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Waqas Dar

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Blog Entries posted by Waqas Dar

  1. Waqas Dar
    LOS ANGELES: The Miss USA pageant touted American diversity, and chose an African-American chemist with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to wear the crown.
    Kara McCullough from the US capital will go on to represent the United States at the Miss Universe contest.
    "We regulate nuclear power plants. And I have a personal community outreach program called science exploration for kids," said McCullough, 25.
    McCullough was born in Italy and also lived in Japan, South Korea, Hawaii. She was raised in the southern US state of Virginia.
    As Miss USA "my plan is to inspire and encourage so many children and women (to enter) the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields," she said.
    The pageant included a field of five new immigrants who spoke on air about the importance of diversity -- as if to refute US President Donald Trump's less than welcoming stand toward some immigrants and refugees.
    Indeed, the runner up was Chhavi Verg, Miss New Jersey, who was born in India and speaks Hindi and Spanish.
    The 2016 Miss USA, Deshauna Barber, also represented the US capital, formally known as the District of Columbia.
    The pageant decides who will be the US representative in the Miss Universe contest.
    The Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants for years were co-owned by billionaire Trump.
    However in June 2015 the NBC network severed its ties with the now president after his offensive comments on Mexican immigrants. Following legal action Trump sold his stake in the pageants to a talent management group.


  2. Waqas Dar
    LARKANA: Deputy Commissioner, Larkana, Kahsif Ali Tipu inaugurated on Mondat a four-day anti-polio campaign in the city on Monday.
    During the four-day campaign, children of upto five years of age will be administered oral poliovirus vaccines (OPV).
    The health department’s drive will continue till May 18.
    Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Commissioner Larkana said that the eradication of polio is a challenge for the whole nation and everyone has to perform an important role in achieving this national task.
    Deputy Commissioner also said that the officials of the health department are working hard with dedication, honesty and full devotion for making the district polio-free.
    During the visit, the Deputy Commissioner was briefed that the officials of health department with the assistance of WHO, UNICEF have deployed 820 teams to administer OPV drops to children in the Larkana district.
    Four-day polio campaign in Sargodha
    A four-day polio vaccination campaign started in the Sargodha district on Monday, according to a press release.
    Sargodha health authority Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Nusrat Riaz said the campaign will continue till May 18. She said that a total of 1,480 teams have been constituted to immunise children under five years of age.
    The polio teams comprise of 1,207 mobile teams, 194 fixed and 79 transit teams.
    The CEO health said that during ongoing campaign a total of 577,751 children would be immunised, for which 480 teams were in the field.


  3. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: The Joint Investigation Team during a  meeting on Monday has decided to take the services of a private British audit firm to probe documents related to Panama Papers, informed sources.
    Bilal Rasool, representative of Security and Exchange Company in the JIT, has been given the responsibility of contacting the British audit firm. During the team's meeting under the chairmanship of FIA director Wajid Zia, it was also observed that the documents provided by National Accountability Bureau were not verifiable.
    The JIT decided that only verified documents will be used in its probe.
    Meanwhile, after a two-day weekend break, members of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) have begun preparations to question the prime minister and his family.
    The JIT, led by Zia, has received the relevant records from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
    The record was reviewed and questions that surfaced after comparing the record were separated, to be posed to the premier and his offspring, sources said.
    Additionally, sources said that the JIT has decided to bring on board a British audit firm to aid their investigation.
    The SECP representative in the high-level probe body, Bilal Rasool, has been given the responsibility to bring acquire the firm’s services.  
    Moreover, sources said the JIT will only take into consideration authenticated documents, saying some documents submitted by NAB were unverified.
    On May 11, the JIT asked the ECP to provide the prime minister's assets declaration, sources said.
    The ECP received the JIT's letter on May 10, which asks for asset declarations from 2013 to 2016.
    ECP’s secrecy branch compiled a file of the assets declaration and sent it to the chief election commissioner, as per the sources.
    The JIT also asked for the asset declaration of the premier's son-in-law and MNA Captain (retd) Mohammad Safdar. 
    On May 10, a session of the JIT was held to decide on the investigation method for the Panama Papers case.
    The team of investigators had decided to seek assistance from the FIA and experts in the private sector.
    The Supreme Court’s special bench constituted the JIT to probe funds used by the prime minister's children to buy properties in London through offshore businesses.
    Earlier, the JIT members had met at the Federal Judicial Academy in Islamabad, which has now been declared the JIT Secretariat. The members have also moved their offices to the location for the investigation.
     


  4. Waqas Dar
    BEIJING: Pakistan on Monday signed an agreement with China to upgrade Karachi-Peshawar railway track, besides other projects.
    The framework agreement of upgradation of Karachi-Peshawar track was signed at a ceremony at the Chinese Ministry of Transport office.
    Minister for Railways, Khawaja Saad Rafique, led the Pakistani delegation at the ceremony, while the Chinese Minister for Transport, Li Xiaopeng, represented his side.
    Chief ministers of Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were also present on the occasion.
    Speaking afterwards, Rafique said the agreement of upgradation of main line track (ML1), from Karachi to Torkham, is a historic one.
    "This agreement paves a way for innovation in Pakistan Railways," he said, elaborating that the track connects three provinces of the country.
    The Chinese minister for transport also assured of expediting work on Karachi circular railway, and other projects in Quetta and Peshawar.


