ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday restored the membership of 13 more members of the Parliament (MPs) after filing their statements of assets and liabilities.
Those whose membership had been restored included senators Kamran Michael, Saifullah Abro, Mohsin Aziz and Sania Nishtar, members of the National Assembly Chaudhary Abid Raza, Chaudhary Khalid Javed, Noor Ul Hasan Tanvir, Syed Mubeen Ahmed, Muhammad Shabbir Ali, Asmat Ullah and Lal Chand, and provincial assembly members Muhammad Shahryar Khan Mahar and Syed Muhammad Rashid Shah, an ECP official said.
The ECP had suspended the membership of some 271 parliamentarians for non-submission of their annual statements of assets and liabilities till January 16.
QUETTA, Jan 24 (APP): Balochistan Minister for Home and Tribal Affair Mir Ziaullah Langu on Tuesday said the provision of quality education was the top priority of the provincial government.
He expressed these views in a message on International Education Day.
The minister said in today’s age, provincial and national development was based upon education and technical knowledge.
He said provincial government was taking effective measures to solve education-related issues and in this regard, more teachers had been recruited for achieving the goal of quality education.
Langu assured his complete support to the education sector for the promotion of quality education in the province.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP):The federal cabinet on Tuesday ordered the authorities concerned for formulation of a comprehensive strategy to prevent the recurrence of prolonged power outages in the future and to do away with the factors causing it.
The cabinet, in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, also approved a nationwide public awareness drive on conservation of power, water, gas and other resources to make the people develop such habits.
The meeting also called for inclusion of the subject of best international practices on energy conservation in the educational curriculum.
It was told that energy conservation efforts at public, private, domestic and commercial level would help reduce the import bill of the petroleum products which had increased remarkably during last seven years.
Besides, the behavioral changes would also save billions of rupeess of foreign exchange and reduce the electricity bills of individuals by 30 to 40 percent.
The prime minister, expressing annoyance over the widespread power breakdown on Monday, said the inconvenience caused to the people was unacceptable and would not tolerate such happenings in the future.
He called for fixing the responsibility of the power outage which had caused difficulties for the masses as well as the business community. He also instructed to identify the factors behind the power breakdown and take necessary measures to prevent its recurrence.
The cabinet meeting was told that committee formed by the prime minister in the power outage had started functioning which would furnish a comprehensive report after deliberating over all the factors.
The energy minister told the meeting that, as per initial report, the power supply tripped at 0734 hours on Monday, due to technical fault, voltage fluctuation and frequency disruption.
It was told that as per prime minister’s directives, all-out resources were used and power supply was restored in all main cities by 2200 hours.
Moreover, all major 1112 grid stations were also restored by 0500 hours on Tuesday morning to ensure power supply to the consumers.
On the prime minister’s directives, the gas-powered power plants have also been made operational to overcome the energy shortfall caused by the breakdown. However, the operations of nuclear and coal power plants would take another couple of days, though the power generation from rest of the power plants was in progress.
Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb gave a detailed briefing to the cabinet on National Awareness and Communication Strategy for Energy Conservation under which a long-term awareness drive would be launched.
She told the meeting that, prior to the drive, the information ministry carried out the first comprehensive survey to seek public opinion on the energy conservation. Considering the public behaviour, the ministry prepared an awareness drive which would focus on developing people’s habits, lifestyle and bahaviour for energy conservation.
The ministry would also seek the support from print, electronic and social media as well as the public opinion makers and experts for the awareness drive which would be run in collaboration with the public and private institutions.
The awareness drive is aimed at guiding the citizens on energy conservation which would not only benefit them in person but also help reduce the economic burden from the country.
The meeting was told that due to import of the petroleum products, the country’s import bill swelled from 18% in 2017 to 29% in 2022.
The federal cabinet appreciated and approved the information ministry’s awareness drive and instructed for its early launch, also asking other ministries to extend their support.
The prime minister directed for taking the caretaker governments of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa into confidence on the energy conservation plans to ensure their effective implementation.
A comprehensive report of the inter-ministerial committee on Toshakhana was presented to the cabinet, besides a draft of the new Toshakhana policy. The cabinet members put forward their suggestions on committee’s recommendations as well as the draft policy.
The prime minister asked the inter-ministerial committee to re-submit its report in the next cabinet meeting after incorporating the members’ suggestions.
The cabinet meeting also endorsed the Economic Coordination Committee’s decisions taken in its meetings of January 3 and 11, 2023, as well as Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases’s decisions taken on January 6, 2023.
PESHAWAR, Jan 24 (APP): Chief Executive Officer Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO) Arif Mehmood on Tuesday said that the company has restored electricity supply to all the grid stations and its affiliated area after the breakdown.
In an official communique issued here, he said that the company restored power supply to 80 percent of areas till 11 p.m. on the day of the breakdown, adding electricity supply was restored to all grids by the next day.
He said that PESCO was providing uninterrupted power supply to all industries however due to load management the loadshedding was being observed at a very limited scale for which he sought the cooperation of the consumers.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP): The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday sought a complete record from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) regarding scrutiny of the funding of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
Chief Justice Aamer Farooq heard the petition filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) leader Farukh Habib seeking early scrutiny of the two parties.
