Blog

  • Sindh announces to ban plastic bags

    Sindh announces to ban plastic bags

    The Government of Sindh has announced a ban on plastic bags across the province from October 1st (tomorrow).

    As per reports, the Sindh Government’s Environment Department has issued a notification to ban the production, sale, purchase, and use of non-biodegradable plastic bags.

    Legal action will be initiated against anyone who breaks the law. Special teams will monitor different markets and those found involved in any violation of the law will be punished accordingly, said the notification.

    Adviser to CM on environment Murtaza Wahab advised citizens to replace plastic bags with paper or cloth bags.

    Biodegradable refers to substances that are capable of being decomposed by bacteria and other living organisms and do not pollute the environment. Ordinary plastic does not degrade and stays in the ecosystem for years and years, creating pollution and health hazards for living things.

  • Indian army chief responds to PM Imran’s warning, threatens to cross LoC

    Indian army chief responds to PM Imran’s warning, threatens to cross LoC

    Reacting to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s warning to the world if tensions between Pakistan and India escalate to a nuclear war, Indian Army chief General Bipin Rawat has threatened to cross the Line of Control (LoC) “if they have to”, Times of India reported.

    According to the details, Bipin’s remarks came after the premier, in his United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) address, warned the world of a potential nuclear war if India continued its actions in held Kashmir.

    Bipin said that PM Imran “must understand that nuclear weapons are meant for deterrence and they are not to be used in a conventional war”.

    The Indian army chief said that the “2016 surgical strikes and the Balakot airstrikes in 2019 sent a clear message to Pakistan that India is not interested in playing a hide and seek” game anymore.

    BOGUS SURGICAL STRIKES & FAILED AIRSTRIKES:

    On September 28, 2016, India had claimed that the country carried out surgical strikes on seven terror launch pads across the LoC, inflicting “significant casualties”.

    The Pakistan military, however, had swiftly rubbished the notions of a surgical strike, saying, “This quest by the Indian establishment to create media hype by rebranding cross-border fire as a surgical strike is fabrication of the truth. Pakistan has made it clear that if there is a surgical strike on Pakistani soil, the same will be strongly responded.”

    Three years later, following the Pulwama incident in which 44 Indian paramilitary soldiers lost their lives, two Indian aircraft entered Pakistani air space on February 27 for the second time in two days, engaged with Pakistan Air Force (PAF), and as a result, were shot down.

    The wreckage of one of the planes landed in Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK), and the wreckage of the other plane landed in the Indian-occupied Kasmir (IoK), Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) had confirmed at the time.

    Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who was held captive following the aerial dogfight, was handed over to India on March 1 in a peace gesture after PM Imran had announced to release him in an attempt to “de-escalate tensions” between the two countries.

  • Kashmiris protest against India with apples

    Kashmiris protest against India with apples

    Farmers in India-occupied Kashmir (IoK) are intentionally letting their apples rot in a bid to discourage the valley’s most profitable export as bitterness towards the Indian government grows.

    According to a report by AFP, farmers are purposely sabotaging the crop, vital to the local economy, in protest against Modi’s government.

    At an orchard in central Shopian district, Ghulam Nabi Malik and his brother usually sell 7,000 boxes of apples per year earning them some seven million rupees (nearly $100,000). Their land is now idle, with branches drooping under the weight of unpicked fruit.

    “Let it rot on the trees,” Malik said, adding, “To leave the ripe apples rotting on the trees is the only form of protest we can do under the current circumstances.”

    Malik said that harvesting would allow the Indian government “to tell the world that everything is fine in Kashmir” and he wants the world to know that everything is far from fine.

    In early August, the Indian Government revoked Article 370 which granted special status to IoK. Troops were deployed in the region and all communication in the valley was blocked, cutting off Kashmiris from the outside world. Thousands of civilians and political leaders have been arrested and protests have raged since.

    Pro-independence fighters have pasted posters outside mosques, appealing to orchard owners not to harvest and instead join the protest.

    The fertile Himalayan region usually sells apple worth hundreds of million dollars each year, and more than half of Kashmiris are engaged directly or indirectly in cultivation.

  • VIDEO: ‘PM Imran addressed UN in Urdu,’ boasts Zartaj Gul

    VIDEO: ‘PM Imran addressed UN in Urdu,’ boasts Zartaj Gul

    Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul has said that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan “is the only PM who addressed the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in his beautiful mother tongue, Urdu”.

    In a video doing rounds over the internet, Gul, while addressing a gathering, can be heard as saying, “It is our Prime Minister Imran Khan who managed to garner respect for white shalwar kameez and spoke to the UN in his beautiful mother tongue, Urdu.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Twitterati are trolling the minister for her remarks that suggest she didn’t even watch PM Imran’s address.

    Here’s his complete speech… in English.

  • Sarmad Khoosat’s ‘Zindagi Tamasha’ is the controversy we’ve been waiting for

    Sarmad Khoosat’s ‘Zindagi Tamasha’ is the controversy we’ve been waiting for

    Ace filmmaker Sarmad Khoosat has returned to the silver screen with yet another riveting film, Zindagi Tamasha (Circus of Life).

    The film which starres Arif Hassan, Samiya Mumtaz, Eman Suleman and Ali Qureshi in the lead is centred around a Naat Khwan Rahat Khawaja (played by Hassan) and his family who are outcast from society when a secret of Khawaja’s is leaked.

