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  • Pakistan’s inflation drops to 6.9%, lowest since January 2021

    Pakistan’s inflation drops to 6.9%, lowest since January 2021

    Pakistan’s inflation has dropped to lowest level since August 2021, according to latest data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

    Shockingly, the headline inflation in Pakistan was recorded at 6.9 per cent on a year on year (YoY) basis in the previous month.

    This CPI reading marks the lowest level recorded in over three years.

    Experts believe that this level is an outcome of aggressive monetary tightening. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has achieved bringing inflation below the one-year target of 7 per cent ahead of time.

    CPI inflation dropped 0.5 per cent in September 2024 as opposed to a rise of 0.4 per cent in the previous month and an increase of 2.0 per cent in September 2023.

    Analysts are of the view that  inflation is declining due to multiple factors, which include high base effect, sliding global commodity and energy rates, and our very stable home unit.

    Interestingly, the latest inflation reading is also lower than government expectations.

    The finance division had projected inflation to decelerate further in the next two months (September-October), and hover around 8 to 9 per cent, in the monthly economic outlook released last week.

  • ‘Latest donut shop news from Pakistan,’ Reporter asks US Spokesman about CJ donut controversy

    ‘Latest donut shop news from Pakistan,’ Reporter asks US Spokesman about CJ donut controversy

    Many reporters from Pakistani media outlets have, time and again, veered off the subject with their partisan questions to US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller concerning the country.

    This time around, a reporter asked about the latest viral video of Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa’s visit to Crusteez Donuts. In the video, one of the employees curses at Isa and is later hailed across social media—primarily by pro-PTI supporters. The employee filmed the encounter almost a month ago, when the Mubarak Sani verdict, which concerns minority rights, was given out by the Chief Justice.

    “In Pakistan, this donut shop has become very popular by the name of Crusteez because its employee had called the Chief Justice of the supreme court of Pakistan that – shame on you. My question is – do you hear these things? I mean, spokesperson, you’ve seen globally – do you see countries where Chief Justices are called shame on you?” he asked.

    Visibly taken aback by the frivolous question, Miller responded sarcastically, “I am not fully tracking donut shop – the latest donut shop news from Pakistan, I will admit.”

    After a short, awkward exchange to laugh off the unnecessary question, the reporter continued: “After the three pillars of the states are gone in Pakistan, that’s why I was asking about it.

    But KP, the province which I belong to and have the newspaper since 40 years, its chief minister in a statement yesterday said to the federal government of Shehbaz Sharif, after their protest was interrupted and stuff, that if next time you shoot us with one bullet, we’re going to shoot you with 10 bullets. Does these kind of statements worry the U.S. at all about the situation in Pakistan?”

    To which Miller replied, “So I wasn’t aware of that statement until you brought it to my attention. I’d want to see it in its full context before I commented.”

    The reporter attempted to contribute further to the conversation, but Miller cut him off, saying, “Let me – let me go ahead because I’m – we’re running out of time. Let me go to your colleague.”

  • Fact-check: Is PM Shehbaz Sharif’s UN address the most watched on the UN’s YouTube channel?

    Fact-check: Is PM Shehbaz Sharif’s UN address the most watched on the UN’s YouTube channel?

    The government on Monday, shared a picture on the Instagram page ‘govtofpakistan’ which claimed that Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) speech got more views than any world leader on the official YouTube channel of the UN.

     

     

    The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said that PM Shehbaz Sharif’s speech was watched by 137,000 viewers on the UN’s official channel.

     

    Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad, Federal Minister of Broadcast and Information Attaullah Tarar, while declaring the success of Pakistan’s foreign policy, said, “Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s address was most watched at the UN General Assembly.”

     

    Is this claim true?

    On the YouTube channel of the United Nations, Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif’s address has not remained on top in terms of views, rejecting the Pakistan government’s claims of the most-watched premier at the UN.

     

    Shehbaz has 179,000 views on the UN’s official YouTube channel so far since it was uploaded on September 28.

     

     

    Meanwhile, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu was watched 212,000 times and remains on top in terms of views on YouTube.

     

    The President of the United States (US), Joe Biden, has a total of 110,000 views so far, since it was uploaded on September 22.

     

     

    President of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian’s address has 152,000 views on the UN’s YouTube official channel.

     

    Furthermore, the address of the President of Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas, has 58,000 views.

     

     

    At the time the claim was made, Netanyahu had more views than Shehbaz on the UN’s YouTube channel. Journalist Mansoor Ali Khan also revealed this information on his YouTube channel.

     

  • 12th Fail gets prequel:  Director Vidhu Vinod Chopra announces ‘Zero Se Restart’

    12th Fail gets prequel:  Director Vidhu Vinod Chopra announces ‘Zero Se Restart’

     
      Fans of 12 Fail have something exciting to look forward to after director Vidhu Vinod Chopra announced a prequel titled Zero Se Restart.
     
     12th Fail is based on a best-selling book by Indian author Anurag Pathak. It tells the real-life story of IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma.
     
