LAHORE, Mar 27 (APP):Lord Mayor Lahore Col (R) Mubashir Javed said on Tuesday that business community has the ability to turn Pakistan into an economic giant.
He was speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), where LCCI President Malik Tahir Javaid, Senior Vice President Khawaja Khawar Rashid, Vice President Zeshan Khalil and EC members also spoke on the occasion and highlighted the challenges being faced by the business community.
Lord Mayor said that the world is in a state of ‘economic war’ for long and all economies are working hard to win the race.
He said that various countries, which were economically deprived in 70s, have done reasonable progress.
Mayor said that government has started work to clean temporary encroachments in order to make the flow of traffic smooth.
He said that Budget has been allocated for roads construction in Lahore which will be started within 3 to 4 months.
LCCI President Malik Tahir Tavaid said that in today’s fast changing world, cites compete with each other for attracting business. A most striking feature of the Census 2017 is that around 66 percent of the population of Pakistan now lives in ten cities.
He said they are the level at which the ease of doing business is judged. This makes the measurement of the size of the economy of cities and the understanding of its structure extremely important.
He said Lahore was the second largest city of Pakistan in census 1998. It retains that position in Census 2017. What is new is that it is the only city of Pakistan whose population has more than doubled in the intercensal period, from 5,143,495 to 11,126,285.
Malik Tahir Javaid said that the most important result of the study is that Lahore has a large economy of over a trillion rupees. In 2010-11, the size of the economy of Lahore was around Rs945.6 billion. It went up to Rs 1,227 billion in 2014-15. This means that the share of Lahore in the Punjab economy increased from 17.7 per cent in 2010-11 to 18.9 per cent in 2014-15. The corresponding shares of Lahore in Pakistan’s GDP were 10.4 per cent and 11.5 per cent.
The LCCI president said that with economies of scale and agglomeration, a high growth of Lahore will contribute to high growth of Punjab and a high growth of Punjab will lead to a high growth of Pakistan. With an urban population growth of 4.02 per cent, the Lahore district is now 99 per cent urban.
He said servicing this large population has changed the structure of the economy as well. The predominant sector of the economy of Lahore is now the services sector. He said we need to understand the policy implications of the rising share and growth of services. The city will have to effectively manage environment, infrastructure, investment, consumption and other services to remain competitive.
He said that encroachments are a serious problem in the markets despite good efforts in the past by the government but this problem still prevails and needs to be rooted out.
Sohail Lashari, Tahir Manzoor Chaudhry, Shahid Nazir, Shahbaz Aslam, Dr. Shahid Raza, Mian Muhammad Nawaz, Naeem Hanif, Adnan Khalid Butt and others were present
“Businessmen able to make Pakistan economic giant”
PM inaugurates Tolanj gas processing facility in Kohat
KOHAT, March 27 (APP):Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Tuesday said with the abundant natural gas reserves and improved security situation, Pakistan offered ample opportunities of investment in this sector of economy to local and foreign companies.
The prime minister was addressing a ceremony here after inaugurating a US$ 150 million Tolanj Gas Processing Plant that will produce 20 million cubic feet gas per day besides contributing 31 million dollars revenue annually to the national kitty.
The processing facility was commissioned on December 5, 2017.
It had commenced production from Tolanj X-1 and Tolanj West-1 gas wells in Kohat, a leap step forward towards making Pakistan self-sufficient in energy sector.
The prime minister lauded MOL Pakistan’s support in meeting Pakistan’s energy requirements besides its valuable contribution towards investment and generating employment opportunities in the country.
The gas processing facility will immensely help make a direct positive effect on the overall industrial growth, development of infant industries and socio-economic conditions of people of this region.
He said Tolanj gas facility being a classic example of public-private partnership was a major headway in meeting the growing energy demands of people and industries of Pakistan.
The Prime Minister said Pakistan was making great progress in all spheres of life due to his government’s prudent
economics and energy policies and the long inherited problem of load shedding was successfully addressed.
He recalled that when the present PML-N government took over in 2013 the country was facing acute gas and electricity shortages, adding, but now every sector including the domestic consumers as well as the industry were getting gas supply.
Similarly, the Prime Minister said the issue of electricity shortages had also been addressed to a large extent due to the government’s efforts.
He said the government was encouraging business groups, corporate entities and foreign investors to take full advantage of the facilities offered by his government and bring investment in Pakistan.
The Prime Minister said Tolanj gas processing facility was the largest gas project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and would help better the gas supply in the area.
He appreciated MOL Pakistan for heavy investment in the country and making this project a success story, which he termed as a “win-win” for all. It was an efficient and modern plant, he added.
