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  • Shehzad Roy wants citizens to practise social distancing

    Shehzad Roy wants citizens to practise social distancing

    Singer turned activist Shehzad Roy has appealed to his followers to practise social distancing to save themselves from contracting the coronavirus.

    In a video message posted to social media, Roy said, “I got the opportunity today to go to CM House, Sindh and meet the task force dealing with the coronavirus. I was very happy to see how serious the government is and it really is a serious situation.

    “I want to request everyone not to shake hands with each other even if someone wants to. Don’t do it, even if they feel insulted. Don’t get together for weddings or religious reasons,” he asserted. “On my way, I could see that everyone was at Sea View beach like it’s New Year’s or a holiday, people were celebrating.”

    He added, “We need to behave like ashraful makhlookat. This is a very dangerous situation. We don’t want to panic but we also need to save each other; we don’t want things to get so bad that we need to go on lockdown.”

    “Lets practice social distancing and try to infect the least number of people.”

    Meanwhile, other celebrities are also advising people to practise self-isolation.

  • KP confirms its first 15 cases of coronavirus

    KP confirms its first 15 cases of coronavirus

    The health minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has confirmed that 15 people out of the 19 who arrived to the province from Taftan, Iran have tested positive for coronavirus. They have been put in quarantine in DI Khan.

    READ MORE: HOURLY CORONAVIRUS UPDATES

    This recent development comes after a suspected coronavirus patient died in Peshawar this morning. The patient was awaiting results of his coronavirus test but tested negative for the virus.

    RELATED: HOW TO GET YOURSELF TESTED FOR CORONAVIRUS IN PAKISTAN

    The total tally of the cases in Pakistan has increased to 118 nationwide with 88 in Sindh, 10 in Balochistan, 1 in Punjab, 5 in Gilgit Baltistan and 2 in Islamabad.

  • ‘Nawaz Sharif as PM barred Foreign Office from speaking against India,’ ex-diplomat claims

    ‘Nawaz Sharif as PM barred Foreign Office from speaking against India,’ ex-diplomat claims

    Former spokesperson for the Foreign Office (FO) Tasneem Aslam has claimed that former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif had barred the FO from commenting against India and its spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is currently in Pakistan’s custody.

    “Nawaz Sharif did not want to say anything against India and Jadhav through the Foreign Office,” she claimed during an interview with a YouTube channel being run by journalist Isa Naqvi.

    When asked if Nawaz’s instruction benefited the country, Tasneem, who worked as FO spokesperson twice — from 2005 to 2007 under military ruler General (r) Pervez Musharraf and during the last Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government between 2013 and 2017, said it “did not benefit the country” but she did not know “whether it benefited Nawaz’s own interests or not”.

    She said Nawaz had business interests in India and he did not meet Muslim leaders of India-held Kashmir when he visited India as the premier. “Usually, every PM of Pakistan meets Hurriyat leaders but Nawaz Sharif did not meet them when he visited India.”

    Nawaz had visited India in 2014. Aslam further said even in his speech at the United Nations (UN) summit, Nawaz did not talk about India and Jadhav but on the Kashmir issue.

    Meanwhile, PML-N Information Secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb told Dawn that the comments by a retired FO official bore no resemblance to reality. “It is a false and biased expression of an individual’s views, based on her personal predilections.”

    Recalling efforts made by Nawaz to resolve the Kashmir dispute, she said that “the principled manner in which he dealt with the issue of Pakistan’s relations with its eastern neighbour was well documented”.

    Marriyum added that the former premier’s address to the UN General Assembly in 2016 contained the most forceful references ever to the issue of Kashmir and the most powerful condemnation of the atrocities and brutalities of the Indian occupation forces.

    The former diplomat’s statements have not been very well-received by Twitterati either.

    What do you think of Tasneem’s statement? Let The Current know in the comments.

  • Sehatmand Pakistan: Govt’s new chat system to inform people about coronavirus

    Sehatmand Pakistan: Govt’s new chat system to inform people about coronavirus

    The government has launched a new chat system to provide basic information on the new coronavirus — COVID-19 –, Tania Aidrus tweeted.

    The chat system named ‘Pakistan Government Official Corona Chatbot’ can be accessed through the Facebook page of the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations & Coordination.

    A chatbot is an auto-generated message that a user receives from a digital media platform.

    This new digital media service can answer all basic questions regarding coronavirus. Moreover, it can guide you about the preventive measures that should be taken to reduce the risks of contracting the virus, and suggest you see your nearest facility for screening if you are experiencing any of the virus symptoms.

    For more information, Facebook users can visit the page of Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Islamabad.

    https://www.facebook.com/NHSRCOfficial/?epa=SEARCH_BOX

  • Imran Khan approves spending Rs42 million to defend govt on internet

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has approved spending Rs42 million of taxpayers’ money for the constitution of a digital media wing at the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the only responsibility of which will be to defend the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government over the internet.

    According to Geo, the 27-member digital media wing will defend over social media any decisions made by the government while also dealing with critics of the ruling PTI and explaining the policies of the Imran administration.

    No allocations were there in the budget for the ongoing fiscal year and the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) had also rejected the government’s summary for the constitution of a digital media wing, the report said, adding that Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has clarified how supplementary grants do not fall within the jurisdiction of the Finance Ministry.

    “The ECC had left the matter of the digital media wing’s budget up to PM Imran,” she reportedly said.

    Meanwhile, Focal Person to the PM on Digital Media Dr Arslan Khalid said it was the first time any government was building the capacity of the Information Ministry on the digital media front. He tweeted:

    Separately, in an exclusive conversation with The Current, he maintained that digital media was a reality and capacity building of the Information Ministry on digital front was something to cherish. “From its approval to recruitment to its working, all will be public knowledge,” he said.

