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  • Naseem Shah upset after being ruled out of PSL for COVID-19 protocol breach

    Naseem Shah upset after being ruled out of PSL for COVID-19 protocol breach

    Right-arm fast bowler Naseem Abbas Shah is upset after being ruled out of Pakistan Super League (PSL) sixth edition’s remaining matches in Abu Dhabi after he broke COVID-19 protocols.

    “I cannot express in words how I feel right now,” said Naseem in a tweet on Monday, voicing his sorrow after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided to drop him from the remaining PSL matches being played in Abu Dhabi from June 5.

    “I want to play cricket as it [playing cricket] is my life.”

    In his heartfelt note on social media, the speedster said he has worked very hard as he was excited about the PSL matches.

    “I followed all instructions conveyed to us through the group,” said Naseem. “I do not know how I missed that particular message.”

    Naseem also remembered his mother who passed away in 2019 when the pacer was on a tour in Australia.

    Concluding his message with a prayer, Shah said: “Allah will make me strong. I will make a comeback.”

    As per details, Naseem, along with all those traveling onboard the chartered flights from Karachi and Lahore to the UAE, was directed to submit the negative reports of PCR tests taken not more than 48 hours prior to arrival at the hotel on May 24.

    However, the report Naseem presented was of the test that was conducted on May 18. On the recommendation of the independent Medical Advisory Panel for PSL, the pacer was dropped out from the lineup flying to Abu Dhabi.

    Director Commercial and Head of PSL6 Babar Hamid, in a statement, said: “The PCB doesn’t take any pride in releasing a young fast bowler from its marquee event but if we will ignore this breach, then we will potentially put at risk the entire event.”

    “We appreciate the Quetta Gladiators for accepting this decision as it confirms we are all aligned to strictly following and implementing the protocols.”

    He said the board would not compromise on the COVID-19 SOPs as it was about the health of all the team members.

    “This decision will also send out a loud and clear message to all involved in the remaining matches that the PCB will not compromise on any violations and will expel the player or player support personnel irrespective of his stature and standing in the game if they are found to be flouting the prescribed protocols or regulations,” noted Hamid.

    “All participating in the tournament must understand that these protocols have been put in place for the health and safety of all involved as well for the integrity and credibility of the event and the PCB.”

    “As such, the onus is on them to ensure these are followed in its true letter and spirit and without exception,” he added.

    Earlier in March, PCB had reportedly allowed Wahab Riaz and Daren Sammy to reintegrate with the Peshawar Zalmi team without completing the three-day quarantine period after the two had allegedly breached COVID-19 protocols before the postponement of PSL6. The violation took place when the two met franchise owner Javed Afridi outside the team’s bio-security bubble.

  • Punjab to vaccinate students of universities, medical institutions

    Punjab to vaccinate students of universities, medical institutions

    The Punjab government has decided to vaccinate students of medical colleges and universities, to ensure the safety of all and protection from the virus.

    The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid. The government discussed a possible move to vaccinate people employed in 30 other sectors where the dangers of contracting the virus are high. 

    “Strict implementation of SOPs led to reduction in coronavirus tests. As of today, 901 cases emerged across the province. For the first time, less than a thousand cases have been reported across the province,” Dr Yasmin Rashid had said. 

    There is a total of 905,852 confirmed cases of Covid- 19 in the country, with a positivity rate of 4.8 per cent.

  • Delhi police raid Twitter headquarters for censorship

    Delhi police raid Twitter headquarters for censorship

    Officers in New Delhi from the special cell (the Elite branch that investigates terrorism and organised crime) raided Twitter’s office to serve a warning notice to the head of Twitter.

    This incident took place when Twitter in India labelled a tag of “manipulation” to the tweets of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members in which they accused the opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC), of falsely accusing PM Narendra Modi of mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

    BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra tweeted that INC is giving undue favours to journalists affected by the pandemic.

    However, an Indian fact-checking website revealed that the image is fake. In response, INC filed a police complaint against Sambit Patra.

    Twitter spokesperson declined to comment on this matter.

    For months, the Indian government has been pressurising Twitter to censor the content of Indian journalists but Twitter has refused to comply with it. In response, the Indian IT Ministry and politicians have been giving threats to Twitter officials for not toeing the Indian government’s line.
    Recently, the Indian government has revised its policies and added more regulation to control social media.

  • Maryam Mujtaba becomes first woman commercial pilot from Azad Kashmir

    Maryam Mujtaba becomes first woman commercial pilot from Azad Kashmir

    Maryam Mujtaba, a resident of Muzaffarabad has become the first female commercial pilot from Azad Kashmir.

    Talking to the media, Mujtaba said that flying planes always attracted her and she wanted to become a part of the aviation industry.

    AJK President Sardar Masood Khan praised her contributions to the field and has called her a role model for other young women.

    Mujtaba joined Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) back in 2011 as a cadet pilot. After getting the training from academies in Rawalpindi and America, she completed her flying hours through numerous domestic flights.

    Read more – Sindh appoints first-ever Hindu female Deputy Superintendent

    She was just promoted as a first officer by the national flag carrier after she finished her designated flying hours. Mujtaba currently operates the PIA Airbus A-320 aircraft in various countries of the world.

    Recalling her journey, she said her inspiration was captain Ayesha Rabia, who was also a captain in PIA. 

    “When I was a child, I was very excited to see a woman flying planes and I told my father that girls can fly planes too,” the pilot remembered, adding that it wasn’t always smooth sailing, but things turned out in her favour.

    She attributed her success to her family, friends and colleagues.

    Mujtaba encouraged women who want to become pilot and those who want to pursue other fields.

    Mujtaba highlighted that confidence is the “key to success.”

