Punjab

TTP plans kidnappings, robberies to generate funds

LAHORE:  A confidential report claims that the infamous Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is planning more terrorist activities in the country’s major cities – Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Peshawar and Bannu.

The decision was taken at a secret meeting presided by TTP commander Qari Shafiullah Moavia.
According to the report, the TTP plans on kidnapping serving and retired officers and American citizens to collect finances, as well as to negotiate the release of their accomplices in jails or in the custody of intelligence agencies.
The report has been forwarded to all provincial home departments, provincial police chiefs, provincial heads of other law enforcement agencies, Islamabad chief commissioner and the Islamabad police chief by the National Crisis Management Cell (NCMC) of the interior ministry.
According to confidential information, Qari Moavia has assigned the task to Nauman Moavia. The meeting also devised a strategy for terrorist activities for a period of two months, the report added.
The TTP also allowed its leaders and activists to rob banks and jewelry shops, in order to gather funds for the purchase of transport, arms and ammunition.
After receiving the intelligence report, the NCMC directed law enforcement agencies to adopt possible security arrangements and ensure fool-proof security to avoid any untoward incident.
Furthermore, security has been put on high alert across the country.
Another circular issued by the NCMC stated that “the ministry of interior has expressed concern over a visible increase in activities of banned outfits in various parts of the country”.
These defunct organisations have been found involved in instigating people against government by organising conferences, polarising society and precipitating unrest and law and order situation.

 

Kidnap, murder: Protest over killing of 12-year-old Christian boy 

FAISALABAD:  Hundreds of Christians staged a protest demonstration on Wednesday to express their resentment over the killing of a 12-year-old Christian boy, who was allegedly kidnapped on chaand raat.

The protesters carried clubs and iron rods and threw stones at shops and vehicles along the Narwala Road. Traffic remained suspended for more than four hours.
Suneel, son of Yaqoob Masih, a resident of Christian Town adjacent Model Town, had gone missing the night before Eid. The family had registered a complaint with the Gulberg police and had been looking for him on their own.
On Monday, the body was found from Chamra Mandi in Factory Area. A police driver, Constable Ali Raza, discovered it on his way home. He informed the local police, who later identified the boy as Suneel.
They said the boy had apparently been killed using a sharp weapon. The body had then been set on fire. They said there were cuts all over the body.
The body was sent to Allied Hospital for a postmortem examination and the family was informed.
Following the identification of the boy, residents of Christian Town took out a protest rally. They demanded immediate arrest of the murderers. The protesters were later joined by minority MPA Aamir Sahotra.
A heavy police contingent led by Lyallpur Town Superintendent of Police Zahid Mehmood later arrived on the scene. The protesters dispersed after the SP assured them that the murderers will be found and arrested.
Patrus Masih, a brother of the deceased, said the family had no idea of who could have killed his brother. He said they had no enmity with anybody.
Police have registered a case on the complaint of Constable Ali Raza, who first found the body.
They said that the postmortem report said that the body had 23 cuts. The boy had not been sexually assaulted.
SSP (Operations) Sadiq Ali Dogar has formed a three-member investigation team and directed it to probe the matter. He has also directed them to submit an inquiry report in a week.

 

Eidul Fitr: Zoo, parks attract large crowds 

LAHORE:  The City Traffic Police on Wednesday shut off parts of The Mall to vehicular traffic and diverted traffic to adjoining roads to ease the rush of visitors at the Lahore Zoo.

The measure, however, resulted in a traffic jam.
The zoo was one of the biggest attractions during the three-day Eid holidays. People also thronged parks, restaurants, cinemas and Joy Land at Fortress Stadium.
Millions of people offered Eid prayers at about 1,000 venues across the city. The biggest Eid congregation in the city was at Badshahi Mosque where Punjab Governor Sardar Latif Khan Khosa also offered prayers. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif offered Eid prayers at Raiwind.
Eid prayers were also held at Data Darbar, Masjid-i-Shuhada, Masjid Wazir Khan, Minhajul Quran, Bagh-i-Jinnah and Gaddafi Stadium.
Strict security measures were adopted to avert any untoward incident. Mobile phone services were suspended for 14 hours.
Hospitals and Rescue 1122 officials said that a man had died and eight people were injured while one-wheeling on Canal Road, Link Road, Upper Mall and in Muslim Town, Liberty, Mughalpura and Faisal Town. The deceased was identified as Owais, a resident of Ferozewala, who was critically injured after falling from his motorcycle while one-wheeling on GT Road. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Police identified four of the injured as Waseem, Naeem, Rizwan and Shahid.
Shias observe Eid as ‘day of mourning’ 
Members of the Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeen, a Shiite group, observed Eid as a day of mourning on the appeal of its leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas. Abbas had given the call over crimes against Shias in Pakistan. Major Shia Eid congregations took place at Nasser Bagh, Karbala Gamay Shah, Samanabad, Shalimar Town, Model Town, and Jamia Mosque, Ichhra. After offering prayers, the Shias protested by blocking adjoining roads. Haider Ali Mirza, who led the prayers and protest at Nasser Bagh, said that Shias were being targeted across the country. He alleged that government institutions were also condoning terrorism against them. He said the Supreme Court’s “silence on the issue” was proof of prejudice in state institutions. He also demanded assurances of civil rights and security for Shias in Gilgit and Baltistan.

 

Torture charges: ‘Police given 3 days to investigate’

FAISALABAD:  Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations) Sadiq Ali Dogar has formed a team to probe allegations of torture against Mansoorabad police.

SSP Dogar said action would be taken against policemen if they were found guilty of torturing one Munir Ahmed to extract information about the whereabouts of his brother, Qadeer Ahmed, and a woman the latter is accused of having kidnapped.
The SSP said the inquiry team had been asked to submit a report to his office in three days.
He said an application submitted by the mother of Munir Ahmed stated that he was tortured by the police during custody.
He said he had received the application but would wait for the registration of an FIR till a medical report was received from the hospital.
He said strict action would be taken against the policemen if they were found guilty of torture on Munir Ahmed.
Dr Muhammad Akmal who is treating Munir Ahmed at Allied Hospital said a board was constituted on Thursday to examine Munir Ahmed. He said the board would submit their report directly to the policemen probing the incident.
He said Ahmed’s condition was now stable but said that the bruises on the back, arms and legs would take several days to heal.
According to his mother, Ahmed was taken away from their home by Mansoorabad police on Monday night. She said the policemen had first asked for Qadir Ahmed, her other son.
She said when they did not find him they took Munir Ahmed with them. She said Munir Ahmed was later found abandoned on a roadside in Mansoorabad by some passers-by who took him to Allied Hospital on Wednesday night.
She said Qadir Ahmed had left home some months ago without telling her or Munir Ahmed about his plans or whereabouts.
The FIR registered against Qadir Ahmed accuses him of kidnapping a woman.

 

University admissions: Committee to check degrees of applicants

BAHAWALPUR:  Islamia University of Bahawalpur Vice Chancellor Prof Muhammad Mukhtar said on Saturday that a committee would soon be established to verify academic degrees of applicants to the bachelors and masters programmes of the university.

He was speaking at a meeting of the heads of academic departments at the university.
Prof Mukhtar said admissions would be granted to only those whose academic documents were certified by the committee.
He said officials had also been directed to computerise records of all academic departments and to form an online campus management system for the purpose. This, he said, would help improve the quality of education by allowing students online access to study material.
The vice chancellor said the academic calendar should be drawn well before the start of the year to improve coordination among various departments at the university.
He praised the efforts of the faculty in improving the standard of education at the university and said that the university rankings recently released by the Higher Education Commission put IUB at 13th position among 111 education institutes of the country. He said the students expelled from the university for breach of discipline would not be readmitted.

 

Double loss: Ex-SHO accused of torture

FAISALABAD:  Gojra Saddar police have started an investigation into allegations that a former station house officer illegally detained and tortured a man who had approached him for registration of a motorcycle theft complaint. 

An FIR was registered against Abdus Saboor, currently assigned duties at the Police Lines, at Gojra Saddar police station on the directions of a judicial magistrate on Saturday.
Police have also registered an FIR on Basharat Ali’s motorcycle theft complaint which he claimed was earlier turned down by the police.
The magistrate issued the order on the basis of a medical report submitted to him during Saturday’s hearing by Gojra Civil Hospital. The report confirmed that Ali had been beaten up and subjected to severe torture. Gojra City SHO Mehr Muhammad Sarfaraz said a case had been registered and an investigation was underway. He said the accused officer would be arrested if required.
In his application for the FIR, Basharat Ali stated that he was tortured during detention at Gojra Saddar police station by then SHO Abdus Saboor. He said he had approached the police on July 14 to report a motorcycle theft. “A motorcycle I had borrowed from a friend was taken away by some unidentified people,” he said. The complainant said then SHO Abdus Saboor illegally detained him at the police station and beat him up instead of registering an FIR.
He said Saboor had asked him to withdraw the application if he wanted to be released. “I was kept at the police station for three days during which I was frequently beaten up and tortured,” he said. The complainant said he was released after his relatives protested in front of the police station.
Ali said he had immediately moved court against the detention after his release.

 

Doctors’ politics: ‘YDA threatening professors who didn’t back strike’ 

LAHORE:  Junior doctors are harassing and intimidating professors who did not support them during the strike by the Young Doctors Association (YDA) Punjab at public hospitals, according to a Special Branch report.

The report was written by officers deployed to keep an eye on the YDA during the strike. It has been sent to the capital city police officer, the district coordination officer, the Home Department and the Health Department.
“The young doctors are targeting professors who did not support them during their strike and they want to remove them from the hospitals,” states the report. They were also pushing for the dismissal of ad hoc doctors recruited during the strike. “Senior doctors feel threatened,” it states.
However, the report recommends no security or protection measures for professors and concedes that no professors have made formal complaints about harassment or intimidation.
The report recommends disciplinary action against the doctors via the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council. It states that most of the YDA members are post-graduate trainees aiming to become Fellows of the College of Physicians and Surgeons (FCPS). It suggests that the Health Department contact supervisors of postgraduate trainees and get them to warn the doctors that they would write to the CPS to cancel their supervision, meaning they would not be able to sit the FCPS Part II exams.
“The High Court may also be apprised of the threatening activities of the young doctors,” it states.
The report cites one incident in particular. “On August 10, 2012, 60 to 70 young doctors led by Dr Hamid Butt, the YDA Punjab president, protested for two hours in front of the office of the medical superintendent of Services Hospital. They trespassed on the office of Services Institute of Medical Sciences Principal Dr Faisal Masud, threatened him and chanted slogans against him. They alleged that the young doctors were arrested during the strike on the instigation of Dr Faisal Masud. The young doctors also shut Gate No 4 near the principal’s office and did not let him enter the hospital. Earlier, the young doctors threatened and abused a lady professor of the Pathology Department. When the Academic Council of the hospital convened a meeting to discuss the threats, the young doctors didn’t allow them to hold the meeting and abused the professors.”
YDA Punjab senior member Dr Khuzema Arslan Bokhari rejected the report. “First, they should define what threatening means to them. They feel threatened even when young doctors or Hamid Butt walk around the hospital. They feel threatened when we hold peaceful protests. It is we who are threatened by seniors. In some cases professors have withdrawn from the supervision of young doctors two months before the completion of their training. We just protested peacefully and asked for the termination of ad hoc doctors because they were hired in violation of merit and policy,” he said.
Dr Bokhari said that the YDA condemned all forms of violence and its constitution directed members not to indulge in violence. “If there is any incident where young doctors misbehaved with any doctors or got physical, we condemn it. This report doesn’t mean anything,” he said.
A SIMS professor said the young doctors had been sending derogatory text messages to senior doctors. “They haven’t thrashed any professor so far but they have misbehaved. They have certainly become more aggressive after their strike,” he added.
A senior faculty member at Lahore General Hospital said there hadn’t been any violence against any seniors at the hospital. “As far as ad hoc doctors are concerned, yes they (the YDA) are against them and are pressing the administration to fire them,” he said.

