Current Final

Tag: India

  • VIDEO: New Delhi university students sing ‘Hum Dekheinge’ by Faiz Ahmad Faiz

    Students of New Delhi’s Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), have grabbed the attention of thousands of internet users for singing Pakistani Marxist poet and author Faiz Ahmad Faiz’s iconic poem ‘Hum Dekheinge’.

    According to journalist Pervaiz Alam, the recitation came after he asked the students to sing a song for him while conducting a media workshop.

    “I asked students to sing a song for me and they chose Hum Dekhenge by Faiz as I conducted a media workshop at the IIMC in New Delhi on 21 Nov. Meet the vibrant students of Indian Institute of Mass Communication [sic],” he tweeted while sharing the video.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    ‘HUM DEKHEINGE’:

    The popular revolutionary poem was written by Faiz in 1979 when he was in Honolulu for a writers’ conference. The poem was included in Faiz’s seventh poetry book titled “Mere Dil Mere Musafir” in 1981 and is known for its rendition by singer Iqbal Bano.

    The poem’s beginning deals with conventional themes such as injustice and oppression, then gives way to more overtly religious symbolism. Faiz writes that the idols will be lifted from the Kabah and goes on to describe a revolutionary inversion of power, where the pure-hearted, who were outlawed, or cast out, will be honoured.

    The crowns (of those in power) will be thrown up in the air (alluding to a celebration) and their thrones will be cast low. The final stanza of the poem is the most religious in tone, declaring that the only name (essentially on people’s lips) will that be of Allah and a great revolutionary cry of “I am Truth” will go up and people of faith will rule again.

    In recent times, the poem has become an anthem for rights activitsts taking to streets across the Indian subcontinent.

  • Worst air quality: Lahore tops global list as Pakistan beats India, again

    Lahore on Thursday once again topped the global list of cities with poor air quality as monitors showed an average “hazardous” Air Quality Index (AQI) of 335.

    According to Newsweek Pakistan, residents of the capital of the country’s most populous province woke up again to the sight of a haze covering the city, with residents complaining of sore throats, itchy eyes and other ailments linked to inhaling toxic material through the smog that has increasingly become a regular fixture.

    While the average AQI for the entire city stood at 335 around noon, parts of the city with individual air quality monitors showed the figure rising as high as 763, which posits a PM2.5 of nearly 900 ug/m3 — the equivalent of smoking nearly 40 cigarettes.

    While smog is not a new phenomenon in Pakistan, it has taken on greater urgency this year amid ever worsening air quality that is particularly unhealthy for children, the elderly and the infirm. In 2007, the Lahore High Court (LHC) ordered authorities to prepare a smog response action plan to overcome the health crisis. The Punjab Environment Protection Council, however, adopted a plan that utilised a modified AQI classification system, which claims a PM2.5 rating of 60 is “satisfactory” even though US AQI adopted by much of the world declares it “unhealthy”.

    PM2.5 refers to atmospheric particulate matter that has a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers, so small that they can only be detected with an electron microscope. These fine particles, which can come from various sources including power plants, motor vehicle emissions, and agricultural burning, last longer in the air than heavier particles. This increases chances of them being inhaled by humans and animals, where they can bypass the nose and throat and penetrate deep into the lungs. The air pollution worsens during winter, emerging as smog, due to temperature inversion, which produces a layer of warm air that traps air pollutants.

    Meanwhile, schools on Friday will once again remain closed across the city due to smog. Both public and private schools in Gujranwala and Faisalabad will also remain shut.

    The Punjab School Education Department has issued a notification in this regard as well.

  • VIDEO: Altaf sings ‘Sare Jahan Se Acha’ on Indian channel

    Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain, who has been declared an absconder by Pakistan in murder, terrorism and hate-speech among others cases, has sung an the popular Indian national song “Sare Jahan Se Acha” on an Indian news channel.

    Speaking to India’s Republic TV, Altaf said there was no difference between people of Pakistan and India, “We used to visit each other on Eid and Diwali and share each others’ pain.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The MQM founder further said that he was compelled to leave Pakistan as “there existed a nexus of the military and politicians in the country and assassins had been hired to kill him”.

    The 66-year-old politician is living in London for more than two decades now and was recently banned from appearing on any form of media in the UK or Pakistan by the Westminster Magistrates’ Court, after Scotland Yard charged him with a terrorism offence in the incitement speech inquiry against him.

    Altaf was charged with encouraging terrorism after a 2016 address to supporters in Karachi that was followed by violent protests. 

    He faces several years imprisonment for the speech which was “likely to be understood” as encouraging supporters to acts of terrorism or was “reckless” of the possible consequences.

    Altaf had earlier requested Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi to help him by giving him asylum in India besides financial help to him and his companions. Meanwhile, Lawyers are assessing whether Hussain has breached his bail conditions by asking the Indian premier to let him stay in India while he awaits trial of his case.