  5. Waqas Dar
    The WannaCry "ransomware" cyber-attack hobbled Chinese traffic police and schools on Monday as it rolled into Asia for the new work week, while authorities in Europe said they were trying to prevent hackers from spreading new versions of the virus.
    In Britain, where the virus first raised global alarm when it caused hospitals to divert ambulances on Friday, it gained traction as a political issue just weeks before a general election. The opposition Labour Party accused the Conservative government of leaving the National Health Service vulnerable.
    Shares in firms that provide cyber security services rose with the prospect that companies and governments would have to spend more money on defenses.
    Some victims were ignoring official advice and paying the $300 ransom demanded by the cyber criminals to unlock their computers, which was due to double to $600 on Monday for computers hit by Friday's first wave.
    Brian Lord, managing director of cyber and technology at cyber security firm PGI, said victims had told him the hackers offered good service, with helpful advice on how to pay: "One customer said they actually forgot they were being robbed."
    But the hackers do not appear so far to have been well rewarded: only about $50,000 has been transferred to their online wallets so far, according to Elliptic Labs which tracks transactions using the internet currency bitcoin.
    Although the virus's spread was curbed over the weekend in most of the world, France, where carmaker Renault was among the world's highest profile victims, said more attacks were likely.
    "We should expect similar attacks regularly in the coming days and weeks," said Giullaume Poupard, head of French government cyber security agency ANSSI. "Attackers update their software ... other attackers will learn from the method and will carry out attacks."
    Companies and governments spent the weekend upgrading software to limit the spread of the virus. Monday was the first big test for Asia, where offices had already mostly been closed for the weekend before the attack first arrived.
    British media were hailing as a hero a 22-year-old computer security whiz who appeared to have helped stop the attack from spreading by discovering a "kill switch" - an internet address which halted the virus when activated.
    SPREAD SLOWING 
    China appeared over the weekend to have been particularly vulnerable, raising worries about how well the world's second largest economy would cope when it opened for business on Monday. However, officials and security firms said the spread was starting to slow.
    "The growth rate of infected institutions on Monday has slowed significantly compared to the previous two days," said Chinese Internet security company Qihoo 360. "Previous concerns of a wide-scale infection of domestic institutions did not eventuate."
    Qihoo had previously said the attack had infected close to 30,000 organizations by Saturday evening, more than 4,000 of which were educational institutions.
    Yang Lin, a journalism student at China's Zhejiang University of Media and Communications, told Reuters she had lost her work from four years of study. She had just finished revising her thesis late on Friday when her screen went black and the hackers' message appeared.
    "I was connected to the university network. I didn't open any link," she said. "I just cried. I was afraid to believe it, but had to accept it."
    The virus hit computers running older versions of Microsoft software that had not been recently updated. Microsoft released patches last month and on Friday to fix a vulnerability that allowed the worm to spread across networks.
    In a blog post on Sunday, Microsoft (MSFT.O) President Brad Smith appeared to tacitly acknowledge what researchers had already widely concluded: the attack made use of a hacking tool built by the US National Security Agency and leaked online.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin, noting the technology's link to the US spy service, said it should be "discussed immediately on a serious political level".
    "Once they're let out of the lamp, genies of this kind, especially those created by intelligence services, can later do damage to their authors and creators," he said.
    Infected computers appear to largely be out-of-date devices that organizations deemed not worth the price of upgrading. Some have also been machines involved in manufacturing or hospital functions, difficult to patch without disrupting operations.
    "The government's response has been chaotic, to be frank," the British Labour Party's health spokesman Jon Ashworth said. "They've complacently dismissed warnings which experts, we now understand, have made in recent weeks."
    "The truth is, if you're going to cut infrastructure budgets and if you're not going to allow the NHS to invest in upgrading its IT, then you are going to leave hospitals wide open to this sort of attack."
    Britain's National Health Service (NHS) is the world's fifth largest employer after the US and Chinese militaries, Walmart and McDonald's. The government says that under a previous Labour administration the trusts that run local hospitals were given responsibility to manage their own computer systems.
    WARNINGS GIVEN
    Asked if the government had ignored warnings over the NHS being at risk from cyber-attack, Prime Minister Theresa May told Sky News: "No. It was clear [that] warnings were given to hospital trusts."
    An official from Cybersecurity Administration China (CAC) told local media on Monday that while the ransomware was still spreading and had affected industry and government computer systems, the spread was slowing.
    Chinese government bodies from transport, social security, industry watchdogs and immigration said they had suspended services ranging from processing applications to traffic crime enforcement.
    It was not immediately clear whether those services were suspended due to attacks, or for emergency patching to prevent infection.
    "If a system supports some kind of critical processes those systems typically are very hard to patch ... We don't have a precedent for something of this scale (in China)," said Marin Ivezic, a cybersecurity expert at PwC in Hong Kong.
    Affected bodies included a social security department in the city of Changsha, the exit-entry bureau in Dalian, a housing fund in Zhuhai and an industry watchdog in Xuzhou.
    Energy giant PetroChina (601857.SS) said payment systems at some of its petrol stations were hit, although it had been able to restore most of the systems.
    Elsewhere in Asia, the impact seems to have been more limited. Japan's National Police Agency reported two breaches of computers in the country on Sunday - one at a hospital and the other case involving a private person - but no loss of funds.
    Industrial conglomerate Hitachi Ltd. (6501.T) said the attack had affected its systems at some point over the weekend, leaving them unable to receive and send e-mails or open attachments in some cases.
    In India, the government said it had only received a few reports of attacks on systems and urged those hit not to pay attackers any ransom. No major Indian corporations reported disruptions to operations.
    At Indonesia’s biggest cancer hospital, Dharmais Hospital in Jakarta, around 100-200 people packed waiting rooms after the institution was hit by cyber-attacks affecting scores of computers. By late morning, some people were still filling out forms manually, but the hospital said 70 percent of systems were back online.
    South Korea's presidential Blue House office said nine cases of ransomware were found in the country, but did not provide details on where the cyber-attacks were discovered. A coal port in New Zealand shut temporarily to upgrade its systems.


