KARACHI: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) implementing on the decisions taken in National Security Council (NSC) meeting on Saturday closed five major airports of the country for international flights.
According to a notification, the international operations will remain suspended at five major airports across the country including those in Peshawar, Faisalabad, Quetta, Sialkot and Multan.
However, domestic flights will remain operational at the following and other airports across the country, the notification stated.
The International flights for Peshawar have been diverted to Islamabad, while the Quetta bound international flights will now land at Jinnah International Airport Karachi, said CAA in a notification.
According to a new schedule, the four international fights coming from Dubai, Bahrain and Jeddah for Multan airport, will now land at Lahore airport.
Dubai-bound FZ-338 flight will now take off from Islamabad airport instead of Sialkot airport, reads new schedule.
Meanwhile, the aviation authority has also barred pilots, inspectors, examiners for OPC and PPC from visiting abroad with immediate effect till further orders in the wake of coronavirus spread.
The notification is conveyed to all national and international airlines, flying clubs and others.
It is pertinent to mention here that a National Security Council (NSC) meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan decided to limit international flight operations to three major airports of the country aimed at tackling the spread of coronavirus, whose 28 cases have been reported in the country by Friday.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Saturday reported another coronavirus case in the country, taking the total toll of the cases across the country to 29.
According to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) officials, the patient, a 30-year-old woman, had travelled from the US to Pakistan a few days ago.
The officials added that the woman’s condition was critical and she has been placed on a ventilator. The woman was brought to PIMS from a private hospital.
This will also be the first case that has been reported from Islamabad.
The number of confirmed cases in Pakistan of COVID-19 had risen to 28 on Friday night, after seven Pakistanis quarantined in Taftan were found to have been infected.
Karachi has been the worst affected city so far, with 14 of the total confirmed cases. Of the remaining, five cases have been reported in Gilgit-Baltistan and one case has been reported each in Hyderabad and Quetta.
Globally, more than 5,000 people have died and more than 140,000 infected globally by COVID-19 as the disease spreads rapidly in new territories.
The epicentre of the outbreak has now shifted to Europe, which is recording a rapid rise in new cases every day.
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed on Wednesday expressed the confidence that Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) will be operationalized in six months in collaboration with the Sindh government.
He was responding to a question during question hour in the National Assembly.
Sheikh Rasheed said that the Supreme Court has directed to complete the KCR project within six months, adding that the federal and the Sindh governments are on the same page in context.
He said housing colonies illegally constructed on railways land and financial crunch are the biggest hurdles in this regard.
Responding to another question, Parliamentary Secretary for Railways Farrukh Habib informed that House that 550 vulnerable unmanned level crossings throughout Pakistan Railways network have been upgraded in collaboration with respective provincial governments to prevent accidents in future.
He said old age kerosene oil based signals have been converted to LED lights on mainline, which have better visibility.
ISLAMABAD: Islamabad high court issued restraining order to The Management of Pakistan television corporation, not to implement the decisions of the PTV board till next date of hearing.
Short order was issued by Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani while hearing different periods against PTV management, decisions of Board of directors and formation of board of directors.
Short order Says, since the legality of the formation of the board of directors of Pakistan Television has been challenged and its formation is under question before the court.
Therefore status qua shall be maintained relating to all the employees of PTV corporation who will be effected on the basis of decisions made by board of directors till next date of hearing.
ISLAMABAD:There is broader consensus that almost every sector of the economy of Pakistan is captured by the elite, who have even greater control over domestic power politics and economic policies.
This current rent-seeking economic governance model has become un-sustainable which serve the vested interest of few of the society. Therefore, there is a dire need of re-defining the governance model for sustainable economic growth through a comprehensive dialogue among all stakeholders including elite, civil society, political parties, academia and institutions.
Experts expressed these thoughts during a Special lecture titled “Economy and national security: Political economy choices for reform” organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) here at Islamabad.
