If there is one person Pakistanis unanimously and wholeheartedly love, it’s Jemima Khan, former wife of Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Amid the coronavirus crisis which has shaken the entire world, Jemima sent “love and salaams” to Pakistan in a Twitter message.
Wondering how my Pakistani Twitter friends are doing during the lockdown there? I’m mindful that however hard this is for so many people here in the UK, conditions are so much harder for you in Pakistan. Sending love and salaams 🇵🇰
Thank you Mam for your kind words, situation here in Pakistan way better so far than all the globe under leadership of @ImranKhanPTI and whole nation praying for UK and whole world to get rid of this deadly virus.
With more than one million cases of coronavirus across the world, which is currently under lockdown, the situation appears to be dire. The UK is one of the worst-hit countries with 38,168 cases and 3,605 deaths. British PM Boris Johson and Prince Charles were also tested positive for the virus.
Meanwhile Pakistan has reported 2708 cases and 40 deaths.
Palestinian baker Eyad Abu Rezqa cooked up an idea and created a ‘Corona Cake’ which is spreading fast in Gaza.
The head of the Al-Nada bakery in Khan Yunis in southern Gaza has made a ‘corona cake’ showing a woman wearing a blue face mask, aiming to remind people of the importance of social distancing.
As per reports, he first shared the design on social media and now a lot of people are ordering them each day in the impoverished Palestinian enclave.
“Straight away it got great interest, customers starting saying ‘I want that cake’,” Abu Rezqa told AFP.
“Every day our clients’ demand for the mask cake is increasing.”
He stressed he was not depreciating the risk of the deadly disease which has killed more than 50,000 people but trying to keep spirits up while promoting awareness.
The staff making the cakes are wearing protective clothing, Abu Rezqa pointed out.
According to health authorities in the Hamas-run strip., Gaza has 12 confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far and all of them are in isolation.
Like much of the world, authorities have urged to practice social distancing to try to prevent the spread but have not yet closed non-essential businesses.
With Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan offering amnesty for the construction sector, netizens are expressing their “disappointment” at what they say is the premier “flip-flopping on his ideals to hold the corrupt accountable”.
PM Imran on Friday gave the status of industry to the construction sector, as he announced opening of the sector along with a package of incentives to boost it with a view to keeping the wheels of economy moving and mitigate the impact of the lockdown on people.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting of the National Command Centre, the PM said the government provided these exemptions to provide employment to the labourers so that they can be saved from “hunger and the coming difficult circumstances”.
In line with the relief package, the government will not ask construction entities about their source of income for this year as well as approval of a fixed tax regime for the sector.
The PM said: “This [move] will bring down the amount of tax to be paid. Also, if the investment is for the Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme, we will exempt 90% of the tax on it.”
He announced an Rs30bn subsidy for the Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme, saying that on the one hand, it will regulate economic activity and on the other, ensure houses for the poor were also built.
He also said that withholding tax on materials and services had been abolished in the informal sector. “Tax will be collected only on steel and cement, mainly because these are the formal sectors.”
Here’s what Twitterati have to say in this regard:
PM Imran Khan says govt will not ask any questions to those who will invest in the construction sector (dirty money, money laundering welcome) a few days after getting Geo/Jang Editor-in-Chief Mir Shakil-ur-Rehman arrested through NAB in a 40 years old fake case. Naya Pakistan!
What a U-turn! PM unveils amnesty scheme for construction sector https://t.co/UnzWYSOZmq PTI has limited scope of its 2 amnesty in 10 months to only wealthy this time. immunity from declaring income source will b available only to big guns.this isn’t extended to building own home
“The Pakistani Taliban has suffered from American and Pakistani security operations in recent years, but its cells are still active in Pakistan’s cities and are still capable of carrying out attacks,” he told Al Jazeera in his first interview since escaping from Pakistani military custody in January.
The groups are active in the eastern provinces of Afghanistan, near the border with Pakistan, said Ehsanullah Ehsan.
