Our social:

Latest Post

Tuesday 17 January 2017

Success Story

After setting the record of cycling from Islamabad to highest international border (Khunjerab) in September 2015, this year Samar Khan has attempted another huge challenge of cycling on glaciers (Biafo Gyang) in the Karakoram ranges of Pakistan.

She is the first Pakistani and the World’s first woman to reach Biafo glaciers and cycled over there. Samar Khan is Masters in Physics and belongs to Lower Dir, KPK. She started adventure sports like Paragliding, Trekking, Mountain biking and Martial Arts few years back because of her passion towards sports & tourism.

She set out from Islamabad on 24th July, 2016 and took the route of Abbotabad, Naran, Kaghan and Babusar Top towards her destination. By covering the distance of almost 800km till the last remote village of GB; called Askoli, which is the entrance point to glaciers, she had trek for 3-4 days and found herself on icy-rock surface where she had attempted her record.

امریکہ کی این ایس جی میں بھارتی شمولیت کا راستہ روکنے پر چین پر تنقید


واشنگٹن (ویب ڈیسک) امریکہ نے این ایس جی میں بھارتی شمولیت کا راستہ روکنے پر چین پر تنقید کی ہے۔ امریکہ نے کہا ہے کہ این ایس جی میں بھارتی شمولیت کی راہ میں چین رکاوٹ ہے، بھارت کی شمولیت پر گروپ کا کچھ ارکان کو تحفظات ہیں۔ امریکی معاون وزیر خارجہ کا کہنا ہے کہ تحفظات دور کئے جانے کی ضرورت ہے۔

Saving heritage: Two cultural bodies join force

The National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage popularly known as Lok Virsa and the Pakistan Museum of Natural History (PMNH) have agreed to collaborate for promotion of culture and heritage of Pakistan.


The Lok Virsa and the PMNH signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for joint collaboration in related fields here at Shakarparian, said a press release on Tuesday.
The signing ceremony was held at the Lok Virsa Heritage Museum.
Lok Virsa Executive Director Dr Fouzia Saeed and the PMNH Director-General, Dr M Khan Leghari, signed the MoU on behalf of their respective institutions. Pakistan Science Foundation Chairperson Prof Dr Muhammad Ashraf was also present on the occasion.
The MoU requires collaborative efforts to establish and develop expertise in different projects.

Preserving heritage: Kotdiji Fort to be restored

SUKKUR (AwesomePakistan.Net):  Sindh culture minister Sardar Ali Shah has vowed to preserve all historical sites in Sindh and restore the Kotdiji fort. Talking to media persons after visiting Masoom Shah Minara in Sukkur on Monday, Shah said the archeology department was under the federal government till 2012, but it did nothing to preserve the historical sites in Sindh.



Report sought on heritage protection

On the contrary, many artifacts were shifted to Punjab, he remarked. Some of the cannons at the Kotdiji Fort were taken to Punjab, which will be returned back to its original place, he added. “Being the custodian of historical sites, it is my duty to protect all the historical sites,” he said.

Replying to a question regarding the slow pace of work on the Benazir Bhutto Cultural Complex in Sukkur, he said that the works and services department was responsible for the construction and he will inquire from them about the delay.


Published in The Express Tribune.

Monday 16 January 2017

Outgoing CIA chief warns Trump to watch his words

The unsubstantiated dossier about Trump, Russia and possible compromising material -- compiled by a former British MI6 intelligence agent doing opposition research for Trump’s campaign opponents -- also said Moscow had incriminating video of the president-elect

The fact that intelligence agencies had offered Trump a synopsis of the dossier -- which was later published in full online by BuzzFeed -- lent the allegations credence.
But Brennan said the intelligence community was only "making sure that the president-elect was aware that it was circulating."
"I think there are some very salacious allegations in there -- again, unsubstantiated," he said, adding it was "a responsibility in the minds of the intelligence directors" to inform Trump as well as the Obama WhiteHouse of the report.
Brennan bristled at Trump’s likening of the US intelligence community to Nazi Germany, calling it "outrageous."
"I do take great umbrage at that," the outgoing spy chief said.
Pence blamed the scandal on "media bias," in an interview with CBS.

