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Tag: islamabad

  • Twitter reacts to Shahbaz Gill’s wife’s PhD controversy

    Twitter reacts to Shahbaz Gill’s wife’s PhD controversy

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shahbaz Gill’s wife Izza Asad Rasool is reportedly found to be owing around Rs18.6 million to the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (COMSATS) University of Islamabad.

    According to Geo News‘ reporter Azaz Syed, a show-cause notice has been sent to Rasool in this regard. The university has demanded the payment of official expenses worth $99,000 and Rs86,000, spent on account of Rasool’s tuition fees, her living allowance and airfare.

    According to the notice, Rasool went to the United States (US) in 2011 to pursue an MS leading to PhD studies in the field of Labour and Industrial Relations at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). She was supposed to complete her studies by 2016 and come back to the country but she didn’t. She has been living there since she left for the US.

    Moreover, the notice stated that Rasool could not complete her studies by the due date and she was also irregular in submitting her academic progress reports.

    It is pertinent to mention that at the time when Rasool left for her studies, she was not married to Gill who is an employee of the same American university.

    COMSATS has warned Rasool to respond to the notice within 15 days or they will initiate legal and administrative action against her.

    As per the media outlet, GIll has allegedly been using his influence to threaten COMSATS’ administration in order to avoid action against his wife.

    Responding to the news, Gill termed the news as false. He said that her wife’s PhD is still going on and she will be back as soon as her degree finishes.

    “There is a campaign going on against me and this news is also a part of it. I know who is doing it”, he claimed.

    Following the news, Twitter questioned the unusually long period of Rasool’s degree completion.

  • Islamabad Traffic Police intensifies crackdown against wrong parking

    Islamabad Traffic Police intensifies crackdown against wrong parking

    In an attempt to minimise congestion, the Islamabad Traffic Police is elevating action against vehicles that are parked incorrectly in order to maintain a smooth flow of traffic in the federal capital.

    Islamabad Traffic Police reviewed measures to guarantee smooth traffic flow in the city, as directed by Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Traffic Rai Mazhar Iqbal. During this campaign, a considerable number of automobiles were also challaned for improper parking.

    The SSP Traffic ordered all Zonal DSPs to assure that traffic laws are followed by the motorists. He advised that individuals be treated with respect and informed them about driving laws.

    The SSP Traffic remarked that pedestrians have the right to use the walkway and that parking will not be permitted there.

    He stated that automobiles should be parked in designated areas at shopping centres, and that a public awareness campaign has been initiated to educate consumers who come to shop.

    Read more: CNG prices pushed to Rs140 per kg for sales tax collection

    Rai Mazhar Iqbal stated that it is our top responsibility to ensure the convenience for residents and road users by preserving traffic discipline, and that every effort will be made to achieve this goal.

    SSP Traffic also presented certificates of appreciation and cash prizes to the officers and men who played their best role in the convenience and convenience of the citizens. According to ITP good performance will be encouraged while departmental action will be taken against those who show negligence.

  • Rana Sanaullah says PTI supporters will become ‘humans’ after being thrashed

    Rana Sanaullah says PTI supporters will become ‘humans’ after being thrashed

    Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah on Saturday said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters will become human beings after being thrashed.

    “This is your misconception that you will be able to cause anarchy or chaos in the country. Nothing will happen,” Sanaullah told former Prime Minister Imran Khan. “They [the supporters] will become human beings after a few thrashings.”

    “Even yesterday, he (Imran Khan) told his supporters not to spare anyone. I am warning you for the last time — not as a minister — but as the president of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Punjab. If you don’t let go of these tactics and keep inciting your supporters to misbehave with members of other parties, you will face the same fate too. You won’t be able to escape from it.”

    The minister warned Khan that if he didn’t mend his ways, the PML-N too would instruct its workers to “catch and beat them up”.

    Rana Sanaullah demanded guarantees of a ‘peaceful’ PTI march to Islamabad as well.

    “They will have to give [the government] assurances that the march will be peaceful, political, and democratic,” said Sanaullah. 

    Sanaullah also warned former Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed and said,  “You told people that this march will be bloody. I am warning you to take your words back or I won’t let you step out of your house.”

