Pakistan has improved its rating by jumping towards 94th position out of 117 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2019 with a score of 32.6.
As per the latest GHI, Pakistan’s
ranking improved considerably by 12 points if compared with the last year’s
ranking of 106 while India is ranked on 102 points, the lowest any South Asian
country scored.
The Global Hunger Index or GHI scores countries on a 100-point “severity scale”, where zero is the best score which means no hunger and 100 is the worst. With a score of 32.6, Pakistan still suffers from a level of hunger that is serious but it is improving with time.
India has been ranked on 102 out of 117
countries, way behind from BRICS
While a year back, Pakistan had the
lowest ranking in South Asia. Now in 2019, India has the lowest ranking in
South Asian countries.
Justice Gulzar Ahmad on Thursday has said that the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) is a burden on the country and trillions of rupees from national exchequer are sacrificed every year, Capital TV reported.
According to the details, Justice Gulzar while hearing an appeal filed by an employee of the bureau concerning service matters said, “Put an end to FBR […] and you will see how much money is collected”.
“Trillions of rupees are lost every year […] what kind of recovery FBR’s army of 22,000 people can make,” he remarked, adding that out that 80% of the [total] tax collected was through indirect means.
Justice Gulzar also said that for recovering 20% of tax the bureau has hired 22,000 people.
Former Pakistan Women’s Cricket Team Captain Sana Mir, while speaking to the media after playing cricket with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, said that she had a lovely time at the event.
Mir shared that Prince William and Kate Middleton were very humble and down to earth, adding that the meeting was very interactive and well-organised.
“This day is going to be very memorable, especially for the kids who came from Karachi and Sheikhupura,” she said.
Pakistani lawyer Jalila Haider was named in British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)’s 100 women of 2019 list.
The Hazara-based human rights lawyer specialises in defending women’s rights in Pakistan and provides free legal services to women in poverty across the country.
She is also the founder of We the Humans, a non-profit organisation working with local communities to provide opportunities for women and children.
As per reports, she is the first female lawyer from the Hazara community, and in 2018 she went on a hunger strike demanding protection for her people.
Taking to the social media platform, Haider expressed deep joy and said it was an honour for her to represent Pakistan on the list.
Other women on the list include Precious Adams from the United States, Parveena Ahanger from Indian-occupied Kashmir, and Jasmine Akter from the Rohingya community.
Egyptian Ambassador Ahmed Fadel Yacoub has said that Egypt is keen to invest $1 billion in Pakistan over the next one year in different sectors including energy, infrastructure, halal food and tourism, The Express Tribune reported.
According to the details, the envoy, while speaking at the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) said that bilateral trade had been on an uptrend and it currently stood at $260 million per annum compared to $200 million last year.
The envoy told the meeting that Egypt would be declared Hepatitis-free country by 2020 and urged Pakistan businessmen to establish joint ventures in pharmaceutical and health sectors, stressing that Egypt could help Pakistan completely get rid of Hepatitis C.
“Both countries are enjoying good relations and there is a need to further increase exchange of delegations and information,” the ambassador added.
Ministry of Commerce Joint Secretary Maria Kazi has said that special incentives would be provided to Pakistani companies for participating in trade fairs in Africa under the ‘Look Africa’ initiative.
She also urged the private sector to focus on exporting a higher volume of merchandise to Africa.
One of Pakistan’s leading media outlets, Geo News while showing JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s press conference live announced on air that they have to cut off the live streaming because of PEMRA’s instructions that his pressers cannot be covered on the media anymore.
Member of the opposition, Rehman, in the past couple of weeks has been making headlines after he announced that he is planning to march towards Islamabad in an attempt to topple Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government. His “Azadi March” plans to enter Islamabad on October 31.
As per reports, a written order has not yet been issued but the orders have been sent through WhatsApp messages. It is pertinent to note that it is illegal to issue “written and verbal” directives to “blackout” any particular party or leader.
Previously, Geo News anchor, Hamid Mir, on October 12 had tweeted that Pemra has “forced TV channels not to show” the press conferences of Maulana Fazalur Rehman. He said that the government was showing weakness by “imposing unannounced censorship” in Pakistan.
Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority forced TV channels not to show the press conference of opposition politician Maulana Fazalur Rehman we can differ with Maulana but Govt is showing weakness by imposing unannounced censorship in Pakistan @RSF_inter@pressfreedom
The United States (US) carried out a secret cyber operation against Iran in the wake of the September 14 attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities, which Washington and Riyadh blame on Tehran, Dawn has reported.
