played atYounis Stadium Mardan on Thursday.

Regional Head NBP Atlas Khan was thechief guest on this occasion and the play-ers of both Abaseen club and National clubwere introduced to him before the start ofthe final match. Organizing Secretary andChairman of District Football AssociationAli Gohar and large number of football en-thusiasts were also present on this occa-sion and witnessed the match.

The match was started on slow note andnone of the team could be able to score anygoal and thus the first-half was ended agoal-less draw.

It was the second session in which both

Abaseen Club reach NBPInter-Club Soccer final

Abaseen club Mardan and National clubMayar raided on each other defence withsome spectacular moves as a result firstNational club took the lead in the 49thminute through field attempt when AbidAli netted a fine goal but the lead was notprolonged as it was quickly tied byAbaseen deep defender Tariq Khan whenhe netted a fine goal on the free kick con-version.

When the tally was locked 1-1, it was inthe 62nd minute when Muhammad Ali net-ted a superb goal to make the tally 2-1. Na-tional club forwards tried their hard to levelthe tally but failed and thus Abaseen clubwon the match by 2-1. The match was su-pervised by Ali Rehman while HameedKhan and Muhammad Sohail acted asdeputy referees while Zahir Muhammadacted as match commissioner.—APP

PARIS (Barcelona)—Bayern Munich, ParisSaint-Germain and Porto all qualified for theChampions League last 16 with Lionel Messisetting another personal milestone.

Messi scored both goals — one with aheader for only the fourth time in the compe-tition — as Barca beat Ajax 2-0 to equal Raul’srecord of 71 goals in the tournament.

“I am happy for Leo because of the workhe does for the team. He is the number one,the best,” said Barca midfielder XaviHernandez.

Bayern went through after a 2-0 victoryat home to Roma, PSG saw off APOEL 1-0while Porto beat Athletic Bilbao 2-0 with theirgoalscorers Colombian Jackson Martinezand Algerian Yacine Brahimi both taking theirtallies to four in this season’s competition.

Champions Real Madrid and BorussiaDortmund made sure of their last-16 placeson Tuesday.

However, Chelsea missed a chance toalso reach the knockout stages as they hadto come from behind to snatch a 1-1 drawwith minnows Maribor in Slovenia.

The 2012 winners, though, are in a farbetter state than English champions

Messi equals record, Barcelonalead quartet into last 16

Manchester City whose mystifying failureto perform well in the competition continuedas they had two men sent off in an embar-rassing 2-1 home defeat to Russian outfitCSKA Moscow, who recorded their first everwin in England.Their results rounded off apoor week for English clubs in the Champi-ons League with Liverpool losing and Arse-nal drawing 3-3 with Anderlecht, the Gun-ners having let a 3-0 lead slip in the final halfhour on Tuesday.

Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk alsolook certain to reach the last 16 after a 5-0thrashing of Belarus champions BATEBorisov, Luiz Adriano adding to his five goalsin the 7-0 win a fortnight ago with a hat-trickto move further clear in this season’s overallscoring charts with nine.

Porto’s fellow Portuguese side SportingLisbon are also in with a chance of reachingthe next phase as they revived their cam-paign with a 4-2 home win over Schalke 04.

Sporting’s Islam Slimani bookended thescoring, firstly putting through his own netto give the Germans the lead and then en-suring the hosts secured the points right atthe end.—AFP

UoP Inter-CollegeBoys AnnualSports Games

start from Nov 24PESHAWAR—Inter-CollegeBoys Annual Sports Gamesunder the aegis of DirectorateSports University of Peshawarfrom November 24 here at dif-ferent venues inside thecamps.

This was stated by Direc-tor Sports and Organizing Sec-retary Bare-Karam while talk-ing to APP after attendingmeeting of the Executive Com-mittee of the University ofPeshawar Sports Committee(UoPSC) here on Thursday.

He said the draws of all 12different games have beendiscussed in detail wherein allarrangements would be madewell in time. He said 12 gamesincluded Athletic, Badminton,Basketball, Football, Cricket,Handball, Hockey, Table Ten-nis, Tennis, Tug-of-War,Squash and Volleyball.

He said Professor Ghani-ur-Rehman, Principal Govern-ment Degree CollegeLandikotel, Khyber Agency,will act as President Univer-sity of Peshawar Sports Com-mittee (UoPSC).

The meeting, he said, wasalso attended by DirectorPhysical Education, who aremembers of the that commit-tee, comprising NawabzadaKhan (Edwards CollegePeshawar), Zafar Iqbal (Gov-ernment College Peshawar),Safdar Khan (GovernmentCollege Matra), Salim Khan(Post Graduate DepartmentUniversity of Peshawar),Muhammad Zaib (Govern-ment Commerce CollegeLandikotel), Khalid Usman(Government Commerce Col-lege Peshawar).—APP

ALICANTE (Spain)—Abu DhabiOcean Racing has claimed the 6,487-nautical mile opening leg of the VolvoOcean Race from Alicante to CapeTown after 25 days and three hours atsea.