  • Severe heatwave conditions predicted by Met office from Sunday

    Severe heatwave conditions predicted by Met office from Sunday

    The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) forecasted extreme heatwave conditions across Pakistan for the coming week, warning that high pressure will hold the upper atmosphere starting Sunday, May 8.

    Day temperatures are expected to steadily increase in most parts of the country from Sunday due to this high pressure, as per a notification from PMD.

    The temperature in upper Punjab, Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Kashmir was expected to hover between 7-9 degrees Celsius beyond average during the day.

    Meanwhile, the daytime temperature of Upper and central Sindh, central and south Punjab and areas of Balochistan will likely experience temperatures between 6-8 degrees Celsius above usual.

    Read more: Pakistan starts oil and gas production from Dhok Sultan DS X-1

    The department also tweeted a warning about the heatwave’s potential effects, stating that extremely hot and dry weather might affect dams, crops, vegetables, and forests.

  • Dr Murtaza Syed assumes charge as the new Governor State Bank of Pakistan

    Dr Murtaza Syed assumes charge as the new Governor State Bank of Pakistan

    With effect from May 5, Dr Murtaza Syed, the senior-most Deputy Governor and a former Deputy Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), became the new acting Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

    Prior to this, the federal government named Dr Syed as the Deputy Governor of the SBP for three years on January 27, 2020.

    Dr Syed has taken up the position in light of Section 10(2) of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Act 1956 (amended), and has therefore succeeded Dr Reza Baqir, whose term ended on May 4, according to the notification.

    He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Oxford’s Nuffield College and has more than 20 years of experience in macroeconomic research and policymaking, including 16 years at the IMF. He worked on IMF initiatives and monitoring of emerging markets and advanced economies such as the Eurozone, Japan, and Korea. Dr Syed also handled IMF training and technical support projects around the world, and between 2010 and 2014, he was the IMF’s Deputy Resident Representative in China.

    Dr Syed started his career as a Senior Policy Analyst at the Human Development Center in Islamabad, where he worked under former Finance Minister D. Mahbub ul Haq. Afterward, he worked for the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), a London-based public policy think tank, where he did research on company investment and employment behaviour, as well as evaluating Latin American anti-poverty programmes.

    Read more: Pakistan’s foreign currency reserves down by $328 million

    Dr Syed has produced papers on a multitude of macroeconomic topics, including fiscal and monetary policy, financial stability, economic crises, investment, demographics, poverty, and inequality, in addition to teaching public policy at the universities of Cambridge and Oxford.

  • Rawalpindi: Transporters continue to overcharge ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr

    Rawalpindi: Transporters continue to overcharge ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr

    The transporters have doubled fares ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr, as they do every year, causing trouble to travellers who are heading to their hometowns to spend Eid with their loved ones and family.

    A massive influx of passengers was observed at all bus terminals as well as the Rawalpindi Railway Station. On May 1, both bus and wagon stations, as well as the railway station, were packed with folks heading back to their hometowns to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr with their families.

    Transporters at the Pirwadhai, Faizabad, Rawat, Humrahi and Soan Bus/Wagon Terminals were majorly involved in overcharging customers.

    Passengers were spotted frantically sprinting from one bus stop to the next in search of tickets, while transporters took advantage of the situation and asked for higher charges.

    Read more: City Traffic Police Lahore to check overcharging, overloading by transporters on Eid

    Long-distance transporters, on the other hand, were blatantly plundering poor travellers by demanding increased fares in addition to luggage charges.

  • PTI’s Qasim Suri attacked in Islamabad restaurant

    PTI’s Qasim Suri attacked in Islamabad restaurant

    Former Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Qasim Khan Suri was attacked in the early hours of Friday at a private hotel in Islamabad. In the incident, Qasim Suri was unharmed, but his friend suffered a slight injury.

    Following the incident, Qasim Suri stated in a video statement saying that he was sitting in a hotel when a bunch of people suddenly appeared and attacked them.

    In his message on Twitter after the incident, Qasim Suri alleged that ‘PML-N goons’ allegedly carried out the attack. Suri has filed an application to register an FIR at the Kohsar police station.

    In a separate incident yesterday, the Pakistani delegation in Saudi Arabia was surrounded by people yelling “chor chor” when they made their way to Masjid-e-Nabwi in Madina.

