Category: Uncategorized

  • FIA acquits Imran’s health aide Dr Zafar Mirza in masks smuggling case

    FIA acquits Imran’s health aide Dr Zafar Mirza in masks smuggling case

    The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has acquitted Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Zafar Mirza after probing his alleged involvement in the smuggling of protective masks amid COVID-19 pandemic.

    According to FIA sources, no allegation was proved against Dr Mirza as the petitioner failed to provide evidence of his allegations during the agency’s investigation into the export of 20 million masks to China.

    Sources said that according to FIA’s report, no collusion was proved in issuance of permit for export of the masks and the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) allowed the export under rules and regulations.

    It may be noted that the complaint in this regard was registered by Young Pharmacists’ Association (YPA) Secretary General Dr Furqan Ibrahim with the PM’s Complaint Cell.

    According to the complainant, 20 million masks were smuggled out of Pakistan allegedly by the SAPM in collusion with DRAP Deputy Director Ghazanfar Ali Khan.

    Meanwhile, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has also decided to launch an inquiry into the allegations against Dr Mirza.

  • Mansha Pasha says her upcoming drama is not inspired by Bollywood film ‘Judaai’

    Mansha Pasha says her upcoming drama is not inspired by Bollywood film ‘Judaai’

    Ever since the teasers of Mansha Pasha, Sonya Hussyn and Zahid Ahmed’s Mohabbat Tujhe Alvida released, audiences have been speculating and discussing the drama’s striking resemblance to Bollywood film Judaai starring Anil Kapoor, Sri Devi and Urmila Matondkar.

    Following extensive debate on social media, Mansha took to social media to clarify that the story of her upcoming drama is inspired by the Sindhi folk tale Lilan Chanesar. The actor added that the Bollywood film was also inspired by the same folklore. According to Wikipedia, Judaai is about a woman, Kajal, who lured by wealth, asks her husband, Raj, an honest engineer, to get married to Janhvi, the rich daughter of his boss. However, Kajal soon realises that the wealth has pulled her away from her family. The film also featured a song Mujhe Ek Pal Chain Na Aye which was copied from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s qawwali Sanu Ek Pal Chain Na Aave.

    Meanwhile, it is being reported that Zahid has no idea that the drama’s plot was “inspired” or copied from somewhere.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CBWeCLwFphO/

    Read more – Zahid Ahmed apologises to the nation for choosing a script ‘so blindly’

    Mohabbat Tujhe Alvida is set to air on Hum TV from March 17. Watch the teasers for the drama below:

  • U-turn? Shaan says ‘Diriliş: Ertuğrul’ is a ‘classic masterpiece’

    U-turn? Shaan says ‘Diriliş: Ertuğrul’ is a ‘classic masterpiece’

    Did Shaan just take a u-turn?

    After strongly criticising PTV’s decision to air the series, the actor in his latest social media post has praised the series and called it a “classic masterpiece”. He also thanked the creators, cast and technicians for making this “epic”.

    Read more – Diriliş: Ertuğrul’: The debate rages on

    When someone questioned if he took a u-turn, Shaan said that he watched the series on Netflix.

    To put things into perspective, it can be understood that Shaan is not against the series but is in fact against PTV’s decision to air the series as evident from the tweets below. The actor asserted that he is not against the drama but doesn’t understand why PTV charges a hefty amount to show foreign products.

    Shaan had also appealed to Prime Minister Imran Khan to support the entertainment industry and stop cultural imports like these. It is pertinent to mention here that Shaan was also very critical of Bollywood films being released in Pakistan and had always voiced his dissent against them.

    Meanwhile, in response to another user’s question on whether he will make a series like Ertuğrul, Shaan said that it costs a lot to make one.

    Diriliş: Ertuğrul is being aired on PTV on the recommendation of Prime Minister Imran Khan. Set in 13th century Anatolia and based on the struggle of Ertuğrul Gazi, father of Osman I – the founder of the Ottoman dynasty, Diriliş: Ertuğrul has been trending in the country ever since its first episode aired on the first of Ramzan. According to PTV, 133.38 million people have watched the drama series from April 25- May 14. PTV’s YouTube channel has also registered an exponential rise in its viewership with 5.65 million subscribers and episodes trending every day on the social media platform.

    Read more – Yasir Hussain vs Turkish dramas: the debate heats up

    In an exclusive interview with The Current, Senator Faisal Javed Khan had revealed that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had gifted the drama series to Pakistan as a goodwill gesture.

