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  • Hero aise zaleel nahi hotay: Kamran Akmal

    Hero aise zaleel nahi hotay: Kamran Akmal

    Head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq on Thursday announced Pakistan’s squad for the upcoming T20Is against Bangladesh. While Babar Azam has been appointed captain, the experienced middle-order duo of Muhammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik have also returned to the team.

    Meanwhile, none of the Akmal brothers were part of the squad and Kamran took to social media to express his hurt and disappointment.

    Kamran, who recently turned 38, last played an international game in 2017 but has been in impressive form lately and is the all-time scorer in the Pakistan Super League.

    When sports journalist Shoaib Jatt commented that the batsman is a hero, Akmal replied, “Hero aise zaleel nahi hotey.”

    Kamran also replied to other Twitter users and shared that though he doesn’t quite understand what the selectors want, he won’t give up and will continue to give his best.

    Kamran also congratulated his colleagues Muhammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik on their selection.

    The full squad includes Babar Azam, Ahsan Ali, Ammad Butt, Haris Rauf, Ifthikar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Musa Khan, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, Shoaib Malik, Usman Qadir

    Meanwhile, in an interview with The Current in September 2019, Akmal had said that he felt that he was “invisible to the selectors”.

    When asked why he wasn’t selected for the team, Akmal had replied, “I think I was invisible to the selectors. They were unable to see my performance. That’s all I’d say. The selectors and board can tell you better.”

    Akmal had also shared his everyday fitness routine.

    “I undergo physical training for an hour or two every day in the ground with my brothers Umar and Adnan. Then we take rest for an hour or so and later come here
 to the club.”

    Kamran also chose Misbah over Shahid Afridi.

    “Both are good,” he had said. “But how Misbah led the team for five or six years as the captain; took the team to the top. His and the team’s performance in Test matches was outstanding.”

    Watch the full interview here:

  • Iconic Maggi noodles are no more

    Iconic Maggi noodles are no more

    The iconic Maggi noodles that introduced the concept of convenience food to many in Pakistan, have been shut down in the country, Profit has reported.

    According to reports, NestlĂ© — the company that owns the brand and manufactures the product — has confirmed that they will no longer be marketing the instant noodles with which at least two generations of Pakistanis grew up.

    “Yes, we discontinued Maggi by the end of 2018. The divestment is part of Nestlé’s strategy to manage its multi-product portfolio,” the report quoted an official as saying on the condition of anonymity.

    NestlĂ© Pakistan has made no public announcements about the matter, and Maggi noodles remain listed as a product on the company’s website. However, the product is conspicuously absent from the 2018 annual financial statements of the company. There was no explicit mention of a discontinuation; it was just listed as a product offering on the 2017 report, and not listed on the 2018 report.

    When it was first launched in Pakistan in 1992, Maggi was the only brand of noodles in the country and had a complete monopoly for the first year of its production. And while Unilever quickly launched its Knorr brand of instant noodles in 1993, Maggi was the market leader and, for the most part, remained so for the next two decades.

    Over the past four years, however, Maggi went from being the market leader in its category to being almost completely wiped out from the country. Sources inside the company confirmed to Profit that the current stock of Maggi in stores is all that is left. Once it is gone, there will be no more.

    Among other reasons behind Maggi’s death are the food safety scare in India from a few years ago – one that turned out to be a false alarm – and losing market share to Knorr even before that scare. Unilever, it seems was much better at localisation than Nestle was, the report said, adding that as a result, Unilever’s product was able to continue gaining market share from Nestle, and was therefore well-positioned to become the market leader by the time Maggi met its demise.

  • Kashif Abbasi’s program banned because of Faisal Vawda’s boot

    Kashif Abbasi’s program banned because of Faisal Vawda’s boot

    ARY News’ prime time anchor Kashif Abbasi has been banned from hosting his program and appearing on any other channel for 60 days by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA).

    The PEMRA notice was sent to the anchor, the channel and posted on Twitter, saying that the program in which PTI’s Faisal Vawda brought a military boot and put it on the table to ridicule the PML-N and PPP, was an “attempt to debase a state institution”.

    PEMRA ORDER PAGE ONE

    PEMRA said that Vawda’s actions were “derogatory” and “extremely frivolous” and he “performed a very unethical act” when starting his argument on the program.

    PEMRA added that Kashif was “quite unprofessional who actually did not intervene or stopped that unethical act,” and claimed that Kashif, “kept smiling/cherishing such occurence.”

    PEMRA ORDER PAGE TWO

    READ MORE: ‘#PTIDisrespectsArmy‘: Military unhappy with Vawda over shoe stunt?

    The ban comes after an uproar on social media and television after Faisal Vawda brought the boot to the program. The Current did a poll on it’s Instagram account and this is what more than 430 people voted on:

    The Current Poll

    Haven’t seen the video yet?

