Actor Rafi Khawar known as ‘Nanha’ remembered on his death anniversary

Fri, 2 Jun 2023, 5:24 PM

ISLAMABAD, Jun 02 (APP):The 36th death anniversary of the famous film, TV actor, and comedian Rafi Khawar known as ‘Nanha’ was observed on Friday.

Born on August 3, 1942, Rafi Khawar started his career in 1966 by featuring in the Urdu film `Watan Ka Sipahi.’

He played a lead role in the film ‘Tehka Pehlwan’ in 1979, and in the same year his film ‘Dubai Chalo’ went well at the box office.

He worked in many super hit films and TV dramas including ‘Alif Noon’.

His PTV drama ‘Alif Noon’ ran for more than two decades in the early ’80s. He rose to fame with the character ‘Nanha’ in the drama.

He got two Nigar Awards for Best Supporting Actor and Best Comedian in 1977 and 1983.

He died on June 2 in 1986 in Lahore.

His services to the film industry and TV would always be remembered.

Pakistan, Georgia affirm desire to explore cooperation in multiple areas

Ishtiaq Rao

Fri, 2 Jun 2023, 5:18 PM

ISLAMABAD, Jun 02 (APP): Pakistan and Georgia affirmed their desire to explore mutually beneficial areas of cooperation with a special focus on trade and investment, tourism, education and information technology.

The bilateral relations were discussed in the inaugural session of Pakistan-Georgia Bilateral Political Consultations (BPC) held in Tbilisi on Thursday.

Foreign Secretary Dr. Asad Majeed Khan and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Alexander Khvtisiashvili, led the respective sides.

Ambassador of Pakistan to Georgia and Azerbaijan and senior officials from both sides were also present.

The two sides exchanged views on the state of play of bilateral relations.

Both sides termed the inaugural session as a stepping stone for diversified cooperation.

Noting the investor friendly policies of both countries, the foreign secretary highlighted immense potential for bilateral trade and investment between Pakistan and Georgia.

The two sides also formalized the bilateral political consultation mechanism with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.

It was agreed that that the second session of the BPC will be held in Islamabad on mutually agreed dates.

The foreign secretary called on the Foreign Minister of Georgia Ilia Darchiashvili.

Welcoming the inaugural round of consultations, the two sides expressed hope that it would lay the foundation of multifaceted cooperation between the two sides.

Separate meetings with the Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia were also held.

The foreign secretary also attended an interactive event with prominent business representatives of Georgian companies where he underscored the need for rigorous B2B networking to unlock the potential for cooperation between the Pakistan and Georgia.

President Dr Arif Alvi addressing a seminar on “The Role of Federal Insurance Ombudsman in The Development Of Insurance Industry”, at Governor House

Khuram Maryam

Fri, 2 Jun 2023, 5:15 PM

President Dr Arif Alvi addressing a seminar on "The Role of Federal Insurance Ombudsman in The Development Of Insurance Industry", at Governor House — APP19-020623 KARACHI

WSF World Jr Squash C’ships teams announced

NNPS Desk

Fri, 2 Jun 2023, 5:10 PM

ISLAMABAD, Jun 2 (APP):Young squash stars from 33 national federations would descend on Melbourne, Australia, for next month’s WSF World Junior Championships from July 18 to 29, following the confirmation of squads.

Athletes from all over the world would compete in the WSF World Junior Championships, which will take place at Melbourne Sports Centres (MSAC) and include junior men’s and women’s individual championships, as well as the junior women’s team championship, said a press release.

Across the two individual events and the women’s team event, there have been 245 entries.

Hosts Australia, winners of three women’s world junior team championships, as well as boasting five individual winners (three women and two men) would be hoping for a repeat of the last time they hosted the event, in Sydney 1995, when Rachael Grinham, Emma Major, Kate Major and Narelle Tippett lifted the women’s team trophy.

Standing in their way would be formidable opponents, though, with likely top seeds Egypt winners of the last seven women’s junior team championships, which have not been held since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the individuals, the North African nation would be hoping to reclaim the men’s title, with Netherlands’ Rowan Damming ending a run of three consecutive wins for Egypt last year in France, while Amina Orfi will look to secure an 11th consecutive championship for her country by defending her women’s individual title. Elsewhere, Scotland return to the team event for the first time since 2005.

The Competing National Federations, 2023 WSF World Junior Squash Championships- Men’s Individual Championship: Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong, China, India, Ireland, Japan, Kuwait, Lithuania, Macau-China.

Women’s Individual Championship: Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong-China, India, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Macau-China, Malaysia, Malta, New Zealand.

Women’s Team Championship: Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Egypt, England, Hong Kong-China, India, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, USA.

NIH, Japan-FETP organize online session on disease surveillance

NNPS Desk

Fri, 2 Jun 2023, 4:55 PM

ISLAMABAD, Jun 2 (APP): Pakistan- Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP), National Institutes of Health (NIH) Islamabad in collaboration with Japan-FETP, organized a special online session on the “Role of FETPs in Disease Surveillance and Prevention / Control of Diseases”.

This session was originally initiated with good communication and collaboration between the Pakistan Center for Disease Control (CDC) of NIH and the Embassy of Japan in Islamabad during the challenging time of COVID-19.

The session aimed to highlight the crucial role of Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs) in disease surveillance, prevention, and control. FETPs are basically designed to train public health professionals in the field of epidemiology and enable them to support the development and enhancement of surveillance systems for the timely detection and reporting of diseases, said a press release issued by the Japan Embassy in Islamabad on Friday.

Hitoshi Kikawada, a member of the House of Representatives of Japan Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and former State Minister of the Cabinet Office in charge of Policies against COVID-19 was the chief guest of the session. Fellows from the FETPs, health experts, and partners also attended.

In his video message, Kikawada, stated “We have faced a pandemic of COVID-19 for more than three years and have understood that infectious diseases have changed our economies and societies dramatically and overcoming infectious diseases has become one of the most important issues of the human beings”. He also said that Japan has dealt with COVID-19 successfully. Japan has contributed to universal healthcare with ODA for a long time and through these experiences, Japan can play a more active role in medical areas in Asia.

In this sense it is wonderful that Japan and Pakistan have been working in these medical areas, he mentioned.
During the session, a representative from CDC Pakistan and Dr.Tomimasa Sunagawa, MD Director, Center of Field Epidemic Intelligence, Research and Professional Development, National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Japan gave lectures, focusing on disease outbreak investigation and the strengthening of the surveillance system for the timely detection and reporting of infections.

They also emphasized the significance of tracking disease trends and implementing prompt interventions and preventative measures. Talking about the Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs), they added that these programs promote collaboration among various stakeholders, including public health agencies, academic institutions, and international organizations.

By training epidemiologists and supporting surveillance activities, FETPs help build resilient health systems capable of responding to disease outbreaks and other public health emergencies.