  6. Waqas Dar
    LAHORE: Singer Jawad Ahmed on Monday submitted application for the registration of his party to the Election Commission of Pakistan.
    The ECP has confirmed that it has received the request for the registration of the “Barabari Party”. It said that the process of reviewing the application is under way.
    The ECP spokesman said that the registration will be approved if the request meets legal requirements.
    Jawad Ahmad enjoys a popular place in the Pakistani music scene, with several hits in Punjabi and Urdu. While pop songs and romantic ballads by him have become rare for a relatively long time, the artist has become active in speaking out on social issues.
    In January, he released “Hum Hain Naujwan”, a song aimed at youth, as well as a documentary along the same lines.


  7. Waqas Dar
    Pakistani cricket legends Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar have employed new hilarious tactics to promote their upcoming show Geo Khelo Pakistan.
    The two donned the avatars for Maula Jatt and his arch-nemesis Noori Natt, from the 1979 Punjabi cult classic, for Geo channel’s upcoming Ramazan transmission.
     
     
    Interestingly, Wasim Akram's wife Shaniera Akram didn't look to happy with her husband's new avatar. 
    Earlier, Shoaib Akhtar had shared a promo for the show.


  8. Waqas Dar
    LAHORE: A Pakistan tribunal Monday started hearings into spot-fixing charges against five players who could face life bans if found guilty.
    The tribunal convened by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is headed by Justice Asghar Haider. Former Pakistan captain Wasim Bari and ex-PCB chairman Tauqir Zia are also members.
    Prosecutors played a tape in which opening batsman Sharjeel Khan admitted having met a bookmaker but denied any wrongdoing.
    Sharjeel is one of five players provisionally suspended in the case, which surfaced during the second edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) tournament staged in the United Arab Emirates in February. He was present during the hearing.
    Khalid Latif, Shahzaib Hasan and Nasir Jamshed are also facing charges punishable by a minimum five-year ban and a maximum suspension for life.
    In March fast bowler Mohammad Irfan had admitted failing to report an approach to fix a match and was banned for six months, with six more suspended. He was also fined one million rupees (10,000 dollars).
    Another player, Mohammad Nawaz, was also summoned by PCB anti-corruption unit in the spot fixing case but has not yet been charged. Once charged his case would also be submitted before tribunal.
    PCB lawyer Taffazul Rizvi said Sharjeel had admitted meeting a bookie along with Khalid.
    "He also accepted that man was linked to fixing and that whatever was decided in that meeting panned out in the agreed manner," Rizvi told reporters.
    But Sharjeel in the recorded statement said the fact that he played two dot (non-scoring) balls at a particular point in a game was not linked to spot-fixing.
    Spot-fixing involves determining the outcome of a specific part of a match, rather than fixing the result. It can centre on something as minor as the number of wides or dot balls at any particular time.
    The match in question was Islamabad United´s first in the PSL, in which Sharjeel played two dot balls and scored one run.
    The PCB´s anti-corruption unit believes Sharjeel took money to play the dot balls.
    Witnesses are due to give evidence to the tribunal on Tuesday.
    Sharjeel´s lawyer Shaigan Ijaz said his client expects a favourable result.