They had been pursued by Chi-nese entry Dongfeng Race Team whoclosed to within three miles but couldnot close the gap in the South Atlan-tic chase into Cape Town on Wednes-day.

Victory for the Emirate boat was apersonal triumph for its British skip-per Ian Walker who was also in chargeof the Abu Dhabi crew in 2011-12 whenthey were forced to return to shore onthe first night of sailing because of abroken mast.

This time, Walker and his team

Yachting: Abu Dhabi Ocean Racingwin first leg of Volvo Ocean Race

sailed a perfect leg through the Medi-terranean and Atlantic but the skipperhas gone without sleep over the pasttwo days to ensure victory. He haseither been helming the boat or por-ing over the boat’s satellite trackerdata in the cabin.

The boat’s onboard reporter, MattKnighton, has painted a vivid pictureof Walker and his anxieties asDongfeng nipped at their heels.

“Wearing his stress and nervous-ness onboard, Ian hasn’t been able tosleep. His eyes are bloodshot, he’sjumped for each perceived decreasein boat speed and his familiar humouris subdued under a quieter exterior,”he wrote in a daily log for Race con-trol.

“It’s quite emotional actually,”

Walker told Race HQ, minutes aftercrossing the line.

“I didn’t think I would be - but thatlast couple of hours, they threw ev-erything at us,” he smiled, “We’ve hadpeople ride on our heels for the last 10days or so. I must congratulateDongfeng, an absolutely fantasticperformance.”

Second place for Dongfeng is asurprise. The eight-man crew includestwo Chinese sailors, Jin Hao Chen andJiru Yang, who have never sailedaround the world before.

However, their French skipperCharles Caudrelier has sailed a verycanny tactical race despite suffering abroken rudder two and half weeks agoand a shattered wheel - the boat hastwo - last week.—AFP

ALICANTE, Spain: The Abu Dhabi yacht sails into Table Bay, winning the first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, aftersailing from Alicante, Spain to Cape Town after just over 25 days at sea.

ABU DHABI—Pakistan retained thesame 16-man squad for the first Testagainst New Zealand in Dubai, whichearlier this week defeated Australia ina series, selectors said Thursday.

Pakistan won the two-Test seriesagainst Australia 2-0, their first winagainst their opponents in 20 years.

Chief selector Moin Khan said itwas necessary to keep the consis-tency in the first of three Tests start-ing from Sunday.

“This is to ensure there is consis-tency, which will bring more stabilityand strengthen team bonding andcombination,” Moin is quoted in aPakistan Cricket Board release.

Moin said the win highlighted the

Pakistan maintain winningcombination against Kiwis

efforts by the players and the supportstaff.

“We´re proud of Team Pakistan´sachievement in the series against Aus-tralia, which has been acclaimed lo-cally and internationally. It was a he-roic performance, led by the experi-enced duo of Younis Khan andMisbah-ul-Haq, admirably supported

by the youngsters, and good trainingby the support staff,” said Moin.

Younis amassed 468 runs in thetwo matches while Misbah hit centu-ries in each innings of the second Test,besides setting the new recode forfastest Test half-century off just 21balls and equalling the fastest hun-dred record of 56 balls.

“There is no change to the side

from the Abu Dhabi Test against Aus-tralia as we wanted to ensure there isconsistency.”

The remaining two Tests will beplayed in Dubai (November 17-21) andSharjah (November 26-30)

Pakistan will also play twoTwenty20 and five one-day interna-tional against New Zealand, for which

squads will be announcedlater.

Meanwhile, SkipperMisbah-ul-Haq believes the1992 World Cup victory willhelp the green-shirts at ev-ery stage during next year’stournament saying Pakistanhas unforgettable memoriesfrom the event when it waslast staged in Australia andNew Zealand. Misbah, the veteran of 151

ODIs hopes that the ICCCricket World Cup 1992 vic-tory will guide his sidethrough to next year’s event,says a press release issuedhere. He said Pakistan has un-

forgettable memories fromthe event when it was laststaged in Australia and NewZealand. “The 1992 WorldCup will help us at everystage during next year’s tour-nament,” he said. Talking about the World

Cup, Misbah said the bestof the best in ODIs assembleonce in four years at theWorld Cup, and this is ex-actly what makes the WorldCup such a special and

unique event, not only for the playersbut also for the fans around the world.

