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KPTMA delegation calls on KP CM

By
NNPS Desk
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Syed Arshad Hussain Shah

PESHAWAR, Dec 04 (APP): A delegation of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Textile Mills Association (KPTMA) led by Ex-Senator, Salim Saifullah Khan called on the Caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Justice (R) Syed Arshad Hussain Shah here Monday.

The delegation apprised the chief minister of the problems faced by the textile Industries of the province with special focus on the exorbitant price hike of gas for industrial sector.

Caretaker Provincial Minister for Industries, Aamir Abdullah, Secretary Industries, Syed Zulfiqar Ali Shah, Secretary Energy and Power Nisar Ahmad and other relevant authorities were also present on the occasion.

The delegation expressed serious reservations on the recent decision of Economic Coordination Committee with regard to increase the price of gas for industrial sector and appealed to the chief minister to take up the issue with the federal government on urgent basis.

The ECC had taken a decision to enhance the price of industrial gas from Rs. 1238/MMBTU to Rs. 2400/MMBTU and that it had also taken a decision to supply blended gas to the industries of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under which 80 percent natural gas and 20 percent RLNG will be supplied to the industries of the province which will further increase the price of industrial gas to Rs. 3100/MMBTU.

The KPTMA remarked that if the decision was not reverted, then they would be left with no other option but to close down the industries in the province, as it would be impossible for them to run factories with such high rates of gas.

The delegation said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was a surplus gas producing province with a total gas production of 550 MMCFD and a total consumption of 200 MMCFD, whereas its industrial gas consumption was only 35 MMCFD; adding that Article 158 of the Constitution guaranteed preference to the gas producing province with regard to the use of gas.

The chief minister termed the concerns of the delegation as genuine and assured to take up the issue with caretaker prime minster as soon as possible and hoped that the prime minister would consider the concerns of KPTMA favorably.

Seizing digital wave through connectivity, global reach vital for modern-day media: MD APP

By
Ishtiaq Rao
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GUANGZHOU (China), Dec 4 (APP): Managing Director of the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) Muhammad Asim Khichi on Monday, highlighting the potential for media growth in the digital age, called for benefiting from the opportunities of connectivity, diverse content creation, and global discourse.

The managing director, in his address as a guest speaker at the Sub-Forum of 5th World Media Summit on “Embracing Changes: Media’s Response To New Technological Opportunities And Challenges” held in Guangzhou, China, said the media could capitalize on the growing online audience by expanding their digital presence and enhancing their global reach.

Seizing digital wave through connectivity, global reach vital for modern-day media: MD APP

Recounting the modern-day challenges facing the media, he said the current digital age provided media with opportunities for creating diverse and inclusive content that reflected a variety of perspectives. The social media platforms also provide opportunities for direct interaction and engagement with the audience, he added.

The Managing Director of APP, the national news agency of Pakistan, remarked that media could also benefit from collaborations with other organizations and enhancing resources and expertise, besides taking leverage of online platforms for revenue generation, including subscriptions, ads, and sponsored content.

He said the media could play a crucial role in fostering informed public discourse and promoting civic engagement.

Seizing digital wave through connectivity, global reach vital for modern-day media: MD APP

He told the international gathering that on one hand, the current digital age had pushed media to the race of “breaking news” while on the other, the technological advancement had created ample opportunities for expansion in outreach and increase in earnings through monetization by multiple digital platforms.

Asim Khichi said if remains unchecked, the challenge of fake news could lead to diverse social, political and security issues, besides damaging the media outlets’ credibility.

He emphasised striking a balance between freedom of expression and responsible journalism is also crucial for the media sector’s development.

The APP MD said the social media platforms enabled instant dissemination of news and engagement with diverse viewership, also providing room for innovative storytelling and content creation, contributing to a more dynamic media landscape.

However, he said the extent of enjoying opportunities might vary, influenced by factors like regulatory environment, technological infrastructure, and adherence to journalistic ethics.

He said the economic viability in the face of digital media growth was another challenge faced by many traditional media outlets that could be tackled by adapting to the rapidly evolving technologies and platforms.

