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Continued on Page 7

All set for Diamer-BhashaDam................................................Bills to deter rape and honourkillings................................................CPEC’s rating by Moody’s

See Page 04

See also Sports Page

LIAQAT TOOR

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan raised issues ofKashmir, Siachen, Sir Creek, LoC viola-tions, delay in Samjauta Express investi-gation and interference in Balochistan byIndia during talks held between visiting

Indian Foreign Secretary S Jaishankarand Pak Foreign Secretary Aizaz AhmadChaudhry here on Tuesday.

Addressing a press conference afterthe talks the Pak FS said he held detaileddiscussions with Jaishankar in a cordialand constructive atmosphere.

Guided by the vision of the PrimeMinister Nawaz Sharif which envisagesa peaceful and stable South Asia, he saidhis talks with Indian FS covered bilat-eral and regional issues of mutual con-cern and common interest.

Pak raises Kashmir, LoCviolations in FSs talksSamjhota Express, Balochistan issue also discussed

Jaishankar calls on Prime Minister

Continued on Page 7

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry and his Indian counterpartS Jaishankar shaking hands at Foreign Office.

AMANULLAH KHAN/AAMIR MAJEED

KARACHI—President Mamnoon Hussain hassaid that the present government was deter-mined to promote Islamic Banking in Paki-stan, he however added that the Islamic Bank-ing industry has yet to go a long way to achieve

the much desired objectives of socio-economicjustice by creating awareness about the ben-efits of interest free financial system free fromexploitation.

Presiding over the Round-Table Confer-

ence (RTC II) organized by Pakistan Observerhere today, the President urged the IslamicBanking Industry to domore and significantlycontribute andstrengthen the efforts of the government forthe socio-economic development and rebuild-

ing of the economy on sound footings. Grow-ing popularity of Islamic Banking in the coun-try demanded urgent measures to make it prac-tical, beneficial and nearer to Islamic ideals ofeconomic justice. The Islamic Banking being

the first step towards Interest Free Bankingneeded to be equally focused on social equity

“This is because equitable distri-bution of wealth is the gist of Is-lamic socio-economic system,”

In his presidential address PresidentMamnoon Hussain while congratulating Mr.

Zahid Malik for his constant efforts for pro-moting the cause of Islamic Banking in Paki-stan reflected in RTC-1 held in January 2014and now RTC-II which speaks the spirit anddedication of Mr. Zahid Malik and Pakistan

RTC-II on Islamic Banking

Mamnoon advises Islamic Banksto do more for socio-eco uplift

KARACHI: President Mamnoon Hussain addressing second Round Table Conference on Islamic Banking organized byPakistan Observer here on Tuesday. Editor-in-Chief Pakistan Observer Zahid Malik and other participants of conferenceare also present.—PO photo by Sultan Chaki

Continued on Page 7

AMANULLAH KHAN

KARACHI—KSE 100 lost 39points to close in red at 33253levels Tuesday amid improvedmarket volumes of 212 millionshares.

It is said that the depressedmood will drag till senate elec-tions are over today’s volumeleader was k electric with 19million shares while secondand third volume mleaderswere Jahangir Siddiqi & Co and Pak Electron with 18 million and 17 million shares to theircredit.

KSE-100 loses 39 pointsto close in red

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Mr Zahid Malik Editor in ChiefPakistan Observer has urged the Federal FinanceMinister Senator Ishaq Dar to shift the direc-tion of the nation from politics to economy.Appreciating Dar’s long-standing vision of anAll Parties Conference (APC) on Charter ofEconomy, he appealed the finance minister toprioritize holding of such APC. One feel sorry,he said, to note that Pakistan at present laggingbehind some other economies though it has allthe potential to be a fast-track-economy.

Speaking at the RTC-II on Islamic bankingwhich was presided over by President MamnoonHussain in Karachi Mr. Zahid Malik revealedPakistan Observer future plans which were dulyendorsed by President Mamnoon Hussain in his

presidential address at the RTC. M rZahid Malik said that the newspaper will hold aseminar in Islamabad on Islamic banking inNovember 2015 and invite leaders of Islamiccountries to get their input as far as Islamic bank-ing is concerned. “The agenda of this meetingwould be that how we can promote Islamic bank-ing in Pakistan and what role the governmentcan play in this regard,” Malik maintained.

“ We have completed the paperwork for thisspecial seminar and we have been in touch withOrganization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Sec-retary General HE Iyad Amin Madani and Is-lamic Development Bank (IDB) President HEDr Ahmad Mohamed Ali and we would be seek-ing their input and advice for holding such amega event if the idea meet the endorsement of

Islamic Banking—a fast growingworld phenomenon: Zahid Malik

Outlines future strategy for promotion ofIslamic Banking in Pakistan

Continued on Page 7

Dar, in Pakistanbut spiritually

in MadinaSTAFF REPORTER

KA R A C H I—Mr ZahidMalik, Editor in Chief Pa-kistan Observer has de-scribed the Federal Fi-nance Minister Mr IshaqDar as a true Ashiq-e-Rasool”.

Mr. Dar who was topreside over the secondsession of the PakistanObserver’s RTC-II on Is-lamic Banking held inKarachi Tuesday could notbecause he accompaniedthe Prime Minister NawazSharif who is currently vis-iting Saudi Arabia.

“ Dar, therefore gets agreen signal from Madinaon one pretext or the other”Mr. Malik said.

NAPIER—Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haqhopes his team’s exhausting trans-Tasmanflight schedule won’t undermine their WorldCup hopes as they prepare to tackle the ama-teurs of the United Arab Emirates onWednesday.

“The next six days are going to be verytough for us with flights and three gamesbut that’s how it is,” said Misbah.

Pakistan flew to Brisbane fromChristchurch last week to play Zimbabweand then hopped back to New Zealand toplay UAE at Napier Park on Wednesdayand then South Africa in Auckland onMarch 7.

Their pool stage games end in Adelaideagainst Ireland on March 15.

Misbah said the long gaps betweengames break the momentum of preparation

after Pakistan’s opening game against In-dia in Adelaide on Feb 15was followed by a meetingwith the West Indies inChristchurch six days later.

“You don’t get rhythmso it’s tough for any teamas you have to play in dif-ferent conditions andweather but you can’tchange that. We have to putthis aside, handle it and thisis the only way out.

“These are very impor-tant games. We have totravel almost after every game so that couldbe really challenging but we have to dothat.”

Misbah said confidence was on the rise

after the narrow 20-run win over Zimba-bwe, their first in the WorldCup on Sunday which gavethem two points in threeoutings.

“Of course a win is al-ways good for confidenceand everybody is feelinggood and looking forwardto tomorrow’s game,” saidMisbah, who admitted thefight for a quarter-finalplace was tough.

“This pool is open.Anything can happen and

every game is important in this pool, all theteams are still interested in making the quar-ter-finals.

Misbah sees quarter-final’s fight tough

Continued on Page 7

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Director General Rangers MajorGeneral Ejaz Chaudhry on Tuesday issued or-ders to arrest all those allegedly involved inBaldia Town factory incident as well as of theirsympathisers.

n a meeting headed by Director GeneralRangers here, some of the elements allegedlyaffecting Baldia Town incident investigationswere inspected. The threats given to investiga-tive officer by an extortionist group were alsoexamined.

he meeting also discussed the threats andexpressed concern over mysterious disappear-ance of the Baldia Town incident suspect RizwanQureshi along with other factors.

t is pertinent to mention here that the JointInvestigation Report had declared Baldia Town

incident to be a result of owner’s refusal to payextortion money.

G Rangers Sindh expressed concern overinterference by ‘certain elements’ in the inves-tigation of Baldia Town factory fire incident,.According to the Rangers spokesperson, a meet-ing at the Rangers Headquarters, with DG Rang-ers in chair was held, during which threats tovictims’ families and the investigation officerof the case came under discussion.

e also asked law enforcers to speed-up theongoing operation against criminal elements inthe city. Earlier on February 6, Rangers placedthe blame of the Baldia factory fire on theMuttahida Qaumi Movement in a report sub-mitted to the Sindh High Court. They claimedthat some members of the party were linked tothe deadly fire, which left more than 259 menand women dead on September 11, 2012.

Baldia Town factory fire

DG Rangers ordersarrest of all convicts

MUZAFFAR ALI/SALIM

AHMED

LAHORE—Police here onTuesday engaged in a scufflewith blind protesters, thwartingtheir attempt to enter an ongo-ing Punjab Assembly session torecord a protest.

The protesters had beenstaging a sit-in since Mondayon the stairs of the Punjab As-sembly to remind the provin-cial government of its promiseto ensure their quota in govern-ment jobs and regularisation oftheir service.

According to an earlier re-

port, the protesters had refusedto end their sit-in citing thegovernment’s response to theirdemands as “cold”.

“We will not end our pro-test till the acceptance of ourdemands - regularisation of ser-vices and implementation oftwo per cent job quota,”Muhammad Adnan, one of theblind protesters told media.The post-graduation studenthad further added: “Exactlythree months back, the Punjabgovernment had promised us toregularise the services of some50 or so visually impaired per-

Punjab police againtorture blind protesters

Shahbaz directs resolvingblind persons problems

Continued on Page 7

PM to embarkon first officialvisit to SaudiArabia today

LIAQAT TOOR

ISLAMABAD—Accompaniedby a high-level delegation,Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifwill embark on his first officialvisit to Saudi Arabia on the in-vitation of King Salman BinAbdelaziz Al Saud today.

During his 3-day visit, Fi-nance Minister, Ishaq Dar,Chief Minister of Punjab,Shahbaz Sharif and SpecialAssistant to the Prime Minis-ter on Foreign Affairs, SyedTariq Fatemi will accompanyhim. Besides holding talks withthe King, he will performUmrah and visit Madinah-ul-

Continued on Page 7

Militaryleadership reviewsinternal, external

securitySTAFF REPORTER

RAWALPINDI—Pakistan’s topmilitary leadership reviewedprevalent internal and externalsecurity situation of the countryincluding progress of ongoingoperation Zarb-e-Azb at the180th Corps Commanders’ Con-ference, held here at GeneralHeadquarters on Tuesday.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS)General Raheel Sharif chaired the

Continued on Page 7

ISLAMABAD—Opposition par-ties on Tuesday staged walk outfrom session of the Upper Houseof parliament to protest allegedchanges in China-Pakistan Eco-nomic Corridor (CPEC) route.

Speaking on a Point of Or-der, Senator Haji Adeel ofAwami National Party said thatoriginal route of the proposedChina-Pakistan Economic Cor-

ridor has been changed.He said Gwadar Port

should be handed over to thegovernment of Balochistan.

Ilyas Bilour said the peopleof Fata, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,Mianwali and Zhob must notbe deprived of their fundamen-tal rights through route change.Senator Abdul Rauf and Zahid

CPEC route change

Opposition walks outfrom Senate in protest

Continued on Page 7

Nobel PeacePrize bodychief removedOSLO—The controversialhead of Norway’s NobelPeace Prize committee wasremoved Tuesday anddemoted to the rank of meremember in an unprecedentedmove.

Thorbjoern Jagland, aformer Norwegian premier,drew criticism after becomingcommittee chairman in 2009for awarding the prestigiousNobel to newly elected USPresident Barack Obama. Hewill be replaced by currentDeputy Chair Kaci KullmannFive.—AP

Modi nixesMufti’s PakistancommentsNEW DELHI—PrimeMinister Narendra Modi onTuesday expressed hisdisapproval of the remarksmade by Jammu & Kashmirchief minister MuftiMohammad Sayeed whereSayeed gave credit toPakistan, the separatists andthe militants for the success-ful assembly election in thestate.

The Prime Minister saidsuch a statement cannot besupported.

“If somebody makes sucha statement, we can neversupport it,” Modi said inRajya Sabha, referring to thecontroversial remarks madeby Sayeed who is heading aPDP-BJP coalition govern-ment in the state. Membershave been demanding Modi’sresponse to the remarks madeby Sayeed soon after he wassworn in on Sunday.

“If somebody makes astatement somewhere and weare forced to respond here,things will not work,” the

PM briefed onnuclear powerinitiativeISLAMABAD—PrimeMinister Muhammad NawazSharif was given a briefingon Pakistan’s Nuclear PowerProgramme by PakistanAtomic Energy Commissionat the PM House here onTuesday. Matters relating toK2 and K3 power projects aswell as future projects whichare being planned came underdiscussion.

The Prime Minister saidprovision of funds for theseprojects would be arranged inline with the NPP Vision2050. He said the governmentis taking all possiblemeasures for meeting energyshortage in the countryincluding nuclear energy.

He said all available

S Africapummel Irelandwith 201-rundefeatCANBERRA—Hashim Amla

and Faf du Plessis hitcenturies, while DaleSteyn shone in his100th one-dayinternational, as SouthAfrica showcased theirprowess with a 201-

run rout of Ireland in theWorld Cup on Tuesday.

Amla scored 159 off 128balls to become the fastestman to reach 20 ODI

Continued on Page 7

See also Back Page

Talksabouttalks!STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Former foreignminister Hina Rabbani Kharsaid on Tuesday thatrelations between Indiaand Pakistan are at theirlowest, while summing upthe Indian foreignsecretary’s visit as “talksabout talks”. “The foreign-secretary level talks arejust talks about talks. Howdo they get to talk, whogets what pretext,” Kharsaid in an interview.IndianForeign Secretary SJaishankar arrived inIslamabad Tuesdaymorning and met hiscounterpart Aizaz AhmadChaudhry to discussissues related to the SouthAsia Association forRegional Cooperation.“Thecurrent talks are held underthe shrouds of the ‘SaarcYatra’,” Khar said, whichshe believed was largelyunhelpful to the dialogueprocess.“Look at the irony,in 67 years, we cannoteven agree on what kind ofdialogue to hold,” theformer foreign ministersaid. “Pakistan-Indiarelations are at theirlowest,” she said whenasked if relations haveimproved since she heldoffice as the foreignminister.

R AWA L P I N D I —DefenseAttachees of 23 countriesvisited Anti Narcotics Force(ANF) Headquarters,Rawalpindi on Tuesday.

Director General ANF,Major General Khawar Hanifwelcomed the guests, said apress release issued here.

Proceedings startedwith a formal briefing onnarco-environments. Sig-nificant aspects includedANF overview, regionaldrug scenario, internationalcooperation, ANF strategy,recent initiatives taken, chal-lenges and achievements.

The session was ap-

Defence attaches of 23countries visit ANF HQS

ConvocationKARACHI—Senior SindhMinister forEducation NisarAhmed Khuhrohas stressed theneed to createpublic aware-ness about theharmful effects of betelnuts and tobacco relatedstimulants. He wasspeaking as chief guest atthe Convocation-2015 ofthe Altamash Institute ofDental Medicine here theother day for the award ofdegrees to the graduatingstudents in the disciplineof dental surgery. He urgedthe Principal of Institute,Dr. Muhammad Altamash,to conduct a series ofcommunity activities forboth urban and ruralpopulation for enhancingawareness about oralcancer.“This problem isfast spreading in our workforce due to widespreaduse of betel nuts andtobacco related stimulants,which are readily availablein the market and are asource of great concern forthe well-being of humanresource at the nationallevel,” he added.Nisar Khuhro assuredsupport to this cause andsaid he wants that espe-cially school-goingchildren do not get theirhands on betel nuts andtobacco products.The minister said it isheartening to see thatAltamash Institute hasprogressed tremendouslywithin a short span of 15years into one of thepremier dental colleges inKarachi.—APP

DemocraticprocessLAHORE—PakistanPeoples Partybelieves incontinuousdemocraticprocess so it istaking part in the senateelection process in thePunjab Assembly.These views were ex-pressed by PPP parliamen-tary leader on PunjabAssembly Qazi AhmadSaeed in a statement hereon Tuesday. He said thePPP had accepted theElection 2013 results forthe continuity of demo-cratic process so that noone could take advantageto derail democraticsystem.He said the PPPwould continue playing itspolitical and democraticrole for the sake of countryand democracy.—APP

Quetta: Federal State Minister and Chairperson Benazir Income Support Programme, Marvi Memon listening to the grievances of people of LoniGoath in Sibbi on Tuesday.

QUETTA—”The time has come tostart evaluating the need for a re-survey to get to the real povertypicture in Pakistan,” said Chairper-son Benazir Income SupportProgramme and Minister of State,MNA Marvi Memon while address-ing a large group of BISP beneficia-ries in Lunni village of Sibi districton Tuesday.

Marvi Memon is on an officialvisit to Balochistan to understandthe issues being faced by BISP ben-eficiaries and their resolutionmechanisms being given by offi-cials of BISP. The purpose of thevisit is to have the first-hand expe-

No for middleman culture in BISP: Marvirience of the ground realities in oneof the most impoverished regionsof Pakistan.

In order to ensure transparencyin its operations, BISP has adopteda state-of-the-art poverty surveyconducted in 2010. This targetingmechanism is the biggest exercise ofits kind in South Asia and one of thelargest exercises undertaken in theworld. Before the survey, BISP tar-geted the beneficiaries with the helpof Parliamentarians where each pub-lic representative was given equalnumber of forms to be distributedamongst the poor households intheir respective constituencies.

Similarly, ensuring efficiency indelivering of payments to benefi-ciaries is another priority of BISP.Previously, Money Order systemwas used but due to delays in pay-ments and other problems, BISPshifted to banking system and ben-eficiaries were provided with debitcards for withdrawing their money.

MNA Marvi Memon said thatpost office, smart cards, debit cards,phone banking, all required completere-evaluation and a better, safer andfaster mechanism was the need ofthe day. She said dignity of womenwhilst getting all of the payment ver-sus partial payments would be a top

service delivery goal of BISP.Currently, BISP is managing a

National Socio-Economic Registryof 27 million households in Pakistan,which is a necessity since popula-tion census has not been under-taken for the last so many years.

MNA Marvi Memon took a se-rious notice of complexity of pay-ment modes adopted by BISP, asmost of the beneficiaries came upwith payment related grievances.She stated that major improvementswere required in the current pay-ment mechanisms so that beneficia-ries could be serviced with dignityand full transparency.—APP

HYDERABAD: An old woman protesting on debris of her makeshift house after it wasdemolished in anti-encroachment drive by Railways officials.

HYDERABAD—The Hindu community in Pa-kistan will be celebrating Holi on Thursday,the festival of colours that falls in the lunarmonth of Phalguna of the Hindu calendar.

Holi, which is a popular Hindu springfestival of colours, is observed in Pakistanat the end of the winter season on the lastfull moon of the lunar month.

Like other parts of the country the Hin-dus community of the Hyderabad will cel-

ISLAMABAD—The Senatewas informed on Tuesdaythat three persons were re-portedly died and 671 per-sons including 228 person-nel of law enforcement agen-cies injured during “InqilabMarch” and “Azadi March”in Islamabad. Minister ofState for Interior MuhammadBalighur Rehman told theHouse during Question Hourthat FIR had been registeredregarding killing and attackson institutions and person-nel of law enforcement agen-cies. Answering a question,he said Islamabad policemake periodically review ofblockades and in case anyinconvenience is reported bythe residents, then block-

154,000 TDP familiesto return home

Rs 25,000 to be provided to each family

ades are removed.Minister for Information

and Broadcasting PervaizRashid said new sectors arebeing developed and thejournalists who have notbeen allotted plots will beaccommodated in thesesectors in a transparentmanner. The Minister saidthe Ministry takes notice ofcomplaints regarding inde-cent advertisements on TVchannels and print media.Minister of State for Parlia-mentary Affairs ShaikhAftab Ahmad informed theHouse that FATA Develop-ment Authority is runningvarious Skills DevelopmentProjects for the youth ofthe area.—SABAH

WAH CANTT—At least eight members ofa family were killed and 10 others injuredwhen a two storey building collapsed instormy rain in Wah Cantt near Rawalpindiin the wee hour of Tuesday. According todetails, a residential building in Saddar WahCantt area collapsed due to heavy rain kill-ing eight people including four children andtwo women and injuring 10 others.

The two-storey building was said tohave collapsed due to heavy rain, whichalso caused problems for Rescue 1122 per-sonnel during the operation. The workerswere aided by army personnel and Edhivolunteers. Rescue agencies recovered

8 killed in building collapse

Hindus observe Holi tomorrow

prised that present megapoppy crop in Afghanistanremains the biggest impend-ing challenge for ANF.

Though till date, year2014 remained a record yearof ANF performance, but im-minent drug threat acrossthe border places a high tollof year 2015. The purposeof the meeting was to takethe international partners onboard, so as to join handsagainst well organized inter-national drug crimes.Lastpart of the session was in-teractive, in which DG ANFreplied to the questionsraised by the visitors.—APP

ebrate Holi on March 5 by splashing colourson each other, singing hymns and offeringspecial prayers for the prosperity of thecountry and its minorities.

The celebration of Holi is very ancientin its origin. By its very origin, Holi is cel-ebrated as an ultimate triumph of the “good”over the “evil.” Many colours associatedwith Holi are said to be the face of celebra-tions.—APP

ten injured from the rubble including threechildren. The injured were shifted to Dis-trict Headquarters (DHQ) hospital for emer-gency treatment. The eight deceased wereidentified as Sadia, Sapna, Syed Nazeer,Mumtaz, Bagh Sultana, Shumaila Nazeer andAhmed Nazeer.

A nine year old girl named Fatima wasalso recovered from the rubble during the res-cue operation which took almost 10 hours.Initial reports suggest that substandard build-ing material was used in the construction ofthe building. Pakistan Army, Police and aidworkers from Edhi and other welfare agenciestook part in the rescue operation.—INP

QUETTA—Child Rights Movement (CRM)has called upon the government to takeeffective measures for the security of chil-dren in schools to avoid Army PublicSchool Peshawar like tragedy.

“Due to its location and reported for-eign involvement in Balochistan, schoolsare prone to terror attacks in the prov-

Schools’ security demandedince,” CRM Provincial Coordinator SyedHafiz Rehmat said in a statement here.Stressing the need for devising a con-certed strategy for the security and pro-tection of school-going children, he saidthat leniency in this regard would giveroom to the elements to benefit of theflaws and security lapse.—INP

PESHAWAR—The Federal Government is allset to kick off three mega education projectsin the Federally Administered Tribal Areas(FATA) with main focus on improving edu-cation standard and literacy rate in the ne-glected tribal areas. The projects have already been accordedapproval by the Fata Working DevelopmentParty in the recently held meeting at FatasecretariatPeshawar. A senior official of Fata Educa-tion Department told APP on Tuesday thatone of the approved project included pro-vision of free text books to the Fata stu-dents from class-I-10 costing Rs 220 mil-lion that would be met by the Federal Gov-ernment. Over 500,000 students from class-I to five and around one lakh students ofhigher classes would be benefited from thismega project, he explained.

Inland scholarship is another approvedproject, which would focus on fulfilling thefinancial needs of the intermediate and post-graduate students of Fata besides pre-ser-vice teachers of Elementary Colleges.

The Government has increased stipendof each FATA student up toRs 5000 per year reading in intermediate andbachelor level while Rs 6000 per annum

FATA educationprojects set to start

would be given to postgraduate studentbesides Rs 3000 per month to pre-serviceteachers of elementary colleges for training.

The official said the Federal Governmentwould bear Rs 200 million per year on the abovescholarships to students of FATA who are read-ing in different educational institutes of thecountry including FATA and KP. The officialsaid over 39,448 students of tribal areas wouldbe benefited from this scheme.

In order to revamp pre-service teachereducation system aiming to improve thequality of teaching and learning in FATA,the Govt devised teacher education strat-egy (TES) that provides a detailed action-plan with specific strategies, each alignedwith the FATA Sector Development Planand the National Professional Standards forTeachers (NPST).

Referring to another approvedproject regarding stipends to FATA stu-dent reading in cadet colleges of thecountry and tribal areas, the official saidthe Govt has enhanced st ipend to Rs13200 from Rs 5000 per annum for eachFata student who are reading in cadetcolleges of the country while Rs 13200would be given to student reading incadet colleges located in Fata.—APP

PESHAWAR—The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa govern-ment is serious in conservation of environmentincluding wild species and showing zero toler-ance over deforestation leading to degradationof clean environ.

This was said by Provincial Minister for En-vironment, Ishtiaq Urmar while speaking as chiefguest at a function arranged by Wildlife Depart-ment of KP in connection with InternationalWildlife Day observed on March 3.

The function held at auditorium hall of WildlifeDepartment was addressed by environmentalistsincluding Dr Shahida Zakir, Chairperson Departmentof Environmental Sciences University of Peshawar,Zaham Khan, Lecturer Zoology Department, SyedMubarik Ali Shah, Chief Conservator Wildlife De-partment KP and students of Environment and Zo-ology department.

Speaking on the occasion, Istiaq Urmarsaid KP government has set ambit iousprojects for preservation of wild species andenvironment in the province.

Six national parks to be constructed in KP for protection of wildlife: Ishtiaq

Govt zero tolerant over environdegradation, illegal hunting

The government, he continued, has planned toset up six national parks in the province in its fiveyear tenure besides setting up a zoo at Peshawar.The first ever zoo would be set up on 29 acres ofland near Pakistan Forest Institute (PFI) at a cost ofRs. 712 million, Ishtiaq added.

He said provincial government has taken verystrict stance against timber mafia and make prelimi-nary cases against 642 timber smugglers.

Soon after Senate elections to be held on March5, Environment Minister said a crack down wouldstart against these 642 timber smugglers who willnot only be arrested but the looted money wouldalso be recovered from them.

He said it is very ironical that around 10 millioncft trees were cut in the province in the last onedecade. Around 24 million trees were more markedfor cutting out of which around seven million werecut, but the present government saved 17 milliontrees from cutting.

Under the Tree Tsunami programme for the firsttime government has planted 17 million trees in the

province against the previous annual figure ofseven million. In the coming year, government planto plant 250 million trees by involving youth at thegross root level, giving employment opportunity0.5 million youth. He said government is also seri-ous in stopping the practice of illegal hunting.

In response to a question about cage birds,Ishtiaq Urmar said keeping birds in cage is illegaland department will also take action against peopleinvolved in cage bird business. Earlier, Chief Con-servator Wildlife Department, Syed Mubarik Ali Shahmake a presentation about wild species of KP andthreats to their existence and steps being taken bypreservation.

Students of Zoology and Environment De-partments also made speeches and stressed oncreating awareness about importance of wildlifein maintaining of strong biodiversity. Adver-tisement designed by Wildlife department foreducating masses about importance of wildlifewere also screened which were highly appreci-ated by the participants.—APP

STAFF REPORTER

PESHAWAR—Khyber PakhtunkhwaMinister for Finance Muzaffar Syed Ad-vocate Tuesday asked the MonetizationCommittee to submit its final report in 15days to ensure fair use of official ve-hicles and other perks and privilegesadding that the provincial governmentwas committed in reforming the system.

He issued these directives whilepresiding over the 4th meeting of the

KP monetization committeeasked to submit report quickly

PESHAWAR—Public Ac-counts Committee (PAC)Khyber Pakhtunkhwa As-sembly while taking noticeof depositing of an amountof Rs 14.530 million col-lected in head of rent fromthe residents of KhyberPakhtunkhwa House,Islamabad and ShahiMehmankhana, Peshawar inthe account of the DeputySecretary, AdministrationDepartment and later itsutilization on unnecessaryheads has constituted a sub-committee to probe the mat-ter.

The committee compris-ing MPAs Arbab AkbarHayat Khan and IdreesKhan has been directed to

Recruitmentin police startsPESHAWAR—The KhyberPakhtunkhwa police have be-gun the process to recruit con-stables in the province for2015.The recruitment will becarried out through the Na-tional Testing Service (NTS), aspokesman for police said hereTuesday.The NTS was taskedwith recruiting the policemenin the province in 2014 to en-sure merit and transparency.

The police spokesmansaid more than 37,000 can-didates applied for the po-lice posts last year throughthe NTS showing thepeople’s confidence in theprocess. He said around2,600 constables were se-lected in all 24 districts ofthe province. “The entirerecruitment process wascompleted smoothly withno complaint of foul play inany district.” The last datefor submission of applica-tions to the NTS is March12. The physical test of thecandidates will be held fromMarch 31 to April 11 atPeshawar, Mardan, Swat,Timergara.—APP

PAC panel to probeadmin dept graft

Sindh FoodDepartment

officials heldISLAMABAD—National Ac-countability Bureau (NAB)has arrested two officials ofSindh Food Department forallegedly involved in misap-propriation of 5,890 wheatbags amounting Rs.17,670,000.

The accused includedAli Raza s/o Sanwal Khan,Food Supervisor/InchargeWPC Muhammad Pur andPRC Ghari Kharo, DistrictJacobabad and Abdul AzizNoonari s/o KhairMuhammad Food Supervi-sor/Incharge WPCMuhammad Pur and PRCGhari Kharo, DistrictJacobabad, said a press re-lease issued here.

During the inquiry, theaccused Ali Raza was heldresponsible for misappro-priation of 1690 wheat bagswhile accused Abdul AzizNoonari was held respon-sible for misappropriation of4200 wheat bags during thewheat crops.

Both accused had en-tered into Voluntary Return(VR) for their respective li-abilities but they havefailed to deposit their out-standing amount. There-fore, NAB has arrested thetwo officials.—APP

GILGIT: Caretaker Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan Sher Jahan Mir watching the items recovered from prisoners during his visit todistrict prison.

ABDUL KHLIQ QURESHI

ABBOTTABAD—Abbottonians to-gether with surrounding parts of thewhole region converted into cold storeonce again, when intermittent rainfallstarted last night, latter slowly andgradually converted d into torrentialrain in the city, while the highest peakof mountains received more than threefeet snow till Tuesday evening.

The mountains known asNathiagali, Meerajani, together withremaining adjoining parts of the re-gional territory have received more than

Hazara mountains receive 3 feet snow

three feet snow so far, eyewitnessestold on cell. A resident of such locali-ties Principal Muhammad Rafiq Qureshitold on mobile that landslides had block-aded entire link roads leading toThandiani due to which no one coulddare to buy daily use commodities fromnearby markets because of continuingsnowfall and landslides did not provideway unto required destination ofnearby markets. The power outage dueto line faults also found suspendedfrom the entire area since last nightwhich irks the residents very badly.

The city area is being received

consecutive rainfall on account ofwhich nobody could traverse even astep forward as a pedestrian; the rainywater had blocked the roads along withstreets at various scattered places ofthe city. The entire link road leading toNathiagali including other parts ofGalyat have been blocked for each kindof traffic.