Squad for first New Zealand Test:Misbah-ul Haq (captain), AhmedShehzad, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq,Ehsan Adil, Haris Sohail, Imran Khan,Mohammad Hafeez, MohammadTalha, Rahat Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed, ShanMasood, Taufiq Umar, Yasir Shah,Younis Khan, Zulfiqar Babar.—AFP

SYDNEY—Former Australia captains RickyPonting, Steve Waugh and Allan Borderthrew their support behind embattled skip-per Michael Clarke Thursday, saying it wasridiculous to be questioning his credentials.

Clarke arrived in Sydney on Wednes-day after the team’s thumping 2-0 Test lossto Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates to abarrage of questions over whether he re-mained the best man to head the side.Ponting said Clarke, despite battling a formslump, remained his pick as captain.

“I think that was quite ridiculous, to tellyou the truth,” he said of the grilling Clarkereceived, as the three former captains gath-ered to mark 100 days before the start ofthe 2015 World Cup, to be co-hosted byAustralia and New Zealand.

Read|100-day countdown: How theteams are shaping up for the World cup

“The team’s done some amazing things

in the last couple of years and got them-selves back up to number one in two formsof the game at least, had some amazing se-ries whitewashes and things.

“We know that out of the last couple ofweeks the guys didn’t handle the condi-tions that well over there (in the UAE) but...it’s two Test matches, a bit of a blip on what’sotherwise been a pretty good copybook forthe last couple of years.

“So hopefully they can learn from theirmistakes over the last couple of weeks,move on and be a better team in Asia forcoming tournaments. “Clarke has averaged

Former Aussie captainsback Clarke

just 27.46 in his last 16 innings and man-aged just 2, 3, 47 and 5 in his four inningsduring Australia’s series loss to Pakistan.

On Wednesday he defended his recordand said he was not worried about losingthe captaincy. Waugh said he had nodoubts that Clarke would emerge from hisslump and said calling his leadership intoquestion was unfair.

“I can’t understand that. I mean, everyplayer goes through a time where they’renot scoring runs,” he told reporters.

“But he’s had an incredible run, 5-0against England last year, beating SouthAfrica away (this year) was an amazing re-sult for Australia.

“So you’ve got to put it into context. Itwas two Test matches, we didn’t play well.

“Let’s judge the side after maybe an-other six, 12 months and see how they’regoing. But I think he’s done a fantastic job.

“Border was also surprised by the criticismlevelled at Clarke.“They’ve got short memo-ries,” he said. “A couple of weeks of poorcricket doesn’t change the quality. I thinkhe’s definitely the right bloke. “

Clarke admitted this week that his teamhad not learnt their lesson against spin af-ter a 4-0 rout in India early last year andtheir mauling at the hands of Pakistan, butsaid his focus was now on the bumper Aus-tralian summer. It kicks off for him with afive-match one-day series against SouthAfrica starting on Friday week.—AFP

SYDNEY: Australia’s cricket team captain Michael Clarke laughs with former cap-tains Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and Allan Border as they gather around World Cuptrophy in front of iconic land mark Opera House during a media event for the 100-daycountdown to the 2015 Cricket World Cup on Thursday.

I will be morelethal withimproved

action: AjmalLAHORE—Pakistan’s spinmaestro Saeed Ajmal onThursday vowed to returnto cricket and bowl betterwith an improved bowlingaction.

Talking to the media at theNational Cricket Academy(NCA) in Lahore, Ajmal re-vealed he had undergone‘promising tests’ and that hewas working on improvinghis action to ensure his re-turn to cricket. Expressinghopes of achieving positiveresults over his action, theoff-spinner said his practiceroutine matched interna-tional standards.

Ajmal said that follow-ing his ouster from the team,left-armer Zulfiqar Babar hadput up an excellent exhibi-tion of classical spin bowl-ing against the Australians.He also praised pacer ImranKhan who picked up vitalwickets against the Aussies.

The top-ranked Ajmalwas banned from interna-tional cricket in Septemberafter the InternationalCricket Council (ICC) haddeclared his action as ‘ille-gal’.—APP

Lee witnessessecond dopingtest in Norway

KUALA LUMPUR—Malaysia’s badminton world

number one Lee Chong Weihas witnessed a seconddoping test on his urinesample in Norway after aninitial test came back posi-tive for a banned substance,newspaper reports saidThursday.

Lee, accompanied bytop Malaysian sports offi-cials, flew to Norway thisweek and was presentWednesday when thesample was opened at anOslo laboratory, The Starand New Straits Times re-ported. The results, whichare expected to be known onThursday, will be given tothe Badminton World Fed-eration.

If the second sample ispositive, the 32-year-oldLee could be stripped of thesilver medal he won at the2014 World Championships,where the sample wastaken, and suspended for upto two years. Badmintonand other sports officialscould not immediately bereached for comment.

Malaysian sports offi-cials had earlier confirmedthat they were informed inan October 1 letter that oneof the nation’s shuttlersfailed a doping test at an in-ternational tournament, butrefused to identify him.