 

Gender Justice: ‘11 inheritance, 41 forced marriage cases taken up in 2011’ 

BAHAWALPUR:  As many as 30 inheritance disputes were identified under the Programme for Gender Justice through Joint Collective Community Action in 2011, of which five were already in courts, Gender Justice Programme Co-ordinator Razia Malik said on Monday.

She was speaking at a seminar arranged jointly by the Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB), the South Asia Partnership and the Cholistan Development Council. The seminar concluded with her briefing on the annual report for 2011.
She said three of the five court cases for which legal aid was provided to women were solved. The remaining two were still under trial.
Of the other 25 disputes, she said, eight were solved through counselling sessions with both parties.
Malik said 37 of the 62 forced marriage complaints in 2011 were also ‘resolved’ through counselling sessions. She said legal aid was provided to women in forced marriage cases in courts. “Four of seven such cases have been decided and the remaining are under trial,” she said.
She said appropriate action was taken in 13 cases of domestic violence, nine of children’s custody, two of harassment at work place and four other police cases.
Earlier, IUB Vice Chancellor Muhammad Mukhtar said the programme had been effective in raising awareness among women in Bahawalpur about their right to inheritance and consent for marriage.
The vice chancellor said the university would continue arranging activities to raise awareness about women’s rights. He said protection of women’s rights was espoused by all religions. He said instructions on right to inheritance of family property were an example of the importance Islam gave to women’s rights.
He said the programme had also helped check gender-based discrimination at the university by raising awareness among the students and the faculty.
CDC director Farooq Ahmed Khan said protection of women’s right to inheritance and an end to the practice of marriage without consent were critical to establishment of peace in the society.
He said a series of seminars on gender justice would be arranged over three months in collaboration with the IUB, Radio Pakistan, and Police and Health Departments.
Radio Pakistan Bahawalpur Station Director Syed Tariq Shah said his organisation would continue contributing to the cause of gender equality by producing documentaries and other programmes to raise awareness about the issue.
Media Studies Department Assistant Professor Dr Muhammad Shehzad said the media should educate people on gender equality.
IUB Public Relations Officer Shehzad Ahmed Khalid, Assistant Director (Information) Nasir Hameed, CDC Programme Officer Aleem Ahmed Khan, Radio Pakistan senior producers Sajjad Ahmed Bari and Ashiq Abbasi, District Officer (Health) Dr Muhammad Aslam, Federal Bureau of Revenue Inspector Syed Tanseerul Hassan Shah and Revenue Officer Jam Muhammad Aslam were also present at the occasion.

 

School schedule: Cambridge results cause social media stir 

LAHORE:  The announcement of the Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) results for O and A Levels on Monday created a stir in the local social media scene.

Students were tweeting and updating posts on their Facebook walls from Sunday evening.
Locally, #CIE was trending on Twitter a day before the results. Students also posted on the walls of their schools’ Facebook pages, expressing their nervousness as the announcements of the results approached.
16-year-old Maniha Barry said, “Twitter was all about results on Sunday evening.”
An avid blogger and tweeter, Barry is a student of Bloomfield Hall. Landing an A in Urdu, what she said was contrary to her expectations, she also said she was very nervous before the results. She said the mood of other students was obvious from their tweets. She said students have been sharing their results with their friends through social media.
The CIE results have shared its announcement time with a majority of other examination boards across the country. The names of the toppers and distinction holders will be announced in a day or two.
The results were made available online to schools and students at around 10 am. Besides approaching their respective schools, students could also view their results on the website set up by the University of Cambridge International Examinations for the purpose. Students could also view their individual results on an alternate online resource, provided their schools had registered for it.
Sara Said, the Exams-Marketing and Communications head at the British Council, there had been a 13 percent increase in the number of entries in 2012 compared to the previous year.
This year, the CIE has recorded as many as 180,000 entries in both the Cambridge O level and Cambridge International A level examinations in Pakistan, she said.
In June 2011, as many as 220 students won the Outstanding Cambridge Learner Awards in Pakistan for Cambridge examinations. Out of those, 42 achieved the highest marks in the world in their subjects, while 37 students achieved the highest marks in a specific subject in Pakistan. According to CIE figures from 2011, the number of students who have achieved the award for outstanding achievement in Cambridge examinations has increased by 25 per cent over three years. This year the list of Outstanding Cambridge Learners is expected to be released in December.

 

Terror in Lahore: Nine killed in attack on police hostel

LAHORE:  Nine policemen were killed and eight others injured in an early morning terrorist attack on a hostel rented by the National Prison Academy in Lahore on Thursday. The incident is the second attack on security personnel in the country following the reopening of the Nato supply routes to Afghanistan.

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has reportedly claimed responsibility for Thursday’s attack, which is reminiscent of the storming of the Manawan police training academy in Lahore in 2009.
According to eyewitnesses, six to eight armed men stormed the small house being used as a hostel in Ichra with automatic weapons and hand-grenades. They say not a single guard had been deployed for the hostel’s security, allowing the assailants to escape unhindered.
The injured policemen were shifted to the Services Hospital. The hospital’s Additional Medical Superintendent Dr Muzaffar told that they received 10 injured men, out of whom two succumbed to their injuries. He added one remains in critical condition and has been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit while the rest are now stable.
One survivor told reporters that the policemen jumped frantically onto neighbouring rooftops to escape the gunfire. “About 15 of us were sleeping on the roof and some were offering prayers when gunfire started downstairs. Some of my colleagues who went down to see what was happening were killed or wounded,” said Mohammad Rizwan Shah, 23, who works for Peshawar Central Jail.
A total of 32 policemen from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) had been staying at the hostel for six weeks, according to Iqbal Town SP Imtiaz Sarwar. The policemen were in Lahore for a two-month training programme for jail wardens at the National Prison Academy.
The hostel’s cook, Muhammad Shafiq, there were 31 trainee wardens present at the time of the attack. The attack continued for around 10 minutes, he added. Shafiq says locals reached the scene immediately after the attack and helped rescue the injured and remove the deceased from the premises.
Soon after the incident, a certain Muhammad Akhtar, owner of a nearby bakery, called Rescue 15. Akhtar says he heard a small blast, followed by gunfire. An FIR has been lodged against the gunmen on the complaint of Drill Instructor Muhammad Yousaf.
Punjab police Inspector General (IG) Habibur Rehman, along with Lahore CCPO Aslam Tareen, arrived at the scene following the incident as well.
Talking to the media, the IG said initial reports suggested around 10 men had been involved in the attack. He added that the men, armed with Kalashnikovs and hand-grenades, arrived at the spot on three motorcycles and a car. He termed the attack similar to the ones at Gujrat (which claimed the lives of eight army personnel) and Babu Sabu (where two policemen were killed), going so far as claiming that those involved in the incident were part of the same group involved in the Gujrat attack.
Meanwhile, an eight-member committee, headed by Lahore CCPO Aslam Tareen, has been formed to probe the attack. TTP spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan told AFP in a telephone call that the attack was carried out because the officers being trained “are used in operations against us”.

 

Stay on your toes, IG tells force

LAHORE:  Punjab Police have been directed to stay alert by the provincial police chief.

Officers serving in the field have been asked to constitute special teams in order to ensure round-the-clock patrolling in their respective areas. Superintendants were told by Muhammad Habibur Rehman, the Inspector General of Punjab Police (IGP), to supervise patrolling.
Rehman issued the orders during a meeting held at the Rawalpindi Police Club. The IG was in Pindi to review security arrangements.
The IGP told the officers to intensify snap-checking without inconveniencing the public. The officers were told to be polite during body searches and snap-checking.
City and regional heads were also told to secure police offices. Maintain a record of empty and rented houses across the province, directed IGP Rehman.
RPO Captain (retired) Zubair, CPO Azhar Hameed Khokhar, Jhelum DPO Dr Ali Khatak, Attock DPO Muhammad Hilal Khan, and DPO Chakwal Kashif Mushtaq Kanju attended the meeting.

 

IG recommends himself for bravery award

 

LAHORE:  Inspector General (IG) of Punjab Police Habibur Rehman has sought to nominate himself for a Sitara-i-Imtiaz for “remarkable contributions” during the terrorist attack on the Police Training School in Manawan in 2009.

In July, the IG wrote a letter to the Cabinet Division of the federal government nominating himself and five other police officials for medals, breaking several rules and irking the Home Department in the process.
The Home Department has asked the chief minister to withdraw the nominations and censure the IG, as he lacks the authority to correspond directly with the federal government, said an official of the Chief Minister’s Secretariat on the condition of anonymity. “He communicated directly with the Cabinet Division without the approval of the Punjab government, thus violating the rules,” he said.
In the letter, Rehman wrote that the six officers deserved medals for their “remarkable contributions” during the Manawan attack on March 30, 2009, when around a dozen gunmen took over the police training school for around eight hours. Eight policemen, eight gunmen and two civilians were killed in the attack and the subsequent siege.
Rehman, who was capital city police officer at the time, nominated himself as well as Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Zulifqar Hameed, Superintendent of Police (SP) Maroof Safdar Wahla, SSP Muhammad Wasim, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Jawad Qamar and Sub Inspector Muhammad Ali Butt. Rehman said that he should be awarded the Sitara-i-Imtaiz, while the rest should be awarded the Pakistan Police Medal (PPM) or the Quaid-i-Azam Police Medal (QPM).
The Cabinet Division, upon receiving the letter and noticing that it did not have Punjab government approval, contacted the Home Department. The department confirmed that it had not been aware of the nominations.
The Home Department later submitted a summary to the chief minister detailing the violations of protocol by the IG. The letter stated that according to Rule 47(III) of the Rules of Business 2011, the Police Department is an attached department of the Home Department and all correspondence between the government and the heads of attached departments, regional offices, autonomous bodies and district governments is to be conducted through the secretary of the department concerned.
The department said that citations for medals are supposed to be countersigned by the home secretary, not the IG. It said that the Police Order of 2002 gave the IG some financial and administrative powers, but not such to correspond directly with the federal or other provincial governments.
The Home Department pointed out that under National Police Bureau criteria, citations should not be sent for incidents more than a year old. The Manawan attack was over three years ago. The department also said that a judicial inquiry of the incident, though completed, had yet to be made public, so it was unclear if the medals were deserved. The department asked the chief minister to withdraw the citations forwarded by the IG and to direct him to stop such practices.
The federal government announces civil awards on August 14 and they are presented on March 23. The president confers these awards and presents them at the federal level, while the governors present them on behalf of the president at the provincial level.
Police Public Relations Director Nabeela Ghazanfar said that she had no knowledge of the matter.

Khawaja Sharif case: Questionable action on ex-judge’s ‘murder plot’ memo

LAHORE:  The federal interior ministry and Federal Investigation Agency acted against the orders of judicial and executive authorities by registering a criminal case against officials of the Special Branch (Punjab police unit) for releasing a false intelligence memo on a conspiracy to murder former Lahore High Court chief justice Khwaja Sharif. 