However, the Northern area knownas Naran and Kaghan valleys also re-ceiving consecutive snow, therefore,no one could dare to travel by road es-pecially on Silk Route unto Naraan andKaghan valleys of Northern areas.

Dacoits heldSTAFF REPORTER

A B B O T T A B A D —Abbottabad police in suc-cessful raid has arrested thegang of 3 accused involvedin the day light robberycases by looting gold withcash from some of gold sell-ers of Karachi and Multan.

DIG Hazara RangeAkhter Hayat Gandapor as-sisted by the newly ap-pointed District Police Of-ficer Abbottabad Sher AkbarKhan while giving details tonewsman at DPO office toldthat three accused Imran al-lies “Mani” along with histwo cousins MuhammadAyaz S/O Muhammad Gulzarand Tanveer Gul S/O Aziz-ur-Rehman are arrested andhad also recovered two mo-torcycles with three vehicleswhich were used for the dif-ferent robbery cases.

Monetization Committee for Perks andPrivileges of Civil Servants in Civil Sec-retariat, Peshawar.

The meeting beside others was at-tended by Senior Member Board Rev-enues, Secretary Establishment, Secre-tary W&S, Special Secretary Finance andrepresentative of Local Government,P&D, Transport and education depart-ments. Ex-provicial secretary Dr IhsanulHaq also attended the meeting. SecretaryEstablishment while briefing the meeting

about the aims and objectives of themonetization committee said that thecommittee had been formed to replicatethe federal monetization policy in the prov-ince to halt the misuse of governmentresources, bring equality in perks andprivileges of civil servant, promote self-reliance and save public money.

The meeting was informed about thenumber of official vehicles and salientfeatures of the proposed plan for autho-rized and fair use of vehicles.

Landslides block old roads leading to Thandiani

present its report within twomonths.

The meeting of the PublicAccounts Committee washeld here in the AssemblySecretariat with MPA ShaukatYousafzai in the chair. Beside,MPAs Arbab Akbar HayatKhan, Syed Jaffar Shah, IdreesKhan, Mufti Said Janan andMehmood Khan Bethani, Ad-ditional Secretary, KP Assem-bly, Amjid Ali, Secretary Ad-ministration, HassanYousafzai, Director General(DG) Audit and other con-cerned attended the meeting.

The meeting discussedin detail audit paras of the fi-nancial year 2011-12 regard-ing Administration Depart-ment. —APP

ISLAMABAD— More rainwith snowfall over the hillsis expected at scatteredplaces of Islamabad,Punjab, KhyberPakhtunkhwa Kashmir,Gilgit Baltistan and upperFATA, according to the Pa-kistan Meteorological De-partment (PMD).

Rain is likely in Malakand,Hazara divisions, Kashmir,Gilgit-Baltistan and in isolatedplaces in Islamabad,Rawalpindi, Gujranwala,Faisalabad, Sargodha, Lahore,Mardan, Peshawar, Kohat di-visions and upper FATA in-cluding Bajur, Mohmand,Khyber and Kurram Agencies.

The lowest minimum tem-peratures recorded duringthe last 24 hours were Kalat -5.0 C, Drosh, Hunza -3.0 C,Gupis, Astore, Malamjabba -2.0 C, Skardu -1.0 C.

The temperatures inother cities were Islamabad10.0 C, Lahore 12.0 C,Karachi 14.0 C, Peshawar 9.0

More rain likely inscattered places

C, Quetta 1.0 C, Gilgit 3.0 C,Hunza -3.0, Murree 0.0 C,Skardu -1.0 C, Muzaffarabad5.0 C, Faisalabad 11.0 C,Multan 11.0 C, Hyderabad9.0 C.

The rainfall recordedduring the last 24 hours was

Rawalpindi (Shamasabad 57,Bokra 38, Chaklala 09),Islamabad(ZP 49, Saidpur49, Golra 28), Kakul 43,Malam Jabba 37, Dir, Murree24, Sialkot (city 22, AP 05),Balakot, Muzaffarabad,Garhi Duppata 22, SaiduSharif, Mangla, Kohat 18,Rawalakot, Kalam 17, Kotli16, Parachinar 14, Jehlum,Risalpur 10, Chitral, Gujrat09, Lower dir 08, Chakwal,Drosh, M.B.Din 07.—APP

All set forDiamer-Bhasha Dam

IT seems the Government is quite serious in initiating construction workon the much-talked-about Diamer-Bhasha Dam following years of lip-service by successive regimes. This is evident from approval of the Ex-

ecutive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) given onMonday for huge sums to take care of land acquisition and resettlement com-ponent of the mega project.

The ECNEC also approved a number of other water and power and otherprojects of vital importance but Diamer-Bhasha dam is more significant inview of its socio-economic benefits and its relevance to agricultural develop-ment and energy security. A cursory glance on the history of the project wouldreveal that unlike Kalabagh Dam, which was rendered controversial by vestedinterests, it remained neglected just because of lack of interest and commit-ment on the part of those at the helm of affairs. In January 2006, the Govern-ment announced the decision to construct 5 multi-purpose storage dams inthe country during next 10–12 years. According to the plan, Diamer-BhashaDam project was proposed in the first phase. In November 2008, the ECNECformally approved the project followed by clearance from Council of Com-mon Interests Pakistan. Its foundation stone was first laid by then PresidentMusharraf and then the former Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani butno actual implementation could start due to lack of progress on land acquisi-tion as well as arrangement of funds for its construction. The credit goes toPrime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who not onlydecided to start work simultaneously on two mega projects of Diamer-BhashaDam and Dasu but also worked hard to get NOC from the World Bank andmarketed the projects for funding. During a daylong conference on the Damin Washington in October last year, US officials and investors pledged sup-port for the project, which would generate 4,500 MW of electricity and con-serve 8.1 MAF of water, calling it Pakistan’s “smartest choice” for economicdevelopment. In view of the significance of the project, we hope that theGovernment would not only clear remaining obstacles but move on fast trackto ensure its accomplishment in the shortest possible time.

Bills to deter rapeand honour killings

THE Senate on Monday passed four bills including anti-honour killingsand anti-rape laws. The upper House passed Anti-Rape Laws (Criminal

Laws Amendment) Bill, 2014, and Anti-Honour Killings Laws (CriminalLaws Amendment) Bill, 2014, moved by Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP)Senator Syeda Sughra Imam.

The unanimously adopted bills would hopefully have a deterring effecton the curse of rape and honour killings. One can guess the gravity of thesituation from the figures quoted by the Senator during her speech in theupper House. She stated that 432 women were reportedly killed in the nameof honour in Pakistan in 2012, 705 in 2011, 557 in 2010, 604 in 2009 and 475women were killed in 2008. These figures do not include unreported cases or,indeed, the number of men who are often killed alongside women in the nameof honour. Honour killings are one of the most psychologically complex,sociologically complicated, morally distressing and legally challenging vio-lent crimes against humanity. Such crimes have been happening throughouthistory all over the world in many communities, countries and cultures buttheir number is awfully increasing in our society because of ignorance andprejudices. Similarly, the incidents of rape and gang-rape are also on the risebut attitude of the authorities and especially that of the Police remains indif-ferent, thus compounding the problem and in a way encouraging perpetra-tors of such crimes. The society stands brutalized due to a number of factorsand reasons and a multi-pronged strategy is required to address the problemon a sustainable basis. However, adoption of the two bills by the Senate isa step in the right direction and we hope that the lower House too wouldclear them without any delay so as to tighten noose against those who in-dulge in such crimes. The role of police is crucial and we would urge policehigh ups to take steps to ensure fairness of investigations in such cases sothat the culprits are awarded due punishment. We would also propose thatan awareness campaign should also be launched throughout the countrywith the assistance of media and also the religious leaders.

CPEC’s rating by MoodyWHAT a tragedy that while some elements in Pakistan are engaged in

opposing the route of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC),Moody’s Investor Services — one of the three largest credit rating agencies inthe world — has described the project as a ‘credit positive’ for the country,implying that the economic growth generated will eventually help thegovernment’s finances. The Agency in a note on Monday said CPEC willspur investment activity, boost bilateral trade flows and help ease Pakistan’sgrowing energy shortages.

The $46-billion project would create a 2,000-kilometre road and rail linkfrom China’s western hinterlands to the Gwadar Port, creating a network ofinfrastructure in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. The influx of in-vestment into Pakistan is what prompted Moody’s to view the economic cor-ridor as a positive from a credit perspective. The credit rating agency usesseveral macroeconomic indicators to determine its rating for Pakistan’s gov-ernment, including investment as a percentage of the total size of the economy.Another reason Moody believes this project will be positive for Pakistan istheir belief that Islamabad will be able to get Beijing to finance several energyprojects throughout the country that would reduce the cost of power genera-tion, ultimately lowering the need for electricity subsidies — a key burden onthe Federal budget — and improving economic growth, which would in turnincrease tax revenues for the government. Those two effects combined couldsubstantially reduce the budget deficit. It is acknowledged that much of theproject’s key benefits would not materialize until 2017, but it is believed thatat least some of the benefits from the economic corridor would likely beginaccruing even before then in the shape of creation of jobs. Given its proximityto the Persian Gulf, a major oil shipping source, the CPEC will provide ashorter, alternative route to link oil supplies from the Middle East with China,bypassing the Malacca Strait. Though certain vested interests have made theroute of the CPEC an issue, but there cannot be two opinions that the projectbe initiated soon and we expect that a final go ahead will be given during theforthcoming visit of the Chinese President to Pakistan.

Cold start is coming back

Immigrationbogey

IT is mostly rooted in Britishpolitics and is felt widely inAustria, Germany, France

and now Italy. The emergence offascist organisations like Pegidaand the ultra-right across Eu-rope, and of course the radicalMuslim groups is a threat andchallenge, alike. The NorthernLeague protest in Rome againstimmigration has brought to forea fundamental issue that is un-der debate in Europe.Recessionary trends and politicsof marginalisation have ledmany to play the migration card,and Matteo Salvini is an addi-tion to this club. Earlier, theUKIP in Britain and the reser-vations that Prime MinisterDavid Cameron listed out withGerman Chancellor AngelaMerkel to stem the free flow ofmigrant workers across the con-tinent is a case in point.

It simply means that respec-tive countries and politicians areplaying the nationalist card in achauvinist manner, which iscontrary to the spirit of amal-gamation behind the 28-membergeopolitical union. This grow-ing sense of otherness in Euro-pean politics is a point of con-cern, and could lead to gains byextremist organisations, be they:ethnic, religious or cult-based.The influx of immigrants prima-rily from Asia and Africa, in thewake of turmoil in Syria andLibya, and the resentment in themainland against economicslump is sparking this alienationtendency. People like Salvini,who don’t mind posing to thelens shirtless, are setting a way-ward trend in public life. Theycan’t be role models in any senseof the purpose. European lead-ers need to huddle together andfind a solution without playingto the gallery.—Khaleej Times

*****

Cure forBangladesh’schallenges

T HE brutal murder ofBangladeshi bloggerAvijit Roy, hacked to

death by unknown assailants,suggests that the containment offree speech by radical entitieswho contradict secular and lib-eral values is seeping throughthe pores of its society. Roy isthe second blogger to have beenhacked to death and the fourthto have been attacked since2004. His death is not a coinci-dence but an overt threat tothose who subscribe to freedomof thought and expression.

Mere condemnation of thiscrime will not suffice. The so-lutions lie in laying the ground-work for a socially stable stateand this could be triggered byfinding a cure to the political in-stability that currently exists inthe country between the rulingparty, Bangladesh AwamiLeague, under Prime MinisterShaikh Hasina Wajed, and herrival Khalida Zia who heads theBangladesh Nationalist Party(BNP). The latter organisationhas close connections with theJamaat-e-Islami, a radical partybanned from participating inelections since its top leaderswere convicted of war crimesduring the nation’s freedomstruggle in 1971. This powerstruggle could see Bangladesh’sfortunes plummeting on mul-tiple fronts. The unchecked riseof radical groups, and the state’sattempts to crack down on them,could in turn, threaten the sta-bility of neighbouring states,some of which are trying to con-tain internal challenges of theirown. Radical groups prosper ina society which is fragmentedand Bangladeshi society needsto weave together a lasting de-fence from within.— Gulf News

MEDIA WATCH

INDIAN government is focusingon constructing and connectingall weather roads along borders.

A near 100 percent increase has beenearmarked for construction of roadsalong the 3,323 Km Indo-Pak bor-der which stretches from Jammu andKashmir to Gujarat. Essence of“Cold Start Doctrine” or Pro ActiveOperations is fast movement of In-dian military formations from theircantonments to combat areas. Thisnecessitates the requirement of com-patible communication services; es-pecially the penetrant roads alongthe borders. Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s first budget indi-cates a hike under defence head byUS$ 4 billion, jacking it up fromUS$37 to US$41 billion.

Interesting developments aretaking place in the context of Paki-stan India relations. Indian PrimeMinister, during his telephone callto the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif,on 13 February, informed about hisintention to send his Foreign Secre-tary to Islamabad. Nawaz Sharifwelcomed the Indian initiative.India’s foreign secretary is due toarrive Islamabad on March 3. In themeanwhile Fourth round of Pakistanand India Track-II “Islamabad Dia-logue” has just concluded inIslamabad. While we wish speedand success for all ongoing effortsto build robust working relationshipbetween the two countries, onecan’t remain oblivious to ground re-alities. Prime Minister NarendraModi is pathologically anti-Muslimand, as a corollary, has a staunchanti-Pakistan bias. As such peopleare devoid of logical thinking, Modiis fool hardy enough to perceive ofa new Pakistan-India bilateral con-struct minus Kashmir. In his over-drive, he has internationalized the

Don’t spoil spirit of the game

SUPPOSE India had lost theWorld Cup cricket matchagainst Pakistan at Adelaide,

the reaction among its people wouldhave been that of disappointmentand remorse. But I do not think thatthey would have initiated scuffleswith the Pakistani spectators. TheIndians would not have destroyedtelevision sets as some did inKarachi and elsewhere in Pakistan.Of course, there would have been asense of humiliation, but it wouldnot have poured on to the streets inthe shape of fracas or demonstra-tions. This is not to suggest that theIndian society is more sophisticated.But there is no doubt that it is moretolerant and accommodative. Amulti-cultural society as it is, Indiahas learnt to live with different com-munities. The largest Muslim popu-lation, next to Indonesia, has its dy-namics. It has taught the Hindus thatthey have to adjust if they want thesociety to progress.

Unfortunately, the radicalsamong the community—they are in-creasing—want the country to beHindu. The RSS, extremist Hindubody, is pushing the society all thetime to become a Hindu Rashtra.But the majority of Hindus have re-jected its parochial approach. TheBJP which is its political arm seemsto have learnt that the saffronisationdoes not go down well with thepeople. Therefore, it has adopted de-

It often happens,that he whoendeavours toridicule otherpeople, especially inthings of a seriousnature, becomeshimself a jest, andfrequently to hisgreat cost.

velopment as its creed. It maywell be a cover for Hindutva.Yet, it indicates the realisationthat communal outlook iscounter-productive.Probably, this explains whyPrime Minister Narendra

Modi has finally broken his silencewhile addressing the Christian com-munity in New Delhi. In an unequivo-cal statement, he said: “My govern-ment will ensure that there is com-plete freedom of faith and that every-one has the undeniable right to retainor adopt the religion of his or herchoice without coercion or undue in-fluence. My government will not al-low any religious group to incite ha-tred against others, overtly or co-vertly. Mine will be a governmentthat gives equal respect to all reli-gions.” Apparently, he had the de-struction of some churches in thecountry. Modi, who has an absolutemajority in the Lok Sabha, has beencareful all these months in not push-ing his party’s agenda—commoncivil code and deleting Article 370in the constitution that gives a spe-cial status to Kashmir. He may nothave become really secular but heknows that the society would notbudge from the pluralism which it hasaccepted as a fact of life in India.

True, the minorities may still bemollified because of the preponder-ant majority of Hindus. The situationbecomes alarming when RSS chiefMohan Bhagwat says that “RamJanmabhoomi and Sethusamudramare national issues. We can raise moresuch issues to send a message acrossabout the real targets of Sangh.” Yethe and the Sangh parivar know thatthe Indian society cannot be con-

verted into a theocratic state. This isagainst the grain of the people. Incomparison, Pakistan is becomingmore and more radicalized. No doubt,the country was separated and con-stituted on the basis of religion. Butits founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah,said soon after its creation that reli-gion and state would not be mixed.Yet the fact is that minorities in Paki-stan are only around five percent. InSindh, where they concentrate, thereare forcible conversions of womenfor marriage. And there is hardly anytemple which has not been attacked.

According to a report by the Hu-man Rights Watch (HRW), violent at-tacks on members of religious minori-ties rose significantly in 2014 asPrime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s gov-ernment failed to ensure protectionof religious freedom. The HRW hastermed 2014 “a tumultuous year” forPakistan in which sectarian attackscontinued with impunity, militaryoperations in North Waziristan dis-placed more than one million people.In a statement attached to the report,Phelim Kine, the deputy Asia direc-tor at the New York based-HRW re-gretted that “Pakistan government isfailing at most basic duty to protectits citizens and enforce rule of law.The Pakistan government did little in2014 to stop rising toll of killings andrepression by extremist groups thattarget religious minorities.”

Undoubtedly, many mosques inIndia have also faced the fury of fa-natics. But here the media and a sub-stantial number of liberals speak outand take both the society and the gov-ernment to task. The minorities willcontinue to be under pressure untilIndia and Pakistan bury the hatchet.

Kashmir issue by ordering his secu-rity outfits to keep firing volleys intoPakistan along the LoC and theworking boundary. On domesticfront he is applying all pressure tac-tics on PDP—the single largest partythat won IoJK elections on anti BJPsentiment, to take BJP as its coali-tion partner.

Modi is widely perceived asmastermind of the 2002 Gujarat ri-ots, a three-day period of anti-Mus-lim violence in the Indian state ofGujarat. Following the initial on-slaught, there were follow-up out-breaks of violence in Ahmadabad forthree weeks; and further outbreaksof mass killings against the minor-ity Muslim population for threemonths. Army chief General RaheelSharif has rightly and timely warnedIndia that Pakistan will give a ‘be-fitting’ response to any provocationalong the Line of Control (LoC) andthe working boundary. “Let there beno doubt that any provocation alongLoC and working boundary willmeet a befitting response,” the armychief said during a visit to areas af-fected by Indian firing.

The Army Chief termed repeatedceasefire violations by India in therecent past “an attempt to distractPakistan from its campaign againstterrorism” and stressed that such ac-tions would have a negative impacton regional stability. He also cau-tioned India that the entire Pakistanination is united in defence of themotherland. This statement came justahead of a visit to Pakistan by IndiaForeign Secretary. These violationshave become a daily affair since Modicame to power. Modi is under tremen-dous international pressure to resumeforeign secretary level talks with Pa-kistan which it had arbitrarily calledoff last year. Modi may be trying tohoodwink the international opinionby sending his foreign secretary toPakistan as a part of his tour toSAARC counties. Speaking at herweekly news briefing, Pakistan’s

Foreign Office spokesperson has saidthat all issues, including thelongstanding Jammu and Kashmirdispute, are likely to be discussedduring the meeting between the twoforeign secretaries. “… wheneverPakistan-India dialogue resumes, weexpect all matters would be on thetable for discussion, including Jammuand Kashmir, Siachen, water re-sources, confidence building mea-sures, people to people contacts andtrade matters.” Spokesperson alsopointed out that Jammu and Kashmirhad been on the UN SecurityCouncil’s agenda: “We have beendiscussing the Kashmir issue bilater-ally. The process, however, has to beresult-oriented”, she added. However,Indian foreign secretary’s under du-ress visit may not be productive asIndian side is keeping the option openby giving it SAARC twist, on as re-quired basis. Foreign office spokes-person said; “I would not like tospeculate at this stage what exactlywould be the agenda of the talks”.She added. Before giving a judgmenton the intent of the visit, one has towait for unfolding of the agenda.

“Islamabad Dialogue” discusseda wide range of issues including theresumption of bilateral dialogue,Jammu and Kashmir, opportunitiesfor cooperation towards the stabil-ity of Afghanistan, the shared chal-lenges posed by climate change andthe role of the media in creating anatmosphere conducive for improv-ing bilateral discourse. TheIslamabad Dialogue was jointly or-ganized by the Jinnah Institute andthe Centre for Dialogue and Recon-ciliation. Delegates welcomed theupcoming visit of the Indian ForeignSecretary and called on Islamabadand New Delhi to restart discussionson all outstanding issues and hopedthat concrete progress would bemade during the visit. Delegates alsodiscussed the prevailing politicalsituation in both countries and itsimpact on shaping the bilateral re-

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Weekly Magazine

Sadia Zahid MalikEditor

Ph: 2852027-8, Ext: 116Email: magazinesocialdiary@hotmail.com

Secular and democratic New Delhiis no less derogatory of Islamabadwhen tension comes to prevail. Mus-lims are dubbed as Pakistanis al-though India is ruled by secular con-stitution, not by Hindu majority.This ethos gets diluted when Paki-stan is on opposite. It is a pity thatthere is not even an iota of realiza-tion, much less action, that waysshould be found to minimize enmitybetween two countries. Pakistan hasmore to answer because it has evendistorted history to show Hindus ina bad light. A student in Pak is aproduct of hatred which is kept alivethrough falsehood or half-truths.

Generally, it is not the case inIndia although the society should bevigilant because the history is beingsaffronised by the ruling BJP. Thesociety is not yet contaminated be-cause the sweep of the Aam AadmiParty at Delhi testifies the voters’abhorrence to caste and creed. Thisphenomenon should become an all-India theme. It all depends to a greatextent on how India and Pakistansort out their differences. The mi-norities will benefit if they do. Thesooner, the better it is. Cricket is, nodoubt, a game of skill but it dependson how a particular team performson a particular day. Take the exampleof Ireland that beat the two-timeworld champions West Indies. Theimportant lesson to learn is that thegame should be played in the spiritof the game and not tagged to otherissues between the two nations.Players seem to be conscious of thisbut not the spectators.—The writer is a veteran Indianjournalist, syndicated columnist,human rights activist and author.

Giovanni Boccaccio—Italian writer

lationship. Participants noted theimpact of climate change onSouth Asia and urged both gov-ernments to closely cooperate inaddressing water management,environmental degradation, main-tenance of catchment areas andalternate energy solutions. Theyfelt that the Foreign Secretarieshave an opportunity to pick upthreads from the Simla Agreementand Lahore Declaration, essentialcomponents of which are a com-prehensive dialogue on all out-standing issues including Jammu& Kashmir.

Delegates also emphasized theneed for strict adherence to theceasefire and maintenance of peaceand tranquility across the LoC andWB. They also recommended ef-fective cooperation to address theissue of terrorism, growing threatof extremism and removal ofhurdles to already agreed CBMs.They expressed the hope that re-sumption of dialogue will be thestart of a sustained effort towardsbuilding the desired peaceful,friendly and cooperative relation-ship—indeed a tall order by anycount. Participants of track II en-gagement also urged cooperationfor the effective implementation ofThimphu statement on climatechange adopted at the 16th SAARCSummit in 2010; and proposed thatthe two countries should also workin close cooperation to ensure thatthe new global climate agreement,to be adopted at the forthcomingconference of parties in Paris, re-sponds to the needs of developingcountries. Devastating Flash floodsduring 2014 Monsoon have amplydemonstrated that both countrieshave common stakes in managingthe impacts of climate change. BothIndia and Pakistan have a lot to gainif stable relationship matures be-tween the two countries.—The writer is Consultant to IPRIon Policy and Strategic Response.

Email:kuldipnayar09@gmail.com

Kuldip Nayar

Iqbal KhanEmail:wonderous101@gmail.com

Voice of the People

Talk showsFAKHAR YOUSAFZAI

We are tired and sick of same oldpattern talk shows with all-time flopPoliticians singing their own Songswithout expiry date. Talk to the pub-lic the main victim of this IslamicRepublic of Pakistan. Talk to Hu-mans. Average but Sincere CitizenOf Pakistan. Media must try Fan-tasy include some Masala for enter-tainment so public not get tense. Toall the people of Pakistan my mes-sage is that we are the people whowill bring Change in the SystemInshallah. Be bold, Expressive andgive words to your mind and loveyour country and see the Magic.

Solve the problems by your owndon’t depend on Government only.Try to give solution give Reasonsto feel happy people needs idea forthe talk show that’s why I said givenew faces, thoughts and some Brainto your show, don’t Pakaoo the pub-lic they are already over cooked. Butone should not live in fool’s Para-dise give peace and some mentalrelaxation to public I agree but talkto Public as well. Same politiciansin each and every talk show . Bringsomething new and progressive arewe living in Pakistan or it isJahalistan? The only problem is thatPakistan is more concerned abouteverything else except economicprogress. For economic progress thefirst requirement is peaceful envi-ronment, rule of law, stable politi-cal system and integrating withworld around you.

No country is an island and self-dependent. You have to abjure all re-ligious jehads, any form of terror-ism even against your enemies andabove all don’t allow army to rulethe country. Army is for defense ofcountry and not ruling over it what-ever the provocation. If Pakistanonly focuses on economic progressforgetting everything else I am sureit will catch up with developedworld much sooner than anybodycan imagine. If you have peace andstable political system, foreign in-vestments will flood your country.—Via email

Sit-inscause trouble

JAMILA ISMAIL MANJOTHI

The concept of sit-ins or so calledDharnas has become a commonpractice in Pakistan, especially inKarachi. Now people start callingNumaish Chowrangi as DharnaChowrangi. Each day people blockmajor arteries of the metropolitanand do protest but this is not the so-lution of any problem. No doubt, toraise voice against lawlessness, in-justices is not illegitimate and it isour democratic right but we do nothave right to put others’ life introuble. People are usually excitedlyin rush during peak hours to get totheir destination so they face toomuch problems when the find theroads blocked due to unannouncedsit-ins; in that way they seek alter-natives. It causes great difficulty forthem to reach in time. So it is myrequest to all political parties that ifthey really want to make a gooddeed for the society, please do notallow your party workers to blockthe major through fares, we canbuild a protest house where werecord our protest but this is not theway to do protest and put all the citi-zens in a trouble.—Karachi

Recent decreasein oil pricesMUSTAFA SIDDIQUI

As we all knows, Pakistan meetsmost of its oil needs by importingoil from the members of Organiza-tion of the Petroliam ExportingCountries (OPEC). OPEC is an in-

An advice for studentsMEHRAN ZAHEER

SOMEDAY we must wonder what we are studying! We are into an era of technology where skillsmatter the most in accordance with technological advancements. Are we going in the right direc-

tion? Do we need to professionalize ourselves? Convincing skills and professional behaviours are goodenough for capturing a suitable place or an adequate job responsibility in the market? The answer toall these questions is tough but to me the answer of all these questions is a negative one. Along with allthese skills you should have a degree which is acceptable and honoured in the relevant market. A fewspecific elements make a degree worthwhile in the relevant market. First of all it should be from arenowned institute to secure a good job position. Second you should have all professional skills as anedge. But above all the market should be open for you relevant field. It should not be saturated. Satu-ration in the market creates a mess in the market and less job opportunities for more degree holders.This point is most important of all. If the market is saturated for your relevant field your degree will notbe more than a useless piece of paper. For most of our professional degrees, the market is saturated andwe are producing uncontrolled number of bachelors in every field which is useless. A few years ago in acity of United Kingdom they banned Physics at O level keeping in view the saturation of physics bach-elors in the market. We need to take steps like that even from basics. Government should take steps tocontrol the situation. Parents should involve themselves in career counselling of their children andmake them progress in their interested fields. So that they may get a good job. The parents, studentsand the academic counsellors will have to think ahead of time and should visualise that as and when astudent passes out, what would be the market position at that time. The degree holders of a specificsubject/field who are getting immediate job offers today, their successors/followers having the samedegree after five years might be disappointed for poor response of the saturated market at that time.The tempo should be shifted to such fields which would need more bachelors and experts, after five-sixyears, so that the empty market space could make the degree really beneficiary for the holder.—Lahore

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View From Abroad

Diplomats’ language skills can stop wars

WHAT are foreign officesfor? In theory, the diplomatic service should help

the government conduct our interna-tional relations on the basis of a deepunderstanding of other countries. Yetin practice things aren’t so easy, andworld affairs can sometimes take dip-lomatic services by surprise.

Back in 1992, I attended a top-level briefing of the prime ministeron events in Yugoslavia, a crisis thatscarcely anybody around the worldhad foreseen. At previous crisis brief-ings I had always felt somebody knewnot only the main players but alsotheir fathers and probably their grand-fathers. But this time I suddenlyrealised that not one person in theroom really knew the story. We didin fact have one such expert, a Serbo-Croat speaker who had just finishedhis tour as ambassador in Belgrade.But he had just been promoted to behead of the internal FCO administra-tion, the “chief clerk”. The idea that

he might be better employed advis-ing on what amounted to a world cri-sis didn’t stand a chance in the pre-vailing climate; chief clerk he re-mained.

Two parliamentary reports thismonth suggest embarrassing situa-tions such as this have become morerather than less common. Knowledgeof languages such as Russian andArabic has declined. Throughout myservice, from 1960 to 1996, resourcesallocated to the FCO (Foreign andCommonwealth Office) fell by about1% a year. Since then I believe theyhave fallen much faster. Some of thisreduction was justified by Britain’schanging role in the world and bychanges in the nature of diplomacy.But it has gone too far. Germany andFrance going off to talk to Russiawould have struck an odd note in the20th century. I remember being a littlesurprised in 1965 to find that the UKwas a founder member of the DanubeCommission, which turned out to bevery helpful in some negotiationswith the then Soviet bloc. As the re-tired US ambassador Chas Freemanput it recently, in international affairs

“if you’re not at the table you’re onthe menu”.Building this weight upagain, as the parliamentary commit-tees have recommended, is overdue.It would not, however, have avoidedall the mistakes of the past. The Iraqwar is a prime example.

Among all the leaked documentsand published statements by those in-volved, I have yet to see any consid-ered recommendation by the FCO asto whether we should go to war ornot, and among those who have spo-ken out much more has been heardfrom intelligence officers and themilitary. That is partly a failing of theFCO, but partly also a failing of cabi-net government. What could the FCOhave done with a prime minister who,when confronted with advice that thewar was illegal, simply wrote that hedidn’t understand it, and went aheadanyway?

