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Tag: islamabad

  • At least 18 tourists die in Murree snowfall as situation worsens

    At least 18 tourists die in Murree snowfall as situation worsens

     Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed said that at least 1,000 cars are still stuck in Murree and “around 16 to19 deaths have occurred in cars,” he said.

    Thousands of tourists are trapped on the roads in the area since last night. At least 16 to 19 people died of the extreme cold, while in their cars, during the snowstorm. The victims were stuck in their vehicles due to heavy snowfall at the tourist spot.

    Administration of Rawalpindi and Islamabad closed the roads going to Murree due to large number of vehicles entering the hill station.

    Thousands of tourists entered the hill station on Friday to witness the snowfall causing heavy traffic jams on the Murree-Islamabad Motorway. The authorities decided to close all kind of traffic going towards the hill station to avoid a further brutal traffic jam.

    “We request all motorists and tourists to cooperate with the authorities,” the NHMP wrote on its official Twitter account. 

    Furthermore, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed has said that all the routes from Islamabad to Murree have been closed. The decision was taken keeping in view the rush of tourists and traffic jams in Murree. Sheikh Rasheed has also requested citizens to postpone their plans to visit the hill station.

    Journalist Benazir Shah tweeted that SHO Murree told her that people did not die due to the extreme cold but because they left their car heaters on and the fumes caused their death. She also mentioned that the SHO told her that Muree had a 4000-5000 car parking capacity and the area has seen a record snowfall in the area.

    TRIGGER WARNING: The following video has graphic, distressing content of cars in which passengers have died due to the extreme cold. The Current has blurred the video.

    https://youtu.be/f06XodyHoyM

    Meanwhile, Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Taimoor Khan also left for Murree to monitor the traffic situation in the area.

    Rawalpindi Police also issued a travel route for all the tourists visiting Murree.

     Islamabad and Murree administrations are working to facilitate tourists round the clock.

  • How and where to get your free booster shot in Pakistan

    How and where to get your free booster shot in Pakistan

    The fifth wave of Covid-19 has recently emerged all over Pakistan. Authorities have urged citizens to get vaccination completely and follow strict SOPs. Those who completed two doses of the vaccine can get booster shots from designated centres.

    Eligibility of booster shot

    According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), health personnel, citizens who are above aged 30, and those children who are above age 12 and have weak immune systems can receive booster shots.

    It is important to note for those people who want to get a booster shot, the gap between the second dose of vaccine and booster shot should be more than six months.

    Which vaccine you can choose?

    People can choose booster shots of their choice from four available vaccines which are Sinopharm, Sinovac, Moderna, and Pfizer.  

     Director-General of Ministry of National Health Service, Dr Rana Safdar said, “mix and match has been allowed or booster of the same company, which was administered earlier, can be given as per the choice of the people.”

    Here, the term “mix and match” means those people who had been vaccinated with another vaccine, can get booster shots from the different manufacturing companies.

    Where people can receive booster shots?

    Sindh:

    The media coordinator of the Provincial Health Department, Mehar Khursheed told that people can get booster shots from any vaccination centre in the province. People need to take their vaccination cards and the National Identity cards to get shot in the vaccination centre.

    Punjab:

    According to the spokesperson for the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department, doses for booster shots are available in all approved district headquarters hospitals (DHQs) and tehsil headquarters hospitals (THQs).

    Balochistan

    The administration of booster shots had started already from December 30 according to the Provincial Coronavirus cell in charge Dr Naqeebullah. The facility of booster shots is available at 96 vaccination centres in the province. He notified that the people who got the dose for booster were all above aged 30 with six month time period gap from the second dose of vaccination.

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

    Director-General Health Department Niaz Mohammad said that all approved vaccines are available to vaccination across the province for booster shots. People need to take their vaccination cards to get a dose of the booster.

    Islamabad

    According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of Health, Sajid Shah, all Chinese manufacturing vaccines, Sinopharm and Sinovac are available in all vaccination centres for booster shots however for other vaccines Moderna and Pfizer are available in mass vaccination centres.