     
    While talking on the red carpet of the IFFA Awards 2024, Vidhu also talked about whether he would submit his film 12 Fail for the Oscars or not: “I am not an award fellow, I’m here at IIFA because of my wife, Anupama, I’m actually just accompanying her today. For me, the most important thing, is the real award you get from making a film. After watching it, you can either say, ‘I nailed it’ or admit, ‘That didn’t work’.”
     
    The film 12 Fail stars Vikrant Massey alongside Medha Shankar, Anant V Joshi, Anshumaan Pushkar, and Priyanshu Chatterjee. It was released on October 27, 2023. 
     
     
    The film Zero Se Restart will be released on December 13, 2024.

  • Palestinian journalist along with children killed by Israel

    Palestinian journalist along with children killed by Israel

    Israel has killed Palestinian journalist Wafa Aludaini along with her family in a targeted airstrike.

    On Monday, Wafa, along with her husband Mueir Aludaini, and their two children were martyred in an overnight attack. She was a prominent English speaking journalist working for international news outlets, residing in Deir-Al-Balah, central Gaza strip.

    Many fellow journalists praised her dedication to bringing the stories of Gaza to the world.

    Journalist Noor Harazeen shared pictures of Waffa and bid her farewell.

    “Aludaini was well-known among European media outlets and conveyed the suffering of our people in English, which she was a master of,” Ahmed Abu Artema, a Palestinian journalist and friend of Aludaini, told Middle East Eye.

    Pakistani journalist and an Executive Producer at Geo News, Hassam Ahmed, shared his experience of interaction with Wafa in a Facebook post in which he revealed that despite all the bombardments and cruelty, Wafa used to reply to him calmly, “We’re okay, we are under Allah’s protection.”

    However, one day she said, “No. We are not okay.”

    He said that he helplessly told her that all he can do as a journalist is raise his voice for them and she replied, “Your voices are all we need now.”

    The death toll of Palestinian journalists has reached 174.

  • Pakistani band performs in Bangladesh; military called in to control massive crowds

    Pakistani band performs in Bangladesh; military called in to control massive crowds

    A massive crowd forced the Bangladeshi army to intervene during Pakistani band Jal’s recent concert in Dhaka.

    Jal returned to perform in Bangladesh after 14 years alongside local bands at the Legends of the Decade concert in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Saturday.

    “Dhaka Arena was initially chosen for the concert, but due to rain, the venue was changed urgently and the concert was organized in a mall,” GEO reported.

    According to the organisers, the emergency change of venue led to severe chaos at the concert.

    Many fans forcibly entered the concert without purchasing tickets.

  • Barrister Saif accuses Maryam Nawaz of mistreating Bushra bibi

    Barrister Saif accuses Maryam Nawaz of mistreating Bushra bibi

    Information Advisor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Barrister Saif has claimed on Tuesday that former First Lady Bushra Bibi, wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, is being mistreated in Adiala jail on Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz’s orders.

    Barrister Saif claimed that Bushra Bibi was frisked in jail continuously under the guise of prison check by the police in front of cameras and added that she was also mentally tormented after being forcefully awakened at night, ARY News has reported.

    He said, “Bushra Bibi kay through Imran Khan ko toornay ki koshish ki ja rahi hai.”

    Meanwhile, responding to Barrister Saif’s accusations, Punjab’s Information Minister Azma Bokhari said, “Maryam Nawaz is not even aware of which cell Bushra Bibi is in at Adiala Jail.”

    She further added, “Bushra Bibi can eat eggs, chicken, or chicken broth; Maryam Nawaz doesn’t care.”

  • Gari check karo: Punjab to buy 79 new luxury vehicles worth crores for govt officials

    Gari check karo: Punjab to buy 79 new luxury vehicles worth crores for govt officials

    The Punjab government is reportedly planning to purchase 79 new luxury vehicles for provincial ministers, parliamentary secretaries, and other senior officials at a cost of 61 crore, 24 lakh 75 thousand rupees.

    According to Dawn News, the Ministry of External Affairs has requested the Punjab government to provide vehicles to 15 VVIPs, including bulletproof vehicles for 12 prime ministers, which will begin on October 15 in Islamabad. They are coming to attend the 2-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

    Additional Chief Secretary Punjab briefed the Cabinet Standing Committee on Finance and Development about the need for vehicles with plans to strengthen the transport pool of the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD) with luxury vehicles.

    Senior S&GAD officials say that every new government in the province, including the caretaker government, had bought luxury vehicles for provincial ministers, parliamentary secretaries, judges and other senior officials. Can release funds with advance withdrawal authorization of Rs.75 lakhs.

    The Additional Chief Secretary informed the Cabinet Standing Committee on Finance and Development that the Punjab government recently appointed 29 Parliamentary Secretaries under Section 3 of the Parliamentary Secretaries (Salary, Allowances and Perks) Ordinance, 2002 (LXXI of 2002). have been appointed and assigned departments to them.

    Under the constitution, every Parliamentary Secretary has the right to use a sanctioned vehicle for both functionary and private purposes.

    The fresh Chief Secretary informed the commission that the government had appointed 29 administrative registers in August, for whom the S&GAD was looking for luxury vehicles.