Prof Adeel Malik, Globe Fellow in the Economies of Muslim Societies & Associate Professor, Oxford Department of International Development, University of Oxford United Kingdom believes that in Pakistan popular discourse on the economy lacks debate on political economy which is fundamentally connected with politics and geo politics of the country.
He said Pakistan’s economy is facing fiscal Ponzi scheme challenge which is posing serious threats to the poor, future generation and productive sector of the economy.
Data of the past three decades shows that Pakistan’s economic growth remained volatile and mainly consumption-led which lacks investments and exports, where banking, services and real estate were the major engines of growth.
“This present economic order is unsustainable which, if continues, may consequently have negative implications in the form of growing inequality and violence”, Prof. Adeel said, adding the need for redefining the current model of governance in order to achieve sustain growth. For that crafting a holistic development strategy that takes a cross-sectoral approach is direly needed, he said.
Commenting on elite capture of the economy and politics, Prof. Adeel said that elite capture remains a pervasive problem in every civil or military regime mainly due to capitalist structure of the economy.
He said for potential pathways for reforming the economy is the need greater dialogue and debate among all stakeholders, where elite can be engaged positively and convinced for shifting their focus to areas of economy which serve the society at large.
The major challenges for this political economy choices for reforms include re-allocating the power that promote the interests of industry and creating a sustainable political coalition that favour an open access to economy, he added.
Prof. Adeel also stressed that the finance portfolio should be with elected politicians to achieve greater confidence of stakeholders and urged the need for envisioning a new industrial policy which also part of foreign policy strategy.
Joint Executive Director, SDPI, Dr. Vaqar Ahmed said that a broad-based debate is desired on how various elites in Pakistan can work together towards a shared vision for economic growth. He said that it is equally important to study if Pakistani elites understand that their formal or informal actions may lead to widening of various forms of inequalities in the society.
This is critical if the state is serious about policies that redistribute wealth including tax, real estate, and credit reforms, he added. This aspect is also linked to the laxness of institutions to complete the devolution process and give administrative and financial powers to the local governments in a true sense, he remarked.
“All this is critical if Pakistan is to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” said Dr. Vaqar adding most SDGs cannot be achieved by public sector institutions on their own without a decent working relationship between state, markets and citizens.
That is why a structured public private dialogue is necessary with private sector and civil society organisations so that grass root aspirations find their way in government policies, he added.
ISLAMABAD: Man was arrested by Federal investigation Agency (FIA) from Islamabad for pretending to be a woman and blackmailing his friend’s wife on Facebook. Judicial magistrate sent the detained man to jail.
Sabeel Ahmed took the woman’s pictures using a fake Facebook profile, FIA said, adding that he then used another Facebook ID and started blackmailing the woman.
FIA’s cybercrime cell took him into custody from Ali Pur.
The woman said she had filed a complaint with FIA saying that she was being blackmailed by someone who was asking her for money. After FIA’s arrest, it turned out the blackmailer was from my own town, she said.
A mobile phone, memory card and several SIMs of different networks were seized from Ahmed’s possession.
ISLAMABAD: Mayor Islamabad Sheikh Ansar Aziz was summoned by the Supreme Court on Thursday where he was grilled by the Chief Justice of Pakistan for an underwhelming performance in the federal capital.
The Chief Justice during the proceeding remarked that the city’s cleanliness is an obligation of the Mayor Islamabad and district government.
CJP Gulzar Ahmed said that the city should have a standard and that standard should be maintained, the city needed to be exemplary in all aspects.
The Chief Justice emphasised that people of Islamabad deserved for amenities along with more footpaths, parks and benches.
The apex court judge also asked the Mayor Islamabad to ensure that all resources are exhausted to keep the city clean and green.
At a point during the proceeding, Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed asked Ansar Aziz that why there was no cheap transport mechanism available for people to commute around the city.
He said that at least rickshaws should be readily available across the city so that people could commute with ease.
The mayor said that dearth of funds had been a major hindrance in implementing his ideas for development projects in the city.