However, Malaysian me-dia have widely reported thatLee tested positive for dexam-ethasone, an anti-inflamma-tory drug, during the WorldChampionships in Denmark inlate August.—AFP

BANGKOK—Asia’s Olympic chief ruledout rescheduling the 2022 Winter Olym-pics to avoid the Qatar World Cup onThursday as moves gather pace to shiftfootball’s showpiece to a cooler time ofyear.

Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah,head of Asia’s Olympic body and theworldwide Association of National Olym-pic Committees (ANOC), said he was surethe two events would not clash.

But, speaking to reporters during an

ANOC meeting in Bangkok, the highly in-fluential Kuwaiti said the World Cup hadto fit in around the Winter Olympics, andnot the other way round.

“I think the Olympics should be main-tained because we don’t have a problem.This is a FIFA issue, not an IOC (Interna-tional Olympic Committee) issue,” SheikhAhmad said.

“For that (reason) I believe the IOCwill stick with their time because it alreadyhas been committed and the broadcasterhas been committed, the broadcasting, allthe marketing partners, the NOCs.

“I don’t think anything will touch theOlympics. FIFA should be flexible inchoosing—this is my advice—which isthe best date.”

The timing of the Qatar World Cup isbecoming increasingly fraught after foot-ball world body FIFA supported the idea

Olympics Winter Games won’t movefor Qatar World Cup: Al-Sabah

of holding it in winter to avoid the desertstate’s blazing summer months.

Suggested timings for the month-longtournament range from November to Feb-ruary, raising fears of a clash with the 2022Winter Olympics, which will be in Beijingor the Kazakh capital Almaty.

Major football leagues oppose a win-ter World Cup and a January-Februarytiming would also conflict with America’sNFL, whose Super Bowl takes place inearly February.

Sheikh Ahmad said a commission ledby Asian football chief Shaikh Salman binEbrahim Al Khalifa was looking at datesfor Qatar ’s World Cup, already contro-versial over the bidding process and hu-man rights issues.

“I think they will analyse this and theywill try to find the best solution, how theywill make it without touching each other,keeping the interests of each and respectthe period of each game or event,” SheikhAhmad said.

“We don’t have to be in a hurry.Somebody’s speaking about January,February before the Games, somebody’stalking about November and somebody’sasking to keep it in August.

“We have to respect opinions, let thecommission do their homework, but I’m100 percent confident they will never bein the same time. There will be respect forthe time of each event.”—AFP

Bodla registers anotherworld record in GuinnessISLAMABAD—Pakistani Taekwondo blackbelt Ahmad Amin Bodla succeeded to reg-ister another world record to his name andcountry in Guinness Book by striking 6970kicks in one hour.

Bodla, who now has three worldrecords in his credit book, talking to APPsaid it was a great honour for him and hiscountry to simultaneously hold all threemartial arts kicks Guinness world recordsthat include 355 kicks in 1 minute, 783kicks in 3 minutes and now 6970 kicks in 1hour.

Bodla, who has been acknowledged forthis honour by Guinness, had struck 6970kicks in 1 hour in March this year, grabbinghonour from Idian Master Jayanth Reddy,having 4344 kicks.—APP

GREEN tea has been hailed for manyhealth benefits, including its effectsagainst cancer, heart disease and type

2 diabetes. Now, new research suggests thebeverage can enhance our brain’s cognitivefunctions, particularly theworking memory. The re-search team - including Prof.Christoph Beglinger and Prof.Stefan Borgwardt of the Uni-versity Hospital of Basel inSwitzerland - says their find-ings suggest that green teacould be promising in thetreatment of cognitive impair-ments associated with neurop-sychiatric disorders, such asdementia.

They recently publishedtheir findings in the journalPsychopharmacology. Greentea, native to China and India,is produced from the leaves ofthe Camellia sinensis bush.Unlike other teas, green tea ismade from unoxidized leaves.This minimal processing means it is rich inantioxidants. Past research has associated thebeverage with many health benefits. Last year,for example, Medical News Today reported ona study suggesting that green tea may reducestroke risk, while another study found that itcould help fight prostate cancer.

Previous studies have also suggested thatgreen tea may have a beneficial impact on thebrain’s cognitive functions. However, accord-ing to the researchers of this most recent study,the exact mechanisms behind this claim havebeen unclear. Green tea ‘boosts connectivitybetween parietal and frontal cortex of the brain’Green tea leaves Researchers say green tea may

Green tea may boostour working memory

Russian CG Oleg, N Avdeev, Francois Dall’orso, Advisor Textile Asif Maqsood, Acting Governor Sindh Agha Siraj Khan Durrani, Majyed Aziz andBehran Avari on the occasion of Russian Unity Day.—PO photo by Sultan Chaki

be useful in the treatment of disorders involv-ing cognitive impairments, such as dementia.To further investigate, the team conducted astudy using 12 healthy male volunteers with amean age of 24.1 years.

