ISLAMABAD: Japan National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) has donated Coronavirus detection materials (Primers and Probes) to Pakistan. This was a joint effort made by all the people involved both in Japan and Pakistan.
As a result of this joint effort, the first Coronavirus detection materials arrived in Islamabad from Japan and were received by the officials of the National Institute of Health, Islamabad.
MATSUDA Kuninori, the Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan, in his message has appreciated the dedicated efforts which eventually helped to deliver the materials in a short span of time.
The Ambassador hoped that the materials donated by Japan would enhance the lab capacity to diagnose the Coronavirus cases swiftly and help Pakistan in its fight against the virus.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Turkey have agreed to extend mutual support on issues of each other s core national interest and underscored the importance of fully realizing the immense potential of relationship between the two countries.
The understanding was reached at meeting between President Dr Arif Alvi and his Turkish Counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Islamabad on Thursday.
They also underlined in transforming this relations into a strong and dynamic trade and economic partnership.
Welcoming the President Erdogan to Pakistan, Dr Alvi expressed gratification over the level of enhanced and multifaceted engagement between the two countries.
He said that the 6th Session of High Level Strategic Cooperation Council will further strengthen and broaden the fraternal relations between Pakistan and Turkey.
Dr Alvi also apprised President Erdogan of the worsening human rights situation in Occupied Kashmir and took the opportunity to thank the President Erdogan for his principled stand on Kashmir.
A warm welcome was accorded to the Turkish President and First Lady of Turkey Emine Erdogan over their arrival at the presidency.
President Arif Alvi later hosted banquet in honour of the distinguished guests.
Earlier today, Erdogan was accorded a warm red-carpet welcome as he arrived on a two-day official visit.
Prime Minister Imran Khan received the Turkish leader at the Nur Khan Airbase. Senior Pakistani officials as well as the Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan were also present on the occasion.
Two children, clad in traditional Pakistani costume, presented bouquet to President Erdogan and the Turkish First Lady.
Contingent of static guards presented salute to the visiting dignitaries.
Later, Prime Minister Imran Khan himself drove President Erdogan to the Prime Minister House for welcome ceremony.
The Turkish President was also presented a guard of honour during an official welcome ceremony held at the Prime Minister House.
Upon arrival at the PM House, President Erdogan was warmly welcomed by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
President Erdogan, who was presented a salute and guard of honour by a smartly turned-out contingent of the armed forces, reviewed the guard. National anthems of the two countries were also played on the occasion.
Prime Minister Imran Khan and President Recep Rayyip Erdogan introduced their respective delegartions.
SRINAGAR: Indian police arrested four youth in south Kashmir’ Islamabad and Pulwama districts, media reported here on today.
The police arrested three youth, identified as Adil Ahmed Dar, Aqib Fayaz Makroo and Aajaz Ahmed Sofi during house raid in residents of Arwani and Gund Chahal areas of Islamabad district. The police took into custody another youth, Tawfeeq Ahmed Butt, from Mongahama in Tral area of Pulwama district.
The Indian police dubbed the arrested youth as over-ground workers of mujahid organizations.
The police had also arrested five youth during house raids in Gundipora and Warihama areas of Badgam district, the other day.
ISLAMABAD: Reconciliation between Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) and its key ally Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) after convener, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, met Prime Minister Imran Khan here in Islamabad.
Premier Imran Khan invited Khalid Maqbool for holding talks and the two leaders discussed matters related to Siddiqui’s ministry during the meeting, well informed sources said.
The MQM-P leader had taken up charge of the Ministry of Information Technology and Communication; however, the Karachi-based party refuted the report.
On January 12, the MQM-P had given the federal government a jolt as Siddiqui, then-minister for information technology, announced his decision to leave the federal cabinet over “unfulfilled promises”.
Siddiqui had said that his party had supported the federal government in every difficult phase but “injustice was still being done with Sindh”, Geo News Reported.
Following the announcement, several PTI leader and ministers met the MQM-P in Karachi to hear the concerns that they had put forward. It must be kept mind that PM Imran had not accepted Siddiqui’s resignation.
MQM-P was not the only ally of the ruling party that has threatened to quit its coalition at the centre. The PTI got much needed relief on Monday after its leaders managed to convince the estranged PML-Q to not leave the alliance.
Leaders of the ruling PTI and its coalition party, the PML-Q announced a truce after hour-long discussions at Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi’s residence on Monday.
The announcement was made during a joint press conference after the two parties’ delegations met in Lahore in a bid to reconcile. After the talks, leaders of the PTI and the PML-Q said they would go ahead hand-in-hand in the future.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday expressed concern over Washington’s approval of the sale of an air defence system to New Delhi.
Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui in her weekly press briefing stated that South Asia cannot afford a further arms race in the region.
The Indian media on Tuesday had reported that the Trump administration has approved the sale of an Integrated Air Defense Weapon System for $1.8 billion to India. According to the Indian publication The Hindu, the sale was being processed under the Foreign Military Sales and awaits the approval from US Congress.
The State Department had said it had informed Congress that New Delhi plans to use the “defence articles and services to modernize its armed forces, and to expand its existing air defence architecture to counter threats posed by air attack”.