A 40-page inquiry report by a judicial commission, fixed responsibility on former chief of SB Col (retd) Ehsanur Rehman, SB Director Shahid Mehmood, Constable Ijaz and Constable Azam, for “collectively conspiring to produce the report knowing it was false and fabricated.”
However, the report only recommended the employment contract of Col Rehman to be immediately terminated and disciplinary action against Mehmood, Ijaz and Azam.
It also recommended disciplinary action against then secretary to the Punjab chief minister Dr Syed Tauqir Shah for releasing the false memo to the media.
According to the report, Secretary Shah acted in haste, displayed immaturity and appeared to have been politicking.
“The competent authority may therefore not post him to a sensitive post and may also consider taking disciplinary action against him,” the report stated.
Furthermore, the principal secretary to the prime minister in a letter to Punjab chief secretary had asked the Punjab government, interior ministry and the FIA not to register a case or start criminal proceedings against those found responsible.
After the completion of the commission report, the Punjab government immediately terminated the contract of Col (retd) Rehman and removed Shah from his post.
Action was also initiated against the other officials as per the recommendations of the commission, sources claimed.
However, contrary to the recommendations of the judicial commission and the prime minister, a criminal case was registered on July 23, 2012, by the FIA through the agency’s section officer Hakim Din, on the directions of the interior minister.
On the other hand, the interior ministry and the FIA have not taken any action against former ambassador to Washington Husain Haqqani despite the fact that the commission found Haqqani guilty of writing a controversial memo seeking American intervention in the event of a military coup.
The inquiry report stated that it had been “incontrovertibility established” that the memo to the US military was authentic and written by Haqqani.
Sources in the Punjab government the interior ministry’s move meant that it had adopted a double standard in dealing with the reports of the two commissions – both of which were headed by Chief Justice of Balochistan High Court Justice Qazi Isa.
A Punjab government spokesman pointed out that in light of the commission’s report and the prime minister secretariat’s letter, the Punjab government had already taken action against all the responsible in letter and spirit; so, the interior ministry’s act is considered misconduct.

 

Zardari builds consensus for one South Punjab province

LAHORE:  The ruling party will press for formation of one province in southern Punjab only, with its headquarters at Bahawalpur, as opposed to opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s proposal of two separate provinces.

To this end, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-Chairman and President Asif Ali Zardari has taken his party’s lawmakers, particularly those hailing from South Punjab including former premier Yousaf Raza Gilani, into confidence.
According to sources, President Zardari has convinced Gilani that the provincial headquarters of the proposed South Punjab province will be established at Bahawalpur division, while an industrial zone will be established in Multan.
Gilani has also been in favour of one South Punjab province, and has been opposed to restoration of Bahawalpur to its provincial status.
One province
Sources said President Zardari, a few days ago, invited the leader of the movement for restoration of Bahawalpur province, Nawab Salahuddin Khan Abbasi, to the Presidency and convinced him to step back from his stance in exchange for a lucrative package, including the governorship of the South Punjab province.
Sources added that President Zardari also called a meeting of party workers from Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar on August 3 at the Presidency, and took them into confidence over the creation of one province.
One of the participants of the meeting, PPP’s provincial lawmaker Chaudhry Shaukat Mehmood Basra, confirmed that the party’s proposal is for creation of one South Punjab province, with its headquarters at Bahawalpur.
Basra said President Zardari has urged them to expedite their efforts in forcing the Punjab government to nominate two MPAs for the formation of a commission on the new province.
Despite being officially asked by the Speaker National Assembly Dr Fehmida Mirza around 10 days ago, the Punjab government has yet to nominate two MPAs from the Punjab Assembly to the commission.
Basra said the opposition benches will force the Punjab Assembly Speaker to nominate the two MPAs when the assembly is called into session after Eid.
President Zardari had sent a reference to Speaker NA on May 31, for constitution of a commission for creation of two provinces in southern Punjab. The commission will comprise six MNAs, six Senators and two MPAs from PA.
Asked how the commission members would develop a consensus over formation of only one South Punjab province when the commission’s mandate calls for two, Basra said the president told them that the commission members would be asked to form one province only.
Meanwhile, PML-N’s MNA from Bahawalpur Mian Saud Majeed said it was impossible for the PPP to abandon the restoration of Bahawalpur as a separate province. He said PML-N will not budge from their demand for two provinces in southern Punjab.

 

Financial institutions asked to follow security guidelines 

LAHORE:  The Punjab government has requested the State Bank of Pakistan to direct all banks, financial institutions, cash carrying agencies and exchange companies to follow government-issued guidelines to avoid getting robbed.

The request was sent after a recent surge in bank robberies and cash snatching incidents in the city. Two banks in Green Town were robbed on July 19. On August 1, a cash-delivering van crew member allegedly walked away with Rs20 million.
According to government guidelines, banks with cash up to Rs10 million should deploy three guards – one at the entrance, the second at a vantage point and the third on patrol duty. Banks keeping cash up to Rs2.5 million are required to deploy two armed guards.
Exchange companies with an average daily turnover of Rs5 million are required to deploy three guards (two inside and one at the gate) to keep an eye on visitors. Companies with turnover less than Rs5 million need to have two guards.
All branches are required to be equipped with a working alarm, which is concealed and secure. It is to be linked with the bank’s nearest branch and its head office. Safes, lockers, cabinets and DVR recording system for CCTV should be kept in the strong room, the guidelines say.
All cash needs to be stored in the strong room, which should have a steel-reinforced door with dual or triple controls. Banks with ATM machines, should also install CCTV and it should be functional round the clock.
During loading and unloading of cash, a security cordon should be formed by the bank guards and the cash van crew.
The government has also directed heads of all banks, financial institutions and cash handling agencies to hire security guards from licensed private security companies, registered under the Punjab Private Security Companies Act, 2004.

 

Threat alerts: ‘Terrorists planning attack on PAF base’

LAHORE:  The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is planning attacks on the Pakistan Air Force Base and other military and security establishments in Lahore before Eid, according to intelligence reports received by the Home Department.

The intelligence reports, which have been forwarded to the inspector general of Punjab Police and other officials concerned, stated that at least two TTP teams had made arrangements for attacks in revenge for the killing of Ghaffar Qaiserani alias Saifullah, an alleged TTP leader, in a shootout with the police at Dera Ghazi Khan on August 1.
According to one report, members of the Qari Yasin Group, initially a part of the Harkatul Mujahideen, which started in the Punjab and was later based in Miranshah in North Waziristan, were planning to attack the PAF base and installations near the PAF Market on Ramazan 27 or 28 (August 21 or 22).
Another stated that a team led by Qari Aslam alias Ustad of the Moavia Group, also based in Miranshah, was also planning terrorist attacks towards the end of Ramazan. Their main target was likely to be the PAF base, or other security establishments like the offices of the Inter Service Intelligence (ISI), Military Intelligence (MI), Intelligence Bureau or Counter Terrorism Department. Reconnaissance of the targets has already been done, the report states.
It stated that the plots had been financed by the kidnapping of some doctors from Taunsa Sharif, Dera Ghazi Khan, which had netted Rs2.5 million in ransom, enough to buy a black Honda City car, weapons, explosives and four suicide vests. The car has been rigged with explosives and is being kept at an unknown location in Kabirwala tehsil, Khanewal district, stated the report. The group had also selected targets for assassinations and kidnapping in the Punjab as well, it added.
The intelligence reports stated that the Badami Bagh fruit market blasts on August 1 and an IED blast in an Elite Force vehicle on August 2 were carried out by the TTP in revenge for the killing of Qaiserani. Further retaliatory attacks on public places and government establishments were possible, the reports stated.
Another report revealed a plot to blow up an oil tanker along the route used to supply NATO forces in Afghanistan. It stated that an IED had been found on an oil tanker at Taheemabad on the Layyah-Kot Addu Road, in the jurisdiction of Kot Sultan police station, on August 7. The driver noticed the device placed above the tyres and alerted local authorities. Police and civil defence officials defused the device before it exploded
The reports have been forwarded to the capital city police officer and the provincial heads of the intelligence agencies. A circular issued by the Home Department to law enforcement agencies reads:
“Security arrangements at establishments of LEAs [law enforcement agencies] and vulnerable public places need to be beefed up. The present situation warrants close coordination among all the intelligence agencies for sharing information and helping in nabbing the terrorists before they succeed in their nefarious designs. It is required that preventive measures be adopted.”

 

Punjab Food Authority: Fewer checks on food vendors this Ramazan 

LAHORE:  Food vendors have undergone far fewer checks this Ramazan than in previous years as officers of the new Punjab Food Authority (PFA) are still getting accustomed to their new responsibilities.

The PFA, which became operational on July 2, was set up to monitor the manufacturing, distribution, storage, sale and import of food, taking over the functions of the District Food Department.
PFA officials said that they had collected 500 food samples from around the city for testing during Ramazan. The results of the testing have not been received.
City government officials said that in previous years, their food inspectors collected some 1,200-1,400 samples for testing each month. They said in Ramazan the inspectors used to conduct more checks and close many roadside stalls for violations such as keeping food products uncovered. They said that they particularly checked milk, cooking oil, samosas and ketchup during Ramazan.
PFA officials said that it would take a while for them to come up to the number of checks made each month as they were new to the job. Also, they said they had been recently engaged in checking Ramazan Bazaars and in dengue campaigns, hence they had less time to do their work.
The district food inspectors, who have been sent on deputation to the PFA to work under food safety officers, have challenged the food authority in the Lahore High Court. They say though the Punjab Food Authority Act has been enacted to replace the Punjab Pure Food Ordinance, the authority has been set up without framing any rules for how it will act. They say that the authority is currently following the old rules, which have no legal basis since the Ordinance has been repealed.
They also said in their petition that they were being forced to work in the food authority though there had been no decision on how they were to be absorbed, their status or prospects for promotion.
They said that the Punjab Food Authority was only functional in Lahore, leaving a vacuum in the rest of the province. The other districts are still following the ordinance, again without a legal basis.
PFA officials said on the condition of anonymity that new rules for the authority had been drawn up and would be notified soon. They said that the authority would start operations in Sheikhupura, Kasur and Nankana Sahib in two months. They refused to give their names because they said the director general of the authority had directed all officials not to talk to the press.
Advocate Muhammad Azhar Siddique said that the government should have framed all the rules for the authority before passing the act. He said in the current legal situation, the government would not be able to enforce a fine or other penalty on a food vendor.
A city government official said that he doubted that the PFA food safety officers could do their jobs properly, as some of them were women. “How can a female officer check small shops where people tend to get aggressive very quickly?”
He said that the former city government food inspectors working with the food authority had complained about the PFA officials to their old colleagues in the city government. He said that they were being “treated like peons”. They had also complained that they had been asked to educate food safety officers, who are their bosses.
Secretary Saeed Elahi said that the Pure Food Ordinance was redundant, but not the Pure Food Rules, which were currently being used to address food issues in districts. He said that the plan for the PFA was that it would initially concentrate on a campaign to raise awareness among food vendors about the importance of good hygiene, following which they would step up inspections and hand out fines. He said that the PFA should not be judged before it had been in operation for six months.

 

Official visits: Sharif inaugurates university in Multan

MULTAN:  The Punjab government spends its budget on the people, while the Federation spends its budget on the friends and luxuries of the leaders, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Tuesday.

The chief minister was addressing the inauguration ceremony of an engineering and agricultural university in Multan. This was his fourth visit to the city since he took charge. Later, he also inaugurated the High Court Road, completed at a cost of Rs100 million.
Addressing the gathering at the inauguration, the chief minister announced that 50 buses will soon be plied across the city only for students who would be issued them green cards for concessional fares.
Besides announcing five dialysis machines for the kidney centre at Nishtar Hospital, the chief minster announced Rs876 million for the Shah Abbas Square flyover project, Rs94 million for Government Degree College for Women, and Rs4.5 billion for a major road project and a sports complex with a hockey and football stadium.
Talking about the recent blast at a fireworks warehouse in Multan, he said he had ordered a probe in the incident. He said the investigation would be kept secret and no politician would be informed about any operation against fireworks manufacturers and sellers.
He praised the Multan police force for arresting 30 alleged members of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan in the last three months and for foiling more than 50 terrorism attempts.
On energy crises
The chief minister said the nation was not a victim of loadshedding, but of corruption and bad governance.
He said had even half of the money wasted in corruption in the last four years been spent on the welfare of the people, Pakistan would have been a prosperous and developed country without any loadshedding.
“Even if half of the Rs100 billion, what the Centre claims to have invested in Multan, had been given to me, I would have turned the city into gold,” he said.
He said there would have been a different picture of the city’s roads, sewerage system, education system and health facilities. With the available sources, he said, he had tried his level best to change Punjab. Out of the total Rs100 billion given by former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani for the development of Multan, Sharif said Rs35 billion went back into Gilani’s pockets due to corruption.
“We have tried not to deprive other provinces of their resources, but the federation has always treated Punjab as a step child,” he said.
He said had the Punjab not sacrificed Rs11 billion in the National Finance Commission Award (NFC Award), there would have been no agreement on the award.
Talking about the energy crisis, he said the Punjab government had taken maximum steps to counter the problem.