  9. Waqas Dar
    BEIJING: Russia had nothing to do with a massive global cyberattack, President Vladimir Putin said Monday, criticising the US intelligence community for creating the original software.
    Hundreds of thousands of computers in more than 150 countries have been hit by the ransomware attack, which has been described as the largest-ever of its kind.
    It began Friday and struck banks, hospitals and government agencies among a variety of other targets, exploiting known vulnerabilities in older Microsoft computer operating systems.
    "As for the source of these threats, Microsoft´s leadership stated this directly, they said the source of the virus was the special services of the United States," Putin said.
    He was referring to a weekend blog post by Microsoft president Brad Smith stating that the US National Security Agency had developed the code being used in the attack.
    It was leaked as part of a document dump, according to researchers.
    "A genie let out of a bottle of this kind, especially created by secret services, can then cause damage to its authors and creators," Putin said on the sidelines of an international summit in Beijing.
    "This completely doesn´t concern Russia."
    The US has accused Russia in the past of mounting several cyberattacks.
    In March the Justice Department indicted two officials of Russia´s Federal Security Service and two criminal hackers whom they allegedly hired to steal data from some 500 million Yahoo user accounts.
    While there was "no significant damage" to Russian institutions such as banks and hospitals, Putin said the incident was "worrisome" and warranted immediate talks "on a serious political level".
    "There is nothing good in this and calls for concern," he said.
    "A protection system from these manifestations needs to be worked out."


  10. Waqas Dar
    The Legend of Zelda fans can rejoice as Nintendo is working on a mobile version of the game, according to The Wall Street Journal.
    For the development of theFor the development of the game, Nintendo is collaborating with Japanese mobile gaming firm DeNA.
    The report does not detail if the game will be an one-time free approach of Super Mario Run or the free-to-play model of Fire Emblem Heroes.
    The movie possibly suggests to gaming giant’s aspirations to expand its mobile gaming lineup. The decision to launch a mobile version of the game comes after the success of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on its switch console and Wii U.
    Last month, Nintendo CEO Tatsumi Kimishima said the company planned to release two to three new smartphone games in the financial year ending March 2018.
     


  11. Waqas Dar
    An Indian woman was gang-raped and then brutally murdered by men who smashed her skull with bricks after she had threatened to inform authorities, police in the northern state of Haryana, said on Monday.
    Police have arrested two men for rape and murder in Sonipat town, and six more were being investigated after the victim's mother accused them of involvement, superintendent of police Ashwin Shenvi told Reuters.
    The 23-year old woman, a labourer, was taken by the men - at least one of whom knew her - by car from near her home in Sonipat to the nearby city of Rohtak, where they raped her, Shenvi said.
    "When she said to them she would complain, they hammered her skull in with bricks," he said. "The way that they brutalised her is horrific." The body was found in an open field on Thursday.
    The mother of the victim had previously registered a complaint against one of the accused for pressuring her daughter into marrying him, but the disagreement was settled between the two parties, Shenvi said.
    Sonipat is 44 kilometers (27 miles) north of New Delhi.
    Sexual violence against women is a highly-charged issue in India, where the horrific, fatal gang-rape of a student on a bus in New Delhi in 2012 sparked nationwide protests about entrenched violence against women and the failure of authorities to protect them.
    India has enacted tougher jail sentences for rapists and promised to try those accused through "fast-track" courts but rape, acid attacks and domestic violence remain common.
    Indian media also reported a gang-rape in the city of Gurgaon on the outskirts of Delhi over the weekend.
    On average, 50 crimes against women are registered every day by police in Delhi, including at least four cases of rape, according to a senior official in the federal home ministry.


  12. Waqas Dar
    SEOUL: A top Netflix executive on Monday urged film festivals to "change" and embrace movies from various platforms, with the streaming giant embroiled in a row over distribution with Cannes.
    Netflix has two films in the running for the Palme d´Or at Cannes, and a policy of releasing its movies online on the same day that they start showing in cinemas.
    But French law restricts online streaming until three years after a movie has been put on general release, and Netflix refused to screen the movies in French cinemas.
    The move angered French cinema owners, who forced Cannes effectively to slap a ban on future Netflix-backed movies at the world´s top film festival.
    Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said Cannes should live up to its core mission of "celebrating arts" regardless of platform.
    "Historically many films get into Cannes´ film festival with no distribution at all," he told a press conference in Seoul to introduce Netflix´s South Korean-directed film "Okja" ahead of its premiere at Cannes.
    The $50 million project starring Tilda Swinton and directed by Bong Joon-Ho will hit theatres in South Korea, the US and Britain, but will only be available on Netflix elsewhere in the world.
    "Okja" is slated for official competition along with another Netflix-backed movie, "The Meyerowitz Stories" -- starring Adam Sandler and Ben Stiller.
    But from next year Cannes will require every film in competition to be shown in French cinemas afterwards, potentially preventing Netflix movies from competing for prizes.
    The move angered Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who slammed what he called the French cinema establishment for "closing ranks" against the US streaming service.
    Sarandos said film festivals may be forced to adapt as more and more movies become available on platforms beyond traditional theatres.
    "The audience is changing, therefore distribution changes, and therefore festivals... are likely to change," said Sarandos, adding many good films in the future "may come to (Cannes) differently than before".
    "Okja" director Bong said the dispute may be temporary as the industry adapts to new technology, pointing out that the advent of television did not kill filmmaking.
    "I recently saw a French movie from the 1960s in which a character lamented, ´Cinema is all doomed because of TV´, but look what is happening now," he said.
    "People these days watch movies in theatres or via Blu-ray, legal online download and Netflix. I think that this is part of a struggle to find the best ways to coexist eventually."
    Netflix is also locked in a similar battle against big US cinema chains. In 2015 most major multiplex chains refused to screen the long-awaited Netflix-made sequel to martial arts blockbuster "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon".


