Tag: Pakistan

  • VIDEO: Fawad Chaudhry wants to be Deputy Prime Minister?

    VIDEO: Fawad Chaudhry wants to be Deputy Prime Minister?

    Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry says that he told PM Khan that in countries like Korea, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia, the ministers for science and technology are as powerful as a Deputy Prime Minister. (hint hint)

    When we asked Fawad whether he was joking or being serious, he said he meant it as a joke.

    Fawad’s counterparts in the countries he mentioned are:

    The Minister of Science and Tech in Korea is Dr Yanghee Choi since 2014 but doesn’t have an active Wikipedia page. He was previously the Chairman of Samsung Science and Tech Foundation.  

    Minister of Science and Tech in Singapore doesn’t exist. Science and Tech comes under the Ministry of Trade and Industry whose minister is Chan Chun Sing who is a former major general and also served as Singapore’s Chief of Army (Infantry).

    Yeo Bee Yin currently is the Minister of Energy, Science and Tech, Environment and Climate change in Malaysia. A member of parliament, one of her first initiatives was to ban on the import of plastic waste.

    Indonesia’s Science and Tech minister is professor. Mohamad Nasir was also the Dean of the Accounting program at a university and was involved in a major controversy in 2016 when he wanted to ban the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community on campus.

    Indonesia’s Science and Tech minister is professor. Mohamad Nasir was also the Dean of the Accounting program at a university and was involved in a major controversy in 2016 when he wanted to ban the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community on campus.

  • Ramiz Raja not happy with Misbah’s selection

    Ramiz Raja not happy with Misbah’s selection

    Former Pakistan cricketer Ramiz Raja is disappointed with the 20 probables selected by head coach-cum-chief selector Misbahul Haq for the upcoming T20 and ODI series against Sri Lanka.

    While speaking in a Youtube video, the famous commentator has criticised Misbah for implementing a safety first approach in his selection.

    He said, “It was disappointing to see no new name or experimentation from Misbah, despite playing against a second-string Sri Lanka side,” adding that Misbah is playing safe as it is his first big assignment and is opting for tried and tested players.

    Ramiz Raja believes that Men in Green needs out of the box thinking with regards to the future.

    “You could have invited around four to five players to this camp, who you think are talented and have what it takes to serve Pakistan in future,” he added. “Instead, those players have been recalled who have been playing for Pakistan for last 10 years and we are aware of their potential and limitations.”

  • India requests Pakistan to let Modi fly through its airspace

    India requests Pakistan to let Modi fly through its airspace

    India has requested Pakistan to let Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s aircraft fly through its airspace to New York for his week-long trip to the United States (US) from September 21 to 27.

    India has formally requested Pakistan to allow use of its air space for PM Modi’s flight, ANI reported.

    On September 22, Modi will address the Indian community as part of the ‘Howdy Modi!’ event in Houston, Texas. The event will be his third major address to the Indian-American community after he became the prime minister in 2014 and the first after his re-election in May.

    The previous two were at the Madison Square Garden in New York in 2014 and the Silicon Valley in 2016.

    Modi will then visit New York from September 23, where he will address the 2019 Climate Action Summit hosted by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. He is also expected to meet US President Donald Trump.

    Modi had in August used Pakistani airspace for the first time after February’s botched Balakot strike by the Indian Air Force (IAF).

    The flight carrying Modi, callsign Air India One (AI-1), used Pakistani airspace while en route to France from New Delhi.

    Pakistan closed its airspace in February this year after a standoff with India in the wake of an attack on a police convoy in occupied Kashmir that killed 40 paramilitary police.

    In the aftermath, two Indian fighter jets’ were downed. Pakistan also captured one of the Indian pilots who was later released.

    In June, Modi avoided flying over Pakistan during a trip to Central Asia, even though its airspace was opened as a goodwill gesture.

    Islamabad had fully reopened its airspace to civilian flights a month later.

  • Amid tensions with India, Pak to acquire 36 Dassault Mirage-V jets from Egypt

    Amid tensions with India, Pak to acquire 36 Dassault Mirage-V jets from Egypt

    Amid tensions with India over the Kashmir crisis, Pakistan Air Force (PAF) is expected to soon sign a deal with Egypt for the purchase of 36 upgraded Dassault Mirage-V combat aircraft, The News International has reported.

