Current Final

Category: Lifestyle

  • Israel paying YouTube to put false news in children’s videos

    Israel paying YouTube to put false news in children’s videos

    As the genocide of Palestine’s continues to go on, Israel is now paying streaming platforms to put out misinformation on children’s content. Journalist Ahmed Eldin shared a clip on his Instagram account of a children’s animated video on YouTube. Before the video starts, a message pops up on screen giving parents misinformation about the conflict.

    “Israel has dropped 6,000 bombs on Gaza, killing more than 500 innocent children. And they paying to brainwash kids and parents into believing they are somehow justified in this war crime,” writes Ahmed. “International law is clear, a war crime doesn’t justify another war crime.”

    The news of Hamas beheading 40 babies was debunked by several international journalists and the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) itself.

    Read more: Did Hamas actually decapitate Israeli children and women? No, they did not

  • Contracts khatam, naukri jaari; 66 KP officials working despite end of tenure

    Contracts khatam, naukri jaari; 66 KP officials working despite end of tenure

    A total of 66 officers of higher rank in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Authority are still serving and being promoted even though their contracts have ended this October, media reports have confirmed.

    These posts include Regional Culture and Tourism Officer, Manager, Additional Directors and Superintendents. As suggested by official documents, the officers of Tourism Corporation were hired for a period of three years in the Tourism Authority although many of them do not have the required educational qualification for the post of Grade 18 and 19.

    Appallingly, 4 of the office bearers are being given charge of three posts each. Moreover, a person serving as a computer operator in Tourism Corporation has been promoted as a Superintendent only in a matter of three years in the Tourism Authority. The superintendent is also given charge of the offices of Assistant Director HR and Admin.

    The degrees of more than 15 officers are still unverified.

    In response to this forgery, DG KPK Culture and Tourism Authority Barkatullah has called for an urgent meeting to sort out the matter of contract and unverified documents of these officers. Even the Secretary Tourism Department has taken notice of this. However, he mentioned that the merger of permanent officers in the Authority is done via the Tourism Act.

  • Junaid Safdar and wife Ayesha part ways amicably

    Junaid Safdar and wife Ayesha part ways amicably

    Junaid Safdar, the son of the vice president of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML- N) Maryam Nawaz and grandson of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has confirmed reports of his divorce with Ayesha.

    Taking to Instagram, Junaid Safdar requested the media to respect the couple’s privacy as it is their private matter, and wished his wife well.

    “News about my divorce is true. This is an entirely private matter and I request the media to respect our privacy. I hope with this decision we find our peace In Sha Allah. I will speak no further on this matter. I wish her well.”

    Junaid and Ayesha tied the knot in 2021 in a lavish ceremony held in the UK and Pakistan. Nawaz Sharif was present at the London event. The couple have kept away from the media since their marriage.

    Junaid has removed pictures of him and his wife from his Instagram account.

  • PTV World accused of airing unauthorized footage by YouTuber

    PTV World accused of airing unauthorized footage by YouTuber

    Content Creator and YoutTuber Muzammil Hussain has accused PTV World of copyright infringement, claiming that the state television used his tourism footage which was originally uploaded on his Youtube channel ‘MHtoori’ and is three minutes and fifteen seconds long. “PTV World aired the video footage on 30th September around 2 pm,” he said.

    In a legal notice, he alleges that the video was created from various clips posted on his Facebook page in March 2019.

    As per the Copyright Ordinance, 1962 (Ordinance No. lOCKIV of 1962), the sole ownership and copyright over his Facebook page, Twitter, and YouTube channels. All licenses and intellectual property rights are attributed to him, in accordance with Sections 56 and 57A of the Copyright Ordinance. He is demanding compensation of Rs200 million for the unauthorized creation and broadcast of the video, in line with the Copyright Ordinance, 1962.

    The notice provides a 70-day window for PTV World to respond.