Participants were given amilk whey-based soft drinkcontaining 27.5 g of green teaextract, while others weregiven a soft drink without thegreen tea extract. Volunteerswere unaware of which drinkthey had been given. The par-ticipants were then required tocarry out a series of workingmemory tasks. During thesetasks, their brain activity wasmeasured using magneticresonance imaging (MRI).The researchers found that theparticipants who consumedthe soft drink with the greentea extract showed increasedconnectivity between the rightsuperior parietal lobule andthe frontal cortex of the brain.

This activity correlated with improved perfor-mance on the working memory tasks.

“The present study shows that green teaextract enhances functional connectivityfrom the parietal to the frontal cortex dur-ing working memory processing in healthycontrols. Interestingly, this effect on effec-tive connectivity was related to the greentea induced improvement in cognitive per-formance. Our findings provide first in-sights into the neural effect of green tea onworking memory processing at the neuralnetwork level, suggesting a mechanism onshort-term plasticity of interregional brainconnections.”

Commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui briefing media persons about the ‘Anti-Polio Cam-paign’ at Commissioner Office.

Activists of Christian community hold a demonstration against Kot Radha Kishan incident.

IRFAN ALIGI

KARACHI—Reshuffling in Sindh gov-ernment especially change of SindhChief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah hadnow led to creation of a strong forwardblock. The members of the forwardblock had in held private meetings andexpressed reservations on bringing SyedMurad Ali Shah as new CM of the prov-ince. Syed Murad Ali Shah had beenadviser to Sindh CM Syed Qaim AliShah for finance (unelected) because hewas barred from contesting elections.He had also relinquished his dual na-tionality to stay eligible for contestingby-elections. It was reliably learnt.

The majority of PPP lawmakers in

Murad Ali Shah to contest by-polls

‘Forward Block’ formedto check change of Sindh CM

Sindh assembly had enjoyed unlimitedfreedom with regard to their portfoliosbut the poor progress of their portfo-lios and criticism over their failure toaddress people’s grievances fromTharparkar to metropolis compelled theParty leadership to bring changes intoSindh Cabinet. The change would bein effect after Murad Ali Shah wouldwin by-elections and soon after swear-ing in as elected member provincial as-sembly, would be placed for the officeof the Chief Executive of the province.

According to sources, the criticswere of strong opinion that many Min-isters in present Cabinet would beslashed and others would be placed togive a new look around to focus on

bringing satiety to the people of theprovince in great fury over being de-prived of their basic rights.

In this regard, a secret meeting ofthe forward block was held at an undis-closed location while 2 of the sittingCabinet Ministers had also attended,However, the party leadership had ob-tained all minutes of the meeting andnames of those that were in that meet-ing.

The sources said that the membersof forward block were also preparingto approach PPP Chairman BilawalBhutto Zardari and PPP Co-ChairmanAsif Ali Zardari to convince them notto replace Syed Qaim Ali Shah withSyed Murad Ali Shah.

However, the sources claimed itwas already too late to mend and thoseincluded in covert forward block wouldsoon pay for the price. The forwardblock claimed they had the backing ofa few members of national assemblyand Senators while the sources had alsoclaimed that even other political partieswere also backing them and in case theywould face any repercussions, theymight be accommodated as per lawsafter completing legal and political pro-cedures.

The sources claimed the change ofCM in Sindh would affect PPP as theparty was already passing through toughinternal uproar especially in Punjab andin interior of Sindh.

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Sindh Minister for Food and Health saidthat eradication of Polio was first priority of Sindhgovernment and Polio will be eliminated from Sindhincluding Karachi in just 2 month. There were 108Union Councils (UC) of which 11 UCs were mostvenerable and all those polio positive case reportedso far were from those 11 UCs. Sindh Chief Minis-ter had constituted a 3-member committee compris-ing Karachi Commissioner, Secretary Health and In-

Minister for health claimspolio eradication in 2 months

spector General of Police, Sindh to monitor the situa-tion.

This he said while talking to US Consul GeneralKarachi Brian Heath in his office Thursday. On thisoccasion USAID Deputy Mission Director Leon S.Waskin and Secretary Health Iqbal Durrani werepresent. The Minister said that all polio cases wereoccurred in Pashtoon dominated areas, where there were233, 000 children and a campaign for eradication ofpolio would be launched every week on Saturdays,Sundays and Mondays in those vulnerable UCs.

Police and Rangers would be there to providesecurity to the volunteers of anti-polio drive. On theoccasion, Secretary Health Iqbal Durrani told US CGthat the health department was fully coordinating withUSAID in its ongoing programs. He said foolproofarrangements had been made at entry points of theprovince to administer anti-polio vaccine to children.