  • Selective lockdown

    Selective lockdown

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has reiterated that there will not be another lockdown. “It is tantamount to shutting down the entire economy to contain the spread of coronavirus. My views have been quite clear on this from the first day.”

    He said that Pakistan is not like Singapore or New Zealand or Taiwan with smaller populations and is also not a rich country to afford a lockdown. PM Imran said smart lockdown will be imposed after identifying hotspots and blamed the people of Pakistan for not following SOPs.

    Pakistan’s coronavirus cases are more than 141,000 while deaths are 2,647. The number of cases keeps rising rapidly each day, which hospitals seem unable to deal with. Oxygen cylinders are unavailable in most cities or are available at exorbitant prices while prices of oximeters, medicines and other supplies have also shot up. Pakistan’s health sector will not be able to deal with such a huge crisis in the coming days.

    “I have been saying this repetitively that you must take precautions… I am disappointed to see that our people have been very careless,” said PM Imran who had once likened COVID-19 to flu.

    He said that masks are now mandatory and both the administration and volunteers of the Tiger Force will ensure this.

    It is easy for the government to ask people to follow the SOPs and take precautions while not taking responsibility for its policy failure. When lockdown was first imposed in the country, it should have been extremely strict followed by aggressive testing. Lockdown should not have been lifted for Eid when cases were on the rise. The government not just lifted the lockdown but also kept downplaying the virus despite warnings from health workers and senior doctors. No wonder then that people are not taking coronavirus seriously. It is the government’s responsibility to implement rules; people all over the world are not responsible unless rules and laws are strictly implemented. The government should consider temporary lockdown in cities where administration finds it difficult to control the spread of coronavirus, increase the number of tests, create more awareness by telling people how serious this virus is.

    Countries that locked down early and strictly have been able to return to normal much faster and are open to a large extent. In Pakistan, we have been busy in comparisons or criticism of other countries’ strategies while no effective policy has been in place here.

    Reports indicated that the Punjab government was considering imposing a strict two-week lockdown in Lahore at the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO) due to the rising number of cases but PM Imran rejected the proposal.

    Selective lockdown is not a solution because its implementation will be extremely difficult. It seems as if the government has adopted the policy of ‘to each his/her own’ when it comes to dealing with the coronavirus. Let’s not forget that countries that have gone down this road have not been able to save their economy either. We should act before it is too late.

  • Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput dies by suicide

    Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput dies by suicide

    Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who was famous for his roles in PK and M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story, was found dead at his home in Mumbai. The police have said that the actor committed suicide. He was 34.

    According to reports, the award-winning actor was found hanging from his ceiling in his Bandra residence, where he was living alone. While no suicide note was recovered from the scene of the incident, it is believed that the actor was suffering from severe depression.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CBaVk-wnEBS/

    Read more – Rishi Kapoor’s unfulfilled wish: a visit to Pakistan

    Sushant’s sudden death has sent waves of shock across the world and many Bollywood stars including Akshay Kumar and Farhan Akhtar have condoled his death.

    https://twitter.com/karanjohar/status/1272111382905802753?s=20

    Born in Patna, Rajput studied engineering in New Delhi before dropping out to pursue a career in acting. He began in television, rising to stardom in the Balaji soap Pavitra Rishta.

    Sushant made his Bollywood debut in 2013 with Kai Po Che! and later starred in a plethora of films including Kedarnath, PK, Shuddh Desi Romance and M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story. His last appearance was in the 2019 film Drive.

    Sushant’s new film Dil Bechara, co-starring Saif Ali Khan, was scheduled to release in May but was postponed because of the COVID-19 lockdown.

  • ‘Unrealistic and meaningless’: Economists react to PTI govt’s second federal budget

    ‘Unrealistic and meaningless’: Economists react to PTI govt’s second federal budget

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has unveiled a Rs7.13 trillion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which was presented before the parliament by Industries Minister Hammad Azhar amid opposition members’ protest against the same for being “anti-people”.

    But while the budget, which Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s team claims will bring relief to the masses in coronavirus times, is drawing mixed reactions from political leaders and the general public, what do economists have to say about it?