In a world where “everybodyspeaks English” it is hard for a Britto get the practice needed to be com-fortable in a foreign language. It’stempting not to bother, and not al-ways possible. But knowing the lan-guage is the key that unlocks the

India’s new Kashmir diplomacy

SINCE partition, India has beenemploying various tactics to deprive the people of the Indian-

held Kashmir of their legitimate rightof self-determination which was af-terwards also recognized by the UN.As part of anti-Muslim and anti-Pa-kistan approach, leader of theBharatiya Janata Party (BJP) andPrime Minister of India NarendraModi is implementing new Kashmirdiplomacy. In this regard, BJP andthe Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)have forged a coalition governmenton March 1.

The general public of the Indian-controlled Kashmir is a sensitive linkfor PDP and the weakest one of BJPespecially in the Valley. Modi andSayeed finally agreed on a commonagenda to jointly rule the State with-out any reference to scrapping a con-stitutional provision which allowsIndian-held Kashmir to make its ownlaws and demands by the PDP toscrap the draconian laws which give

Indian forces sweeping searchand shoot-on-sight powersthere—which are seen as acover for human rights abuses.In this respect, besides HumanRights Watch, in its various re-ports, Amnesty International

has also pointed out grave humanrights violations in the Indian-con-trolled Kashmir.

However, as part of new Kash-mir diplomacy, Modi hurriedly de-cided to forcibly annex disputed ter-ritory of the State of Jammu andKashmir (J&K), uncovering its inten-tions to wrap up the article 370 of theIndian constitution which ensures aspecial status to J&K. Therefore,United Nations Military ObserverGroup India and Pakistan in NewDelhi was asked to vacate official ac-commodation. In this context, on theone hand, BJP government gave agreen signal to the Indian securityforces to continue various forms ofstate terrorism on the innocentkashmiris, while on the other, it hasalso been cajoling them through posi-tive measures in order to divide them.

Nevertheless, Kashmiris andtheir sympathizers related to print,electronic and social media must ex-pose this conspiracy by pointing out

that both BJP and PDP are compro-mising on main issues such as article370, AFSPA, trifurcation, rehabilita-tion of Pandits and West PakistanRefugees issue. Besides, continuedincidents of violations by the Indiansecurity forces at Working Boundaryand Line of Control across Pak-In-dian border were pressure tactics byBJP to coerce PDP which succumbedto form coalition government. WhileKashmiri people have come to knowthat PDP through opportunistic pos-ture aims at political gains at the costof war of liberation which continuesby the Kashmiris unabated.

Indian Foreign SecretarySubrahmanyam Jaishankar is now inIslamabad, under the Saarc Yatra,and talked to Pakistan’s Foreign Sec-retary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry. Inthis regard, Indian External AffairsMinistry had stated, “We stand readyto talk with Pakistan on all issues,including Jammu and Kashmir.”Last year, India postponed the Sec-retary level talks with Pakistan; un-der the pretext that during his Indianvisit Pakistan’s prime minister’s spe-cial advisor on Foreign Affairs SartajAziz met Kashmiri leaders. In fact,as part of delaying tactics, India isnot serious to resolve any issue with

Oliver Miles

Pakistan, especially the core dis-pute of Kashmir. Indian rulersavailed various crises to suspendthe process of Pak-India talks. Forexample, in 2002, under the pre-tension of terrorist attack on the In-dian parliament, New Delhi post-poned the process of dialogue.Again, in 2008, India suspendedthe ‘composite dialogue’ under thepretext of Mumbai terror attacks.

Recently, Modi was raisingbaseless issue like Mumbai may-hem and terrorism as pre-condi-tions to advance the Pak-India dia-logue. But, he ignored the fact thaton July 19, 2013, Indian ex-inves-tigating officer Satish Verma re-vealed that terror-attacks inMumbai in November 26, 2008and assault on Indian Parliamentin January 12, 2001 were carriedout by the Indian government tostrengthen anti-terrorism laws.Nonetheless, India’s new Kashmirdiplomacy will fail; because, de-spite the employment of contradic-tory tactics, the war of liberationby the Kashmiri people will con-tinue until they get their legitimateright of self-determination.—The writer is Lahore-basedfreelance columnist.

What’s in your house..!

MAYBE it’s the Januarychill, one feels a littledown, at least that’s how

I felt this morning! I could havegot out of bed in the same moodand allowed it to continue through-out the day and even let it becomecontagious and influence othersaround me, but something mademe choose not to: I stretched outmy hand as if there was a gianthand nearby to hold and prayed fora change in mood.

“Be grateful for all you havein your house!” came a thought.“In my house?” I asked myselfand looked around reluctantly.

Next to me slept my wife, and Ithanked God for the fact she lovedme, then I thanked God also shewas in good health. I walked out ofthe bedroom and saw a light on,“Hi!” I shouted. “Hi dad!” camebright reply and gladness filled myheart that my children and I shareda relationship many fathers wouldhave envied!

“You also guarded and guidedthem through this year Lord!” I saidand my heart was warm with grati-tude. “What’s the problem dad?”asked the elder and there was con-cern on her face.

“Forgetting to thank God forlooking after my problems!” Ilaughed and she laughed with me. Mydog was snoring! It didn’t even botherto look up, “You got to wake up whenyour master comes into the room,” Itold him in mock anger. He opened

an eye and gave me a look which saidI should go back to sleep; and myheart burst out with joy that a Godabove kept my house so secure a dogcould sleep so well. I patted the littlefellow and he looked up with a ques-tion mark look:

“You gotta be thankful you cansleep!” I told him and walked away.My maid was up making mycoffee.Ah! The aroma of coffee ona cold morning, it drifts into yournostrils then delights whole bodyinto a state of anticipation till firstsip is taken. “You want to thank mefor the coffee Bob?” “Oh yes, yes!”I said with tears in my eyes. I re-membered something that had hap-pened thousands of years ago,

It concerned a widow with finan-cial problems. This widow asks a holyman, Elisha for help to pay a debt soher sons won’t be sold into slavery.

But what does the prophet ask her?He says “ What have you in thehouse?” And she replies, “I havenothing but a pot of oil.”

He then tells her to borrow asmany containers as she can, andpour her supply of oil into them.However surprised she might havebeen by this instruction, she followsthrough.

She fills all the borrowed con-tainers with oil from that one pot.Elisha tells her to sell the oil andpay the debt.

And that’s the lesson I’ve learnttoday, that all sorrows, pains, hurtsand disappointments, financial wor-ries and what not can be nullifiedwith the never emptying pot of oilthat already exists in my own house.“What’s in your house?” I grin asbad mood vanishes.—Email:bobsbanter@gmail.com

Israel and international terrorism

IN July 2014, Israel launched amilitary operation in Gaza thatmowed down over 2,000 civilians

within a month, claiming self-defence.ISIS and Al-Qaeda were conspicuousby their silence, despite copious anti-Semitic rhetoric for recruitment andpropaganda purposes.

Besides taking to Twitter withboilerplate condemnations, no repris-als took place to avenge their fallenbrethren-in-faith. How odd, since bothconsider it their life’s work to endMuslim subjugation by the infidels.Could it be that the Zionist zeal in de-fending Israel scares them? Perhapsthey feel ill-equipped to take onMossad? Their track records suggestotherwise. Al-Qaeda had the organi-zation and finances to strike the Ameri-can heartland on 9-11, and wage a glo-bal jihad. Similarly, ISIS continues itsblitzkrieg run through the Levant, us-ing sophisticated weaponry and wartactics that would put many modernarmies to shame. It can’t be the fear of

death or retribution either. The ultimatejihadi dream is to go out with a bang,while taking along as many enemiesas possible. Plausibly, the rabbit holeof international terrorism runs a lotdeeper than most of us, or even jihadiunderlings, can fathom. Israel is oneof few masters of puppets, covertlyfunding and moulding modern Islamicextremism. To understand its actions,one must understand the mindset. TheJewish psyche is one scarred by exis-tential threats. As a people, they havebeen on the brink of genocide manytimes in history, leading to one exo-dus after another out of their prom-ised land. Around 700 BC, the oldkingdoms of Israel and Judah werefirst unhinged, then destroyed by theAssyrians and Babylonians respec-tively. In 1099 AD, during the Chris-tian Crusades, thousands of Jews weremassacred after the fall of Jerusalem.In modern times, the Nazi death-camps of World War II took persecu-tion to a whole new level.

Zionism gained strength amongthe Jews in the twentieth-century, as anationalist and political movement,with the express purpose of reclaim-ing the Holy Land. The 1917 Balfour

Declaration gave them hope, and on14 May 1948, the state of Israel, ledby David Ben-Gurion, formally de-clared its independence. From the out-set, war with its Arab neighbours wasinevitable. Egypt, Jordan and Syriabegrudged the carving out of a JewishState, from what they considered ArabPalestine. Twice they tried overcom-ing Israel, in 1948 and 1967, bothtimes ending in defeat, and territorialgains for the victor. These events setin motion a long-term policy for Is-rael based on innate pragmatism andself-preservation. The Zionist leadersgenuinely feared a Middle Eastern re-enactment of the Holocaust, whichArab public discourse only fuelled.Hence Mossad, and its spymasters, be-came the very extension of their para-noia and hyper-vigilance.

Their approach is two-pronged.First, sow discord within the Arabranks and second creating religiousfault-lines. The origins of Al-Qaedacan be traced back to the 1930s, andan entity called the Jewish Agency, theJerusalem arm of the World ZionistOrganization. In a December 2014interview with Press Television,Alexander Prokhanov, a senior aide to

door. One of my last acts as anambassador in 1996 was to inter-vene on instructions to persuadeGreece to draw back from an un-necessary confrontation with Tur-key over some islets – rocks, rather– in the Aegean Sea, which wasgetting very close to shooting. In-evitably the instructions arrived af-ter working hours and I had the dif-ficult task of reaching the foreignminister (who did not speak English)in the middle of the night when hewas attending a kind of war cabinetand certainly did not wish to speakto foreign ambassadors.

He was a bit of a maverick, but Ihad made a friendship with him andmy Greek was good enough to fightmy way past telephone operators andsecretaries to give him my message.My American and German col-leagues had parallel instructions.Neither spoke Greek. The Americandidn’t lack staff resources (theynever do) and also scored, thoughhe made some enemies in the pro-cess. The German didn’t get past thetelephone operator. There wasn’t awar. — Courtesy: The Guardian

Russian President Vladimir Putin,accused Mossad of training ISISfighters in Iraq and Syria with CIAhelp. Retired US General ThomasMcInerney had already acknowl-edged this. In a September 2014 in-terview with Fox News, he stated“we helped build ISIS.”

Furthermore, Israel seeks to ex-pel the Arab population of Palestine,and compel Jews worldwide to im-migrate and replace them. This nul-lifies the threat of a fifth column inanother Arab-Israeli war, and dilutesthe UN Security Council Resolution446. If no Arabs live in ‘occupiedArab territories’, there is, hence, noillegal occupation to speak of. Rightnow, every one in three refugeesworldwide is Palestinian, with thetotal number a staggering 6.5 mil-lion. In contrast, Israeli Prime Min-ister Netanyahu keeps pressuring the500,000 French Jews to immigrateto Israel, considering recent, unsub-stantiated, hate crimes in France. Re-markably, since the post 9-11 rise ofAl-Qaeda and ISIS, not a single hu-man or material asset of the state ofIsrael been targeted by these entities.— Writer is a freelance columnist.

Sajjad ShaukatEmail: sajjad_logic@yahoo.com

S Mubashir NoorEmail:cras.mnoor@gmail.com

ternational organization that coordi-nates the policies of the oil produc-ing countries. Its also controls thedemand and supply of oil in the in-ternational market as well as itsprices, which means Pakistan has nocontrol over the prices at which itimports oil and Pakistan has to paywhatever the price of oil in the inter-national market.

During the past decade, the priceof oil in the international market shotup to $100 per barrel from $40 perbarrel previously due to increasingdemand for oil. The high prices madeit profitable for the companies in theUS to extract oil from hard to drillareas, which increased the oil supplyin the international market. Up tillnow it was the non-issue as there weremany conflicts flaring up in the GulfRegion, which decrease the global oilsupply from the Gulf Region and thedecreased oil supply from the Gulfwas offset by the increased oil sup-ply from the US. However, the situa-tion is not the same any more; theconflict in the Gulf Regions is get-ting resolved, which means the oilproduction from the Gulf Region isgetting restored to its former glory.As a result, the supply of oil in theinternational market is soaring, whilethe demand for oil is reducing, asmany countries are exploring alter-native energy sources as the hydro-gen cell and the solar power.

Whenever the supply of some-thing increases and its demand de-creases, the price of that thing comesdown. Same thing happened with theoil in the international market. Thesupply of oil increased and the de-mand decreased, which resulted in adecrease in the price of oil from $115per barrel in June 2014 to $65 perbarrel in December 2014. Some ana-lysts say it would come down to $45per barrel in the coming months asthe OPEC and US are at a price warand both parties are unwilling to de-creases their productions to balancethe demand and supply of oil. Thisbrings us to the case of decreasingfuel prices in Pakistan. The fuel pricesin Pakistan are very much affectedby the international oil prices and re-cent decreases in the fuel prices is dueto the decrease in oil prices globally.The current government or the sit-inprotests have nothing to do with it.—Surjani Town, Karachi

Stop!SANABIL JAWED

A 23 year old girl, teacher by profes-sion, was gang raped. She quit herday job and stay at home. All overthe Pakistan people are already fac-ing many problems and now this istoo much. This is a big threat for girlswho are afraid of going anywhere.Not only this but child rape is alsoincreasing day by day. Governmentshould take strict action against suchwrong deers. People who are in-volved in these type of inhuman ac-tivities must be hanged to death.There is no forgiveness for them.—Karachi

Trade ofpoisonous products

SHAHID AHMED QURESHI

In District Badin the open selling ofpoisonous things like Gutka, Manpuriand others in various towns which arevery harmful for users. According todetails, we have observed the mostof sellers are openly selling thesetypes poisonous things and local ad-ministration does not stop them fromselling, these deadly things. Mostlythe youth, school and college goingchildren of the district are eating thesetypes of poisonous things like gutka,manpuri, Zafri, 2100 and otherswhich are causing mouth cancer,throat, dental problem due to usethese types of narcotic.

On the other hand, these typepoisonous products are not only usedby males but females are also usingthese poisonous items in various ru-

ral areas of the district. Ban was im-posed several years back but this timesmall traders are selling differenttypes of poisonous products withoutany fear across the district. Govern-ment should take the notice on thesepoisonous narcotic products so thatyouths and other users can be savedfrom multiple diseases.—Badin

Special childrenneed your care

AROUSA KHAN

We have a responsibility to ensurethat every individual has the oppor-tunity to receive a high-quality edu-cation, from pre-kindergarten to el-ementary and secondary, to specialeducation, to technical and highereducation and beyond. (Jim Jefford).Education is the most powerfulweapon which you can use to changethe world. (Nelson Mandela). Edu-cation remains as the most neglectedsocial/service sector in most of thethird word countries including Paki-stan. Among education sector, theshare of special needs education is toopathetic to describe.

The educational and rehabilita-tion services provided to disabledchildren were not worth mentioningin Pakistan at the time of its creation.After independence, Pakistan had toface some serious challenges, due towhich no proper emphasis was givento special education and even educa-tion. Among other reasons, lack ofresources, financial as well as human,was the major one in this context. Theimportance of education for everyperson as well as every nation can-not be over-emphasized. Its impor-tance is increased to a greater extentin case of persons with disabilities,as education can help them to adjustin the society. In special education,there are specially designed instruc-tions to meet the unique needs andabilities of disabled children. Dis-abled children have conditions thatadversely affect their progress in con-ventional educational programmes.Gifted children demonstrate high ca-pacity in intellectual, creative or ar-tistic areas, may perform poorly inregular educational programmes.

Special education services canhelp both disabled and gifted childrenmake progress in educationprogrammes. They are the most ne-glected part of our society even theparents of disabled children feel em-barrassed in introducing their child topeoples. They are the children who aredeprived of many things which we thenormal people are enjoying. Specialchildren have special needs with spe-cific issues i.e. medical, developmen-tal, behavioural and learning issuesthey require assistance for disabilities.These children are separated fromother children and are discriminatedbecause of their disability. There areno legitimate reasons to separate chil-dren for their education. Children mustgo together with advantages and ben-efits for every one; they do not needto be protected from each other. In-clusive education will provide goodsocial sense as segregation teacheschildren to be fearful ignorant andbreeds prejudice. Inclusive educationprovides that type of education thatwill help them to develop relationshipsand prepare them for mainstream life.Only inclusion has the potential to re-duce fear and build friendship, respectand understanding.—Via email

IBRAHIM HAMIDI

THE party that from an early stage actedon the assumption that “the Syrian regimehad fallen” wasn’t Washington or the

“friends of the Syrian people,” and it wasn’tthe Kremlin either. The US and Russia agreedin 2012 on a “transitional period” presided overby a governing body made up of opposition andpro-regime actors—this way, state institutionswould be preserved and a re-run of the Iraqscenario prevented. The US and Russia didn’tthink seriously about what was behind regimeinstitutions. Moscow was using the Syrian cri-sis to make up for its losses in Iraq and Libya,and to improve its position internationally.Washington didn’t want complete chaos in whatwas left of Syria, and was applying pressure toforce the regime into making big concessions:First, Damascus had to give up its chemicalarsenal; later on, it had to allow the long termpursuit of jihadists (now fighting Hezbollah)on its territory. After all, the Syrian crisis was“contained within the borders.”

The Iranian project lay elsewhere, andTehran’s strategy was following a separate path.After the “Arab Spring” began and its windsreached Damascus, Iran used all of its military,security, political and economic muscle to stopprotests from reaching Syria—beginning withHoms’s “Clock Square” in the center of thecountry. But Tehran knew the regime was fin-ished structurally, and that there would have tobe a new regime, controlling a new demo-graphic balance under a new social contract.

Iran had a clear vision and all the tools to

The Russo-Iranian struggle for Syriaimplement it were available. Its allies in Iraq,Syria and Lebanon returned to their traditionalrole within the Iranian project: going in with thegloves off. Calmly, Iran set about establishing a“shadow regime” made up of numerous security,military, economic, social and political establish-ments. Perhaps one of the main tools in thisproject are the militias that lay far outside thesphere of central authority, as is the case in othercountries. Following the Basij model, the IranianRevolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) set up theNational Defense Forces (NDF). The IRGC di-rectly influenced the new militia by training it inIran, providing it with funding and sending advi-sors to several parts of Syria. The number of fight-ers in the NDF is thought to be around 100,000.

In many cases, these individuals owe no al-legiance to the central authorities in Damascus.Many stories tell of high-level “directives” be-ing issued from the capital for the removal ofcheckpoints in the middle of the country, and thepeople in charge of the checkpoints refusing tocarry out their orders. It has also been said thatmost negotiations to reach a permanent agree-ment on restoring calm in Homs’s Al-Waer dis-trict have collapsed because NDF officials inShiite neighborhoods aren’t satisfied with theagreements reached. Other stories have circulatedsuggesting that local NDF commanders now owemore allegiance to their main source of moneyand weapons, NDF chief Fadi Saqr, than to theminister of defense or the government.

The NDF was established to compensate forthe losses the army was suffering—sources saythat according to Ministry of Defense recordsover 100,000 soldiers and officers have been

killed. Additionally, the number of army recruitshas dropped sharply to just a few thousand ev-ery six months from over 60,000 before 2011; alarge number of defections have occurred inSunni areas; and young men from the Alawitemajority areas on the coast have fled overseasto avoid military service. All of the above hascaused the number of recruits in the army todwindle to around 100,000. The response hasbeen to increase the use of reserves, preventlarge numbers of young men from crossing theborder and close maritime transport lines pre-viously used by residents in coastal areas.

Now Iran is trying to put forward a formulafor Syria like the formula Syria put forward forLebanon. It is trying to use the war on terror, theArab-international campaign against the IslamicState (ISIS), and the nuclear talks to propose thefollowing deal: the security of Israel and the Gulfin exchange for control of decision making inthe Levant and Iraq. In other words, Iran wouldbe allowed to direct political matters in a waythat serves the interests of the West and the Gulf.By leading the “Battle for the South,” Tehran hasregained negotiating power it lost after the 2006Lebanon War when UN Security Council Reso-lution 1701 was issued. It has used this to presentitself as three things:

1) A rational partner who knows the rulesof the game in “useful Syria” (an alternative tothe madness of the Al-Nusra Front and otheropposition factions);

2) A guarantor of the continuation of the1974 disengagement agreement between Syriaand Israel, and the return of the United NationsDisengagement Observer Force (UNDOF); and

3) An unbreachable barrier preventing ISISadvancing into Jordan and the Gulf. This pro-posal does not worry the Obama administration;in fact, Washington is ready to negotiate. USsupport for the “moderate opposition” is part ofits negotiation efforts—Washington is “wear-ing down” Tehran and bringing it to the debat-ing table. However, Iran’s proposal does worryVladimir Putin. Since the beginning of the cri-sis, Russia has been protecting the regime inthe United Nations Security Council by usingits right to veto with support from China. It hasalso been giving financial support to Syrian stateinstitutions. Moscow sees its influence histori-cally in the traditional institutions, especially thearmy and the security forces. Tehran sees itsinfluence in non-governmental institutions. Rus-sia believes in a “top-down” solution throughits interpretation of the 2012 Geneva Commu-nique and the idea of a transitional governingbody. Iran believes in a “bottom-up” solutionthrough UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan deMistura’s plan because it gives a larger role tolocal leaders and militias.

Syria is “useful” in terms of strategy: Inthe south, Daraa Governorate and the Golanborder Jordan and Israel respectively; in thecenter of the country, Homs Governorate bor-ders Hezbollah’s areas of influence; and thecoastal cities of Tartous and Latakia give Rus-sia a foothold in the Mediterranean. Russia isworried it may lose Syria to Tehran like it lostIraq. There can be no doubt as to the existenceof a Russo-Iranian struggle for what remainsof “useful Syria.”Courtesy: Al Hayat.

—Courtesy: Reuters

Iraqi security forces and Shiite fighters reload a weapon during clashes with Islamic State militants in Salahuddin province.

Egypt has been without a parliament since June 2012, when a court dissolved the demo-cratically elected main chamber.

PANG ZHONGYING

I WENT to attend the 17th Asian Security Conference in NewDelhi, India, before the 2015 Spring Festival. Barry Buzan,emeritus professor in the Department of International Rela-

tions at the London School of Economics, argued at the confer-ence that we are now living in a world without superpowers butwith several regional powers that decide the world order. Heclaimed that the US is gradually degrading to the level of a re-gional power. Of course, this does not mean regional powersonly focus on affairs within their region, but means they exertmost of their clout upon the region. Though Buzan’s idea maybe disagreed with by many, I found it quite reasonable becausean increasing number of regional issues will be resolved or con-trolled in regional ways.

At present, Europe is trying to sort out two conundrums: theUkraine crisis and the economic quagmire in Greece and othereurozone countries trapped in a similar plight. I call on people tolink the Ukraine crisis and the Greek issue together because in thisway we will see how European powers, like Germany and France,settle their regional issues. The EU and the eurozone are now en-gaged in arduous negotiations with Greece. They aim at seeking away out for the eurozone and preventing the possible “exit” ofsome members from affecting the overall situation of the zone.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is also making efforts tohelp work out the debt crisis sprawling across the whole of Eu-rope. This is because the IMF has served as a global economicgoverning tool for Europeans over the past 70 years. Now it at-tempts to deter Greece-like debtors by employing concerted effortwith the European Commission and European Central Bank.

In order to win bargaining chips with the Troika in negotia-tions, Greece is looking for various approaches to its debt crisis,including through negotiations with China and Russia. None-theless, in my view, all non-European solutions to the unfoldingGreek debt crisis will be futile. China will not offer direct assis-tance to Greece at the risk of worsening its relations with theTroika, let alone Russia. Moreover, as a member state of theIMF, China is involved indirectly in figuring out the conundrum.When the Minsk agreement on the Ukraine crisis was inked inmid-February, people noticed that Washington was not amongthe signatories, which sent a strong signal that the Ukraine crisisis a European issue and therefore should be solved by Europe.

Similarly, Asian issues should be solved by Asia. The for-eign policy elite from certain countries have always been askingexternal countries to intervene instead of seeking Asian solu-tions. Consequently, issues that could have been resolved easilybecome complicated. Such elites argue that they are afraid thatChina will grow stronger so that they turn to external powers tocounter the rising Middle Kingdom and strike a balance in Asia.They think problems can be solved in this way, but as a result,they only mess things up.

In the current stage, Greece has made concessions in its ne-gotiations with the EU and the European Central Bank, in hopeof addressing its crisis under the European framework. Ukrainehas finally realized that there will be no cease-fire or even peacewith the interference of the US. This perhaps shows that payingthe price has woken it up. The White House is considering pro-viding lethal weapons to Ukraine, obviously to escalate the pro-longed conflict instead of mitigating it. Can Asian issues be solvedby Asia alone? Some Asian people bent on acting as Washington’sproxies just turn a deaf ear to the advice. Nevertheless, thoughthey reject applying localized solutions to Asian problems, Chinamust support and promote the use of Asian approaches.

Global governance in the 21st century lies in local issuesbeing solved by local means. The US remains the greatest powerin the world. However, with its declining strength, the more itinterferes in other regions, the more terrible the situation willbecome and the more disorderly the world will be. Washingtonshould recognize the reality as early as possible, accept and evenencourage regional solutions.

—Courtesy: GT[The author is a professor at the School of International Studies,

Renmin University of China. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn]

US should encourageregional solutions

YUSUF MANSUR

IT IS important to study the causes and underpinnings of terrorism, which is considered a manifestation of extremism.Research shows that it is not religion that causes the violent

acts being witnessed, nor is it economics, in terms of povertyand unemployment, as one would have quickly thought. The rea-sons are slightly more complex. The study “Alienation, religion,economics and politics: Testing theories of radicalisation in pollsof US Muslims”, conducted for the US Department of Home-land Security in 2009, found that sympathy for jihadist terroristacts was more associated with a negative assessment of US for-eign policy towards Muslim countries than with religiosity.

The study tested alienation (discrimination within the US)and found it only weakly associated with a war upon Islam;religiosity, as indexed by importance of Islam in one’s life andthe frequency of visits to the mosque, was determined to beunrelated to the jihadist mindset; and economic grievances (loweducation and family income) were found to be weakly relatedto suicide bombing and a favourable opinion of Al Qaeda. Onthe other hand, political grievances (opposition to war in Af-ghanistan, US policy towards Israel) were determined as thebest predictor of a political judgement that the war on terror-ism is actually a war on Islam and thus the cause of a positiveopinion of Al Qaeda.

Interestingly, the results of the study were consistent witha study by Tessler and Robbins, “What leads some ordinaryArab men and women to approve of terrorist acts against theUnited States?”, of 2007, who found, based on a surveys inJordan and Algeria, that a negative assessment of US foreignpolicy was a significant factor determining support for terror-ism in these countries. Politics is thus more important in a nar-row sense than economics in the making of sympathy towardsterrorist acts. Tessler and Robbins found that approval of jihadistterrorism was not linked with gender, economic situation, reli-giosity or support for political Islam; “rather it was youngerrespondents and those with negative views of American for-eign policy and local politics who were more likely to approveof terrorism”. The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) Report, whichis produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP),provides a summary of the key global trends and patterns interrorism over the last 14 years (2000-2013).

The report utilises the Global Terrorism Database (GTD),which is the most comprehensive dataset on terrorist activityglobally. In addition, the report evaluates several factors as causesof terrorism, yet, unlike the above study which focused on theUS, the report is globally focused and bases it views on the125,000 terrorist acts that were codified in the GTD. The reportstates that countries with higher levels of terrorism were foundto have three statistically significant factors: greater social hos-tility among the different ethnic, religious and linguistic groupsin society; lack of intergroup cohesion; and high levels of groupgrievances — lack of equity, rentierism, etc.

Additionally, state-sponsored violence, political terror andhuman rights abuses also lead to extremism and terrorism. Lackof security, leading to higher deaths from organised conflict, vio-lent demonstrations, violent crimes and perceptions of criminal-ity, leads to terrorism. On the other hand, as above, poverty haslittle explanatory power for taking up terrorism. The report, un-derscores that worldwide, weak political systems, lack of politi-cal legitimacy and the presence of state-sponsored violence aremore significant in explaining the rise of terrorism than the gen-eral economic environment. Acts that produce lack of equity andgreater exclusion tend to produce terrorists.

—Courtesy: JT[ymenconsult@gmail.com]

Economics and terrorism

BAGHDAD—Thousands of Iraqi sol-diers and Shi’ite militiamen sought toseal off Islamic State fighters in Tikritand nearby towns on Tuesday, the sec-ond day of Iraq’s biggest offensive yetagainst a stronghold of the radical SunniIslamist militants. Iranian military com-mander Qassem Soleimani, who hashelped coordinate Baghdad’s counter-attacks against Islamic State since itseized much of northern Iraq in June,was overseeing at least part of the op-eration, witnesses told Reuters.

His presence on the frontline high-lights neighboring Iran’s influence overthe Shi’ite fighters who have been keyto containing the militants in Iraq. Incontrast the U.S.-led air coalition whichhas been attacking Islamic State acrossIraq and Syria has not yet played a rolein Tikrit, the Pentagon said on Monday,perhaps in part because of the high-levelIranian presence.

Iraqi military officials said securityforces backed by the Shi’ite militiaknown as Hashid Shaabi (PopularMobilisation) units were advancing

Iraqi forces sealingoff IS around Tikrit

gradually, their progress slowed byroadside bombs and snipers. They haveyet to enter Tikrit, best known as thehometown of executed former presidentSaddam Hussein, or the nearby Tigrisriver town of al-Dour, which officialsdescribe as a major center for the Is-lamic State fighters.

On the southern flank of the offen-sive, army and police officials said gov-ernment forces moving north from thecity of Samarra could launch an attackon al-Dour later on Tuesday. Soleimani,head of the Iranian RevolutionaryGuards Quds Force, was directing op-erations on the eastern flank from a vil-lage about 55 km (35 miles) from Tikritcalled Albu Rayash, captured from Is-lamic State two days ago.

With him were two Iraqi Shi’iteparamilitary leaders: the leader of theHashid Shaabi, Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis, and Hadi al-Amiri who leadsthe Badr Organisation, a powerfulShi’ite militia. “(Soleimani) was stand-ing on top of a hill pointing with hishands toward the areas where Islamic

State are still operating,” said a witnesswho was accompanying security forcesnear Albu Rayash.