The petitioner’s lawyer, Aima Anwar Khan, stated that the court had sought the record from the ECP during the last hearing.
The ECP’s Director General Law prayed the court to grant more time for the purpose as the Commission was engaged in the election matters.
The chief justice questioned what were the engagements of ECP as it was not even holding local government elections in the Federal Capital.
The DG Law replied that the ECP was making preparations for LG polls in the Capital, while three National Assembly seats from Islamabad had also been vacated.
The court then adjourned the case till February 7, instructing the DG Law to come up with the complete record of the two parties funding on that date.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP): About 83 per cent of progress on improvement, upgradation and expansion of the 167 km strategic road Skardu-Jaglot Road (S-1) has been achieved so far, an official of National Highway Authority told APP on Tuesday.
The official said ECNEC had given the approval of the project on July 10, 2017, and its revised cost would be established as 32.325 billion. During the present fiscal year, Rs 2 billion have been allocated for the project in the PSDP 2022-2023, he said.
The official said the project has been assigned to Frontier Works Organization (FWO) which had laid the initial track in 1984.
Jaglot-Skardu road, the official said, a major link between Karakoram Highway and Skardu has 3.66-meter width of blacktop.
The difficult terrain has intense snowfall and major rock sliding, the NHA official added.
He said its upgradation would enhance the comfortable road ride for locals as well as tourists by increasing the width of the road from 3.6 to 7.3 meters and reducing the sharp curves.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP): Kashmiris on both sides of the Line of Control and the world over will observe India’s Republic Day, the 26th of January, on Thursday as Black Day to impress upon the world to take notice of New Delhi’s continued denial of right to self-determination to the Kashmiri people.
Call for the observance of the Black Day has been given by the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, according to the Kashmir Media Service (KMS).
The day will be marked as a black day in occupied Kashmir, Azad Kashmir and abroad with anti-India demonstrations and rallies being held in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan and world capitals to give a strong message to the world that India is a usurper in the occupied territory.
People through statements, massage and posters, by Sadai Mazloom, Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Movement, Tehreek-e-Azadi Jammu and Kashmir, and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Alliance, Jammu and Kashmir Political Resistance Movement and Youth Freedom Fighter in Srinagar, and others areas of the valley asked to boycott all Indian official celebrations and hoist black flags on the rooftops of their houses, shops and other buildings. The posters continue to surface since last one week in different places of the territory.
The APHC reiterated its call for imposing civil curfew in every nook and corner of the territory. It castigated India for unleashing a reign of terror, repression, frequent cordon and search operations, random arrests and restricting businesses and social activities.
Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party led by jailed leader Shabbir Ahmed Shah also appealed to the Kashmiris living all over the world to observe Indian “Republic Day” as Black Day. “The country that is grossly involved in death and destruction in Kashmir and holding millions of Kashmiris hostage at the gunpoint has no right whatsoever to observe Republic Day, while on the other hand India government has deprived Kashmiris of their basic rights,” the DFP said. . Other Hurriyat organizations including Tehreek-e-Hurriyat Jammu and Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir Peoples League and Democratic Political Movement said that the presence of Indian troops in IIOJK is illegal, illegitimate and unconstitutional and is clear violation of International Law. Therefore, by no law all over the world or morals can justify the presence of Indian troops in IIOJK, they argued.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP): A total of 256 applicants were shortlisted out of 13,000 applications received for the first phase of Bootcamp on idea pitching, the Prime Minister’s National Innovation Award (PMNIA).
The shortlisting was done by a scrutiny committee comprising industry experts/entrepreneurs from relevant fields.
The applicants scrutinized purely on merit will undergo extensive, regional 5-day Bootcamps on idea pitching by five partner universities.
Applications for this program were received in the month of October and November 2022 from aspiring youth aged 15 to 30 years.
The applications were open to all kinds of innovative ideas including but not limited to information technology, sustainable energy, food security, water management, etc.
The selection of awards will be made through an open, rigorous, transparent, competitive, and merit-based process.
The objective of PMNIA is to improve Pakistan’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index, foster entrepreneurial culture among the youth, and transform ideas into successful businesses. It is an open opportunity for Pakistani youth to propose innovative ideas; get funding, and technical support from mentors with a 6-month incubation facility to augment their ideas into a flourishing business.
The process of pitching training for these shortlisted applicants will be followed by the national-level pitching competition which will start tentatively in February/ March. In this process, 50 ideas will be finalized for the award. The top 10 selected ideas will receive awards of Rs. 1 million PKR each, while each one of the 40 ideas will receive Rs. 0.5 million PKR.
In the corresponding phase for six months of incubation, all 50 winners, in addition to the award money, will be eligible for supplementary funds, up to Rs. 1 million linked to start-up deliverables.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (APP): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday launched PM’s Youth Business and Agri-loans scheme which would provide opportunities to the youth to earn their livelihood through different business and agriculture initiatives.