 

Youm-i-Ali: Multan declared the most sensitive district 

MULTAN:  The Punjab Police have declared Multan the most sensitive district in the province, the anniversary of Hazrat Ali’s (RA) martyrdom, City Police Officer Amir Zulfiqar Khan said on Wednesday.

He said the police had completed the security plan for the city and deployed some 3,200 policemen under the security schedule for the three-day mourning processions.  He said two major processions will be taken out in city on August 10, each expected to have more than 100,000 mourners.
He said that open sabeels (water offering) and niaz (charity food) stalls had been banned. Police will inspect any food offering distribution, he said.
Pillion riding has not been banned. The CPO said he had been monitoring the arrangements himself and will visit the various sites during the three-day processions. He said some 1,200 citizens had volunteered to help.
“We want to provide a secure environment for the mourners,” he said.
In the last three days, he said, Multan police had foiled more than 20 terrorism plots around Youm-i-Ali. He said the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan was believed to be behind these plans. He said more than 30 men, allegedly belonging to the TTP, had been arrested in the last six months from southern Punjab.
DCO Zahid Akhtar Zaman said he was satisfied with the security arrangements. He said the arrangements were finalised after meetings with local religious leaders and law enforcement agencies.

 

Sewage leak: Residents resent being told to evacuate

RAHIM YAR KHAN:  Residents of the katchi abadis around Mayo Mubarak Road protested against the district government and the tehsil municipal administration on Wednesday for issuing them evacuation notices following a leak in the sewerage treatment plant nearby.

The tehsil municipal administration officials gave the residents 24 hours to evacuate their homes after some leaks developed in the treatment plant.
However, after seeing resistance from the residents to leave their homes, the TMA officials warned them about a clean-up operation in the area with the help of the district police.
The residents blocked the Mayo Mubarak Road for more than four hours. Women and children placed charpoys in the middle of the road and sat there.  The protesters said that instead of fixing the leak in the treatment plant, the tehsil and district administration were threatening them with a clean-up operation. They said they had nowhere to go, nor had the administration referred them any place. They said they will move the court against the TMA if they were forced out of their homes. They requested the chief minister to take notice of the situation.
They said several people, including children, had fainted in the last few days from poisonous gas leak from the plant. On Wednesday they said three women, Sughran Bibi, Shamshad Bibi and Maryam Bibi, fainted and were taken to Shaikh Zayed Hospital, where they were reported to be out of danger.
Tehsil Municipal Officer Arshad Waraich, Administrator Wajid Ali Shah and Supervisor Pyare Shah visited the site. They also called rescue teams who descended down the sewers of the treatment plants to identify the point of leakage, which was not discovered.
The TMO said repair work could not begin until the leak was located. In this time, he said, the residents would do well by relocating temporarily. He said due to the leakage in the plant, the earth water had also become poisonous.
Former Majlis-i-Shura member Chaudhry Zahid Hameed Gujjar, MPA Maiza Hameed Gujjar and Secretary Ejaz Chaudhry also visited the scene.
They were told about the situation by the protesters.
Hameed assured the people that something will soon be done to fix the problem. He, however, suggested that they should cooperate with the TMA officials and promised that he would report the matter to the chief minister. He said he will support the people if they needed to move the courts.

 

Ineligible for public office: Iqbal Langrial disqualified from Punjab Assembly 

LAHORE:  The Lahore High Court has disqualified Malik Iqbal Langrial of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid from the Punjab Assembly because his seminary degree was not recognised as equivalent to a bachelors degree.

Justice Nasir Saeed Sheikh issued the disqualification order on similar petitions filed by Saifur Rehman of the PML-N and Jamshed Alam, Langrial’s rivals for his seat in Sahiwal, PP-226. The judge ordered a by-election to fill the seat.
The petitioners, who filed their pleas in 2008, submitted that Langrial had a ‘Sanadul Firagh’ (completion certificate) from Madrassa Al Quranul Arabia Baharul Uloom in Shikarpur, Sindh, and a ‘Shahadatul Alamia’ (certificate of proficiency) from Jamia Talimatul Islamia, Rawalpindi. They said these seminaries were not affiliated with the Wafaqul Madaris, nor recognised by the Higher Education Commission (HEC).
They said that in 2002, the HEC had issued a list of seminaries whose degrees it recognised, and the two seminaries that Langrial had certificates from were not on that list. Thus, Langrial should not have been allowed to stand for the elections, since having a bachelors or equivalent degree was a requirement for candidates at the time.
Advocate Tipu Salman Makhdoom, counsel for Langrial, submitted that Jamia Talimatul Islamia, Sargodha Road, Faisalabad was on the HEC list and the seminary in Rawalpindi that Langrial attended had been affiliated to it since 1971. He said that students of the Rawalpindi madrassa were issued the same degrees as the students of the Faisalabad madrassa, so his client’s education qualifications were in fact recognised by the HEC.
After both sides completed their arguments, the judge reserved his verdict. An hour later, he announced that he was accepting the petitions and declared Langrial to be disqualified from the Punjab Assembly.
These petitions were earlier being heard by former LHC Chief Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed, who is now on the Supreme Court. At a previous hearing, a commission set up to record evidence in the case had complained that Langrial was not giving his testimony. Justice Nasir Sheikh had warned that Langrial’s assembly membership could be suspended if he did not record his statement with the commission.

 

Fatter cows: US offers to help veterinary university 

LAHORE:  The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has offered collaboration to the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) in various livestock sectors.

The offer of assistance mentions meat production, dairy genetics, food safety and hygiene. Assistance has also been offered in training master trainers in animal production and responding to natural calamities.
A five-member USDA delegation called on UVAS vice chancellor Talat Naseer Pasha on Wednesday to discuss how to enhance meat production for export. The delegation led by Agriculture Consul Richard Todd Drenman comprised US Consulate Lahore Economics Officer Frank P Talluto, Economic Officer Emerita Torres, Senior Agriculture Officer Shafiqur Rehman and economic specialist Shahid Abbas.
Drenman said the US government wanted to help improve the dairy potential of indigenous breeds and work with Pakistan to improve animal genetics. He said it was important to develop sustainable links between Pakistani and the US institutions.
Earlier, the UVAS VC Dr Pasha briefed the delegation on the university’s teaching and research projects. He said collaboration between the two countries would be mutually beneficial. He said that Pakistan lagged in animal production expertise. “Collaboration with the USDA can help us access the Middle Eastern, Malaysian and Indonesian markets,” he said.
He said Pakistan had good buffalo breeds which were producing 67 per cent of the country’s milk.
He said there was no progeny testing programme and poor awareness of how to select the best bulls to improve breeds.
He discussed the major constraints facing the livestock sector, including lack of genetic improvement, poor nutrition, heath constraints, unorganised marketing and lack of human resources, including veterinarians, para-vets, dairy supervisors and skilled labour. He said the university’s diagnostic laboratory and quality operation labs were now fully equipped and had been internationally accredited.

 

Youm-i-Ali: City govt slaps two-day ban on pillion riding 

LAHORE:  The city district government on Wednesday notified a ban on pillion riding on Ramazan 20-21, as a security measure for Youm-i-Ali, when Shias will take out a procession to mark the martyrdom of Hazart Ali (RA).

The ban will be imposed under Section 144 and will apply to a one kilometre perimeter around the procession, which will be taken out from the Mubarik Haveli to Karbala Gamay Shah.
The government has warned violators of “strict action”.
The ban will not apply to women riding pillion. DCO Noorul Amin Mengal has visited the Walled City to review security arrangements. Walk through gates and CCTV cameras have been installed along the route.
New security measures have been put in place this year. City police will check houses located along the route.
In the past, residents living along the route were required to submit a clearance certificate to security personnel, undertaking that no suspect lived with them. SP city will also walk with the procession this year.

 

Kalabagh Dam: Objections based on lack of information, says WAPDA

LAHORE:  The Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) on Tuesday termed Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhawa and Balochistan’s objections against the construction of the Kalabagh Dam “baseless”.

The authority told the Lahore High Court (LHC) that the reservations were based on a lack of information. Wapda said that once approved, the dam could be built in six years.
This was stated in a reply submitted by the Water and Power Development Authority in a constitutional petition, seeking directions to the government to build the Kalabagh Dam to overcome the energy crisis.
The authority stated that a 1999 survey had shown that a population of 120,320 had to be relocated of which 78,170 were in the Punjab and 42,150 in the NWFP, now Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). Compensation was be paid to all for their properties in compliance with the Land Acquisition Act.
Provincial assemblies of Sindh, K-P and Balochistan passed unanimous resolutions against the construction of the damn in December 1988, October 1994 and June 1994 respectively.
The power development authority noted in its reply that all the objections raised had been critically examined and were found to be unsubstantiated.
The authority lamented that the federal government had not started an awareness campaign to inform the legislators about the importance of the project.
It described the project as a “gigantic multipurpose engineering project”, the complexities of which some of the legislators could not understand.
They do, however, need to be aware of its primary objectives and socio-economic significance.
Before passing the resolutions in favour of or against the dam were introduced, presentations by experts ought to have been arranged to brief the legislators about necessity of the project and its benefits to each province, stated the reply. The legislators should also be told about the economic loss and the hardships people will face as a result of food, water and electricity shortages if the dam was not built.
Addressing an objection raised by the KP government that the Peshawar valley, including Nowshera, would be flooded if the dam was constructed, the authority said that the backwater effect of the Kalabagh lake would end about 10 miles downstream of Nowshera.
A study had established that recurrence of record flood of August 1929 would not affect water level at Nowshera even after 100 years of sedimentation in reservoir. The studies have been reviewed by a Chinese expert and then by an international panel of experts. Both reviews have supported the studies’ findings, it said.
The fear that sea water intrusion in the Indus Delta would be aggravated by Kalabagh Dam is not substantiated by factual data. Studies indicate that the effect is limited to the lower parts of Delta. Sea water intrusion is unlikely to be aggravated by Kalabagh Dam.
The CJ adjourned the hearing till August 17 and asked the petitioner’s counsel to submit a rejoinder to the authority’s reply.
Advocate Syed Feroze Shah Gillani has filed the petition, saying that Kalabagh dam was essential to the country’s survival.

 

Unfair: GCU students announce hunger strike

 

FAISALABAD: Some students from Government College University Faisalabad (GCUF) announced on Saturday they would set up a hunger strike camp in front of Faisalabad Press Club from Monday (June 18). They are protesting against not being allowed to take examinations for alleged low attendance. Talking to media on Saturday, Muhammad Anwar, one of the students, said that the university administration was about to ruin the future of about 1,500 students.“We attended regular classes but some teachers misplaced their roll call record,” he said. He said that the misplaced roll calls were not the students; fault. He said that 65 per cent attendance was required to take the exam and that none of the students denied entry had less attendance than required. He said, “If the university administration does not consider our requests, we will launch a stronger protest.” A GCUF spokesman said that only students with less than 65 per cent attendance record were being denied entry.

