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Category: Lifestyle

  • Chilgoza heist proves that pine nuts are Pakistan’s Bitcoin

    Chilgoza heist proves that pine nuts are Pakistan’s Bitcoin

    If you have seen memes regarding chilghozaas (pine nuts) recently, it shouldn’t surprise you. Pine nuts cost a whopping Rs 8,000 per kg now. Can you imagine that?!

    No wonder then that in South Waziristan, a gang of robbers stole 23 sacks of pine nuts worth over Rs 12 million.

    According to news reports, a group of robbers sneaked into a warehouse in Wana and held workers and security guards hostage at gunpoint.

    Now that’s what you can a ‘Chilghoza Heist!’

    Meanwhile, Twitter is having a field day with the news.

    https://twitter.com/arbab_idrees/status/1192519063756562434?s=21
  • Fawad Chaudhry offers to help India handle smog

    Fawad Chaudhry offers to help India handle smog

    Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry has offered to help India combat the smog problem engulfing both countries.

    Taking to Twitter, the minister suggested using a scientific solution to handle the smog.

    Fawad in his tweet said that the burning of crops in the Indian city of Jalandhar was causing chaos on both sides of the border adding to the toxicity in the air making it difficult to breathe in.

    He then offered a machine-based solution to turn the crop residue into a source of energy rather than burning it.

    A thick layer of smog has descended again on Punjab, especially hitting Lahore.

    According to the Air Visual, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Lahore is hazardous. The toxic smog in Lahore also forced the government and private schools to remain closed on Thursday.

    Meanwhile, experts in India argue that current levels of air pollution represent a public health emergency requiring full emergency mode response from local and national authorities.

  • Lahore restaurant management thrashes family for asking Sales Tax Number

    Lahore restaurant management thrashes family for asking Sales Tax Number

    A restaurant, located in Lahore, thrashed a man and his family when they asked the restaurant management for the Sales Tax Number (STN) number. 

    According to reports, a family’s dinner at Bashir Dar ul Mahi, Hussain Chowk, turned into a nightmare when they asked the restaurant’s management for the STN number to confirm if they pay their taxes. Not only did the restaurant manager deny the request, but he also turned to humiliate the family by beating up a male member while harassing the rest of the family.

    The management reportedly admitted to not paying taxes which is why they couldn’t entertain the request of the family. They allegedly further added that law enforcement agencies cannot bring them accountable.

    The victim family has demanded immediate action against the restaurant management.

    Meanwhile, it is pertinent to mention here that a branch of Bashir Dar ul Mahi in Mozang was previously sealed by the Punjab Food Authority for having ‘a record-breaking level of unhygienic conditions’.

  • Tips to beat the toxic smog this winter

    Tips to beat the toxic smog this winter

    The thick blanket of smog is engulfing major cities and other areas. During the bad smoggy days, visibility drops to a few hundred meters, the sun looks like a dull blurry blob, lungs struggle for air while eyes itch and burn. Here are a few tips to deal with those bad days.

    Limit your time spent outdoors

     It’s bad enough that pollution badly affects people’s lungs, it’s even worse that it discourages the outdoor activities. Try to limit your time spent outdoors. Exercise indoor, enjoy food deliveries at home and play indoor games. Enjoy Home Sweet Home!

    Choose the right mask

    It might be difficult to find the right mask but avoid surgical masks as they don’t provide proper respiratory protection. Give masks to your whole household, especially those working outside. You can either buy or order online a better quality mask. Go for the one that filters the maximum amount of finer particles of dust and pollution. 

    Buy an air purifier

    Air purifiers filter out harmful particles, kill germs and removes volatile organic compounds that can harm the lungs, liver or kidneys. They aren’t cheap but worth it in the long run. Smart air canon purifier, Beurer LR 200 and Hextio air purifier are good options to buy an air purifier.

    Read more: Air purifiers that are effective and available

    Go green

    Make your home a little greener. Bring home some natural air purifiers like aloe vera, and spider plant that can suck all the pollutants. The plants will not only help with the air quality but will also help as a mood refresher.

