LAHORE, March 27 (APP):Muhammad Hasan of NTC Headquarters won the men’s single title of All Pakistan NTC Badminton Championship, defeating Muhammad Safdar of Central Region 2-0 in the final here on Tuesday at the Punjab University Gymnasium Hall.
Hasan exhibited all round performance with greater agility to outshine his opponent in all departments of the game with a score line 21-10, 21-14.
Managing Director Brig (retd) Waqar Rasheed Khan was the chief guest on the occasion and witnessed the finals with keen interest.
In the men’s doubles final, Imtiaz and Rizwan of NTC Quetta outstroked Hamid-Ullah and
Muhammad Hasan of NTC Headquarters by 2-0.
In the inter-telecom operators final, Mobilin beat NTC by 2-1. In the team event final, the NTC headquarters made short work of Central region by 2-0.
Speaking at the prize distribution ceremony, MD NTC Brig (retd) Waqar praised the performance
of the players and urged them to keep doing hard work with zeal to achieve excellence in the game.
“The NTC is taking every measure to engage its employees in healthy activity and this All
Pakistan badminton tournament is a part of the efforts to ensure participation of players in such
events which help them in maintaining good standard of the game,” he said.
The NTC MD said high quality badminton was witnessed during the event and it was a heartening sign that NTC players are showing improvement in their game with each passing day.
He said that the next year the tournament would be organised at Islamabad or Karachi. “The NTC
is laying special emphasis on organising sports events in different games and it is working on a comprehensive plan to promote sports within the department,” he said.
Later, the MD NTC distributed prizes and medals among the winning teams at the closing
ceremony.
Hasan wins men’s single title of All Pak NTC badminton
Security forces arrest two suspects from Balochistan
RAWALPINDI, Mar 27 (APP):Security forces conducted intelligence based operations (IBOs) on suspected terrorist hideouts on Tuesday in different areas of Balochistan and apprehended two suspects.
According to an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement issued here, the IBOs were carried out in Duki, Shoaib Nikka, Zhob, Kabo and Mastung areas of Balochistan.
Cache of arms and ammunition including improvised explosive devices (IEDs), detonators, explosive, ball bearings and various calibre ammunition were also recovered.
BISP achieves first position worldwide in targeting performance: Marvi
ISLAMABAD, March 27 (APP):Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) has been ranked top among globally acclaimed unconditional cash transfer programs through Revised Proxy Means Test (PMT) Formula.
“The simulated results show that using the revised PMT formula will substantially increase targeting performance and 60.2 percent beneficiaries will be from the bottom quintile, as compared to 48 percent in the old formula of 2010, while 87.5% would
be from the bottom 2 quintiles as compared to 75 percent previously – i.e. a remarkable increase of 12.5 percentage points,” said
a press release.
This is a simulated result but once the National Socio Economic Registry (NSER) update is completed and the administrative data validates this percentage, it would bring BISP to the top rank among globally acclaimed unconditional cash transfer programs.
Terming it a great success, Chairperson BISP Marvi Memon said, “We have been continuously putting efforts to ensure transparency in the programme, and becoming the pride of Pakistan.”
She said, “I am pleased that the efforts have borne fruit and we have moved from being number five (in 2010) to number one
(in 2018).”
She further hoped that the increased targeting performance will lead to enhance and focus poverty eradication efforts.
In 2016, the BISP started an extensive consultative process, with the support of global experts, which led to the revision of
the PMT formula with several additional features to improve its performance.
These features included Improved Welfare Indicator, Excluding Non-Verifiable Indicators, Location Effect and Interaction Effects.
Secretary BISP Omar Hamid Khan said he considered it as yet another success of the BISP team, adding “the entire staff
and management has continuously put efforts for the betterment of the BISP family.”
He said this exercise showed how BISP was engaged in testing all its efforts through piloting and simulations before field experience to remove any policy glitches in future.
“The revised PMT formula bases poverty measures on expenditure per adult equivalent (instead of per capita) since it takes into account household demographic structure in the calculation of the welfare aggregate.”
Moreover, the previous PMT formula included indicators of household head’s educational attainment and children’s enrollment
in school that are not easily observable and verifiable. Hence, the updated formula excludes them and includes an indicator of
adults’ literacy, which is less prone to measurement error and misreporting.
Further, it has been observed that geographical location is an important determinant of poverty.
To capture these effects, the PMT formula now includes indicators of urban status, according to the definition used by
the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
The formula also includes indicators of agro-climatic zones of Pakistan. This is expected to reduce the “rural bias” which
was observed in the previous formula.
The previous formula was allocating the same weight to demographics, dwelling characteristics, durables and productive
assets in the calculation of the PMT score for all households of Pakistan, irrespective of their characteristics or location.
