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  • Ex-PM Abbasi speaks about meeting on economy with Gen Bajwa

    Ex-PM Abbasi speaks about meeting on economy with Gen Bajwa

    Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has revealed that Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa had held a meeting with him in November 2018 to discuss the economic issues prevalent at the time, especially the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.

    Abbasi revealed the details of the meeting in a talk show on Samaa TV. According to the lawmaker, who has also served as a petroleum minister in the cabinet of Nawaz Sharif, PML-N leaders Khawaja Asif and Miftah Ismail were also present in the meeting. “The details of such meetings are usually kept confidential, but now that they are being publicised I don’t see any harm in telling the details,” the ex-PM added.

    The army chief wanted the opinion of the PML-N lawmakers on the economy in the light of growing inflation and a tanking economy, Abbasi said.

    “We relayed our reservations on the state of the economy to the army chief,” he told anchorperson Nadeem Malik. “We told the army chief that Pakistan would face tremendous economic pressure within next three years due to the policies of the incumbent regime,” he said, adding that the government took six months to wreck the economy.

    Last week, former Sindh governor Muhammad Zubair revealed the details of the meeting with Gen Bajwa. Muhammad Zubair, who has been appointed as party supreme leader Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz’s spokesperson, revealed further details of his “secret meeting” with Gen Bajwa.

    In an exclusive interview with The Current, Zubair said that he isn’t a big fan of gulab jamun but that’s what they had for dessert the night he met Gen Bajwa over dinner.“I’m not a gulab jamun person but I couldn’t say no to him [Gen Bajwa] since he is a dignitary… he is the COAS,” the former Sindh governor said when asked about the details of his meeting that was also reportedly attended by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General (DG) Lt Gen Faiz Hameed.

  • Hardliners smear portrait of Nobel laureate Dr Abdus Salam outside National Science College

    A group of youngsters, allegedly science students, has smeared a portrait of the only Nobel laureate physicist from Pakistan and champion of science in the developing world, Dr Abdus Salam.

    A video doing rounds over the internet showed the group, consisting of State Youth Parliament Pakistan members, painting the portrait black while raising slogans against the minority Ahmadiyya community, of which Dr Salam was a member, outside Gujranwala’s National Science College.

    “They are students of so-called science colleges, what a shame,” read a strongly-worded post by Facebook page ‘The Hoodbhoyist’ that describes itself as a “social club for liberal, secular, humanists and progressive”.

    When he won the Nobel prize in 1979, Dr Salam became the very first Pakistani to achieve this distinction, and only the fourth from the subcontinent.

    Born in 1926 in a remote village in Punjab, British India, Salam was a child prodigy. He came from humble beginnings, growing up in a small brick house with a large family of eleven. While Salam’s legacy looms large in the world of physics, he is largely forgotten in Pakistan because of his faith.

    “Salam — The First ****** Nobel Laureate” — a feature-length film on Dr Salam’s life — was released on Netflix in October last year.

    It has won accolades on the international film festival circuit, including DFW South Asian Film Festival, South Asia Human Rights Festival, South Asian International Film Festival and the South Asian Film Festival of Montreal, among others.

  • India says didn’t approach Pakistan for talks

    India says didn’t approach Pakistan for talks

    India’s Ministry for External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that New Delhi did not approach Pakistan with a dialogue offer, as he rejected claims made by Moeed Yusuf — the prime minister’s aide on national security– in a recent interview with an Indian media outlet.

    “The statements made by him [Yusuf] are contrary to facts on the ground, misleading and fictitious. As regards the purported message that was referred to, let me make it clear that no such message was sent from our side,” Srivastava said at a weekly press briefing.

    The spokesperson termed the statement “fictitious and misleading”, saying the claim was made by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government to “divert attention from domestic failures” and “mislead its domestic constituents by pulling India into headlines on a daily basis”. The Indian official advised Yusuf “to restrict his advice to the establishment and not comment on India’s domestic policies”.

    PM’s Special Assistant on National Security Moeed Yusuf gave an interview to The Wire earlier this week, wherein he claimed that India approached Pakistan with a talk offer. This was the first time a Pakistani government official was interviewed by an Indian outlet since New Delhi annexed Kashmir in August last year.

    During his interview with Karan Thapar, Yusuf set five pre-conditions for the resumption of “meaningful dialogue” with India to resolve all outstanding issues, including the longstanding dispute of Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IoK).

    While he said that Pakistan desired peaceful ties with India and wanted to resolve all issues through dialogue, Yusuf asserted that for any meaningful dialogue to take place between the two neighbours, India has to release all political prisoners in Kashmir, end inhuman blockade and restrictions, rescind domicile law that allows non-Kashmiris to settle in the disputed territory, stop human rights abuses and end state terrorism in Pakistan.