    Spider Plant
  • BBC’s list of 100 novels that shaped our world include books by Mohsin Hamid, Kamila Shamsie

    BBC’s list of 100 novels that shaped our world include books by Mohsin Hamid, Kamila Shamsie

    Pakistani authors Mohsin Hamid and Kamila Shamsie have made it to BBC’s 100 novels that shaped our world list. The list features renowned authors from across the world making it a great honour for both the authors to be featured on the list.

    BBC, as part of their year-long celebration of literature, shared a list of ‘100 novels that shaped our world,’ which have been written over the last 300 years.

    An expert panel consisting of six leading British writers, curators and critics were part of the compilation that featured books that have made a large cultural and personal impact on a global scale.

    The list features work ranging from classics to contemporary writers from around the world and has been organised into themes which are: Identity, Love, Sex and Romance, Adventure, Life, Death and Other Worlds, Politics, Power and Protest, Class and Society, Coming of Age, Family and Friendship, Crime and Conflict and Rule Breakers.

    While Kamila’s Home Fire was listed in the ‘Politics, Power & Protest’ category, Hamid’s novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist was part of the ‘Crime & Conflict’ category.

    BBC’s list ranges from classics to contemporary, with works like Jane Austin’s Pride & Prejudice and JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series making it in their own genres.

  • PIA launches a mobile app for booking flights

    PIA launches a mobile app for booking flights

    Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has introduced a mobile application to facilitate passengers in online bookings and confirmation of seats.

    The PIA app features a user-friendly interface. It allows the user to perform several functions, including booking their flight directly from their mobile phones, checking their booking status, and monitoring the status of their flight.

    “The application has recently been launched and now the air passengers will enjoy improved services. The airline’s overall seat factor has improved and reached nearly 84 percent while on some sectors, the seat factor is at 90 percent,” a PIA spokesman told state-run wire service.

    As per reports, significant improvement was obvious in different pointers like seat occupancy ratio, aircraft utilization, cargo load factor and customer service.

    The mobile app even generates a digital boarding pass for an easier check-in experience.

  • School children file petition in Lahore High Court against toxic smog

    School children file petition in Lahore High Court against toxic smog

    School children from Lahore have lodged an appeal in the Lahore High Court (LHC) against the hazardous level of smog and air pollution in the Punjab province.

    Leila Alam and her class fellows through their appeal aim to draw the acting Chief Justice Mamoon Rashid Sheikh’s attention towards the worsening air quality in Lahore and its surrounding areas.

    The children’s lawyer, Rafay Alam, told the court that the Environment Protection Department, Punjab, measured the air quality index (AQI) of 182 as safe to breathe when by international standards the index should not cross 50.

    Last week, the city’s air quality index crossed safe limits and was recorded at well over 400. The city also has continued to be engulfed by a toxic blanket of smog since October.

    Health experts say that children and the elderly are most vulnerable to toxic air. The LHC has directed the Punjab government to submit its reply in the next hearing.

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  • Four-day workweek increases productivity by 40%, reveals Microsoft experiment

    One of the world’s leading technology company Microsoft tested out a four-day workweek in its Japan offices and discovered that employees were not only happier – but significantly more productive.

    According to The Guardian, Microsoft experimented with a new project called Work-Life Choice Challenge Summer 2019 in the month of August. Under the program, the company’s entire 2,300-person workforce were given five Fridays off in a row without decreasing pay.

    The shortened weeks led to more efficient meetings, happier workers and boosted productivity by a whopping 40%.

    In addition to the increased productivity, employees took 25% less time off during the trial and electricity use was down 23% in the office. Employees printed 59% fewer pages of paper during the trial. The vast majority of employees – 92% – said they liked the shorter week as it led to a better work-life balance.

    Read more: ‘Burn-out’ is real, WHO recognises it as a medical condition

    This is not the first time long weekends have been experimented with in the corporate world. Previously in 2018, a New Zealand trust management company also trialled a four-day workweek over two months for its 240 staff members. Employees reported experiencing better work-life balance and improved focus in the office while staff stress levels decreased by 7%.

    Meanwhile, an experiment published by the Harvard Business Review shows that shorter workdays, a decrease from the average 8-hour workday to a 6-hour workday, increased productivity.