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  • Sindh government allots 52,000 acres for corporate farming, Geo reports

    Sindh government allots 52,000 acres for corporate farming, Geo reports

    The interim Sindh government has alloted 52,000 acres of state land for corporate cultural farming, disclose official documents.

    As per a report filed by Geo’s Benazir Shah and Rasheed Memon, the caretaker government of Sindh gave ultimate approval last week to allot 52,713 acres of state land for the project, out of which 28,000 acres will be rendered in Khairpur, 10,000 in Mithi, 9,305 in Dadu, 3,408 in Sujawal, 1,000 acres in Thatta, and 1,000 in Badin.

    The land is being allotted under the authority of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). SIFC is a top military body that was established in June this year to attract foreign investment in the country.

    According to state documents seen by Geo.tv, earlier this year, the chief secretary of Sindh issued a directive to the provincial Land Utilisation Department and the Board of Revenue to explain the availability of land in the province.

    The documents even recommend that the land be leased out to the Pakistani army, insisting that the latter had “well-trained manpower” for the job.

    The minutes of a cabinet meeting in Sindh on December 1st imply that the interim government in Sindh is considering leasing state-owned land to a private company affiliated with the Pakistan military.

    The agenda read: “…approval of a joint venture agreement for the corporate agro-farming initiative in Sindh between the Land Utilization Department and Green Corporate Initiative Pvt Ltd”.

  • Newsflash Pakistanis, Hania Amir and Badshah can be friends without dating

    Newsflash Pakistanis, Hania Amir and Badshah can be friends without dating

    Hania Amir is going viral on the internet for a very, very weird reason. The actress shared pictures of her trip to Dubai where she went around with Indian rapper Badshah, including dining together in a restaurant. Indian media outlets quickly assumed the two were dating. Because lo and behold, if you’re seen sitting next to a man, you have to be romantically linked with him.

    We have to question our media: why in this day and age are y’all still resorting to such sexist thinking? Can Hania actually spend time with a male friend without dating him? Men and women can remain friends, and its clear from their past interaction that the two respect each other.

    Rather than trying to fuel rumors to get more traffic on your websites, can we instead celebrate that despite political and cricket rivalries, here are two public figures from Pakistan and India who keep uplifting each other publicly?

    Also, Hania Amir doesn’t need to be linked to another man in order to be recognised publicly. Her projects have gotten immense praise, and she continues to remain booked and busy, so stop trying to assume she has to be dating someone just to get some attention. Insinuating such a thing is deeply demoralising, and proves how women can never be recognised for their achievements alone.

    We’re not going to be paying any heed to careless rumours, but instead we’ll be celebrating the wholesome friendship between Hania and Badshah. In January, Badshah gushed about the ‘Mere Humsafar’ actress by calling her an instant mood lifter during an Instagram live.

    READ MORE: Cross-border affection between Bollywood singer Badshah and Pakistani actress Hania Amir is too wholesome to ignore

    “Yes I follow her she’s a very funny person. My mood uplifts every time I see her posts, and I think its also just her personality. I think she’s a very bright human being,” responded the rapper.

  • Manzoor Pashteen to be exiled from Balochistan to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa following arrest

    Manzoor Pashteen to be exiled from Balochistan to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa following arrest

    Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) chief Manzoor Pashteen was arrested by the police in Chaman, Balochistan on Monday. Consequently, the Interior Ministry has decided to shift him to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. With this, Pashteen has been banned from Balochistan, Caretaker Information Minister Balochistan Jan Achakzai has said.


    Pashteen was arrested yesterday from Chaman when he was going to speak to a massive sit-in, protesting against the alleged murder of a Baloch student at the hands of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), in Turbat.

    The Deputy Commissioner of Chaman has claimed that Pashteen was arrested after armed men from his vehicle allegedly opened fire at a police vehicle. PTM leaders have accused law enforcement officers of initiating the gunfire, saying that Pashteen emerged unharmed from the shooting incident. In a video released by PTM on Youtube, member central committee Haji Abdul Samad Khan can be seen relating the incident where people inside their vehicle were also injured, including a woman.