  13. Waqas Dar
    PESHAWAR: Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Monday claimed that efforts by his party had enabled everyone in the country to carry out political activities in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
    Addressing FATA convention, Zardari said that the extension of the Political Parties Act to the region was made possible by his party. PPP also increased funds for FATA from Rs3 billion to Rs19 billion, he said.
    “Whatever we did is in front of everyone,” the former president said.
    We want FATA to merge in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and not be a slave to a governor and the president, he added.
    Zardari further said that his party wants the region to have its own high court.
    Announcing PPP secretariat in FATA, he claimed that he will strengthen his party in the region and will ask its people before distributing party tickers.


  14. Waqas Dar
    KARACHI: The goods transporters’ strike entered in its eighth day on Monday.
    The export process was completely halted and export containers’ transportation on all terminals of the ports in Karachi remained suspended.
    “Goods worth thousands of containers are in factories, as the capacity of warehouses has been exhausted,” exporters said. “Irrevocable damage could be caused if the issue is not resolved on an immediate basis.”
    Rs 48 billion worth of exports from across the country have been halted due to the strike.
    The Sindh High Court on Saturday, hearing the ‘heavy traffic case’, has ordered for a continuation of the ban on entry of heavy traffic in the port city.
    The two-judge bench also asked for names of the committee representing all the stakeholders and ordered that the body present its recommendations at the next hearing.
    During the hearing, the counsel for the Karachi Port Trust informed the court that there has been a loss of Rs4 billion owing to the strike by the heavy vehicles’ association. He added that port traffic is also at a standstill owing to the strike as no goods are being moved.
    Meanwhile, a report submitted in the court by DIG Traffic stated that 765 vehicles have been impounded as part of the court’s orders. The report also said that over Rs10 million have also been recovered in this regard in fines. There has been a 71 percent decrease in traffic accidents following the ban on entry of heavy vehicles in the city, the report added.
    The bench adjourned the hearing till May 20.
    Saturday was the sixth day of the goods transporters’ strike, which started to lead to concerns of a price hike with Ramazan around the corner.
    Industry insiders believe that freight charges will consequently shoot up, bumping up variable expenditures, which will likely end up inflating the retail prices.
    Earlier, Pakistan Soap Manufacturers Association (PSMA) Chairman Abdullah Zaki while speaking to Geo.tv, commented, "Almost 13,000 containers – most of which carry food items – are now held up at the Karachi Port's terminals."
    Read more: Containers choke Karachi Port amid transporters’ strike, piquing exporters’ distress
    Transporters had entered into a strike to protest heavy vehicles being barred from moving inside the city, due to which goods worth millions of rupees sit immobile in warehouses.
    Traders, industrialists, and manufacturers alike have slammed the strikers for causing a severe bottleneck in the supply of basic necessities and other imported goods that sit idle at the port, hoarding the containers, which, in turn, have resulted in export consignments being unable to get loaded and sent off.
    The Karachi Port’s terminals are at present teeming with containers as the goods transporters’ strike has led to non-availability of heavy vehicles to move imports and exports. The situation has exacerbated to such an extent that the port is almost at its full capacity.
     


  15. Waqas Dar
    MULTAN: At least three schoolchildren and a driver were killed and nine children critically injured when a speeding oil tanker crushed a school van in Multan on Monday, confirmed rescue sources.                     
    The unfortunate accident took place at Makhdoom Rasheed Road when the oil tanker crushed the school van due to alleged over-speeding. According to reports, the injured and deceased were immediately shifted to Nishtar Hospital.
    A total of 11 children were on their way home in the school van.
    According to rescue sources, the van had to be cut to extricate the children
    Local authorities have informed that the oil tanker driver immediately fled the scene after the accident and that details of the oil tanker have been sent to the excise department to ascertain the owner’s identity.
    One of the deceased children was identified as Waqas.
    In Feb 2017, six schoolchildren and a van driver were killed when the van and a truck collided in Fatehpur area of Layyah. Nine other children were injured in the accident. The van was carrying at least 15 children en route to a private school.
     In Lodhran a motorcycle-rickshaw collided with a train killing eight including six schoolchildren and the driver. According to reports, 15 children were on their way to school when the crash took place.  
    Railways Minister, Khawaja Saad Rafique ordered an investigation into the crash. Speaking to journalists, Rafique said there were questions related to the crash which would only be answered when the investigation is complete. He added that human error and the presence of dense fog could not be ruled out as the reason for the crash. 
    School vans unregistered
    Meanwhile, over 18,000 school vans remain unregistered in Karachi in gross negligence of the traffic police’s directives.
    Orders issued month backs by the traffic police department require school vans to be painted yellow with the school’s name visible on the vehicle.
    The instructions included a strict prohibition of installing or overloading gas cylinders.
    The police had directed schools to employee a helper for each van, to facilitate students in getting on and off the van.
    Local schools have failed to follow the code of conduct issued for school vans months after it was issued.
    Numerous schoolchildren continue to face safety hazards in their daily commute to and fro their respective educational institutions.
     


