ISLAMABAD, May 8 (APP):Marriyum Aurangzeb, Minister for Information and Broadcasting said on Tuesday that continuity of democracy was imperative for public-centric legislation to root out the diseases like Thalassemia as democracy was the only system of the governance having public representation.
Addressing an event organised in connection with World Thalassemia Day, she said that no government and stakeholders could tackle a fatal disease like Thalassemia without due cooperation and consent of the masses.
She said that the present parliament for the first time after 1977, had enacted 133 flagship laws during past five years which was a landmark achievement. She said most of the pieces of legislation done by the parliament in the past five years were related to health, education, thalassemia and improving living standards of the people of Pakistan.
She said that present government had taken effective measures for prevention of Thalassemia including the setting up of a Thalassemia Center in Islamabad on the instructions of Begum Kalsoom Nawaz, which was one of the major initiative in that connection.
She urged all the patients under treatment at the Thalassemia center to pray to Allah Almighty for the safety and early recovery and return of Kalsoom Nawaz. Marriyum revealed that the PML (N) government had waged a war against Thalassemia and had been successful in containing it to a great extent.
The minister informed that the ministry of Information and Broadcasting was going to run an awareness campaign regarding Thalassemia on official media i.e. PTV and Radio Pakistan. She said that PTV’s Parliament Channel to be launched soon would cover proceedings of the Parliament and its committees live. She urged the private media to be a part of the campaign to save lives.
She said that the treatment for Thalassemia was not only expensive but it was also a traumatic experience for the family, adding that the provincial governments should declare emergency at the provincial level for the treatment of the disease.
She said that minor and major Thalassemia was transmitted to the children because of marriages between close relatives, particularly marriages between cousins. The minister said that the parliament had done legislation under which pre-marital screening had been made mandatory and a column had also been added to the wed-lock form in that regard. She said that due to prior screening the real situation would be unraveled and if the process involved changing of the traditions and mindset it should be done without any hesitation.
The minister said that emergency had been declared as far as mother and child malnutrition was concerned and emphasized the need for steps to be taken on war footing to overcome the issue of stunting growth.
The event was organised by Jamila Sultana Foundation and Safe Blood Transfusion Programme.
Democracy imperative for public-centric legislation to root out Thalassemia: Marriyum
Youth to reap maximum benefits from CPEC: Marriyum
ISLAMABAD, May 8 (APP):Marriyum Aurangzeb, Minister for Information and Broadcasting, on Tuesday said that China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was a great opportunity for the country and stressed that it should be properly harvested by engaging youth of the country to reap maximum benefits from that mega-economic initiative.
“If the CPEC is not utilized properly and youth are not engaged in the projects under CPEC, then a huge gap would be created which would be hard to fill in,” Marriyum said adding that the government was actively engaging less developed areas and youth of the country in the CPEC projects.
Addressing a round-table conference on Strengthening Skills: A national Investment for Tackling Youth Unemployment here Tuesday the minister said that the process of technical training of the youth could be further improved by public-private partnership. Marriyum stressed the need to change the attitudes and behaviors of the country’s youth by engaging them in creative activities for socio-economic development of the country.
She said that concrete measures were being taken for implementation of Vision 2015 and there was a need to remodel the infrastructure of technical training to develop industry and strengthening skills in line with the vision 2015, Sustainable Development Goals, and budgetary documents.
The minister said that the country had a huge young population which was a great national asset. She said that the youth were required to be given a right direction.
She said the government had initiated a number of programmes especially for youth to promote entrepreneurship among them for ensuring their better future. She also highlighted the importance of technical and skill-based education saying that the youth were facing social pressure for getting higher education degrees despite the fact that they were more interested in skill-based and technical education.
In this regard, Marriyum Aurengzeb said that the mindset of society and parents were needed to be changed to convince them for encouraging their children to get skill-based trainings. The minister said that the government introduced Prime Minister Youth Programme which was successfully being run during the past five years. She said a big number of Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were working for development of youth like Aman Foundation which is playing an appreciable role in providing technical education to the youth. She said the government had introduced the much-awaited film policy to promote the national culture in the world. Marriyum said that under this policy, the film industry would further flourish which would also create numerous jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities for the youth. The minister said that second elected government was completing its five-year tenure which was a good news for the country’s democratic system.
She said that the continuity of democracy was strengthening the system and the state institutions, besides making them more and more independent. She suggested promoting of dialogue initiatives in order to address the challenges in regards to converting youth into a development force. The minister underlined the need for providing job-oriented training to youth by the public sector.
She said that the incumbent government took several steps to overcome power crisis and 11000 MW electricity was added to national grid. She also reiterated the need for on the job training in the public sector organizations with the view to enhance the capacity of the work force.