The Prime Minister hoped that the other companies would also benefit from the MOL’s successful experience and ventures in Pakistan. He further hoped that MOL would continue to invest in Pakistan.
He also thanked the Governor KP as well as the provincial government for their cooperation in the project.
Dr Berislav Gaso, Executive Vice President Upstream MOL Pakistan said his group has already invested over one billion dollars in oil and gas sectors in Pakistan and its direct subsidiary oil and gas companies are working in this country since 1999 and are significantly contributing in the development of Pakistan.
For nearly two decades, he said, MOL Pakistan was playing a pro-active role in Pakistan Oil and Gas sector and has been contributing through its funds in order to help mitigate the problem of energy shortfall.
With the launch of Tolanj facility, he said, we are looking forward to make more large-scale investment in this country with cooperation of Government of Pakistan.
Ali Murtaza Abbas, MOL Regional Advisor Middle East, Africa and Pakistan appreciated Prime Minister of Pakistan’s commitment in strengthening and streamlining the energy sector of the country.
He said inauguration of the Tolanj facility was a great achievement and historic day for people of KP especially for Kohat.
Graham Balchin, CEO MOL Pakistan said the plant has successfully started operation after thorough inspection and re-testing of its all components.
He said these measures have given immense confidence to all stakeholders for safe, sustainable and long term operations of this plant and commended teams and engineers for its successful operations.
The Prime Minister, who was accompanied by Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Engr Iqbal Zafar Jhagra formally inaugurated the plant by unveiling the plaque.
Senior officials of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources, Islamabad and MOL Pakistan were also present on the occasion who briefed the Prime Minister about salient features of this gigantic project.
Earlier upon arrival in Kohat, the Prime Minister was warmly received by Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Engr Iqbal Zafar Jhagra and other senior officials of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources and MOL Pakistan.
Country’s development interlinked with democracy: Baligh
ISLAMABAD, Mar 27 (APP):Minister for Education, Professional Training Engr Muhammad Baligh Ur Rehman Tuesday said the country’s development and prosperity were interlinked with the democracy.
The continuity of democratic system was essential to achieve milestone as second time in the history of country a democratic government was going to complete its constitutional tenure which was landmark, he said talking to PTV programme.
The minister said dictator’s regimes had badly damaged the integrity and economy of the country.
He said there were rumors created by some political parties that the present government would not complete its constitutional tenure but we had not given importance to the statements of non-serious people.
He reiterated the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government would complete its constitutional tenure.
He said Pakistan has powerful constitution and nobody could intervene in the system according to that. He urged every individual to hold accountability and learn from the mistake of past.
Replying to a question, Baligh Ur Rehman said Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) were leveling allegations of corruption in Senate elections against each other.
He said PPP had signed National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) with dictator Pervez Musharaf.
Lt Gen (Retd) Tariq Khan takes charge as CE & MD of FFC
ISLAMABAD, Mar 27 (APP):Lt Gen (Retd) Tariq Khan has assumed the charge of Fauji Fertilizer Company limited as Chief Executive and Managing Director on Tuesday after his appointment by the Board of Directors of the Company.
Lt. Gen Tariq Khan, HI(M) has replaced Lt. Gen (Retd) Shafqaat Ahmed, HI(M).
FFC, a market leader in Pakistan was established in 1978, as a joint venture between Fauji Foundation and HALDOR TOPSOE A/S Denmark. FFC has become a vibrant company with three world class Urea Plants. The Company holds diversified stakes in Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim Limited, Askari Bank Limited, Fauji Cement Company Limited and Pakistan MarocPhosphore SA (PMP). In line with the strategy of diversification, FFC Energy Limited; the pioneer among the Wind Power Plants in Pakistan is contributing 50 MW to the national grid and further committed to address shortage of energy in the Country. FFC has setup another business venture as Fauji Fresh n Freeze Limited (FFF) which is a state of the art (individually quick frozen fruits and vegetables) plant; the first of its kind in Pakistan.
Lt Gen Tariq Khan, HI (M) (Retd) thanked the Board of Directors for reposing their trust by electing him as the Chief Executive & Managing Director. He stated that FFC is the flagship Company of the Fauji Group which is not only pride for Fauji Foundation but for the nation as a whole, said a press release.
Lt Gen Tariq Khan, HI(M) (Retd)appreciated the services of Lt Gen Shafqaat Ahmed, HI(M) (Retd) outgoing CE&MD who displayed outstanding standards of dedication, passion and utmost energy which infused a new spirit into the Company.
Lt Gen Tariq Khan, HI(M) (Retd) bringswide ranging experience to the organization and pledged to continue the good work already being done.
Hasan wins men’s single title of All Pak NTC badminton
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.
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.