    Meanwhile, the official synopsis states: “The film is an intimate portrait of a family as well as a scorching political commentary on little gods on this earth who police our private passions.”

    The trailer also hints that the topic of blasphemy will be touched upon in the film.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAYXVRQeT5U

    Given the intolerance and misuse of the religion card in our society, Zindagi Tamasha will be a harsh wakeup call.

    The film will initially premiere at the Busan Film Festival in South Korea later this week and will release locally some time this year.

    Pakistani celebs took to social media to express their excitement for the film.

  • ‘If selected, he’s the best selection ever,’ Imran’s fans quote fake US senator

    ‘If selected, he’s the best selection ever,’ Imran’s fans quote fake US senator

    In a rather embarrassing development, supporters of the Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government have quoted a fake United States (US) senator as praising the Pakistani premier.

    “If he is selected then it might be the best selection ever, and if he is elected then Pakistanis are the most wise nation in the world [sic],” a group of Twitterati quoted “US Senator Tony Booker” as saying after PM Imran on Sunday arrived in Pakistan after his successful trip to the country.

    The problem? Tony Booker doesn’t even exist.

    Pointing out what was wrong with the quote, journalist Omar Qureshi took to Twitter and wrote:

    Cory Anthony Booker is an American politician serving as the junior US senator from New Jersey since 2013 and a member of the Democratic Party.

    Earlier, dozens of supporters of the ruling PTI flooded the micro-blogging website with praise for PM Imran.

    Meanwhile, others took some time out to troll those who fell for the fake statement.

    https://twitter.com/patvaryzindabad/status/1178359836146188289

    A number of tweets quoting the senator, who doesn’t even exist, have been deleted.

  • ‘Hassan Ali isn’t my wife,’ says Shadab

    Pakistani cricketer Shadab Khan gave a witty response while speaking to media on Sunday when a reporter asked him how he felt about the fast bowler Hassan Ali — being left out of the squad for Pakistan’s series against Sri Lanka.

    When asked how he felt about playing in a series without his friend Hassan for the first time, Shadab said: “It’s just friendship, you make it sound like our relationship is that of husband and wife”.

    “I do miss him because we have been playing together for a while now. Not just me but the entire team misses him as he’s always jolly”, he added.

    Shadab also took to social media and tweeted: “See Hassan, our friendship has made it to the press well”.

    “On a serious note, all the team is in good spirit for Pakistan vs Sri Lanka series, we will try to give it our all,” Shadab added.

  • Mehwish Hayat clarifies stance on Kashmir

    Mehwish Hayat clarifies stance on Kashmir

    Mehwish Hayat recently came under fire after a video of her’s went viral on social media.

    The 15-second video clip which appears to be from a charity event shows a reporter asking Mehwish about her stance on Kashmir.

    To this, Mehwish responded that she cannot comment on the matter as she has been told to refrain from speaking on the subject.

    “Mana kardiya hai (I have been told not to),” she says in the video.

    The video soon made its way to social media and everyone started calling out Mehwish for being a hypocrite.

    Mehwish then came out with a statement in which she clarified that her video is being taken out of context. She said that she will continue to remain vocal on the Kashmir issue and that she was requested by the charity event’s PR “not to be political and not distract from the orphans” she was there to help.

    Several members of the film and media industry defended Mehwish.

    Mehwish, in the recent past, has been vocal about Islamophobia, the depiction of Pakistanis and Muslims in Hollywood and Bollywood and Indian atrocities in Indian occupied Kashmir.

  • A women-only hotel has opened in Spain

    A women-only hotel has opened in Spain

    Spain has opened its first women-only hotel on the island of Mallorca.

    According to The Independent, the Som Dona Hotel, near Porto Cristo, exclusively caters to women aged 14 years and above. It aims to offer “a new space for women who are looking to disconnect from the stress of daily life”.

    The four-star hotel has 39 rooms and offers a pool, spa, library and a roof-top terrace. Apart from that wellness services at the hotel include massages, treatments, a whirlpool tub and solarium, along with locally sourced food, “flexitarian gastronomy” and healthy and sustainable cuisine. Guests can also participate in excursions around the island and cultural activities.

    According to the advertisements, Som Dona welcomes women of all sexual orientations, solo travellers, couples, mothers and daughters and larger groups.

    No men, including late-night gentlemen, are allowed on the hotel premises. However, it does employ men keeping with Spanish gender discrimination laws even though priority is given to female staff.

    Women going on solo trips has seen a rise in recent years despite the fact that they have to take more factors into consideration than men. Som Hotels president, Joan Enric Capellá, said surveys conducted by the group revealed that female customers liked the idea of a women-only hotel.

    Double rooms at Som Dona start at $78 (13,000 rupees approx) per night only.

  • Bushra Bibi’s reflection doesn’t appear in the mirror, claims Indian media

    Bushra Bibi’s reflection doesn’t appear in the mirror, claims Indian media

    If claims of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi having two jinns was not enough, Indian media has now come up with a whole new theory.

    Sharing a screengrab from what appears to a Pakistani media outlet, Indian news channel ANI said that Bushra Bibi’s reflection does not appear in the mirror. The report further states that officials of the Prime Minister House have shared this information.

    ANI later deleted the story. But lucky for you, we took a screenshot and you know, as they say, screenshots are forever.

    ANI in its report had quoted that Pakistani channel Capital TV as their source. Other Indian media outlets also picked up the news and began to report it.

    However, Capital TV took to social media to slam ANI’s claims and said that the images were doctored.