Regarding the APP, he told the gathering that besides strengthening its text services in multiple languages including Chinese, the news agency was also leveraging modern media opportunities by expanding its digital presence, engaging with diverse audiences through social media, adopting multimedia storytelling and collaborating with global news networks including Xinhua.

He expressed the hope that the 5th World Media Summit would help learn from each other’s experiences and expertise in the field of media and come up with a joint statement to address the challenges faced by media in this digital age.

KP CM gives fee waiver to disable candidates in ETEA tests

By
NNPS Desk
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0

PESHAWAR, Dec 04 (APP): As an important relief to special persons, the caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Justice (R) Syed Arshad Hussain Shah has decided to give waiver in test fee to the disable candidates appearing in all kinds of screening tests under Educational Testing and Evaluation Agency (ETEA).

Now onward, disabled candidates appearing in such screening tests will be exempted from test fee.

This, he decided while chairing the 31st meeting of the Board of Governors of KP, ETEA here on Monday.

Provincial Caretaker Minister for Higher Education, Dr. Qasim Jan, Secretary Higher Education, Arshad Khan, Secretary Health, Mehmood Aslam and other members of the Board attended the meeting.

It was decided in the meeting to constitute a committee headed by Provincial Minister Justice (R) Irshad Qaiser for evolving a mechanism to dispose off the cellular phones confiscated from candidates during screening tests.

The committee will come up with final proposals to this end after looking into all the legal and technical aspects of the matter.

Various matters related to curb the menace of cheating in examinations and screening tests came under discussion in the meeting and it was decided to put in place an effective mechanism to curb the illegal use of technological gadgets for cheating in examination and screening tests.

All the concerned stakeholders were directed to sit together and evolve a mechanism in this regard.

It was further decided to take strict action against the networks of individuals involved in breaching the secrecy of examinations and screening tests; and the Chief Minister directed the concerned authorities to work on the required amendments in the relevant laws with the aim to propose more stringent punishment to people involved in such illegal activities.

The chief minister termed cheating as a menace and a crime against society and directed all the concerned quarters to sit together and come up with feasible plan of action to curb this menace effectively. The meeting also approved the budget estimates of ETEA for the financial year 2023-24.

CM inspects Govt Abdul Rahim Memorial Hospital

By
Ali Ali
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Mohsin Naqvi
LAHORE, Dec 04 (APP):Punjab Caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Monday visited the Government Abdul Rahim Memorial Hospital Sodiwal to check the treatment facilities being provided to the patients.
The hospital was found lacking in essential services, including the absence of free medicines and blood supply. Moreover, the absence of a medical superintendent and inadequate sanitation arrangements drew complaints from attendants of female patients.
Taking notice of the grievances, CM Naqvi issued a stern warning to the MS and ordered the reimbursement of money to families who had purchased medicines from outside. He emphasized the need to enhance sanitation arrangements and stated unequivocally that any shortcomings in providing free medications to patients would not be tolerated. The CM took a round of different wards to inspect the medical facilities available to patients. He inquired about healthcare services and the provision of free medicines to patients. He also checked the water filtration plant and congratulated the relatives of a newborn child.

Progress of country linked with development of Balochistan: Ali Mardan

By
NNPS Desk
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CM Domki

GWADAR, Dec 04 (APP): Balochistan Caretaker Chief Minister Mir Ali Mardan Khan Domki on Monday said that the progress of the country was linked with the development of Balochistan.
While addressing the inauguration ceremony of Pakistan-China Friendship Hospital and Water Desalination Plant in Gwadar, he said the construction of Pak-China Friendship Hospital in Gwadar will provide quality health facilities to local masses.
He said that they were determined to make Gwadar a city of international importance and provide standard facilities.
Ali Mardan said that the water desalination plant would provide 5MGD clean water to the residents of the city on daily basis, which would resolve the long-standing problem of the residents of Gwadar.
On this occasion, a desalination plant established with the assistance of the Chinese government was inaugurated to provide clean drinking water to the masses.
Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan Anwarul Haq Kakar, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China Jiang Zaidong, federal ministers and senior officials of Pakistan and China were also present at the ceremony.
In his address, the chief minister said that full attention was being paid at all levels for the development of Balochistan and they were determined to take Gwadar on the track of development and prosperity. The completion of various projects worth billions of dollars in Gwadar, especially in Balochistan will create employment opportunities for the local population and will accelerate economic activities in the region, he said.
He said that due to the broad vision of the leadership of Pakistan and China, CPEC had made significant progress, due to which there had been key achievements in the construction and development of Gwadar port.
He said CPEC is a major program from 2014 to 2030 that has the potential to be an economic game changer for the entire region. The valuable partnership between Pakistan and China will be developed on more sustainable lines, he added.
Caretaker Chief Minister Mir Ali Mardan Khan Domki in his address, congratulated Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan Anwaar ul Haq on his successful visit to United Arab Emirates and said that the visit of the prime minister was a great economic success of Pakistan.
At the end of the ceremony, the chief minister presented sovenier to the Caretaker Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar.