He further added, “We cannot say that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Jamaat-ur-Ahrar or other anti-Pakistan [armed] groups are completely finished. They definitely have a set-up and perhaps they have gone silent as part of a plan. They are present in Pakistani cities and they have the ability to carry out attacks.”
The interview was conducted from an undisclosed location through voice notes exchanged over an internet-based messaging service.
As per the report, Pakistan’s military is provided with a detailed list of the allegations made by Ehsan in this interview, but they offered no comment. The Pakistani interior ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Renowned actor and activist Nadia Jamil has been diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer. Jamil took to social media to share the news with her fans and followers. The actor said that she felt a wave of emotions when she found out, adding that she is now four days into her treatment. Nadia also urged all her followers to conduct regular self-checks and act fast if they feel any abnormalities.
Its stage 1 breast cancer/grade 3 tumour.Regular self checks are important ladies!Please act fast if you feel any abnormalities. Do NOT ever ignore your body,your health. I now await my surgery date & am feeling positive & loved. Please dont worry & take good care of yourselves❤️
When a follower asked her about the symptoms she felt, Nadia said that she conducted regular checkup and visited a GP as soon as she felt a lump.
As I shared dear Putar Ji,I do regular checkups as all ladies should after a certain age.When I felt a lump I immediately went 2 my GP who referred me 2 a hospital. Scans,tests,biopsy later I was diagnosed 🙂
Please encourage all ladies over the age of 40 in your family 2 check https://t.co/iHAdX7jvpa
However, Nadia said that cancer has not taken her smile away and that she is focused on remaining positive.
Cancer hasnt taken my smile away. All I need 2do is think of you,watch a tree in all its beautiful rooted strength,let the wind say hello or stare at clouds floating by. A solid bowl of chanay ki daal w rice & a cuppa adrak qava helps🤗 Gratitude helps,your love helps,dua helps❤️ pic.twitter.com/ZyddBXsTqd
Id like u 2 meet a few of the great teachers who taught me positivity.
Children.
Fatima died frm Cancer.But I remember her smile whn we met last. Bisma suffers emotional,physical pain everyday,bt love makes her smile! Look at their smiles Afsheen never stops smiling MashaAllah pic.twitter.com/qC7KPXljrP
Pakistan’s Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based monthly inflation slowed to 10.24 per cent in March 2020 as compared to the previous month, Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported.
This is the second month in a row that the CPI reading has eased by more than 2 per cent. The bureau had recorded CPI inflation at 12.4 per cent in February. Inflation at 10.2 per cent is the lowest reading in the past seven months.
According to PBS data, commodity prices remained largely unchanged and markets functioned normally in March despite partial lockdown of the country to control the spread of coronavirus.
In addition to fuel charges, the prices of food items, including pulses, fresh vegetables and wheat, which have been the main drivers of inflation, also saw a significant downtrend, the bureau said.
However, it added, the real impact of slash in demand or short supply of commodities due to the shutdown of the market is yet to come.
“The government’s move to keep the trade of groceries unaffected may support the fall of inflation even in the coming months.”
The average inflation in the first nine months (July-March) of fiscal year 2020 stood at 11.53 per cent, which in the same period of the last year was 6.3 per cent.
As per the data, the rate of inflation during the month under review slowed down both in urban and rural areas. Food inflation in urban areas that stood at 15.2 per cent in the preceding month eased to 13 per cent in March. Similarly, in rural areas, the food inflation pace slowed down from 19.7 per cent in February to 15.5 per cent last month.
However, Twitter users were not pleased with his ‘half-baked’ apology.
Apologies *IF* I hurt you. Bro you used a known racial slur and don’t even have the decency to acknowledge that it’s a big deal. Makes sense you opened for Ali Zafar, birds of a feather
Shamoon later released a new song, which possibly was a way to hit back at all the haters. Because the opening line of the song is: “Mein label te nae jaanda, Teri cable te nae aanda, Teray table te nae khaanda, Ey sab mera apna.”