    “My message is peace, my message is talk. But there is an intent and there has to be an enabling environment to talk, Karan. Create that and you will find us willing the next day. Just that one step, you will see my prime minister take two – that’s his promise, he stands by it,” Yusuf told journalist Karan Thapar.

  • NASA astronauts respond to fourth-graders from Karachi

    The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has responded to a Twitter post by a teacher from Karachi, wherein she had posted some space-related questions by her fourth-grade students.

    A group of fourth-graders from The Cornerstone School in Karachi came up with space-related queries for scientists and astronauts at NASA. In order to spread the message across NASA and get a response, the teacher took a shot and tweeted the same, tagging the space agency as well as prominent astronauts’ official Twitter handles.

    Over 2,000 people retweeted the letter that eventually reached scientists and astronauts who answered all the queries and invited the kids to be their guest after the pandemic.

    Here is the reply from Emily Calandrelli, an American science communicator and the host of Xploration Outer Space.

    Here’s what Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield had to say:

    People, including the teacher, were overwhelmed by the responses and appreciated the effort as DLR — German Aerospace Center — also responded.

    Some even suggested that Federal Science Minister Fawad Chaudhry should get involved to help other children have their questions answered.

  • All about the new, upcoming OnePlus 8T

    All about the new, upcoming OnePlus 8T

    The OnePlus has finally launched 8T variant with features like improved 65W fast charging, 120 Hz refresh rate of the display and improved design. 

    Design and Display

    The 8T has a flat display panel unlike the base OnePlus 8 and has thinner surrounding bezels as well. It has a 6.55-inch AMOLED panel with FHD+ resolution, but increased refresh rate to 120Hz akin to the 8 Pro. The cornered punch-hole and the in-display fingerprint sensor is still there.

    The back now has a large L shaped camera set up in a rectangular housing similar to Huawei’s P40 series.

    Storage and processing power

    OnePlus 8T has installed its flagship Snapdragon 865 with the same storage configurations going up to 12GB RAM and 256GB. 

    There is no memory card slot for storage expansion. The device will boot Andriod 11 with Oxygen OS 11 which will let you upgrade to newer Android versions for the next 3-4 years. It is commendable because many smartphones get slower after three to four android updates. 

    Camera

    The installed camera setup is virtually the same, but they have added 2 megapixels (MP) depth sensor. Rest of the cameras are the same: 48MP primary lens, a 16 MP ultrawide lens, and a 5MP macro lens. An ultra-zoom lens is still missing in this variant. 

    The finest improvement is 4,500 mAh power cell that can be charged from 0 to 100% in just 40 minutes. This is one of the biggest improvements that the 8T brings is fast charging. It has a 4,500 mAh power cell that can be charged from 0 to 100% in just 40 minutes thanks to 65W fast charging.

    The OnePlus 8T will be available in Aquamarine Green and Lunar Silver colour options once it goes for sale on October 23 for $750.

  • ‘Woh toh main hoon hee nahi’: Amna Ilyas responds to backlash on fat shaming comments

    Just last week, Amna Ilyas was being lauded for urging her colleagues and peers to stop endorsing fairness creams and end colourism. But now, the model-turned-actor has ended up in the line of fire after an old video of hers in which she is fat-shaming former supermodel Aaminah Haq went viral on social media.

    The video which is from 2018 shows Amna and Sadaf Kanwal engage in a game of ‘Guess the Celebrity’ on designer Hassan Sheheryar Yasin’s talk show Tonite with HSY. When asked about a certain former Pakistani supermodel, Ilyas mocks her [Aaminah] for gaining weight and then proceeds to hi-five Sadaf.

    Soon after the clip when viral on social media, Haq responded to it saying: “A few of you have tagged me in something a certain model/actor said about me. Truth be told, if body shaming me brought some small shred of joy in her life, then you’re welcome. Unhappy people tend to gravitate towards hate, instead of kindness and compassion.”

    Read more – Agha Ali responds to backlash on ‘fat-shaming’ comments

    Later, Amna responded to the clip and backlash saying: ‘Woh toh main hoon hee nahi (That wasn’t even me).”

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CGXRYsvJ2wR/
  • Detection of COVID-19 in students adds to second wave fears

    Detection of COVID-19 in students adds to second wave fears

    Two more educational institutions in Islamabad have been sealed by the district health administration after the detection of COVID-19 cases among five students, fueling the outbreak’s second wave fears.

    In August, the government lifted most lockdown restrictions, which had come following a significant drop in new coronavirus cases. Federal Education for Minister Shafqat Mahmood had announced the re-opening of educational institutions on September 4, since when, at least 29 schools, colleges and universities have been sealed in the federal capital alone.

    The cases were reported despite the authorities concerned ensuring that necessary measures were taken ahead of the much-awaited re-opening of educational institutions.

    While it was earlier speculated that coronavirus has ended in Pakistan due to either an effective strategy of the government or multiple other reasons such as herd immunity being achieved, a sudden spike in the number of cases has left experts scratching their heads.