    “You should always be confident about what you are doing and take charge of your responsibilities,” the pilot advised.

  • Imran Abbas, Ushna Shah forget to tell each other about their marriage

    Imran Abbas, Ushna Shah forget to tell each other about their marriage

    Imran Abbas has given a humorous response to fake news of his marriage with fellow actor Ushna Shah which has made the fans laugh.

    Shah took to her Instagram stories with a screenshot of a thumbnail of a YouTube video with a photoshop photo of Imran and herself saying that Ushna and Imran are married.

    Shah tagged Imran on the screenshot and wrote: “Mubarak ho Imran Abbas [Congratulations to you Imran Abbas].”

    In response to Shah’s story, Imran wrote: “Ushna! And we even forgot to inform each other in haste.”

    At the same time, he slammed YouTubers, saying: “YouTubers!! At least do photoshop properly.”

    Interestingly, this is not the first time that rumors of Imran Abbas’s marriage has emerged and Imran has responded to them publicly. Earlier, Imran had also rubbished the rumours about his relationship with Alizeh Shah.

  • ‘Don’t interfere in our privacy’: Kissing couple tells fellow passengers on local flight

    A couple travelling in an Airblue flight, from Karachi to Islamabad on May 20, were seen kissing in public, which made some fellow passengers uncomfortable.

    “The couple was sitting in the front row and was kissing each other publicly” claims the eyewitness Bilal Farooq Alvi, who was sitting on seat number 5, which was behind the couple. Bilal claimed that the couple was involved ‘immoral activities’, during the flight.

    “When [some fellow passengers] complained to the air hostess, she warned them but they continued with what they were doing,” he added, “The air hostess then provided them with a blanket to keep their displays of affection under wraps”

    “You don’t have any right to interfere in someone’s privacy,” the couple said to the passengers before leaving the plane.

    Bilal has also lodged a complaint against the Airblue staff for not taking any action against the couple.

    The civil aviation is probing the matter, Express Tribune has reported.

  • Alka Yagnik praises Imran Abbas’ singing skills

    Alka Yagnik praises Imran Abbas’ singing skills

    Imran Abbas has earned a thumbs up from Bollywood music legend Alka Yagnik for his singing skills.

    Commenting on a video of Imran’s in which he is singing Yagnik and Udit Narayan’s Tu Mere Samnay while driving in Swat, Yagnik said: “Bohat acha gaatay hain aap (You sing very well).”

    “And what a beautiful drive,” added the Indian musician.

    In the video, Imran can be heard singing Tu Meray Samnay from the 2003 film Chori Chori featuring Ajay Devgn, Rani Mukherjee and Sonali Bendre.

    “My love for 90s film music is totally unexplainable and when it comes to Alka Yagnik and Udit Narayan, the craziness just hits the ceiling,” wrote Abbas in the caption.

    Meanwhile, this is not the first time Abbas demonstrated his singing skills for his fans and followers. Earlier a video of Imran singing Aik Pal Ki Khushi from the Pakistani film Karz with Babar Ali went viral on social media.

  • Nadia Hussain hits back at Nabila for accusing her of copying her makeup palette

    Nadia Hussain has shared a screenshot of Nabila’s message to her in which she has accused Nadia Hussain of copying the idea for her newly launched ‘Go makeup Palette,’ from Nabila’s ‘Zero makeup palette’. Nadia also accused Nabila of blocking her on Whatsapp and Instagram.

    The screenshot of Nabila’s text stated, “Don’t you have brain of your own?”

    “For someone of Nabila’s repute, to stoop so low and send me such an underhanded message on the launch of my GO makeup palette is just beyond me,” wrote Nadia.

    She went on to clarify that how her product is different from Nabila’s product, “My item may be similar but surely the concept is totally different, she has no copyright on such a design, many many international brands have such similar travel makeup kits and also that my product itself offers much much more in comparison to her zero makeup kit”

    Nadia also attached screen recording of her pervious conversation with Nabila to prove the authenticity of her claims.

     She continued, “Surely my GO makeup palette rocks and surely it has rocked her boat.”

  • Protection of Journalists Bill

    Protection of Journalists Bill

    The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI ) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have both prepared two bills for the protection of journalists in Pakistan.

    The federal cabinet in April approved two bills – the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Bill, and the Forced or Involuntary Disappearance (Criminal Law Amendment) Bill.

    Meanwhile, the bill for the protection of media persons was presented in the Sindh Assembly by the PPP government. The bill enables the provincial government to take effective steps to ensure that every journalist and media practitioner’s right to life, safety and security as provided under Article 9 of the Constitution are safeguarded.

    The Freedom Network’s annual state of press freedom report released in April 2021 highlighted a dramatic escalation in the climate of intimidation and harassment of journalists and the media in Pakistan.

  • Covid-19 in men: ‘Could make it hard to perform in the bedroom’

    As per a report quoted by WebMD, it is suspected by doctors that, “Covid-19 could make it hard for men to perform in the bedroom”. The study was published in the World Journal of Men’s Health.

    According to the study, Covid-19 can linger in the penis and can cause impotence. Researchers found coronavirus particles in penile tissue samples taken from two former COVID-19 patients who had became impotent after getting infected from coronavirus.

    “We found that the virus affects the blood vessels that supply the penis, causing erectile dysfunction,” said senior researcher Dr Ranjith Ramasamy, director of the reproductive urology program at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine.

    “The blood vessels themselves malfunction and are not able to provide enough blood to enter the penis for an erection,” he added.

    “We think the penis also could be affected in a similar way,” Ramasamy said. “We don’t think this is a temporary effect. We think this could be permanent.”

    Two recovered COVID-19 patients who are undergoing penile prosthesis surgery for their erectile dysfunction, had normal erectile function prior to their infections.