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  • On Benazir Bhutto’s birthday, here are her favourite things

    On Benazir Bhutto’s birthday, here are her favourite things

    June 21 marks Pakistan, and the Muslim world’s first female Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto’s birthday. She would have been 66 today.

    The Current got in touch with those close to Benazir and asked them what the former PM would have liked as a present.

    Most of them told us that Benazir had a sweet tooth and loved chocolates with nuts so that would have been the ideal gift. She was also very fond of ice-cream with caramel.

    Apart from that cotton shalwar suits would have also been a great gift for Benazir, who we all know had a strong fashion sense.

    Reading was one of her favourite past times and she would regularly read books on current international politics. Books would have also been an ideal gift for her.

    All in all, books, chocolates and a shalwar suit are the three things BB would have liked as a present. Simple.

  • Afghanistan is better than Pakistan in all aspects of game: Afghan Cricket Board CEO

    Afghanistan is better than Pakistan in all aspects of game: Afghan Cricket Board CEO

    Interim chief executive officer (CEO) of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), Asadullah Khan, has said that Afghanistan is currently better than Pakistan in all aspects of cricket.

    According to senior sports journalist Ibrahim Momand, Asadullah in a recent television interview said that Pakistan should “seek Afghanistan’s help to improve their cricket”.

    “We are currently far better than Pakistan in cricket and they should ask us for technical, coaching and more support for the betterment of their cricket [sic],” Asadullah is reported to have said.

    https://twitter.com/IbrahimReporter/status/1141687157628780544

    Afghanistan recently beat the Men in Green by three wickets in a 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup warm-up match at Bristol.

    The Naib-led side is currently languishing at the bottom of the table after losing all of their five matches so far in the mega event.

    The Men in Green will take on Afghanistan on Saturday, June 29 at Headingly, Leeds.

  • ‘Oops I did it again!’ says Mehwish Hayat

    ‘Oops I did it again!’ says Mehwish Hayat

    In case you missed it, Mehwish Hayat recently did a special song for Meera Jee’s upcoming film Baaji. The song has Mehwish channel her inner rebel and show off her moves. Needless to say, the song irked Pakistanis and many called for Mehwish’s Tamgha-e-Imtiaz to be cancelled.

    Mehwish being Mehwish responded to all the haters and trolls last night with a tweet in which she basically said that she doesn’t give a damn about what people say and that she is very proud of her cameo.

    She also said that doing these dance numbers is her personal choice and that they make her feel empowered.

    The song’s lyricist and choreographer, Osman Khalid Butt, who is also part of the film cheered on Mehwish for her ‘I don’t care’ attitude.

    Butt also defended Mehwish admist the backlash.

    He also requested people to not “hurl obscenities & vicious abuse their way.”

  • Marriage on the cards? Iqra Aziz, Yasir Hussain spotted at Ali Xeeshan’s studio

    Marriage on the cards? Iqra Aziz, Yasir Hussain spotted at Ali Xeeshan’s studio

    Iqra Aziz and Yasir Hussain’s relationship is an open secret. The two may not have officially confirmed their relationship but their Instagram profiles and stories make this fact pretty evident. In fact, the couple was recently on a vacation in Thailand from where they posted daily updates.

    Iqra and Yasir were now recently spotted hanging out at designer Ali Xeeshan’s studio and history is proof that all celebrity marriages are subtly announced with spottings at designers studios.

    Fans also seem to think the two are getting married.

    However, there were some others who commented that the duo is probably getting their wardrobes sorted out for the upcoming awards ceremonies including the Lux Style Awards and Hum Awards.

  • CWC’19: Can Pakistan still qualify for the semi-finals?

    CWC’19: Can Pakistan still qualify for the semi-finals?

    A majority of fans have been left disheartened ever since Pakistan’s humiliating defeat against arch-rivals India in the 2019 Cricket World Cup.

    While some hope for a comeback from the Green Shirts as witnessed in the 2017 Champions Trophy and many other times, everyone is confused over the national cricket team’s future in the tournament.

    CAN PAKISTAN STILL QUALIFY FOR THE SEMIS?

    The simple answer to this question is yes. Pakistan can still manage to secure a spot among the four teams that will be playing in the semi-finals of the World Cup.

    As per the current table, Pakistan are at number nine out of the ten teams playing in the tournament.

    The situation doesn’t look very good; however, Pakistan still has another four matches to play against South Africa on June 23, New Zealand on June 26, Afghanistan on June 29 and Bangladesh on July 5.

    In order to qualify, Pakistan need to win all four matches while maintaining a good Net Run Rate (NRR) — a statistical method used in analysing teamwork and performance in cricket.

    Other than performing well, Pakistan also has to hope that New Zealand loses all its remaining matches because considering their current forms, India, Australia and England will most probably be the top three teams that will qualify.

  • Parachinar gets its first music academy

    Parachinar gets its first music academy

    Imtiaz Hussain, a folk artist from Boghaki village of Parachinar, has set up conflict-ridden Parachinar’s first music academy.

    The music academy which is the first of its kind in the tribal district will teach the youth how to play musical instruments including the rabab and harmonium, as well as how to sing in the traditional Pashto style. Twenty-eight boys have already enrolled in the academy.

    According to details, Hussain wanted to become a musician himself which is why last August he decided to set this up to encourage others to learn music.

    The academy is being viewed as a sign of peace in the tribal district which has seen sectarian conflict, militancy and scores of suicide attacks in the past decade or so.

    “Music itself brings peace and harmony. A singer or musician is a harmless person and only spreads music,” Hussain said, adding that some level of peace has been achieved in the city.

    Imtiaz shared that the academy currently lacks proper equipment and musical instruments and that he hopes to get help and guidance to improve the academy.

    Though Hussain has faced some resistance from elders who believe that music is forbidden he says that the academy is his passion and he hopes to develop it into a proper music school.

  • Sindh Food Authority shuts down PPP’s favourite food outlet in Larkana

    Sindh Food Authority shuts down PPP’s favourite food outlet in Larkana

    Officials of the Sindh Food Authority (SFA) sealed the Larkana branch of KFC which was the Pakistan Peoples Party’s favourite food spot in Larkana. According to The Current’s sources, officials of the PPP including Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari used to regularly eat food from there during the 2018 General Elections campaign.

    As per details, the branch was sealed because it was providing unhygienic and substandard food to its customers. The authority’s food safety officer (FSO) Mehboob Ali Bhatti, while speaking to the media said that the outlet was previously given a warning and a fine of 100,000 rupees was imposed on them but they paid no heed to it. However, when the SFA team reached to seal the outlet, the restaurant’s manager and staff put up resistance due to which an employee was taken into custody.

  • ‘My grandfather laid foundation of CPEC,’ PTI minister claims

    ‘My grandfather laid foundation of CPEC,’ PTI minister claims

    Minister for Power Division Omar Ayub Khan has said his grandfather and former president of Pakistan, Ayub Khan, had “laid the foundation of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)”.

    Taking the floor of the National Assembly on Wednesday, Omar Ayub said, “Former president of Pakistan Ayub Khan had laid the foundation of CPEC by starting work on the Karakoram Highway.”

    He further said that the Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan-led government was determined to achieve the set target of Rs5,500 billion in the financial year 2019-20.

    The minister added that the country had to pay billions of rupees as interest on the loans taken by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) governments.

    CPEC:

    CPEC is a collection of infrastructure projects that are currently under construction throughout Pakistan with China’s help. Originally valued at $46 billion, the value of CPEC projects is worth $62 billion as of 2017.

    The project is expected to generate employment and boost the country’s economy in the years to come.