  16. Waqas Dar
    MULTAN: One girl was killed while five other schoolchildren were injured when a van and trailer collided on Makhdoom Rasheed Road on Monday.
    According to rescue sources, the van had to be cut to extricate the children. The injured ones were taken to Nishtar Hospital.
    Around two months back, a similar accident claimed lives of six schoolchildren in Fatehpur area of Layyah. The accident had taken place when a school van and truck collided, according to rescue sources.
    Nine other children were injured in the accident. At least 15 children were en route to a private school in the van.
    The visibility level was low due to fog in the area, which had led to the accident.
     


  17. Waqas Dar
    The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday congratulated Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan on their international careers, which ended with their retirement following Pakistan’s historic Test series win in the West Indies.
    Paying tribute to the legendary duo, ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said in a statement that captain Misbah and former captain Younis had been at the heart of some of Pakistan’s most memorable performances, making them popular and admired around the world.
    “Both these batsmen have given so much to the sport and fans over their careers,” he said.
    “Misbah has been the bedrock of many a Pakistan innings, time and time again extricating his team from difficult situations with a terrific temperament. He knew how to graft for his runs but could also be inventive and score at a brisk pace, as was evident during his impressive 56-ball century against Australia in 2014 in Abu Dhabi, which equaled Viv Richards’s world record.
    “He was a leader who took charge at a difficult time and led the team on a journey to the No.1 position in the ICC Test rankings. He was a true sportsman and role model, deservingly winning the ICC’s Spirit of Cricket Award for 2016.
    “Younis has been one of Pakistan’s finest batsmen, also often coming up with his best efforts when the chips were down. A triple-century in Tests at home against Sri Lanka and a double-century in a series-levelling effort in India are just a couple of the performances that have placed him in a league above the rest.
    “A particularly fine player of spin bowling, Younis was also an able captain who led Pakistan in all three formats of the game with the highlight being victory in the ICC World Twenty20 in England in 2009.
    “On behalf of the ICC, I congratulate both these batsmen on their wonderful careers and wish them every success in whatever they pursue in the years to come,” the ICC chief concluded.
    Misbah-ul-Haq
    ICC awards and rankings
    ICC Spirit of Cricket Award 2016
    Top-ranked in the ICC Player Rankings for T20I Batsmen in April 2008
    Career highlights
    Tests: Scored 5222 runs in 75 Tests with 10 centuries and 39 half-centuries
    ODIs: – Scored 5122 runs in 162 ODIs with 42 half-centuries
    T20Is:  – Scored 788 runs in 39 T20Is with three half-centuries
    Was part of the side that won the ICC World Twenty20 2009
    Was a member of the side that reached the final of the ICC World Twenty20 2007
    Was a member of the side that reached the semifinals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011
    As captain
    Led Pakistan to the top of the ICC Test Team Rankings in August 2016
    Led Pakistan to the quarterfinals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015
    Younis Khan
    ICC awards and rankings
    Attained No. 1 in MRF Tyres ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen in March 2009
    Was named in the ICC Test team of the Year in 2015
    Career highlights
    Tests: Scored 10,099 runs in 118 Tests with 34 centuries and 33 half-centuries
    ODIs: Scored 7249 runs in 265 ODIs with 7 centuries and 48 half-centuries
    T20Is: 442 runs in 25 T20Is with two half-centuries
    Was a member of the side that reached the semifinals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011
    His best in Tests was 313 versus Sri Lanka at Karachi in 2009.
    As captain
    Led Pakistan to victory in the ICC World Twenty20 in 2009


