LAHORE: December 29 –
A vendor selling dry fruit at his roadside setup.
LAHORE: December 29 –
Steps begins to establish modern Business Facilitation Center: Ehsan Bhutta
MULTAN, Dec 29 (APP):Secretary Industries and Investments Punjab, Ehsan Bhutta said that steps had been taken to establish a modern Business Facilitation Center in the city under the directions of Punjab government.
Over 17 departments will provide their services under one roof in the facilitation centre.
He expressed these views during his visit to city here on Friday. The Secretary Industries inspected the proposed place for the center and took briefing. Director Development Robina Kausar and Assistant Commissioner City Seemal Mushtaq were also present on the occasion.
Ehsan Bhutta said that immediate facility would be provided by setting up federal and provincial departments under one roof in Business Facilitation Center. He further said that the Center would be connected online to various cities including Lahore.
Secretary Industries said that NOCs would be issued to the business community and citizens immediately.
Deputy Commissioner Rizwan Qadeer said that the district administration had allocated a place for a Business Facilitation Center at SP Chowk while the Building Department had been given the task of setting up the Center immediately.
Bilawal visits Bhutto Family martyrs’ mausoleum
LARKANA, Dec 29 (APP): Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday visited the mausoleum of the martyrs of Bhutto Family in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh on Friday to pay respects to Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto on her 16th martyrdom anniversary.
He laid a wreath at the grave of slain PPP chairperson and former prime minister, offered Fateha, and recited verses from the Holy Quran.
He also laid wreaths at the graves of PPP’s founder chairman Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Begum Nusrat Bhutto, Mir Murtaza Bhutto, Mir Shahnawaz Bhutto, and Shireen Amir Begum and offered Fateha.
Bilawal Bhutto on the occasion paid tribute to all the martyrs who had sacrificed their lives for democracy, and also prayed for national security, supremacy of democracy and economic stability.
Former Sindh minister Sardar Muhammad Bux Khan Mahar, Ghulam Mustafa Leghari and others were present on the occasion.
Defence minister convenes maiden meeting of inter-ministerial committee on AJK
ISLAMABAD, Dec 29 (APP): Minister for Defence, Lieutenant General (R) Anwar Ali Hyder on Friday convened the first meeting of Inter Ministerial Committee on Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
The meeting was co-chaired by Prime Minister of AJK, Ch Anwar ul Haq, whereas Minister for Water Resources, Ahmed Irfan Aslam and members from relevant federal ministries also participated in the meeting, a news release said.
Matters pertaining to AJK government in consultation with the relevant ministries and divisions in the Federal Government came under discussion.
Minister for S&GAD, AJK, Minister for Energy and Water Resources AJK and Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs AJK along with the Chief Secretary AJK attended the meeting.
Grooms and brides during a mass marriage ceremony held in a local garden, organized by the Odero Lal Welfare Association. A total of 250 couples participated, including 125 Muslims and 125 Non-Muslims
TANDO ADAM: December 29 –
TANDO ADAM: December 29 – Brides during a mass marriage ceremony held in a local garden, organized by the Odero Lal Welfare Association. A total of 250 couples participated, including 125 Muslims and 125 Non-Muslims. APP/AKS/ABB/ZID
Weekly inflation up by 0.37pc
ISLAMABAD, Dec 29 (APP): The weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), witnessed an increase of 0.37 percent for the combined consumption groups during the week ended on December 28, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday.
The SPI for the week under review in the above-mentioned group was recorded at 311.14 points as compared to 310.00 points during the past week, according to the PBS data.
As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed an increase of 43.25 percent.
The weekly SPI with the base year 2015-16 =100 covers 17 urban centers and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups.
The SPI for the lowest consumption group up to Rs 17,732, increased by 0.40 percent and went up to 306.04 points from last week’s 304.83 points.
The SPI for consumption groups from Rs 17,732-22,888, Rs 22,889-29,517; Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175 it increased by 0.41 percent, 0.38 percent, 0.39 and 0.35 percent respectively.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 15 (29.41 percent) items increased, 09 (17.65 percent) items decreased and 27 (52.94 percent) items remained stable.