 

Govt College Univ: ‘Save our school’

 

LAHORE: The Old Ravians Union (ORU) has appealed to the Punjab government to refrain from ruining the 148-year-old Government College University (GCU) by destroying the Loggia Gardens and its only girls’ hostel to build a terminal of the Bus Rapid Transit System. The ORU executive committee asked PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Chief Secretary Nasir Mehmood Khosa to save their alma mater from destruction. ORU secretary Advocate Mian Muhammad Cachhar said the GCU should not be ruined for a bus terminal. He said the GCU campus was a historical site and the bus terminal could be shifted to some other site including Nasser Bagh. The union said GCU had only one girl’s hostel where around 300 female students from Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Kashmir and far-flung areas of Punjab were residing. The executive body also said that Old Ravians have much affection for the Loggia Gardens where they had spent the best time of their lives.

 

College admissions: GCU raises number of intermediate seats by 130

 

LAHORE:  For the first time in ten years, Government College University (GCU) has announced an increase in the number of seats in their Intermediate programme, most of them in pre-engineering and pre-medical.

The university will be taking on an additional 130 students on open merit to its intermediate programme, said a notification dated August 6.
“Students securing A+ grades deserve to get a shot at institutions like GCU,” said GCU spokesman Musaddiq Suhrawardy. The new seats will increase the number of intermediate students to 1,155, including merit and reserve seats, he said.
Eighty of the new seats are for pre-engineering and pre-medical students. “There is a greater competition for admission in these disciplines, especially in public educational institutions,” Suhrawardy said.
He said that since gaining university status in 2003, GCU had been receiving around 8,000 applications a year for admission to the intermediate programme. But this year, the university received 12,000 applications, a record.
“This year we observed a drastic change in the application pattern,” said Suhrawardy.
“Owing to the high pass percentage we knew there would be a greater number of good students who would have to be accommodated this year,” he said.
Despite expecting more applications, the GCU had to get extra application forms printed.
According to the results announced by the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) on July 25, the matriculation pass percentage went up from 59 per cent last year to 65.71 per cent this year.
He said that 130 was the maximum number of seats the university’s intermediate programme could have expanded by this year, taking into account the classroom size, scheduling and the load on teachers, he said.
According to the first merit list for GCU announced on August 6, 255 students qualify on merit (at 971 marks) for the pre-engineering programme and 264 (also 971 marks) for the pre-medical programme. The second merit list is to be announced on August 13. The merits lists will be available on the university’s website and will be displayed at three locations on the GCU campus.

 

Doctors not keen on government orders to serve at dengue helpline 

 

LAHORE:  The Health Department has directed public medical colleges and hospitals in the city to appoint eight doctors each to man a new helpline for dengue, but doctors feel they are overqualified for the job.

“Prevention and control of dengue fever requires a multi-pronged strategy and multi-sectoral approach.
The Government of the Punjab, Health Department, in collaboration with the Punjab Information Technology Board, has devised a health-line,” reads a notification issued by the Health Department.
The department directed the principals of autonomous medical institutions and the medical superintendents of public hospitals in Lahore to nominate eight doctors (medical officers or house officers) each to be appointed to work at the TRG Centre in Thokar Niaz Beg. The helpline will be open 24 hours a day.
Doctors criticised the government plan.
Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) Punjab General Secretary Dr Abrar Ashraf Ali said that the helpline would just be giving out information on preventive measures against dengue, which is something that any person could do with a little training.
“You don’t need to appoint doctors to do the work of operators. They can do it very well,” he said.
Senior professors, wishing to remain anonymous, said that a doctor’s job was diagnosis and treatment, which was impossible over the phone anyway.
“If someone tells a doctor over the phone that he’s vomiting blood, what can the doctor can tell him without examining him?” said one professor.
A senior professor at King Edward Medical University said that there was already a shortage of doctors at public hospitals.
“If more doctors are taken out to serve as call operators, it will not improve the situation,” he said.
The medical superintendent of a public hospital said that the Health Department should have consulted doctors before making the announcement. He said that women doctors who worked at the helpline were likely to get harassed. “You cannot appoint lady doctors to work at the helpline. A lot of nonsense calls will pour in and people will misbehave with them which will open another Pandora’s Box,” he said.
A Health Department official rejected the doctors’ criticisms. He said that the helpline’s aim was to raise awareness of preventive measures against dengue and the doctors would get training from experts before being put on calls.
He said doctors had more expertise on the subject and would therefore be better able to help callers.

 

Broad daylight: MNA robbed in front of house

 

LAHORE:  A Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA was robbed of cash and gold jewellery on Monday afternoon, near her house in Faisal Town.

MNA Sumaira Yasir’s husband’s mobile phone was also snatched by two unidentified men.
According to the FIR registered by Yasir Rasheed, the MNA’s husband, the men took away six gold bangles and Rs15,000 in cash from Sumaira Yasir. ML-N MNA (NA-115Narowal-I) and her husband in broad day light in Faisal Town precincts.
Rasheed, two men on a motorcycle intercepted them as they pulled up in front side of their house in E-Block, a little after 1pm. He was on the phone at the time.
One of the men pulled a gun on him and snatched his mobile phone. The couple was warned against raising an alarm. One of the robbers told Yasir to take off her gold bangles and hand them over to him. The same man had then searched through her purse and taken the Rs15,000 the MNA was carrying, following which the robbers fled.

 

Commercial property: City govt to reduce conversion fee

LAHORE:  The city district government is to reduce the commercialisation fees for properties valued at less than Rs10 million in the hopes of raising overall revenue.

The city government previously charged a flat 20 per cent rate for the conversion of a residential property to a commercial property. The fee is to be reduced to five per cent of the value of the property for properties valued at up to Rs1 million and 10 per cent for properties valued at up to Rs10 million.
A city government official said that a notification to this effect had not been received yet but the orders had been issued and the notification was expected soon.
The city government has struggled to meet its revenue targets for commercialisation fees in recent years. In the fiscal year 2011-12, it set a target of Rs800 million (later revised to Rs300 million) and collected just Rs144.4 million. For 2012-13, it has set a target of Rs300 million.
Executive District Officer for Municipal Services Masood Tamanna said that the revenue target would have to be revised.
He said that the city district government was hopeful that the reduction in fee would convince more people to come forward and pay the fee. He hoped it would result in higher revenue in the long term.
In July, city government officials had served notices on residential properties being used for commercial purposes without paying the conversion fees in Ravi Town and Data Gunj Bakhsh Town.
But shortly afterwards, said officials, they were urged by politicians to reduce the conversion rate as it was too high for most people.
They said that 246 FIRs were registered in 2010-11 and 742 FIRs in 2011-12 against people who did not pay conversion fees.
Almost uniformly, their defence was that they could not afford it.
District Officer for Special Planning Umme Laila her office was building a database of all the properties in Lahore that are in the city district government’s jurisdiction. Each property would have a picture too, she said.
She said that they were currently doing a survey which would take a few months. “We will then be able to find all those who are dodging the fees by greasing the palms of operational staff,” she said.

 

Service structure: ‘Diploma holders should get specialist status’ 

LAHORE:  Doctors with qualifications other than a Fellowship of the College of Physicians and Surgeons (FCPS) or a Masters in Philosophy (MPhil) should be promoted to the new rank of specialist medical officer and be posted to the departments they specialise in rather than as general duty doctors, according to the General Cadre Doctors Association (GCDA).

GCDA President Dr Masood Akhtar Sheikh, speaking at a GCDA meeting to discuss changes to the service structure for doctors, said doctors specialising in healthcare administration should be posted as administrative medical officers and be given priority in administrative positions.
The meeting came in the backdrop of the government’s ongoing negotiations for changes to the service structure with the Young Doctors Association (YDA), a body which represents new doctors, whose demands include the promotion of all medical officers to grade 18. The GCDA, which represents mid-career doctors, says this would be unfair to its members, some of whom have spent many years in grade 17.
Dr Sheikh said that the general cadre doctors with qualifications such as a diploma in tuberculosis and chest diseases, diploma in child health or diploma in cardiology should also be promoted to the level of senior registrars.
He said these diplomas were from either the Punjab University, the University of Health Sciences or King Edward Medical University. “If the government is offering these diplomas then it is the responsibility of the government to recognise these doctors as specialists,” he said.
He said that the diploma-holders should be given at least two increments. He said that doctors with these diplomas were once promoted to senior registrar and even associate professors, but now they were not even considered for senior registrar. He said that 50 per cent of senior registrar appointments should be made from among ‘specialist’ doctors in the general cadre.
A doctor who just obtained their MBBS degree requires four years of experience to get the FCPS or MPhil degrees in order to become a specialist. Most diplomas can be obtained in two years.
Dr Sheikh said that general cadre doctors who had FCPS or equivalent degrees should be posted as senior registrars on an urgent basis.
He said general cadre doctors who had worked as senior registrars on a current charge, contract or ad hoc basis should be allowed to count that time as teaching experience.
Many medical officers would then have over five years of experience and would be eligible to become supervisors, he added.
GCDA General Secretary Dr Muhammad Rafiq said that the association had sought input from its members in all 36 districts on changes to the service structure. A GCDA committee would finalise the recommendations and submit them to the Lahore High Court and the Health Department, he said.

 

Youm-i-Ali: Police tighten security strategy for Shia procession 

LAHORE:  Lahore police have decided to tighten their security plan for the Shia procession marking the martyrdom of Hazrat Ali (RA) on Ramazan 21 (August 10).

The procession from the Walled City to Karbala Gamay Shah was the target of a bombing two years ago in which over 50 people were killed and 250 injured.
A source in the police said that this time, City Superintendent of Police (SP) Multan Khan, along with other officials, would walk several feet ahead of the procession as a security measure. As before, Special Branch officials will check the route before the procession.
The procession goes through a dense urban area and one of the major security challenges is to ensure that there is no attack on the procession from houses along the way. The source said that previously, owners of houses along the route had to pledge to the police that no guests or outsiders would be at their property at the time of the procession, nor would they go to the rooftop.
This time, said the source, the police would undertake physical searches of houses they suspected could pose a security risk. They would pay special attention to rented properties and properties where single men lived.
General traffic is not allowed on the route on the day of the procession, but the organisers use couriers on motorbikes to transport food and other essential items to participants in the procession. The police source said that these motorbikes would still be allowed on the procession route, but each one would have to be registered to a specific driver and no one else would be allowed to use that bike for the procession.
The source said that some 7,300 personnel would be deployed to monitor the procession. Sniffer dogs and metal detectors would be used to ensure that the route is clear and people can’t bring weapons.
He said that 75 closed circuit television cameras had been installed at rooftops, squares and roadsides. Around 45 snipers will be stationed at rooftops while 200 plainclothes officials will be in amongst the procession.
A day before the procession, the City SP will meet with Shia security volunteers to brief them and to coordinate their duties with police officials. The Operations DIG has already met with Shia ulema, who have pledged to cooperate with the police, said the source. The police official said that the crime rate usually increases in the last 10 days of Ramazan.
City SP Multan Khan said that the police would search houses along the route if they felt the need, particularly rented properties and houses where single men lived. He declined further comment on the security plan.

 

Killer monsoon: Two kids caught under a falling roof, two swept away by raging waters

ISLAMABAD / RAWALPINDI:  Two children died when the roof of a house collapsed in Rawalpindi on Saturday, while two more are believed to be dead after they were swept away by an overflowing nullah.