High Commissioner calls on Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn
LONDON, May 08 (APP):Syed Ibne Abbas, Pakistan High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (UK) called on Labour Leader, Jeremy
Corbyn here at the British Parliament on Tuesday and discussed issues of the common interest and gross human rights
violations in Indian occupied Kashmir.
According to a statement of the High Commission, the meeting was attended by Emily Thornberry MP,
Shadow Foreign Secretary and Kate Hollern MP, besides senior members of Mr Corbyn’s office.
The two sides discussed a wide range of matters of common interest, including diaspora, peace and
stability in the region.
The High Commissioner felicitated the Labour Leader on the resurgence of Party under his leadership.
He said Pakistan and the UK had historically enjoyed robust bilateral relations and the Labour Party
contributed immensely towards further strengthening these relations.
Speaking about gross human rights violations in the Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK), the High
Commissioner emphasized on the international community, particularly, UK, to play its role in resolving the longstanding
dispute.
He said Pakistan was committed to resolving the dispute peacefully through dialogue.
The High Commissioner also expressed concern over UK’s role on measures related to Financial Action Task Force
(FATF). He put across Pakistan’s stance on the matter and underlined Pakistan’s achievements in fight against
terrorism and extremism.
Jeremy Corbyn appreciated the role of Pakistani diaspora in strengthening the relations between the two
countries.
He hoped that upcoming general elections would further strengthen democracy in Pakistan.
On the High Commissioner’s reiteration of the invitation to visit Pakistan, Corbyn said he WAs very much looking forward
to visiting Pakistan.
The two sides agreed to interact more often on issues of mutual interest.
Senators continue budget debate
ISLAMABAD, May 08 (APP):Senators from both sides of the aisle Tuesday continued debate on the budget 2018-19, suggesting various measures to make it result-oriented and viable.
The treasury benches termed the Finance Bill, 2018 pro-people, business and growth-oriented, while the opposition members called it anti-people.
Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party’s (PMAP) Muhammad Usman Khan Kakar said the development budget should not have been slashed. The country would have to borrow more money in the next financial year to overcome 5 percent deficit, he added.
He said direct taxes had been decreased further and indirect tax enhanced. The circular debt had risen to Rs 800 billion, he claimed.
Usman Khan Kakar asked the government to introduce land reforms in the country. The National Finance Commission Award had not been announced prior to the budget, he added.
He said that all the state institutions should work within their constitutional domains.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Prof Dr Mehr Taj Roghani said education and health sectors had been ignored by the government in the next financial year’s budget.
She urged the Finance Committee to make recommendations to spend more and more on the welfare of children. She also asked the government to focus on the youth.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Ayesha Raza Farooq said foreign investment had increased in the country during the last five years. Economy had improved significantly due to the steps taken by the government as thousands of megawatts of electricity had been added to the national grid station. Salaries of government employees had been increased, while tax rate for individuals had also slashed.
She urged the government to enhance water storage capacity by constructing small and big dams. She appreciated the government for allocating Rs 79 billion to cope with water shortage.
Senator from FATA Aurangzeb Khan termed the budget anti-poor and growth. He said nothing had been announced for the development of Federally Administered tribal Areas (FATA) in the federal budget and asked the government to allocate more funds for health and education sectors.
Balochistan National Party-Mengal’s (BNP-M) Dr Jehanzeb Jamaldini said the government had burdened the masses in the federal budget. The duration of electricity load-shedding in the Balochistan province had increased, he added.
National Party’s (NP) Muhammad Akram asked the government to focus on the development of Balochistan, which was the most backward province and required special attention.
Saadia Abbasi lauded the PML-N government’s performance, which, she said, had done a lot had been done for the development and welfare of the country.
She said during the tenure of Pakistan Muslim League, direct foreign investment had increased. FIFA had approved to use Pakistani manufactured football in the World Cup, she added.
Saadia Abbasi said the popularity graph of the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was increasing with every passing day.
She expressed the hope that the Pakistan Muslim League-N would win the next general elections for successfully implementing its development agenda during the current tenure.
She said a huge amount had been allocated for the development of FATA. Gwadar deep seaport and Islamabad International Airport had started their operations, she added.
National Party’s (NP) Muhammad Tahir Bizinjo suggested that Senate of Pakistan should be given financial powers.
He said due to contaminated water in the Gwadar, its residencts were suffering from hepatitis. He asked the opposition leader and Senate chairman to use their good offices for the resolution of water issue in the port city.
Opposition leader Sherry Rehman said despite repeated requests, documents of LNG deal with Qatar had not been shared with
the parliamentarians.
Get into rugby programme in full swing in Punjab
LAHORE, May 08 (APP):Get In To Rugby programme is in full swing in Different cities of Pakistan Under the banner of Pakistan Rugby Union.