  • ‘Left suppressed Pakistan because my followers wanted me to be safe,’ Altaf tells Indian media

    ‘Left suppressed Pakistan because my followers wanted me to be safe,’ Altaf tells Indian media

    Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain, who has been declared an absconder by Pakistan in murder, terrorism and hate-speech cases among others, has called the country a suppressed nation where his life is in danger.

    Speaking to a India’s Republic TV, Altaf said he was compelled to leave Pakistan as “there existed a nexus of the military and politicians in the country and assassins had been hired to kill him”.

    The 66-year-old politician is living in London for more than two decades now and was recently banned from appearing on any form of media in the UK or Pakistan by the Westminster Magistrates’ Court, after Scotland Yard charged him with a terrorism offence in the incitement speech inquiry against him.

    Altaf was charged with encouraging terrorism after a 2016 address to supporters in Karachi that was followed by violent protests. 

    He faces several years imprisonment for the speech which was “likely to be understood” as encouraging supporters to acts of terrorism, or was “reckless” of the possible consequences.

    Altaf had earlier requested Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi to help him by giving him asylum in India besides financial help to him and his companions. Meanwhile, Lawyers are assessing whether Hussain has breached his bail conditions by asking the Indian premier to let him stay in India while he awaits trial of his case.

    WATCH VIDEO:

  • Google Maps get an Indian arrested in Pakistan

    Google Maps get an Indian arrested in Pakistan

    Two Indian nationals were arrested by the Pakistani police for illegally entering the country last week.

    Prashant Maidam, a software engineer from Hyderabad, and Durmi Lal, a farmer from Madhya Pradesh, were arrested in the Cholistan desert area in Bahawalpur on November 14th as per an FIR.

    The Bahawalpur police registered an FIR against them under the Pakistan (Control of Entry) Act.

    They had crossed the border without any identification papers and proper documents, such as a valid visa and passport, police sources told The Hindu.

    Police sources said Prashant told them that he was in love with a woman in Turkey and was going there through Pakistan and Afghanistan. Prashant was reportedly on foot and following Google Maps route.

    Bahawalpur Judicial Magistrate Yazman asked the local police to travel to Multan and hand over the two Indians to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). Bahawalpur police sources said that the two Indian nationals were thoroughly investigated and were sent back from Multan as the FIA doesn’t think this case falls under its jurisdiction.

    The two are now back in the custody of the Bahawalpur police.

    “Prashant is lucky he was arrested here. We don’t know what would have happened if he had gone to Afghanistan via Pakistan,” said one police officer.

    Police sources said the two will most likely be repatriated after due process is followed. The Indian High Commission will have to get in touch with the police and initiate the process of repatriation.

  • Indian police raids Amnesty International’s offices to quash reporting on Kashmir

    Indian police raids Amnesty International’s offices to quash reporting on Kashmir

    Indian officials have raided the offices of renowned human rights group Amnesty International (AI) on trumped up charges of foreign funding from the United Kingdom that violate local law, Geo News reported.

    According to the details, it is widely believed that the investigation into the funding sources of the respected human rights group is a pressure tactic being employed by the government of Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi to stop the group from highlighting grave human rights violations in Indian held Kashmir (IoK).

    Reports revals that officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided the offices of AI India in Bengaluru and New Delhi after direct complaints from the home affairs ministry. Amnesty was accused of the same offence last year.

    The Amnesty group in a statement said, “Over the past year, a pattern of harassment has emerged every time Amnesty International India stands up and speaks out against human rights violations in India”, referring to their campaigns for IoK. 

    Back in September, Amnesty International had launched the “LetKashmirSpeak” campaign and called on Indian PM Modi to lift the inhumane military curfew in held Kashmir that has crippled the lives of millions of Muslims since August.

    New Delhi had earlier revoked the constitutional autonomy of IoK on August 5 this year and imposed a military curfew in the area, imprisoning millions of people. Thousands of ordinary citizens were detained after the move.

    The detained included former chief ministers and the mayor of Srinagar. Widespread allegations of torture and abuse of these detainees by the Indian security forces were published by the international media in the following weeks, as India showed no signs of easing restrictions.

  • Sindh High Court reminds PCB of players’ sheesha controversy, seeks answer

    Sindh High Court reminds PCB of players’ sheesha controversy, seeks answer

    The Sindh High Court (SHC) has resent a notice to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on a petition regarding its inaction against former national team skipper Shoaib Malik and other cricketers for violating team rules, Geo News reported. 

    Prior to a crucial match against arch-rivals India at the World Cup 2019, batsman Malik was snapped at a cafe in London along with two other players — Wahab Riaz and Imamul Haq, as an unidentified person consumed sheesha on their table. 

    According to the details, petitioner Abdul Jalil Marwat had claimed that the players were spotted consuming sheesha at a cafe in England the night before the match with India on June 16. 

    He further alleged that Malik, Wahab and Imam performed poorly, perhaps as a result of their disregard for rules and regulations, which resulted in Pakistan’s loss.