    Jan Achakzai stated that Pashteen had addressed the Chaman sit-in without the approval of the administration, referring to PTM as “an anti-state organisation”, reports Express Tribune.

    He also stated that an FIR had been lodged against Pashteen by police in Chaman, noting that four people were injured as the PTM chief’s guards opened fire on them.

    Renowned Journalist Azaz Syed criticised the arrest as a move against the freedom of speech.


    Fellow PTM leader Ali Wazir reasserted his determination to the cause they stand for in face of the oppression of the state.


    Salma Khan, member of the PTM, called out the state for using disruptive tactics to create chaos.

    v


    Anchor and Journalist Sanna Ejaz condemned the attack and arrest.

  • NOC issued to Haris Rauf, Usama Mir and Zaman Khan for Big Bash League

    NOC issued to Haris Rauf, Usama Mir and Zaman Khan for Big Bash League

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued NOC (No Objection Certificate) to fast bowlers Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan and spinner Usama Mir to play in the Big Bash League in Australia.

    PCB has issued the NOCs keeping in mind the workload of the players and the future tour program of the Pakistan men’s team. The Board feels that this decision is in the best interest of all stakeholders, with a balance between game time and workload management being of utmost importance.

    Haris Rauf and Usama Mir have been issued NOCs for five matches, while Zaman Khan’s NOC is valid for four matches. All these matches will be played between December 7 and December 28.

  • Kiran Ashfaque shuts down troll who tried to shame her for second marriage

    Kiran Ashfaque shuts down troll who tried to shame her for second marriage

    Actress and social media influencer Kiran Ashfaque made headlines yesterday when pictures of her marriage to PPP official Hamza Asim Chaudhary went viral on social media. Previously, Kiran was married to actor Imran Ashraf and divorced him after four years of marriage.

    The actress was not here for the cynics shaming her for finding love for the second time. Kiran responded to a troll who accused her of marrying soon after getting divorced:

    “You mean I should have kept residing at my parents and remained depressed about my life while my parents were worried about me?”

    Kiran’s marriage to Hamza was held in his residence in Lahore which was attended by family and friends. The actress had shared pictures from the event on her social media.

    The actress had previously done a Q and A on her Instagram where she revealed her previous marriage broke up because of how much her ex urged her to change herself.

    READ MORE: Kiran Ashfaque talks about her divorce with Imran Ashraf in a Q&A session on Instagram

    Responds to a fan asking why they divorced because the couple had looked happy, Kiran had responded: “Not all that glitters is gold.”

    Another answer got praises where Kiran urged her followers to never change themselves for another man, and to remain proud of how bold they are.

    We’re still shocked that to this day, women are facing more scrutiny for choosing to break off unhappy marriages. Why should Kiran have to keep justifying her choices, and have to fight off the label of ‘Imran Ashraf’s ex-wife’? It’s gross and absolutely not acceptable, and we send our sincerest regards to Kiran for living rent free in the minds of haters while doing whatever she loves.

  • ARY News ordered to issue apology to Asma Shirazi

    ARY News ordered to issue apology to Asma Shirazi

    The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has directed ARY News to apologise and pay Rs50,000 in damages to senior journalist Asma Shirazi for misreporting against her.

    Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani of the IHC issued a verdict on Shirazi’s appeal against the December 21, 2022, verdict of the Pakistan Media Regulatory Authority’s (Pemra) Council of Complaints.

    “The court is of the view that editorial side and the airing committee of the licensee/respondent No.3 [the TV channel] is not vigilant enough that picture of the appellant was wrongly placed along with the news content, when she has nothing to do with that particular news item on aired by respondent No.3 […],” the verdict stated.

    “The facts were deliberately concocted to make the viewers’ believe that the appellant’s journalism was criticised during the [SC] proceedings,” the journalist had contended in her appeal against the TV channel.