The offensive is the biggest mili-tary operation in the Salahuddin regionnorth of Baghdad since last summer,when Islamic State fighters killed hun-dreds of Iraq army soldiers who hadabandoned their military base at CampSpeicher outside Tikrit. Several Shi’iteHashid Shaabi fighters have describedthis week’s campaign as revenge for theSpeicher killings. Prime MinisterHaider al-Abadi has urged them to pro-tect civilians in Salahuddin, a mainlySunni Muslim province.

The drive follows several failed at-tempts to push the militants out ofTikrit. Since Islamic State declared acaliphate last year in territories underits control in Iraq and Syria, Iraqi forceshave not managed to recapture and con-trol a single city. But months of U.S.-led air strikes, backed up by the Shi’itemilitias, Kurdish peshmerga fightersand Iraqi soldiers, have contained Is-lamic State in Iraq and pushed it back

from around Baghdad, the Kurdishnorth, and the eastern province ofDiyala.

The Tikrit battle will have a majorimpact on plans to move further northand recapture Mosul, the largest cityunder Islamic State rule. If the offen-sive stalls, it will complicate and delaya move on Mosul. A quick victorywould give Baghdad momentum, butany retribution against local Sunniswould imperil efforts to win overMosul’s mainly Sunni population.

To the west of Mosul, Islamic Statefighters attacked Kurdish forces in thetown of Sinjar on Monday, a seniorpeshmerga source said. Nine peshmergaand 45 militants were killed in the fight-ing, which began with a suicide carbomb in the Nasr quarter of the town.

Islamic State “want to show peoplethey can still attack and inflict losseson the peshmerga”, the source said.Kurdish forces currently control around30 percent of the town of Sinjar, as wellas the hills to the north and the moun-tain overlooking it.—Reuters

CAIRO—Egypt’s Administra-tive Court issued a ruling onTuesday that effectively halts theMarch/April parliamentary elec-tion process, judicial sourcessaid. The state-run Al Ahramnews portal confirmed the Ad-ministrative Court’s ruling.

“The Administrative Courtruled. Halting the execution ofthe measures taken by the HighElection Committee based onthe ruling of the ConstitutionalCourt,” a judicial source said,citing the ruling. The SupremeConstitutional Court on Sundayfound part of an election law thathas to do with defining votingdistricts unconstitutional.

It was not immediatelyclear how long the processwould be pushed back. The firstphase of the election was dueto start on March 22.—Reuters

Court ruling halts Egypt electionBEIJING—China has an-nounced it would hold a mili-tary parade this year to markits victory over Japan, and itwill be part of the worldwidecommemorative events for the70th anniversary of the victoryof World War II.

This will be the first timeChina has held a military pa-rade in remembrance of theChinese People’s War of Resis-tance Against Japanese Aggres-sion in the 1930s-40s. ThePeople’s Republic of China hasheld more than a dozen mili-tary parades since its foundingon Oct. 1, 1949, all of them onthe National Day.

The parade this year will bethe first since President XiJinping took office. Japan

China’s parade intentpreludes WWII anniversary

signed the formal surrender onSept. 2, 1945, and China cel-ebrated its victory the follow-ing day. Sept. 3 was declaredvictory day.

The parade will remindChinese people living aroundthe world of the war tragedyand inspire them to strive fornational rejuvenation, said ZhuYilong, a CPPCC member whohas been living abroad for anumber of years.

For Liu Li, a migrantworker and member of the Na-tional People’s Congress(NPC),China’s top legislature, it wasexciting to learn the news aboutthe parade. “Many of my fam-ily members were killed byJapanese aggressors during thewar. —Xinhua

China spendshuge amount toshore up press

BEIJING—China’s centralgovernment provided a total of2.1 billion yuan (341.2 millionU.S. dollars) in 2014 to supportpress and publishing projects,the Ministry of Finance (MOF)announced on Tuesday.

Nearly 1,000 press andpublication projects have beensubsidized in recent yearsthrough more than 7.6 billionyuan in special funds ear-marked for developing culturalindustries, according to a state-ment posted on the MOF’swebsite.

The funds were mainlyused for digitizing and upgrad-ing, green printing, and brick-and-mortar bookstores.

According to the statement,the funds helped improve thecontent and public service ofthe publication industry.

China’s publishing, print-ing, and distribution industryhad an operating revenue of1,824.64 billion yuan in 2013,up 161.11 billion yuan or 9.68percent from the previous year,according to an industry reportreleased by Chinese Academyof Press and Publication in July2014. The industry saw profitsin 2013 increase 9.32 percentyear on year to hit 144.02 bil-lion yuan.—Xinhua

Grave Palestinescene:OIC teammeets Chinese

VP, FMBEIJING—The Ministerialdelegation on Palestine and Al-Quds of the Organization ofIslamic Cooperation (OIC)held two-day talks in Beijing.

The OIC delegation metwith the Chinese Vice President,Li Yuanchao, and the two sidesdiscussed the grave situation inPalestine because of the con-tinuation of Israel’s racist poli-cies and serious violations, in-cluding settlements, land confis-cation and the attacks on theholy sites in Al-Quds, especiallyAl-Aqsa Mosque.

The delegation commendedthe principled positions of Chinaand its support for the legitimatehistoric rights of the PalestinianPeople. The OIC Secretary Gen-eral also met with Vice ForeignMinister of China.—Email

Prime Minister said. He as-serted that his government“will move ahead with thepolicy of ‘zero tolerance’ to-wards terrorism” and “all reso-lutions passed here (in Parlia-ment) will be implemented inletter and spirit.”

Modi said the credit forthe successful elections goesto the people of Jammu &Kashmir who “removeddoubts” in the internationalcommunity by turning up inlarge numbers with “over-whelming courage and pride”and “put their stamp of ap-proval on what India had beensaying all along”.—TNN

Modi nixesMufti’sFrom Page 1

options to generate cheaperand maximum energy be exploredincluding nuclear energy. Minis-ter for Defence, KhawajaMuhammad Asif; Minister forFinance, Mr. Muhammad IshaqDar; Chairman Joint Chiefs ofStaff Committee, General RashadMahmood and DG StrategicPlans Division (SPD) werepresent during the meeting.—INP

PM briefedFrom Page 1

“I told my Indian counterpart that theleadership and people of Pakistan weredeeply attached to the cause of Jammu andKashmir and we need to make a concertedeffort to resolve this dispute and indeedother disputes like Siachen, Sir Creek andwater issues that could also be addressedthrough dialogue,” he said.

We need to work together in areas ofconvergences and address each other’sconcerns in areas of divergences. The im-portance of maintaining dialogue was alsostressed, Aizaz Chaudhry said.

The issue of the situation at the Lineof Control and Working Boundary was alsoraised. I underscored Pakistan’s firm com-mitment to the 2003 ceasefire, and the needto make optimal use of existing mecha-nisms to maintain ceasefire.

Reference to the issue of terrorism, heunderlined that the global phenomenon ofterrorism poses a continuing threat to peaceand security. “I reaffirmed Pakistan’sstrong commitment to eradicate the men-ace. I underlined that Pakistan was desir-ous of cooperation from its neighbours, inparticular. Indian side raised its concerns.We also raised the issue of Samjhota Ex-press terrorist attack and Indian involve-ment in FATA and Balochistan, he said.

Pak raises KashmirFrom Page 1

Observers for promoting Islamic financial val-ues in Pakistan.

While acknowledging what he called thevaluable efforts of Pakistan Observer to lenda supporting hand for building a strong Islamicfinancial regime in Pakistan, he appreciatedthe next move of Pakistan Observer for hold-ing yet another conference on “Islamic bank-ing—potential of Islamic Ummah duringNovember in Islamabad, besides devoting afull page publication on Islamic Banking oneveryFriday.

Appreciating the idea, the President ex-pressed his confidence that these steps wouldhelp promoting awareness of Islamic bank-ing across the country on one hand besideshighlighting the developments and happen-ings in the Islamic Banking Industry. He alsoappreciated the idea of Pakistan Observer forinstituting a “ Best Islamic Banking of the yearAward” which certainly create a healthy com-petition among the Islamic banking Industrywhich would certain excel , propagating theculture of Islamic Banking industry in Paki-stan. Endorsing the iniatiative the Presidentwas of the view that the Islamic banking in-dustry would benefit from these services ofPakistan Observer.

The conference was enthusiastically par-ticipated by the presidents and Chief Execu-tives of the banking industry including Act-ing Governor SBP Saeed Ahmed, Irfan SiddiqiPresident and CEO Meezan Bank, SirajuddinAziz, President & CEO Habib Metro, SyedAhmed Iqbal Ashraf President NBP, NaumanDar President Habib Bank ltd, Hussain LawaiPresident Summit Bank, Hasan BilgramiPresident Bank Al-Islami, Azmat Tarin Presi-dent Silk Bank, Mohammad Shakir Head Is-lamic Banking Summit Bank, M SaleemShaikh President & CEO Micro FinanceAPNA Bank, Abid Aziz MD & CEO PakLibya, Shahid Gul Motiwala CEO UBL Is-lamic Investment, Tanveer Zaman Khan Re-

gional Manager Bank Al-Falah, MianMohammad Adrees, President FPCCI, DrIkhtiar Baig, prominent Industrialist and Chair-man Islamic banking Committee FPCCI, M.RMehkari former President Askari Bank, MuftiNajeeb Khan, Shariah Advisor, Islamic bank-ing division, Mufti Abdul Rehman UBLAmeen, Adnan Fasdih group Head Islamicbanking Habib Metro SIRAT, Abdul SattarLaghari Shariah advisor Habib Metro Bank.

Mr. Sirajuddin Aziz, President of HabibMetro Bank , who was the moderator of theconference, added value to the impressivegathering with his chaste and knowledge basedyet heart touching observations on the souland spirit of Islamic Banking. He disclosedthat Habib Metro was also actively consider-ing for conversion into Shariah Compliant fi-nancing. President Mamnoon Hussain how-ever asserted that the Islamic banking indus-try has yet to go a long way to ensure socialand economic justice in the society. He saidthat investing in tall skyscrapers and impres-sive property business would don’t serve thepurpose the essence of Shariah Finance whichstands for equitable distribution of resourcesaimed at poverty alleviation from the society.In fact there is a need to provide long termproject financing, financial inclusion of thesmall an d medium enterprises with a focus togenerate employment and economic activityat the grass root level.

It was noteworthy that presidents andchief executives of all the leading banks en-thusiastically participated in the Round-Table-Conference on Islamic Banking aninitiative of Pakistan Observer for playingan effective role in promoting awarenessabout Islamic Banking in Pakistan. Thekeen participation of the Banking Industryin RTC-II on Islamic baking was reflectedfrom the fact that some of the senior bank-ers and bank executives arrived from upcountry from Lahore, Islamabad and

Peshawar exclusively for their participationin the conference.

One of the leading bankers said that or-ganizing RTC on Islamic baking was a uniqueinitiative of Pakistan Observer for the causeof promoting Shariah finance which is con-tinuation of the first RTC on Islamic Bankingheld at Sindh Governor’s House in January2014.

The President said it was upto the StateBank of Pakistan to ensure proper training ofthe bankers and also develop a research ori-ented mechanism to improve wide range un-derstanding about Islamic Banking system.“This would ultimately pave way for its ac-tual and successful implementation in thecountry,” he added.

President Mamnoon Hussain furtheropined that growing numbers of Islamicbanks and branches of conventional banksoffering Islamic banking to the people neededto be complimented with a legal frameworkthat may facilitate the system in its truestsense. The President urged the banking com-munity as well as economists and shariascholars to make optimum of the presentgovernment’s commitment towards “Shariahbased Islamic Banking.” “I am sure thatwe can go a long way as we have no dearthof competent and committed people,” he said.He on the occasion suggested need for con-certed efforts to promote “saving culture”among the masses with major focus on in-vestment in the development sector ratheron consumerism. When Mr Zahid MalikEditor-in-Chief presented his future strat-egy for the promotion of Islamic bankingincluding institution of awards for best per-forming Islamic banks, publication of a full-page of Pakistan observer on Islamic bank-ing every Friday and an international con-ference on Islamic banking, the august gath-ering of banking leadership gave a big handand supported the idea.

Mamnoon advisesFrom Page 1

the SBP in principle.Zahid Malik said that the newspaper has

arranged second Round Table Conference(RTC) for the promotion of Islamic bankingin Pakistan. “World Bank (WB) in its reportsaid that Islamic banking is flouring rapidlynot only Pakistan, but all around the world,”he added.

“I was the only private sector guest, whoparticipated in the 9th World Islamic EconomicForum (WIFE) along with the Prime MinisterMian Muhammad Nawaz Shariff, in London inOctober 2013,” he recalled, adding that “Lon-don, the first non-Muslim capital which is be-coming a leading centre of Islamic banking, gen-erated 22 billion pounds through the event whichwas attended by leaders of seventeen countries.”

“I requested the prime minister that Paki-stan is an Islamic country and we should makeit a centre of Islamic banking,” Malik said, add-ing that “On return, we hold first RTC on Is-lamic banking in Pakistan in Karachi in Janu-ary 15, 2014 and today, Pakistan Observer isholding second RTC on Islamic banking.”

He said that the Islamic banking is a fastgrowing phenomenon not only in Pakistan, butalso in other Muslim countries. “Therefore, thereis a dire need to develop a joint strategy forboosting Islamic banking,” he stressed.

“Today, when all the industries are showingnegative growth, banking industry has emerged

as the only industry which is showing positivegrowth,” Malik said, adding that “I salute to thebanking industry for keeping the growth con-stantly positive and playing its due role instrengthening the country’s economy.”

“Although, Islamic banking is growing rap-idly in Pakistan, but unfortunately, we are notconducting research on this mode of banking,”Malik reviewed, remarking that “We have as-sumed that research on Islamic banking is thesubject of west, which is wrong.”

Addressing the participants consistingmostly heads of various banks working in thecountry, he said that Pakistan Observer is iden-tified with the cause of Islamic banking, there-fore, we will be devoting one full-page to Is-lamic banking to be published on every Fridayedition of the newspaper.

He explained that this specific page, Islamicbanking, will carry news and pictures of the lead-ers of the Islamic banking in Pakistan abroad.He also announced that the newspaper wouldhold ‘best Islamic bank of the year award, andit would be conferred to a bank which excels inpromoting and propagating the culture of Islamicbanking in Pakistan.

He said that the award would be conferredevery year on the bank which stand first, sec-ond and third in this mode of banking. “The firstaward ceremony would be held in Karachi inthe middle of December 2015,” he revealed.

Islamic BankingFrom Page 1

sons in different departments, including the spe-cial education, when police manhandled us dur-ing the protest. And today again the Punjab gov-ernment is giving us a false hope through an-other promise, which we are not ready to acceptthis time.”

Earlier this morning, Punjab Home Minis-ter Shuja Khanzada had assured the protestersthat he will convey their concerns to Chief Min-ister Shahbaz Sharif.

However, even after several hours had goneby, no progress in this regard could be seen.

Devoid of patience, the protesters attemptedto enter the ongoing session at the Punjab As-sembly but they encountered baton-charging po-lice officials who broke into a scuffle with theprotesters.

The blind protesters struck the policemenwith their white canes when they resisted theirentry.

Later, the demonstrators disengaged them-selves from the scuffle and resumed their sit-inon the stairs of the assembly.

Shahbaz Sharif called on an emergencymeeting to review the demand of blind peopleas their protest outside Punjab Assembly regard-ing job quota entered second on Tuesday daydespite the inhospitable weather .

According to report the Chief Minister tooknotice of the scuffle between blind protestersand police and ordered that their demands be

met on an urgent basis.During his address in a special session organisedto address the needs of the blind protesters , theCM said that the protesters were like his chil-dren. He said that the protesters should experi-ence no pain and they should be furnished foodand drinks.

He further claimed that the promises madeto the Pakistan Association of Blind are beingexecuted sincerely.He also ordered a committee comprising minis-ters, concerned members of assembly and offi-cials be formed to address the protesters’ con-cerns.

Earlier, Spokesman to Punjab GovernmentZaeem Qadri told media that Punjab governmenthas increased the quota of blind people in gov-ernment jobs from two to three percent but if itis increased more, then it will be unjust to oth-ers.He said that the visually impaired individualswill be provided jobs in the areas where the seatis vacant however, it is currently not possible toprovide them jobs in their district as the act willdiscourage other people.

A similar instance of violence betweenLahore police and blind protesters took place inDecember last year. Blind protesters were badlybeaten by baton-wielding police as they stageda rally to advocate for their rights in view ofWorld Disability Day.

Punjab police again tortureFrom Page 1

Tul Munwar, to pay salam-o-durood at Roza-I-Rusool(PBUH) and offer prayers atthe Masjid-e-Nabvi.

Foreign Office statementsaid Pakistan and Saudi Arabiaare tied in close fraternal bondsof shared faith and values. Be-ing the Custodian of the TwoHoly Mosques, the King ofSaudi Arabia has a specialplace in the hearts of every Pa-kistani. Saudi Arabia also hostsmore than 1.7 million Paki-stanis whose remittances con-tribute substantially to theeconomy of Pakistan. Annualtrade volume between the twocountries exceeds US$ 4.5 bil-lion.

The official visit of thePrime Minister will providean opportunity to the leader-ship of the two countries todiscuss issues of mutual in-terest and concern in the glo-bal and regional context andfurther strengthen our closebilateral relations.

PM to embarkon first official

From Page 1

“We are also fighting for thequarter-finals. We have to go outthere and improve our perfor-mance.

“We have to do it if we want

Misbah seesFrom Page 1

to go into the next round and per-form tomorrow, then againstSouth Africa and then against Ire-land (March 15) and if we areunable to perform in one gamethen we are out of the tourna-ment.”

Ireland, who were defeatedeasily by South Africa on Tues-day, have four points in twogames while the West Indieshave four points in four. Titleholders India and South Africaare favourites to take the top twoslots in Pool B.

Pakistan is also committed to promotemutually beneficial trade and economicrelations. He underlined the importance ofgreater people to people contacts andfriendly exchanges in building a relation-ship of trust and friendship between thetwo countries. He suggested that the twosides should encourage increased peopleto people exchanges; promote cooperationin various fields including religious tour-ism; and discourage hostile propagandaagainst each other.

He emphasized the need to promotemedia and sports contacts. He conveyedto the Indian Foreign Secretary that Paki-stan attached high importance to SAARC,which is an important vehicle for promot-ing regional cooperation. Both of us agreedon the need to work together to developthe potential of regional cooperation.

He told Foreign Secretary Jaishankarthat Pakistan is preparing to host the 19thSAARC Summit and was looking forwardto welcoming the SAARC Leaders.

The Indian FS Secretary called on theSpecial Assistant to the Prime Minister onForeign Affairs, Syed Tariq Fate, and Ad-viser to the Prime Minister on NationalSecurity and Foreign Affairs, Mr. SartajAziz.

Later, the Foreign Secretary of Indiapaid a courtesy call on the Prime Minis-ter. Nawaz welcomed the meeting be-tween the two foreign secretaries inIslamabad and hoped the process wouldcontinue. He underlined the importanceof enhanced cooperation among Saarcmember states.

Sharif said it is imperative that theleadership of the two countries rises up tothe expectations of the two peoples.

We must think together, act togetherand move forward with the spirit of bring-ing the two nations closer to each other.The two countries should lend a hand ofcooperation to each other to improve thestandard of living of 1.5 billion people,”said Nawaz Sharif.

The PM said the South Asian regionhas suffered enormously due to tensionsand unresolved disputes, despite beingblessed with enormous resources.

Earlier, talks were held between For-eign Secretaries of Pakistan and India atForeign Office. Jaishankar said that he washappy to be visiting Pakistan. He raisedissues of Mumbai terror attacks and dis-cussed issues relating to Saarc.

Both sides resolved to work togetherfor peace and stability in South Asia.

Conference that dwelt at lengthon various professional matters.

The participants also undertook a comprehensive review ofoperational preparedness besidesprevalent internal and externalsecurity situation of the countryincluding progress of ongoingoperation Zarb-e- Azb.

The Pakistan Army hadlaunched a major offensiveagainst terrorist in thetroubled northwestern tribalareas of the country border-ing Afghanistan following abrazen militant attack atKarachi airport last year.

MilitaryFrom Page 1

Khan also stressed on notchanging the route.

Senator Rafique Rajwanaof PML-N said the corridorwould prove beneficial for thepeople of backward areas. Theissue of CPEC must not be po-liticized.

Earlier, Chairman StandingCommittee on Law and JusticeMuhammad Kazim Khan pre-sented the committee’s reporton Private Member’s bills in-cluding The Constitution(Amendment of Article I) Bill,2013, The Constitution(Amendment of Article 251)Bill, 2013 and The Constitution(Amendment of Article 247)Bill, 2014.—APP

Oppositionwalks

From Page 1

Meezan Bank has 450 branchesall over the country due to notonly struggle, hard work, but ahope and public demand,”Siddiqui added.

“Today, there are five Is-lamic banks with 1600branches in the country and 17conventional banks haveopened Islamic banking win-dows keeping the growth offaith-based banking system inview,” Siddiqui highlighted.

Pakistan, which was estab-lished on principles of Islam,has 200 million population andthe country has huge market asfar as Islamic banking is con-cerned. “I have started Islamicbanking with a vision, which I seeis going to be materialized, and Iwould request to the banks to takeIslamic banking as a passion in-stead of a need of hour,” Siddiquisaid, adding that “If you take Is-lamic banking as a need then youwill get results, but if you take itas a passion, then you will get out-standing results said Irfan Siddiqi

Siddiqui said: “ When I hadstarted Islamic banking then Icame to know that we would cap-ture 10 percent of the populationonly and it was evident from thesurvey at that time.”

“We have started our opera-tion to grab 80 percent population

Center of excellenceFrom Back Page

which need awareness and then atime come when the governmentstarted showing interest in Islamicbanking,” Siddiqui said, addingthat “Today, the government hasformed a steering committee onIslamic banking and the StateBank of Pakistan (SBP) has aseparate Deputy Governor to lookinto Islamic banking industry.”

Nauman Dar:Speaking on the occasion,

Habib Bank Limited (HBL)President Nauman Dar said thatHBL worked on Islamic bankingand come on the second spot oftop Islamic banks in Pakistan injust short span of four months.“We held a meeting in second halfof 2014 to review progress in ourIslamic banking system then wehave come to know that we stoodat six in ranking of top perform-ing Islamic bank,” Dar said, add-ing that “When I questioned thestaffer that HBL ranked first inconventional banking, but whywe are standing on number sixwhen it comes to Islamic bank-ing.”

“My colleagues gave me abriefing and assured me that HBLwill become second largest Is-lamic bank after Meezan Bank in2015,” Dar said, adding that “I

had called a meeting again andasked my colleagues that we cancover this distance in the ongo-ing year.” “We started our workand just short span of four months,HBL come on second spot andnow we are working to makeHBL as a number one bank as faras Islamic banking industry isconcerned along with conven-tional mode of banking,” Darvowed. National Bank of Paki-stan (NBP) President Iqbal Ashrafhas said that keeping the popular-ity of Islamic banking in view,NBP has transformed 150 con-ventional bank branches into Is-lamic bank branches. “We haverequested the SBP for opening 55more new Islamic bank branchesand waiting for permission of thecentral bank,” Ashraf added.

“Last year, we reviewed thatthe Islamic banking is growingmuch faster as compare to theconventional banking and thegovernment is playing its role inflourishing faith-based bankingindustry, then we have decided totransform some conventionalbank branches into Islamic bankbranches,” Ashraf recalled.

“As we have started Islamic

banking, we got positive results,”Ashraf said, adding that “We havedecided to open more Islamicbank branches as NBP will notlag behind in the race of Islamicbanking industry.”

Hasan Bilgrami:BankIslami Pakistan Limited

President and CEO Hasan ABilgrami said that BankIslami isserving to the Islamic bankingindustry in the country since lasteight years. “Before launch of thebank, we have conducted a sur-vey and it has come to know thatIslamic banking would get popu-larity in urban parts of the coun-try as compare to rural area,”Bilgrami said, adding that “Theonly reason behind this findingwas that the people living in ur-ban parts of the country are edu-cated as compare to rural areas.”

“Later, we conducted anothersurvey to know the strength ofIslamic banking industry,”Bilgrami said, adding that “Thefindings of the survey has re-vealed that a bank branch of Is-

lamic bank has achieved a targetin just four years as compare tothe commercial bank branchwhich achieved the same targetsin 40 years.”

Mufti Muhammad NajeebKhan:

Speaking on the occasion,Habib Metropolitan Bank Lim-ited Shariah Advisor MuftiMuhammad Najeeb Khan urgedto make legal framework for Is-lamic banking industry. Showinghis apprehensions, he said that theIslamic bank will face problemsin facing default cases in the courtas Islamic banking industry hasno legal framework.

“The west introduces Is-lamic banking after preparinglegal framework and in Pakistan,we have introduced Islamicbanking, but could not bring thegrowing industry in the legalframework as yet,” he observed.We should gather all stakehold-ers under one umbrella and if weignore any stakeholder then wewill have to face problems fromthe ignored stakeholder,” he re-marked.

centuries and du Plessis made109 as the Proteas piled up amassive 411 for four after tak-ing first strike at Canberra’sManuka Oval.

The fast bowler, who hadgrabbed just three wickets inSouth Africa’s first three poolmatches, finished with two for39 and Kyle Abbott grabbedfour for 21 as Ireland werebundled out for 210 in 45overs.—Agencies

S AfricaFrom Page 1

hearing Tuesday. JusticeJawwad remarked “Constitu-tion says LB polls will takeplace.

We will initiate contemptof court proceedings today.Only one option is left beforeus. We have become tired bygiving dates upon dates. Therewill be no more orders now.Now some other thing will hap-pen. Tell us if the constitutioncan be kept shelved or other-wise. You go, I go this hap-pened that happened. If elec-tions are not held now thenthese will not take place in the

SC wants issuanceFrom Back Page

next 10 years. Justice Jawwadremarked “complaints againstpolice are on rise. Safety com-mission is dysfunctional andredundant. Property worth bil-lion of rupees is being sold outin Karachi. Sanghar case is alsothere. Local Bodies institutionsare not there so that Rs 750 bil-lion could be recovered andspent in respective constituen-cies. The residents of the dis-trict from where oil and gashave been discovered are fam-ishing. The water reservoirs arepolluted. Some times I think Ishould go home in these cir-

cumstances. Akram Sheikhsaid sections 8 to 10 of PunjabLocal Government are in clashwith the constitution.

Justice Jawwad re-marked “articles were not re-viewed therefore EC is bound tohold elections. The hands ofcourt are tied and court can donothing. Akram Sheikh said “dayof judgment came before adventof day of meeting. This processis not so much interminable.Justice Jawwad remarked youare shouldering the debt of na-tion since 9 years but are notready to retire debt. —Online

AMANULLAH KHAN/ AAMIR MAJEED

KARACHI—Acting Governor, State Bank of Paki-stan, Saeed Ahmed in his presentation said thatsince the re-launch of Islamic banking in the coun-try, the SBP has accepted the dual responsibilityas regulator and facilitator.

Addressing RTC-II on Islamic Banking or-ganized by Pakistan Observer here Tuesday, theacting Governor SBP said the central in this con-text has only recently introduced a comprehen-sive Shariah governance framework to ensureShariah compliance in institutions engaged in Is-lamic banking.

Endorsing the importance of the first RTCon Islamic Banking by Pakistan Observer in2014Mr. Saeed Ahmad recalled that in the firstround table conference the federal finance min-ister Ishaq Dar has acknowledged the demand ofthe conference for appoint of a deputy governorexclusively for promotion of Islamic banking inPakistan. He said on that very day the financeMinister called on telephone and asked to me totake the responsibility of deputy governor on Is-lamic banking.

Mentioning that the SBP is working with all

Islamic Banking excellence Centre on cards: SBP Acting Gov.Islamic Banking to touch greater heights: Irfan

Siddiqi, President Meezan Bankpassion for the cause of Islamic banking, he said,from April 01, all concerned banks would be re-quired to ensure Shariah governance with mem-bers conversant in Shariah to keep vigil on bank-ing. “Training of management as well as of boardmembers in Islamic banking would be ensured,”he said. Saeed Ahmed, who is also the DeputyGovernor of the SBP, responding to commentsmade by President Mamnoon Hussain, said aCentre of Excellence in Islamic banking is alsoon card with major focus on research. “For thepurpose experts from finance, economic andShariah are being involved to streamline andstrengthen Islamic banking,” he said.

Saeed Ahmed also mentioned that PrimeMinister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and FinanceMinister Mohammad Ishaq Dar have also consti-tuted a steering committee involving representa-tives from Law, Finance and other relevant min-istries for a viable legal framework encompass-ing Islamic Finance and Banking in the country.

Speaking on the occasion Meezan Bank Presi-dent and CEO Irfan Siddiqui said that he had takenstart of Islamic banking in 1997 and started for-mally with first six branches in 2002. “Today

Religious scholars, Muftis, Shariah Advisors and presidents of various banks seen in inter-active session.

Zahid Malik, Editor-in-Chief Pakistan Observer delivering welcome address.

A view of Pakistan Observer’s second Round Table Conference on Islamic banking. Presi-dent Mamnoon Hussain, Zahid Malik, Editor-in-Chief Pakistan Observer, SBP Acting Gov-ernor Saeed Ahmed and Meezan Bank President and CEO Irfan Siddiqui seen in the pic-ture.

Meezan Bank President and CEO Irfan Siddiqui addressing the conference.

All the participants including chief guest President Mamnoon Hussain, Zahid Malik, Edi-tor-in-Chief Pakistan Observer, SBP Acting Governor Saeed Ahmed and Meezan Bank Presi-dent and CEO Irfan Siddiqui seen standing in respect of National Anthem at the start ofSecond Round Table Conference on Islamic Banking.—PO photos by Sultan Chaki

Zahid Malik, Editor-in-Chief Pakistan Observer receiving President Mamnoon Hussainon the occasion of Second Round Table Conference on Islamic Banking.

ISLAMABAD—Supreme Court (SC) hassought copies of written notification offinal schedule for holding Local Bodies(LB) polls in Punjab, Sindh and KP andexplanation in writing from Election Com-mission (EC) for not holding LB polls forfive years. SC has remarked elections havenot been held in cantonment boards since17 years. If no satisfactory reply is receivedon this count then we will issue contemptof court notice to Prime Minister (PM).Justice Jawwad S Khawaja has remarked“ I think when I look at the situation of the

NEW DELHI—Lashing out atIndian Muslim leaderAsaduddin Owaisi for demand-ing more rights for Muslims inMaharashtra, Shiv Sena said onTuesday if Owaisi wants hisdemands to be met on religiousgrounds, then he should go toPakistan.

