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Tag: Top News

  • D’Amla: A pleasantly, expensive experience

    D’Amla: A pleasantly, expensive experience

    When D’Amla eatery launched in Karachi, it was received critically. More than the food, the outrageous prices of the items and the owner’s behaviour seemed to irk the customers who took to social media to bash the restaurant. To be honest, the prices of the platters were touching the sky but overall it was not that expensive. Other than that, the owner had advertised the restaurant as less of an eatery and more of an experience.

    A few days back I decided to visit the restaurant on a whim and it left me quite surprised. I, for one, am not the person who goes on reviews as I like to make my own judgments.

    Our meal started with Ceviche with White Pearls, Three Cheese Large Bowl Salad with Nuts and Fruits, Chicken with Wasabi, Parsley Sauce Prawns with Potato Puree and Undercut Meat (Smoked) with Greek Curd Cream. The Ceviche was a refreshing change from the usual as were the prawns.

    For the main course, we had Lamb Chops with Portuguese Potatoes, Argentinian Rissoto with Sujuk and Grilled Chicken Thigh, Prawn Pesto Spaghetti and Swiss Charcoal Chicken. Oh man, these dishes were to die for. The meat was succulent and juicy, the seafood fresh and the Sujuk which is a Turkish sausage was absolutely delightful.

    Rissoto with Sujuk and Grilled Chicken Thigh

    No meal is ever complete without dessert so for that, we had Walnut Tart with Vanilla. This was so fresh and yummy that I had to stop myself from ordering another one.

    Given the negative reviews, I was a bit skeptical about visiting D’Amla but the small, dimly lit restaurant won me over and I cannot wait to go back. The food was not only well-presented but it was delicious to the core. Everyone has their own experiences – someone’s cup of tea might not be yours, so it’s always better to decide for yourself.

  • Punjab govt misses tax collection target by over Rs20 billion

    Punjab govt misses tax collection target by over Rs20 billion

    The Punjab government has missed its tax collection target in July, costing the provincial exchequer an amount of Rs20.45billion, The Express Tribune reported.

    According to reports, the provincial government collected Rs11.91billion, down by 63 per cent from its target of Rs32.33billion, and economic experts associate the reduction in tax collections with the fiscal crisis that currently grips the country.

    “If the economy remains in this condition, revenue will continue to fall,” the report quoted an expert as saying.

    Several factors, including lower than usual property tax, irrigation tax, income tax, and land revue, contributed to the overall shortfall. During July, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) collection under stamp duty, property tax, irrigation tax, income tax, and land revenue fell by 20.41 per cent, due to which the tax authority was only able to bag Rs5.38billion instead of Rs6.76billion.

    Similarly, a reduction of 22.16 per cent in property transfer, professional tax, professional excise, and other indirect taxes resulted in a shortfall of Rs0.73 billion.

    The provincial exchequer received another blow in lower than expected collection of sales tax and other indirect taxes. Out of the Rs13.87billion, only Rs318.6million ended up in the provincial coffers.

    Experts believe slowing economic growth will result in lower revenues for the government. And if current trends continue, the government revenue receipts will fail to match the budgeted targets.

    Official sources, on the other hand, confirmed the English daily that the targets were not being met due to the current economic crisis. However, they were hopeful that the coming year would yield better results and bring in greater revenue through taxation.

  • New policy of Bahira University prohibits male, female students from sitting together

    New policy of Bahira University prohibits male, female students from sitting together

    Bahria University has introduced a new policy according to which, male and female students have been banned from sitting together or forming groups.

    Seating of male and female students be separated in classes. Apart from that station visits and grouping in projects is also to be done separately.

    The notice received flak on social media, as people thought the measures were unnecessary.

    https://twitter.com/ChAmirZkhan/status/1172781713451356160

    The university has not elaborated on the notice.

    Earlier this week, the University of Engineering and Technology had passed a similar notice but it was retracted a few hours later due to the backlash received on social media.

  • Rabi Pirzada faces jail time for posing with reptiles

    Rabi Pirzada faces jail time for posing with reptiles

    The Punjab Wildlife Protection and Parks Department has submitted a challan in court against singer Rabi Pirzada for taking pictures and videos with reptiles including snakes and crocodiles and keeping them at her salon in Lahore.

    Under the Punjab Wildlife (Protection, Conservation and Management) Act of 1974 possession of these animals is considered illegal and can lead up to imprisonment and fine.

    Rabi’s reptile collection came to light on September 2 when she uploaded a video on her YouTube channel in which she can be seen with the snakes and a crocodile in the frame.

    She starts the video by saying that a Kashmiri woman and her snakes are ready to take on India and all these gifts are for Indian PM Narendra Modi and her reptiles will feast on him.

    Following the media reports, Rabi took to Twitter to say that she was being framed by “Modi’s friends” because she spoke up for Kashmir. Rabi asserted that she has been shooting with animals for the past five years but no one took notice of it till now.

    Previously, Rabi had also released a song with her snakes and a crocodile.

  • Brothers hold woman captive for 10 years

    Brothers hold woman captive for 10 years

    Punjab police rescued a woman from Hafizabad who had been held captive in a small room for almost ten years by her brothers over an inheritance dispute.

    According to reports, her neighbours, who couldn’t sleep because of her heart-wrenching screams, gave the details of her location to the police who rescued her.

    The police revealed that Naila Bibi’s brother gave her food only once a week and did not clean her room. When she was rescued, her bed was covered with her own excrement.

    While some reports state that one brother has been arrested, others say that two brothers have been arrested by the police.