    Azad Jammu and Kashmir

    Divisional Monitoring Officer for Covid-19 Vaccination, Shafaq Malik said that people can get booster shots from any of the approved vaccines available at currently 142 centres in the region.

  • President house will be open tomorrow for public

    President house will be open tomorrow for public

    The President House (Aiwan-e-Saddar) in Islamabad will be open to the public for one day in the new year, according to the administration.

    Face masks will be required, and vaccination certificates for Covid-19 will be checked at the gate before entering the president house.

    Visitors will not be permitted to carry any electronic devices with them, including cell phones and cameras.

    This is not the first time it will be open to the general public; since 2018, it has been open to the public for a day every year.

    Soon after taking office, Prime Minister Khan promised that the public will have access to these government assets.

  • Pak Embassy in Washington ran out of funds to pay salaries for four months: report

    Pak Embassy in Washington ran out of funds to pay salaries for four months: report

    The Embassy of Pakistan in the United States (US) had reportedly run out of funds and was unable to pay salaries of four months to the embassy’s locally recruited contractual staffers, reveals The News’ sources in a report by Journalist Wajid Ali Syed.

    It was reported that a total of five staffers faced delays and non-payment of their monthly wages from August onwards. One staffer, who had been working there for the past ten years, resigned in September because of the on-going pay crisis.

    Several sources disclosed that the Pakistan Community Welfare (PCW) fund, from which these unpaid staffers were paid out collapsed last year because the money was diverted to purchase ventilators and other medical equipment last year, after the pandemic. The embassy had to borrow money from other account-heads to keep up with the monthly salaries for the staffers hired locally.

    As a result of this, the staffers wrote to the Pakistani ambassador in October. The ambassador repeatedly raised the issue with the Foreign Office (FO) in Islamabad and managed to secure all salaries just last week. The embassy’s spokesperson confirmed that “currently there is no salary-related issue being faced by the Embassy staff.”

    These local staffers’ salaries range from 2,000 to 2,500 dollars per month. They do not get the perks and privileges that FO employees enjoy. The domestic staffers are usually hired to help with the ‘Consular section’ that provides visa, passport, notarization and other consular services.

  • Alleged healer Mala Ali Kurdistani in Pakistan, greeted by PPP’s Yusuf Raza Gilani

    A video was posted from the media cell of former prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, in which he be seen meeting alleged healer Mala Ali Kurdistani, who is termed as a faith healer in the caption of the post.

    Several videos has also emerged of Mala Ali Kurdistani holding public gatherings in the capital.

    However, the credibility of the alleged healer is being seriously questioned. Journalist Zarrar Khuhro shared the link of an article on his Twitter handle, in which several complaints about Kurdistani beating up customers “to heal them” were received in Istanbul. In February 2020, he was arrested in Saudi Arabia and was released later.

  • TV Anchor’s ‘drunk’ son arrested for harrasing college staff, students

    TV Anchor’s ‘drunk’ son arrested for harrasing college staff, students

    Four persons were arrested on Saturday on allegations of harassment and threatening employees and students in a college in Islamabad, including the son of a well-known journalist/TV presenter, Dawn News has reported.

    The complaint was lodged by Dr Asad Faiz, the principal of Islamabad Model College for Boys F-11/3 in response to which a case was registered under section 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 355 (assault or criminal force with intent to dishonour person otherwise than on grave provocation), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 542 (punishment for wrongful confinement) of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

    Superintendent of Police (SP) Saddar Zone Nosherwan Ali that police received a call that a Vigo was harassing a girl at F-11 Markaz and around 9 am the police received another call that said some people had entered Islamabad Model College for Boys F-11/3 and were beating the staff and students. Police arrested four people from F13. As per the police, the accused people were drunk at the time of the arrest.

  • Islamabad High Court questions the killing of stray dogs

    Islamabad High Court questions the killing of stray dogs

    The Islamabad High Court during a hearing against the “brutally murdering” and “poisoning” of stray dogs in Islamabad, questioned the Capital Development Authority and Islamabad Wildlife and Management, Samma has reported. The court issued the chairperson of the wildlife board and CDA in this regard.