    Shirazi said that Pemra rejected her complaint against the TV channel as non-maintainable, stating that “no legal point had been made by the complainant in the instant matter as a proper forum for defamation was available” to her.

    The IHC, in its decision, said that TV channels are obligated by Pemra laws to disseminate news and reports in an accurate manner.

    It is also mentioned in the decision that a senior journalist has a right to damages; however, it is not the duty of the court to determine the extent of damages when there is no information available on record.

    It also stated that Shirazi still has the right to approach the competent court to seek damages under defamation law.

  • More than 250,000 illegal Afghan citizens have returned to their homeland

    More than 250,000 illegal Afghan citizens have returned to their homeland

    The process of repatriating undocumented Afghan citizens to Afghanistan is underway across Pakistan.

    So far, two lacs 55 thousand and 29 illegal residents have returned from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Afghanistan.

    According to the Interior Department, a total of 250, 814 immigrants have gone back to Afghanistan via Torkham, while 3,516 people have returned to their homeland through Angoot Ada border and 698 people have returned to their homeland from Kharlachi border.

    According to the data of the Immigration Department, 255,029 immigrants from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have returned to Afghanistan.

  • ‘Anti hero’ Taylor Swift sparks outrage for befriending allegedassaulter Jackson Mahomes

    ‘Anti hero’ Taylor Swift sparks outrage for befriending allegedassaulter Jackson Mahomes

    ‘It must be exhausting always rooting for the Anti Hero’? Not for Taylor Swift it seems so.

    Taylor Swift has garnered backlash from fans because of the singer’s silence on the ongoing genocide of Gaza, and several videos showed Israeli fans dancing to the screening of ‘Eras tour’ movie. Now, fans are outraged after the singer who wrote ‘Mad Woman’ was spotted laughing along side the younger brother of NFL player Patrick Mahomes, Jackson Mahomes, who is accused of sexual assault.

    A twitter thread by a Swiftie, detailing the charges filed against Jackson, who was seen in a video grabbing a woman and forcibly kissing her, is going viral. Jackson was arrested and charged with three counts of sexual battery and misdemeanour. But he was released on $100,000 bail.

    The thread further revealed reports that alleged Jackson had tried to bribe the victim to force her to withdraw the case, which had attracted further outrage.

    Taylor Swift attended a football game where her boyfriend Travis Kelce was playing, and several videos showed her high fiving Jackson, attracting intense backlash. Many criticised the singer as a hypocrite, for speaking up against sexual assault and rape but refusing to defend others who do the same thing.

    Swifties were also taken aback when Taylor’s best friend and wife to Patrick, Brittany Mahomes, defended her brother-in-law in an Instagram story by writing “He’s just a human trying to live his own life”, when a fan asked her about the sexual assault allegations.

    Many slammed Taylor Swift for failing to live up to her political beliefs and the feminist stance she had reaffirmed with songs like ‘Dear John’, ‘All Too Well’ or ‘Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve’ where Taylor has publicly discussed surviving abusive relationships and sexual harassment.

    Others were shocked that Taylor continued to remain silent about her friendship with Brittany Mahomes, when she was named as Time Magazine’s Silence Breakers in the 2017 issue, when the singer had gone to court after her abuser sued her.

    The Boycott, Divest Sanctions Movement (BDS) also called out Taylor Swift and Beyonce for allowing their films to play in an apartheid state where the genocide of Gaza is still going on. On their official Instagram account, the movement acknowledged that the two singers had refused multiple offers to play in Israel, but urged them to pull their films and music from playing in the country.

  • ‘Rizz’ charms Oxford wordsmiths to win word of 2023

    ‘Rizz’ charms Oxford wordsmiths to win word of 2023

    “Rizz” — a colloquial term defined as “style, charm, or attractiveness” — has been crowned word of the year for 2023, Oxford University Press (OUP) announced on Monday.

    Its lexicographers chose “rizz”, which also conveys “the ability to attract a romantic or sexual partner”, from a shortlist of four words and phrases, after help from the public.