    MUZZAMMIL ASLAM:

    “Given the GDP [gross domestic product] projections (2.1%) for next year, it is apparent that the government has failed to provide impetus to the economy. This has highlighted resource constraints the current government is facing. The government is basically relying on the stimulus of 1.2 trillion it provided during COVID-19 and is now consolidating its finances due to [the] IMF [International Monetary Fund] programme.”

    YOUSUF NAZAR:

    “Budget making has been reduced to a meaningless annual ritual given the overall dismal performance in meeting the targets, a performance which had little to do with the pandemic. Given that Pakistan’s economy is contracting for the first time in history, I had hoped that the government will come up with a plan to revive growth. A big near term risk to growth is the locust attack. I don’t see anything in the budget to help the agriculture sector face this threat. On a broader note, the government seems lost and overwhelmed by the economic contraction. I don’t see how it succeed in meeting the revenue target through privatisation when the business confidence is so low and the premier appears to be, honestly, clueless about we need to do to reform the economy, reset spending priorities and revive confidence in the government.”

    FARHAN BOKHARI:

    “It is an unrealistic budget that is based on an unrealistic tax collection target. The budget should have included a bold plan to cut losses in public sector companies and an equally bold plan for tackling losses in the energy sector. Pakistan additionally needs an emergency plan to raise agricultural productivity as agriculture is the only sector of the economy that has recorded some growth. Such big moves require a national political consensus which is missing as the premier refuses to talk to other mainstream political leaders.”

    According to Hammad Azhar, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) revenue target for next year has been kept at Rs4.95 trillion, while defence allocations amount to around Rs1.3 trillion.

    READ: Twitter loses it over Rs1.29 trillion budget for defence, Rs83.63 billion for education

    The federal development programme has been budgeted at Rs650 billion to support growth prospects.

    The budget for fiscal year (FY) 2020-21 comes at a time when the country is battling the COVID-19 pandemic that has served a severe blow to the economy. According to reports, it has been formulated considering the impact of the virus and to give relief to the citizens, as part of which no new taxes have been imposed.

    Check out the budget document here.

  • Fakhar-e-Bannu: Mardan appoints first female AC in 50 years

    Fakhar-e-Bannu: Mardan appoints first female AC in 50 years

    Hailing from KP’s Bannu district and stationed in Mardan Gul Bano is serving the people the best way she can. Gul Bano is the first female Assistant Commissioner in the 50-year history of Mardan Tehsil.

    Gul Bano was called ‘Fakhar-e-Bannu (Pride of Bannu)’ soon after she passed her Competitive Superior Services (CSS) exams. In an interview with Independent Urdu, Bano said, “After clearing my CSS exams, I was worried about what the villagers would think. But now they are proud of me and after seeing my photos on social media, they call me ‘Fakhr-e-Bannu’.”

    https://twitter.com/theSahira_/status/1176935618296909824?s=20

    Gul Bano’s success has paved a way for other girls in her area. Gul Bano completed her early education from City Model School, Peshawar. Then she did her intermediate from Jinnah College for Women. She then went to Peshawar University from where she obtained an MBA degree.

    Speaking to the media outlet, Gul Bano said that she developed an interest in Civil Services after her brother passed the exam.

    Her husband Dr Zahidullah was also appointed as a district police officer (DPO) in Mardan, the same district where Gul Bano is serving as assistant commissioner for the past eight months.

  • Twitter loses it over Rs1.29 trillion budget for defence, Rs83.63 billion for education

    With the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government unveiling its second budget in the National Assembly (NA) on Friday, Twitterati are losing it over nearly Rs1.3 trillion being allocated for defence against not even Rs84 billion for education in the Rs7.13 trillion budget for fiscal year (FY) 2020-21.

    One trillion equals 1,000 billion.

    DEFENCE BUDGET:

    According to Dawn, the government has proposed Rs1.29 trillion defence allocation for the next fiscal year, representing an 11.8 per cent increase over the original allocation for the outgoing year. Federal Minister for Industries Hammad Azhar, while presenting the budget in the National Assembly, said that defence and internal security have been given adequate attention in the budget.

    The military had last year forgone a major hike because of the economic challenges then facing the country and settled for a raise of 4.74 per cent, but by the end of the year, it had overshot the allocation by 6.33 per cent.

    The original allocation for last year was Rs1.15 trillion, but according to revised figures presented before the lower house of parliament, about Rs1.23 trillion had been spent. It has now virtually become a norm for actual defence spending incurred in a year to be higher than the original allocation.