The items, which recorded a decrease in their average prices on a week-on-week (WoW) included potatoes (8.66 percent), tomatoes (1.01 percent), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (0.61 percent), cooking oil 5 litre (0.44 percent), eggs (0.40 percent), mustard oil (0.24 percent), gurr (0.19 percent) and garlic (0.15 percent).
The items that recorded an increase in their average prices on a week-on-week (wow) basis included onions (15.21%), chicken (4.76%), pulse moong (2.90%), pulse gram (2.89%), sugar (1.35%), bananas (1.05%), pulse masoor (0.78%) and pulse mash (0.54%).
On a Year-on-Year (YoY) basis, the items that witnessed decrease in prices included onions (12.57%), mustard oil (5.16%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (1.14%) and bananas (0.20%).
The commodities which recorded an increase in their average prices on YOY basis included gas charges for Q1 (1108.59%), cigarettes (93.22%), chilies powder (81.74%), wheat flour bag (73.81%), garlic (70.67%), tomatoes (65.26%), rice irri-6/9 (58.49%), rice basmati broken (58.47%), gents sponge chappal (58.05%) and sugar (54.25%).
A view of dry leaves at the roadside greenbelt in Federal Capital
ISLAMABAD: December 29 – .
Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Human Rights & Women Empowerment Ms. Mushaal Hussein Mullick addressing International Kashmir Conference on “The Role of Women Youth & Diaspora on Kashmir” at Kashmir House.
ISLAMABAD: December 29 –
ISLAMABAD: December 29 – Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Human Rights & Women Empowerment Ms. Mushaal Hussein Mullick addressing International Kashmir Conference on “The Role of Women Youth & Diaspora on Kashmir” at Kashmir House. APP/SMR/ABB/ZID
CM launches SPPRA’s e-procurement system
KARACHI, Dec 29 (APP): Caretaker Sindh Chief Minister Justice (retd) Maqbool Bakar has said that the traditional procurement methods have their own set of challenges that can hinder efficiency, increase costs and sometimes compromise transparency. Therefore the provincial government is launching an e-procurement system to address the challenges, he said.
The chief minister said that it was important to recognize the effort that had gone into developing and implementing this e-procurement system and digitizing and automating different tasks can reduce the time it takes to complete procurement cycles and minimize errors.
This he said while speaking at the launching ceremony of the ‘e-Procurement System’ viz E-Pak Acquisition and Disposal System (EPDS) at a local hotel here Friday. The program was attended by Minister for Law and Chairman Sindh Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (SPPRA) Omar Soomro, DG Federal PPRA Maqbool Gondal, DG SPPRA Zubair Parvez, Director SPPRA Shadiya Jaffer and secretaries of various departments.
He said that the provincial government’s top hierarchy and people from the civil society had come together to celebrate an important milestone in our quest for efficiency, transparency and innovation. “Today marks the beginning of a new chapter as we have unveiled our e-procurement system, an advanced platform that will revolutionize the way we manage our public procurement procedures.
As the world rapidly evolves, technology continues to reshape various industries, therefore, embracing innovation is not just an option, but a necessity, the CM said and added our decision to implement e-procurement demonstrated our commitment to staying ahead of the curve, leveraging technology to improve our operations and ultimately delivering better outcomes for our stakeholders.
The chief minister lauded the initiative undertaken by the SPPRA, supported by the World Bank and Federal PPRA. “This initiative aims to enhance transparency, equity, and competitiveness in public procurement processes.
The Sindh Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (SPPRA) successfully launched its state-of-the-art Electronic Procurement System (e-procurement), marking a significant leap forward in the realm of transparent, efficient, and accountable public procurement processes.
The event showcased the commitment of SPPRA to modernize public procurement practices, ensuring greater transparency, fairness, and competitiveness in the procurement landscape.
The features of the E-Procurement System included user friendly Interface; the e-procurement system boasts an intuitive and user-friendly interface, simplifying the procurement process for both government entities and suppliers. Real-time Monitoring and Reporting; Stakeholders can now benefit from real-time monitoring and reporting features, providing instant access to procurement data, bid status, and project updates.