    According to reports, the two countries have been negotiating the contract for years and now the final one may see the light of day as PAF wants these fighter jets to strengthen its existing squadron of jets.

    The 36 Mirage-V resemble India’s Mirage 2000 in terms of delta wing design and have the ability to perform night strikes with mission pods and helmet-mounted display.

    The Mirage V is a dedicated ground-attack variant of the Mirage-III, with greater space for fuel in place of avionics.

    Pakistan has been acquiring retired Mirage-III and Mirage-V from Egypt and Australia and presses the aircraft into service after upgrading them with modern Italian radars and other electronics.

  • What’s the importance of the leaf behind D.G. ISPR?

    What’s the importance of the leaf behind D.G. ISPR?

    Military Spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor did a briefing yesterday, updating the press of Pakistan’s fight for Kashmir’s rights. He spoke about how Kashmir was Pakistan’s “jugular vein” and how Pakistan would protect it at all costs. He also warned India of any “misadventure” and said that “nuclear countries do not go to war”. During his briefing, the background was of a green leaf.

    D.G. ISPR Asif Ghafoor’s press briefing

    The leaf is a chinar tree leaf and symbolizes Kashmir. The chinar tree is largely found in Kashmir or European countries and it is largely believed that the Mughal Emperor Akbar planted chinars in the Kashmir valley.

    A large chinar tree

    1,200 saplings of chinar were planted at the same time in a ‘Char Chinar’ pattern, which is four chinar trees planted in four corners of a piece of land.

    Chinar leaf in autumn

    The Char Chinar pattern creates overarching shade so a person standing in any part of the area would have shade during the whole day.

    Chinar trees in autumn in Srinagar

    For Indians, visiting Srinagar in autumn, is an attractive holiday since the chinar leaves turn golden before they fall.

  • Women snipers to undertake Muharram security duty with commandos

    Women snipers to undertake Muharram security duty with commandos

    A fresh batch of women cops has completed snipe shooting training to perform security duty along with already trained police commandos, The Express Tribune reported Monday.

    According to reports, the 50-women batch was imparted training at Qila Gujjar Singh Police Lines, during which they were taught to insert bullets in the magazine of an SMG rifle and pistol.

    After this, the women officers were trained to load and unload weapons and also encouraged to practice by the trainer by taking their positions to fire at their targets.

    All-female personnel engaged in this snipe shooting training fired 50 bullets from the SMG rifle and 50 bullets from the pistol, reports said and quoted an official as saying that training women police personnel had become important in the current wave of terrorism.

    “A large number of men and women will participate in the upcoming processions and gatherings of Muharram. Women police officers are being deployed equally as men on the entrances of processions and meetings for police checking.”

    The police official also said that there were difficulties in deploying male police officers on the roofs of several houses along the procession routes. “Local people used to complain that there were women in their houses and they could not allow male officers in their homes due to personal reasons.”

    He explained that women police force was trained in snipe shooting to address these complaints and added that women shooters will be deployed on the roofs of houses that fall under the routes of the procession.

  • ‘Hide in a basement, take a bath’: Indian media airs tips on surviving nuclear attack

    ‘Hide in a basement, take a bath’: Indian media airs tips on surviving nuclear attack

    As tensions continue to soar between nuclear-capable Pakistan and India amid Kashmir crisis, an India media outlet has aired tips on how to survive a nuclear attack, Scroll.in reported.

    According to the details, a recent video clip from television channel Zee News, informing its viewers about what to do in case of a nuclear attack, has left people on social media in disbelief.

    News anchor Sudhir Chaudhary’s tips on surviving nukes include not looking directly at the explosion, running to the basement of the strongest building around you for shelter, taking a bath and sealing clothes exposed to radioactive waves to avoid them from being spread further.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    “The spe­c­ter of nuclear war haunts tensions between Pakistan and India, and the disputed territory of Kashmir could provide the spark that lights South Asia’s nuclear fuse,” warned a report published by a United States (US) think-tank last week.

