Tag: islamabad

  • Weekend events in your city

    Weekend events in your city

    Lahore

    Rooftop Family Fest

    Date and Time: Dec 20 at 3 PM – Dec 22 at 12 AM

    Venue: Fortress Stadium

    Musical Fest

    Date: 21st Dec

    Time: 06:30 PM – 11:30 PM

    Venue: Nishat Hotel.

    Islamabad:

    Rawalpindi Food Festival

    Date and Time: Dec 20 at 4 PM – Dec 22 at 7 PM

    Venue: Ayub Park

    Winter Fiesta

    Date: 21st Dec

    Time: 12PM – 10PM

    Venue: Awan E Quaid Mehran Gate F9 Park

    Karachi:

    Christmas Extravaganza at the Library

    Date: 22nd Dec

    Time: 2PM – 3PM

    Venue: British Council, Karachi

    Family Dinner Cruise 

    Date: 21st Dec

    Time: 5:30 – 9:30 PM

    Venue: 2nd Commercial Lane, Zamzama Commercial Area, Building 1/C

  • Police releases plan for twin cities ahead of Pak- Sri Lanka Test series

    Police releases plan for twin cities ahead of Pak- Sri Lanka Test series

    The Sri Lankan cricket team has landed in Pakistan and the matches are scheduled from 11th to 15th December. Surely there will be strict security checks and also some traffic problems. Therefore, Deputy Commissioner Islamabad, Hamza Shafqat, has shared the traffic plan for the Pakistan-Sri Lanka match.

    The traffic plan, planned by
    Islamabad Traffic Police and City Traffic Police Rawalpindi, will be from 10th
    December to 15th December from 6 am to 6 pm.

    Murree Road will be blocked from
    Faizabad to 6th Road

    Stadium Road from IJP Road to Murree
    Road will also be blocked

    Ghousia Chowk turn towards Murree
    Road will be shut

    People would have to take alternate
    routes from Haroon Chowk and Dhoke Kala Khan Chowk towards Ghousia Chowk.

    Turns towards Murree Road on Islamabad highway – for traffic coming from Zero Point and Koral will be blocked.

    Rawalpindi to Islamabad:

    If you are entering Islamabad from
    Rawalpindi, these are the alternate routes.

    A U-turn in front of Kidney Center
    on Murree Road will be used to divert traffic towards Islamabad.

    Traffic from Sadiqabad will use
    Farooq-e-Azam Road/Kurri Road to merge onto the Islamabad motorway.

    Islamabad to Rawalpindi:

    For those coming to Rawalpindi from
    Islamabad, these are the alternate routes

    Traffic coming from Rawal Chowk will
    be averted to Islamabad motorway and they can enter Rawalpindi from the
    following points:

    Dhoke Kala Khan

    Khanna Pul

    Koral Chowk

    Traffic from IJP-9th Avenue Chowk
    will use Pindora Chungi, Katarian Market, Pirwadhai Mor, Carriage Factory and
    Pirwadhai to enter Rawalpindi

    The authorities have also advised
    the citizens to cooperate with the traffic police for uninterrupted traffic
    flow.

  • Islamabad is getting Shaheen Squad

    Islamabad is getting Shaheen Squad

    With rising incidents of street crime in Islamabad, a new mobile team was introduced to prevent street crimes in the city.

    The motorbike-mounted Shaheen Squad will patrol all the public places to keep an eye on muggers and check doubtful activities. Operations DIG Waqaruddin Syed said that the squad has been deployed at model police stations in Islamabad to curb street crimes in different areas.

    Officers in the squad will be armed with modern weapons and radios to directly respond to situations as per directions received from the control room. Senior police officers will check the performance of the squad daily. As per reports, all personnel has been instructed to be alert while on duty. During checking, the squad members have been directed to follow policy and be courteous with the people.

  • London bridge attacker laid to rest in Pakistan

    London bridge attacker laid to rest in Pakistan

    British national Usman Khan who attacked people on London Bridge was laid to rest in his family’s ancestral village in a southern district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Friday, Dawn reported.

    According to the details, the body of the 28-year-old Usman was brought by his family from Islamabad airport to Kijlani village in district Kotli where the funeral took place at 4pm, following which he was buried in a local graveyard.

