Blessed Friday in Pakistan is celebrated with the same shopping zeal anywhere in the world. This year many brands are offering online and in-stores discounts on blessed Friday. The Current has listed a few brands that have ‘Blessed Friday’ sales.
BTW – By The Way
BTW is offering upto 70 per cent off on its entire stock this Blessed Friday.
Six major generals have been promoted to the rank of lieutenant general, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has announced.
In a tweet, the military’s media wing said those promoted included Maj Gen Akhtar Nawaz , Maj Gen Sardar Hassan Azhar Hayat, Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor, Maj Gen Salman Fayyaz Ghani, Maj Gen Sarfraz Ali and Maj Gen Muhammad Ali.
Promotions in the #Army : 6 Major Generals have been promoted to the Rank of Lieutenant General. Those promoted include MG Akhtar Nawaz , MG Sardar Hassan Azhar Hayat, MG Asif Ghafoor, MG Salman Fayyaz Ghani , MG Sarfraz Ali,MG Muhammad Ali.
Asif Ghafoor, who is among the most prominent recipients of the promotion, has previously served as the ISPR director general. He was appointed to the post in December 2016, replacing Lt Gen Asim Bajwa as the military’s spokesperson.
Reacting to the news, Federal Minster for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said it was an hounour to serve in the highest ranks of the army.
Serving in the highest ranks of #PakArmy is an honour, many congratulations to all very well deserved officers for the honours bestowed upon them and best wishes…. https://t.co/bIZzlIxSic
“Serving in the highest ranks of #PakArmy is an honour. Many congratulations to all very well deserved officers for the honours bestowed upon them and best wishes,” he tweeted.
The government on Tuesday dismissed the impression of placing restrictions on the arrival of deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his sons — Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz — and former finance minister Ishaq Dar for the funeral of Begum Shamim Akhtar, the mother of Sharif brothers who passed away in London on Sunday.
Nawaz has been living in London since November last year when he was released on conditional medical bail for his treatment abroad. Dar, on the other hand, has taken self-exile in the United Kingdom after his removal from the post of Finance Minister in 2017 following the emergence of allegations of accumulation of assets beyond means against him. Both of them are wanted back home in multiple cases of graft and abuse of power
Speculations arose after the sudden demise of Akhtar, who had travelled to London in February to live with her son, whether or not Nawaz and Dar will return to attend the funeral.
Later on Sunday, Nawaz’s daughter and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz, in a tweet, said she had advised her father not to return because of what she claimed was the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government’s vendetta against the Sharif family.
کسی حکومتی شخص میں اتنی انسانیت نہیں تھی کہ مجھ تک دادی کی وفات کی اطلاع پہنچا دیتے۔ میں نے میاں صاحب کو درخواست کی ہے کہ بالکل واپس نا آئیں۔ یہ ظالم اور انتقام میں اندھےلوگ ہیں جن سے کسی بھی قسم کی انسانیت کی توقع نہیں۔
“They are welcome to come to Pakistan and attend the funeral,” Minister for Information Shibli Faraz said on Tuesday.
نواز شریف، ان کے سمدھی اسحاق ڈار اور صاحبزادوں حسن اور حسین کے پاکستان آنے پر کوئی قدغن نہیں۔وہ تشریف لائیں اور مرحومہ بیگم شمیم اختر صاحبہ کے جنازے میں شرکت فرما کر ثواب دارین حاصل کریں ۔ریاستی جبر کا پروپیگنڈہ دانستہ اس معاملے میں سیاست کرنا ہے۔ آپ کسے بے وقوف بنا رہے ہیں؟
In a tweet, Faraz warned the opposition party of trying to politicise the matter. “The narrative of state suppression is deliberate propaganda and an attempt to politicise this issue. Who are you trying to fool?”
Meanwhile, arrangements are being made to bring the body back to Lahore within a couple of days to be buried next to the grave of her husband, Mian Sharif, at the family’s Jati Umra residence.
Students in Quetta were forced to appear in BA and BSc examinations with no heater arrangements.
A video doing the rounds on social media shows that no COVID-19 standard operating procedure (SOPs) were followed at the examination centers. SOPs including social distancing and wearing of masks were overlooked.
Furthermore, very few students can be seen wearing masks in the examination center.
Mohammad Hafeez’s induction into Pakistan’s squad for the New Zealand tour has led to a rift between the all-rounder and cricketer-turned-commentator Ramiz Raja.
According to reports, the war of words got intensified after Hafeez stated that his 12-year-old son has better game awareness than Raja.