  • Opium manufacturing plant opens after a hiatus of 11 years in Lahore

    Established in Lahore in 1942, the Government Opium Alkaloid Factory has resumed operations from today (Thursday) as per media reports.

    The plant is now overseen by the Punjab Excise and Narcotics Control Department. Members of this high-level committee include Punjab Excise Additional Director-General Mian Ahmad Saeed with Excise Director Rizwan Akram Sherwani, Muhammad Asif and Deputy Director Hafiz Zia Mustafa.

    The facility was shut down because of irregularities reported in the distribution of opium tablets to patients and lapses in enforcement.

    It is expected that the revival of the unit will bring major benefits to the economy, potentially saving $400 to $500 million in foreign exchange.

    Additionally, this reactivation may bring about the legal transmission of opium powder to licensed pharmaceutical companies and nationwide herbal centres so that they stop relying on less effective alternatives. Indigenous use may also include its provision to addicts under a registered doctor’s prescription.

  • Tomb presumed to be from era of Jesus excavated in Naples

    Tomb presumed to be from era of Jesus excavated in Naples

    A sealed tomb, presumed to be more than two thousand years old, has been discovered in the municipality of Giugliano in Campania, near Naples, Italy.

    Large murals known as frescos, found by the Italian Ministry of Culture, had creatures from Greek mythology including Cerberus-the hound called the God of the underworld. The tomb has been named the ‘Tomb of Cerberus’.

    It is believed that the tomb, discovered in a remarkable state of preservation, belonged to a wealthy person considering the grandeur of frescos and the tomb.

    In a statement released by the superintendent of archeology, fine arts and landscape, it is said that, “The territory of Giugliano, after years of oblivion, is finally returning significant vestiges of its glorious past, to be preserved and protected, thanks to a common effort.”

    The discovery of the tomb has opened doors to peek into the lives of ancient Romans and the art and culture they once cherished.

  • 40% children in Pakistan suffer from malnutrition

    40% children in Pakistan suffer from malnutrition

    A recent report by the World Bank has revealed that 40 per cent of children in Pakistan are suffering from food insecurity, adding that most children under the age of five do not have access to clean water and do not have toilet facilities.

    The report also highlights the significance of the first 1000 days after birth that are very important for the mental health of the child because 80 per cent of the child’s mind is formed during this period.

    45 per cent of the Pakistani children who die under five years of age are due to lack of food.

    Additionally, while many children are raised with livestock animals, those who are malnutritioned consume dirt containing livestock waste.

    The World Bank report also reveals that about 50 per cent of the drinking water of Sindh contains bacteria while mothers working with livestock feed their children without washing their hands due to lack of hygiene.

    The World Bank said that comprehensive data on child malnutrition in Pakistan needs to be collected, and programs on child nutrition need to start on an urgent basis.

  • Karachi’s Mangroves, vital for the city, are depleting, Senate Committee told

    Karachi’s Mangroves, vital for the city, are depleting, Senate Committee told

    In the wake of an incident of deforestation being reported in the Mangrove forest of Manora, Karachi, the Senate Standing Committee on Climate Change headed by Senator Seeme Ezdi paid a visit to the WWF-P Wetland Centre at Hawke’s Bay. The delegation included Senator Muhammad Humayun Mohmand, Senator Khalida Ateeb, Senator Abida Muhammad Azeem, and Senator Keshubai.

    Committee members were briefed by WWF-P Director Hammad Naqi Khan and Chief Conservator of Forests Riaz Ahmed Wagan on the efforts made for rehabilitation and conservation of the mangrove forests along the coastline.

    Mangroves are the biggest source of preventing climate vulnerability of Pakistan in form of tsunami, cyclones and storms.

    The committee was told that the forest cover in the Indus Delta that was reduced to less than 86,000 hectares in 2005 has now increased to over 2,40,000 hectares in 2023.