Pakistan Rugby Union development officer coach Muhammad Basit who is conducting get into rugby programme in Muzaffargarh delivered lectures and gave useful tips to the aspiring rugby players belonging to different educational institutions.
“The girls alongside boys were very keen to learn rugby which shows their commitment and devotion to take up rugby as a sport,” said a spokesman of PRU while talking to APP here on Tuesday.
He said the our coaches are traveling to major cities and villages of the Southern Punjab to highlight the importance of get into rugby programme and to expose the players to the basics of the game.
“During the last three years thousands of girls and boys attended the Rugby programme that is why rugby is one of most popular sport in Southern Punjab. We have many boys and girls team in every city that is very good sign and this is only because of continuation of our rugby programme,” he said.
Federal Cabinet strongly condemns attack on Interior Minister
ISLAMABAD, May 8 (APP):The Federal Cabinet, with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the chair, Tuesday strongly condemned the attack on Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal and prayed for his speedy recovery.
The cabinet ratified the decisions taken by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet in its meeting held on April 27.
It approved renewal of an agreement for coordination in the field of education between the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination Government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Ministry of Education of the Kyrgyz Republic signed on March 8, 2005.
The cabinet also approved signing of the following memorandums of understanding (MoUs) / agreements:
– MoU on cooperation in agricultural research and development for the Belt & Road among Ministry of National Food Security & Research, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science and Centre for Agricultural and Bioscience International (CABI) Pakistan.
– Approval for signing of Agreement on Transfer of Offenders between the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
– Agreement for provision of credit line facility amounting to US$14 million to Somalia related to provision of services by NADRA.
-Nominations of Vice-President, Treasurer and the Members of Governing Body of Iqbal Academy Pakistan, Lahore were approved.
The cabinet also approved re-appointment of Ahmed Owais Pirzada as Member Technical (BS-22) Competitions Appellate Tribunal, Islamabad.
It granted ex-post facto approval of the notification for revised proforma for inspection of new medical colleges as per the directions of the Supreme Court.
The cabinet also approved appointment of Board of Directors of National Security Printing Company (NSPC).
The Prime Minister also briefed the cabinet about his meeting with the parliamentary leaders and representatives of various political parties yesterday about implementation of the FATA reforms.
Sahiwal in QF of Pakistan Super Kabaddi League
LAHORE, May 08 (APP):Sahiwal was the first team to enter into the quarter finals of the Pakistan Super Kabaddi League after making short work of Lahore 45-37 points here on Tuesday at Nishtar Park Sports complex.
Sahiwal showed exit to Lahore which put up pathetic show in the event by losing its all five league matches.
In another match Kashmir with two victories to their credit marched ahead after defeating Islamabad 36-31.
In an women kabaddi exhibition match Strawberry scored a hard fought 33-31 win over Dreams team before a lively crowd which cheered the moves and skills of female kabaddi players.
Strawberry faced stiff opposition from Dreams which equalized the scored on a couple of occasions for the entertainment of the crowd. In the dying stages of the match Strawberry came with full force to maintain its edge till the match was over.
Pakistan, Afghanistan agree to strengthen institutional mechanism for promoting bilateral trade
ISLAMABAD, May 8 (APP):Pakistan and Afghanistan on Tuesday agreed that institutional mechanism between the two countries needed to be strengthened, saying “holding of the much-awaited 7th Afghanistan Pakistan Transit Trade Coordination Authority Meeting by the Afghan side is need of the hour.”
The agreement reached during a meeting between a high-ranking Afghan Ministerial delegation that called on Secretary Commerce Mohammad Younus Dagha here.
The delegation was led by Deputy Minister for Commerce Ms. Kamila Sidiqi, said a press release.
During the meeting, the two sides expressed the desire to enhance trade relations between the two countries by overcoming existing challenges.
The meeting resolved that all-out efforts would be made to remove impediments hampering bilateral and transit trade.
The two sides also agreed to increase interaction at technical and policy levels for the prompt resolution of confronting issues.
The discussion largely hinged on the SPS/Quarantine certification and removal of regulatory duties on selected items like fresh fruits and vegetables, dry fruit to facilitate Afghanistan’s exports to Pakistan as announced by the Prime Minister during his recent
visit to Afghanistan. Besides, deployment of Department of Plant Protection personnel on various border crossings came under discussion.
The Secretary, Ministry of National Food Security and Research informed the delegation that the personnel had been deployed
at Chaman and Torkham points initially and other border crossings would also be facilitated in due course.
The Afghan delegation thanked the Pakistan government for their hospitality and removing concerns related to Afghan traders
and farmers.
The Afghan delegation was comprised of members including Hamdullah Hamdard, Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, Mir Saeed Saeedy, Director General, International Trade, Ministry of Commerce, Khan Jan Alakozai, Head of Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Najibullah Wardak, Deputy Director, Income, Ministry of Finance, Ahmed Shakir Qarar, Deputy Director, First Political Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Edrees Raouf, Cotton Specialist, Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock and Embassy officials.