Chief executive officer (CEO) of the Mayo Hospital and Corona Experts Advisory Group (CEAG) co-chairperson, Professor Dr Asad Aslam, has said that 18 patients of the new coronavirus — COVID-19 — were successfully treated with anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and antibiotic azithromycin during the past five days.
According to reports, Dr Aslam on Thursday said that eight patients at Mayo Hospital, four at Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) and five at other hospitals of the province were administered the drugs during the past five days.
“The patients were administered two tablets of hydroxychloroquine in the morning and two in the evening on the first day whereas, on the remaining four days, they were given one tablet in the morning and one in the evening. Simultaneously, they were given one tablet of azithromycin in the morning and one in the evening for five days.”
He, however, urged people to avoid self-medication and said these medicines should only be used upon a doctor’s prescription because they could have serious side-effects, including hepatotoxicity (drug-induced liver damage), bone marrow suppression and risk of sudden death, especially when used with azithromycin and many other medications that can affect heart rhythm.
Meanwhile, the Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Society of Pakistan (MMIDSP) strongly advised against the inappropriate use and hoarding of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine.
According to Dawn, they said there was a lack of undisputed scientific evidence and the risk of adverse events. “Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine should only be used as a therapeutic or prophylactic agent for COVID-19, under the supervision of an expert,” read a press release.
It further said that the anti-malaria drugs were also used to treat immune system disorders.
“Both these drugs have a new and emerging role in treatment of COVID-19 pneumonia (off-label) and a presumed role in prevention against the infection.”
Experts associated with MMIDSP include infectious diseases physicians, clinical microbiologists and nurses who are trained in infection prevention and control.
A man who was exposed to the coronavirus hid that he was feeling ill so he could visit his wife in the maternity unit of an upstate New York hospital and be with her when she delivers their child.
According to NBC, the matter only came to light after his wife also began to show symptoms.
The hospital staff said that the man was questioned by the staff at the hospital before entering and he assured them that he was in good health and had not been exposed to the coronavirus. However, shortly after giving birth, the woman began to show symptoms.
“That’s when the significant other admitted his potential exposure and that he was feeling symptomatic,” said a hospital official, adding that they cannot share whether the mother, father or newborn child were infected with the coronavirus because of privacy laws. The mother has since returned home.
Meanwhile, a nurse who assisted the family was also tested for the virus and the results came back negative.
Many hospitals in New York are banning most visitors to help control the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
A hospital official said that before they would only ask visitors before allowing them inside, “but now we’re adding the temperature check.”
“Those with symptoms will be asked to leave the hospital. These screening measures will be completed twice daily throughout the hospitalization,” the hospital said, adding that the guest will not be allowed to leave the patient’s room without the patient.
Everyone’s lockdown story is not the same. While some of us are lucky enough to be spending this time at home with our family, for others such as daily wage labourers it is a matter of life and death because they are unable to feed their families.
We can help them in this difficult time by providing them with food and other essentials. The Current has listed a few organisations that are collecting and distributing ration bags.
Rizq
Rizq, a social organisation set up by LUMS alumni, Huzaifa Ahmed, Musa Aamir and Qasim Javaid, has initiated a national movement called Ehsaas Karo. Through this movement, Rizq aims to mobilise resources from individuals, corporates, companies, philanthropists and foundations to fulfil the hunger needs of those most affected by this crisis. For Phase 1 of the campaign, the organisation is targeting to support 10,000 affected families by providing them monthly food supplies.
The volunteer-based group, made up of students and young professionals gets surplus food from restaurants to the less fortunate people at orphanages, old-age homes and public hospitals.
Number: 021-38693111, 03008861164
Email: pakistan@robinhoodarmy.com
Ideas 9
Ideas 9 is an organization led by some professionals to promote peace, social justice, interfaith harmony, against terrorism and injustice. In this time, they are contributing to society by distributing rations bags.
You can donate directly to the government and your donations can be used by the state to manufacture protective equipment for the doctors and essentials for hospitals or to provide a cash stipend to the most vulnerable.