‘Irresponsible action feared during Erdogan visit by India’
Farooqui shared that Pakistan fears India may carry out an irresponsible action during the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
She said Pakistan would respond effectively to any actions taken by the Indian government.
Also read: Pakistan in close contact with OIC on Kashmir: FO
The spokesperson further stated that Turkey supports Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir, adding that the Turkish president’s visit would improve the existing ties between the two countries.
Farooqui also shared that the UN chief will visit Lahore and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur on his trip to Pakistan.
Farooqui stated that India’s lockdown of Kashmir has now lasted for 193 days, adding that the Kashmiris have been deprived of their human rights. She stated that the Kashmiri people have been deprived of the right to free speech.
“India has turned occupied Kashmir into the world’s biggest prison,” said the FO spokesperson. She added that Pakistan has informed the world of India’s plans to carry out a false flag operation to divert the world’s attention from Kashmir.
LAHORE: Pervaiz Elahi, Speaker of Punjab Assembly refused to disclose agreement reached with Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman to end sit-in in Islamabad.
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi said that agreement reached with Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman is a secret and he will seek Maulana’s permission to reveal it.
Speaker Punjab Assembly advised government to focus on its work of providing relief to people and said that no one supports opposition’s movement as job of opposition to make noise outside and inside the House.
ISLAMABAD: Asad Umar, Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms on Wednesday ruled out replacement of Finance Adviser Abdul Hafeez Shaikh.
He was talking to media men outside the Supreme Court before commencement of Railways deficit case hearing.
Fake news continue to float in Islamabad, but Abdul Hafeez Shaikh to continue as adviser for Finance, Asad Umar said and added that no doubt people are facing crunch economic conditions.
He said government is going in right direction for the revival of the ill economy and to end increasing inflation. “Insh Allah situation will improve.”
Replying to a question regarding, Chairman Federal Board of Revenue Shabbar Zaidi, Umar said according to his knowledge, the FBR chief is ill and he is unaware about reports of his unhappiness with the government.
Earlier on Tuesday, Chairman FBR Shabbar Zaidi had denied speculations about his resignation from the top taxation office.
It is pertinent to mention here that the incumbent finance adviser and his team are currently involved in talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the release of the third tranche of US$6 billion loans.
ISLAMABAD: Another cold spell is ahead as met office corecast the cold spell from February 14. The met office on Wednesday has predicted cold and dry weather in most parts of the country.
The weather will remain cloudy in upper and western parts of Pakistan. However, rain and snowfall is likely in northern Balochistan, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan and Kashmir.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast another light rainfall or drizzling in Islamabad and Potohar plateau.
The PMD, a fresh cold wave is expected from February 14 but no rainfall expected during the period.
The weather will remain dry with cool night in Karachi. The minimum temperature in the city will be 15 degree Celsius while the maximum temperature will likely to go as up as 31 degree Celsius.
Rainfall reported in past 24 hours in upper Punjab, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Gilgit Baltistan and Kashmir.
Kalam, Malam Jabba, Skardu, Gopis, Bagrote and Hunza received snowfall during last 24 hours.
Weather remained cold and dry elsewhere in the country.
Lowest minimum temperature recorded at Skardu, Parachinar -08°Celsius, Bagrote -07 Gupis -04°C, Astore -03°C, Hunza and Kalam -02°Celsius.
ISLAMABAD: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Chairman, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) said on Tuesday that since Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) came into power, every sector has been facing troubles.
Bilawal Bhutto was addressing a session of the parliament called to discuss the inflationary situation in the country. He began his address by criticizing senior ministers of the government for not attending the important session.
“The empty seats tell you how much importance the government attaches to such an important issue,” he said. “The technology minister and postal services minister is here. But these are ‘chota’ ministers,” he added.
“Bilawal sahab, minister minister hota hai,” said Speaker Asad Qaiser, prompting laughs from the treasury benches.
The PPP chairman continued with his address,saying that the PTI turned the situation from bad to worse. He said that inflation was peaking in the country and statistics from state institutions confirmed this.
“The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, State Bank of Pakistan and the FBR are confirming this [economic situation getting worse],” he said. “These are the facts, Mr Speaker. These are not political statements.”
He accused the government of compromising on “economic independence” in front of the IMF, saying that he remembered how PM Imran used to say in the past that corruption caused inflation in the country.
“The prime minister should tell us about the corruption taking place in the country,” he said. “Or he should accept that we say. That he is inept, incapable and selected, and will have to go home to provide relief to the masses,” he added.
‘Shameless government’ trying to sabotage Benazir Income Support Program (BISP), the PPP chairman lashed out at the federal government for revoking the Program for 900,000 beneficiaries.
“In these circumstances, when the government is kicking out 900,000 beneficiaries, history will remember them,” he said.
Bilawal lashed out at the PTI’s political allies in Sindh, saying that they were involved in “removing Benazir Bhutto’s name” from the BISP after the many favours she had bestowed on them in the past.