    WATCH THE VIDEO HERE: Faisal Vawda puts military boot on the table in a talk show

    Haven’t seen The Current Life’s interview with Kashif Abbasi, which was done five minutes before he went live (And in which Faisal Vawda was also a guest)? Watch it here:

  • Saba Qamar has signed her next film

    Saba Qamar has signed her next film

    Looks like Saba Qamar will be returning to the big screen with a double bang in 2020 because after wrapping up the shoot of Sarmad Khoosat’s Kamli, the actor has signed her next film.

    While details on the project are still under wraps and there is little information available, Galaxy Lollywood has reported that Saba has indeed signed a new film which is “a complete mass entertainer with lots of commercial elements in it”. Saba also shared a sneak peak on her social media.

    The film is being produced by Jamil Baig and Hassan Zia under the banners of JB Films & Mastermind Films. Mohsin Ali has penned the script while Saqib Khan will be directing it.

    The actor is extremely excited about her new project which will be in stark contrast to her other 2020 release Kamli.

    It was previously reported that Bilal Ashraf was being roped in for the male lead but there has been no confirmation as yet. No other male lead has been announced.

    A release date has also not yet been announced.

  • VIDEO: Faisal Vawda puts military boot on the table in a talk show

    VIDEO: Faisal Vawda puts military boot on the table in a talk show

    Federal Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda on Tuesday suddenly pulled out a military boot on ARY News‘ talk show ‘Off the Record’ hosted by Kashif Abbasi. Vawda then put the boot on the table and said that these parties have honoured the ‘boot’ (Aap ne Boot ko izzat di hai).

    He further said that he will now bring this boot to every talk show. Vawda then went on to talk about the Sharifs and how they have licked boots to save themselves.

    The other two guests, PML-N’s Javed Abbasi and PPP’s Qamar Zaman Kaira, took umbrage and walked out of the talk show.

    Watch video:

  • Indian army officer slips in snow near border, reaches Pakistan

    Indian army officer slips in snow near border, reaches Pakistan

    Indian Army Havildar Rajendra Singh Negi’s allegedly slipped in the snow at Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir during duty and reached Pakistan.

    As per reports, on January 8, Negi’s wife Rajeshwari got a phone call from his unit informing her Negi was missing. It was later found that he had slipped in the snow and crossed the India-Pakistan border in Kashmir. The family has demanded the government for his safe and early return from Pakistan to his homeland.

    According to Indian Army sources, the search and rescue operation of Negi was ongoing and all attempts were being made to bring him back safely from Pakistan.

    Negi, a resident of Ambiwala Sainik Colony in Dehradun, had joined the 11 Garhwal Rifles regiment in 2002. He had arrived in Dehradun in October for a month’s vacation and was posted to the snowy area of Gulmarg in November.

  • VIDEO: PM’s lawyer nephew makes headlines for ‘violence’, again

    VIDEO: PM’s lawyer nephew makes headlines for ‘violence’, again

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s nephew, Barrister Hassaan Khan Niazi, who is also nominated in the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) attack case, has once again made headlines for allegedly harassing a driver on Lahore’s Zafar Ali Road.

    According to media reports, Niazi on Friday was entering a private club located in the Jail Road area of the provincial capital when his car collided with another one. It was a minor accident, but Niazi lost his cool, headed over to the other vehicle, pulled out its key from ignition and started hitting the car, reports said.

    “He also abused the other driver and threatened him,” a private media outlet reported.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    A viral video of the incident

    Taking exception to the reports, Niazi took to Twitter and wrote:

    https://twitter.com/HniaziISF/status/1215601835953786881

    In a subsequent tweet, he said:

    “My car was hit. I got punched. I called the security. I filed the complaint. And media bashing me even after issue has been resolved. First they played news then decided to take my version,” Niazi tweeted.

  • Monal starts paying rent to army

    Monal starts paying rent to army

    Amid silence of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) over Pakistan Army’s land ownership claim at Margalla Hills, Monal has started paying a monthly rent to Remount Veterinary & Farms Directorate (RV&F) General Headquarters (GHQ) Rawalpindi.

    According to The Nation, the leaseholder of Monal Restaurant has paid Rs484,008 as arrears of rental payment for September, Rs1,300,000 as rental of November, and Rs910,000 as rental of December 2019 to the RV&F GHQ.

    The building in which the restaurant is operating was constructed by the CDA and leased to Luqman Ali Afzal in 2006. It is now an iconic eatery of the federal capital.

    The city managers, while establishing this amenity by expending huge amount from public exchequer, never thought that the subject land does not belong to CDA as it was enjoying its sole ownership and absolute possession since 1961.

    However, tables turned around in 2016, when the army came forward with the claim that the said land was once allotted to Military Farms Rawalpindi in 1910 by then government of Punjab for the production of hay for army animals.