Aurangzeb, 2, and Naseema, 7, died under the debris of their single-room mud house in Gulraiz Colony Gate II, said Rescue 1122 officials. When Yahya Gul’s house collapsed, the two children got caught under the falling roof, while their father, mother and two brothers managed to save themselves.
In the second incident, two sisters were swept away by an overflowing nullah in Rawalpindi’s suburbs. Their father, a baker, said Mariam, 8, and Gul, 3, were swept away by water in Jarahi Nullah while they were asleep.
Zahir Shah said the roof of his mud house on the banks of Jarahi Nullah near Adiala Road caved in. “I lost consciousness after seeing the water swallowing my two daughters. My wife alerted the neighbours who started searching for the girls, but the water flow made rescue impossible in the absence of professional rescuers.”
The residents made several calls to Rescue 1122, but rescue workers did not arrive. When contacted, rescue officials said they found it difficult to reach the spot in the evening.
Met office Director General (retd) Arif Mehmood said 80 millimetres of rain was recorded in Rawalpindi, while 70mm of rain was recorded in Islamabad. Rains will continue for the next 24 hours in the twin cities, Murree and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, he said.
Flooded homes
After the downpour, rainwater collected in low-lying areas, causing problems for the residents. The worst situation was witnessed in Dhoke Syedan, where rainwater entered houses in the absence of a proper sewerage system. Muhammad Nadeem said water damaged household items in 10 houses as the residents were sleeping. “Despite repeated calls, Rawalpindi Cantonment Board did nor respond and we had to carry out rescue efforts on our own.”
Water also entered houses in Nadeem Colony, Javaid Colony, Dhoke Khabba and Dhoke Chiragh Din.
The biggest threat during monsoon, Nullah Leh, did not swell up to alarming levels.
Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) Assistant Director Information Umer Farooq said Leh flowed at 10 feet in the city at 5am and over 13 feet at New Katarian, while 15 feet is alarming. By 4pm on Saturday, the water had receded to five feet.
Residents should call the agency’s staff to pump out water in low-lying areas, he added.
He said the water level in Rawal Dam has risen to 1316 feet, while the dead level is 1322 feet.
No respite for slum dwellers
The rain lowered humidity and temperatures in the city to bearable levels but also brought with it troubles for people living in katchi abadis. Water from the rain flooded homes in a number of slums across Islamabad.
“Every monsoon my family is affected due to the rain and a leaky roof,” said Boota Masih, residing in a slum in G-7. “Had the Capital Development Authority (CDA) levelled the paths outside, it would have controlled the rainwater entering our houses and plastic sheets would have covered our roofs,” Boota said.
Maryam Bibi, who lives in a slum in G-8, said,  “For the last 30 years, I have been residing in this colony with my family and every monsoon my whole life is disrupted and it takes months to resettle.”
CDA Spokesperson Ramzan Sajid said they were unaware of the situation. “Maximum relief will be given to residents in registered slums if they are facing a serious emergency,’’ he added.
There are six registered katchi abadis in Islamabad, while over a dozen slums are illegal.

 

Distorted monsoon priorities  

 

The priorities of our decision-makers are odd; indeed, in some cases are almost impossible to understand. Despite suffering the most terrible flood havoc over the past two years, the Government of Sindh has only allocated Rs500 million for disaster management, even though the meteorological office has forecasted a 15 per cent possibility of more monsoon rains, in a province that is still recovering from past disasters. This illogical and potentially dangerous anomaly has been pointed out by the Peoples Accountability Commission on Floods (PACF), which has noted that the most minimal amounts have been allocated for contingency planning and humanitarian relief, despite the National Disaster Management Authority’s (NDMA) warning that nine districts in Sindh — out of a total of 29 in the country — could be prone to rain disaster.
Sindh had been allocated a total development budget of Rs231 billion. The NDMA had recommended that each province spend at least Rs5 billion on disaster management. Sindh’s decision to ignore this advice opens up considerable dangers for its people. The lack of disaster preparedness in the country has been a long-standing problem with various organisations over the past year, since the last floods, pointing out the lack of sufficient readiness to manage disaster in the country. It seems that like the Sindh government, we are far too willing to leave everything to fate, rather than to set things in place in advance so that catastrophe can be averted. The PACF report also notes a failure to repair irrigation systems and banks lining canals, which contributed to the large-scale losses suffered last year. For now, we can only hope this neglect will not lead to still greater ruin in the coming monsoon.
The PACF’s recommendations are sensible. It has suggested a distinct amount be set aside for disaster management. This makes sense in a country like ours, where the forces of nature so often conspire against people. But we also need to convince rulers of the need to do more, to think ahead and to recognise that disaster can strike at any minute. This realisation is still not there, leaving us exposed to more risks against which we must build safeguards.

 

Monsoons: More rain, roads remain flooded 

LAHORE: Many roads remained inundated after light showers brought more rain in the city on Sunday.
The Meteorological Department recorded 11mm of rain at Jail Road and 9.6mm at the airport on Sunday morning. A day earlier, 63mm of rain fell at Jail Road and 79mm at the airport in just two hours, leaving city roads flooded.
The Lahore commissioner and Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) managing director had said that the water would be drained or pumped out within a few hours, but this did not happen. Lakshmi Chowk, Centre Point on Gulberg’s Main Boulevard, Gaddafi Stadium Road, Noon Avenue and parts of Muslim Town and Mustafa Town remained flooded on Sunday. At Brandreth Road, the water crept into shops and houses and damaged furniture.
Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, at a meeting to discuss arrangements for the monsoon rains, slammed officials for failing to make proper arrangements and set up a committee to make recommendations for quicker disposal of rainwater.
He said that if the drainage system had been functioning properly, the rainwater would not have remained standing on the roads for so long after the heavy rains. He said that action would be taken against the officials responsible.
He went on to describe the flooding at Lakshmi Chowk and other areas as a result of criminal negligence on the part of officials. He expressed doubt that the officials concerned had the capacity to do their jobs.
He directed Wasa to improve its performance. He said that all machinery should remain fully operational and all staffers must be present at disposal stations. He directed them to make standby arrangements for the disposal of rainwater. He called for the capacity-building of Wasa staff and a comprehensive system for water disposal. He said efficient water drainage was even more important in Ramazan. He directed traffic authorities to arrange for uninterrupted flow of traffic during the rains.
The chief minister set up a committee consisting of MNA Pervaiz Malik, the housing secretary, the Lahore Development Authority director general, the district coordination officer, the Wasa managing director and others to submit recommendations on rainwater disposal within a day.

 

Covert raid: Detained TTP men reveal terror plans, say police

 

MULTAN:  Police arrested five alleged terrorists from the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in a coordinated covert operation in Khanewal and Dera Ghazi Khan districts.

“The terrorists belonging to TTP’s Noor Gul group were arrested on an intelligence tip-off,” Multan police chief Aamer Zulfikar told reporters. The Noor Gul group has not been heard of previously.
The terrorists were identified as Abdullah, Younus, Aqib, Salman Arf Qadri and Muhammad Tahir. The police also seized hundreds of kilogrammes of ammunition and heavy weaponry.
Investigations revealed that the TTP men were planning major attacks on Shia processions on Ramazan 21 all over Punjab. They also planned to kill the leader of the Millat-e-Jafaria Sajid Naqvi, Multan Tahafuz Azadari Council President Asghar Naqvi, and medical store owners in Kabeerwala tehsil of Khanewal. The militants also planned to kidnap the son of a renowned businessman in Multan.
According to the police, the terrorists also confessed to participating in attacks on a PAF bus in Sargodha and the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team. Training for these attacks was received in North Waziristan. Weapon installations, sketches and maps were recovered from the TTP militants, the police added.
The terrorists arrested in Dera Ghazi Khan district belonged to a rural area, Basti Shalani, which falls in the jurisdiction of Taunsa tehsil. The area is seen as a  hub for TTP terrorists as 15 militants involved in terror attacks in the last three years belonged to this region.
Intelligence agencies and police have arrested the most wanted terrorists from these areas and they had direct links with local Islamic seminaries.

 

Probe into kidnapping of Sharifs’ accountant reactivated

LAHORE:  The Punjab police have reactivated investigations into the abduction of a former accountant of the Sharif brothers according to Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) sources, the move is in retaliation for the federal government taking action against close aides of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif recently.

Earlier, on the direction of the FIA director general, cases were registered against Col (retd) Ehsanur Rehman (former chief of the Special Branch of the Punjab Police), Shahid Mahmood (director Special Branch), Tauqeer Shah (secretary to the chief minister), Talha Burki and two Crime Investigation Department officials.
They were accused of hatching a conspiracy to produce a fabricated intelligence report citing a plot to murder former Lahore High Court chief justice Khawaja Sharif. A judicial commission headed by Balochistan High Court Chief Justice Qazi Faez Esa had previously declared the murder plot concocted.
In retaliation (according to FIA sources), FIA officials were summoned on Friday before the Model Town Investigation Superintendent in Lahore. The summoned officials include Assistant Director Jameel Ahmed Khan, Assistant Director Mir Haroon Rasheed and Sub Inspector Ghulam Murtaza Bajwa.
They were grilled in connection with investigations into the abduction of Muhammad Akram, the Sharif brothers’ former accountant.
Two other FIA officials who had already recorded their statements before the police’s investigation team were also grilled by the investigation officer, sources familiar with the matter stated.

 

Reconciliation?: Zulfiqar Khosa ready for talks with Nawaz

LAHORE:  Disgruntled senior leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Sardar Zulfiqar Khan Khosa has softened his stance and is likely to welcome PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif at his residence, sources.

Sources said the change of heart ironically came after Khosa was snubbed by a committee formed by the party to reconcile with the senior leader.
Khosa recently resigned from all political offices due to differences with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, while his son, Dost Muhammad Khan Khosa, also tendered his resignation on Friday.
However, it turns out that the elder Khosa has been placated and has given up a list of demands which he was to present before Nawaz.
“I am a Sardar and it is my tradition that whosoever comes at my residence; we forget all the differences,” Zulfiqar said, while talking to his companions.
According to party officials, Nawaz is scheduled to address PML-N workers in Lahore today (Sunday) and will most probably visit Khosa’s residence, before or after the event.
‘Anti-Khosa committee’
Sources within the party said that the PML-N has constituted an “anti-Khosa committee,” which, instead of reconciling with the Khosas, gave them a cold shoulder, forcing Zulfiqar to soften his stance.
The committee comprising Senator Pervez Rashid, MNA Khawaja Muhammad Asif and MNA Khawaja Saad Rafique tried to meet the disgruntled leader, but he refused to speak with them.
Sources close to Zulfiqar claimed that when Dost Muhammad was the minister for local government and community development in Punjab, he removed the department’s then secretary, Khawaja Muhammad Naeem, who happened to be a close relative of MNA Asif. They alleged that due to this reason, Asif had a grudge against Zulfiqar and Dost Muhammad.
Meanwhile, MNA Rafique has openly criticised Zulfiqar Khosa, owing to their enmity since in 2004, when the latter was the party president in Punjab and had served a show cause notice and suspended the former for making statements against the party leadership.
According to party officials, Rafique had lashed out at the Sharif brothers for leaving the country, which Zulfiqar did not take lightly.
Senator Pervez Rashid, meanwhile, has blamed Zulfiqar Khosa over the failure of PML-N’s October 28 rally in the Lahore which gave PTI the opportunity to introduce itself as the third major political party of the country.
Meanwhile, sources said that instead of meeting the committee, Zulfiqar has conveyed his message of reconciliation to Nawaz directly, and according to party officials, the two will most likely reach an understanding.
Nawaz said on Saturday that Zulfiqar is an asset of the PML-N and any differences would be removed

 

Punjab delays formation of new provinces’ commission

LAHORE:  While the PML-N government in Punjab has attempted to appease its people by promising the creation of new provinces, it is simultaneously delaying the formation of a commission to complete the task.