    The report — by Stratfor, a geopolitical intelligence platform based in Austin, Texas — also disputed the classification of the Kashmir issue as India’s “internal affair” or a “bilateral” issue between the two neighbours.

    “It isn’t. A potential nuc­lear conflagration cannot be anything other than a matter of international peace and security,” the report warned.

    According to the report, the possibility of “the conflict going nuclear may have increased on Aug 16”, when Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh seemed to abandon India’s “no first use” doctrine.

    “India has strictly adhered to this doctrine. What happens in the future depends on the circumstances,” he had tweeted.

  • Govt collects total revenue of Rs4.9 trillion in FY2018-19

    Govt collects total revenue of Rs4.9 trillion in FY2018-19

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has collected a revenue of Rs4.9 trillion in the fiscal year 2018-19, out of which Rs4.5 trillion were collected as tax by the federal and provincial governments, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported.

    According to the details, the total expenditure, however, exceeded the revenue by Rs3.44 trillion as it was recorded at Rs8.35 trillion. Out of this sum, the current expenditure accounts for Rs7.1 trillion, while development expenditure was recorded at Rs1.2 trillion.

    The highest-in-almost-three-decades budget deficit — the financial loss for a period when expenses exceed revenues — worth Rs3.44 trillion was mainly financed by local banks who lent around Rs2.3 trillion to the government. Other local institutions lent around Rs765 billion.

    External financing for the year has been recorded at Rs4.17 billion.

  • ‘Hussain Nawaz planning to come to Pakistan to strike deal with govt’

    ‘Hussain Nawaz planning to come to Pakistan to strike deal with govt’

    One of the jailed former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif’s sons, Hussain Nawaz, is planning to come to Pakistan to strike a deal with the government for his family members’ release, senior journalist Dr Shahid Masood has claimed.

    Speaking to a private media outlet, he said that Hussain was seeking a guarantee from the authorities that he would not be arrested upon arrival and was taking matters into his own hands because he “did not trust his uncle and incumbent party chief Shehbaz Sharif”.

    While Nawaz’s daughter and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President (VP) Maryam Nawaz is already in National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) custody, his sons Hassan and Hussain Nawaz are wanted for their involvement in the Avenfield and other corruption references against members of the Sharif family.

    “Nawaz’s son is looking for a retired judge, bureaucrat or an ex-army official as a guarantor who can make sure that he doesn’t get arrested after reaching Pakistan,” the journalist claimed.

    “Only time will tell when the deal will be struck and how far will it go,” Dr Shahid added.

    He also criticised PM Imran Khan for “backtracking” on his stance against corrupt individuals. “He [the premier] had vowed to not strike a deal with anyone, but now he is offering to release them if they can return the looted money.”

  • I have seen good old days… Pakistan wasn’t like this: Gen Bajwa

    I have seen good old days… Pakistan wasn’t like this: Gen Bajwa

    Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has said that the country is going through tough times, but it wasn’t always the case as he himself has seen the good old days.

    “Pakistan wasn’t like this. I was born in 1959 and I have seen the heydays of Pakistan,” the army chief said while addressing a gathering, a video of which has gone viral over the internet.

    “In 1962, PIA [Pakistan International Airlines] was one of the best airlines in the world. PIA and Japan Airlines were the only two Asian airlines flying jet aircraft 707. India, Taiwan [and] Singapore, they were all flying Dakota [aircraft],” he said while sharing memories from the good old times.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    https://twitter.com/ShamaJunejo/status/1166670723710107648

    Gen Bajwa said that Pakistanis had televisions in the year 1964, while Indians didn’t get any until 14 years later in 1978. “In 1964, we also had an electric train running from Lahore to Sahiwal.”

    “I have seen the heydays. Cinema halls used to be full, but so were mosques. The best movies were shown in the cinemas. You know… The Beatles… they visited Karachi,” he said and added that former United States (US) first lady Jacqueline Kennedy also travelled with the PIA.

    “[36th US] President Lyndon B. Johnson travelled to Karachi on PIA. Those were the standards of this country,” he concluded.