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  • TukTuk March: Celebrities come together for a cause

    TukTuk March: Celebrities come together for a cause

    Karachi-based NGO NOWPDP organised a ‘TukTuk March’ for individuals dealing with disabilities. The event saw several A-list celebrities in attendance including Mahira Khan, Maya Ali, Humayun Saeed, Bilal Ashraf, Ayesha Omar, Feroze Khan, Hassan Sheheryar Yasin, and Wasim Akram.

    NOWPDP is a disability inclusion initiative that works for the educational and economic empowerment of people with disabilities. According to a press release, the “TukTuk march was held to celebrate the right to livelihood and transport of people with disabilities.”

    “With inclusivity as the primary focus, the march was meant to empower people with disabilities and encourage them to pursue their rights to work and mobility,” it added.

    Strict COVID19 SOPs were followed including the wearing of masks, social distancing, and maintaining hand hygiene.

    The celebrities were spotted doing bhangra on the streets of Karachi and riding rickshaws driven by differently-abled people. As per details, the rickshaws have been modified to facilitate those who have disabilities.

    Check out pictures from the march below:

  • Speaker NA Asad Qaiser tours the sets of ‘Kuruluş: Osman’

    Speaker NA Asad Qaiser tours the sets of ‘Kuruluş: Osman’

    Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser on his recent visit to Turkey toured the sets of Kuruluş: Osman and met with the lead cast and producers of the show.

    Read more – Fawad Chaudhry visits sets of ‘Kuruluş: Osman’ in Turkey

    Sharing pictures from his visit on social media, Qaiser said: “Walking through the set of Kuruluş: Osman has been a joyful experience for us.”

    “I shall always cherish the hospitality and warmth given to us in Turkey. We are grateful for the love with which you hosted us,” he added.

    The Speaker praised the show’s producer Mehmet Bozdağ for “penning down a masterpiece like Kuruluş: Osman.”

    He also thanked him for “navigating us through the sets,” calling it an “incredible experience”.

    Qaiser also met Burak Özçivit, who plays Osman in the super hit series, saying it was a pleasure to meet the Turkish actor.

    Bozdağ also shared pictures from Speaker’s visit, saying that he was honoured to host them and sent his greetings to all the people of Pakistan.

    Meanwhile, it is being reported that the production team of the series will be visiting Islamabad after Eid to work on Pakistan and Turkey’s joint production venture and will also hold a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan.

  • Rare birds spotted running loose in housing estate

    Rare birds spotted running loose in housing estate

    Dozens of rare birds were spotted running wild in a Hertfordshire housing estate in the United Kingdom (UK).

    According to details, many rheas were seen running wild in residential areas and along the busy M25 road in Three Rivers District.

    The police have asked the residents not to approach the “fast” animals as they are “aggressive if cornered”.

    Rheas are native to South America and are similar to an ostrich in appearance, but a little smaller. They are sometimes kept as pets in the UK and there have been incidents of them running away from the owners in the past.

    “Many incidents have been reported of them attacking dogs and deer, so we ask that dog owners are attentive when out walking,” said the police.

    Officials said that they have been unable to find the birds’ owner or determine their origin.

    Police Constable Christian Gottmann of the Rickmansworth and District Safer Neighborhood Team said, “These birds are certainly an unusual sight on the streets of Three Rivers, and we want to reassure the public that we are working in partnership with Three Rivers District Council, Highways and our Rural Operational Support Team to come up with a plan to capture and rehome the birds to a suitable animal reserve.”

  • VIDEO: Younis Khan teaches Babar, squad fishing in South Africa

    VIDEO: Younis Khan teaches Babar, squad fishing in South Africa

    The Pakistan Cricket squad was spotted having a great time in a fun-filled fishing activity at the Centurion’s Irene Country Club in Pretoria, South Africa.

    Pakistan’s batting coach Younis Khan can be seen giving his fishing expertise to skipper Babar Azam and others in a video shared by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

    A South African native named Jack Jackie initially provided tips on how to catch fish from the pond which is part of the Pakistan team’s bio-secure bubble.

    On the other hand, Babar revealed that he usually enjoys his time with Younis and has also gone fishing two to three times in the past.

    Younis showed his brilliant fishing skills and caught a big catfish that weighs around 2 to 3 kgs. The team went on to celebrate and praises Khan for his expertise. He later released the fish back into the pond.

    Pakistan team reached South Africa on March 26 and had their first practice session yesterday at SuperSport Park in Centurion.

    Earlier, a 35-members squad, including 22 players and 13 officials had departed for South Africa after testing negative for COVID-19.

    In South Africa, Pakistan will play three ODIs from April 2-7, the matches will be counted in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League. After that, the team will play four T20Is against the Proteas from April 10-16.

  • VIDEO: PTI’s Gandapur spotted letting minor kid drive his car

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs (AJK) & Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Ali Amin Gandapur has been spotted letting a minor kid drive a car.

    A video tweeted by senior journalist Mansoor Ali Khan showed at least two other people accompanying Gandapur as the fourth individual in the car, the kid, cruised off the road at an unknown location.

    “Ali Amin Gandapur letting a kid drive the car,” he wrote along with a dig at ruling PTI’s loyalists.

    While there has been no official reaction to the video, amid criticism, a netizen has quoted Gandpur as asking why would the video bother anyone.

    “Just spoke to Ali Amin Gandapur and this is what he had to say: ‘Why does it bother anyone when it is my land, my son and my car?’,” he claimed.

    Later, Gandapur tweeted the same:

    Although Gandapur is not new to controversy, it merits a mention that number of incidents of underage kids driving in Pakistan have recently shot up.