On the occasion, the US CG suggested that thecivil society should be involved in anti-Polio drives.Eradication of polio was a big challenge and USAIDgave importance to child health programs, he added.

AMANULLAH KHAN

KARACHI—CPLC and AVCC havesaved yet another victim of kidnap-ping, without paying the ransom. Ac-cording to detail Zulfiqar Durani S/ONisar Durani (President Sindh HighCourt Bar) was kidnapped on 30th Sep2014,from Hyderabad. A ransom of Rs50 million was demanded against the

CPLC, AVCC recoverkidnapped person

safe release of the victim. Zulfiqar’sfamily registered a FIR in P.S HyderabadCantt, and for the catalytic action, theyapproached CPLC Sindh GovernorHouse.

On the instruction of Chief CPLCSindh Ahmed Chinoy, CPLC team, startworking in collaboration with HyderabadPolice. Five suspects were arrested fromHyderabad, Jacobabad and Karachi. Last

night joint action team of CPLC and po-lice raided on the culprits’ hide out nearHyderabad. On the arrival of joint teamthe culprits left Zulfiqar tied with ropes,and ran away.

Along with Chief CPLC AhmedChinoy, DIG Hyderabad Sana ullahAbbasi and S.P Hyderabad City UmerTufail,has been super active in resolv-ing the case.

IRFAN ALIGI

KARACHI—National Electric Power Regula-tory Authority (NEPRA) had directed KarachiElectric (KE) to pas on Rs5.41 billion to its con-sumers, which would help the KE consumersget a relief by Rs.0.42 per unit consumed dur-ing January to December 2014. NEPRA had saidKE did not have the authority to keep that sumof money in its accounts.

KE had during the fiscal year of 2011-12

NEPRA asks KE to transferRs 5.41b to consumers in relief

earned Rs.10.27 billion and Rs.17.86 billion in2012-13. A Clawback mechanism was introducedto the tariff approved for KE in 2009 under which,KE was bound to transfer the sum of money toits consumers it would exceed the profit limit.

KE had made efforts to convince NEPRAto suspend the order until KE recovers its lossso that the company could keep the money anduse it. However, KE’s plea was rejected andordered to pass on the financial benefit to itsconsumers.

KARACHI—At least 3 workers of PPP have beenkilled during a firing incident in Liyari on Thurs-day. According to reports, the sad incident tookplace in Khaliq Jumma Haal area of Liyari whenunidentified armed assailants open fired on peopleseated outside of the shop leaving 4 injured. In-jured were shifted to Civil hospital where PPPworkers Inayat Baloch, Shakur Baloch and EjazBaloch succumbed to injuries and died while theircompanion Haider Ali was said to be critical.

3 PPP workers killed in LiyariPolice declare the incident, reason of gang

war while spokesman Bilawal House Ejaz Duranihas said, killing of PPP workers in Liyari is reac-tion of historic public gathering of 18th Octoberand all anti nation elements have made grand al-liance against PPP and Liyari the strong hold ofPPP is on their target, he added. On the other handChief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah hastaken notice of the incident and directed IG Sindhto arrest the accused immediately.—Online

KARACHI—Inspector General of Police Sindh Ghulam HaiderJamali here on Thursday presided over a high level meeting atCentral Police Office and reviewed general law & order situa-tion of the province, with special reference to kidnapping forransom and other heinous crimes.

The meeting was attendant, amongst others, by AdditionalIGs of Special Branch, Crime Branch, Karachi Range, DIGs of

IGP reviews law, order in the provinceHeadquarters, Crime Branch, Special Branch, Larkana Range,Hyderabad Range, Mirpurkhas Range, Shaheed BenazirabadRange, West Zone. South Zone, East Zone, Karachi and AlGOperations Sindh.

The meeting decided to get published Black Book havingnames of notified dacoits/kidnappers etc, involved in other hei-nous crimes.—APP

GREEN tea has been hailed for manyhealth benefits, including its effectsagainst cancer, heart disease and type

2 diabetes. Now, new research suggests thebeverage can enhance our brain’s cognitivefunctions, particularly theworking memory. The re-search team - including Prof.Christoph Beglinger and Prof.Stefan Borgwardt of the Uni-versity Hospital of Basel inSwitzerland - says their find-ings suggest that green teacould be promising in thetreatment of cognitive impair-ments associated with neurop-sychiatric disorders, such asdementia.

They recently publishedtheir findings in the journalPsychopharmacology. Greentea, native to China and India,is produced from the leaves ofthe Camellia sinensis bush.Unlike other teas, green tea ismade from unoxidized leaves.This minimal processing means it is rich inantioxidants. Past research has associated thebeverage with many health benefits. Last year,for example, Medical News Today reported ona study suggesting that green tea may reducestroke risk, while another study found that itcould help fight prostate cancer.

