New US approach towards Pakistan excites Bilawal
“Not only I am presently surprised but I am absolutely impressed by the new foreign policy approach of the US towards Pakistan,” said Bilawal while responding to a question related to Pakistan-US ties at Wilson Centre in Washington. Bilawal said Pakistan and US have for long time seen each other through the prism of Afghanistan. Bilawal also cited a recent visit of US Special Representative on Business and Commercial Affairs Dilawar Syed to Pakistan, saying that bilateral ties between the two countries were improving. The foreign minister said that maintaining relations with India were difficult today than it was in 2010 as “Mr Modi is not Mr Manmohan Singh”. Speaking about Afghanistan, Bilawal urged the international community to increase engagement with the interim-government led by Taliban to increase their capability to take on terrorists outfit.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 27, 2022 20:14 UTC
Biggest challenge in decades: Sharif calls on nation to help flood victims
The prime minister arrived in Dadu district in the morning to oversee the relief and rehabilitation efforts. The prime minister reiterated Pakistan alone could not overcome the challenge of massive floods and called upon the world to amplify its assistance to Pakistan. Sharif was apprised that floods affected all areas of district Dadu, leaving 37 persons dead while damaging its infrastructure and crops. During his interaction with patients at a medical camp, the prime minister inquired about their health and assured them of the best possible treatment. The prime minister resumed visits to the flood-ravaged cities within 24 hours of his return from London where he had gone to meet his brother and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to discuss the appointment of the next army chief.
Source:The Nation
September 27, 2022 17:17 UTC
PTI demands probe into govt audio leaks
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and key members of his party and family became the centre of attention on Sunday after audio recordings purportedly of their conversation surfaced on social media. The audio clips drew sharp criticism from the opposition, which expressed concerns over the security of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). The PTI leader also alleged that the hacker who leaked the audio recording had claimed he had “more important” recordings which had not been released yet. Quoting a local news channel, he stated that the federal government was in conversation with the hacker to prevent further audio leaks. If there was any doubt of the nexus between chief election commissioner and imported govt, there is none left after the latest audio leaks.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 27, 2022 09:39 UTC
Deep pockets
Friendly countries have come out in support by contributing to the relief efforts, and there is hope that the process would continue. International agencies, with relevant expertise, may do a better job of estimating the worth of the losses if the government so requests. If mere ‘lip service’ could somehow be monetised, the poor would have received trillions by now. It is time for our own affluent to try to move beyond lip service and do something concrete. Also, the disbursement of aid received from international and local sources should be overseen by people with a proven track record of integrity.
Source:Pakistan Today
September 27, 2022 06:54 UTC
Solar net metering to offer free power consumption
Net metering is a billing mechanism that credits solar energy system proprietors for the power they add to the grid. The solar net metering policy was introduced after careful examination of successful models all over the world. The unprecedented potential of and growth in solar power generation poses a serious threat to the vested interests such as independent power producers (IPPs). The government must undertake a review of existing solar net metering and identify gaps in order to improve the mechanism. The government should allow the net metering policy to work under the market mechanism and not tolerate interference from external actors.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 27, 2022 01:45 UTC
Monday Mailbag – What do you expect from Warren Foegele?
This week we’re looking at expectations for Warren Foegele, Jesse Puljujarvi’s value, McDavid’s point pace, and a whole lot more. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowBaggedmilk:Dylan Holloway for me. 2) Fitz asks – What do you expect from Warren Foegele in his second year with the Oilers? Jason Gregor:Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowI expect he will be better because he’ll have a more defined role. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowRobin Brownlee:Teams — general managers and hockey ops people — use different numbers than many of the social media folks who consider themselves analytics experts.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2022 21:23 UTC
Think global, act local
It seems like a high price to pay for a nation that contributes just 0.8% of global emissions. Pakistan’s less than 1% of global emissions are manifested via local meteorological abnormalities such as smog caused by inefficient automobiles, industries, power plants, and oil refineries. While the bulk of climate change legislation and initiatives have focused on global and national levels, there is minimal opportunity for public participation at the local level. Through a participative approach, scientists, decision-makers, and planners will be able to analyse climate change implications and devise workable solutions at the local level. The programme’s objectives could include:One – Transparent dissemination of information about public processes and climate change at the local level and involving local stakeholders in the decision-making process.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2022 08:31 UTC
In dry run to save Earth, NASA to crash spacecraft into asteroid on Monday
Share:NASA is going to smash a spacecraft into an asteroid purposely on Monday at 7.14 pm EST (1214GMT) in a first-of-its-kind mission to protect the Earth. The project, called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), will intentionally crash the space probe to see whether deflecting space rock could one day prevent the planet from being destroyed by a potentially catastrophic impact from an asteroid. “It’s a very complicated game of cosmic billiards,” said astronomer Alan Fitzsimmons, a member of the NASA Dart investigation team, in an interview. The DART spacecraft will target a giant space rock (525 ft./160 m in diameter) called Dimorphos at a blistering speed of 15,000 mi per hour (24,140 km per hour). NASA says the goal is not to obliterate the asteroid but rather to see whether the collision can alter the space rock's orbit.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2022 05:03 UTC