The Punjab government is delaying the formation of a commission mandated to decide the formation of new provinces by not responding to a federal government request asking them to nominate two MPAs from the Punjab Assembly for the commission, sources said.
National Assembly Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza sent a letter six days ago to Punjab Assembly Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan, asking him to nominate two MPAs for the commission so that it could fulfill the difficult task of creating the new provinces in Punjab.
According to an official of the Punjab Assembly Secretariat, although they had received the letter, Speaker Rana Iqbal has not taken it up yet.
The speaker, according to the official, has left the decision to the leadership of his party, Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), and added that he would follow the party decision on the matter.
The PML-N has directed Speaker Rana Iqbal to delay a decision on the request for as long as rules allow.
The public relations officer of Rana Iqbal, while confirming the receipt of the letter, said that he had no information when the speaker would consider it.
Sources in the PML-N have said that the party is in talks with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)-led coalition government over the formation of four new provinces instead of two. Unless they reach an agreement at some point, the speaker will not respond to the letter.
Punjab Governor Sardar Latif Khan Khosa said it was an injustice to the people of South Punjab that the Punjab government is delaying the process of the formation of new provinces.
Timeline
On May 31, President Asif Ali Zardari sent a reference to the NA speaker, calling for the constitution of a commission comprising six senators, as many MNAs and two members from the Punjab Assembly to look into issues related to the creation of two new provinces, namely Multan and Bahawalpur in Punjab and to initiate the process of amendments in the Constitution for this purpose.
On May 3, the NA passed a majority resolution to form a new province to be known as Janoobi Punjab to be created from the current Punjab province.
The PML-N, on the same day submitted a resolution in the NA secretariat pertaining to the formation of four new provinces including South Punjab, the restoration of Bahawalpur province, Hazara and Fata.
On May 9, the PA unanimously passed a resolution calling for the formation of a commission to create a new South Punjab province and to restore the status of Bahawalpur province.
On July 11, the NA endorsed the message of President Zardari which he had sent to the speaker of the NA, where he asked to create a commission and authorised the speaker to nominate six members from the house.

 

PML-N in crisis: Fiery Khosas demand talks with Nawaz

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) faces the prospect of losing the support of a long-standing and influential south Punjab family due to internal strife.
Following tendering his resignation from all political offices due to differences with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, senior PML-N leader Senator Sardar Zulfiqar Khan Khosa on Friday refused to meet the party’s senior leadership.
Instead, he said that it was time to hold direct talks with PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, sources privy to the development. The growing rift between Zulfiqar Khosa and Shahbaz was confirmed by his son, former Punjab chief minister Dost Muhammad Khosa, who on Friday also resigned from PML-N’s basic party membership. Addressing a press conference, Dost Muhammad confirmed the differences with Shahbaz and urged that only Nawaz could mediate. However, he admitted that he himself was unapproachable for any reconciliation talks.
In a two page letter written by Zulfiqar to Shahbaz on August 1, he stated that due to irreconcilable differences with the latter, he was tendering his resignation from the slot of senior advisor to the chief minister, from his Senate seat and even from the party’s membership.
But the party leadership had not yet contacted him directly, except making an announcement that it had constituted a committee comprising the party’s senior leadership that would visit his residence to woo him back. Zulfiqar, however was in no mood to entertain them and demanded Nawaz to meet him instead.
The apparent cold shoulder from Nawaz irked Dost Muhammad. According to reliable sources, 22 MPAs, including 10 of the Unification bloc, and the rest of whom mostly belong to South Punjab, urged Dost Muhammad to stand his ground and reiterated their support for the family. The sources claimed that some lawmakers had offered their resignation in support, but were told not to do so by the elder Khosa, urging them to wait for the outcome of his meeting with Nawaz.
Content of the letter
The sources said that the crux of the letter was Zulfiqar describing his 30 years of service for the PML-N and pointed out personalities within it who were involved in maligning his family.
The elder Khosa and his three sons, MNA Sardar Saifuddin Khosa and MPAs Sardar Dost Muhammad and Sardar Hassamuddin Khan Khosa, were under the media spotlight for the past couple of years regarding many scandals – which convinced Zulfiqar that Shahbaz and his group, including Senator Pervez Rashid and MNA Khawaja Saad Rafique, were organising a campaign against them. The sources mentioned that, being a close associate of Nawaz, Zulfiqar Khan Khosa often opposed their decision of holding a public rally in Bhatti Gate, two days before that of rival Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) October 30, 2011, rally in Lahore.
Another aspect of Khosa’s resignation
Sources close to Shahbaz Sharif said that the chief minister had received reports from the party’s special branch about misuse of authority, which Khosa’s sons exercised in their constituencies.
They said that Hassamuddin had recently grabbed a piece of land which had a government school built on it in Dera Ghazi Khan. Dost Muhammad, on the other hand, was already implicated in a murder case of his wife Sapna, not giving back the furniture of his official residence and accused of corruption. Sources added that MNA Saifuddin Khosa was going to join the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) due to his close relationship with PPP MNA Ayatullah Durrani. Saifuddin’s daughter is married to Durrani’s son. They said the move would help PPP win seats in South Punjab, where the Khosa family has its biggest support base.
Accommodating Khosa’s demands
According to the elder Khosa’s aides, he would seek action against those who were maligning his family and tarnishing their name. They also revealed that if Nawaz turned down his conditions, then he would announce his retirement from politics, and would urge his supporters in the PML-N to join PPP along with his son

Twin blasts at Badami Bagh market, 23 injured shifted to hospital

 

LAHORE: At least two explosions were reported from the Badami Bagh, Fruit Market area of Lahore on Wednesday night, with 23 people injured,
Rescue services and police officials have reached the spot and are shifting the injured to Mayo hospital. The condition of two of those is described to be critical.
There are no reports of casualties as yet, and the nature of the explosions also remains unknown, an offical said.
However, IG Punjab said that the blasts were of low intensity with the objective of spreading fear. He added that the blasts were in reaction to killing a militant in Multan earlier in the day.
“We killed a senior Taliban commander in Multan today, so we were expecting such kind of response from the terrorists. Although nobody has claimed this attack, we can’t rule out the retaliation,” police chief Habibur Rehman told AFP.
A source said that one of the bombs had been planted under a push-cart, while the second of the two blasts took place in the parking lot near the main gate to the fruit market.
Fayaz Hussain said that the first blast was a small bomb that went off near a garbage heap which injured two people. The second was relatively larger and blew up 100 yards from the first and injured more people.
He added that police is searching for traces of any further bombs which may have been planted by terrorists.
Security has been raised to high alert in Lahore in the immediate aftermath to reports of the blast. Security checks on all routes leading to and from Lahore have been increased.
FIA directed to assist police investigations
Interior Minister Rehman Malik taking note of the blats in Lahore, directed the FIA to reach the spot and provide all possible assistance to local police to conduct investigations and arrest those responsible for the act.
He also condemned the act, terming them as acts of cowardice

 

Multi-million rupee scam: Ripped-off, Punjab calls ad agency a fraud

ISLAMABAD:  After exhausting other options, the government of Punjab has now approached the Supreme Court, federal and the three other provincial governments for the recovery of millions of rupees allegedly embezzled by an advertising agency, M/S Midas – owned by influential businessman Inam Akbar.

The massive scam, involving a whopping Rs632.59 million in fake invoices, was unearthed during an audit of the accounts of Punjab’s director general public relations in the tenure of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) regime.
The Supreme Court is already hearing a petition filed by two prominent journalists, Hamid Mir and Absar Alam, for the formation of accountability commission for journalists, TV anchors, advertising agencies, and media houses. The Punjab government has been made a party in the petition, which has been taken up by a two-member bench of the apex court.
The information and culture department, government of Punjab, wrote a letter on July 31 to the offices of the federal auditor general and accountant general seeking their help in recovering the outstanding amount from the advertising agency owned by influential businessman Inam Akbar. A copy of this letter has been sent to registrar Supreme Court and the registrars of all four high courts as well as the accountants-general of all provinces.
According to the provincial information department, it has been involved in business with Midas from 1996 to 2007-08. During this period, M/S Midas (Pvt) Ltd managed to get fraudulent and bogus payments worth hundreds of millions of rupees from the Punjab government on the basis of fake invoices and in collusion with some public functionaries.
“Special audit of the accounts of DGPR, Punjab for the period of 2006-08 has pointed out glaring misappropriation and irregularities in the accounts of DGPR, Punjab, and total recovery recommended by the audit team for Auditor General of Pakistan to be effected from M/s Midas (Pvt.) Ltd. is Rs632.59 million,” read the letter.
This amount also includes an amount of Rs208.65 million pertaining to the Punjab development funds’ advertisements. The anti-corruption establishment of Punjab is already conducting criminal proceedings against M/S Midas.
While M/S Midas has been blacklisted by Punjab, the provincial government has complained that the agency not only continues to do business with the federal and the three other provincial administrations with impunity, but the owner of Midas, Inam Akbar, is also running operations under the name of other advertising agencies.
The information department said it has exhausted all options to settle the issue with M/S Midas, and those documents have also been sent to the relevant authorities along with this petition. It urged all federal and provincial institutions who are clients of the agency for advertisement and media campaigns to renounce business with the agency and deduct the outstanding funds of the Punjab government which is actually public money.

 

Covert understanding: Nawab drops demand for Bahawalpur province

 

LAHORE:  At the centre of the Pakistan Peoples Party’s battle for a separate South Punjab province lies another dilemma – dealing with the demand for the restoration of the Bahawalpur province.

While Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has constantly supported the demand for such a province, the PPP has finally struck a deal which removes this obstacle from the picture altogether; with none other than the Nawab of Bahawalpur himself, Salahuddin Abbasi.
The deal follows an offer from the PML-N which left the Nawab unimpressed. Sources close to Abbasi and privy to the development the deal was struck between him and President Asif Ali Zardari, and will be formally announced soon. Officially, the meeting between the two is said to have merely discussed “social, political and economic issues”.
Deal’s key points
Abbasi will gain three major benefits if he merges his newly launched political party, Bahawalpur National Awami Party, with the PPP and backs out from the movement for the restoration of Bahawalpur province.
First and foremost, the Nawab will be made the first governor of the newly created South Punjab province. According to sources, this was a key factor in Abbasi agreeing to the creation of only one province.
Secondly, President Zardari will issue PPP tickets for all the National Assembly, provincial assembly and senate seats from the Bahawalpur region on the basis of Abbasi’s recommendations.
Thirdly, the Nawab would benefit from his title in the form of red passports for family members, protocols inside and outside the country, and an annual honorarium. The title of Nawab would also carry on to his son.
Earlier, during the 2008 general elections, Abbasi had supported two PML-N candidates, one PPP candidate, one independent and one Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) candidate for five seats in the Bahawalpur region.
PML-N’s earlier offer
In February this year, according to sources, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif offered Abbasi only two out of five NA seats in Bahawalpur, one Senate seat, and a free hand to raise his voice for a Bahawalpur province – which pales in comparison to the president’s offer.
Either way, the deal never came to fruition after some of Abbasi’s close aides, who have strong affiliations with the PPP, convinced the Nawab to deal with President Zardari instead. Abbasi also had second thoughts about dealing with the PML-N after the party backed out from awarding a Senate seat to Abbasi’s nominee in Senate elections this March.
PML-N’s version
PML-N’s Central Information Secretary Mushahidullah Khan said he did not know anything about the meeting between the president and Abbasi. PML-N MNA from Bahawalpur Baleeghul Rehman, however, said that whether the nawab met with the president or with Sharif, one point on the agenda would definitely be the restoration of Bahawalpur province. Rehman added that PML-N’s stance on the issue was ‘crystal-clear’.
Nawab Abbasi’s spokesperson Rifatur Rehman Rehmani denied the deal and maintained the official stance, that President Zardari and the nawab only discussed procedures for the restoration of Bahawalpur province. He said Abbasi had not compromised on a separate Bahawalpur province, nor had he discussed the South Punjab province issue. The spokesperson said that Bahawalpur state, comprising three districts (Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar and Rahim Yar Khan) would be restored before the upcoming general elections.
President Zardari had earlier this year sent a reference to the National Assembly speaker to constitute a commission which would carve out two new provinces, South Punjab and Bahawalpur. So far, the speaker has not constituted the commission.