  18. Waqas Dar
    NEW DELHI: Rising Pune Supergiant will head into this week´s Indian Premier League play-offs without star all-rounder Ben Stokes after he was recalled to England´s one-day international squad.
    Stokes -- paid a record $2.16 million to play the eight-week IPL season -- was instrumental to Pune reaching the knockout phase after a brilliant debut campaign in the cash-rich Twenty20 competition.
    The 25-year-old left-handed batsman and right-handed pace bowler scored 316 runs in 12 matches, with a highest of 103 not out, and took 12 wickets.
    He is not the only England star who will be missing from the final week´s action.
    Table-topping Mumbai Indians have also lost Jos Buttler to preparations for the England-South Africa series, which doesn´t begin until May 24, three days after Sunday´s IPL final in Hyderabad.
    Their early departures saw an angry response from former England captain Kevin Pietersen, who blasted the England and Wales Cricket Board.
    "I think it´s pathetic. An absolute shambles," Pietersen said on Sky Sports on Sunday.
    "Stokes should be playing in the semi-final and the final. The last week of the IPL is a huge occasion."
    The England duo will join the rest of the squad for an ECB training camp in Spain this week.
    "What are they going to Spain for?" said Pietersen. "To field a couple of balls? He should be playing in the IPL.
    "Just speak to him, speak to Jos Buttler, they´ll talk about how much it has helped their development being out there."
    Supergiant skipper Steve Smith said other players would have to step up Stokes´s absence.
    "We have a couple of options (to replace) Stokes," said Smith, who is also the Australia captain.
    "He has been magnificent and will be a big loss. Hopefully, the other guys will stand up for us."
    Supergiant thrashed Kings XI Punjab by nine wickets in their final regular season match on Sunday to take second spot behind Mumbai.
    They meet in the first qualifying playoff in Mumbai on Tuesday, with the winners going straight into Sunday´s final.
    The losers get another crack at reaching the final on Friday against the winners of Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders, who will clash in Wednesday´s eliminator playoff in Bangalore with the losers heading home.
    The Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai have been the outstanding side in this year´s IPL, with 10 wins from their 14 matches and will enjoy home advantage at the Wankhede Stadium for the first playoff encounter against Pune on Tuesday.
    Australia vice-captain David Warner leads third-placed finishers Hyderabad while veteran Indian opener Gautam Gambhir leads fourth-placed Kolkata as the 10th season of IPL cricket heads for Sunday´s finish line.


  19. Waqas Dar
    Priyanka Chopra has her eyes set on yet another Hollywood project already.
    The diva, who is gearing up for her Hollywood debut Baywatch in which she plays the antagonist Victoria Leeds, is reportedly in talks to join Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer, Claire Danes and Jim Parsons in an upcoming drama ‘A Kid Like Jake‘.
    The film, based on a play, is about Alex (Danes) and Greg Wheeler (Parsons) who have high hopes for their son Jake, a bright and precocious four-year-old who happens to prefer Cinderella to GI Joe.
    If Priyanka joins the cast, she will play Amal, the couple’s friend and a newly single mom who is also trying to figure out the school system as well as her own dating world.
    Priyanka stars alongside Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron in Baywatch.


  20. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: Members of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing the Panama case at the Supreme Court started the preparations to question the prime minister and his family on Monday.
    The JIT, led by Federal Investigation Agency's (FIA) head Wajid Zia, has received relevant records from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
    The record was reviewed and questions that surfaced after comparing the record were separated, to be posed to the PM and his offspring.
    On May 11, the JIT asked the ECP to provide the PM’s asset declaration, sources said.
    The ECP received the JIT's letter on May 10, which asks for asset declarations from 2013 to 2016, sources added, stating that the team has sought details from ECP within three days.
    Read more: JIT asks election commission for prime minister's asset declarations
    ECP’s secrecy branch compiled a file of the asset declaration and sent it to the chief election commissioner, as per the sources.
    The JIT also asked for the asset declaration of the PM’s son-in-law, Captain Safdar. 
    On May 10, a session of the JIT was held to decide on the investigation method for the Panama Papers case.
    The team of investigators had decided to seek assistance from FIA and experts in the private sector.
    The Supreme Court’s special bench constituted the JIT to probe funds used by the prime minister's children to buy properties in London through offshore businesses.
    Earlier, the JIT members had met at the Federal Judicial Academy in Islamabad, which has now been declared the JIT Secretariat. The members have also moved their offices to the location ahead of the investigation.


  21. Waqas Dar
    BEIJING: Pakistan and China signed a framework agreement for the upgradation of the Karachi-Peshawar Railway Line (ML-1) during a ceremony on Monday.
    The National Railways Administration of China and Pakistan’s Ministry of Railways signed the agreement in Beijing.
    A ‘commercial contract’ for the preliminary upgradation design of the project was also signed on the occasion.
    The Chinese side was led by Transport Minister Li Xiaopeng while the Pakistani side was led by Railways minister Khawaja Saad Rafique.
    He said people from all provinces of Pakistan will benefit from this agreement, terming it a ‘significant step’ for Pakistan Railways.
    Rafique also said he’s asked the Chinese minister to help launch the Karachi Circular Railway project as well as mass transit systems in Peshawar and Karachi.
    The minister is part of the delegation accompanying Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who is in Beijing on a state visit.