Incentives necessary to boost fodder sowing

By
Ali Ali
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0
LAHORE, Dec 04 (APP):Caretaker Punjab Minister for Livestock Ibrahim Hassan Murad on Monday directed the relevant authorities to present complete data of fodder cultivated till now.
He presided over a meeting here which reviewed BN hybrid fodder cultivation and provision besides performance of Buffalo Research Institute Bahadurnagar, Pattoki.
It was told in the meeting that there were 21 Livestock farms in Punjab. Hybrid fodder is cultivated on 18,880 acres of land in 13 farms.
Minister was briefed that ‘Qalmai’ of Hybrid fodder was being prepared in the Livestock department.
Almost 11,000 animals were being given hybrid fodder in government farms and buffaloes were giving good results after eating simple fodder, meeting told.
It was further told in the meeting that our buffaloes were among best milk producing animals in the world.
The minister said that good amount of forex could be fetched through exporting hybrid fodder, adding that incentives had to be given to farmers to boost cultivation of fodder.
He said that special attention was being paid towards care and protection of animals.
The Minister also directed to present a plan for holding cattle show of buffaloes.
Livestock Technical Additional Secretary Dr Asif Sahi, Production Director General Syed Badar Munir and office bearers of Buffalo Research Institute Pattoki attended the meeting.

BISP-UNICEF collaboration takes center stage to uplift Pakistan’s vulnerable communities

By
NNPS Desk
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0
BISP Logo

ISLAMABAD, Dec 04 (APP): The Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and UNICEF Monday pledged to continue collaborative efforts to provide financial relief to vulnerable segments of the society, making them self-reliant.

This was expressed during a meeting held between Secretary BISP, Amer Ali Ahmad and UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, Sanjay Wijesekera, here at the BISP Headquarters.

The meeting aimed to strengthen the ongoing collaboration between BISP and UNICEF in their collective mission to uplift the lives of most vulnerable communities in Pakistan.

Other participants from BISP included Additional Secretary BISP, Dr. Muhammad Tahir Noor, and DG NSER, Naveed Akbar whereas Country Representative, Abdullah Fadil, and Chief Social Policy, Sadaf Zulfiqar from UNICEF were also present in the meeting.

In his opening remarks, the secretary BISP highlighted the pivotal role of BISP in making a significant impact on the lives of the beneficiaries.

He emphasized the collaborative efforts that have evolved over the 15 years, resulting in BISP currently serving 9.3 million deserving families, identified through the advanced Proxy Means Test (PMT) targeting individuals under 32 PMT.

UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, Sanjay Wijesekera, commended the role of the programme and its initiatives in alleviating poverty among marginalized segments of society.

He assured full support from UNICEF for future interventions with BISP, acknowledging the importance of their shared goal to improve the well-being of the disadvantaged segments.