The revised formula incorporates interactions between urban status and agro-climatic zones, and these interactions are significantly better predictors of consumption.
This sets BISP as being an international best practice in safety nets.
Marvi Memon termed it a goal of the PML-N government, and added “more accurate the targeting, the more credible the
social safety.”
She expressed satisfaction over the BISP’s efforts and credibility to serve the needy and said “real poor of Pakistan
have finally been recognized.”
PN retains champions title of 25th National Shooting Championship 2018
KARACHI, Mar 27 (APP):Pakistan Navy has won the 25th National Shooting Championship 2018 with 20 Gold, 14 Silver and 11 Bronze medals whereas Pakistan Army secured the runner up position.
The Championship concluded here on Tuesday at Pakistan Navy
Shooting Range, Karsaz, said a press release of Pakistan Navy (PN).
Commander Karachi Rear Admiral Ather Mukhtar graced the
occasion as chief guest and gave away prizes to the winners.
Gufran Adil of Pakistan Navy secured top position in the Rifle event
and was proclaimed the “Best Shooter of the championship”.
Commander Karachi Rear Admiral Ather Mukhtar while addressing the ceremony said that shooting
as a sport, is getting considerable prominence beyond the military
circles at national level as well.
He further said that our youth is also forthcoming along with
military men to win laurels for our country in the shooting Sport.
The Admiral reiterated that our youth possesses the best of
abilities and acumen to become good shooters and hoped that this
event will showcase the talent of aspiring contestants and serve
to mobilize their potential at national and international level.
The week-long event was organized by Pakistan Navy at PN
Shooting Range. Shooting teams from Army, Navy, Air Force,
Punjab, Sindh, WAPDA, FRA and KPK actively participated in the
event and displayed their skills in the sport of Shooting.
Speakers at conference give proposals for effective de-radicalization
ISLAMABAD, Mar 27 (APP):Speakers at a conference here on Tuesday presented various valuable proposals for effective de-radicalization, counter-extremism and promotion of a resilient counter-narrative.
The National Conference on “Internal Security: Peace & Sustainable Development,” was held here at Pakistan Planning and
Management Institute (PPMI).
The event was attended by government representatives, diplomats, retired armed forces’ officers and students from country’s top universities.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Asma Khawaja, Assistant Professor, National Defence University said that de-radicalization was a multi-pronged process. She said that it was need of the hour to address social, financial, political and physical causes of radicalization.
She underlined the need to involve women in internal security, policy-making adding that there should be audibility and visibility of women as key stakeholders.
Dr Ishtiaq Ahmed, Vice Chancellor University of Sargodha said that Pakistan’s internal security was deeply linked with regional
peace. He said Afghanistan and India’s approaches vis-à-vis Pakistan mattered a lot. He said Pakistan’s relations with India were of very complex nature, stating that unfortunately extremist elements in Hindus were not interested in peace with Pakistan. He said India was also not serious to resolve the longstanding Kashmir issue.
Tariq Pervez, former National Coordinator (NC), National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA) said that NACTA was trying its best to evolve a counter-narrative to build strong and resilient social values. He said the ‘madrassah’ students in the country were suffering from a sense of inferiority and there was a need to initiate training programmes for these students.
Senior journalist, Fasi Zaka urged the people to be loyal with the country. He said that there was also need to address issues of women and children in the society.
Women rights’ activist, Khawar Mumtaz while seconding Fasi Zaka said that women belonging to minorities had also equal rights. She underlined the need to educate youth about tolerance. We need to focus on social and economic development to resolve the issues, she said.
Pak Navy retains title of National Shooting C’ship
ISLAMABAD, Mar 27 (APP):Pakistan Navy won the 25th National Shooting Championship 2018 on Tuesday with 20 gold, 14 silver and 11 bronze medals at Pakistan Navy Shooting Range Karsaz Karachi.
According to a statement issued here by directorate of public relations of Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Army secured the runner up position.
Commander Karachi, Rear Admiral Ather Mukhtar was the chief guest and gave away prizes to the winners. Gufran Adil of Pakistan Navy secured top position in the Rifle event and was proclaimed the best shooter of the championship.
The chief guest while addressing the ceremony said that shooting as a sport was getting considerable prominence beyond the military circles at national level as well. Our other youth are also forthcoming along with military men to win laurels for our country in the shooting sport, he said.
He said Pakistani youth possessed the best of abilities and acumen to become good shooters and hoped that this event would showcase the talent of aspiring contestants and serve to mobilize their potential at national and international level.
The week-long event was organized by Pakistan Navy at PN Shooting Range. Shooting teams from Army, Navy, Air Force, Punjab, Sindh, WAPDA, FRA and KPK actively participated in the event and displayed their skills.
CM orders probe into brawal at Services Hospital
LAHORE, March 27 (APP):Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has taken notice of the tragic incident taking place at Services Hospital Lahore and sought a report from the health minister and secretary.