  22. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday decided to couple together Indian citizen Uzma and her Pakistani husband Tahir’s requests and hold one hearing for the case.
    The court issued notices to all parties and delayed the hearing until May 22.
    Tahir’s lawyer requested the court to allow the couple to meet privately.
    Justice Mohsin Akhter Kiyani enquired if it was under the court’s jurisdiction to order the Indian High Commission to comply.
    Read more: Uzma and Tahir: A cross-border love story or fraud
    The lawyer further requested the court to bar Uzma from travelling back to India till the case’s decision is announced.
    The Indian High Commission’s First Secretary Piyush Singh – present in the court -- received the notice through Uzma’s lawyer.
    Prior to the above, the court issued notices to the Foreign Ministry and Tahir in reference to Uzma’s return to India and the request to issue a duplicate immigration sheet.
    Pakistani manTahir Ali, on May 11, filed a petition meet his wife Indian citizen Uzma privately in the Islamabad High Court (IHC).  
    Uzma, on May 8, alleged that she was forced to marry Ali at gunpoint, adding that she was unaware that the latter was already married and a father of four children. The claims were denied by Tahir.  
    The complicated case took another turn as Uzma’s brother on Tuesday reiterated her earlier claims of travelling to Pakistan in an interview with Geo News.
    Read more: Indian woman Uzma coerced into marriage, claims brother
    Secretary Interior, Secretary of Foreign Ministry, the Indian High Commission, and Uzma are all party to the application filed in court by Ali.
    “Uzma made false allegations against me under pressure,” Ali claimed.


  23. Waqas Dar
    BEIJING: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday hailed China’s One Belt One Road initiative as the “beginning of a new era for humanity”, saying it would bring unprecedented opportunities to the poor regions to break free from poverty.
    Addressing a session at the leaders’ roundtable conference in Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, the Prime Minister said the One Belt One Road project along with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would result in shared prosperity for the entire region.
    “The railroads, highways, ports and airports that are being built are redefining economic landscapes within countries and regions. Hinterlands are being connected with coasts. Big businesses are moving to less developed and neglected territories. And a new generation of entrepreneurs is being inspired,” PM Nawaz Sharif said.  
    The premier said Pakistan is pursuing its vision of a peaceful, interconnected and prosperous neighbourhood with great determination.
    “We have relentlessly pursued policies for digital and financial inclusion during the last four years. While doing this, we have particularly focused on the most disadvantaged segments of our population. Rapid digitalisation and next-generation connectivity are at the heart of our agenda for transforming into a knowledge-based economy,” he said in his address.
    Benefits to Pakistan
    Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said China and Pakistan, with joint implementation of CPEC, are reaping the early benefits of interconnected development.
    “As we connect Xinjiang to Gwadar and Karachi, with pathways of the Corridor running through the entire territory of Pakistan, it creates new supply and logistic chains, as well as manufacturing networks. In fact, CPEC has infused Pakistan’s economy with new vitality and dynamism,” he said.
    The Prime Minister pointed out that the Gwadar Port, the pivot of CPEC, would connect East, West and South Asia. It would also reach out to African and European markets, he said, adding that very soon Gwadar would develop into an “inspired, organic, and dynamic city full of great opportunities.”


  24. Waqas Dar
    BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that the One Belt, One Road Initiative is a mega project to connect the world through economic integration.
    He was addressing the Leaders' Roundtable Conference in the Belt and Road Forum that began in Beijing on Monday.
    “We should adopt a free trade policy to enhance business links with each other,” said the Chinese president, adding that peace and stability is imperative for the progress and prosperity of the world.
    Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif is also attending the roundtable conference and will attend both of its sessions.
    In the second session of round table conference the leaders will discuss "Connectivity cooperation for inter connected development".
    Meanwhile, China has signed an agreement with twenty-six countries to jointly address the pressing challenges of financing gap for projects under the Belt and Road Initiative.  
    The agreement aims to create a long-term and stable financing mechanism to break a “funding bottleneck” for development work under CPEC.
    China has also signed memoranda of understanding with six multilateral development financial institutions, including the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, to strengthen financing coordination for the Belt and Road Initiative.
     
     


  25. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: The police did not seem interested in arresting the person who misbehaved with the police in Kunri, Umerkot earlier this month, said Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Monday. 
    During the hearing of suo moto notice taken by the Supreme Court of Pakistan over the issue, the chief justice expressed anger over performance of the police. He reprimanded Mirpurkhas Deputy Inspector General Javed Odho, asking why the main accused was not arrested yet.
    Another judge who was present on the occasion, Justice Umar Ata Bandiyal asked what the police had been doing up till now as the incident took place on May 2.
    The judge told the DIG he was responsible for the reputation of his force.

    The DIG told the court Zaid Talpur and Asif Pathan have got protective bails. However, he added, two of the people present with Zaid at the police station have been arrested, while others were at large.
    Odho said they got to know about the arrested through a newspaper article.
    The incident came into public notice after a video surfaced, showing an inebriated Zaid sitting on the station house officer's seat in a police station. Zaid was surrounded by his aides, insulting the SHO and demanding the police officer sit on the ground and speak to him.
    Read more: FIR against inebriated feudal for misbehaving with SHO
    After the video surfaced, Kunri DSP Sher Khan and SHO Tassawur Jatt were also suspended. According to Umerkot SSP Usman Bajwa, the two police officers showed weakness and hid the facts.
    On Tuesday, the police registered a case against six individuals including Zaid, Hassan Talpur, Jamil Marwarri, Lachman Meghwarr, Kareem and Shafi.
    The police came into action after Sindh IGP A D Khawaja took notice of the incident and ordered the culprits be arrested soon.


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