“She [Benazir] made someone’s sister a senator and made someone the speaker,” he said, criticising the PTI’s allies in Sindh for siding with the government and ditching the PPP.
ISLAMABAD: Punjab Zone 1 of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has initiated an investigation against 16 government officers and their wives who allegedly fraudulently benefited from the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) assistance meant for the poor and destitute.
A list of officers who will be interrogated by a special team headed by Director FIA Punjab Zone-1 includes 10 government officers of grade 17, two of grade 18, three of grade 19 and one senior officer of grade 20.
Domestic and foreign accounts and assets of wives of those 16 government officers are also being investigated.
According to sources, Director FIA Punjab Zone-1 has been himself monitoring the inquiry on the directives of the FIA’s director general, and the names of those officers will not be made public until completion of the investigation.
Special teams are investigating into irregularities in the BISP funds between the years 2010 to 2018.
On Jan. 29, Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Accountability Shahzad Akbar told the media that the government has referred cases against more than 2,000 government employees who benefited from the BISP to the FIA.
He said the government has also written to all chief secretaries of all provinces including Punjab, and the Establishment Division for taking departmental action against, and recovering funds from, the government officers who benefited from BISP, which is aimed at providing financial support to the deserving families.
The FIA has been directed to lodge criminal cases against the government officers involved in the corruption and the people who assisted them in the withdrawing of BISP funds because the expenditure was carried out from the federal budget as explained by the SAPM who terming the matter “a straightforward case of fraud”.
Earlier, the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) began a stern disciplinary action against as many as 196 of its employees who had been benefiting from the BISP.
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A list formed by the FBR includes seven government officers of grade 17, two of grade 14, 10 of grade 11 and others.
In a post on Twitter, BISP Chairperson Dr Nishtar had revealed that (in total) 2,543 government officers of grade-17 and above had got themselves registered among the beneficiaries from the social safety net and received the assistance meant for the poorest of the poor. They have been excluded from the program.
“True: 2,543 exited from BISP Pakistan are government officers/their spouses of Grade 17 and above and their names have been exited,” she had written on her Twitter account, adding that the social safety net had initiated disciplinary action against these officers.
The BISP had also written to the provincial chief secretaries and federal ministries whose officers had illegally enrolled themselves as BISP beneficiaries. They were informed that action was underway against those people.
To avoid such irregularities in future, appropriate measures had been taken under the government’s Ehsaas program reforms, the BISP chairperson had added.
As many as 1,122 officers of Grade-17 and above from Sindh had been BISP beneficiaries, according to official data, from Balochistan where 741 government officials were signed up for the poverty alleviation scheme, from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 403 government officials availed the BISP funds, and 137 did so from Punjab.
Even from the federal government, 62 officers received the programme funds. Additionally, one officer of the Pakistan Railways, 22 of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and 49 of Gilgit-Baltistan were also observed as undeserving recipients of the BISP. From within the BISP itself, six officers were listed among the beneficiaries.
Out of total 820,165 beneficiaries disqualified from the BISP database, 14,730 were government employees or servants of railways, post office and the BISP programme as the aid was not meant for government servants. According to the data, 127,826 were those whose spouses were government employees or employees of the above-mentioned departments.
On December 26, Dr Sania Nishtar had revealed that over 800,000 “non-deserving” beneficiaries of the BISP were disqualified for giving space to the needy people on the basis of promoting transparency and merit.
During a press conference in Islamabad, Dr Sania had asserted that measures have been taken to secure due rights for the deserving people only, and that whole procedure for inclusion in BISP has been made apolitical.
She had said that the disqualification criteria includes travel history of the member, vehicle ownership, availing facility of executive services for passport and National Identity Card (NIC) and service in government sectors.
She had termed inclusion of 216 villages located alongside restive Line of Control (LoC) in Kifalat Program “another milestone of the Ehsaas Program.”
She had said people of these villages of Punjab were the most deserving due to their frequent economic losses as due to cross border firing from the Indian side of the border.
On December 24, the federal cabinet had approved removing 820,165 beneficiaries from the BISP database, while terming them as “undeserving”.
Importantly, Dr Sania had also informed the cabinet that in view of some complaints and a need to update the BISP data, the survey was reexamined with the help of the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).
She had said that during the reexamination some aspects were analysed. For example, she had added, it was ascertained whether the family of a beneficiary had any motorcycle or car or whether a spouse was a government employee. The cabinet was told that those who had over 12 acres of land did not fall in the category of “deserving” people. After the exclusion of 820,165 people, really deserving people would be included in the program.
The alterations in the BISP database were made after some cabinet members had expressed reservations in the previous meetings claiming that the supporters of opposition parties, particularly those backing the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), were benefiting from the program, while those belonging to the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) were being neglected.
Out of total 820,165 beneficiaries disqualified from the BISP database, 14,730 were government employees or servants of railways, post office and the BISP program as the aid was not meant for government servants. According to the data, 127,826 were those whose spouses were government employees or employees of the above-mentioned departments.
It further revealed that 153,302 among them were those who traveled abroad once and 195,364 were those whose spouses travelled abroad once. The number of beneficiaries who traveled abroad more than once stood at 10,476.