Digital Document Management; the system facilitates the secure and efficient management of procurement documents, reducing paperwork, minimizing errors, and enhancing document traceability.
Automated Bidding Process; the e-procurement system automates the entire bidding process, from announcement to bid submission and evaluation, streamlining workflows and ensuring a fair and competitive environment.
Enhanced Security Measures; robust security protocols have been implemented to safeguard sensitive procurement data and ensure the integrity of the e-procurement system.
On the occasion, Sindh caretaker Law Minister and Chairman SPPRA Omar Soomro said that the system was efficient and transparent. He said that now no one would complain against the refusal of the tender form.
Mr Soomro said that in principle the provincial governments should have put the e-system in place but we made it when the World Bank pointed out that the provincial government needed to digitalize it.
MD SPPRA Zubair Pervez Ahmed briefing the chief minister said that the introduction of the e-procurement system was significant to the entire public procurement in Sindh.
DG Federal PPRA Maqbool Gondal and Shadiya Jaffer also spoke on the occasion.
Earlier, the chief minister launched the e-procurement system by clicking a computer key.
Pakistan missed 2023 global deadline to regulate Trans-fats across all foods
ISLAMABAD, Dec 29 (APP):As 2023 comes to a close, it is apparent that Pakistan has missed the World Health Organization’s (WHO) 2023 deadline to eliminate industrially-produced Trans Fats (iTFAs) from all food sources.
Despite efforts by the Nutrition Wing of the Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination earlier this year to regulate iTFAs in specific food sources such as banaspati ghee, bakery wares, and bakery shortenings with the help of Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA), public health experts stress that this progress, while a positive step forward, remains insufficient.
“Many commonly consumed sources of transfats such packed snacks, dairy products, street foods, and several types of ultra-processed foods remain outside the realm of iTFA standards,” stated Munawar Hussain, Country Coordinator Pakistan at the Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI) as part of a press statement issued by the TRANSFORM Pakistan Campaign. “It is imperative that Pakistan does not allow the matter of regulating iTFAs to linger any further, and all efforts should be made to ensure that trans-fats across all dietary sources are regulated in accordance with WHO guidelines at earliest.”
Dr. Khawaja Masuood Ahmed, National Coordinator Nutrition and NFA at the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination (MoNHSR&C) commented on ongoing efforts, stating, “The Ministry of Health is closely collaborating with civil society organizations, and providing technical support to the PSQCA to regulate Trans-fats to 2% in all food sources and safeguard the health of the Pakistani nation. We are committed to adopt the best practice policy to cover all foods under iTFA limits as per WHO Standards, through a single regulation if required.”
Earlier this year, Pakistan Youth Change Advocates (PYCA), with support from GHAI and the Ministry, collaborated with civil society actors such as the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) and Heartfile to launch the TRANSFORM Pakistan campaign. Afshar Iqbal, Director of Media and Communications at PYCA, highlighted their efforts, stating, “Through the TRANSFORM Pakistan Campaign, we aim not only to raise mass awareness about the ill effects of iTFAs in our dietary sources but also to work with all relevant stakeholders to expedite the regulation of trans-fats across all food items in Pakistan. We are grateful to our national and international partners, collaborators, and the Ministry of Health for their support in advancing this critical cause.”
Mukhtar Ahmed, Executive Director of CPDI, shed light on the civil society’s role in regulating iTFAs, saying, “Civil society is in close communication with the Ministry of Health, PSQCA, and provincial food regulatory bodies. Our collaborative efforts are focused on ensuring that, after missing the 2023 global deadline, Pakistan does not encounter further roadblocks in enforcing government-mandated regulation on the presence of trans-fats in all foods across the country.”
Dr. Saba Amjad, CEO Heartfile, raised a concern that failure to take decisive action at earliest could lead to further increase in non-communicable diseases, particularly heart diseases and diabetes in Pakistan.” The urgency to address this issue is paramount for the well-being of the nation.”
With 2023 coming to a close, it is crucial for all stakeholders, including government bodies, civil society, and international partners, to intensify their efforts to regulate trans-fats across all dietary sources in Pakistan, ensuring the health and well-being of the population.