Addressing the launching ceremony, the prime minister said that Pakistan was passing through difficult times and resolved that he would sacrifice all his political career and life for the sake of the country.
“I have served thrice as a chief minister of Punjab and now serving as an incumbent prime minister of the country, what legacy we will leave behind if these issues are not being addressed? It is clear that Pakistan is facing huge challenges, and if we have taken responsibility, we will make our all-out efforts to steer the country out of the difficulties,” he stressed.
The prime minister said it was their collective responsibility as Pakistanis, politicians and the Muslims to respond to the difficult situation, and he would not even desist from sacrificing his life for the country.
He said in this path, problems would spring up, but they would have to bear the pains.
The people at the helms of affairs, politicians and rich have to set an example, as it was unfair to burden the poor with price hike and let the rich and elite to enjoy on the country’s loans, he added.
PM Youth Business and Agri Loans Scheme is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship among youth by providing business loans on simple terms and with less markup through 15 Commercial, Islamic and SME banks.
All Pakistani residents, aged between 21 and 45 years with entrepreneurial potential are eligible to apply for the loan. Loans provided under the scheme are segregated into three tiers.
The prime minister, expressing his optimism, said that youth had the potential and talent and together, they would steer Pakistan out of the current issues.
He praised them as ‘the shining stars on the horizon of the country’.
The prime minister said the prime responsibility of addressing the country’s issues rested with the government.
They took reigns of the government under the most difficult times, but despite all these ordeals, their resolve grew stronger to make Pakistan stronger, he added.
The prime minister also reiterated that the government had told the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that they were keen to complete the 9th Review Programme and wanted to conclude the terms through negotiations without any delay, so that Pakistan could move ahead.
He expressed the optimism that country’s other multilateral and bilateral programmes would also move ahead.
The prime minister mentioned that Pakistan was spending $27billion dollars on import of costly oil for energy generation and it could be reduced by half by taking practical steps.
The prime minister, in apparent veiled reference to the former PTI’s provincial government of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said the federal government had announced steps over energy conservation, but unfortunately, one provincial government approached the high court for a stay order while another provincial government used delaying tactics.
To save Pakistan, they would have to sacrifice politics. The PML-N and other allied parties were committed to overcoming the current challenges, he added.
Recollecting his tenure as Khadim-e-Ala of Punjab, he said there was a time when the provincial government utilized its resources for providing interest free loans to the youth while thousands of laptops were provided on merit.
Through the Bank of Punjab, he said, different schemes were launched including the youth self-employment scheme, loans worth Rs40 billion had been distributed among the youth of the province with 99 percent recovery.
The prime minister said an amount of Rs40 billion was distributed as stipends among the students in Punjab, including orphans during his tenure as chief minister from 2008 and onwards, enabling them to pursue their educational career and accomplish their aims in life. He said it was the real investment for any nation.
He opined that the youth of the country was committed, and if they were provided with opportunities, they could take the country forward.
The prime minister further said PM’s Youth programme was also launched during former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s tenure at the federal level and Rs75 billion worth loans were provided to 5,4000 youth which had not only benefited the youth, but also boosted the country’s economy.
Contrary to the criticism of political opponents, he said during the Covid pandemic, those laptops became a source of income for the youth and they served the country with their potential.
The prime minister said considering the financial burden, the government in collaboration with the banks and financial institutions had launched this scheme.
Under the scheme, he said loans would be extended to the youth in different categories, thus providing them a springboard to excel in different fields.
He further informed that the government was also mulling to initiate scheme for distribution of about 100,000 laptops on merit.
Unfortunately, during the last 75 years, the prime minister regretted they all were responsible for the country’s woes and stressed that they have to accept the past mistakes, and move ahead by learning from the experiences of the past.
He also expressed the optimism that the country would be soon out of the woods and cited examples of Japan and Germany.
PM’s Special Assistant on Youth Affairs Shaza Fatima Khawaja, on the occasion, also highlighted the key features of the scheme.
She said the present government was committed to translating its vision for youth contrary to the hollow slogans of the previous government.
Governor State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Jameel Ahmed appreciated the scheme and said about 64 percent of the country’s population comprised youth.
He said the SBP assisted the government in the formulation of the scheme, adding about 15 banks and 5 micro banks would be participating in this scheme.
KARACHI, Jan 24 (APP): The Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) and Collectorate of Customs Enforcement have seized 1,450 kilograms of narcotics in a joint intelligence-based operation in the North Arabian Sea.
During the successful operation, the security forces apprehended the largest haul of drugs that included 586 kg ice crystal and 864 kg heroin, a Pakistan Navy news release said on Tuesday.
The seized narcotics was valued at approximately Rs 15 billion in the international market. The arrested smugglers and drug cache were handed over to the Customs authorities for legal proceedings.
“The successful joint anti-narcotics operation by the Pakistan Navy, PMSA and Customs Enforcement reaffirms the resolve to deny illegal activities in maritime zones of Pakistan and to synergize efforts of Maritime Law Enforcement Agencies in ensuring the security of our waters,” the news release added.