The episode began after Ramiz Raja showed disinterest over Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) backing experienced players and not giving enough chances to the youth ahead of the upcoming men’s T20 World Cup in India.
The former Pakistan cricketer asked senior cricketers like Hafeez to retire gracefully and give opportunity to the youngsters to showcase their skills on a stage like the upcoming World Cup.
Disagreeing to Raja’s views, Hafeez gave a controversial statement during a conversation with Cricket Pakistan.
“I acknowledge Ramiz [Raja] services for Pakistan cricket as a player. I respect his opinion but I have reservations over his cricketing sense and game awareness. If you talk to my 12-year-old son, even his game awareness is better than Ramiz Bhai,” Hafeez told Cricket Pakistan.
“If Ramiz bhai wants to continue saying such things to boost his YouTube channel, then I can’t stop him but I will continue to play for Pakistan as long as I’m fit and performing,” he further added.
Hafeez asserted that as long as he is fit and performing on the field, he deserves a place in the Pakistan dressing room.
“If I’m unable to meet the fitness and performance standards, or believe there is a better product ready for Pakistan, I’d happily leave. I’m very satisfied with my cricketing career,” Mohammad Hafeez said.
Soon after Federal Minister for Education, Shafqat Mehmood announced that educational institutes across the country will be closed from November 26 to January 1 in a bid to control the COVID-19 spread, Pakistani social media was filled with memes as students rejoiced over the decision.
You can apply online for renewal of your machine readable passport if it has been expired.
What documents are required?
The following documents are required while applying for renewal of Machine Readable Passport through online passport service provided that your current passport is expiring within a period of seven months :
Color scanned copies of valid CNIC or NICOP or Smart CNIC or NICOP both sides
Color scanned copies of existing Passport (First two pages and one random page asked by system).
Color scanned copy of Valid Visa/ Aqama/ Residence Permit/ Asylum card/ Other Nationality Passport
For minors (less than 18)
The following documents are pre-requisite for issuance of passport to minors below 18 years:
Color scanned copies of valid NICOP or Smart card (both sides) or Computerized B- Form or Family Registration Certificate
Color scanned copies of mother and father valid National ID Cards (both sides)
Guardianship certificate/ court decision in case of separation.
Color scanned copy of minor’s attestation form ( available in the download tab).
Color scanned copy of Death Certificate if mother or father has passed away.
Color scanned copy of Valid Visa/ Aqama/ Residence Permit/ Asylum card/ Other Nationality Passport
Government employees
f the applicant is an employee of the Government of Pakistan, the following documents will be required:-
Color scanned copies of valid CNIC or NICOP or Smart CNIC or NICOP both sides
Applicant must provide No-Objection Certificate (NOC) in case he/ she is working as Government Officer/ Official, Armed forces Officers/ or employee of employee of Semi Government/ Autonomous Bodies/ Corporation. The NOC with be subject to confirmation/ verification by the department concerned.
Color scanned copies of existing Passport (First two pages and one random page asked by system).
Color scanned copy of Valid Visa/ Aqama/ Residence Permit/ Asylum card/ Other Nationality Passport.
Note:
Online portal is only for renewal of Machine Readable Passport. Following categories of passports cannot be applied through online portal.
New:
Issuance of Machine Readable Passport first time.
Modification:
In case applicants wants any changes in existing Machine Readable Passport i.e. name, father name, husband name, date of birth, caste, profession, dual nationality, marital status, religion and official to ordinary.
Reprint Exhaust:
In case applicant wants a new passport as all pages of previous passport utilized due to several visas/ frequent travelling.
Loss of Passport:-
In case applicant’s existing passport has been lost (misplaced and not in his possession) and they want a new passport.
In the above cases, the passport applicants are requested to approach nearest Pakistan Embassy/ High Commission/ Consulate General where MRP facility is available
How to upload documents?
You can upload supporting documents from the ‘Document’ tab in your e-Services Portal application session.
Before you start attaching files to your application, please remember:
There is a limit to the type and size of file that you can attach.
If you attach low quality scanned documents, it might slow down the processing of your application.
Type of files
We are able to accept the following types of files:
.JPEG
.JPG
.PNG
Size of files
We are able to accept the following sizes of file types:
Supporting document: 1MB
Fingerprint Form: 3MB
Photograph: 5MB
Naming tips
When naming your files to be attached to an online application only use numbers 0–9 and letters A–Z (upper and lower case), dashes ‘–’ and underscores ‘_’.
You must avoid using spaces ‘ ‘, periods ‘.’, ampersand ‘&’, hash ‘#’, star ‘*’, exclamation marks ‘!’, quotations ” “” and any other character that is not a letter, a number, a dash or an underscore.