The Chief Justice retorted that the city does not merely need roads, one should now focus on underground trains and transportation via the sky as the next logical step.
CJP further stated that all the provinces complain in unison claiming of not being empowered enough.
ISLAMABAD: China will assist Pakistan in combating the menace of locust by providing 50 drones and 300,000 litres of pesticides to carry out spray in affected areas of Sindh, Balochistan and Punjab.
Gwadar Pro App, quoting a local media’s report stated that the first batch of drones will reach Pakistan on March 9.
The use of fixed and rotary wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), commonly called drones, are potential means of improving desert locust monitoring, early warning and rapid control, and reducing costs of survey and control operations.
The Chinese authorities would also send technical staff to carry out operation and train staff of the Plant Protection Department and concerned provincial departments.
The government is negotiating with a mission of the Chinese aviation industry for the supply of aircraft to carry out aerial spray in the locust-affected areas. The government would acquire six aircrafts on lease for three to four months to completely eliminate locusts from agricultural fields of the country.
According to preliminary assessment carried out by the agriculture department in Sindh and Balochistan, the locust attack has damaged crops cultivated on 80,000 hectares of land besides causing serious damage to grazing fields and forest areas.
A Chinese technical team completed its two-week mission to Pakistan and left for Beijing on Wednesday.
The team visited the locust-affected areas of Sindh, Balochistan and Punjab and had final wrap-up meetings at the ministry of national food security and the national disaster management authority.
The Chinese assistance is part of strengthening the national action plan to combat the locust attack.
QUETTA: Baloch Culture Day was celebrated with lively colours and vibrant events throughout the province, honoring the unique culture, sweet languages, centuries’ old traditions and customs, and a heritage preserved.
Colorful festivities to highlight the Baloch culture were organised in various areas and towns of Balochistan.
With crowds congregating at numerous events, a huge number of people also turned up at Expo Centre at the University of Balochistan in Quetta to celebrate the lifestyle and heritage of the province.
Singer Safdar Ali Sarosh sings a song during Jashan-e-Balochistan ceremony organised by Balochistan Government at Pakistan National Council of Arts in Islamabad. Balochi folk singer Liaqut Ali sings a song during Jashan-e-Balochistan ceremony organised by Balochistan Government at Pakistan National Council of Arts in Islamabad
Artists perform during Jashan-e-Balochistan ceremony organised by Balochistan Government at Pakistan National Council of Arts in Islamabad. Many young people were garbed in traditional clothes, showing off the artistry and customary designs. Some others donned the famed Baloch turbans.
On this occasion, locals also partook in Raqs Do Chaap, a traditional dance.
ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) issued 1,092,14 fine tickets to motorcyclists driving their bikes without helmets and also fined 1,647 amateur drivers during the ongoing year for driving cars and motorbikes without licenses, a police spokesman said.
He said that ITP is endeavoring to maintain exemplary traffic system in the city and check those involved in negligence on roads. He said that 1,092,14 fine tickets were issued to motorcyclists driving their bikes without helmets.
Meanwhile, 1,647 amateur drivers were fined for driving cars and motorbikes without license. While appreciating this overall performance, SSP (Traffic) Farrukh Rasheed has appreciated it and said that vigorous campaign of ITP had been launched as per directions of IGP Islamabad Muhammad Aamir Zulfiqar to create awareness among citizens about traffic rules.
As per directions of IGP Islamabad Muhammad Aamir Zulfiqar, he said that ITP personnel has been directed to ensure implementation on traffic rules and regulation irrespective of status and rank and demonstrate patience and politeness while issuing traffic violation tickets to the road users.
He said that ITP is utilizing all available resources to facilitate the general public. He has appealed the parents not to allow their children to drive bikes or cars till age of maturity.
The personnel of the force issue traffic violation tickets not as a punitive measure but the purpose is to ensure safe road environment in the Capital and secure the lives of the people, the SSP (Traffic) maintained.