According to the details, the operation took place in late September and took aim at Tehran’s ability to spread “propaganda”. The strike only affected physical hardware and did not provide further details.
The attack appears more limited than other such operations against Iran this year after the downing of an American drone in June and an alleged attack by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on oil tankers in the Gulf in May.
US, Saudi Arabia, Britain, France and Germany have publicly blamed Iran for the Sept 14 attack, which denied involvement in the strike. The Iran-aligned Houthi militant group in Yemen later claimed responsibility for the attack.
Publicly, the Pentagon has responded by sending thousands of additional troops and equipment to bolster Saudi defences, which is the latest US deployment to the region this year.
Tensions in the Gulf have escalated sharply since May 2018, when Trump withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Tehran that put limits on its nuclear program in exchange for the easing of sanctions.
After creating waves and winning hearts on the first day of their visit, the Duke and Duchess began the second day of their trip by heading straight to the beautiful mountainous North of the country.
On the third day of their five-day visit, Kate and William are visiting the mighty Hindu Kush mountain range to witness the effects of climate change, which is one of the key areas of focus of their visit.
They arrived in Chitral on a helicopter where they were gifted the traditional Chitrali cap and a book of photos commemorating the trip of Princess Diana, who visited the valley in 1991.
Upon receiving the book, William remarked “Fantastic,” as he sifted through the pages of the book. The residents also gifted an embroidered coat to the Duke and a shawl to the Duchess.
The Duchess wore a long taupe-coloured skirt and a darker coloured shirt under a leather vest for the visit. She opted for flat knee-high brown boots and accessoried with gold earrings and a beige pashmina, while William wore a teal shirt and beige chino trousers. People couldn’t help but compare her to Diana.
The couple then visited the northern tip of the Chiatibo Glacier in Broghil National Park and were shown how it has retreated rapidly in recent years due to global warming. It was the first time the couple had seen a melting glacier.
Standing between the snowy peaks of the mountain range, the duke said communities “vulnerable to change” needed “more education, more awareness and political action.”
Following that, they travelled to Bombaret village in Kalash valley, where they interacted with the locals and spent time with children. They also enjoyed performances of traditional dances and music by the local people.
The Duchess was all smiles as she took part in the festivities.
A special cultural show, focused on the life in the Northern Areas, was also held for the royal couple.
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has promoted 1,000 officers to the next grades amid a halt in flight operations after PSO terminated fuel supply to the national carrier due to the non-payment of impending dues,The News Internationalreported.
According to the details, out of the total 1,000 crew members, almost 750 have been promoted from group 4 to 5, and 121 from group 5 to 6. Similarly, 84 out of 280 flight pursers working in group 6 have been promoted to group 7 as senior pursers.
The top management of PIA, mostly on deputation from Pakistan Air Force (PAF) believes the promotions will motivate the already demoralised staff to perform well and get the PIA out of this financial quagmire.
The reports, however, claim that the management has promoted such a large number of employees from group 4 so that it could get the maximum number of officials out of the PIA unions.
The employees from group 1 to 4 can become a member of PIA unions because from group 4 onwards ‘officer category’ starts, which restricts them from being a member of the PIA unions.
Adding to the already piled up problems of PIA, a disturbance in the flight operation at Allama Iqbal International Airport was caused when flights PK-305 (Lahore-Karachi) and PK-652 (Lahore-Islamabad) were canceled due to non-availability of fuel.
PIA spokesperson Mashood Tajwar has said that the flights were stopped due to non-provision of oil, adding that both national organizations are holding talks to resolve the conflict.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has announced initiating legal action against Jamiat Ulemae Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s stick-wielding army, the constitution of which it says is in “violation of both the law of the land and the National Action Plan (NAP)”.
Volunteers of the religio-political party’s Salar Force earlier this week presented a guard of honour to Fazl, taking an oath to safeguard their leadership even at the cost of their lives.
The demo came as the JUI-F gears up to take on the federal government as part of its Azadi March to Islamabad on October 31; with plans of locking down the capital in protest against the “fake” Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.
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Reacting to the march and the creation of the force, KP Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai on Wednesday warned the JUI-F against stick-wielding, uniformed workers marching on the roads.
“When you are marching on roads in uniforms it means that you are erecting a force. This is a violation of the NAP and will not be tolerated,” Yousufzai said.
“I know who is pushing [Fazlur] Rehman; money is pushing him. He is threatening institutions, he is trying to use seminary students,” the minister said.
The information minister added that the JUI-F chief was struggling to get incarcerated former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and former president Asif Ali Zardari out of jail.