He expressed deep sense of sorrow and grief over the passing away of a person and extended sympathies to the bereaved family.
He also ordered for hold an inquiry into the incident and said that legal action would be initiated against the responsible persons.
Pakistan National Day Reception Held in Dubai
ISLAMABAD, Mar 27 (APP):The 78th National Day of Pakistan was celebrated with traditional zeal and patriotic spirit by Pakistanis living in the UAE.
The “Pakistan Day” Reception was hosted by the Pakistan Consulate at a local hotel in Dubai, said a message received here on Tuesday.
The Reception was attended by a large number of Consul Generals and their representatives, officials of the UAE Government, media and members of Pakistan community. His Excellency Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansoori, Cabinet Member and Minister of Economy was the Chief Guest on the occasion.
Consul General of Pakistan-Syed Javed Hassan welcomed all the guests. “Pakistan Day is a manifestation of the resolve of the muslims of South Asia and their resolute will, resulting in the creation of Pakistan under the dynamic leadership of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah; a homeland where they could live in peace and harmony” said in his speech.
He paid special tributes to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. “In fact H.H Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan was the founder of Pak-UAE relationship and called Pakistan his second home”, he said.
“President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces continue to follow Pakistan friendly policies and infact UAE armed forces contingent’s participation on our National Day Parade in Islamabad was a manifestation of our brotherly ties”, he added.
ICCI for cutting in tax rates in next budget to improve tax revenue
ISLAMABAD, March 27 (APP):Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) President Sheikh Amir Waheed Tuesday said the government should cut tax rates in the forthcoming federal budget because it would help in expanding tax base, improving tax-to-GDP ratio and enhancing tax revenue of the country.
He was talking to MPA Raja Hanif Advocate during his visit to Chamber House here, a press statement said.
Zubair A Malik Chairman Founder Group, Khalid Chaudhry, Dildar Abbasi, Iftikhar Sethi, Ashfaq Chatha, Muhammad Faheem Khan, Saifur Rehman Khan, Nisar Langa and others were also present at the occasion.
Sheikh Amir Waheed stressed that in the coming budget, the government should also abolish super tax as there was no further justification for it.
He proposed that in the next budget, the government should reduce GST to single digit level that would provide significant relief to the common man, reduce cost of doing business and give boost to business activities.
He said the prevailing withholding tax regime had made taxpayers of private sector as withholding agents for FBR due to which business community had to spend sufficient time on collection of WHT for the tax department.
He urged that in the next budget, the government should streamline WHT regime and assign the responsibility of collecting WHT to FBR officials so that business community could fully focus on promoting business activities.
ICCI Senior Vice President Muhammad Naveed said the average rate of tax on corporate income in the region was less than 23 percent while in Pakistan due to multiplicity of taxes including 2 percent workers’ welfare fund and 5 percent workers’ participation fund, average tax rate on corporate income went up to 38 percent, which was not justified.
He said in the next budget, the government should bring down average tax rate on corporate income that would encourage new investment and strengthen corporate sector in the country.
Speaking at the occasion, MPA Raja Hanif Advocate supported the proposals of ICCI office bearers for reduction in tax rates and stressed that the government should finalize budget proposals in consultation with private sector.
He said business community was playing key role in the economic development of the country and their key issues needed to be resolved on priority.
He assured that he would take up the highlighted issues with relevant authorities for redress.
UAE keen to further strengthen trade ties: Envoy
SIALKOT, Mar 27 (APP)::UAE Ambassador to Pakistan Hamad Obaid Salem Al Zaabi said on Tuesday that UAE was keen to further strengthen mutual trade ties with Pakistan.
Addressing a meeting at Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), he said that UAE intended to develop Business-to-Business and people-to-people contacts.
He said that UAE would ensure easy access of Pakistani businessmen and exporters to international trade markets of UAE, saying that Sialkot exporters had great potential to explore and capture the UAE markets.
He said that Pakistan as an ideal country for foreign investment and there was no security issues in Pakistan.
He pledged that UAE investors would soon visit Pakistan to explore opportunities for foreign investment
in different trade fields.
The UAE Ambassador also pledged to make sincere efforts to promote soft image of Pakistan globally, saying that Pakistani and international media should present the positive and true picture of Pakistan.
He said that both Pakistan and UAE would work together to find the potential of mutual trade ties and develop strong and sustain Business-to-Business contacts between the
businessmen of both Pakistan and UAE.
He said that Pakistani investors would be welcomed in Dubai.
The Ambassador asked the Sialkot exporters to divert their business activities to UAE and ensure their maximum participation in Dubai Expo 2020 international trade exhibition in which 80 countries would participate.
SCCI president Zahid Latif Malik was also present on the occasion.