    On the other hand, the mangroves around Karachi have reduced from 2,000 hectares in 2010 to 18,00 hectares today, with housing and commercial enterprises encroaching on the land.

    However, the aim is to increase the area to 5,00,000 hectares in coming years.

    Senior Manager Conservation WWF Sindh Altaf Sheikh delineated the committee about different programmes in Pakistan which include ongoing work on 18 different landscapes from mountains to mangroves. The Indus Delta being the fifth largest arid ecosystem hosts the seventh largest mangrove forest in the world contributing 98 percent of shrimp catch and more than 77 percent of marine fish.

    Major challenges include sea intrusion and soil erosion amplified by deforestation resulting in the severe loss of biodiversity too.

    The senators also highlighted the importance of mangroves by talking about the financial and environmental significance. A single hector can earn thousands of dollars and carbon credits which are more crucial and is already standing on a steady number of $40 million.

  • Karachi’s Regent Plaza to be purchased by SIUT for Rs14.5 billion

    Karachi’s Regent Plaza to be purchased by SIUT for Rs14.5 billion

    Karachi’s iconic landmark, the Regent Plaza hotel on Shahrah-e-Faisal, owned by Pakistan Hotels Developers Limited (PHDL) might be changing ownership.

    On October 9, Pakistan Stock Exchange received an offer letter of Rs14.5bn (almost $52 million) by the prestigious Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) which aims to convert the 47,00 square feet built structure into a tertiary healthcare facility within a period of an year. The letter was then delivered to PHDL on October 10. In response to it, a meeting of the Board of Directors was called urgently for October 12.

    To put things in context, renowned financial wizard Shabbar Zaidi expressed, “Karachi badly needs another tertiary-care health facility and constructing a large health facility by acquiring land would take years. In these circumstances, it is the best option to acquire a built structure in the heart of the city and convert it into a health facility.”

    The noble cause of SIUT was founded by Dr. Syed Adibul Hassan Rizvi nearly four decades ago with an eight-bed ward in the Burns Unit of Karachi Civil Hospital. It has expedited its projects from organ transplant surgeries to areas of research in urology and nephrology. The hospital has been run through charity funds and provides financial and medical support to patients.

    Deliberation between the two parties has been going on since the mid of September but was not announced formally earlier. It is because in the first nine months of 2022-23, PHDL reported a net profit of Rs45.5 million, i.e. a 38.3 per cent decrease from the previous year. The occupancy rate of this 400 room space has dropped from 20 per cent for the year 2021-22 to 9 per cent in the previous year. The downward spiral can be credited to Covid-19 but has put the owners in a position to think otherwise of the property.

  • Inclusion of Afghans in fake family tree revealed in NADRA

    Inclusion of Afghans in fake family tree revealed in NADRA

    National Database Registration Authority (NADRA) Chairman Lieutenant General Munir Afsarhas has revealed that the organisation’s own employees have been involved in the issuance of fake Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs).

    As reported by The News, the chairman brought the matter to light on Wednesday during an address to the Senate Committee as other related concerns were raised regarding fake CNICs, citizens’ family data in the black market, and issuance of multiple SIMS on a single CNIC and its use in illegal activities.

    He highlighted Afghans had been included in fake family trees and that officials kept tampering with fake documents, without fingerprint or photo records due to which actions were taken against the officials.

    Chairman NADRA, however, said that NADRA has established a transparent and firm system to prevent fake identity cards.

    He stated that NADRA had already taken action against the employees who resorted to illicit activities. While 84 officials have been suspended up until now, others have escaped “punishment due to the absence of a law dealing with the Privacy of Data Law”

    Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi, mover of the bill, brought the attention to The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2023, highlighting that the false accusations and “malicious criminal prosecution” is a grave concern.

    Through this Amendment bill, the period of punishment for the aforementioned offences is to be increased.

    And while the matter concerns provinces, the secretary of interior told the committee that a letter had been sent which is yet to be responded to.