Sindh cabinet to discuss Rangers' special powers, security situation

ARACHI (Dunya News) – Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah will chair meeting of the Sindh Cabinet today (Monday) to review extension in Rangers’ special powers, law and order situation and various development projects in the province.

The meeting at Sindh Secretariat will be attended by the cabinet members, Sindh Chief Secretary, Sindh IG and other top officials.
Rangers’ special powers in Sindh have expired on Sunday night but the provincial government, using delaying tactics, has not yet sent summary of extension in Rangers powers to the federal government.
According to CM House spokesperson, the summary is expected to be signed today.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had previously extended Rangers’ special powers in the province on October 18, 2016 soon after assuming the office.
Rangers were given powers under Section-5 of the Anti Terrorism Act 1997 according to which Rangers personnel would be authorised to conduct a raid and arrest accused in any area of the metro

Trump promises healthcare ‘for everybody’

WASHINGTON: President-elect Donald Trump wants health "insurance for everybody," he told The Washington Post, no small feat in a country where millions are uninsured.
The Republican has long lashed out at President Barack Obama´s signature health care law, the Affordable Care Act, campaigning on a pledge to repeal and replace it.

But the billionaire developer had never said precisely with what.
Now, however, he told the Post by phone late Saturday that he wants "insurance for everybody" while requiring drug companies to negotiate directly with the government on prices in Medicare and Medicaid, the government plans mostly for the elderly and low-income Americans, respectively.
"They´re politically protected. But not anymore," Trump was quoted as saying of big pharmaceutical companies.
The White House touts the ACA -- nicknamed Obamacare -- as a success, saying more than 20 million Americans have gained health insurance through the law.
The Affordable Care Act forbids insurance companies from denying health care due to pre-existing conditions, abolishes lifetime caps on care, and allows children to stay on their parents´ plans until age 26, three provisions that have proved popular nationwide.
Democrats warn that scrapping the law could force millions of Americans to lose their coverage.
Undoing Obamacare will be a monumental task. Although the new Republican leadership in Congress has begun moving quickly to deprive the ACA of funding, it has also stressed it does not want to "pull the rug out from anyone" who might lose coverage if there is no replacement plan on offer.
And there is debate among Republicans about how -- and how fast -- to proceed without a credible replacement ready to roll out.
Without revealing much more than a pledge of "lower numbers, much lower deductibles," Trump said a proposed deal was now agreed.
"It´s very much formulated down to the final strokes. We haven´t put it in quite yet, but we´re going to be doing it soon," he said.
"We´re going to have insurance for everybody," Trump added. "There was a philosophy in some circles that if you can´t pay for it, you don´t get it. That´s not going to happen with us."
People covered under the law "can expect to have great health care," he said. "It will be in a much simplified form. Much less expensive and much better."

South Korea prosecutors accuse Samsung chief of bribery, seek arrest

SEOUL: South Korea's special prosecutor's office said on Monday it was seeking a warrant to arrest the head of Samsung Group, the country's largest conglomerate, accusing him of paying multi-million dollar bribes to a friend of President Park Geun-hye.
Samsung Group chief Jay Y. Lee was questioned for 22 straight hours last week as investigators probed a corruption scandal that resulted in parliament impeaching Park last month.