    To settle the over a century-old claim of the ownership of 8,603 acres military land in the area, a meeting was held on November 8, 2016, under the chair of then defence minister.

    According to GHQ’s letters, it was decided in the said meeting to revert back the subject land to the owner, RV&F, after a joint survey by the ministry and CDA.

    Later, a survey was conducted on the request of the RV&F directorate to demarcate the military grass land at Margalla Hills, following which the demarcation was started in February 2017 and completed in May 2017. In it, a total of 8655.62 acres of land was demarcated as military grass land.

    In the light of said demarcation, the RV&F directorate conveyed the leaseholder of Monal that his building came inside 8655.62 acres land and he was asked to provide lease documents in addition to the payment of arrears and monthly rents to RV&F directorate instead of CDA.

    MONAL BUILT ON ARMY’S LAND:

    In November, a CDA official had told a parliamentary committee that the capital’s famous Monal Restaurant was built on military land and the army wanted it back.

    According to Dawn, Dr Shahid Mahmood had told the National Assembly Standing Committee on Climate Change that 15 years ago, the CDA “did not know it was building the restaurant on military grasslands until the army started claiming it”.

    The committee was told that the 22,000 acres of land — that are now a part of the Margalla Hills National Park — were actually owned by the Punjab government.

    Around 5,500 acres of the said land was allocated to the army, he said, although the exact year the allocation was made, was not stated. The CDA now owns 16,500 acres.

    The latest survey conducted by the authority revealed that the land allotted to the army is right in the centre of the national park, and Monal has been built on it.

    Monal Restaurant was built in 2005 and was a CDA property. The operation of the restaurant was leased for a 10 year period, Dr Mahmood told the committee, adding that the space was now being vacated and handed over to the army.

  • VIDEO: Haris Rauf adabs as he scores a hat trick

    VIDEO: Haris Rauf adabs as he scores a hat trick

    Haris Rauf on Wednesday became the first Pakistani to bag a hat-trick in the Big Bash League (BBL) while playing against Sydney Thunder.

    The pacer who was playing for Melbourne Stars celebrated his hat trick with an adab on field.

    Watch video at 0:40 seconds for the adab.

    The fast bowler grabbed the wickets of Daniel Sams, Matthew Gilkes and Callum Ferguson and finished with figures of 3/23 with one if his deliveries clocking in at a staggering 151.3km/hr. He was also declared the player of the match.

    He currently stands among the highest wicket-takers in the league.

    Previously, the fast bowler was heavily criticised for his cut-throat style celebration. Rauf later apologised for it and adopted a more ‘viewer-friendly’ celebration style in his recent match.

    A discovery of the Pakistan Super League team Lahore Qalandars, Rauf has made waves ever since he came on field.

  • Naya Pakistan: ‘Gas shortage to double’

    Naya Pakistan: ‘Gas shortage to double’

    With a projected shortfall of 477 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) and amid lack of new explorations, the shortage of gas is likely to be doubled next year, Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) has been informed.

    According to Profit, a meeting of the CCoE, chaired by Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, was informed on Wednesday that the demand of gas had risen by 5 per cent per annum during the past seven years.

    The heavy gas shortfall recorded last month (December 2019) was nearly 270 mmcfd.

    “One of the major reasons for this upsurge was the consumption of gas in the winter season by the domestic sector, which prefers to use heavily-subsidised gas as compared to other energy sources,” officials of the Ministry of Energy informed the CCoE.

    The committee was further told that work on adding 70 mmcfd gas in the Sui Southern Gas Company’s system and taking LNG supplies for Sui Northern Gas Pipeline up to 1,300 mmcfd had already started but its implementation was hampered by issues pertaining to the grant of ‘Right of Ways’ from the Sindh government, which had granted only one RoW so far while two more were still awaited since last summer.

    “With these measures, nearly 70 mmcfd gas is likely to be added to SSGC by the end of January.”

    According to the energy ministry, in view of 2020-21 projections showing a shortfall of 477 mmcfd, the government has decided to build additional terminals; five new private terminals were awarded in Nov 2019, while process for a dedicated pipeline of 1.2BCFD+, required to carry imported LNG from these terminals to north, would also begin soon.

    The CCoE noted that there was a need to work on contingency plans for 2020-21 to overcome the gas shortage. It stressed using energy produced through gas and electricity as a whole to provide more options to energy consumers and to bring efficiency in the system.

    Earlier, the Ministry of Energy briefed the CCoE on the current demand-supply situation of gas/RLNG, natural gas allocation and management, average gas supplies, winter load management, indigenous gas production, supplies and consumption in different regions, and LNG requirement by the SNGPL/SSGC.

    The CCoE asked the ministry to brief in the next meeting the current situation in the power sector so that the problems in both gas and power sectors could be properly analyzed and contextualized uniformly and a realistic and more efficient solution to bridge the demand and supply gap could be chalked out.