    Pakistan International Airline’s (PIA) General Manager Public Relations Abdul Hafeez has said that Usman Khan’s body was shifted to Islamabad from London aboard a PIA flight PK-792, which was later handed over to his family.

    Abdul Hafeez said that it was the PIA’s policy that it carried bodies on the basis of genuine documentation, including foreign-origin card of the deceased and Pakistan High Com­mission’s letter.

    The body was handed over to his relatives after passing through the immigration and customs process.

    Usman’s relatives drove the body to the town of Kotli for burial as his family didn’t want to bury him in the United Kingdom (UK). His funeral prayers were earlier offered in a Birmingham mosque.

    After Usman’s funeral people, on social media have pointed out that the government had earlier tried to cover up the fact that the London Bridge attacker was a Pakistani and now they have allowed him burial in the country.

    Usman Khan had earlier stabbed two people to death and left three others injured in an attack in London. He had been residing in the Staffordshire area of UK.

    According to reports, Khan was part of a gang of nine extremists, mostly of Bangladeshi origin, who were sentenced in February 2012 after being convicted. However, he was released in December 2018, but was required to wear a GPS [an electronic tag].

    After the London Bridge attack, Usman was shot dead by security personnel.

  • How much did the ‘Azadi March’ cost the government?

    How much did the ‘Azadi March’ cost the government?

    Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s ‘Azadi March’ which took place from October 31 to November 13 cost the government over Rs240 million, Rs248 million to be exact.

    According to a report in Dawn, this amount is payable to contractors/vendors whose services were hired for security and other arrangements which included lodging, meal and transportation of police called from other districts.

    As many as 5,000 from the capital police along with 3,000 Frontier Constabulary, 1,500 Punjab Constabulary, 2,000 from KP police and 500 from Kashmir and railway police were deployed in Islamabad during the sit-in. 550 containers were also arranged to block roads as a part of security measures and 105 vehicles, including 88 buses, were used to transport the security personnel.

    The rent of a 40-foot container was Rs20,000 a day and Rs14,000 for a 20-foot container. On the other hand, the rent of a bus was Rs25,000 per day and Rs15,000 of a wagon/truck. The fuel for these vehicles cost the police Rs 20 million.

    The capital police also purchased anti-riot gears to deal with confrontations, though none took place in the 13-day sit-in.

    Other expenses included the rent of nine buildings hired for the force requisitioned from other provinces.

    Meanwhile, Rs695.6 million were spent during PTI and PAT’s dharna in 2014.

  • Islamabad to get chairlifts?

    If reports are to believed Islamabad’s Margalla Hills may be getting chairlifts.

    According to a report in Samaa News, the wildlife ministry is considering installing a chairlift at the Margalla Hills for tourists. The idea has also received positive feedback from environmental experts who believe that this will help reduce the number of cars that visit the hills on a daily basis.

    The ministry says that there are two benefits of installing the chairlifts: one people visiting the area will get great ariel views of the hills and two the number of cars going to the hills will reduce. Officials of the ministry say that the hills and Islamabad’s national parks need to be protected.

    Reports suggest that almost 5,000 cars cross the foothills of the Margalla every day.

  • Weekend events in your city

    Weekend events in your city

    Lahore

    The Rhythm Circle

    Date: Nov 30, Saturday.

    Time: 6:30-7:30 PM

    Venue: 126/F, Model Town, Faiz Ghar

    Pottery and Painting Workshop

    Karachi

    Cruise Safari

    Date: 01 Dec, Sunday

    Time: 9:30 AM – 5:30 PM

    Venue: 14-C,13th Floor, Sidco Avenue, RA Lines.

    The Khawatoons

    Date: 1st Dec, Sunday

    Time: 5-8 PM

    Venue: Building No. 43-C, Bukhari Lane No. 11, Phase 6, DHA

    Islamabad

    Islamabad Taste

    Date and time: Nov 29 at 3 PM – Dec 1 at 12 AM

    Venue: Jinnah Convention Centre

    Craft Bazaar

    Date: Nov 30th, Saturday

    Time: 3-8 PM

    Venue: NISTE, Faiz Ahmed Faiz Road, H-8/1, Islamabad

    Apart from these events, Blessed Friday is also happening and the sales are lit. Check them out here.