The special prosecutor's office accused Lee of paying bribes totalling 43 billion won ($36.42 million) Choi Soon-sil, a friend of the president who is the woman at the centre of scandal.
Lee was also accused of embezzlement and perjury in the prosecution's application for an arrest warrant.
Seoul's central district court said a hearing will be held at 10:30 a.m. (0130 GMT) on Wednesday to decide whether to approve the warrant. Samsung did not have an immediate comment.
"The special prosecutor's office, in making this decision to seek an arrest warrant, determined that while the country's economic conditions are important, upholding justice takes precedence," Lee Kyu-chul, a spokesman for the office, told a media briefing.
Prosecutors have been looking into whether Samsung's support for a business and foundations backed by Park's friend Choi may have been connected to the National Pension Service's 2015 decision to support a controversial $8 billion merger of two Samsung Group affiliates.
NPS chairman Moon Hyung-pyo was indicted on Monday on charges of abuse of power and giving false testimony.
Park remains in office but has been stripped of her powers while the Constitutional Court decides whether to make her the country's first democratically elected leader to be forced from office.
Moon was arrested in December after acknowledging ordering the world's third-largest pension fund to support the $8 billion merger in 2015 while he was head of the health ministry, which oversees the NPS.
Samsung has acknowledged providing funds to the three institutions but has repeatedly denied accusations of lobbying to push through the merger.
Choi is accused of colluding with Park to pressure big businesses, including Samsung, to contribute to non-profit foundations backing the president's initiatives.
Choi, in detention and on trial on charges of abuse of power and attempted fraud, again denied wrongdoing on Monday in an appearance at the Constitutional Court.
She also denied having any prior knowledge of the Samsung Group's controversial 2015 merger of two affiliates.
"Even if I knew, I could not have passed on any information because I have no knowledge about mergers or hedge funds, anything like that, in the first place," Choi told the court.
South Korea has been gripped by political crisis for months, with Park impeached in December. Park has also denied wrongdoing, though admitted carelessness in her relationship with Choi.
If the impeachment is upheld by the Constitutional Court, an election would be held in two months, with former U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expected to be a candidate.
Shares in group flagship Samsung Electronics, the world's top maker of smartphones, flatscreen TVs and memory chips, extended losses on Monday afternoon and were down 2.3 percent.

ECP demands details of foreign funding from PTI

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) began hearing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf case related to foreign funding.

The PTI lawyer asked for a new date for next month in the case.
During the hearing, Chief Election Commissioner Justice (Retd) Sardar Raza told the PTI lawyer to submit a written apology in the court. Expressing his displeasure at the delaying tactics of PTI, the he said, “This has been happening for the last two and a half years. Should we stop doing our jobs.”
The ECP demanded details of all foreign funding from the PTI.
The hearing has been adjourned till January 24.

Panama Leaks hearing resumes: PM's counsel presents evidence

ISLAMABAD: A five-member bench led by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa resumed hearing the Panama Leaks case hearing on Monday.
PM’s counsel Makhdoom Ali Khan during his arguments referred to past rulings of the Supreme Court. He discussed at length the disqualification of former Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

Counsel for Jamat-e-Islami (JI) asked copies of all the court rulings. The JI also submitted a petition against the Prime Minister where the National Assembly speaker, cabinet and federation have been made party.
During the proceedings, the PTI leadership was seen dozing off in the courtroom, which was warmer when compared to the biting cold outside. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s counsel Naeem Bukhari slept through out the hearing , Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Shireen Mazari were dozing on and off, while PTI chief Imran Khan looked visibly tired, according to a Geo News correspondent.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Daniyal Aziz explained that the PM's counsel referred to cases for article 62 and 63 during the proceedings. "Even PTI accepts that the prime minister has not been named in the Panama Leaks."
He added that after Makhdoom Ali Khan presents his argument, a lawyer for the prime minister's daughter Maryam Nawaz will present evidence.
PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that the evidence the Prime Minister's counsel is presenting has no link to the case. "He is simply trying to say that the SC should stop hearing the Panama Leaks case."  
In the last proceedings on Friday, Makhdoom Ali Khan argued that in order to disqualify the Prime Minister a judicial declaration is needed. He said that the section in Article 62 about “Sadiq and Ameen (truthful and trustworthy)” gave a clean slate to frame anyone.
“The Supreme Court in the Ishaq Khakwani case had declared Article 62 of the constitution a nightmare,” he argued.