While, Secretary National Food Security and Research Fazal Abbas Maken, and officials of Ministry of National Food, Federal Board of Revenue and Foreign Office assisted the Secretary Commerce during the meeting.
Pak baseball officials complete coaching clinic in China
LAHORE, May 08 (APP):Two Baseball Coaches from Pakistan Umair Imdad Bhatti and Nadeem Sajjad Shah successfully completed BFA coaches clinic which concluded on Tuesday in Nanjing ,China.
The four day useful activity which aimed at upgrading the existing knowledge of the participants was organised by baseball federation of
Asia and Major league baseball China.
“For us it is quite a big honor that our two coaches who are
Baseball players and also coach Schools, Colleges and Universities
baseball Teams completed the course”, said Syed Fakhar Shah, President, Pakistan Federation baseball here.
He said that if any coach who has played baseball in the early age
at international level is a best choice for attending such high profile courses to impart coaching as he knew the basics and finer points of the game.
Syed Fakhar Shah said that the clinic was organized to enhance Technical Knowledge of Coaches. “This clinic will help our coaches to understand the game protocol and how to prepare official tournament
reports under the WBSC system. We are delighted that they have become certified coaches by receiving their certificates”, he said.
PFB official said the coaches will pass on the modern coaching knowledge to the home coaches to supplement the ongoing efforts for the further promotion of baseball in the country.
CPEC has increasingly taken concrete shape since its advent in 2013: Ambassador Khalid
BEIJING, May 8 (APP):Pakistan Ambassador to China, Masood Khalid Tuesday said that China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was a
natural front-runner of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and this flagship project had increasingly taken a concrete shape since
it was launched in 2013.
“This flagship project has enabled Pakistan and China to translate their time-tested friendship into a strategic partnership
with tangible facts on the ground that directly benefit people of both countries,” he said while addressing a select gathering of intellectuals, teachers and students at the Institute of Belt and Road Initiative at Tsinghua University here.
Ambassador Khalid said that the CPEC was not a plan about hollow promises in the remote future but it was happening
now in a short span of a few years.
“The power projects completed under the CPEC have largely alleviated electricity shortfall and as a result, the economic activity has improved manifold in the country,” he added.
He said the mineral resources were being taped and with the development of Thar coal project in near future, the poverty would be a thing of past and added, the infrastructure development and transportation network would multiply dividend for the
people.
The Gwadar port had attained operational status which would create employment opportunities for the local people and
also provide connectivity to other countries of the region, he added.
He informed that after the CPEC, Pakistan’s economic indicators were showing positive results and the economic growth rate had exceeded 5.5 percent last year.
Now, the government was prioritizing the trade and economic zones for the rapid industrial development which would provide a tremendous opportunity for the investors. For the industrial development, Pakistan will learn from experience of China which has an ample knowledge in this regard, he added.
Ambassador Khalid said that there were some elements who seek to create hurdles in the smooth functioning of the
CPEC, but we are clear the CPEC was here to stay and meet the aspiration of our two people.
About the security of the Chinese citizens working in Pakistan, he informed the audience that Pakistan had raised a
security force for the protection of Chinese engineers, technicians and workers across the country.
He said at present, 22,000 Pakistani students were studying in different colleges and universities of China which would further promote and cement the existing relations between the two countries.
He said the Chinese students were taking a keen interest in learning Urdu language and now, Urdu departments had
been set up in nine Chinese universities and hoped it would further people to people contacts between the two countries.
Regarding China’s role in the global economic development and peace, he said that in the current global context, the resurgence of China was a breath of fresh air and a ray of hope for a better shared future for mankind.
“Whether it is a commitment to open and equitable economic globalization or it is advocacy of multilateralism and a
win-win cooperation to find collective solutions of challenges, China has injected much-needed energy into modern-day
international affairs,” he added.
He said that Pakistan and much of the world welcomed China in its greater role of the world stage in the new era.
Speaking on the occasion, a scholar from Tsinghua University, He Maoqun, who had been visiting Pakistan
frequently, opined that the CPEC provided a number of opportunities for the bilateral cooperation in the infrastructure,
agriculture, manufacturing, culture, education and irrigation.
He said that people to people exchange were important to bring the two countries further closer and hoped that
friendly and brotherly relations between China and Pakistan would continue in a generation after generation.
Earlier, Executive Dean, Institute of the Belt and Road Initiative, Tsinghua University, Shi Zhiqin welcomed the Ambassador and lauded his very important role in the promotion of BRI.
He said that Pakistan and China were all-weather friends and had a shared partnership which was a unique example
in the world.