Previous studies have also suggested thatgreen tea may have a beneficial impact on thebrain’s cognitive functions. However, accord-ing to the researchers of this most recent study,the exact mechanisms behind this claim havebeen unclear. Green tea ‘boosts connectivitybetween parietal and frontal cortex of the brain’Green tea leaves Researchers say green tea may

Green tea may boostour working memory

Advisor to Chief Minister for Health Khawaja Suleman Rafique and Secretary Home Azam Suleman Khan presiding over a meeting to take preventivemeasures against Ebola virus.

be useful in the treatment of disorders involv-ing cognitive impairments, such as dementia.To further investigate, the team conducted astudy using 12 healthy male volunteers with amean age of 24.1 years.

Participants were given amilk whey-based soft drinkcontaining 27.5 g of green teaextract, while others weregiven a soft drink without thegreen tea extract. Volunteerswere unaware of which drinkthey had been given. The par-ticipants were then required tocarry out a series of workingmemory tasks. During thesetasks, their brain activity wasmeasured using magneticresonance imaging (MRI).The researchers found that theparticipants who consumedthe soft drink with the greentea extract showed increasedconnectivity between the rightsuperior parietal lobule andthe frontal cortex of the brain.

This activity correlated with improved perfor-mance on the working memory tasks.

“The present study shows that green teaextract enhances functional connectivityfrom the parietal to the frontal cortex dur-ing working memory processing in healthycontrols. Interestingly, this effect on effec-tive connectivity was related to the greentea induced improvement in cognitive per-formance. Our findings provide first in-sights into the neural effect of green tea onworking memory processing at the neuralnetwork level, suggesting a mechanism onshort-term plasticity of interregional brainconnections.”

People including relatives of the husband and wife burnt at Kot Radha Kishan de-manding justice.

CTO Tayyab Hafeez Cheema is distributing Helmets among motorcycle users at Barkat Market during traffic awareness campaign.

STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE—Mission of Department for InternationalDevelopment (DFID), UK currently visiting Pakistanmet Secretary Health Punjab Jawad Rafiq Malik atCivil Secretariat, Thursday. The delegation includedAdvisor Dr. Ayesha Rasheed, Governance AdvisorNaveed, Technical Advisor Sherwan, Provincial Co-ordinator TRF Plus Dr. Anwar Janjua, Ms DianeNorthway and Farooq Azam whereas Project Direc-tor Punjab Health Sector Reforms Programme AliBahadur Qazi, Additional Director General IntegratedProgramme for Mother & Child Health Punjab Dr.

Upgradation of ruralhealth centres, units

Zafar Ikram and other officers were also present onthe occasion.

Secretary Health informed DFID delegation aboutthe steps taken for provision of mother and child healthfacilities at primary level, resolution of problems ofwomen and children health, lady health workers’ train-ing and other administrative matters. He told thatgovernment is upgrading rural health centers and ba-sic health units for providing gyne facilities and in-creasing basic treatment facilities of women and chil-dren in far-flung areas. He said that the programmeof providing gyne facilities 24 hours at basic healthunits is being expanded under 24/7 programme.

Jawad Rafiq Malik gave a briefing about thesteps taken for looking after pregnant women andvaccination of new born babies. He said that allthese steps aimed at controlling the death rate ofnew born babies and pregnant women during preg-nancy and achieving the 4-5 Millennium develop-ment goals by ensuring provision of basic healthfacilities at union council level. Members of DFIDdelegation expressing their satisfaction over theprogress of health indicators by Health DepartmentPunjab appreciated the efforts of provincial gov-ernment in the uplift of health sector and assuredto continue mutual cooperation.

STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE—Provincial Minister for Food Bilal Yasinhas said that due to the implementation on the eightto ten percent reduction in transport fares, not onlyfares in transportation of goods will reduce but theprices of essential items will also decrease consid-erably. He said that the process of monitoring oftransport fares and petrol prices should be contin-ued so that common man could benefit from theedibles at cheaper rates.

He said this while presiding over a meeting at

Monitoring of transport fares andpetroleum products to continue

SALIM AHMED

LAHORE—The Punjab government ap-proved eight development schemes of vari-ous development Sectors with an estimatedcost of Rs. 6592.873 million. These schemeswere approved in the 22nd meeting of Pro-vincial Development Working Party of cur-

Development schemes worthRs. 6592.873m approved

rent fiscal year 2014-15 presided over by thePunjab Planning and Development BoardChairman, Muhammad Irfan Elahi, saysP&D Spokesman. Members of the Planning& Development Board, Provincial Secretar-ies concerned and other senior representa-tives of the relevant Provincial Departmentsalso attended the meeting. PEF capacity building workshop held

LAHORE—Shahid Aziz Butt alias GulloButt, convicted for smashing window-panes of cars during a police action atMinhaj ul Quran Secretariat, has chal-lenged his conviction before the LahoreHigh Court. Gullo Butt filed the appealthrough his counsel Kashif Abbas Zaidisubmitting that Anti-Terrorism Court

Gullo Butt challenges his conviction(ATC) awarded 11 years and three monthsconviction to him on charges of smashingwindow panes of cars against the facts ofthe matter.