    After the cricket board had failed to take any action against these players, Marwat had requested the court to direct the PCB to explain why the players were not punished for violating the team management rules and regulations.

    A division bench of the high court, headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar, observed that no one had appeared in court on behalf of the PCB despite the issuance of notice.

    The court has now resent the notice to PCB through a district and sessions judge in Lahore and adjourned the hearing of the case till a later date that is yet to be determined. 

  • Pakistan’s air traffic controller saves Indian flight from major disaster

    Pakistan’s air traffic controller saves Indian flight from major disaster

    An air traffic controller from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in Pakistan on Thursday saved a plane flying from the Jaipur, India to Muscat in Oman by guiding it during an emergency.

    According to the details, the air plane, carrying 150 passengers, was flying over the Karachi region when it was caught in the middle of a weather pattern with lots of lightning that could have resulted in a major tragedy.

    Following the lightning strikes, the plane dropped down from an altitude of 36,000 feet to 34,000 feet almost immediately and the pilot initiated emergency protocol and broadcast ‘Mayday’ to nearby stations.

    The air traffic controller from Pakistan responded to the call of the captain of the Indian plane and directed it through the dense air traffic in the vicinity for the remainder of the journey in Pakistani airspace.

    Sources in the aviation authority have said that the aircraft had encountered abnormal weather conditions near the Chor area of the southern province of Sindh, Pakistan.

    It is pertinent to mention that at least 18 people were killed earlier in freak accidents as lightning struck various parts of Sindh.

    Islamabad has, for more than a month, restricted access of Pakistani airspace to Indian planes as its protest to the curfew in held Kashmir. Recent requests by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to travel over Pakistani airspace have been rejected twice.

  • Pakistanis to face reduction in salaries in 2020: report

    The salaries across Pakistan are expected to record a substantial decrease this year due to rising inflation and depreciation of the Pakistani rupee, according to a report released on Tuesday by mobility consultancy ECA International.

    According to the details, the Salary Trend Report published by the group contends that the average real salary increase in Pakistan is expected to be negative, and employees will likely be worse off than they were last year. Lee Quane, Regional Director Asia at ECA International, has surmised these trends.

    Lee explained, “The average real salary increase in Pakistan is forecast to be -3.0%, meaning that employees will be worse off than they were last year. Despite the nominal increase staying at a relatively high 10.0%, inflation has shot up as the rupee has depreciated.”

    He also said that the Inflation in Pakistan is forecast to reach 13.0% in 2020, exceeding the nominal increase and leaving workers out of pocket compared to 2019.

    However, the same is not true for other Asia-Pacific countries, especially neighbor and arch-rival India. 

    According to the report, India topped the table for average real salary increases in Asia, but now also tops the table globally for 2020. The average real salary increase is set to be 5.4% for workers in India, which is four times the rise expected in Hong Kong. 

    “Salaries in India are set to rise significantly, with the 5.4% increase almost four times as high as the expected increase in Hong Kong. Despite inflation rising slightly from 2019 and the economy slowing slightly, though workers can still expect more increases” said Quane. 

    Workers in China are set to see a real salary increase of 3.6% in 2020, while UK workers will receive a lower real salary increase in 2020 as compared to the previous year.

    Overall, the global average salary increase stands at 1.4% and the Asia-Pacific average increase is 3.2%. 

  • Is PM Imran really related to Indian Punjab CM Amarinder Singh?

    Is PM Imran really related to Indian Punjab CM Amarinder Singh?

    Local media reports are headlining that Prime Minister Imran Khan and Indian Punjab’s Chief Minister Amarinder Singh share family ties. But while the two certainly do share history, they are not related.

    According to an official statement issued by Singh’s office, PM Imran and Singh on their five-minute bus ride on the inauguration of the Kartarpur Corridor discovered a ‘special connect’ between their two families even though they had not met each other before and neither did the two know each other personally.

    Read more: Sikhs demand Nobel prize for Imran over Kartarpur opening

    The statement read, “During his conversation with [PM] Imran, Captain Amarinder told the latter that his uncle, Jahangir Khan had played for Patiala, along with Mohd Nisar, Lala Amarnath, fast bowler Amar Singh and the two Ali batsmen (Wazir Ali and Amir Ali).

    “These seven players were part of the team captained by Captain Amarinder’s father, Maharaja Yadvinder Singh (the ruler of the erstwhile Patiala state) in 1934-35, for India and for Patiala.”

    Jahangir was married to PM Imran’s maternal aunt, Mubarak, and was a cricketer during the British Raj era.

    The Congress leader’s office said that the bus ride lasted less than five minutes, but, thanks to cricket, it was enough to break the ice between the two leaders.

    Read more: Sunny Deol praises Pakistan, says he received a lot of love

    The Punjab chief minister was part of the group of over 550 Indian pilgrims who were the first Indians to enter Pakistan through the Kartarpur Corridor.

    Singh shared the bus ride with the premier after he was received by PM Imran and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at the Zero Point of the International Border of the Kartarpur corridor.