PFA discards toxic vegetables

By
Ali Ali
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0
LAHORE, Dec 04 (APP):The Punjab Food Authority’s enforcement team on Monday morning uprooted unhealthy crops by ploughing on 40 kanal land during an operation in Sherakot.
On the directions of PFA Director General Raja Jahangir Anwar, PFA Additional Director (Operations) Sharjeel Ahmad along with Deputy Director (Operations) Badar Munir led the operation.
The director general said that PFA took indiscriminate action against farmers for irrigating vegetables with sewage . He said that the PFA discarded hundreds of kilograms of unhealthy turnips and cabbage while inspecting several acres of land. Toxic vegetables were to be supplied to the vegetable market, he added.
He said that the use of waste water to irrigate crops causes health diseases. Farmers can cultivate only non-edible crops and outdoor plants with sewage and industrial waste water, he added.
Raja Jahangir Anwar said the utmost priority of the PFA is to ensure the provision of healthy food ‘From Farm to Fork’ while food safety teams are vigilantly monitoring at every stage to make it successful.

LESCO detects 125 power pilferers in 24 hours

By
Ali Ali
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0
LAHORE, Dec 04 (APP):The Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) has detected a total of 125 connections from where customers were pilfering electricity in all its circles of five districts (Lahore, Sheikhupura, Nankana Sahib, Kasur and Okara) on the 86th day of grand anti-power theft campaign.
The LESCO spokesman told media here Monday that the company has also submitted FIR applications against 125 electricity thieves, out of which 65 FIRs have been registered in respective police stations, while two accused have been arrested. Grand anti-power theft operations against electricity thieves are being conducted on the directives of the Federal Power Division and the LESCO Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Engineer Shahid Haider is supervising these operations.
The LESCO chief vowed that the operations would continue without discrimination until the complete end of electricity theft. The electricity pilferers as well as the LESCO officers and employees who facilitate them are also being brought to justice. On the 86th consecutive day of the anti-power theft campaign, the spokesman added, large commercial consumers were also found involved in electricity theft and all of them were also disconnected and charged with detection units. Among the seized connections 4 were commercial and 121 domestic, and all these connections were disconnected and charged with a total of 123,100 units as detection bill amounting to Rs 5.152 million.Apprising the media about some major power pilferers, he explained that LESCO charged 24,000 detection units to an electricity pilferer in Bhaati Gate area; 7,605 detection units to a customer stealing electricity also in Bhaati Gate area; 7,605 detection to a power thief in area of Chah Miran; and 7,000 detection units to a power thief in Data Nagar area. During the 86 days of grand anti-theft campaign, the spokesman mentioned, the LESCO detected pilferage on 32,505 power connections and submitted 32,122 FIR applications against electricity thieves in the relevant police stations out of which 31,128 FIRs have been registered, while 15,420 accused have so far been arrested by the police. The LESCO has so far charged a total of 54,741,728 detection units worth Rs 2,146,418,299 to all the power pilferers.

FGRF hands over keys of houses built for Kalam’s flood victims

By
Ali Ali
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0
Ali Jabir
ISLAMABAD, Dec 04 (APP):The Faizan Global Relief Foundation of Dawat-e-Islami (FGRF) on Monday handed over the keys of the houses built for the flood victims of Kalam that got affected during the disastrous floods of 2022.
By this time, FGRF-Dawat-e-Islami had built around 5,000 houses and handed them over to the flood victims across Pakistan, the FGRF spokesperson told APP while sharing relief updates in flood-hit areas.
It may be recalled that in the 2022 floods, several houses were also destroyed in Kalam and people were in a dilapidated state.
The FGRF provided ration, shelter and other supplies to the victims and also took responsibility for the construction of damaged houses and also built houses for them.
In this regard, a function was also organized in Kalam. DSP Circle Madin, Habibullah, AC Bahrain, former Tehsil Nazim, Habibullah Saqib, SHO Kalam and FGRF Supervisory Majlis member Haji Shifaat Attari, provincial officials Salim Attari along with division and district officials were present in the ceremony.
A large number of officials of Dawat-e-Islami participated along with the guests who later spoke to the media about the keys handing over to the victims.
The victims told the media that they thank the FGRF for this initiative. “FGRF supported us even during the flood days and provided rations, mattresses, beds and necessities of life and sent hundreds of truckloads of rations to our areas of Bahrain, Madin and Kalam. And today we are very grateful to Dawat-e-Islami for making houses for those whose houses were destroyed in this flood,” they said.
The spokesperson of FGRF said, “We have not forgotten the Muslims who are in trouble and the construction of more houses is going on.”
At the end of the program, FGRF also distributed rations to the victims.
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