    So far, the transport wing has provided several vehicles to 20 parliamentary secretaries from the transport pool of S&GAD; the ACS said the government needs to purchase nine more new official vehicles for the remaining parliamentary secretaries.

    He also said that in view of the possibility of expansion in the provincial cabinet and parliamentary secretaries in the future, they also need 20 more vehicles as a reserve.

    Considering the current law and order situation in the province, the government has requested 30 new Toyota Hilux single cabins (with special fibre hoods installed at the back), which are also necessary for the security of the provincial ministers.

    The meeting was informed that the 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of State (Prime Ministers) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is scheduled to be held in Islamabad on October 15 and 16. The government of Pakistan expects 12 heads of government to attend the meeting.

    The committee was told that the Ministry of External Affairs had procured 15 bulletproof or non-bulletproof VVIP vehicles (Mercedes Benz, BMW, Toyota Land Cruiser and Fortuner) from the Punjab government for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting during the first three weeks of October.

    Currently, S&GAD is facing a shortage of vehicles and SUVs for protocol duties as well as VVIPs, especially during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting in Islamabad, for this purpose, 2 Toyota Fortuner and 15 Toyota Corolla Alts 1.6 vehicles can also be purchased, the Additional Chief Secretary told the Standing Committee that a total of 76 new vehicles need to be bought from the dealers of Indus Motor Company Limited in the transport pool of S&GAD.

    This includes Rs 22.13 lakh 99 thousand for the purchase of 29 Toyota Corolla Alts X Grande 1.8 CVT Ones for Parliamentary Secretaries. For the purchase of 15 Toyota Corolla Alts X 1.6 CVT cars, S&GAD needs Rs 9.96 crore per car.

    In order to fulfil the protocol duties at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, the government’s transport pool will have to purchase two Toyota Fortuner Sigma 2.8 litre T diesels at the cost of Rs 1 crore 80 lakh 93 thousand.

  • The missing paintings featured in ‘Kabhi Mein, Kabhi Tum’ have been returned to the artist

    The missing paintings featured in ‘Kabhi Mein, Kabhi Tum’ have been returned to the artist

    Safdar Ali Soomro, a talented artist from Daharki in Ghokti, Sindh, never imagined that his paintings would be featured in the smash hit drama Kabhi Mein Kabhi Tum. He lost the paintings a long time ago.

    Now, Ferrier Hall management has returned the paintings to the artist, who confirmed their discovery in a Facebook video.

    “I was previously asked to collect my paintings on September 30, and I have now retrieved my paintings after many years.”

    He demanded, “Over the past seven years, my paintings, which have earned crores of rupees by being displayed in various exhibitions, plays and cafes should also earn me royalty payments.”

    He thanked the media for raising its voice, stating, “It was only due to media support that I was able to recover my paintings.”

    Later, when the paintings were featured in the play Kabhi Mein, Kabhi Tum he raised the issue on social media, prompting the Sindh Culture Department to form a committee to investigate the matter.

    The Inquiry Committee, in its report, claimed that Safdar Ali Soomro’s paintings were not stolen but remained in Ferrier Hall. The confusion arose because the paintings were frequently moved from one place to another for exhibitions, leading to the mistaken belief that they had been stolen.

  • Coldplay ticket scalping fiasco sparks backlash in India

    Coldplay ticket scalping fiasco sparks backlash in India

    British rock band Coldplay’s upcoming tour of India has triggered a police investigation and dismayed fans after scalpers bought up cheap tickets to resell online for more than $1,000 apiece.

    Thousands of music fans tried and failed to buy tickets for three concerts scheduled in financial hub Mumbai next January, sold by popular Indian online ticket portal BookMyShow.

    All three shows sold out in minutes, and those who missed out were infuriated when they saw $70 (6,000-rupee) tickets appear on resale websites at vastly inflated prices.

    “The tickets are being sold at 10 times, 20 times, 30 times the price that is being sold on the website itself,” student Anna Abraham, 19, told AFP.

    “I wouldn’t feel good about it myself if I knew that I paid for something 30 times more than what I could have paid for.”

    Local media reports said BookMyShow’s chief operating officer was questioned by police Monday after a complaint brought by Mumbai lawyer Amit Vyas, who claimed the vendor was working with “black marketeers” to make an extra windfall on ticket sales.

    “I checked with nearly 100 people who I know are regulars at concerts, none of them had gotten a ticket,” Vyas said, according to the Indian Express newspaper.

    “This made me suspicious. I then decided to approach the police as I knew that something was amiss.”

    BookMyShow issued a statement after the public backlash began last week, saying it had “no association” with unauthorised ticket selling.

    “Scalping and black marketing of tickets is strictly condemned and punishable by law in India and BookMyShow vehemently opposes this practice,” the company said.

    Controversies surrounding tickets for major international musical or sporting events are not new.

    US megastar Taylor Swift lashed out at Ticketmaster in 2022 following fan anger over sales to concerts staged for her globe-spanning ‘The Eras Tour’.

    The debacle sparked debate over the Ticketmaster’s privileged position in the industry amid fan complaints of hidden fees, rampant ticket scalping and limited tickets due to presales.