“Owaisi may try and get hisdemands based on religiousgrounds fulfilled in Pakistan,”a Shiv Sena statement read, ac-cording to the Times of India.

Addressing a public gath-ering in Nagpur Saturday night,The All India Majlis-e-IttahadulMuslimeen president Owaisihad demanded reservation forbackward Muslims in govern-ment jobs and educational in-stitutes in Maharashtra.

Terming his statement“hateful,” Shiv Sena said,“”Owaisi is insisting that Mus-lims should get reservation akinto the Marathas. Such insis-tence had caused the separationof Pakistan from India. Hatredfor Hindus compelled a sectionof Muslims to take control overPakistan.”Shiv Sena further de-

Shiv Sena taunts IndianMuslims to go to Pakistan

Polls in Cantonment Boards

SC wants issuance of contempt notice to PMPR: KP now

hub ofhorse-trading

ISLAMABAD—Federal Ministerfor Information Pervaiz Rasheedsaid that KPK has turned into a

centre ofhorse tradingadding thatP a k i s t a nTehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)C h a i r m a nImran Khanshould dis-close the

name of person who offered himto give Rs. 150 million for get-ting the ticket of forthcomingsenate election.

Talking to the media personafter attending a ceremony hereon Tuesday he alleged that PTIChairman Imran Khan was do-ing business in the name of poli-tics. He alleged that PTI wasfully active in sale and purchasebusiness of candidates in KPK.He said that Imran Khan shoulddisclose the name of person whooffered him to give Rs. 150 mil-lion for getting the ticket of sen-ate elections. If PTI Chairmanfailed to disclose the name of saidperson he himself would disclosethe name of that person, headded.

Responding to a question hesaid that Imran Khan gave sen-ate tickets to such persons thatare not active in politics as hehimself responsible of horse trad-ing. He said that all political par-ties majority will show in March05 senate elections. —Online

Gallantry awardsrecommended for

APS martyrsSTAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Prime MinisterNawaz Sharif on Tuesday for-warded a recommendationsummary to PresidentMamnoon Hussain for award-ing posthumous gallantryawards for to the martyrs ofArmy Public School torecognise their services for thecountry.

According to a spokesmanof PM House, the prime min-ister has recommended to con-fer “Sitara-e-Shujaat” (Star ofBravery) and “Tamgha-e-Shujaat” (Medal of Valour) for122 martyred students and 20members of academic staff ofthe school in Peshawar.

At least 146 people includ-ing 134 students were killedwhen Pakistani Taliban mili-tants attacked the APS on De-cember 16 last year.

The top civil and militaryleadership of the country inten-sified their efforts to eradicatemilitancy and extremism formthe country following the bra-zen attack on children.

The government also for-mulated an emergency Na-tional Action Plan (NAP) in-cluding formation of militarycourts to hear terrorism relatedcases following the militant at-tack.

The PM House spokesmanfurther said that the decisionwas taken to pay homage tothe courage of the martyrs,who united the whole nationagainst the scourge of terror-ism and extremism.

Continued on Page 7

manded government should filea case against him and start le-gal proceedings. It addedthat Muslims would have to re-spect India as their motherland.

“They (Muslims) will haveto respect the Uniform CivilCode and stop demanding thecontinuation of Article 370 forKashmir. Asking for reserva-tions while continuing with re-ligious rants will not work,” itsaid. Claiming Muslims suf-fered “injustice” inMaharashtra during Congressrule at the centre and the Con-gress-NCP and Shiv Sena -BJPgovernments in the state.

Hitting out at Owaisi’sstatement that Muslims havesuffered a lot, Shiv Sena ques-tioned, “But will he give a countof the sufferings of Hindus dueto the terrorist activities of ex-tremist Muslims?“If extrem-ists start communal violenceand terrorist activities after lis-tening to his speeches…Owaisi’s speeches should betermed as hateful and actionshould be taken against him,”Shiv Sena said..—ToI

country that I should go home. Citizensare facing difficulties for want of LocalBodies representatives. Court should betold federation and provinces are answer-able to whom. Living life has become mis-erable for people.

This is point of death for a citizen whocan not get prepare Bay form withoutgreasing the palm and offering bribery inconnection with admission of his daugh-ter. He observed “ if there is loophole inthe law and federation and provinces don’tenact law even then it is incumbent on EC

to hold LB polls. EC should tell us in clearterms that come what may it is helplessand can not hold polls. The citizens of to-day have turned been into third rated citi-zens due to non implementation of law.Government has given the status to citi-zens less than animals. If government saysthat counting of all the donkeys and cattlehave to be conducted in all union councilsand then the polls will be held. A 3-mem-ber bench of SC presided over by JusticeJawwad S Khawaja took up the case for

Continued on Page 7

A NOVEL drug candidate against HIVhas been created by a joint team led byresearchers at The Scripps Research In-

stitute in Jupiter, FL. The scientists consider itto be so potent and effective that it could formthe basis of a vaccine alter-native. The scientists de-signed a protein that simul-taneously binds to two siteson the surface of the virus,which blocks it from enter-ing a host cell. “Our com-pound is the broadest andmost potent entry inhibitordescribed so far,” saysMichael Farzan, a ScrippsResearch Institute professorwho led the effort.

“Unlike antibodies,which fail to neutralize alarge fraction of HIV-1strains,” continues Farzan,“our protein has been effec-tive against all strains tested,raising the possibility itcould offer an effective HIVvaccine alternative.” Farzanclaims that the project is the culmination ofmore than a decade’s work on the biochemis-try of how HIV enters cells. The results of thestudy, which are published in the journal Na-ture, demonstrate how the new drug candidateblocked every strain of HIV-1, HIV-2 and SIV(simian immunodeficiency virus), including thevariants that are most difficult to block.

The new drug was also found to protectagainst doses of the virus higher than those thatnormally occur in human transmission for atleast 8 months after injection. When a cell isinfected by HIV, it inserts its own single-stranded RNA into the host cell. This insert ofgenetic code allows the virus to transform the

cell into a “manufacturing site” for HIV.However, the Scripps researchers had pre-viously investigated a co-receptor - CCR5 -that could be used to prevent infection bymanipulating related proteins. CCR5 is the

first “anchor point” on the sur-face of a cell that HIV binds tobefore it can penetrate the cell.

“When we did our originalwork on CCR5, people thoughtit was interesting, but no onesaw the therapeutic potential,”says Farzan. “That potential isstarting to be realized.” Usingthe CCR5 work as a point ofdeparture, the scientists de-signed a protein that mimics thereceptor and simultaneouslybinds to two sites on the sur-face of the virus, which pre-vents it from entering a hostcell.

“When antibodies try tomimic the receptor, they toucha lot of other parts of the viralenvelope that HIV can changewith ease. We’ve developed a

direct mimic of the receptors without pro-viding many avenues that the virus can useto escape, so we catch every virus thus far.”A delivery mechanism for the drug candi-date was designed using an engineeredadeno-associated virus. This is a small, rela-tively harmless virus that does not cause dis-ease. The adeno-associated virus turns cellsinto manufacturing sites that churn outenough of the new protective protein to po-tentially last for decades. The data publishedby the team shows that the new drug candi-date binds more strongly to the HIV-1 enve-lope than the best neutralizing antibodiescurrently known to work against the virus.

Designer protein ‘blocksall known strains of HIV’

ZUBAIR QURESHI

ISLAMABAD—InformationMinister Senator PervaizRashid, Tuesday, called forpromotion of book reading cul-ture in society which accord-ing to him is must for peace ofmind and peace in society.

He was addressing the in-augural ceremony of the Na-tional Book Museum at theNational Book Foundation(NBF). The minister who hasbeen preaching peace in soci-ety whenever time and occasioncall for it (on Feb 23 too, hegave a similar message of peaceat the book launch of a seniorjournalist Tahir Mughal) saidthe establishment of book mu-seum would go a long way inpreserving rare books, manu-scripts and archaic volumes.

Managing Director of theNBF, Prof Inam-ul-Haq Javedwelcomed the minister and gavea briefing on various aspects ofthe book museum. PervaizRashid appreciated the servicesof NBF in the field of education,literature, art and culture.

“Promotion of book cultureand introducing our rich culturalheritage among the people farand wide in the country, NBFhas been playing its vital andcentral role here”, he said. Theminister was of the view that thePakistani nation had diverse

First of its kind BookMuseum opens at NBF

Pervaiz Rashid is all for company of books

Minister for Information, Broadcasting & National Heritage, Pervaiz Rashid addressing the inauguration of 1st NationalBook Museum on Tuesday.

cultural heritage and was rightly proud ofit.

In the museum books relating to theFounder of Pakistan Quaid-i- AzamMuhammad Ali Jinnah, AllamaMohammad Iqbal, Mirza Ghalib , HafeezJalandri, Saadat Hussan Minto and AhmadNadeem Qasmi and many others have beenkept in good form which is a good thing,

said Rashid. “It is a great inspiration foryoung generation and book art lovers tolearn about their cultural values, literature,artistic asset and rich heritage,” he added.

Prof Inam-ul- Haq Javed while ad-dressing the ceremony said NBF had beenpromoting Pakistani culture, disseminat-ing knowledge and inculcating book read-ing habits among Pakistanis. “Books and

art bring tranquillity, harmony and soft-ness in our minds which lead to the pathof peace and love in the society.” He wasof the view that establishment of NationalBook Museum in Islamabad was ideallysuited for promotion of our national liter-ary heritage, literacy, education and bookculture among all and sundry at each nookand corner of our country.

German Ambassador Dr Cyrill Nunn, Dean of Diplomatic Corps Rodolfo Martin Saravia,Ambassador of France Martine Dorance and others with the artists Sevag Tachdjian &Yukiko Tidten-Yoshikawa after a musical concert “A Musical Journey Through Europe”at the Embassy of Germany.—PO Photo

Ambassador of Bosnia & Harzegovina Nedim Makarevic, chief guest Federal Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain, US AmbassadorRichard Olson, Lt Gen (Retd) Ehsan ul Haq, head of delegation of the EU Lars Gunnar Wigemark, Dean of Diplomatic Corps Rodolfo Martin Saraviaand Turkish Ambassador Babur Girgin cutting the cake during a ceremony to celebrate the 23rd Independence Day of Bosnia & Harzegovina, at a localhotel.—PO photo by Sultan Bashir

RAZA UR REHMAN

RAWALPINDI—Rawalpindi Arts Coun-cil in collaboration with DevelopmentCommunications Network arranged anexhibition of paintings by women artistson women issues titled “Symphony ofSoul” here on Tuesday to commemorateInternational Women Day. Renownedartist Tasneem Abbas flanked by ResidentDirector RAC Waqar Ahmed and Execu-tive Director Development Communica-tions Network Munir Ahmed inauguratedthe exhibition. The participating artists

include Nahida Raza, Farrah M Adnan,Riffat Ara Baig, Lubna Khatoon, NajiaIrum, Shaheena Mir, Farwa Batool, SyedaSadaf, Ammana Shakir, Fatima Illiyas,Zara Qamar, Andleeb Tabassum, SeemiFakhar-e-Alam and Beenish Azam. Thework on women issues by one male art-ist Younis Roomi was also displayedalong with female artists.

Addressing at the inaugural cer-emony, Tasneem Abbas said that ourwomen are working with men shoulderby shoulder in every field and enlightenthe name of the country. Executive Di-

rector Development CommunicationsNetwork Munir appreciated theRawalpindi Arts Council and said, theCouncil not only empowers the youngwomen in variety of arts and impart skillsthat help the young women to earn theirlivelihood, but also support and main-stream the women and gender develop-ment agenda. After the inaugural cer-emony, an interaction session on womenissues was also held. An evening with theleading women in literature will be orga-nized on Wednesday 4 March 2015 at 3pm at the Rawalpindi Arts Council.

Notices issued to PPP candidate too

Court to hear PTI petition againstPML-N’s Raheela Magsi today

ZUBAIR QURESHI

ISLAMABAD—Islamabad High Court while hear-ing a petition by PML-N’s controversial candi-date Raheela Magsi against cancellation of hernomination papers for the Senate’s seat fromIslamabad by the Election Commission, Tuesdayissued notices to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)candidate on the same seat Nargis Faiz Malik.

It is on Nargis Faiz Malik’s complaint thatthe Election Commission of Pakistan ECP hadcancelled Magsi’s nomination papers forSenate’s seat reserved for women fromIslamabad. Raheela Magsi on March 1 hadmoved the Islamabad High Court against theECP decision.

It may be mentioned here that Ms Magsi’snomination papers were earlier accepted by Re-turning Officer Syed Sher Afgan, who is alsothe acting ECP secretary. He had rejected theobjection raised by PPP candidate Nargis FaizMalik, who questioned the transfer of Magsi’svote from Tando Allah Yar to Islamabad afterthe announcement of the election schedule.

The returning officer had said the ECP hasalready decided that Section 20 of the Elec-toral Rolls Act does not apply to the Senateelections. The same position was reiterated bythe ECP in a statement issued last week, but

when the commission took up Nargis FaizMalik’s application challenging the acceptanceof Ms Magsi’s papers, the commission hadasked her why her name had been deleted fromthe electoral rolls of Tando Allah Yar on Feb16, before rejecting her papers.

Nargis Faiz Malik in her application hadheld that Raheela Magi got her vote transferredto District Islamabad after announcement ofthe Senate’s election schedule. Originally hervote is registered in Sindh, District Tando Al-lah Yar, she had submitted.

Senator Zafar Ali Shah, who is the counselfor Raheela Magsi, has argued that the reasonfor rejecting the nomination papers has not beenmentioned in the order, which said that the rea-son would be recorded separately. The court willnow resume hearing today i.e. Wednesday.

Talking to Pakistan Observer, he said that noissue related to the transfer of a vote could formthe basis for the rejection of nomination papersas the commission itself had stated in categoricalterms that Section 20 of the Electoral Rolls Actdid not apply to the Senate elections.

Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf’s Dr ShireenMazari’s application against Raheela Magsi’scontesting election from Islamabad on theSenate’s seat has also been fixed for hearingon Wednesday (today).

Exhibition of paintings by women artists

06:00 01:3004:30

07:45

Zohr

Asr

Isha

Fajar

Meghrab at Sunset

Brothers in Islamestablish regularprayers & charity

March 2-4Music workshop

3 day Music workshop from02.03.2015 to 04.03.2015 dailyfrom 10:00 am to 12:00 noonat Pakistan national councilof the Arts, lecture Hall, F-5/1, Islamabad. Renownedsinger Ustad Raees Ahmed,Violin Player and UstadAnees Ahmed, Key Boardplayer will conduct the work-shop.

March 4Round table

“ROAD to and from Sendai”Round Table Conference onDisaster Risk Reduction,organised by Pattan Devel-opment Organisation 2 PM,Wednesday 4 March 2015 atHotel Marriott

*****

Peace Summit

National Peace Summit on“Pakistan Peace Initiative –Provincial Visions of Peace”will be held on Wednesday,4th March, 2015, Time 09:00am – 01:30 pm at KohinoorHall, Marriott Hotel,Islamabad.

*****

Talk on literature

WOMEN in literature, a talkand recitation of literarypieces by Zareen Yaseen,Sarwat Mohiyuddin, NilofarIqbal and Aisha Masood inconnection with 4th NationalWomen at Work Festival,organized by the Develop-ment Communications Net-work on March 4, 3:00 pm atRawalpindi Arts Council,Shamsabad, Murree Road.

*****

Exhibition

EMBASSY of Azerbaijanand Institute of Peace andDiplomatic Studies are hold-ing a Calligraphic Exhibition“Colours of Peace and Har-mony”, 4th March, 2015 atPakistan National Council ofArts. Mr. Muhammad Azam,Federal Secretary, Ministryof Information, Broadcast-ing and National Heritagewill be the Chief Guest.

March 2-8Youth drama

YOUTH Drama Festival from02.03.2015 to 08.03.2015 dailyat 07:00 pm at PNCA Audi-torium, leading educationalinstitutions of Rawalpindi/Islamabad will present theirplays.

March 5Photo Exhibition

WOMAN at Work, a photoexhibition at Jharoka ArtGallery, House No 8, Street28, F-8/1, Islamabad, inconnection with 4th Na-tional Women at Work Fes-tival, organized by the De-velopment Communica-tions Network.

RAZA UR REHMAN

RAWALPINDI—Although water in NullahLeh, which reached its dangerous levelon Monday evening, has receded but alloperational wings of the local adminis-tration will remain on high alert as thePakistan Meteorological Department(PMD) forecast more rains during next 24hours.

The dis t r ic t government hadclamped emergency and alerted its allconcerned depar tments to meet wi thany eventuality following  rainfall onT u e s d a y

According to the PMD, on Mondaynight, the city received around 87 mm ofrainfall while its surrounding parts havereceived over 114 mm.

Sirens had been blown to alert thepeople living in low-lying areas after thewater level has surged to 12 feet near NewKatarian and 15 feet under GawalmandiBridge on Monday night

Talking to media persons, Managing

Water recedes in Nullah Leh; alloperational wings still at high alert

Director Water and Sanitation Agency(WASA), Raja Shaukat Mehmmnood saidthat rainwater submerged in low-lying ar-eas near Katarian, Javed Colony, AryanMohallah, Gawalmandi, Millat Colony,Mohallah Workshpee, Gawala road, RattaAmral, Dhoke Ratta, Phagwari and NayyaMohllah.

He said the rainwater entered the vari-ous houses in low-lying areas and in theemergency department of Holy FamilyHospital where district administrationalong all operational wings remained ac-tively engaged to vacate the residents andshifting them to safer places.

Commissioner Zahid Saeed and Dis-trict Coordination Officer, Sajid Zafar vis-ited different sections of the Nullah Lehand monitored the water situation.

They also directed administratorRawal Town Chauhdhry Laiqat Ali, Res-cue 1122 and MD (WASA) Raja Shaukatto ensure close coordination with all de-partments concerned for effective rescueand relief operation.

ISLAMABAD—The first meeting of thenewly formed committee to look into mal-administration at Pakistan Institute ofMedical Sciences (PIMS) on Tuesdayraised certain queries about the function-ing of the country’s largest hospital basedin the Federal Capital.

The six-member committee, headed bySyed Anwar Mehmood, Honorary Advi-sor, Wafaqi Mohtasib Secretariat, while ex-pressing its concern over the performanceof PIMS also sought written replies of cer-tain questions from the officials of thehospital and directed them to submit acomprehensive report by March 9, said apress release.

Members of the committee discussedissues related to malfunctioning at the hos-pital and expressed concern over the me-dia reports regarding the breakdown ofcritically important medico- surgical equip-ment, including MRI, CT Scan, EEG andthe quality of services provided at PIMS.

Committee expresses concernover PIMS performance

The committee also looked into thematters of quality of services, infrastruc-ture and security at the hospital.

After the report by the PIMS, the com-mittee would make recommendations forsmooth, efficient and effective function-ing of the institute.

Those who attended the meeting in-clude; Imtiaz Inayat Elahi, Senior Advisor,Prof. Dr. Farhat Abbas, Dean, Medical Col-lege, Agha Khan University Hospital,Karachi, Maj. General (retd) AzharMehmood Kayani, Chief Executive ofRawalpindi Institute of Cardiology, Prof.Dr. Fazl-E-Hadi, former chief executivePIMS and Syed Yasin Ahmed, former Se-nior Joint Secretary Cabinet Division.

It is pertinent to mention here thatWafai Mohtasib, Salman M. Faruqui tookcognizance of the reports in the media re-garding the maladministration in PIMS onFebruary 21 and constituted this commit-tee.—APP

ISLAMABAD—Students and their par-ents have voiced strong protest overblatant charging of additional fee atthe rate of Rs 1190 per month in thename of security charges in federalcapital despite strongly worded direc-tives and warning from ministry ofCADD.

Providing security to the studentsis sole responsibility of managementof every private educational institu-tion but they have started grabbinginflated charges from children andpocketing them under the garb of se-curity fee. Ministry of CADD and Pri-vate Education Institution Regulatory

Security fee protested

Plundering of students byprivate educational institutions

Authority (PIRA) had warned privateeducational institutions against col-lection of additional charges from stu-dents in the name of security other-wise they will be penalized heavily.

Private School management isbent upon flouting these orders andis all poised to shift the burden ofsecurity fee to the parents of studentswhile they are already saddled underthe exorbitantly ever swelling feesbeing extorted by the private schoolsin their lucrative business they aretransacting under the guise of edu-cation.

It is height of infringement on the

directives that the schools adminis-tration has not allowed the ink of di-rectives issued by the authorities fornon charging of security fee dry upand started minting money with an-nexing Rs 1190 to the tuition fee forthe month of March.

The parents of students have ap-pealed to minister for CADD and sec-retary CADD to take stern actionagainst the educational institutionswhich have made mockery of sacredprofession of education with turningit into profit incurring entity and en-sure return of security fee being re-ceived from their children.—Online

RAWALPINDI—Rawalpindi Board of Inter-mediate and Secondary Education (RBISE)has declared 351 centers of Matric examssensitive and 50 extremely sensitive. Ac-cording to sources RBISE have taken sev-eral steps to arrange examinations in peace-ful environment, for which security guardshave been posted within the restriction ofsensitive centers.

Students have to exhibit their roll noslips, with proving their identity in orderto enter the center. Car parking will not beallowed within the sensitive centers.Around 121,000 students are appearing inannual exams of Matric, among them are66538, 54603 males and females respec-tively. 90 are mutual centers of students,whereas 131, 130 are separates for themrespectively.

RBISE’s Matric exams:351 centers declared sensitive

Cadet College HasanAbdal, LawrenceCollege Murree, Army College SarehAlamgir, Cadet College Kalar Khalar, ArmyPublic Schools and Fauji FoundationSchool System have been marked as sensi-tive institutions. No schools in Rawalpindiareas have been included in the categoryof sensitive institutions.

According to RBISE’s plans, Policeforce and security guards of particular de-partment will be placed on duty and salarywill be paid by board. Police will be patrol-ling in surrounding areas of centers.Student’s Parents will be allowed to enterthe centre, but will be told to stay awayfrom examination hall’s restriction. Strictchecking and verification will be done, af-ter which permission will be given to enterthe center.—Online

ISLAMABAD—Orders have been is-sued for conducting investigationinto supply of medicine worth overRs 1.6 million in one month to parlia-mentarians from parliament lodgesdispensary.

This dispensary is operating inparliament lodges under the aus-pices of Poly Clinic hospital fromwhere medicines are supplied toMembers of National Assembly

Probe into Parliament Lodgesdispensary inflated indent ordered

(MNAs) and senators.This month the indent on provi-

sion of medicines to parliamentarianshas surpassed Rs 1600000 and suchbulging indent has never ever beenplaced against procurement of medi-cines for parliamentarians.

This prompted diversion of at-tention of speaker NA Ayyaz Sadiqto the indent reaching alarming pro-portion and a special committee to

probe into matter was constitutedunder Tahir Iqbal MNA.

Sources said that this is the firsttime in the history of parliamentlodges dispensary that medicines atsuch staggering scale have beenprovided to parliamentarians. There-fore, it led to ring alarming bell echo-ing in the media that such stagger-ing indent has gone down where.—Online

STAFF REPORTER

RAWALPINDI—A five-day indigenous on-campus training (IOT) workshop for admin-istrative/non-teaching staff commenced atPir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture Univer-sity Rawalpindi (PMAS-AAUR), here onTuesday.

The workshop titled “ICT for OfficeManagement and Computer Applications”is organized by Office of Research, Inno-vation and Commercialization (ORIC),PMAS-AAUR in collaboration with theHigher Education Commission under Mod-ern University Governance Program, withan aim to enhance the professional capac-

Training activities are key componentof professional grooming

ity/skill of the University’s employees, andto promote good governance on campus.

Chairing the inaugural session, PMAS-AAUR, Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Rai NiazAhmad said that this is first time thatPMAS-AAUR Is organizing training fornon teaching staff and it is the need of timeto equip the staff with skills to enrich theirknowledge with latest trends and technolo-gies.

He hoped that this training will be ben-eficial for the better governance and devel-opment of University. He appreciated theefforts of Higher Education Commission forproviding the training opportunities to thestaff of University.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—A 3 day InternationalConference on “Recent Innovation inPharmaceutical Sciences” organizedby Riphah International University,began here Tuesday, at Margalla ho-tel in Islamabad with the call to pro-duce cheaper quality medicines thatare affordable to the every commonman of the country.

Dr. Mansoor Kundi, Executive Di-rector, Higher Education commissionof Pakistan was the chief guest on theinaugural session of the conference.Addressing the participants of the

Conference on ‘Recent Innovations in Pharmaceutical Sciences’

Production of cheaper drugs easilyaffordable to commonman stressed

conference, he said Pharmacy is play-ing very vital role for the improvementof mankind’s health since the start ofits existence. Conferences on suchsubjects help the researchers, scien-tists and academicians to share theirvaluable knowledge at one platform.

Prof. Dr. Anis Ahmad, Vice Chan-cellor Riphah International Univer-sity, in his address said we shouldpromote research culture in the Paki-stani Universities. Only through re-search, researchers and scientistsfind the solutions of the various prob-lems. Unfortunately, we lack the ca-pability to produce more effective re-

search and this is the reason our Uni-versities are not included in the listof world renowned universities. Healso appreciated the faculty and man-agement on organizing the confer-ence.

Prof. Dr. Muhammad IqbalChaudry, Director ICCBS, Universityof Karachi delivered his keynote ad-dress on drug discovery approachesand examples of our recent studies.He said drug security is necessary topromote pharmaceutics industry. Notonly we have to focus on researchbut to develop clinical facilities todeal health related issues.

Motorists facing hardships due to rainwater accumulated on a road, a day after heavy rain in twin cities.

A view of Nullah Leh after recent rain.

Visitors enjoying the pleasant weather of the capital at Daman e Koh.

JAMMU: Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed inspects the guard of honour at Civil Secretariat.

DR. GHULAM NABI FAI

THE people of Jammu and Kashmir, who arelarger in number than 123 currently independent nations and who have a defined histori-

cal identity, are at present engaged in a massive,indigenous and non violent struggle to win theirfreedom from the foreign occupation of their land.This struggle is not motivated by bigotry or ethnicprejudice, for its sole aim is the right of self-deter-mination of the people, irrespective of their reli-gious affiliations and ethnic preferences.

The applicability of the principle of self-de-termination to the specific case of Jammu andKashmir has been explicitly recognized by theUnited Nations. It was upheld equally by India andPakistan when the Kashmir dispute was broughtbefore the Security Council. Since, on the estab-lishment of India and Pakistan as sovereign states,Jammu and Kashmir was not part of the territoryof either, the two countries entered into an agree-ment to allow its people to exercise their right ofself-determination under impartial auspices and inconditions free from coercion from either side. Theagreement is embodied in the resolutions of theUnited Nations Commission for India and Paki-stan explicitly accepted by both Governments. Itis binding on both Governments and no allegationof non-performance of any of its provisions by ei-ther side can render it inoperative.

It is commonly thought that the resolutions lim-ited the choice of the people of the State regardingtheir future to accession to either India or Paki-stan. Though understandable, the impression is er-

Kashmir: People’s Aspiration Must Be RespectedSeason’s first heavy snowfall disrupted normal life in Kashmir.

roneous because the right of self-determination, bydefinition, is an unrestricted right. By entering intothe agreement, India and Pakistan excluded, andrendered inadmissible, each other’s claim to theState until that claim was accepted by the peoplethrough a vote taken under an impartial authority.They did not, as they could not, decide what op-tions the people would wish to consider. No agree-ment between two parties can affect the rights of athird: this is an elementary principle of law andjustice which no international agreement, if legiti-mate, can possibly flout.

To put it in everyday language, it was entirelyright for India and Pakistan to pledge to each other,as they did, ‘Here is this large territory; let us notfight over it; let us make its people decide its sta-tus.’ But it would be wholly illegitimate for them tosay, ‘Let one of us get the territory. Let us go throughthe motions of a plebiscite to decide which one’.That would not be a fair agreement; it would be aplot to deny the people of Kashmir the substance ofself-determination while providing them its form.It would amount to telling them that they can chooseindependently but they cannot choose independence.It would make a mockery of democratic norms.

This is not a novel view of the Kashmir ques-tion. When India first brought the issue to the UnitedNations, its representative, Sir GopalaswamiAyyangar set out three options for Jammu and Kash-mir: (a) accession to India, (b) accession to Paki-stan and (c) independence. The possibility of thethird option is reflected in the wording of more thanone resolution of the Security Council. Thoseadopted on March 14, 1950 and March 30, 1951

refer to “ the final disposition of the State of Jammuand Kashmir (to be) made in accordance with thewill of the people expressed by the democraticmethod of a free and impartial plebiscite conductedunder the auspices of the United Nations.” Thephrase “final disposition” is inclusive; it has a widermeaning than “accession to India or Pakistan”. TheSecurity Council used this expression not for con-venience of drafting but because it would not bejustified in foreclosing any option for the people ofthe State. These resolutions, which were adoptedafter the conclusion of the agreement between Indiaand Pakistan, do not detract from the binding natureof that agreement as far as the obligations of thesetwo parties are concerned. But they do imply a rec-ognition of the inherent right of the people of Kash-mir to decide their future independently of the con-tending claims of India and Pakistan.

The idea of independence for Kashmir, if notfor all its zones, has in fact never been beyond themental horizon of its people. Demand for it, how-ever, was either suppressed or somewhat mutedbecause of two factors. The first was the cold war,which generated the fear that an independent Kash-mir would be a likely victim of foreign aggres-sion, subversion or intrigue. The second was thesupposition that small states would not be able tosustain their independence.

Both these inhibiting factors have now disap-peared. The cold war has ended. Scores of states,individually smaller in size and population thanKashmir, have taken their rightful place as fullysovereign members of the United Nations. Thisexplains the resurgent support for independence

among all the strata of the population of Kashmir.It must be pointed out that an independent Kash-

mir would not be a Kashmir isolated from India andPakistan. On the contrary, it would have close links,some of them established by trilateral treaty provi-sions, with both its neighbors. Indeed, it would pro-vide them a meeting ground. In this respect, Kash-mir could make a contribution to the stabilization ofpeace in South Asia which no other entity can.