    Earlier, a viral video showed a five-year-old boy standing behind the wheel of a black Toyota Land Cruiser V8.

    According to Dunya News, the boy was cruising through Bosan, one of the busiest roads in Multan “to go and buy ice cream”.

    Despite putting his own and others’ lives at risk, he was pardoned by the police upon his father’s assurances.

  • IN PICTURES: Zara Noor Abbas, Amar Khan, Saboor Aly spotted at friend’s reception

    Umair Qazi’s wedding festivities came to an end Sunday evening with a reception. Unlike the mehndi and wedding ceremony, which were star-studded events, the reception was a lowkey event with only three prominent celebrities spotted: Saboor Aly, Amar Khan, and Zara Noor Abbas.

    Check out pictures from the event below:

    Earlier, at the mehndi event, Sajal Aly, Ahad Raza Mir, Saboor Aly, Yasir Hussain, Iqra Aziz, Urwa Hocane, Kinza Hashmi and Zara Noor Abbas were among those spotted.

  • Atif Aslam is ‘still glad’ his wife met him

    Atif Aslam is ‘still glad’ his wife met him

    Atif Aslam has penned a heartfelt note for wife Sara Bharwana on their 8th wedding anniversary, saying that he is “still glad” that he met her.

    IN PICTURES – Atif Aslam makes rare appearance with wife at big fat Lahori wedding

    Posting a cute picture of himself and Sara, the singer said: “My Queen – am still glad that you met me, nahi to pta nahi kis se shadi ho jani thi.”

    Thanking her for being the strongest woman in his life and giving him beautiful children, Atif added: “You are the strongest person I know and I can’t thank you enough for giving me my munchkins. We love you.”

    “Happy Wedding Anniversary.”

    Atif and Sara tied the knot after being together for almost eight years in March 2013 and have two children together.

    Read more – Atif Aslam opens up about having a lonely childhood

    Earlier, Atif, who maintains a low social media profile, had also shared an adorable picture of his ‘Kuuuka,’ making fans gush with excitement.

  • 2,094 illegal appointments at USC, costs Rs17.5m to exchequer

    2,094 illegal appointments at USC, costs Rs17.5m to exchequer

    An audit of the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) revealed that 9,756 employees are working for the organisation, whereas only 7,662 is the authorised strength for the 42 regions.

    The extra 2,094 employees are a burden on the organisation that is already clash-strapped. Besides, USC never shared details of excess (ghost) employees. The auditors recommended an independent inquiry into the matter of the illegal appointments.

    The irregular appointments cost Rs17.5m to the exchequer. It is also an indicates of a weak internal control system at USC.

    “The payment of salary to these un-authorised emplo­yees for the last several years showed that there was no financial discipline/control in USC budgetary matters and the budget under the head of salary and wages was not being allocated to zonal/regional offices as per sanctioned/available strength,” the report said.

    The lack of discipline in budgetary matters has led to such irregularities and false appointments at the regional level. The audit report termed these appointments as “unauthorised.”

    On the contrary, the management of USC defended these appointments and said that the request for regularization was submitted to the USC board of directors (BOD).

    Besides, several appointments were made when there was a ban imposed on recruitments. The management made 11 appointments in BS15 and 16 on consolidated pay ranging between Rs20,000 to Rs40,000 per month.

    These appointments were also not advertised in the newspapers, said the report.

    The USC initially suspended these employees and later their services were terminated, but the employees were reinstated on a court order.

    The management of the USC further said that since the matter was under probe by NAB, therefore, the internal inquiry had been put on hold to avoid legal complications.

  • Islamabad police rescue children, manage hostage crisis successfully

    Islamabad Police on Sunday rescued two children and arrested the suspect, handling a hostage crisis successfully.

    As per reports, a man forcefully entered a house in the Bara Kahu area of Islamabad and held two children hostage in order to avoid arrest at the hands of the law enforcement authorities (LEAs).

    The police after a successful operation rescued the children and arrested the suspect. The capital police also shared a video of the incident on social media that shows the suspect getting arrested and being shifted with his face covered.

    https://twitter.com/amnaappi/status/1376231401595502592?s=20

    The police also lauded SP Hamza Humayun for successfully leading the operation to rescue the children and managing the entire hostage crisis.

    The two children held hostage were aged three and two years and have been handed over to their parents. One person was injured after the suspect opened fire on him.

    The police have started an inquiry into the entire matter, besides also recording the testimonies of the eye-witnesses in the neighbourhood.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlxxkKBVneg
  • PM directs banks to ease loan procedure for people under Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme

    PM directs banks to ease loan procedure for people under Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan virtually directed the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to simplify loan procedures so that the masses can get loans to own a house under Naya Pakistan Housing Programme.

    PM Imran’s telethon was attended by Senator Shibli Faraz, chairman of Naya Pakistan Housing and Development Authority, Lt. General (r) Anwar Ali Hyder, Governor of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Raza Baqir, NBP President Arif Usmani, and SBP Executive Director Samar Hasnain.

    PM also said that NBP should direct its staffers to facilitate the loan applicants now as bankers have never been helpful towards cashless people in Pakistan.

    He further added that the European countries have facilitated their people to own a home. However, it will be a new practice for our country.

    “Once people start building homes, there will a boom in the construction industry which will bring about a revolutionary change in Pakistan. The construction of homes, besides revenue generation, will lead to job creation,” he said.

    The PM further added that the rent that the buyers would pay will be considered as instalments of the total cost of the flat as per the new model of this mortgage system, and the markup rates have been reduced to a maximum of five per cent.

    So far, 3,000 labourers have registered while 1,500 got housing based on open balloting. The project aims at providing accommodation to people with an annual income of less than Rs500,000.