Ayaz Amir remanded in daughter-in-law's murder case
An Islamabad court on Sunday granted one day’s physical remand of senior journalist Ayaz Amir who was arrested after his daughter-in-law was found murdered in her home on Friday. The 37-year-old victim identified as Sara Bibi is suspected of having been murdered by her husband Shahnawaz – Ayaz Amir’s son. Sources furthered that Shahzad Town Police had later named Ayaz Amir in the case. They had said that in the light of the interrogation of Shahnawaz, the police had obtained the arrest warrant of Ayaz Amir from the area magistrate on Saturday. However, the police requested the court for a four-day physical remand of the accused arguing that “the accused Ayaz Amir should be investigated”.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 26, 2022 04:30 UTC
Rabbani asks Alvi to stop creating political space for himself
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani said on Sunday that President Arif Alvi should stop trying to create political space for himself as this is in violation of the 1973 Constitution. The former chairman Senate maintained that the president is not acceptable to political stakeholders for a political dialogue because he is “not an honest broker”. Read SC judges urge parliament to initiate Article 6 against Imran, President Alvi, others“Under the constitutional framework the president has no such role nor will the Parliament allow him to toy with the Constitution, 1973,” he added. The PPP senior leader further stated that if the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) had the required members in the National Assembly it shoukd have impeached Alvi. A joint parliament session will be convened in the first week of October.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 26, 2022 03:46 UTC
BTBU-ECOSF JTC to hold training programme on Powering Belt and Road - Li-ion Batteries
Share:ISLAMABAD-BTBU–ECOSF Joint Training Centre will host its sixth training programme titled “Powering Belt and Road – Lithium – ion batteries” on September 28 to guide entrepreneurs on manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries for energy storage. The battery energy storage provided several valuable services and advantages in stationary, renewable grid services and electric mobility, he said. In 2021, the global Li-ion battery market reached 545 GWh, and China accounted for more than half of the total. Increasing demand for new energy vehicles was one of the main factors contributing to the recent surge in China’s lithium battery industry. Additionally, six of the top 10 lithium battery manufacturers in the world were from China.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2022 02:18 UTC
Business And Markets
Business And Markets Three-Way Agreement to Help Domestic Producers The Ministry of Economy, Central Bank of Iran and Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade signed an agreement on Saturday to enhance financial support for domestic producers. The ministry said the decline in money...Business And Markets TSE Down 0.3% The Tehran Stock Exchange main index TEDPIX lost 4,096.55 points or 0.3% on Monday to end at 1,373,821.43. "Rules include caps on...Business And Markets Stocks Close Week Lower The benchmark of Tehran Stock Exchange, TEDPIX, lost 4,027.53 points or 0.29% at the close of trading week Wednesday to end at 1,389,099. A total of 8.38 billion shares worth 76.14 trillion rials...Business And Markets Crypto-Rial in Pre-Test Phase The Central Bank of Iran has launched a pre-test phase of the Crypto-Rial, the central bank digital currency, the governor said Wednesday. “At this phase, Bank Melli Iran and Bank Mellat have...Business And Markets Tehran Municipality Sells Property via IME Tehran Municipality on Wednesday its first real estate offer at the Iran Mercantile Exchange.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 26, 2022 01:06 UTC
Prudent Public Expenditure Management
Revenue generation and Public Expenditure Management (PEM) are two distinct streams of public financial management which complement each other in attaining the strategic macroeconomic objectives of the state. It is significant to understand how public funds are allocated, how are they spent and what outcome is attained as a result of public expenditure. A resource scarce economy like Pakistan needs to have a robust and efficient Public Expenditure Management (PEM) system to ensure that its financial resources are utilized in the most prudent manner while minimizing the chances of misuse or waste. A rupee saved through prudent public expenditure management is rupee earned for Pakistan. The government functionaries made responsible to prepare budget and incur the expenditure need to ensure the operational efficiency of public expenditure while providing public services at a reasonable quality and cost.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2022 00:13 UTC
World Tourism Day on September 27
Share:ISLAMABAD - World Tourism Day will be marked on September 27 (Tuesday) across the globe including Pakistan with the aim to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values. World Tourism Day recognizes the importance of tourists and the tourism industry across the globe. The United Nations’ World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) invites people worldwide to participate in World Tourism Day on September 27 every year. Many tourism enterprises and organizations, as well as government agencies with a special interest in tourism, celebrate the event with various special events and festivities. Different types of competitions, such as photo competitions promoting tourism, as well as tourism award presentations in areas such as ecotourism, are held on World Tourism Day.
Source:The Nation
September 25, 2022 07:52 UTC
PREP SOCCER: Panthers fall flat against Willamette
EUGENE — South Medford’s boys soccer team made the trip north to Willamette but didn’t get much else in return as the Panthers suffered a shocking 6-0 loss in Southwest Conference play Saturday. “The boys just mentally and physically didn’t get off the bus,” said Panthers head coach Claudio Villa, whose team dropped to 4-3-1 overall and 2-2-1 in SWC play. South Medford freshman Omar Serrano provided a bright spot off the bench as a creative midfielder. “He was able to recover the ball a lot and create for us. Gibbs joined Iniana Hammond in recording five shots on goal as Ashland (5-0) outshot Henley 19-4 overall — 11-3 in shots on frame.
Source:The Express Tribune
September 25, 2022 07:25 UTC