There is only one standing argument against anindependent status for Kashmir. It is being contendedthat the emergence of another sovereign entity inthe sub-continent would encourage secessionist ten-dencies in both India and Pakistan and lead to a col-lapse of their existing federal structures. The argu-ment may be based on genuine fear or it may beonly a stratagem to avoid a just solution of the Kash-mir dispute; in either case, it can be faced rationally.When so faced, it proves to be untenable because itignores two vital considerations.

The first is related to the sui generis nature ofthe question regarding the final disposition of theState of Jammu and Kashmir. All the former prov-inces, states or territories which today are includedin India or in Pakistan became legally parts of oneor the other through a process which harmonizedwith the expressed will of their people; none wasdragged into a union against its wishes. Kashmiris the sole exception. Among all the territoriesknown collectively as India under British rule,Kashmir is the only one which was never providedthe opportunity to decide its own status or affilia-tion. What, therefore, applies to Kashmir does notapply to, for example, Assam or Tamil Nadu in

India or to Sind or Baluchistan in Pakistan. This isalso plain from the fact that both India and Paki-stan solemnly accepted an international obligationregarding Kashmir which neither as a sovereignstate would accept regarding any of its constituentunits — the obligation to withdraw their forcesfrom the territory. The demilitarization of Kash-mir, which is the first demand of the people ofKashmir and to which both India and Pakistan arecommitted legally and morally does not, therefore,mean secession and cannot encourage separationeither. Kashmir cannot be regarded to have secededfrom what it never acceded to in the first place.

The second consideration which the argumentignores is that Kashmir can emerge as indepen-dent in the context of the implementation of aninternational agreement to which both India andPakistan are parties. By removing the perennialcause of conflict between them, by establishingtheir relations on the firm basis of good-neighbor-liness and cooperation in facing their commonproblems, by giving to each a recognized frontier,the process would encourage their mutual respectfor each other’s territorial integrity and strengthentheir internal cohesion. Only reliable conditions ofpeace and not annexationism constitute an effec-tive safeguard against disintegration.

No solution of the Kashmir problem will bejust or viable if it ignores the intense and popularsentiments of the people. Justice and pragmatismrequire that no one of the conceivable options forthe people should be excluded.—Email

The author can be reached at:gnfai2003@yahoo.com

NEW DELHI—The BJP-led NDA gov-ernment has dissociated itself fromJ&K Chief Minister Mufti MuhammadSayeed’s remarks on state assemblyelections after they triggered a politi-cal storm and uproar in the Parliament.The Congress led opposition againstSayeed’s remarks in Lok Sabha with itsleader Malikarjun Kharge—backed bySamajwadi chief Mulayam Singh—de-manding Prime Minister NarendraModi should come to the House andissue a statement.

Kharge insisted that the PM must in-form the House as to what “transpiredbetween him and Mufti” during theirmeeting earlier. The people of Jammu& Kashmir, Election Commission andsecurity forces made the elections pos-sible and Sayeed did not give credit tothem, he said. Thereafter, he said, theHouse should unanimously pass a reso-lution crediting security forces, ElectionCommission of India and J&K adminis-tration for successfully holding the as-sembly polls. “It will send a strong mes-sage,” he said. Later, the Congress-ledopposition staged a walk-out.

Sayeed said Pakistan, militants andseparatists “allowed conductive atmo-sphere for the J&K assembly elec-

Delhi nixes Mufti’sPakistan, Hurriyat remarks

tions”, triggering a political storm. Ear-lier, Home Minister Rajnath Singh in astatement gave full credit to the Elec-tion Commission, armed forces andpeople of J&K, for smooth conduct ofpolls. His repeated efforts to convincethe opposition that his statement was aresult of his discussions with PrimeMinister Modi made little impact. “I al-ready had a discussion with the PrimeMinister.

I am making this statement after hisapproval. The credit for conducive en-vironment during the polls in Jammuand Kashmir goes to the Election Com-mission, our armed forces and peopleof J&K,” he insisted.

The members of the oppositionhowever demanded a statement fromthe Prime Minister. “We want the PrimeMinister to speak on this matter in theHouse and condemn statement given bythe J&K Chief Minister so that a clearmessage is sent out,” Kharge said.

Similar outrage was also witnessedin Rajya Sabha. MP Shantaram Naikdescribed Mufti’s statement as “anti-na-tional.” Raising the issue during ZeroHour, Naik said this statement is “bor-dering anti-national... is violative ofoath of office as he (Mufti) is showing

allegiance to forces which are anti-na-tional.”

The people of Jammu & Kashmir,Election Commission and securityforces made the elections possible andSayeed did not give credit to them, hesaid.

Responding to the attack, Ministerof State for Parliamentary AffairsMukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the credit forpeaceful conduct of Lok Sabha elec-tions in May last year and then the as-sembly polls “goes to wonderful peopleof Jammu and Kashmir, Leh and Kargil,the Election Commission and securityforces.”

The enthusiastic participation of thepeople in these elections as well as se-curity forces and the poll panel “are re-sponsible for peaceful conduct of elec-tions. We congratulate them,” he said.PTI adds: BJP leader SubramanianSwamy, however made is annoyanceover Sayeed’s remarks clear.

“I am sorry that Mufti has on thevery first day chosen to speak like this.He should learn ‘coalition dharma’ asit is called and if he doesn’t abide byit, we will not hesitate to secure Kash-mir, once again, without his help,”Swamy said.—GK

ALI RAZA

MUZAFFARABAD—AJK President SardarMuhammad Yaqoob Khan has said that in-clusion of Kashmiri leadership in the dialogueprocess between Pakistan and India is impera-tive for the resolution of longstanding Kash-mir dispute. Addressing a public meeting ofKashmiri community he said peace and sta-bility in the region is linked with the resolu-tion of Kashmiri issue in accordance with thewishes of Kashmiri people.

He said Kashmiris are peace loving peopleand have always welcomed the negotiatedsettlement of the dispute , however he urgedfor inclusion of Kashmiris to make the dialogueprocess result oriented. Sardar Yaqoob Khansaid Kashmiris have laid down matchless sacri-

Kashmiris inclusion inPak-India dialogue stressed

fices for their internationally recognized rightto self determination. He said their sacrificeswould surly bring fruit in soon.

AJK President called upon InternationalCommunity to persuade India to stop humanrights violations in occupied Kashmir andplay its effective role in resolving the Kash-mir issue.

Referring to the development of Azad Kash-mir, Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan saidpresent government has evolved a comprehen-sive plan for the progress and prosperity of thestate. He said priority is being given to the pro-vision of education and health facilities to themasses without any discrimination.

He said the problems of Kashmiri refugeessettled in different provinces of Pakistan arebeing resolved on priority basis.

NEW DELHI—Senior PDPleader and Lok Sabha MPMuzaffar Hussain Baig hassaid that the PDP-BJP coalitiongovernment in Jammu andKashmir had not made a prom-ising beginning with contro-versy erupting due to state-ments on both sides.

A day after PDP patron andnew Chief Minister of thestateMufti Muhammed Sayeedstirred a controversy by givingcredit to Pakistan, Hurriyat andmilitant outfits for peacefulelections in the state which wasrebutted by BJP, Baig said here,“it is not a promising beginningbut I am still hopeful”.

Baig, a former DeputyChief Minister, said, “in the last24 hours, some statements onboth sides (PDP-BJP) have cre-

No good beginning byPDP-BJP coalition: Baig

ated confusion”. He said that hewould have preferred a clear cutstatement on part of the two par-ties in their Common MinimumProgramme (CMP) about talkswith Pakistan and Hurriyatandrevocation of Armed ForcesSpecial Powers Act.”

“Let people decide whetherthe clauses in CMP on these is-sues are clear cut or whetherthey are capable of two differ-ent meanings, one that suits BJPand another that suits PDP. Iwould have preferred a clearcutstatement and more clarity onthese issues,” he told PTI here.

Baig said that coalitiongovernment should be based ona “good faith agreement andnot on compromise”.

Emphasising that he wasnot speaking out of any per-

sonal interest, Baig said he hadwritten to Sayeed on Decem-ber 27 stating that he had nopersonal agenda.

He said he had also sent hisletter of resignation from Par-liament to Sayeed for being for-warded to Lok Sabha SpeakerSumitra Mahajan if he so de-sired. Recalling the eventssince the results of the Assem-bly polls were declared on De-cember 23, Baig said that giventhe hung arithmetic of the ver-dict, a PDP-Congress govern-ment or a BJP-National Con-ference government would nothave been stable.

Given the numbers, BJPand PDP would have provideda stable government providedit was based on “good faithagreement”, he said.—KD

JAMMU—Chief Minister Mufti MuhammadSayeed has said he stands by his statement thatPakistan, militants and separatists allowed “con-ductive atmosphere for peaceful assembly elec-tions in Jammu and Kashmir”, day after his re-marks triggered a political storm. Mufti saidthere was nothing wrong in what he said. “Thereis nothing wrong in my statement; I stand bymy words,” he told reporters after casting hisvotes for six seats of Legislative Council, here.

“The media is making a mountain out ofmolehill; everybody is discussing what Mufti said.Yesterday I just said that people reposed their faith

I stand by my remarks: Mufti Sayeedin democracy which is guaranteed by the IndianConstitution. The people realized the power ofvote and overwhelmingly participated in thepolls,” he said, adding, “Even Pakistan and sepa-ratist groups have understood that democracy isthe only way to resolve the issues of the state.”

Mufti said: “What I said yesterday aboutPakistan and Hurriyat. The recovery andworking of democracy in Kashmir and faithin it (was that) they (Pakistan and Hurriyat)have recognised and understood that the voterslip is the destiny of the people, not bullets orgrenades.”—GK

Snowfallparalyses lifeacross IOK

14 houses damagedin Bandipore

SRINAGAR—The overnightsnowfall has left normal lifeparalyzed as road links, air trans-port and power supply have beenbadly affected across the terri-tory. Srinagar received 8 cms ofsnow while Shopian recordedmore than two feet, Gulmargthree, Pahalgam two, Kupwaraone and Kulgam one foot. Thesnowfall damaged residentialhouses in Bandipora district.

The snowfall and rains inSrinagar led to inundation ofsome vital areas includingRegal Chowk, ResidencyRoad, Lal Chowk andJahangir Chowk. The rainsand fresh snowfall in Jammuregion hit normal life andplunged temperature severalnotches below normal. Policesaid that 14 houses were dam-aged by an avalanche inBandipora district.

Reports said that due to thesnowfall, entire Kashmir wit-nessed frequent power break-downs since Sunday night.Most of the roads across Kash-mir were closed due to rainsand snowfall. An official at theSrinagar Airport said that allflights were cancelled due tobad weather.—KW

Nayeem visitsZargar’s ailing

mother in hospitalSRINAGAR—Hurriyet leaderand the Chairman of Jammuand Kashmir National Front,Nayeem Ahmad Khan visitedthe ailing mother of liberationleader, Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar,at a hospital in Srinagar.

Mushtaq Zargar’s mother inthe hospital for the many days.Nayeem Khan praised the cour-age of the woman, who he saidfaced every type of oppressionat the hands of the occupationforces. He appealed to the peopleto pray for her early recovery. Healso prayed for the recovery ofanother injured Zahid Ahmadwho had been shifted out of theValley for treatment.—KMS

SRINAGAR—The J&K High Court directedstate government to ensure that swine flu doesnot cause “further damage” even as it soughtdetails about paraphernalia in place to tackle thedeadly virus in the Kashmir Valley. Admitting aPublic Interest Litigation seeking measures tocurb the H1N1 virus in the Valley, a divisionbench of Justices Muzaffar Hussain Attar andAli Mohammad Magrey also directed the gov-ernment to delineate steps taken so for treatingpatients who suffer from the disease.

“The issue raised in this petition is of seriousnature, respondent-State, who is custodian ofrights of people is duty bound to take all precau-tionary, preventive steps to ensure that the HIN1influenza does not cause further damage to hu-man lives,” the bench said. More than half a dozenpeople have died and nearly two hundred othershave tested positive for the virus in last few weeksin the Valley alone. “(State) shall inform the courtas to what steps have been taken till date for treat-ing patients who suffer from the disease and whatis the paraphernalia in place to tackle (it).”

Given the gravity of the issue, the bench also

Ensure swine flu doesn’t causefurther damage: HC to Govt

impleaded Ministry of Health, Government of In-dia as “party respondent” and issued it notice alongwith state of J&K through Chief Secretary, Direc-tor SKIMS, Director Health Services Kashmir andDirector School Education Kashmir. AssistantSolicitor General of India S. A. Makroo acceptednotice on behalf of the Ministry of Health, and allthe respondents were directed to file reply by nextdate of hearing in the PIL on March 9.

Besides seeking directions to take necessaryprecautionary measure by providing vaccinationto general public, the petitioner, advocate SyedAjaz Ahmad Qadri, also urged court to commandthem to make drugs and vaccines available in allthe hospitals. The PIL also seeks directions tovaccinate school going children as well as theemployees of hospitals. Qadri has highlightedneed for checking the spread of virus before itgoes beyond control in Srinagar especiallycrowded places like hospitals and the High Court.

“People from village to urban areas attend pa-tients in the hospitals and they need to be protectedand special arrangement requires to be made beforedisease will go beyond the control,” he said.—KD

I worry that busi-ness leaders are

more interested inmaterial gain thanthey are in having

the patience tobuild up a strong

organization, and astrong organiza-tion starts withcaring for their

people.

—John Wooden

MIAN ARSHAD

ISLAMABAD—The Economic Affairs’ Divisionand Asian Development Bank (ADB), Tuesday,

expressed satisfaction over the good progressin overall expansion of portfolio on the on-go-ing projects funded by Asian Development Bank(ADB).

While chairing a Quarterly Portfolio Reviewmeeting which was joint 4-months review follow-ing the annual country portfolio review concludedin October 2014, Secretary, Economic Affairs Di-vision, Muhammad Saleem Sethi, and CountryDirector Asian Development Bank (ADB), WernerE. Liepach, noted that the Energy Sector now com-

ISLAMABAD: Secretary EAD, Mohammad Saleem Sethi and Country Director ADB, Werner Liepach co-chairingquarterly review meeting.

ADB, EAD express satisfaction onprojects’ expansion in review meeting

prised half of the Pakistan’s active portfolio andwais likely to grow in the coming years.

The remaining portfolio consists of Transport(16%), Agriculture and Natural Resources (13%),

Multi-sector (emergency project, 11%), Healthand Social Protection (7%), and Water and otherurban infrastructure and services (2%). ADB in-formed that active public sector portfolio amountsto $5.51 billion as of 31st December 2014, includ-ing 24 projects and 1 policy based lending. Thereare 21 active technical assistance projectsamounting to $20.15 million, including 10 TAsapproved in 2014 for $8.6 million.

The meeting was informed that in 2014, Eco-nomic Affairs Division and ADB signed 6 new

projects, in addition to one policy based lend-ing in energy sector amounting to $400 million.During the year, the yearly disbursement wasmore than $850 million, which is the highest

achievement since 2009.Further, in 2014

there was good progressoverall in expanding the port-folio. From $4.49 billion in 2013it escalated to $5.51 billion bythe end of 2014, including re-sumption of policy basedlending. With the anticipatednew approvals of more than abillion dollars per year as in-dicated in the Country Opera-tions Business Plan (COBP)20015-2017 in the next threeyears, the meeting was ap-prised. Asian DevelopmentBank lauded the performanceof National Highway Author-ity on completion of M-4Faisalabad to Gojra, sectionone of theFaisalabad –Khanewal Highaway.

The Secretary, EAD highlighted the issuesof energy projects with National Transmission& Dispatch Company (NTDC) and DISCOsand called upon NTDC to efficiently utilizeUS$ 500 million for transmission projects be-fore project closing date i.e. 31st December,2016. Representatives of Ministry of Water& Power, Ministry of Communications, BenazirIncome Support Programme, National High-way Authority and DISCOs along with Pro-vincial Governments attended the meeting.

ISE-10 Index witnessesbearish trendISLAMABAD—IslamabadStock Exchange wit-nessed bearish trend hereon Tuesday as the ISE-10index was down by 12.66points and closed at3,901.08 points. A total of1,500 shares were traded,which were down by2,300 shares whencompared with previousday’s trading of 3,800shares. Out of 163companies, share pricesof 83 companies recordedincrease while shareprices of 80 companiesregistered decreasewhereas no companyremained stable in today’strading. Sanofi AventisPakistan remained the toptrading company intoday’s trading with Rs.25.98 per share, while theshares of Atlas Batterywas decreased byRs.26.91 per sharesduring the tradingsession.—APP

LSE loses 71.07pointsLAHORE—Lahore StockExchange on Mondaywitnessed bearish trendby loosing 71.07 points asthe LSE-25 Index openedwith 5953.49 and closed at5882.42 points. Themarket’s overall situationalso correspond todownward trend as itremained at 803,000 sharesto close against previousturnover of 1.682 millionshares, showing adownward slide of 879,200shares. While, out of thetotal 75 active scrips, only8 moved up, 21 shedvalues and 46 remainedequal. Engro FertilizersLimited, Bank AlfalahLimited and National Bankof Pakistan were majorgainers of the day byrecording increase in theirper share value by Rs 1.55,Re 0.50 and Re 0.44respectively. Engro FoodsLimited, Fauji FertilizerCompany and PakistanState Oil Company Limitedlost their per share valueby Rs 6.20, Rs 3.60 and Rs3.25 respectively.—APP

SBP injects Rs 50binto marketKARACHI—The StateBank of Pakistan (SBP) onTuesday injected Rs 50billion into market forthree days by its openmarket operation (OMO).The rate of returnaccepted is 8 percent.Thebids offered were of Rs 53billion, said an SBPstatement.—APP

JEDDAH—More than half of respondents whoresponded to a recent survey in Saudi Arabiabelieve that their financial position will im-prove in the next six months, a majority (65percent) of the respondents are also expect-ing the cost of living to increase, accordingto the poll. The Middle East and North AfricaConsumer Confidence Index survey was con-ducted by Bayt.com, a leading ob site, andYouGov, a top market research agency.

Personal economy: Twenty-nine of respon-dents in the Kingdom consider their personalfinancial situation to have improved in the lastsix months. In parallel, 43 percent claim that ithas remained the same, 21 percent believe thatit has gotten worse, and a noteworthy 51 per-cent of the respondents in Saudi Arabia expecttheir financial position to get better in the nextsix months. Eighty-eight percent believe thatthe cost of living will increase or remain thesame in the Kingdom within the same time pe-riod. Interestingly, 44 percent of respondents

Saudi job market ‘filled with opportunities’in Saudi Arabia revealed that their savings havedecreased in comparison to last year. In termsof purchases, 37 percent of respondents inSaudi Arabia are hoping to buy a new car inthe coming year, with 55 percent planning topurchase a brand new vehicle; 40 percent arelooking to buy second-hand.

Thirty-one percent of respondents in theKingdom are planning to invest in property,with apartments (39 percent) being the invest-ment of choice, followed by villas/townhouses/bungalows (27 percent), and commercial prop-erties (21 percent). 60 percent are keen on buy-ing a new property, while 26 percent intend tobuy a pre-owned property. In terms of smallerpurchases, Saudi respondents are looking topurchase desktop or laptop computers (22 per-cent), furniture (20 percent), and LCD or plasmatelevisions (14 percent).

Economic situation: Overall, 26 percent ofrespondents believe that the Kingdom’s economyhas improved in the last six months, while 34 per-

cent claim that it has remained the same. A no-table 41 percent expect things to get better in thenext half a year. Furthermore, 44 percent believethat present business conditions are either verygood or good; a remarkable 56 percent expectbusiness conditions to improve in a year’s time.In KSA, jobs are considered to be plentiful ac-cording to 52 percent of respondents, and 36percent expect a surge in the number of job op-portunities in Saudi Arabia in the next six months.

Current job perspective: According to 41 per-cent of Saudi Arabia respondents, their compa-nies have grown in terms of the number of em-ployees in the last six months. Still, 28 percentstate that their companies have fewer people now.41 percent expect the number of employees intheir company to increase in the next half year.For the most part, job satisfaction levels remainrelatively stable across the country. Profession-als in Saudi Arabia are generally happy with theircareer growth opportunities (43 percent), com-pensation (36 percent), non-monetary benefits

(51 percent), and job security (41 percent). “Basedon the survey’s findings, there is certainly a senseof optimism emerging in the employment land-scape across the MENA region,” said Suhail Al-Masri, VP of sales, Bayt.com.

“After all, half of respondents expect busi-ness conditions in their country to improve overthe next year. Moreover, half of GCC respon-dents (51 percent) are convinced that their fi-nancial position will improve in the next sixmonths,” said the official. Suhail Al-Masri added:“This is, of course, primarily linked to the factthat a slew of mega projects – such as the UAE’sExpo 2020 and Qatar’s 2022 Fifa World Cup –are set to help boost the GCC economies andbolster the demand for skilled workers. Of course,this is taking place in the midst of rising infla-tion. Both employers and job seekers must takeinto account these factors in order to adequatelymeet their desired outcomes. While job seekersare encouraged to build their online presence inorder to stand out, employers are urged to fight

the war for talent by offering competitive pack-ages that can adequately cover the ever-increas-ing costs of living.”

Elissavet Vraka, research manager, YouGov,said: “It is important to recognize that more thanhalf of respondents across the MENA regionclaim that their savings have decreased in com-parison to last year. This means that despitetheir high hopes for the future, soaring levels ofconfidence and satisfaction with their currentpositions, professionals in the MENA regionare still feeling financially challenged in today’scomplex market environment.”

Data for the YouGov and Bayt.com MiddleEast and North Africa Consumer ConfidenceIndex Survey for January 2015 was collectedonline from January 19-31, 2015, with the partici-pation of 4,263 respondents aged 18 years andabove. Respondents were from the UAE, SaudiArabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon,Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, andTunisia. —Courtesy: Arab News

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—The Senate’s Standing Com-mittee on Finance and Revenue in its meet-ing here Tuesday approved the draft Secu-rities Bill, 2015. The new approved lawwould strengthen the regulator (SECP) totake action against malpractices in the se-curities market.

The Committee discussed various pro-visions of the draft Bill at length includingcomments of the Committee members, pre-sentation on the Securities Bill 2015 withmembers of Senate Standing Committee onFinance, chaired by Senator Nasreen Jalil.Nasreen Jalil chairing the meeting said thatnew legislation was need of the hour andthe new law needs to be passed.

She said that after judiciary, Securitiesand Exchange Commission of Pakistan(SECP) was the most important institutionin the country. Giving presentation on Se-curities Bill 2015 to the members of the Sen-ate Standing Committee on Finance,(SECP) Chairman Zafar Hijazi said there

Senate body approves draftSecurities Bill 2015

were major shortcomings in the existingSecurities and Exchange Ordinance 1969that needs to be replaced with SecuritiesBill 2015.

He informed the committee that therewere no provisions in the ordinance for du-ties of securities exchange, system audit ofstock exchanges, power of intervention ofthe commission for investor protection andregulation of clearing houses. He informedthe committee that the Securities and Ex-change Ordinance, 1969 (SEO 69) law hasbecome obsolete and there was an urgentneed to replace it with a new one to meetinternational standards.

Chairman SECP said that currently, therewere several sensitive cases in the securitymarket, over which SECP did not have anypower to take up due to absence of legalpower. Hijazi informed the committee aboutthe resolve of the apex regulator to ensurefair and transparent market and protectionof investors interest. The Committee appre-ciated SECP’s efforts in drafting the Bill inline with international practices.

Minister of State for IT, Ms. Anusha Rahman and Chairman PTA Syed Ismail Shah inthe Pakistan Pavilion at Mobile World Congress, Barcelona, Spain.

KARACHI: Consul General of France in Karachi, Francois Dall Orso, hits the gongceremony during a visit to the Karachi Stock Exchange.

OBSERVER REPORT

BARCELONA—In a very sig-nificant development for thetelecommunications sector ofPakistan and in recognition ofthe forward looking progres-sive policies of the currentGovernment in Mobile Broad-band, Pakistan was awarded“Spectrum for Mobile Broad-band Award 2015 “ at the pres-tigious Mobile World Con-gress 2015 of the GSM Asso-ciation here in BarcelonaSpain. The annual event con-sidered the epitome of tele-communications develop-ment and innovation globallybrings together leaders fromgovernments, regulators, topindustry players and otherconstituents of the global ICTecosystem at the annual Mo-bile world congress.

“The award of “GSMASpectrum for Mobile Broad-band Award for 2015” to Paki-stan is an indication of the glo-bal community reposing itstrust in the Telecommunica-tion Sector policy practices ofthe Government of Pakistan”,said the Minister of State forInformation Technology whileaccepting the award on behalfof the Government of Pakistan.

Pak wins prestigiousglobal award fortelecom sector

She added that our policieshave once again acclaimedworldwide recognition, and isin fact a continuation ofPakistan’s journey during thecourse of which GSMA onceagain acknowledged us. Thespectrum award, which is oneof the two annual “Govern-ment Mobile ExcellenceAward” awards, is given asrecognition of significantachievement of the govern-ment in driving the growth andsocio-economic impact of themobile industry in the coun-try, and demonstration of clearcommitment in putting mobilebroadband at the top of itsdigital agendas. The Ministerin her keynote address saidthat in a short span of 6to 8months since launch of 3G/4Gservice the mobile broadbandsubscriptions for 3 g stand ataround 10 Million. The Spec-trum auction for next genera-tion mobile services has notonly enabled the people ofPakistan to gain access tomobile broadband servicesand be at par with rest of theworld in terms of mobile broad-band technology, but has alsosuccessfully encouraged in-vestment in mobile networksin Pakistan.

SALIM AHMED

LAHORE—Vice Chairman PakistanReadymade Garments Manufacturers and Ex-porters Association (PRGMEA), North ZoneMuhammad Naseer Malik, has appreciated thegovernment of Pakistan for announcing anambitious Textile Policy for next five year 2014-19. Commenting on the policy, he said that it isthe best policy under the present economiccircumstances. He said that government seemsdetermined to boost textile and clothing sectorexports from USD 13 billion to USD 26 billionby 2019; however, keeping in view the energycrisis and other challenges, achieving this tar-get requires extra ordinary efforts. He said thegovernment has already lost one year by de-laying the announcement of textile policy.

He lauded the government’s initiative tooffer about Rs. 64.15 billion cash subsidy totextile and clothing sector in the new textilepolicy and hoped that if implemented, thisconcession would help in improving textileexports. He said that, Pakistan is the 8th larg-

PRGMEA welcomesambitious textile policy

est exporter of textile products in Asia. Thissector contributes 9.5% to the GDP and pro-vides employment to about 40 millionworkforce of the country. However, hestressed the need for implementing the policyin letter and spirit if the required targets areto be achieved including a 100% increase invalue addition from $1 billion per million balesto $2 billion per million bales in the next fiveyears. He further stated that all stuck upclaims of the exporters (DLTL, Custom Re-bates, Sales Tax Rebate etc.) should be re-leased within a month. while talking aboutGSP Plus he said that GSP plus facility doesnot seem to reap the expected growth rate ofincreasing textile exports to $14 billion, par-ticularly due to unavailability of gas and elec-tricity to the textile industries.

He said that besides improving law andorder and providing unabated gas and elec-tricity supply, the government would haveto relax import policy to empower value-added textile industry to get the maximumbenefit of GSP plus Status.

LSE south towerproject workinaugurated

SALIM AHMED

LAHORE—On behalf of theChief Minister of Punjab, theProvincial Minister for In-dustries – Ch. MuhammadShafique has inaugurated theconstruction of Phase-II ofSouth Tower Project of LSE.Speaking on the occasion,Ch. Muhammad Safique ap-plauded the efforts of LSE inachieving another milestoneby providing necessary in-frastructure, which was es-sential for a prime financialhub. He assured the govern-ing Board of Directors ofLSE that the Government ofPunjab shall provide fullsupport for the early comple-tion of the Project. He in-formed that with the activeparticipation of foreign in-vestors the government istargeting several importantthemes in the developmentplan and the sustainablegrowth in the capital marketis one of the prime objectivesof the government.

Earlier, Mr. Asif BaigMirza, Director LSE, in hiswelcome speech apprised theMinister about the uniquerole of LSE in the developmentof the capital market and otherstrategic initiatives which theExchange has taken to boostthe business opportunities inthe region.

The goal of developmentof the securities market willfacilitate the efficient alloca-tion of resources in theeconomy and help broadenand deepen the financial sec-tor, while providing alterna-tive sources of funding to in-dustry. It may be mentionedthat LSE has the vision toprovide best possible moderntrading platform as well as in-frastructure to its investors.

Microsoftintroduces

new devicesKARACHI—Microsoft Mo-bile Devices & Services in-troduced two newsmartphones Lumia 640 andLumia 640 XL at the MobileWorld Congress 2015 today.The news devices givepeople greater flexibility andfreedom to choose when andwhere they get things done.Both phones areupgradeable to Windows10, which offers more per-sonal computing andgreater productivity, and willbe available later this year.

In a competitive market-place, Microsoft MobileDevices & Services contin-ues to deliver innovativesmartphone experiences atall price points. Both de-vices offer seamless inte-gration of hardware essen-tials with a choice of screensizes and camera capabili-ties and Microsoft servicesto offer incredible produc-tivity with affordability.

The phones comepacked with the latest ver-sion of Windows Phone 8.1and the Lumia Denim up-date, complete with one-swipe Action Center, WordFlow and Live Folders.People can also upgradeLumia 640 and Lumia 640XL to Windows 10 and en-joy its benefits as it be-comes available later thisyear. Moreover, they canhave the best of bothworlds with LTE supportavailable on dual-SIMmodels for the first time. Inaddition, all dual-SIM mod-els will feature Smart DualSIM to help ensure peoplenever miss a call.—PR

Oil prices risein Asian trade

SINGAPORE—Oil pricesrose in Asia Tuesday butgains were capped as deal-ers sat on the sidelineseyeing negotiations aimedat ending a strike at someUS crude refineries, ana-lysts said. US benchmarkWest Texas Intermediaterose 36 cents to $49.95while Brent crude gained89 cents to $60.43 in after-noon trade. Talks to settlea strike by workers at threemajor US refineries oper-ated by Royal Dutch Shellare set to restart Wednes-day following a stalemateon February 20.