    EDUCATION BUDGET:

    Meanwhile, the government has earmarked Rs83.363 billion for Education Affairs and Services against the revised allocation of Rs81.253 billion for the current fiscal year, showing an increase of around 2.5 per cent. The country’s public expenditure on education as a percentage to gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated at 2.3 per cent in the fiscal year 2019-20, which, according to reports, is the lowest in the region.

    An amount worth Rs70.741 billion has been allocated for Tertiary Education Affairs and Services in budget 2020-21, which is 84.9 per cent of the total allocation under this head, while Rs2.931 billion have been earmarked for pre-Primary & Primary Education Affairs, Rs7.344 billion for Secondary Education Affairs & Services and Rs1.237 billion for administration.

    Since the federal government only finances higher education after the 18th Amendment when education as a subject was devolved to provinces, the government has increased the budgetary allocation for the higher education sector from Rs59 billion in 2019-20 to Rs64 billion for the next fiscal year. According to the budget documents, Rs29.470 billion have been earmarked for the Higher Education Commission (HEC) under the Public Sector Development Programm (PSDP) for 2020-21.

    TWITTER REACTS:

    With the nearly 1447.62 per cent difference between the spending on defence and education not sitting well with many, here’s how Twitterati are reacting:

    Some also highlighted how the government had allocated only Rs70 billion for combating the coronavirus and other disasters at a time when dozens were losing their lives to the virus across the country every day.

    What do you think of Budget 2020? Let The Current know in the comments.

    You can go through the budget document here.

  • 10 million Pakistanis to fall below poverty line

    10 million Pakistanis to fall below poverty line

    At least 10 million more Pakistanis will drop below the poverty line because of the toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government’s new economic survey estimates.

    Around one in four Pakistanis are currently too poor to meet basic needs, but the figure is predicted to rise closer to 30 per cent of the world’s sixth most populous nation.

    “The COVID-19 outbreak is expected to have a negative impact on Pakistan’s economy, and the number of people living below the poverty line may rise from the existing figure of 50 to 60 million,” the survey says.

    The government’s annual Economic Survey also warned that the economy would contract for the first time in 68 years.

    “The country’s provisional gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate will likely contract 0.4 per cent instead of growing 3.3 per cent as previously forecast,” Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on Finance Abdul Hafeez Shaikh told a news conference.

    The adviser said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (WB) were making bleaker assumptions keeping in view the severity and duration of the coronavirus pandemic. “In my view, we will have a better estimation when this year ends on June 30.”

    He highlighted the government’s swift and decisive policy actions since the start of the current fiscal year, including resource mobilisation, completion of the IMF programme, austerity measures and monetary policies helping stabilise the economy.

    The adviser stated that these measures helped the economy to reverse large external and internal imbalances. He said that significant improvement in external accounts was made as the current account and trade deficit witnessed a substantial contraction.

    “Foreign reserves steadily improved. There was an increase in foreign direct investment (FDI). The credit rating profile also improved. Fiscal performance remained strong during the first three quarters of the outgoing fiscal year, on the back of consolidation efforts and targeted reforms.”

    “To mitigate the socio-economic impact of the pandemic, the government announced a stimulus package of Rs1.24 trillion and offered further relief measures through the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The policy rate was also cut by 5.25pc to 8.0pc,” he said, adding that monetary and fiscal policy interventions had been made to restore economic activity in this difficult time and to reduce negative effects on poverty and unemployment.

  • Vasay Chaudhry, Omair Rana slam Punjab Govt spokesperson for making derogatory remarks against Shafaat Ali

    Vasay Chaudhry, Omair Rana slam Punjab Govt spokesperson for making derogatory remarks against Shafaat Ali

    A member of the Punjab government Usman Saeed Basra called Shafaat Ali a marasi (a derogatory term used to refer to artists) after the comedian prayed for PML-N President Mian Shehbaz Sharif’s – who recently tested positive for COVID-19 – good health. Basra’s Twitter bio says he is a spokesperson of the Punjab govt and Secretary Information PTI Punjab.

    Basra’s derogatory remarks irked Vasay Chaudhry, Omair Rana and Ali Zafar, who slammed him for it and urged Chief Minister Punjab Usman Buzdar to look into the matter.

    Vasay added that it is not just about one person but is about the entire entertainment fraternity.

    Fellow journalists and anchors also stood up for Ali.