  • JUI-F’s Mufti Kifayatullah injured in attempt on life

    JUI-F’s Mufti Kifayatullah injured in attempt on life

    Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam’s (JUI-F) senior leader Mufti Kifayatullah was injured in an assassination attempt near Mansehra Interchange on Wednesday morning, Geo News reported. 

    According to the details, Kifayatullah along with his two sons and a companion were travelling to Mansehra from Islamabad when another vehicle hit their car from behind and stopped it near Mansehra Interchange.

    The attackers tried to pull the JUI-F leader from his car and attacked them with iron rods, leaving all inhabitants of the car wounded.

    Mufti and the others were later shifted to the King Abdullah Teaching Hospital Mansehra for treatment. 

    Police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the attack.

    Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran Khan’s former wife Reham Khan has condemned the attack and said, “If the culprits behind this attack are not arrested immediately we will consider that the incumbent government is itself involved in this attack”.

  • Islamabad robbers used ‘nullahs’ to carry out their thefts

    Islamabad robbers used ‘nullahs’ to carry out their thefts

    Who would have thought that Islamabad’s nullahs would be used to carry out thefts and provide shelter to robbers?

    Turns out that a gang of robbers, who have been creating panic in the capital, were using the drains, or nullahs, to carry out their activities.

    According to reports, the police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (CIA) made the discovery after they found a hideout near Jinnah Avenue in F-7 and uncovered a makeshift room in one of the drains, with all the requirements for a bedroom and living room.

    An investigation into the matter was carried out after more than a dozen robberies took place in F-10, F-11, G-10 and G-11. The investigation team led by Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Hakim Khan studied the areas where the robberies took place and found that all the houses that were robbed were located near drains.

    Surveillance of the drains revealed that the suspects were using them for their movement.

    Though most of the suspects escaped the police raid, two people were later arrested and the stolen goods confiscated. The police said that there were eight to 10 tributaries leading off from the drain they raided, which made it difficult to follow the suspects further.

    Those arrested during interrogation revealed that they were part of a five-member group and the remaining three members had fled to Afghanistan following the raid. They shared that they stayed in a city for a few weeks, robbed several houses, and then travelled to Afghanistan with the stolen items with the help of local facilitators who were given 10 to 15 per cent of the stolen items.

    The apprehended further said that houses near nullahs were chosen for robberies to be carried out at sunset and sunrise. They revealed that they entered the houses by cutting through grills and then held residents hostage before carrying out their robberies.

  • ‘Army says Monal built on its land, wants it back now’

    ‘Army says Monal built on its land, wants it back now’

    Islamabad’s famous Monal Restaurant is built on military land in the Margalla Hills that the army now wants back, a Capital Development Authority (CDA) official has reportedly told a parliamentary committee.

    According to Dawn, Dr Shahid Mahmood on Wednesday told the National Assembly Standing Committee on Climate Change that 15 years ago, the CDA “did not know it was building the restaurant on military grasslands until the army started claiming it”.

    The committee was told that the 22,000 acres of land — that are now a part of the Margalla Hills National Park — were actually owned by the Punjab government.

    Around 5,500 acres of the said land was allocated to the army, he said, although the exact year the allocation was made, was not stated. The CDA now owns 16,500 acres.

    The latest survey conducted by the authority revealed that the land allotted to the army is right in the centre of the national park, and Monal has been built on it.

    Monal Restaurant was built in 2005 and was a CDA property. The operation of the restaurant was leased for a 10 year period, Dr Mahmood told the committee, adding that the space was now being vacated and handed over to the army.

    However, Committee Chairperson Munaza Hassan was more interested in finding out who had permitted the construction of a large restaurant inside the national park protected by the law to conserve its natural environment and wildlife.

    Dr Mahmood said the CDA board at the time had permitted the restaurant’s construction, offering to share the board decision with the committee. He said several inquiries were undertaken to hold officials accountable for allowing the restaurant to be built, but none had been successful.

    The committee chair then demanded that CDA shared information regarding the construction of Monal Restaurant on protected land.

    Climate Change Joint Secretary Suleman Warraich said the government was unable to implement environment protection laws due to confusion over the demarcation of state land overlapping with private property. “Margalla Hills National Park was last mapped in the 1960s,” he said.