More than 5,000 work-ers spread across around adozen installations havebeen on strike since Febru-ary 1 demanding improvedwages and safety condi-tions. Daniel Ang, invest-ment analyst at Phillip Fu-tures in Singapore, said oilprices are “tradingrangebound” ahead of thetalks. With storage space forunprocessed crude “reach-ing full capacity” at the keyCushing, Oklahoma, oil stor-age hub, oil majors could becompelled to reach a speedyconclusion to the dispute,Ang said.

The strike affects facili-ties accounting for about13 percent of the process-ing capacity in the world’stop crude consumer, ac-cording to BloombergNews. Nicholas Teo, mar-ket analyst at CMC Mar-kets in Singapore, saiddealers were also monitor-ing fresh marathon talks inSwitzerland between theUS and crude producerIran over Tehran’s contro-versial nuclearprogramme.—AFP

Currency Selling Buying

USA 101.60 101.40

UK 156.18 155.87

Euro 113.72 113.50

Canada 81.16 81.00

Switzerland 106.24 106.03

Australia 79.44 79.28

Sweden 12.20 12.18

Japan 0.8485 0.8469

Norway 13.22 13.19

Singapore 74.48 74.33

Denmark 15.26 15.23

Saudi Arabia 27.09 27.04

Hong Kong 13.10 13.08

Kuwait 342.60 341.92

Malaysia 28.02 27.97

Newzealand 76.55 76.40

Qatar 27.90 27.85

UAE 27.66 27.61

Kr Won 0.0925 0.0923

Thailand 3.141 3.134

MIAN ARSHAD

ISLAMABAD—The Minister for Commerce, Engr. KhurramDastgir Khan, Tuesday, said that Export DevelopmentFund (EDF) and the Ministry of Commerce were makingefforts to devise an effective mechanism for the approvalof projects and disbursement of funds under the EDF formaximum export enhancement. While chairing the 67thmeeting of the EDF Board of Directors here that Ministersaid that the MoC had taken numerous mega decisions toincrease volume of exports by facilitating the exporters.

The Board constituted a sub-committee on Finance,which will conduct appraisal of the proposed projects forexport promotion and judicious disbursement of the bud-get of the Export Development Funds.

The Secretary Commerce will head the Committee andit will critically examine all the proposals for financial as-sistance from EDF and put its findings before the Boardfor final approval. The Board also approved the appoint-ment of an auditing firm for third party audit of the projectsrun under the EDF to bring transparency and efficiency inthe EDF funded projects.

The Board also authorized TDAP to hold an AalishanPakistan Exhibition in London in June to promote Paki-stani brands in the UK to the Pakistani Diaspora andthe Western buyers. The Exhibition will include trade

Immense scopeto expand tradewith Gulf statesISLAMABAD—AmbassadorJaved Malik, PrimeMinister ’s Special Envoybased in Gulf States has saidthat business-to-businesscontacts are vital for expan-sion of trade between Paki-stan and the Gulf states. “Inthis context special initia-tives are needed to buildcloser interaction betweenPakistani and gulf basedbusinessmen”, AmbassadorMalik said in a message re-ceived here on Tuesday.

He made these remarksafter his discussions withAbdullah Saif Al GhurairChairman of Dubai Chamberof Commerce and Industry.While speaking to the media,Ambassador Javed Maliksaid that the presence of over4 million Pakistanis in theUnited Arab Emirates (UAE)is an important factor thatbrings Pakistan close to theGulf region.—APP

Biz delegationproceeding to

AustraliaSALIM AHMED

LAHORE—A 16-memberbusiness delegation is leav-ing for 13-day visit to Aus-tralia on Wednesday (to-day). Former LCCI chief andChairman TEVTA IrfanQaiser Sheikh will lead thedelegation while LCCI VicePresident Syed MahmoodGhaznavi will be the DeputyHead.

The LCCI delegates be-long to Power Generation,Leather, Packaging, Plastic,Agriculture and other sec-tors. During the visit, LCCIdelegation will have varioushigh-profile meeting withtheir Australian counter-parts & the government of-ficials and will also visit vari-ous Chambers of Commerce& Industry.

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan has offered compa-nies of Uganda to explore the possibilitiesof establishing Uganda specific SpecialEconomic Zone (SEZ) in the country. Sec-retary, Board of Investment (BOI) IftikharBabar while talking to Asuman Kiyingi,Minister of State for Foreign Affairs andDr. Muhammad Ahmed Kisuule, Ambassa-dor of Uganda who met with him here Tues-day asked the private sector of Uganda toexplore investment and business opportu-nities in Pakistan. He informed them thatBOI, being the apex state agency for in-vestment promotion and provide facilita-tion to foreign investors may extend a cor-dial invitation to Ugandan businessmen andentrepreneurs to visit Pakistan and explorethe investment opportunities available inall sectors of Pakistan and assure them fullsupport, with regard to arranging their meet-ings with relevant Ministries, Divisions and

ISLAMABAD—The agriculture scientists ofPakistan Agriculture Research Council(PARC) have released four new rust resis-tant wheat varieties including a bio-forti-fied variety having 50 percent Zinc con-tents. “The bio-fortified variety is the first-ever such introduction in the list of recom-mended varieties for farmers’ choice in anyagro-ecology,” Chairman PARC VarietyEvaluation Committee, Dr. Shahid Masoodsaid while chairing the meeting of the com-mittee here Tuesday.

The VEC meeting was attended by all pro-vincial members and Director and NationalCoordinator Wheat PSD PARC, Dr. Atiq-ur-Rehman. After thorough deliberations andevaluation of the new varieties, the VEC fi-nally recommended four candidate wheatvarieties for release in the country, providingan opportunity to the farmers to choose fromthese new varieties and produce healthywheat to cater to increasing nutritious fooddemands. It is pertinent to mention here thatZinc is a metal also called an essential traceelement because very small amounts of zincare necessary for human health.

Zinc is used for treatment and preventionof zinc deficiency so the new wheat variety,having 50 per cent Zinc has health benefits,

STAFF REPORTER

ISLAMABAD—National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) inexorableefforts to develop the impoverished sector for the unem-ployed youth of Pakistan is the core component of theBank’s integrated community strategy. Now NBP has takena new leap and signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) with Pak Telecom Mobile Ltd. (Ufone) during agraceful ceremony held at Ufone Head office, Islamabad.

Under this arrangement Ufone and NBP have agreedto enter into this MOU for the provision of services re-lated to Customized ICT Solution. In which Ufone will pro-vide an extension of a SMS notification portal for NBPwith customization for different pull and push notifica-tion. Ufone will handle the SMS and mobile application forbanking related initiatives. It will also assist NBP for Con-tact Center services, which includes, provision of a CMS(Complaint Management System) and Call Center relatedservices. Ufone will collaborate on MFS Solutions withNBP for providing the solution of Salary accounts andtransfers, bill payments, advance salary loans, loans re-payments and renewals. Ufone will also assist NBP in Pen-sion Disbursement and brand promotion through variousco-branding initiatives e.g. Debit Card.

The representatives of National Bank at this MOU Sign-ing ceremony were Mr. Mudassir H. Khan – SEVP & GroupChief, Commercial & Retail Banking Group (C&RBG), Mr.S. H. Irtiza Kazmi – EVP & Coordinator – PMYBL, C&RBG,Ms. Nageen Rizvi – VP & Unit Head Marketing & Promo-tions PMYBL, C&RBG. From Ufone – PTML Mr. Mr. JamalEddine Trache (Chief Officer – Contracts & Procurement,Mr. Yousef Al Zaabi (Chief Officer HR, Admin & Security)and also acting CEO, Mr. Ahmad Kamal (Chief Officer –Customer Operations), Mr. Naveed Khalid Butt (Chief Of-ficer – Government & Regulatory Affairs), Mr. Atif Ishaque(General Manager Customer Operations) and Mr. Taimur

Mechanism being devised for projectsapproval, funds disbursement: Khurram

and fashion shows showcasing Pakistani products andbrands of textile, rice, pharmaceutical, fruits and veg-etables, building material etc. The Board was informedthat UK is the 5th largest export destination of Pakistanand there is a huge Pakistani Diaspora settled in UK. Aquarter of all of Pakistan’s exports to European Unionare made to England and the balance of trade is in favourof Pakistan, which makes it a lucrative export destina-tion of Pakistani products.

The Board decided to pay salaries to the employees ofPakistan Horticulture Development Company and directedthat the company should generate its own revenue to sus-tain its operations. Ministry of national Food Security andResearch put forth two projects for enhancement of ex-ports of fruits and vegetables, which were forwarded tothe Committee on Finance for thorough scrutiny. Theprojects included establishment of 4 pack houses for pack-ing of fruits and vegetables which has a huge export mar-ket but because of out-dated packing techniques Paki-stani fruits and vegetables couldn’t find desired place inthe international market. The second project related to theregistration of citrus farms, which followed best practicesand were found free of any harmful pest. The Board alsodecided to strengthen the EDF Secretariat with adequatehuman resource for better coordination and oversight ofthe projects run under the Fund.

Pakistan offers Uganda toestablish SEZ

Departments in materializing their projectproposals in Pakistan.

The Minister of State for Foreign Af-fairs and the Ambassador of Uganda em-phasized that both the countries shouldenhance bilateral trade and investment inall spheres and effective mechanism maybe finalized between the two countries.Asuman Kiyingi urged the private sectorof the two countries to come forward andplay a crucial role. Both sides consideredexchange of trade and investment delega-tions as well as trade fairs and single coun-try exhibition, which could play a signifi-cant role to achieve the desired goals andpromote trade, investment and bilateral re-lation.

At the end Secretary, BOI thanked theMinister of State for Foreign Affairs andthe Ambassador, and appreciated their ef-forts and intention with regard to boosttrade, investment and economic relationbetween the two countries promptly.

PARC introduces four newrust-resistant wheat varieties

particularly for children and women. In addi-tion to the bio-fortified variety, the other threevarieties are promising in their respectiveecologies, said Dr. Shahid Masood, who isalso Member Plant Science in PARC.

He said that all these varieties are alsoresistant to the different types of rusts,which have been one of the major bioticthreats to wheat production. So these vari-eties could resist the all stem rust races in-cluding, UG-99, which has been infectingthe wheat crop all across the world andRRTTF, which has been threatening forwheat crop in Sindh province.

Dr. Shahid Masood, expressed the hopethat the new varieties will bring diversity inthe existing wheat genetic pool and help insustained productivity, hence promoting ag-riculture production all across the country.Meanwhile, Chairman PARC, Dr. IftikharAhmad lauded the efforts of the scientists forworking vigorously to ensure nutritious foodfor all. “The scientists of PARC have beensuccessful in introducing new crop varietiesthat would definitely lead the country towardssecure future in food and nutrition,” he said,however added that sustainably efforts wereneeded to further promote agriculture researchin the country.—APP

NBP, Pak Telecom Mobile signservices MoU for PMYBL scheme

Faiz Cheema (General Manager Marketing) were present.The Group Chief and SEVP National Bank of Pakistan,

Mr. Mudassir Khan stated that the majority of people inPakistan are unbanked or have no access to organizedbanking sector. Various surveys show that in this specificsector the undocumented borrowing culture has imposedexcessive requirements on collateral/ guarantees and pro-hibitively high lending rates, resulting in supply-side bar-riers that are likely to negatively affect the growth of SMEs.Mr. Mudassir Khan stated that backed by a strong bank-ing expertise and an in-depth knowledge of the emergingsocio-economic markets, and driven by a deep and com-passionate understanding of the poverty factor, NationalBank of Pakistan along with its various corporate alliancesis fully prepared to offer viable answers to how povertycan be alleviated and optimistically reduced in the nearfuture through the success of PMYBL scheme.

Ufone has a wide network of mobile users who can ben-efit from the PMYBL scheme if the awareness is createdabout the scheme and the application procedures are madeeasier. Banking will be made accessible to the 80% of thepopulation through their mobile phones, which will providethem with immediate access to financial solutions. A 24-hour contact center help line for their queries or complaintswill assist the customers. MFS Solutions are also beingdesigned for Armed forces, which will provide immediatetransfer of funds into their salary accounts. And assist themin advance salary loans & other loans etc. Ufone & NBP willalso facilitate Pension Disbursement over mobile servicesto the retired sector in the convenience of their vicinities.Mr. Irtiza Kazmi, the Executive Vice President and the Coor-dinator for PMYBL said that the people who need to benefitfrom small loans live in remote and rural areas, which areoften difficult to access. Conventionally, banks have beenreluctant in venturing into this area due to numerous chal-lenges of operating in the unorganised sector.

ISLAMABAD: Secretary Board of Investment, Iftikhar Babar meeting with AsumanKiyingi, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Uganda.

Pakistan’s Ambassador at Large, Javed Malik with Chairman Dubai Chamber of Com-merce & Industry, Abdullah Saif Al-Ghurair.

ISLAMABAD: Dr. Shahid Masood, Member (Plant Sciences) PARC & Chairman, Va-riety Evaluation Committee presiding over a meeting on wheat.

Ufone and NBP have signed a MoU for the provision of service related to customizedICT/MFS solutions and call centre related services. Jamal Eddine Trache, Chief Pro-curement Officer, Ufone and Mudassir Khan, SEVP National Bank of Pakistan shak-ing hand during exchange of documents.

STAFF REPORTER

RAWALPINDI—Ambassa-dor of Tajikistan Sherali S.Jononov has said that Paki-stan is to get 1000MegaWattof energy under CASA1000project in 2017 and Tajikistanhas the potential to provide1000MW extra to Pakistanon cheaper rates, he added.He said that his country iseager to enhance bilateraltrade ties with Pakistan. Hesaid that Pakistani Kinno,Mango and textile can gethuge response in Tajik mar-ket but Pakistani businesscommunity needs to bemore active to get theirshare. He was exchangingviews with the PresidentRawalpindi Chamber ofCommerce and Industry

Pakistan to get 1000MWelectricity under CASA by 2017

(RCCI) Syed Asad Mashadiduring his visit to Chamberon Tuesday. Senior VicePresident Mian HumayunParvez, members’ executivecommittee and other mem-ber of the Chamber werealso present on the occa-sion.

The Ambassador saidthat transportation issueswill be resolved soon andafter the completion ofGwader Port it will be easyfor both countries to getaccess to each other’s mar-ket. He said that Embassyhas sent a request to theministry of Commerce forestablishment of Pak-Tajiktrade forum and hope wewill get positive responsesoon. He urged the Paki-stani business community

to actively participate inExpos and fairs in Tajikistanto introduce Pakistani prod-ucts there. He ensured hiscooperation in t his regard.Speaking on the occasionPresident RCCI Syed AsadMashadi said that both thecountries must enhance re-lations in other sectors be-side energy.

He said that currenttrade volume between twocountries is mere $9 millionand it is far behind the po-tential both countries haveto enhance bilateral traderelations. He stressed theneed to improve road and airlink between two States andalso highlighted the impor-tance of direct interaction ofthe business community oftwo countries.

LAHORE: Students from various colleges participating in rehearsal at Hockey Stadium for gymnastic event in Horse and Cattle Show scheduledto start from March 5.

BIPIN DANI

OBSERVER CORRESPONDENT

MUMBAI—On Monday night, VaishaliDalmiya, the daughter of Indian cricketboard’s new president didn’t go to sleeptill her dad (Jagmohan Dalmiya) arrived latenight at Kolkata home from Chennai.

“I was waiting for his arrival and wecongratulated him immediately on his re-turn”, the daughter said over telephonefrom Kolkata.

“Obviously we are all very very happyand overwhelmed with his appointment.‘Boss’ is back after 11 years and we are allvery excited”, she further added.

The daughter does not believe that thepresent age (74 years) of her dad would behindrance in his work. “No, no. The age isjust the number. My dad has a passion. Heis workaholic and very active and his yetanother innings with the Indian cricket willbenefit the game”.

Interestingly, Jagmohan Dalmiya is fourmonths younger than what is believed. “Hisdate of birth is NOT May 30, 1940, as re-

My dad has a passion to work,says Dalmiya’s daughter

corded at Wikipedia and also at fewcricketing websites. He was born in themonth of September”, she clarified.

The daughter does not believe thatheading the game at the international levelonce and then leading the national boardagain is degradation. “I think heading anational body is equally prestigious. Tobe the part of the BCCI is not less presti-gious.

My father also ruled the Asian CricketCouncil (ACC)”. Dalmiya was the founderof the ACC. “My father was instrumentalin giving Test status to Bangladesh also”,she reminds.

Vaishali, the Bengali film producer byprofession, didn’t accompany her dad toChennai, but her brother did. JagmohanDalmiya’s son, Abhisek, was in Chennaiwith his dad during the AGM.

The Junior Dalmiya, who runs the day-to-day operations of their running con-struction business, has also entered intothe sports administration.

Dalmiya’s wife Chandralekha hailsfrom the Ghosh family of Pathuriaghata.

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—As part of its longstandingcommitment to nurturing sports in Pakistan,Bank Alfalah has announced its support asthe lead sponsor of the National Open PoloChampionship Cup 2015 for the Quaid-e-Azam Gold Cup.

Pakistan’s premier polo event, beingheld from 02 March to 15 March 2015, willsee seven teams including teams from Ar-gentina, Brazil and Chile playing for thecoveted trophy. The tournament will beorganised on Full League system with toptwo teams on point’s ladder playing the fi-nal.

President of the Lahore Polo Club, Mr.Abdul Haye Mehta said, “Special empha-sis was laid on preparing the grounds this

Bank Alfalah National OpenPolo Championship begins

year to sustain their quality throughout theevents. With over 150 Argentinean maresin action, we hope that this year’s eventwill provide best quality game to all the fansand connoisseurs of polo.”

Bank Alfalah announced an “Upcom-ing Talent” award with a cash prize of Rs.300,000 for the winner. Aly Mustansir, ChiefMarketing Officer, Bank Alfalah said “TheBank continues to play a key role in foster-ing talent in sports with a view to nurtureyouth and encourage community develop-ment in Pakistan.

For the last seven years, we have beensupporting talent in polo. Last year, we in-troduced our Rising Talent Program, whichinspires and recognises young, upcomingtalent in the country and provides them withmeaningful opportunities.”

PESHAWAR—A total of 80-member contin-gent of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in five differ-ent games would leave for Lahore onWednesday morning to participate in theforthcoming Punjab Sports Festival to becommencing from March 5-8.

This was stated by Acting Director TariqMehmood while talking to APP here onTuesday. He said they have short-listed theprobables for the five different games com-prising Athletics, Hockey, Football, Cricketand Wrestling.

Before short-listing the probables se-lection committee constituted for eachgames thoroughly witnessed the perfor-mance of players during two-day trial heldat different venues at Qayyum Sports Com-plex.

He said the contingent would leave forLahore on early Wednesday morning forwhich two buses have been arranged. Hesaid the Directorate of Sports KhyberPakhtunkhwa provided shoes to the play-ers while the other uniform including track-suites would be provided to them by theorganizing committee of the Punjab SportsFestival besides accommodation, TA andDA.

He said the athletic trials supervised bySyed Jaffar Shah with athletes comprisingAbid Ali, Nouman, Khurshid Khan, Amir

80-member KP contingent toparticipate in Punjab Sports

Junaid Shah, Muhammad Iftikhar,, ArbabKhalid, Zohaib Khan, Paras Ahmad, JawadAli, Faris Jan, Ahamd Naeem, Shoaib Khan,Yasir Islam, Azhar Farid, Saqib Khan, Safeer.Zafran while Jaffar Shah will be the man-ager.

Hockey team comprising Waqas Khan,Nabil Khan, Zahid Qaiser, Suhab Khan,Waseem, Jehangir, Saeed Khan, Sami Ullah,Nouman, Amjad, Asif Islam, MehmoodKhan, Hayat Khan, Salim Khan, AzizAhmad, and Afraz. Zia Ur Rehman will bethe coach.

The cricket team comprising Sajid Khan,Muhammad Shakeel, Adnan Shah,Muhammad Shah Zaib, Muhammad Sohaib,Fafiz Ullah, Sajid Ibrahim, MuhammadKashif, Sajjad Ibrahim, Hazrat Ali,Sahidzada, Farman Ullah, Muhammad Ilyas,Salman Shinwari, Khalid Kail, Zubair Khan,Asfadiyar and Mohib.

In football the players including Waqar,Nadeem, Zubair, Arsalan, Umair, Sohail,Jamshed, Mudasir Ali, Ali Murad, WaseemUllah, Mohin, Aman Ullah, Haider, Waqas,Ihsan and Kashif. Abdul Shakoor will bethe coach and Alamzaib would act as man-ager.

He expressed the hope that the perfor-mance of the players would be par betterfrom that was last year.—APP

LO N D O N—Women’s snooker worldchampion Reanne Evans has beenawarded a place in the qualifying roundsof this year ’s World Championship,World Snooker announced on Tuesday.

Evans, 29, has won 10 successivewomen’s world titles and will become thefirst woman to compete at the WorldChampionship if she comes throughqualifying at Ponds Forge in Sheffield,northern England, in April.

Last season she became the f irstwoman to qualify for a ranking eventwhen she reached the main stage of theWuxi Classic in China.

“Reanne’s achievements in the la-dies’ game are incredible—to win 10

ANF PeshawarDistrict TableTennis begins

PESHAWAR—Anti-Narcot-ics Force Peshawar Dis-trict Male and Female TableTennis Championship gotunder way here at QayyumSports Complex on Tues-day.

Former World No. 2Mohib Ullah Khan formallyinaugurated the Champi-onship.

President KhyberPakhtunkhwa Snooker andBilliard AssociationZulfiqar Butt, SecretaryKhyber Pakhtunkhwa Bad-minton Association AmjadKhan, Secretary PakistanTable Tennis FederationKifayat Ullah Orakzai,member Pakistan Badmin-ton Federation selectioncommittee Mian SadaqatShah, players and officialsof the ANF were alsopresent.

Organizing SecretaryKifayat Ullah Orakzai saidthat the ANF is always ex-tending a helping hand tothe association for orga-nizing different event. Hesaid players registeredwith Peshawar DistrictTable Tennis Associationare taking part in the Cham-pionship.

In the opening matchFahad Khawjah defeatedAfsar Ahmad by 3-1, thescore was 5-11, 11-9, 11-7and 11-7 while NationalUnder-16 Champion QianatKhan defeated Iqra by 3-0,the score was 11-6, 11-9and 11-8.—APP

6 matchesheld of

BasketballChampionship

SPORTS REPORTER

WAH CANTT—Six teamshave beaten their rivals onthe first day of NationalJunior Basketball Champion-ship’2015 which was heldunder the auspicious ofPOF sports control board atWah Cantt on Tuesday.

On the first day of cham-pionship, Six matches wereplayed in first day of thechampionship.

First match was playedbetween POF andIslamabad in whichIslamabad won the matchwith the score 44-28.

In the second match,Khyber Pakhtunkhawa de-feated Baluchistan with thescore 33-6.

In the third match, FATAdefeated Sindh with thescore 55-50.

Fourth match wasplayed between POF &Baluchistan in which POFdefeated Baluchistan withthe score 31-8.

In the Fifth match,Khyber Pakhtunkhawa de-feated Islamabad with thescore 52-42. In the sixthmatch, FATA scored 55while Punjab scored 28 & soFATA succeeded in thematch.

MULTAN: WAPDA players busy in training at District Sports Ground to prepare for the WAPDA Inter-Unit BaseballTournament.

world titles in a row in any sport is aphenomenal record,” said JasonFerguson, chairman of the World Profes-sional Billiards and Snooker Associa-tion.

“She deserves the chance to play inthe World Championship and she will beaiming to become the first woman everto play in the main event at the Crucible.Reanne is a trailblazer for female playersaround the world.”

Reacting to the news on Facebook,Evans wrote: “So please (sic) to finallybe able to say I’ve been given a place inthis years world championship!!! 3 winsand I’ll be at the crucible!!! Thanks to allmy fans and sponsors.”—AFP

Snooker: Women’s championgets World Championship shot

KUALA LUMPUR—Top-seeded CarolineWozniacki atoned for a first-round exit lastyear by cruising past China’s Wang Yafan onTuesday at the WTA Malaysian Open.

For the second straight year, Wozniackiopened the tournament against an unseededChinese challenger who had to go throughqualifying to make the tournament, but the

outcome was different this time.The Danish world number five dropped

just four games in defeating Wang 6-3, 6-1.A year ago she was bundled out in three

sets by qualifier Wang Qiang in the first round.Her title chances got a further boost Tues-

day with third-seeded Australian CaseyDellacqua’s early exit at the hands of Taiwan’sHsieh Su-wei, who won 7-5, 2-6, 6-3.

Otherwise, seeded competitors advancedin Kuala Lumpur, with Austrian fourth-seedJarmila Gajdosova beating Cagla Buyukakcay

Wozniacki survivesfirst round in Malaysia

Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki, pictured in action in Dubai,beat China’s Wang Yafan in straight sets in Malaysia.

of Turkey 7-5, 6-4.“Buyukakcay played really well today and

she had a solid game,” said Gajdosova.“I hit a lot of balls back to make her run

and I attacked her serve whenever I could asI was bent on playing aggressively to stayahead.”

Klara Koukalova of the Czech Republicgot past Patricia Mayr-Achleitner of Austria instraight sets while Germany’sJulia Goerges did the sameagainst Alla Kudryavtseva ofRussia. Meanwhile, Formerworld number four Juan Mar-tin Del Potro, having drawnconfidence from his briefSydney return in January, saidhe was confident of a fullcomeback “very soon”.

The Argentine giant, whohas endured a stop-start ca-reer since winning the USOpen in 2009, is recoveringfrom a second corrective op-eration on his left wrist follow-ing surgery a year ago.

“I’m not going drop myarms or surrender because ofan injury. If my hand respondswell, I’ll come back as soonas possible but that depends

exclusively on my hand, it will decide my re-turn,” Del Potro told a packed news confer-ence.

“I’m in full recovery; I’m going faster thanthe time frame the doctor set for me as a goal.”

The 26-year-old, who missed most ofthe 2010 season after surgery on his rightwrist, also confirmed an improved relation-ship with the Argentine Tennis Associa-tion (AAT) and a return to his country’sDavis Cup team.—AFP

Saad to lead OmarAssociates in Patrons

Cricket TrophyKA R A C H I—InternationalSaad Nasim has been namedto lead Omar Associates teamin the Patrons Cricket Trophystarting simultaneously atdifferent grounds of the coun-try from March 9.

Talented Saad, who hadfeatured in three Twenty20Internationals for Pakistan isa hard-hitting batsman. Heplayed for Lahore Lions inChampions League.

Muhammad Waqas willbe the vice-captain of theteam, head of Omar Asso-ciates, Nadeem Omar an-nounced here on Tuesday.

Pakistan left fast bowlerMuhammad Amir is also thepart of the team as he stagedreturn to domestic circuit.

Omar Associates whichmissed the semi-final last sea-son, will take on PakistanArmy in opening 3-day matchat Army Stadium Rawalpindifrom March 9.—APP

Football: VanGaal confidentDi Maria will

flourishMANCHESTER (UnitedK i n g d o m ) — M a n c h e s t e rUnited manager Louis vanGaal says British record sign-ing Angel Di Maria shouldbe given more time to jus-tify his price tag and bejudged on his success at OldTrafford.

Di Maria joined Unitedfor #59.7m from Real Madridlast summer as part ofUnited’s re-building plansunder van Gaal.

But after an encouragingstart to his career in Britishfootball, the Argentina inter-national, 27, has struggledto find his best form in aUnited side, which despiteoccupying a top-four placein the Premier League hasalso stuttered at times.

Di Maria was substitutedat half-time during United’sunconvincing 2-0 win overSunderland last Saturdayand looked a frustrated fig-ure.

His home nearManchester was the subjectof an attempted burglary inJanuary which also un-settled the player and hisfamily.

Van Gaal admits that allplayers need time to findtheir feet and says it’s tooearly to judge Di Maria’simpact.

The United managersaid: “I think it counts for allthe players that we havebought, the first season isalways difficult. I have ex-plained that in the pressconference after the match(against Sunderland).

“You can see it for everyplayer we have bought,Shaw, Blind, Herrera, Falcaoand also Di Maria.

“For me it is not a bigsurprise, it is more a big sur-prise when he adapted asquickly as possible.—AFP

Pak skier defeats Indianopponent in AsianAlpine Ski C’ship

ISLAMABAD—Olympian Mohammad Karim of Pakistan hasbeaten his Indian opponent Mohammad Arif in the giantslalom event of Asian Alpine Ski Championship 2015, be-ing held in Yongpyong, South Korea.

According to information received here on Tues-day, Karim started his run with tremendous power andtechnique and clinched 13th position, whereas his closerival Indian international skier Arif captured 14th posi-tion.

Another Pakistani Mir Nawaz remained at number 16th.India participated with four experienced men skiers.

Their two skiers could not get any berth and were dis-qualified from the race. However, India’s Rohait Thakurmanaged to get 15th position.

As many as 35 competitors from 23 Asian countriesparticipated in the giant slalom competition.

Korean skiers who well-equipped and had benefit ofhomeground won gold and bronze, while silver medalwas won by Iranian skier.

Meanwhile, in ladies competition total 23 skiers par-ticipated Pakistan, which first time sent two girls AminaWalli and Fatima Sohail could get 14th and 23rd positions,respectively.—APP

CANBERRA—Hashim Amla and Faf duPlessis hit centuries, while Dale Steynshone in his 100th one-day interna-tional, as South Africa showcasedtheir prowess with a 201-run rout ofIreland in the World Cup on Tuesday.

Amla scored 159 off 128 balls tobecome the fastest man to reach 20ODI centuries and du Plessis made 109as the Proteas piled up a massive 411for four after taking first strike atCanberra’s Manuka Oval.

Steyn put aside worries of moun-tain fires near his home in Cape Townas he bowled a hostile opening spellto wreck Ireland with two wickets inhis first three overs.

The fast bowler, who had grabbedjust three wickets in South Africa’s firstthree pool matches, finished with twofor 39 and Kyle Abbott grabbed fourfor 21 as Ireland were bundled out for210 in 45 overs.

The Irish were reduced to 21 forthree by the fifth over and slipped to48 for five by the 11th before AndyBalbirnie (58) and Kevin O’Brien (48)led a late revival by adding 81 for thesixth wicket.

South Africa’s third win in fourmatches brought them level on sixpoints with defending champions In-dia, who have played one less match,in Pool B.

Ireland have four points from threegames.

Amla and du Plessis put on 247 off217 balls for the second wicket to liftSouth Africa to the second highesttotal in World Cup history, just tworuns behind India’s record 413 for fiveagainst Bermuda in 2007.