  • CDA to spend Rs80 million on maintenance of street lights in Islamabad

    CDA to spend Rs80 million on maintenance of street lights in Islamabad

    The Capital Development Authority (CDA) would spend about Rs80 million on street light repairs and maintenance to keep the city lit at night.

    On several main highways, intersections, connecting roads, marketplaces, and streets in Islamabad, the Authority’s Street Light Department will install new street lights and replace damaged street lights and transformers, according to a CDA spokesman on Wednesday. The tender will be published in national publications soon before work begins.

    He said the administration was committed to providing the necessary resources to the street lighting division in the best interests of the capital city and its citizens, under the leadership of CDA Chairman Aamer Ali Ahmed.

    The continuous functioning of street lights was necessary to offer inhabitants safe transportation and to ensure the city’s security at night, according to the spokesman.

    Allocated Budget for Sectors

    According to information, a budget of about Rs20 million has been put aside for the construction of new street lights on different important highways and linking roads between GT Road and Haj Complex, as well as Sector I-14/2-3.

    Moreover, about Rs19 million has been set aside for the installation of new and contemporary street lights on Sector I-11/2’s key highways, link roads, and marketplaces, as well as the upkeep of broken street lights.

    Read more: Shopkeepers fined in Islamabad for not adhering to DC rates

    Similarly, Rs16 million has been set aside for sector I-16 in order to ensure sufficient illumination on major highways, service roads, and marketplaces. In addition, Rs11 million would be spent on lighting from Sector I-10, Faqir Appi Road, to Victory Pipe Industrial Area.

    The administration has agreed to spend Rs11 million to install new and modern street lights in Sector I-14-1, I-14/3, and I-14/4 to ensure sufficient lighting, and Rs7 million to install new street lights in Sector H-11 from NUST University to Srinagar Highway.

  • Rawalpindi faces water shortage amid repeated power outages

    Rawalpindi faces water shortage amid repeated power outages

    Water supply from Rawal Dam and Khanpur Dam has been disrupted, causing severe water shortages in the city.

    The water crisis has been attributed to long hours of unscheduled load shedding by Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco), which cuts the electricity every hour and on a regular basis, according to the Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) Managing Director.

    Wasa claims that the water supply from Khanpur Dam and Rawal Dam has been severely impacted and that it is insufficient to meet demand.

    On a daily basis, the city requires around 60 million gallons of water. It is, however, only supplied with 30 million gallons per day.

    All tube wells remained closed due to long and unexpected load shedding, according to Wasa Managing Director Raja Shaukat Mehmood. In this situation, he stated, getting water from Rawal Lake Filtration Plant was impossible.

    He stated that we are not receiving enough water from Khanpur Dam to meet demand. Due to persistent load shedding, we were unable to store water in tanks, he said. He said that hardly half of the water from Rawal Dam is delivered to the city and cantonment board districts.

    Read more: Shopkeepers fined in Islamabad for not adhering to DC rates

    Mehmood further stated that due to low voltage and tripping, some motors have been burned. He has pleaded for the provision of uninterruptible electricity in order to deliver water to the inhabitants.

  • ‘Sasta Ramzan Bazaar’ fails to provide relief in third Ashra

    Residents of Rawalpindi are still hoping for some relief at Ramzan Bazaars and utility stores. In the first two Ashras, the ‘Sasta Ramzan Bazaars’ have utterly failed to grab the public‘s interest by offering substandard items at hefty prices.

    People from all walks of life even urged Prime Minister (PM) Shahbaz Sharif to pay unannounced visits to Rawalpindi’s ‘Sasta Ramzan Bazaars’ and other open marketplaces to check the pricing and quality of products being sold in the last ‘Ashra’.

    In fact, all government personnel, even Deputy Commissioners and Commissioners, are expressing minimal concern to provide assistance to the public as they know they will be transferred after the oath of chief minister in Punjab is taken.

    According to trustworthy sources, the Punjab government will deploy strictly professional policemen around the province, especially in Rawalpindi, to bring a positive change despite the fact that the holy month is about to end.

    Read more: Lahore continues to face gas and power outage in Ramzan

    Due to the district government’s incompetence and poor administration, the ‘Sasta Ramazan Bazaars’ organised at Chungi No 22, Jarahi on Adiala Road, Committee Chowk, and Haidri Chowk have all miserably failed to provide assistance to the populace.