How much will it cost?
How long will the Online Application Process take?
Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood announced on Monday that all schools across the country will close down from November 26 to January 10, 2021, to control the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
“All ministers have mutually decided that to keep all educational institutions, including schools, colleges, universities, and tuition centres closed. However, online classes will continue from November 26 to December 24 after which winter break will start. Schools will reopen on January 11, 2021,” he said.
“When we say all educational institutions will close on Nov 26 and students will home learn, we mean ALL institutions without exception,” clarified the minister later.
When we say all educational institutions will close on Nov 26 and students will home learn, we mean ALL institutions without exception
As per reports, the decision was taken during the Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference (IPEMC) to discuss school closures, headed by Mahmood.
He said that all examinations will be postponed, except for a few professional exams which will take place.
The minister added that a “review session” will be organised during the first week of January to analyse the country’s virus outbreak and that a decision will be taken accordingly.
As the country witnessed a surge in coronavirus cases, the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) had suggested early and extended vacations.
In recent weeks, the country’s COVID-19 cases and deaths have seen a sharp increase. The country has reported 376,929 coronavirus cases and 7,696 deaths so far.
Police arrested a woman in Sukkur on Saturday for allegedly setting her house on fire after her father refused to pay for her TikTok video.
As per reports, Marvi Khilji was arrested after her father, Abdul Aziz, registered a complaint at a police station that she had set fire to their house when refused to finance a modelling video for her TikTok account.
Abdul Aziz who is a retired employee of the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), with Rs25,000 as pension claimed in his complaint that she had demanded for Rs200,000. When he refused, she got angry and set fire to the house that destroyed a fridge and a washing machine.
Upon the father’s complaint, police arrested Khilji and the court then sent her to Sukkur jail for 14 days.
France on Sunday objected to a statement by Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari equating President Emmanuel Macron’s new measures to counter “Islamist separatism” in France with the anti-semitic policies of Nazi Germany, however, the issue was later resolved when both sides held dialogue after a false claim in the cited news article came to light.
Earlier this week, Macron issued a “charter of republican values”, detailing a series of steps aimed at purging France of what he declared as “radical Islam”. One of the measures made it necessary for school-going children to wear an identification number that would be used to ensure they are attending school.
Mazari, who apparently understood that the identification number would be issued exclusively to Muslim children, censured the move, saying through the new measures, “Macron is doing to Muslims what the Nazis did to the Jews” in Nazi Germany.
“Muslim children will get ID numbers (other children won’t) just as Jews were forced to wear the yellow star on their clothing for identification,” she added linking to an online article.
Responding to the tweet, the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs on Sunday issued a statement, calling the minister’s remark “insulting […] blatant lies, loaded with an ideology of hatred and violence.”
The rather unceremonious statement asked Pakistan to “return to the path of dialogue based on respect.”
The publication later amended the article and issued a clarification stating that the law mentioned in the article applies to all children in France, not specifically Muslim children.
The embassy also sent a series of tweets to point out the mistakes in the article.
In response to the French envoy’s message, Mazari deleted her tweet and issued a clarification on Twitter and admitted her mistake. “The French Envoy to Pak sent me the following message and as the article I had cited has been corrected by the relevant publication, I have also deleted my tweet on the same,” she tweeted.
Responding to the minister’s tweet, the French Embassy thanked Mazari for the clarification and apology, and wrote that “freedom of expression and debates are essential in democracies, based on verified and accurate facts.”
Macron on Wednesday unveiled the bill and asked Muslim leaders in France to agree to its instructions as part of a broad clampdown on so-called “Islamic extremism”. He gave the French Council of the Muslim Faith 15 days to work with the interior ministry.
The bill includes measures which include: restrictions on home-schooling and harsher punishments for those who intimidate public officials on religious grounds; giving children an identification number under the law that would be used to ensure they are attending school and a ban on sharing the personal information of a person in a way that allows them to be located by people who want to harm them.
Parents who break the law could face up to six months in jail as well as large fines, it said.
The draft law — which Macron said will strengthen a 1905 law separating Church and state in France — will be discussed by the French cabinet on December 9.
The new bill comes on the heels of three separate instances of terrorism following the publication of blasphemous caricatures by Charlie Hebdo, a French satirical weekly best known for vulgar irreverence, and Macron’s insistence on defending the act in the name of freedom of expression.
Following the publication of these cartoons and Macron’s defense of it, relations between France and the Muslim world grew sour as tens of thousands of Muslims in several countries joined protests, burned effigies of Macron, chanted anti-French slogans and called for a boycott of French goods.