 

Busted: Three held, 6kg of heroin seized

RAWALPINDI:  Three men including two law enforcement officials were arrested at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport (BBIA) on Saturday for trying to smuggle 6kg of heroin onto a Dubai-bound plane.

One suspect, Amir Yaqoob, is a member of the Airport Security Force (ASF), while the second suspect, his brother Urooj Yaqoob, is a constable in the Punjab police.
An Anti Narcotics Force official said Urooj delivered a 6kg bag of heroin to his brother Amir through the Gammon gate of the BBIA.
The bag was to be delivered to a passenger named Shah Khalid, who was booked for Dubai on the 3:30am flight.
Khalid was also arrested when he got to the airport.
The two brothers are from Mandi Bahauddin, while Khalid hails from Nowshehra in K-P.

 

Crime: Man held, heroin seized 

  

ISLAMABAD: The Sabzi Mandi police on Saturday apprehended an Afghan national and seized 350 grams of heroin from his possession. The police nabbed Iftikhar during routine patrolling on IJP Road. A case has been registered against him under anti-narcotics law and further investigation is underway.

 

ANF seizes heroin from Cavalry Ground area of Lahore

 

LAHORE: The Punjab Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) raided a house in the Cavalry Ground area of Lahore and seized heroin worth a million rupees on Thursday,
The ANF also arrested four suspects and registered a case against them. Investigations are being carried out to find more suspects involved in the smuggling of heroin.
Initial investigations revealed that the heroin seized from Cavalry Ground came from different places and was being smuggled to Britain from Lahore.
In June, UN officials had said that Pakistan provides a vital transit route for smuggling of drugs worth $30 billion cultivated in Afghanistan, and added that the drug cultivation can resurface in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan if the ANF is not strict in its surveillance.

 

City government working on a new master plan for Lahore

LAHORE:  The government is not satisfied with the Lahore Master Plan 2021 and has started working on a new master plan, APP reported on Tuesday.

According to the news agency, DCO Noorul Amin Mengal stated this during a meeting with a delegation of housing society owners and developers.
Mengal said a new master plan was being worked on because not enough green land had been allocated in housing societies. He sought suggestions from the developers for the new plan.
The DCO told the meeting that 12 housing societies in Nishtar Town have been established on agricultural land. He said that no schemes will be issued an NOC unless the developer submitted an undertaking to abide by all rules of the City District Government Lahore.
Khawaja Saad Rafique said it was “regrettable” that neither the government nor developers were following the master plan 2021. He warned developers against violating the plan.”No one will be allowed to build new slums in the name of low-cost housing societies,” Rafique said. He pointed out that there had been several cases where developers had “disappeared” without providing basic utilities and the government had to provide the civic amenities.
The developers complained about the district government’s ban on the purchase of land for housing societies and high fees being charged from the developers.
The DCO told the developers that the government had not banned purchase of land.
Commissioner Jawad Rafique Malik ordered that the fee being charged be reviewed and, if possible, be reduced.

 

419 booked in Faisalabad over electricity protests

 

FAISALABAD:  Around 419 people have been booked by the Faisalabad police on charges of violent protests against load shedding, which involved besieging a Faisalabad electric supply corporation grid station, damaging public property and attacking the police.

Tandlianwala and its peripheral localities witnessed a 24-hour power outage which resulted in residents staging a protest against FESCO/Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) on Sunday.
Protesters also erected blockades at Okara-Faisalabad Road near Nehro Bangla Bridge and burned old tyres. The result was a massive traffic jam which caused lengthy delays and difficulties for all commuters.
Protesters besieged the Fesco grid station, hurled stones and chanted slogans against the power outage which virtually paralysed their normal activities.
A heavy police contingent headed by area DSP Khalid Mehmood Afzal rushed to the area and used force to disperse the demonstrators.
The police resorted to baton charge and tear gas shelling when the mob refused to leave the site, saying they were waiting for electricity to be restored. Following the baton charge, the mob became violent and it began pelting the police with stones and upturned a police van.
Meanwhile, Phalarwan, a town about 50km from Sargodha also witnessed protests similar in nature to the ones in Faisalabad, which resulted in the suspension of commercial activities and destruction of public property.
The incident turned ugly when protesters stormed towards the area police station to lodge a protest against the arrests made of people at demonstrations. The police, in retaliation, charged the mob with batons and used tear gas shelling to disperse the unruly crowd.

 

Targeting Punjab: TTP chief wants increase in attacks

 LAHORE: Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Hakimullah Mehsud has allegedly decided to increase terrorist attacks in Punjab, with emphasis to inflict maximum damage, especially in Lahore. In a covert meeting held at Asad Khel village in North Waziristan, Mehsud allocated Rs25 million to carry out attacks on PAF base Lahore, the Inter-Services Intelligence, Military Intelligence, Intelligence Bureau and the Counter Terrorism Department office in the province, learnt. An intelligence report said that the meeting was attended by prominent Taliban commanders, including Qari Yasin alias Qari Aslam group, a group mentioned in the Red Book as a high-profile terrorist outfit. Another intelligence report revealed that the TTP is planning attacks similar to the one on PNS Mehran base. The attackers have allegedly already carried out reconnaissance of the PAF base, with some local employees also collaborating with terrorists, while weapons and ammunition will be provided by concealing them using cargo companies.

 

Terrorism: Two children injured in grenade attack

 

PESHAWAR:  Two children were injured when unknown assailants hurled a hand grenade at a police barrier in Hayatabad on Tuesday evening.

SHO Fazal-e-Wahid said that Hayatabad Industrial Estate’s Barrier No 3, which is jointly manned by private security guards and police personnel, came under attack.
“They spotted a white corolla coming towards the barrier… when police tried to stop the vehicle, a grenade was hurled at them from the car,” he said, adding that it  exploded nearby, injuring two children in the vicinity. The vehicle managed to escape after the attack.
“We have sealed the  entire Hayatabad locality and are searching for the car,” he informed.

Police foil terrorism attempt in Multan 

 

MULTAN: Police on Wednesday foiled a terrorism attempt in Multan by killing a terrorist when he tried to attack the security officials with a hand grenade.
According to initial reports, the attacker Abdul Ghaffar belonged to Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab (Qari Matiullah group) and was travelling in a bus when he was stopped by the police near a barrier.
Police, acting on a tip-off, had set up a special barrier near Ghazi Ghat bridge. The attacker threw a hand grenade at the police and was killed when they fired back in retaliation.
It was earlier reported that Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Hakimullah Mehsud has allegedly decided to increase terrorist attacks in Punjab, with emphasis to inflict maximum damage, especially in Lahore.
In a covert meeting held at Asad Khel village in North Waziristan, Mehsud allocated Rs25 million to carry out attacks on PAF base Lahore, the Inter-Services Intelligence, Military Intelligence, Intelligence Bureau and the Counter Terrorism Department office in the province.

 

Threat to heritage: Office in Dyal Singh mansion catches fire 

LAHORE:  An office at the Dyal Singh Mansion caught fire on Sunday. The fire was blamed on a short circuit.

The mansion is a colonial-era building protected under the Antiquity Act 1975 and one of the 169 buildings in the city declared protected sites under the Punjab Special Premises Ordinance 1985.
Fire at the office of shoe company, Service Sales Corporation Private Limited, reduced furniture to ash. However, the fire did not spread to adjacent shops.
A Fire Brigade official said they had received a call at 1:28pm and dispatched two vehicles from Town Hall right away. Eventually eight fire engines participated in the operation to extinguish the fire, he said.
Muhummad Murtaza, a Rescue 1122 spokesman, said they had also dispatched some vehicles. He said that furniture, a photo copy machine and computers were destroyed. “The operation to put down the fire continued for more than two hours,” he said.
“A shops next to the office stocks arms and ammunition however, the fire was stopped before it spread that far,” he said. He said explosions small blasts occurred when the fire got to compressors of air conditioners. He said the fire was caused by short circuiting. He said the office was rented by Muhammad Riaz.
The fire fighters had left by 5pm but the fire began to blaze again at around 8:30pm.
Murtaza said three vehicles were sent to extinguish the after blaze after call came. “Some smoldering furniture went up in flames again but we put it out,” he said. He said the façade of the building was undamaged but officials would assess the roof later.
The two-storey building which stands 30 foot high was built by Sir Dyal Singh in the early 1930s. It is located adjacent to the Sir Ganga Ram Trust Building on The Mall. The property is now managed by the Evacuee Trust Property Board which has rented out parts of it to commercial as well as residential tenants.
Earlier Shezan restaurant also housed in the building had caught fire on February 14, 2006, during protests around the Danish cartoon controversy. The ETPB had revoked the restaurant’s tenancy after that incident.
This is the second historic building on the Mall in three months to have been affected by a fire after the Ghulam Rasool Building housing Ferozesons bookshop (on March 30).

 

 Fire kills four Sehri transmission guests: Police

LAHORE: Four television guests were killed reciting prayers during a live Ramadan broadcast in Pakistan on Monday, when fire gutted a studio in Lahore, police said.
An electricity short circuit sparked an inferno at the Koh-e-Noor channel building at 3:46 am as Sehri transmission was being aired.
“At least four local guests, who were participating in a religious programme, were killed and nine others wounded in the fire,” local police official Omar Farooq told AFP.
Transmission was cut when the fire began.
Around 45 people, including crew and channel staff, had been in the studio but most managed to escape through emergency exits, police said.
“Our initial investigation reveals an electricity short-circuit as the chief cause of the fire but we are still investigating,” Farooq said.
TV channel official Kamran Sarfaraz and a local rescue official confirmed the incident.

Ramazan loadshedding: Power shortage should be shared by all, says LHC

LAHORE:  Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial of the Lahore High Court remarked on Monday that the loadshedding schedule should not discriminate against any province and issued notice to the Ministry of Water and Power and electricity distribution companies for August 7.

The chief justice was hearing a civil miscellaneous application for the court to direct the federal government to ensure that there are no power cuts at sehri, iftar and taraveeh during this Ramazan. Justice Bandial said that electricity should be distributed equitably among the provinces. He also said that no area should be exempted from loadshedding.
Earlier, petitioner’s counsel Muhammad Azhar Siddique argued that the Punjab was being discriminated against as it was bearing the brunt of the power shortage. He said electricity theft and non-payment of bills was much higher in other provinces than in Punjab. He said this failure to collect payment in other provinces was affecting electricity production. He said that Public Accounts Committee Chairman Nadeem Afzal Chan had threatened to resign over the “discriminatory loadshedding” in the Punjab.
The chief justice said that the electricity shortage should be shared by the entire country and then adjourned the hearing.
In the civil miscellaneous application, Siddique stated that the federal government, through the water and power minister, had pledged that there would be no power cuts during sehr, iftar and prayer times in Ramazan. But the government had failed to keep its promise. He said that citizens of the Punjab faced lengthy power cuts at all times of the day.
He accused the federal government of defrauding the citizens of the Punjab, because while they were paying their bills on time, the Water and Power Development Authority and its sister companies were not paying their bills to independent power producers or to the companies providing them furnace oil.
The petitioner argued that the federal government was violating citizens’ fundamental rights as envisaged in the Constitution under Articles 9, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 19-A, 23, 24 and 25.
He asked the court to issue a stay order against loadshedding, and to order authorities to present loadshedding schedules in court, particularly for housing societies that allegedly did not get any power cuts.

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