    “We have told you to formulate policies instead of barbarically killing stray dogs”, said Justice Athar Minallah, “What happened to that? How can you violate the court’s orders?” he questioned further.

    “The chairperson [of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board] is directed to satisfy this court that in compliance with this court’s judgment a policy was formulated by the board so that stray dogs are not subjected to unnecessary pain and suffering. The officials shall satisfy this court why proceedings may not be initiated against officials who are responsible for violating this court’s directions,” added Justice Athar Minallah.

    The petition against the killing of stray dogs was filed by Advocate Saira Mehreen Abbasi, stating that practice of killing dogs is still going on in the city despite the court’s order. In January, the CDA imposed a complete ban on shooting stray dogs in the city.

  • Two arrested after minor girl’s body found in Metro station washroom

    Two arrested after minor girl’s body found in Metro station washroom

    Police have started an investigation in the case of a young girl whose body was found dumped in a washroom of a metro bus station in Islamabad’s G-11, ARY News reported.

    The girl whose body was found on Monday has not yet been identified. She was aged between 11 and 12 years.

    The police suspect that the marks on her neck indicate that the girl was subjected to sexual abuse before she was strangled. Police will tell the actual cause of the death after the autopsy report.

    The police have detained two security guards of the metro bus station for an inquiry. A team has been constituted to probe her death.

    The body was shifted to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) where a medical board conducted an autopsy on the deceased. Samples were taken from the body and given to the police for chemical examination.

  • ‘I am giving you an opportunity to hang me’: Zahir Jaffer calls the judicial system ‘incompetent’

    ‘I am giving you an opportunity to hang me’: Zahir Jaffer calls the judicial system ‘incompetent’

    Zahir Jaffer was kicked out of an Islamabad sessions court on Wednesday for interrupting and misbehaving with the judge, SAMAA has reported. In a video being widely shared on social media, Zahir can be seen being dragged out of court by policemen. As per media reports, the prime suspect in Noor Mukadam’s murder case misbehaved and used derogatory language in the court.

    Read more- Noor Mukadam case: SC demands evidence against Zahir Jaffer’s mother

    Journalist Zubair Ali Khan tweeted that Zahir Jaffer in court said, “I’m giving you guys an opportunity to hang me but still you guys are dragging this, this shows it is all a puppet show.”

    Zahir further said that he has never seen more incompetent people than [the ones] sitting in the [court] room in his entire life.

  • ‘Will not allow facts to be distorted’: TLP asks Sheikh Rasheed to reveal details of negotiations

    Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) has asked the Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed to reveal the negotiations [between the government and the banned organisation] saying that they will “not allow the facts to be distorted”, reports Geo News.

    The banned outfit’s spokesman Saddam Bukhari said, “One side of the picture should not be shown regarding negotiations with the government. Our only demand from day one was that the French ambassador be deported.”

    Previously, Rasheed, rejecting this demand stated, “TLP’s demand of expelling the French Embassy and ambassador has a lot of complications attached to it. We are the largest nuclear force in the Islamic world. The world is conspiring to sanction us.”

    According to Bukhari, the rest of the demands were put forward by the group due to a clash with the law enforcement agencies and claimed that the talks between the state and TLP will continue in Islamabad. Moreover, he added that their caravan is on its way to Islamabad.

    A TLP activist claimed that the protests are the beauty of democracy and that ministers should avoid bullying. According to him, they always have been peaceful but the government has always used force.

    Bukhari blamed the government for creating difficulties for the public. He also alleged that militants are those who staged a sit-in in the capital Islamabad for 126 days and attacked the Pakistan Television (PTV) and Parliament buildings.

    As per the media outlet sources, earlier, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had said that the government “will not allow violence for political purposes.”

    During the meeting, the premier was briefed on the march then the government decided not to allow protesters to march beyond Jhelum.

    Prior to this, the interior minister said that the Rangers were being called in Punjab for 60 days to maintain law and order in the province.