He submitted that neither the carsowners lodged complaint against himnor they gave evidence before the court,but the ATC awarded punishment on

basis of police witnesses. He pleadedthe court to set aside the sentence.However, the LHC Registrar officehas placed an objection on the peti-tion. The office maintained thatpower of attorney verified by jail au-thorities had not been attached withthe petition.—APP

CITY REPORTER

LAHORE—A Lahore High Court full benchThursday sought details of FIRs registeredagainst Dr Tahir ul Qadri from federal and pro-vincial governments till November 13. The fullbench comprising Justice Muhammad KhalidMehmood Khan, Justice Shahid Hameed Darand Justice Anwaarul Haq passed the orders onan application filed by Amjad Ali in a pendingpetition seeking directions to ban PakistanAwami Tehreek (PAT).

As proceedings started, the petitioner’scounsel Fahad Siddiqui Advocate pointed outthat he had filed an application on behalf of thepetitioner for directions to place progress reporton record in 40 cases against Dr Tahir ul Qadri.

LHC seeks details of FIRsagainst Dr Tahir ul Qadri

He submitted that despite registration of saidcases, the police did not arrest Dr Tahir ul Qadrinor he got bail from any court yet.

At this, the bench ordered federal and pro-vincial law officers to file reply along with de-tails of FIRs registered against Dr Tahir ul Qadriby November 13. The petitioner’s counsel alsopointed out that the Home Department Punjabhad not submitted Justice Akhtar Hassan Com-mission report despite directions for the same.

To a court query, Additional Home Secre-tary Dr Ehtesham Anwar told the bench that ef-forts were being made to trace it from record.The bench reprimanded additional secretary fornon- submission of the report and directed tosubmit on next date of hearing while adjourn-ing the matter.

committee room of civil secretariat, Thursday. Be-sides Additional Chief Secretary, Secretaries of Trans-port, Industry, Agriculture and Food Departments,Director Special Branch and all commissioners wereonline on LCD. Commissioners of Rawalpindi,Sargodha, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Sahiwal, DGKhan and Bahawalpur told that Panaflex and bannersof new fares have been displayed at bus stands of alldistricts whereas lists of new fares have also beendisplayed in the buses.

The meeting was told that checking squads aredischarging their responsibilities efficiently for

checking prices at petrol pumps. Various petrolpumps involved in overcharging have been sealedwhile owners have been arrested in different dis-tricts. Commissioners told that not only heavyfines have been imposed to the transporters onovercharging but their vehicles have also beenimpounded.

Bilal Yasin directed that the monitoring pro-cess should be made transparent and governmentinstructions be implemented strictly. He said thatthe benefits of reduction in prices of petroleum prod-ucts should be provided to the people.

Motorcyclesnatcher gang

arrestedLAHORE—Nishtar Colony po-lice have smashed motorcyclesnatcher gang and arrested its fourmembers recovering five stolenmotorbikes besides three pistolson Thursday. According tosources, a special police team ledby DSP Kahna and officials ofNishtar Colony conducted a raidand arrested the accused Rizwanalias Rizwani gang.—APP

LAHORE—A special contingent compris-ing 100 officials of Mujahid and EliteSquad will hold search operation dailyduring Raiwind Ijtima in the wake of se-curity threats.

Mujahid Squad operation in RaiwindSP Mujahid Squad Zahid Nawaz

Murawat said that last night the officialsled by DSP AVLS City Division YaqoobAwan conducted search operation in ad-joining and near by localities and checked

documents of local and temporary peopleand suspect persons. The police will con-tinue search operation till end the ijtima.He appeal the citizens to fully cooperatewith police in search operation.—APP

STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE—The Punjab Education Foundation has launched thepilot project of interactive classroom technology in the districtsof Lahore, Multan and Khushab in the first phase to educate thestudents through this beneficial computer technology. In thisregard, a two-day capacity building workshop was commenced

today at PEF head office for the subject specialists of the foun-dation attached with the SBSP partnering schools.

Besides PEF directors Bushra Saeed Khan and Samina Nawaz,other concerned officers of different free education programs alsoattended the workshop. On the occasion, participants were taughtabout various aspects of handling interactive classroom technol-ogy in classrooms. The workshop will concluded tomorrow.