    Amid the rising positivity rate in the country which crossed 2% in September, the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has expressed concerns over the looming second wave of coronavirus, highlighting the carelessness in the implementation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) in schools and other public spaces.

    Taking to Twitter, Minister for Planning Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar, who also chairs the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) to deal with COVID-19 in the country, has highlighted the rise in the number of infections as well.

    An analysis of previous data shows that since the easing of lockdown restrictions and reopening of education institutions in Pakistan, there has been a steady increase in the number of new COVID-19 cases.

    However, evidence from around the world has shown there is no correlation between students returning to institutions after coronavirus lockdowns and a rise or fall in new infections.

    According to Insights for Education, 52 countries, including France and Spain, actually saw infection rates rise during the holidays. Some, such as Croatia, have seen cases fall after reopening schools.

    Others, like Hungary and Great Britain, have seen a rise since reopening schools, according to the data — based on UNESCO and World Bank figures alongside rigorous daily media scans over the last six months — although the United Kingdom (UK) infection rate was already trending upwards before schools reopened.

    Overall, the picture is so varied that a link between schools and coronavirus transmission cannot be proved, the report suggested. Other factors, including the country’s health system capacity and economic openness and the robustness of its testing and tracing system, must be considered. 

    By the time this report was filed, Sindh had the highest number of infections and deaths in Pakistan — 140,997 and 2,566, respectively — followed by Punjab with 101,237 positive cases and 2,277 deaths.

    The total number of cases in the country stood at 321,218 with 305,395 recoveries.

  • Police find Rs 85,000 in beggar’s bag in Quetta

    The police found Rs 85,000 in a beggar’s bag in Quetta who lost his consciousness after a vehicle hit him on Wednesday.

    As per reports, the incident happened on Quetta’s Saryab road, where a motorcyclist allegedly hit the beggar, leaving him unconscious.

    He was taken Civil Hospital by police. While he was being treated for his wounds, his bag was checked to find out his identity., The beggar had been carrying Rs85,000 and some change. The bills were kept in a very organised manner, sorted by denomination and bound in separate bundles.

    Police said that the amount has been kept “safe” and will be returned to the beggar when he recovers.

  • Former ISI DG says he never asked Nawaz Sharif to resign

    Former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general (DG) Lt General (r) Zaheerul Islam has said that he never sought the resignation of prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

    Speaking to a private media outlet on Wednesday, Islam also categorically denied that he had in 2014 sent any message through any person to the then PM Nawaz. “I never sent anyone to convey any such message to the premier,” he said, adding it was absolutely wrong.

    Instead, Islam insisted that at every stage during the 2014 sit-in by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT), he had advised the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government to politically engage with the protesting parties to end the protest.

    He was, however, reluctant to talk further on the subject.

    Stepping back into the political limelight last month, Nawaz, who is seeking medical treatment abroad, had in a fiery speech said the entire country knows what the former ISI chief had done. He claimed that Islam had at midnight sent him a message seeking his resignation.

    “He threatened to impose martial law if I didn’t step down but I refused to resign at all costs,” Nawaz had added.

    Reacting to his statements, PM Imran Khan had said he would take on anyone who dares to tell him to step down as a democratically-elected PM.

    “He [Nawaz] claims he was told by the army… Gen Zaheerul Islam… to resign. You are the PM… how can he dare to demand so from you?” the premier had said while speaking to senior journalist Nadeem Malik.

    When asked what would Imran Khan do if he is asked to resign, the premier had said he, being the PM, would immediately ask for that person’s resignation. “I am the country’s PM,” he had said maintained.

  • Two govt-controlled depts spied on Jahangir Tareen, monitored his family, his businesses?

    Two govt-controlled depts spied on Jahangir Tareen, monitored his family, his businesses?

    Former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) secretary general Jahangir Khan Tareen was reportedly spied on by two government-controlled departments — neither linked to any defence organisation or the armed forces — after being tasked by his own party to monitor his activities and businesses as well as those of his family.

    While Geo, citing sources, has reported that the departments monitored the same over several weeks, the claims have been categorically denied by the government.  

    Tareen’s residences in Islamabad and Lodhran were allegedly bugged, as were his sugar mills and other business interests. His activities, including meetings with politicians, businessmen and friends, were monitored and phone calls taped, the report said, adding that phone calls of all the members of his family were also allegedly recorded.

    Three weeks ago, a team from the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) had raided the head office of Tareen’s sugar mill and seized office records. It is not clear whether the raid was linked to the bugging operation or not.

    Advisor to the Prime Minister (PM) on Accountability and Interior Shahzad Akbar has, however, rejected the allegations, describing them as “fiction”.

    He said that the allegation that Tareen and his family were spied on was “news” for him. “All concerns of those who were subject of the Sugar Commission inquiry [including Tareen] were raised by them in multiple cases before various high courts as well as the Supreme Court of Pakistan.”