    An online vote had whittled down the list from eight finalists, all selected “to reflect the mood, ethos, or preoccupations” of the year.

    “Rizz was chosen by the language experts at OUP as an interesting example of how language can be formed, shaped, and shared within communities, before being picked up more widely,” OUP said.

    “Etymologically, the term is believed to be a shortened form of the word ‘charisma’, taken from the middle part of the word, which is an unusual word formation pattern,” it noted.

    The publisher added that the word shows the growing society-wide impact of Gen Z and how “younger generations create spaces — online or in person — where they own and define the language they use”.

    The term earned mainstream recognition in June after an interviewer asked “Spider-Man” actor Tom Holland about his “rizz”.

    The 27-year-old replied he had “no rizz whatsoever”.

    It is the second consecutive year that the public have played a part in picking Oxford’s word of the year, after an inaugural public vote last year saw “goblin mode” prevail.

    In that instance, the public were given the chance to choose the overall winner.

    An overwhelming 93 percent opted for the slang term describing “unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly or greedy” behaviour.

    Previous words of the year — chosen by Oxford lexicographers — include “vax” (2021), “climate emergency” (2019) and “selfie” (2013).

    In the 2023 selection process, more than 30,000 word lovers helped decide head-to-head competitions between four different pairs of words or phrases.

    They selected “rizz” over “beige flag” — a character trait indicating that a partner or potential partner is boring.

    The other finalists were “Swiftie” (an enthusiastic Taylor Swift fan), “prompt” (an AI programme or algorithm instruction) and “situationship” (a romantic or sexual relationship not considered formal or established).

    OUP said “rizz” has “boomed on social media” and shows how the internet can propel initially fringe language “into the mainstream”.

    “This is a story as old as language itself, but stories of linguistic evolution and expansion that used to take years can now take weeks or months.”

  • NEPRA exposes overbilling scandal impacting thousands of electricity consumers 

    NEPRA exposes overbilling scandal impacting thousands of electricity consumers 

    An investigative report by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) unveiled a disconcerting situation in Pakistan, affecting thousands of electricity consumers during the months of July and August this year.  

    The report disclosed that distribution companies (Discos) had billed consumers for over 40 days, a major contributor to the issue of overbilling in the mentioned months. Notably, MEPCO, followed by GEPCO, FESCO, LESCO, and HESCO, were identified as the Discos significantly involved in this overbilling, implicating all Discos collectively in this unjustified practice. 

    As a response to these findings, NEPRA recommended initiating legal proceedings against the power distribution companies, including K-Electric Limited (KEL), under NEPRA Fine Regulations, 2021. The basis for these actions lies in the violation of the provisions outlined in the NEPRA Act, Consumer Service Manual (CSM), and tariff terms and conditions. 

    Expressing concern, NEPRA emphasised the unfortunate deliberate malpractices by distribution companies undertaken to conceal their inefficiencies. These practices resulted in higher electricity bills for thousands of consumers.  

    The report highlighted the failure of Discos to adhere to the percentage checking mechanism outlined in the Consumer Service Manual (CSM), along with the unauthorised charging of detection bills, contravening Clauses 9.1 and 9.2 of the CSM, which provide a specific procedure for charging detection bills. 

    NEPRA noted with concern that detection bills charged by Discos were found to be fake and frivolous, contributing to a significantly low recovery ratio in certain Discos.  

    The authority initiated an inquiry in response to widespread complaints from consumers across the country regarding excessive, inflated, and erroneous bills during July and August 2023. A hearing was conducted on November 13, 2023, wherein CEOs of all distribution companies participated online, presenting their perspectives. 

    During the proceedings, it was observed that numerous distribution companies were charging metre readings, with discrepancies between snap readings and the readings recorded on consumers’ bills. 

    Additionally, some cases were identified where snaps of metre readings were either invisible or intentionally not taken. Monthly metre readings were reported to be taken beyond the standard billing cycle of 30 days in certain instances, leading to undue and inflated charging of upper slab bills for less frequent users and a consequent change in category from protected to unprotected.