It was the second successive 400-plus total for the Proteas in the cur-rent tournament, following their 408 forfive against the West Indies in Sydneylast week in which skipper AB deVilliers hammered 162 off 66 balls.

With victory almost assured, deVilliers used eight bowlers — includ-ing himself — ahead of tougher games.

Amla smashed 16 boundaries andfour sixes, while du Plessis contrib-

South Africa pummel Irelandwith 201-run defeat

uted 10 fours and a six in a scintillat-ing display of attacking batting on adry, run-laden pitch. Both batsmenwere dismissed in the space of threeovers, but Rilee Rossouw hit an un-beaten 61 off 30 balls and DavidMiller chipped in with 46 not out asSouth Africa hammered 131 runs inthe last 10 overs.

Prior to Amla and du Plessis’sstand, Ireland were initially in the gamewhen seamer John Mooney, whosefirst two overswere maidens, hadQuinton de Kockcaught behind forone.

South Africawould have beenin further troublewhen KevinO’Brien, who be-came Ireland’sm o s t - c a p p e dplayer on Tues-day with 87 ODIa p p e a r a n c e s ,came on in thesixth over andnearly claimed awicket with hisfirst ball. Amla,then on 10, flickeduppishly to shortmid-wicket whereEd Joyce, nor-mally a safecatcher, droppedthe ball after get-ting both handsto it.

Ireland paiddearly for thelapse as seamerMax Sorensenconceded 24 runsin one over, withAmla smashinghim for two sixesand a four and duPlessis lofting himfor six.

In the second

powerplay, Amla took 26 runs off oneMooney over with a sequence of two,four, four, six, four, six. An additionalrun came off a no-ball.Amla’s career-best century, in his 108th innings, wasa new record, with India’s Virat Kohlibeing the next fastest to reach 20 ODIhundreds in 133 innings.

South Africa next play Pakistan inAuckland on March 7, while Irelandtake on Zimbabwe in Hobart the sameday.—AFP

NELSON—Having tested a Full-Membernation in Nelson, then played out a thrilleragainst the leading Associate of the tour-nament at the Gabba, UAE’s fall to earthagainst India was dramatic. Having onlyhad one day to prepare for that game inPerth, UAE were undone by the bounce RAshwin gleaned from the WACA surface.

They have not had much time to pre-pare for the other South Asian giant either.UAE flew to Napier on Monday, and havehad just one full training session and anoptional one before the match. They will,however, be comforted in the knowledgethat McLean Park is no WACA ground.Palm trees skirt the periphery, and a seabreeze blows through this venue as well,but the pitch is sure to be friendlier; Napieris routinely the highest-scoring ground inNew Zealand.

Pakistan are similarly hamstrung in themost suffocated week of their schedule,and have had even less time to recover fromtheir outing against Zimbabwe in Brisbane.This match will be the middle encounter oftheir three in seven days. Their fieldingtraining, in particular, was carried out withmodest intensity.

The batting is still decidedly lukewarm,but Pakistan will be encouraged by thesparking to life of their most penetrativequicks, who split eight wickets down the

Pakistan seek more points in packed weekmiddle against Zimbabwe. Even if theNapier pitch is docile, will UAE capablyhandle the bounce of Mohammad Irfan orthe pace of Wahab Riaz? Many Pakistanfans hope their team will gather pace andprovide therollicking fin-ish the 1992side man-aged, andwith a win inthe tanknow, Paki-stan are ex-pected to ex-tend thesurge aheadof the bigm a t c ha g a i n s tSouth Africaon Saturday.In the spotlight

Having begun life in Sri Lanka and cuthis teeth at Colombo’s St. Peter’s College,Andri Berenger has since represented age-group teams in both Sri Lanka and UAE. Areliable opening batsman by trade, his teamhas not yet seen the best of the 23-year-old in this tournament.

With opening partner Amjad Ali also inmediocre form, an improvement on

Berenger’s scores of 22, 13 and 4 so farmay see his team achieve their first open-ing stand worth more than 50, this tourna-ment.

The World Cup is also yet to see thebest ofS o h a i bM a q s o o d ,who at hisb r u i s i n gbest, canmarshal themiddle oversand navi-gate trickychases withthe best ofthem. He hasb e e ns t e a d i l ysinking in

the batting order this tournament. He camein at no. 5 against India, went to no. 6against West Indies, then batted lower thanShahid Afridi, at no. 7, against Zimbabwe(perhaps the side-effect of an effort to haveAfridi spur a flagging run rate). He is adeptat both collecting risk-free runs into the out-field and bludgeoning balls to the leg side,and if he can discover that form again, Pa-kistan may just string some middle-orderpartnerships together.

Teams newsBoth Sarfraz Ahmed and Umar Akmal

had keeping gloves on at training, whichsuggests Akmal will be allowed to continueas keeper while Sarfraz sits out. Pakistanmight consider bringing in legspinner YasirShah for quick Rahat Ali.Pakistan (probable): 1 Nasir Jamshed, 2Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Haris Sohail, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Umar Akmal (wk), 6 ShahidAfridi, 7 Sohaib Maqsood, 8 Wahab Riaz, 9Sohail Khan, 10 Rahat Ali/Yasir Shah, 11Mohammad Irfan

UAE may tweak their top order follow-ing the Perth collapse, but spinner RohanMustafa’s place may also be in contention,because he has been wicketless so far.Offspinner Nasir Aziz seems likeliest to re-place him.UAE (probable): 1 Amjad Ali, 2 AndriBerenger, 3 Krishna Chandran, 4 KhurramKhan, 5 Swapnil Patil (wk), 6 ShaimanAnwar, 7 Rohan Mustafa/Nasir Aziz, 8Amjad Javed, 9 Mohammad Naveed, 10Mohammad Tauqir (capt), 11 ManjulaGurugePitch and conditionsA warm, blue Napier day is forecast, whichmeans conditions overhead should be assuited to run-making as those underfoot.The last time Pakistan played here, NewZealand hit 369 in the first innings.—AFP

Shahid Afridi reacts during a training session ahead ofPakistan’s World Cup Pool B match against United ArabEmirates in Napier. South Africa innings:

Amla b McBrine ........ 159Kock b Mooney ............ 1Plessis b O’Brien ....... 109de Villiers b McBrine .. 24Miller not out ............... 46Rossouw not out ........ 61Extras: (b 1, w 7, nb 3) . 11Total: (4 wickets) ....... 411Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-259,3-299, 4-301Bowling: ......... O-M-R-WMooney .............. 7-2-52-1Sorensen ............ 6-0-76-0O’Brien ............... 7-0-95-1Dockrell ............ 10-0-56-0Stirling .............. 10-0-68-0McBrine ............ 10-0-63-2Ireland innings:Porterfield b Abbott .... 12Stirling b Steyn .............. 9Joyce c Amla b Steyn ... 0NJ O’Brien ............ c Amla

b Abbott ....................... 14Balbirnie ....................... 58Wilson lbw b Abbott .... 0KJ O’Brien b Abbott ... 48Mooney b de Villiers .... 8Dockrell b Morkel ....... 25Sorensen c de Kockb Morkel ....................... 22McBrine not out ............ 2Extras: (lb 3, w 9) ......... 12Total: (all out) ............ 210Fall of wickets: 1-17, 2-21, 3-21, 4-42, 5-48, 6-129, 7-150,8-167, 9-200, 10-210Bowling: ......... O-M-R-WSteyn ................... 8-0-39-2Abbott .............. 8-0-21-04Morkel ................ 9-0-34-3Imran Tahir ....... 10-1-50-0F Behardien ........ 2-0-13-0Rossouw ............ 2-0-13-0du Plessis ........... 4-0-30-0de Villiers .............. 2-0-7-1

CANBERRA: Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis plundered 247, Ireland v South Africa, World Cup 2015, Group B.

Wahab aims to become‘genuine all-rounder’

NAPIER—Paceman Wahab Riaz is aiming to become agenuine all-rounder after starring with both bat and ballat the World Cup.

The 29-year-old smashed his maiden one-day half-century besides taking four for 45 in Pakistan’s hard-fought win over Zimbabwe in Brisbane on Sunday, theirfirst victory of this World Cup.

Riaz helped skipper Misbah-ul-Haq (73) to lift Paki-stan from a precarious 155 for six during their 47-runstand for the seventh wicket

He then reduced Zimbabwe, along with fellow left-arm paceman Mohammad Irfan (four for 30), to 215 all

out, chasing 236, as Pakistan won by 20 runs after PoolB defeats by both India and the West Indies.

“It was my best innings,” Riaz told reporters aheadof Pakistan’s fourth pool match against the United ArabEmirates in Napier on Wednesday.

“It was much-needed so I had to give support ini-tially and then hit out at the end. I am happy that I playedmy part in both batting and bowling.”

Riaz said he wanted to become an all-rounder butthat this would take time.

“Obviously, I cannot become an all-rounder over-night and with one or two good innings. The team man-agement has worked really hard on me and I am encour-aged to bat in the nets, so I am trying to achieve thatwith resolve and determination,” said Riaz.

Riaz’s career has suffered due to injury problems anda lack of consistency since he took an impressive fivewickets during Pakistan’s defeat by eventual champi-ons India in the 2011 World Cup semi-final at Mohali.

“I think after Mohali we have played most of ourcricket in the UAE,” said Riaz of the Gulf state which hasstaged most of Pakistan’s ‘home’ matches since the coun-try became a “no go” area for international sides follow-ing a terror attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in2009.

“In the UAE, spinners did well and we had SaeedAjmal as the number one spinner. Ajmal is not here, sowe each have more responsibility and everyone is try-ing to play his part,” said Riaz.

Ajmal was suspended over an illegal bowling actionin September and was only cleared after Pakistan an-nounced their World Cup squad last month.

Riaz added having legendary paceman Waqar Younisas head coach had been a boost to Pakistan’s attack.

“Waqar was a great bowler and having him as coachhas helped a great deal as he shares his experience withall the bowlers,” said Riaz.—AFP

Casino controversy

MUZAFFAR ALI

LAHORE—Pakistan Cricket Board has cleared chief se-lector, Moin Khan from alleged allegations of gambling

in Brisbane, Australia ahead of World Cup match.“PCB has accepted the plea of Moin who in his writ-

ten statement stated that he along with his wife went toa restaurant located inside a Casino for dining and norhe or his wife did gambling there,” said Chairman, PCB,Shaharyar Khan while talking to media here on Tuesdayafter a half an hour meeting with the Chief selector.

He said Moin stuck to his earlier statement which hehad already submitted to the PCB after his visit to theCasino and insisted his only aim to go there was to dinenot gambling and after doing so he returned to team’shotel. “In his statement Moin accepted that going toCasino was a mistakes for which he apologized to theentire nation and the PCB, said the Chairman PCB add-ing, “We conducted an inquiry to look into the allegedallegations of gambling which also endorsed Moin’sstance of just dinning there and nothing else”.

He said in Australia and New Zealand there are a lotof Casinos and Moin did not violate the discipline byeating in one of the restaurant of a Casino. “What wasobjectionable was going to Casino and Moin has ten-dered apology on this act and thus the issue standclosed,” he added.

Chairman PCB said Moin will not go back to Austra-lia to remain with the team but he would continue per-forming the duty of Chief Selector.

He disclosed that he would be visiting India fromMarch 5 to take up the issue of revival of Pak-India cricketseries on bilateral basis. “I would also be requesting ourForeign Office to play its due role in the resumption ofPak-India ties on regular basis,” he maintained.

Afghanistan ‘notscared’ of Australia

PERTH—Afghanistan cap-tain Mohammad Nabi has in-sisted his side are “notscared” of Australia headinginto Wednesday´s WorldCup clash in Perth.

“We are not scared ofthem, but we respect thembecause they have good at-tacking bowlers and qoodquality batsmen and fieldersas well,” Nabi told reportersat the WACA ground onTuesday.

Afghanistan have pro-vided one of the most com-pelling stories of this World Cup, with their thrilling one-wicket win over Scotland in Dunedin last time out one ofthe highlights of the competition so far.

But the pace and bounce of the WACA pitch hastroubled far more experienced overseas batsmen than arein the Afghanistan line-up and Australia have the fastbowlers to make the most of the conditions.

International Cricket Council chief executive DavidRichardson warned last week that the four non-Test orAssociate countries taking part in the tournament had yetto face their toughest assignments at the World Cup.

They don´t come much harder than playing Australiain Perth but Nabi was heartened by the way his side hadimproved since their lone previous one-day internationalmeeting. Three years ago, Australia beat Afghanistan by66 runs in Sharjah, a match where Nabi made 46 beforebeing bowled by left-arm quick Mitchell Johnson.

“We played against Australia in Sharjah. They scored272 and we scored 206,” said Nabi.

“It was a quite good experience against them. Our teamnow is better from that time.”

Amid much debate about the ICC´s plans to reducethe number of teams taking part at the 2019 World Cup inEngland to 10, Australia captain Michael Clarke insistedteams such as Afghanistan were worth their place.

And Nabi said his side were no longer star-struck whenthey came up against the world´s best players.—AFP

Clean chit handed toMoin by PCB chairman

Mr and Mrs Akira Ouchi, Consul-General of Japan, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Special Assistant to the Chief Minister, Sharmila Farooquiviewing the Japanese Dolls Exhibition.—PO photo by Sultan Chaki

Group photograph of Prof. Dr Hakim Abdul Hannan, Vice Chancellor at the Main Cam-pus of Hamdard University during 21st meeting of the Board of Directors.—PO photo

Women are seen stuffed inside a passenger bus while male passengers cling to the rooftop and doors as shortage of publictransport was observed in the city due to closure of CNG stations.

A NOVEL drug candidate against HIVhas been created by a joint team led byresearchers at The Scripps Research In-

stitute in Jupiter, FL. The scientists consider itto be so potent and effective that it could formthe basis of a vaccine alterna-tive. The scientists designed aprotein that simultaneouslybinds to two sites on the sur-face of the virus, which blocksit from entering a host cell.“Our compound is the broad-est and most potent entry in-hibitor described so far,” saysMichael Farzan, a ScrippsResearch Institute professorwho led the effort.

“Unlike antibodies, whichfail to neutralize a large frac-tion of HIV-1 strains,” contin-ues Farzan, “our protein hasbeen effective against allstrains tested, raising the pos-sibility it could offer an effec-tive HIV vaccine alternative.”Farzan claims that the projectis the culmination of more than a decade’s workon the biochemistry of how HIV enters cells.The results of the study, which are publishedin the journal Nature, demonstrate how the newdrug candidate blocked every strain of HIV-1,HIV-2 and SIV (simian immunodeficiency vi-rus), including the variants that are most diffi-cult to block.

The new drug was also found to protectagainst doses of the virus higher than thosethat normally occur in human transmission forat least 8 months after injection. When a cellis infected by HIV, it inserts its own single-stranded RNA into the host cell. This insert ofgenetic code allows the virus to transform the

Designer protein ‘blocksall known strains of HIV’

cell into a “manufacturing site” for HIV. How-ever, the Scripps researchers had previouslyinvestigated a co-receptor - CCR5 - that couldbe used to prevent infection by manipulatingrelated proteins. CCR5 is the first “anchor

point” on the surface of a cellthat HIV binds to before it canpenetrate the cell.

“When we did our origi-nal work on CCR5, peoplethought it was interesting, butno one saw the therapeuticpotential,” says Farzan. “Thatpotential is starting to be re-alized.” Using the CCR5work as a point of departure,the scientists designed a pro-tein that mimics the receptorand simultaneously binds totwo sites on the surface of thevirus, which prevents it fromentering a host cell.

“When antibodies try tomimic the receptor, they toucha lot of other parts of the viralenvelope that HIV can change

with ease. We’ve developed a direct mimic ofthe receptors without providing many avenuesthat the virus can use to escape, so we catchevery virus thus far.” A delivery mechanismfor the drug candidate was designed using anengineered adeno-associated virus. This is asmall, relatively harmless virus that does notcause disease. The adeno-associated virus turnscells into manufacturing sites that churn outenough of the new protective protein to poten-tially last for decades. The data published bythe team shows that the new drug candidatebinds more strongly to the HIV-1 envelope thanthe best neutralizing antibodies currentlyknown to work against the virus.

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—The Amity Internationalsaid the military courts were need of thehour and the 21st constitutional amend-ment was unavoidable for Pakistan’s in-ternal security and elimination of height-ened crime rate and terrorism.

Pakistan Army were the only capableand disciplined force in Pakistan that hadreacted timely against the fast spreadingterror organisations and they would alsoensure complete peace and tranquillity in

Speedy trial of terrorists

Amity Int’l says military courtswere need of hour

the country so that the country could take itsway forward to the state of prosperity.

The Amity International President Ad-vocate Mehfoozyar Khan told this to themeeting of the Amity International held Tues-day at the residence of the President. Thismeeting was attended by Zafar AhmedGhauri, S M Bukhari, Shahid Mirza, ImranShahzad, Irfan Aligi, advocateEhtishamuddin, advocate Asadullah Khan,Saima Ahmed, Abida Khan and other mem-bers of the executive body.

He said trial of terrorists and convicts

should take an immediate start at the mili-tary courts as the military courts were theonly legal forum that could ensure speedyjustice because the people of the countryhad laid their trust in military courts forthe riddance of mounting threats and ac-tivities of terror organisations of whichthe APS carnage was one of the bloodi-est act.

Khan while addressing the meetingshowed concern over escalating prices ofcommodities especially that were unavoid-able for poor group of people of society.

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—The Fund for Protected Areas(FPA), Ministry of Climate Change, Govern-ment of Pakistan, hold its 21st meeting of theBoard of Directors at Karachi Main Campus ofHamdard University that hosted the event.

FPA board meets atHamdard University

Being a bona fide member of the Board, Prof.Dr. Hakim Abdul Hannan, Vice Chancellor,Hamdard University attended the meeting and ap-prised the Board of main research activities, withfocus on medicinal plants, being conducted atHamdard University and scope of field based re-search in three National Parks in the country.

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Sindh Ministerfor Local Government Ar-chives and InformationSharjeel Innam Memon saidthe Sindh Local GovernmentDepartment had for the firsttime in history took steps formaking financial data publicthrough website of the depart-ment.

Thus the common mancould easily learn about spend-ing public money in sections ofpublic development works.

The Minister, however, al-leged former President PervezMusharraf for destroying the

Musharraf destroyedLocal Govt system: Sharjeel

STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI—Pakistan People’s Party(PPP) MNA Shahjehan Balouch andMPAs Jawaid Nagori, Sajid Jokhio andSania Naz Balouch in a joint statementvehemently condemned Dr ZulfiquarMirza for his allegations on formerPresident and PPP Co-Chairman AsifAli Zardari.

The PPP MNA and MPAs said DrZulfiquar Mirza had stabbed in the backof his raiser and even damaged the PPPat the behest of some unseen force,

Dr Zulfiqar Mirza now an obsoletecharacter in politics: PPP MNA, MPAs

local government systemthrough Mayors for givingthem powers for deciding aboutpublic health, education andother key portfolios. However,the incumbent provincial gov-ernment was focusing on realimprovement in the local gov-ernment system and for thatpurpose, the civil bureaucracy

(Commissioners and DeputyCommissioners) had beengiven financial powers.

He said that the Nazimswere made so powerful thatthey were the authority inMusharraf’s regime to decideabout the annual confidentialreports of SSPs.

He said land of local gov-

ernment department were allot-ted to blue-eyed and jobs weregiven to party workers in greatnumbers due to which the lo-cal government departmentwas paralysed as it failed to dis-burse salaries and perks to theemployees. However, Sindhgovernment had taken sternsteps for removing ghost em-

ployees and their salarieswould shortly be disbursedthrough Sindh Bank under bio-metric verification system.

While talking about thecampaign, “Clean-Green andPeaceful Sindh”, the Ministerlauded the Muttahida QaumiMovement for supporting theprovincial government.

which wanted to limit the party’s politicalstruggle, which always pertained to com-mon man’s interest.

They asked Mirza to first look aroundas he had one MPA and one MNA in hisown home and prior to alleging the PPPCo-Chairman should ask his family to getreleased of the burden of Zardari’s obliga-tions and indeed Asif Ali Zardari was thepersonality that offered lucrative positionsto the Mirza family.

They said it was now an open secretthat Mirza had ruined the party especiallyin Karachi city and had covertly worked

for the interest of some unseen forcethrough which he had thrown Lyari andyouth of Lyari in hell of killings and ex-ploitation.

Nonetheless, Mirza was workingone step ahead at the dictation of theconspirators against the PPP.

They said Mirza had a big positiontill he was associated with the PPP andafter playing at the hands of conspira-tors, there was no room for him in theparty and even any other political partywould think for a hundred times to ac-commodate in party.

Visually impaired protesters are staging a sit-in on the stairs of the Punjab Assembly to remind the provincial government of its promise to ensure theirquota in government jobs and regularisation of their services.

Employees of Wapda hold a demonstration in support of their demands at Club Chowk.

A view of the rainwater accumulated on the road outside Qaddafi Stadium.

A NOVEL drug candidate against HIVhas been created by a joint team led byresearchers at The Scripps Research In-

stitute in Jupiter, FL. The scientists consider itto be so potent and effective that it could formthe basis of a vaccine alterna-tive. The scientists designed aprotein that simultaneouslybinds to two sites on the sur-face of the virus, which blocksit from entering a host cell.“Our compound is the broad-est and most potent entry in-hibitor described so far,” saysMichael Farzan, a ScrippsResearch Institute professorwho led the effort.

“Unlike antibodies, whichfail to neutralize a large frac-tion of HIV-1 strains,” contin-ues Farzan, “our protein hasbeen effective against allstrains tested, raising the pos-sibility it could offer an effec-tive HIV vaccine alternative.”Farzan claims that the projectis the culmination of more than a decade’s workon the biochemistry of how HIV enters cells.The results of the study, which are publishedin the journal Nature, demonstrate how the newdrug candidate blocked every strain of HIV-1,HIV-2 and SIV (simian immunodeficiency vi-rus), including the variants that are most diffi-cult to block.

The new drug was also found to protectagainst doses of the virus higher than thosethat normally occur in human transmission forat least 8 months after injection. When a cellis infected by HIV, it inserts its own single-stranded RNA into the host cell. This insert ofgenetic code allows the virus to transform the

Designer protein ‘blocksall known strains of HIV’

cell into a “manufacturing site” for HIV. How-ever, the Scripps researchers had previouslyinvestigated a co-receptor - CCR5 - that couldbe used to prevent infection by manipulatingrelated proteins. CCR5 is the first “anchor

point” on the surface of a cellthat HIV binds to before it canpenetrate the cell.

“When we did our origi-nal work on CCR5, peoplethought it was interesting, butno one saw the therapeuticpotential,” says Farzan. “Thatpotential is starting to be re-alized.” Using the CCR5work as a point of departure,the scientists designed a pro-tein that mimics the receptorand simultaneously binds totwo sites on the surface of thevirus, which prevents it fromentering a host cell.

“When antibodies try tomimic the receptor, they toucha lot of other parts of the viralenvelope that HIV can change

with ease. We’ve developed a direct mimic ofthe receptors without providing many avenuesthat the virus can use to escape, so we catchevery virus thus far.” A delivery mechanismfor the drug candidate was designed using anengineered adeno-associated virus. This is asmall, relatively harmless virus that does notcause disease. The adeno-associated virus turnscells into manufacturing sites that churn outenough of the new protective protein to poten-tially last for decades. The data published bythe team shows that the new drug candidatebinds more strongly to the HIV-1 envelope thanthe best neutralizing antibodies currentlyknown to work against the virus.

MUZAFFAR ALI

LAHORE—On Direction of PunjabChief Minister Muhammad ShahbazSharif, Finance Department has ap-proved Rs. 48.600 million to purchase4 buses for Ameer ud Din Medical Col-lege to be used for transportation of stu-dents. The said buses would be pur-chased during current fiscal year.

General (R) Zia ud Din Butt, Chair-

Rs 48m approved to purchase 4 busesfor Ameer-ud-Din Medical College

man Board of Management Post Gradu-ate Medical Institute and Lahore GeneralHospital, had requested Punjab Chief Min-ister to provide the facility of buses forstudents to Ameer ud Din Medical Col-lege like other government colleges so asto solve their transport problems.

He told in this regard that after its es-tablishment in 2012, under the principalship of Prof. Anjum Habib Vohra, Ameerud Din Medical College has yielded ex-

cellent results proving the fact that it isthe top college of medical education ofthe province having all basic facilitieslike experienced faculty and researchopportunities of international standard.

He said that by giving funds toAmeer ud Din Medical College theChief Minister has showed that heknows all the needs and requirementsof the students having a strong commit-ment to fulfil his responsibilities.

MUZAFFAR ALI

LAHORE—Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Khan,Chairman, Punjab Halal DevelopmentAgency (PHDA) said that Pakistan is a natu-ral Hub of Halal trade as more than 97% ofthe country’s population is Muslim and theyproduce and consume Halal products, so Pa-kistan should be considered an establishedHalal Hub.

Talking to media persons at a press con-ference held here at Lahore Press Club onTuesday, Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Khansaid keeping in view the importance of Pa-kistan, PHDA is exploring the Halal tradepotential of Pakistan by conducting 4th In-ternational Halal Conference & Exhibition.

PHDA is educating the stakeholdersabout potential of Halal business availablein Pakistan.

He further said that Pakistan can play avital role in the promotion of Halal Industryround the globe with the help of stakehold-ers as it is also religious obligation of Mus-lims.

On the occasion he raised the questionabout quality and brand management of Pa-kistani export’s products and said that theyare not up to required international standards,

PHDA exploring Halaltrade potential in Pakistan

traders should raise their product and pack-ing quality to attract the customers.

He expressed that Pakistan has all re-quired resources to be the Halal product’scentre in the world but to tap the lion’s share;we need to develop international standardsproducts. He said that PHDA every year con-ducts the annual Halal Event to boost-upHalal Trade volume of Pakistan.

He also discussed about upcoming Eventand said that this year in collaboration withUSAID- Punjab Enabling EnvironmentProject (PEEP), PHDA has planned 4th In-ternational Halal Conference & Exhibition-2015 to be held at a local hotel on 10th to11th March, 2015, having prime objectivesto showcase the livestock and allied indus-tries potential of Pakistan among interna-tional community visiting Pakistan for thisEvent.

Agency has facilitated more than 30 in-ternational potential buyers and exhibitorsto visit Pakistan to observe the Livestock andHalal value chain in the country.

On a question, he replied that meat, poul-try, dairy and by-products, cosmetics, phar-maceuticals, beverages, Islamic financingand other related industries are eligible toparticipate in the event.

SALIM AHMED

LAHORE—The Provincial Minister forLaw, Excise & Taxation, Finance MujtabaShuja ur Rehman has said that in order toprovide civic amenities to every citizenof the country we have to control the rap-idly growing population, therefore, a com-prehensive awareness campaign will belaunched in the province.

He said that education and health ispriority of the present government so thatto provide quality educational and healthfacilities to every citizen, however, itcould be achieved only when our popu-lation remain within resources. However,he asked the public representatives andulema to come forward and to createawareness among general public againstthe menace of fatal diseases and brief thepeople regarding proactive measures of

Mujtaba for controllingrapidly growing population

critical diseases as well as proactive vac-cination of childhood diseases in theirKhutbaas and in their individuals com-munication, he added.

While talking to various delegations,Mujtaba Shuja ur Rehman said that thebudget allocated for education Rs.274 bil-lion which is 26.25 percent of total ex-penditures whereas the budget allocatedfor health Rs.121.80 billon which is 11.66percent of total expenditures of the gov-ernment. He said that the growth rate ofPunjab will be increased to eight percentduring next four years and in result of it,more than 70 lakh people will be able tolive above the poverty line whereas jobopportunities will also be available to 40lakh people. He said that 36 percent ofdevelopment budget has been allocatedfor south Punjab so that maximum devel-opment projects will be completed in the

less developed districts.Mujtaba Shuja ur Rehman said that the

government is implementing a 3-tier strat-egy of sensitizing population planning inthe province through proactive advocacycampaigns, enhancement and improve-ment in the operational efficiency of ser-vice delivery outlets and active commu-nity participation in the populationprogrammes. He said that government hasestablished 1500 family welfare centres,110 mobile service units, 118 family healthclinics and 1456 social mobilizes for theguidance and service delivery to the peopleregarding population welfare initiatives. Hesaid that increasing population affects oursocio-economic conditions also as 40 mil-lion people are living low poverty line, 58million people have no access to safe &clean drinking water, 59 million people areliving in one room house unit, whereas,

only 20 percent population have the facil-ity of trained birth attendant. He maintainedthat increasing population is deeply de-creasing our food stocks and now about70.7 million people are facing lack of foodand starvation in the world, whereas, ev-ery 6th person in developing country is thevictim of lack of food.

Mujtaba Shuja ur Rehman said thatlikewise 53 mini hospitals, at Tehsil levelare also going to be established to pro-vide vasectomy services. He said thatpopulation welfare programmes aim atimproving mother and neonatal’s healthas well as reducing population growthrate from 1.92% to 1.59 %. Likewise,non-programme outlets including activeparticipation of NGOs, ulema, media-men and other community leaders hasbeen ensured to realize the benefits ofsmall family to the people at large.

STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE—Punjab government on Tuesday lifted ban onposting and transfer of teachers. According to the details,Punjab government clarified that the transfers would only

Government lifts ban onposting, transfer of teachers

be carried out on merit basis whereas no transfer would bemade for teachers teaching at schools already deficient ofeducators. District Education Officers (DEOs), on the otherhand, called upon applications from teachers, awaiting theirtransfers, till March 7.

STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE—At least 13 peoplegot injured on Tuesday in vari-ous incidents of road mishapsas fog blanketed the plain ar-eas of Punjab after two days ofincessant rains.

Many local and interna-tional flight schedules weredisrupted due to fog causing

Road mishaps injure 13as fog blankets Punjab

trouble to the passengers at theairport.

Fog clogged the roadwayfrom Lahore to Sheikhupuradropping the visibility to zerowhereas visibility from

Sheikhupura to Khanka Dograremained restricted to 25meters. Heavy traffic, there-fore, was not permitted to geton the road.

In Hafizabad, collision of

a school and passenger van atKaleke Mandi injured six in-cluding five kids. Injured werethence shifted to District Head-quarters (DHQ) Hospital.

Several cars bumped into

each other at Lahore Road nearTabba Rehmat in Sheikhupuraas fog clouded vision whereasan auto rickshaw met an acci-dent at Gujranwala Road injur-ing seven people.