  • Need authentic coronavirus updates? Follow these Twitter accounts

    With the coronavirus spreading fast, misinformation on the matter is also spreading with the same speed causing panic among citizens.

    For the most authentic information on the matter, follow the following Twitter accounts.

    Dr Zafar Mirza, State Minister of Health of Pakistan

    Murtaza Wahab

    Taimur Khan Jhagra, Health Minister, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

    Musarrat Cheema, Spokesperson of the Government of Punjab

    https://twitter.com/MusarratCheema/status/1239242495956934656?s=20

    Liaquat Shahwani, Spokesperson of the Government of Balochistan

    UNICEF also requested people to beware of misinformation and take all coronavirus related information from official platforms.

    Meanwhile, The Current is also posting all updates regarding the coronavirus on its live blog. You can visit the blog here:

    Coronavirus

  • Hamza Shehbaz ‘avoids coronavirus’ in meeting with ex-Punjab Assembly speaker

    Hamza Shehbaz ‘avoids coronavirus’ in meeting with ex-Punjab Assembly speaker

    As the new coronavirus — COVID-19 — continues to spread across the globe and the infections tally in Pakistan reaches 94, many, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hamza Shehbaz, have been spotted avoiding direct physical contact such as handshakes, and resorting to new, cooler ways of greeting others.

    A viral photo on Monday showed the leader of opposition in the Punjab Assembly (PA) greeting PML-N leader and ex-speaker of the provincial house, Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan, with an elbow bump instead of a handshake during a meeting in the former’s chamber.

    The two had met on Saturday to discuss the current political and economic situation of the country. PML-N Punjab lawmakers and local leaders were also in attendance.

    While Hamza might be the first prominent Pakistani to be spotted resorting to an elbow bump amid coronavirus fears, he is not the first political leader in the world to be doing so.

    United States (US) President Donald Trump was last week seen elbow bumping health executive Bruce Greenstein following a press conference during which a national emergency in response to coronavirus outbreak was declared.

    Here are a few other leaders avoiding physical contact as per the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO):

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi being welcomed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President JP Nadda as he arrives to attend a party meeting in New Delhi.
    US Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the government’s coronavirus task force, greets a woman at the Washington State Emergency Operations Center during a tour.
    Union parties leader Alexander Dobrindt greets German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a Buddhist style to avoid a handshake in times of coronavirus.

    Globally, more than 6,000 people have died and more than 156,000 have been infected by COVID-19 as the disease spreads rapidly to new territories.

  • Major policy shift: Gas companies told to reduce tariffs

    Major policy shift: Gas companies told to reduce tariffs

    The government of Pakistan has officially directed the board and managing directors of the two gas utilities to cut down major revenue sources to provide relief to consumers through lowering tariffs reported DAWN.

    In a letter, the petroleum division has asked the chairpersons and managing directors of the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) to seek approval of their boards for lower revenue requirements in the consumer tariff.

    The companies have been asked to reduce their benchmarks of unaccounted for Gas (UFG) from 6.3 per cent to 4pc. This will cut gas companies’ revenue by Rs10bn a year.

    Secondly, they are also asked to reduce their rate of return from 17 and 17.5pc to 15pc with a revenue loss of about Rs5bn a year.

    Third, the directives also demand one per cent reduction in the rate of depreciation on assets with the financial impact of another Rs5bn. On top of that, both companies have also been asked to find ways to reduce their overall operational costs to create another fiscal space of about Rs5bn.

    The letter, written by petroleum secretary Asad Hayauddin, has conveyed to the boards and management of the two companies that these areas have been identified through a review of “various options to decrease the gas sales prices with a view to providing relief to the gas consumers”.

  • Deceased Peshawar patient did not have coronavirus, tests confirm

    Deceased Peshawar patient did not have coronavirus, tests confirm

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Health Minister Taimur Khan Jhagra has withdrawn his earlier tweet regarding the first death of a suspected coronavirus case in Peshawar, saying that the deceased had tested negative for COVID-19.

    Earlier, it was reported that the patient had been admitted to Hayatabad Medical Complex in Peshawar and his test results were awaited, causing panic over what could have been Pakistan’s first reported death due to the new coronavirus.

    RELATED: How to get yourself tested for coronavirus in Pakistan

    If he had the virus when he died, he will be the first confirmed coronavirus death in Pakistan. However, the website https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ has already listed one death for Pakistan in it’s rankings of cases around the world.

    Screenshot from website worldometer info, which is ranking coronavirus cases in the world. Pakistan is listed as having one death due to the virus

    READ MORE: Sindh confirms 41 new cases of coronavirus, 94 infections confirmed in Pakistan

    There are at least 94 more cases in Pakistan and are steadily rising.

  • Apple bans coronavirus-themed apps

    Apple bans coronavirus-themed apps

    Apply said that they will not allow entertainment or game apps with COVID-19 as their theme on its App Store, Tribune reported.

    In a statement on their blog, Apple said: “The App Store should always be a safe and trusted place for users to download apps. Now more than ever that commitment takes on special significance as the world fights the COVID-19 pandemic. Communities around the world are depending on apps to be credible news sources — helping users understand the latest health innovations, find out where they can get help if needed or provide assistance to their neighbours.”

    “We’re evaluating apps critically to ensure data sources are reputable and that developers presenting these apps are from recognized entities such as government organizations, health-focused NGOs, companies deeply credentialed in health issues, and medical or educational institutions. Only developers from one of these recognized entities should submit an app related to COVID-19.”

    ”Nonprofit organizations, accredited educational institutions, and government entities that plan to distribute only free apps on the App Store can request to have their annual membership fee waived if based in an eligible country.”