    Naila Bibi was sent to the hospital for a medical check-up with the help of a neighbour. She appeared to be suffering from significant physical and psychological trauma from the captivity.

  • Minor boy sold for Rs 20,000 rescued

    Minor boy sold for Rs 20,000 rescued

    Lahore Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) officials recovered a minor boy kidnapped from a street of Ghaziabad and sold to a woman in Sheikhupura for Rs 20,000.

    According to reports, a mother of seven daughters had asked her brother-in-law to kidnap a minor boy from Lahore and bring it over to her. The motive behind her action is not known.

    The police said the kidnapper Amir and his accomplice kidnapped four-year-old Umair on September 9 when he was playing in a street in the city’s Ghaziabad area with his brother.

    The parents of the boy alerted the police when Umair didn’t return home after a few hours.

    The CIA police with the help of CCTV cameras of the Safe City Authority traced the suspects and recovered Umair from Sheikhupura. The Punjab Safe Cities Authority helped police detect the registration number of the motorcycle which the suspect used to transport Umair to Sheikhupura. CCTVs were also used to locate the kidnappers when they were taking the boy to Sheikhupura through Shahdara.

    Police said the prime suspect Amir told police that he had committed the offence to please his sister-in-law.

    The boy has been returned to his father.

  • PM claims 58 countries’ support at UNHRC, it has 47 members

    PM claims 58 countries’ support at UNHRC, it has 47 members

    In yet another incident of miscalculation, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has said that Pakistan enjoys the support of 58 member countries of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) against Indian actions in held Kashmir, while the global rights body only has 47 members.

    “I commend the 58 countries that joined Pakistan in Human Rights Council on 10 Sept reinforcing demands of int community for India to stop use of force, lift siege, remove other restrictions, respect & protect Kashmiris’ rights & resolve Kashmir dispute through UNSC resolutions [sic],” the premier tweeted Thursday.

    He also welcomed “the EU’s call in the Human Rights Council for a peaceful solution of the Kashmir dispute in line with UNSC resolutions, int law and bilateral agreements”.

    Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar also made the same mistake and said that Pakistan has the support of 58 member countries.

    Twitterati, however, didn’t spare the premier. Expectedly, within a short time, several people started pointing out the error and poking fun at him. Here’s what they tweeted:

    https://twitter.com/freakykalin/status/1172140643608481793

    Previously, PM Imran had found himself in a similar soup when, at a conference, he said that Germany and Japan are immediate neighbours who share a border.

    “Germany and Japan killed millions of their civilians until after the Second World War when they decided that they would have, on the border region of Germany and Japan, joint industries,” he had said.

  • VIDEO: ‘Cow’s dung,urine prevents nuclear radiation’, claims Indian researcher

    VIDEO: ‘Cow’s dung,urine prevents nuclear radiation’, claims Indian researcher

    We all know that Cows are sacred for Hindus but now an Indian expert has come forward to claim that covering yourself with its dung or urine can save you from nuclear radiations.

    The expert claims that NASA’s research has proved what he’s saying, and you can also google it. He further went on to claim that cow’s dung, urine, its breath, and everything is pure and purity gives birth to purity.

  • ‘Laal Kabootar’ is Pakistan’s official entry to the Oscars

    ‘Laal Kabootar’ is Pakistan’s official entry to the Oscars

    The Pakistani Academy Selection Committee, chaired by two-time Academy Award winner Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, has selected crime thriller Laal Kabootar as Pakistan’s official entry to the Oscars.

    The Oscar committee which includes Zeba Bakhtiar, Zarrar Khuhro, Sarmad Khoosat, Asim Abbasi, Rizwan Beyg and Sanam Saeed among others chose the film to be submitted for Oscar consideration in the ‘International Feature Film Award’ category for the 92nd Academy Awards.

    Laal Kabootar features Ahmed Ali Akbar and Mansha Pasha in the lead roles. Ahmed plays a taxi-driver, looking for a way out of Karachi while Mansha plays Aliya, a strong-headed woman navigating through the city. The film was well-received both critically and commercially.

    The film has been directed by Kamal Khan while Hania Chima and Kamil Chima were the executive producers.

    The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will choose the final nominees for all award categories including International Feature Film in December 2019. The complete and final list of Oscar nominees will be announced on 13th January 2020 with the presentation show for the 92nd Academy Awards scheduled to take place on 9th February 2020.

    Speaking about the selection, producers Kamil and Hania said, “This is very exciting news. This is a moment of immense pride for the entire team, from the investors who put their faith in us, to the cast and crew that worked tirelessly to tell a daring story.”

    Meanwhile, committee member Sarmad Khoosat was all praises for the film remarking, “Laal Kabootar is an authentic representation of the new wave cinema in Pakistan. Karachi’s raw and fierce beauty has never been shown like this on screen before.”

    Watch the trailer here:

  • Saudi princess found guilty of beating plumber, ordering him to kiss her feet

    Daughter of Saudi Arabia’s King Salman and sister of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been convicted for making her bodyguard beat and humiliate a local craftsman who was renovating her luxury apartment in Paris three years ago.

    According to CNN, a French court handed Princess Hassa bint Salman Al Saud a 10-month suspended sentence and a fine of $11,000. She was sentenced in absentia and found guilty of armed violence and complicity to hold someone against their will. Meanwhile, Salman’s bodyguard was given an eight-month suspended prison sentence and directed to pay a fine of $5,600.

    Ashraf Eid, an Egyptian-born French national, had alleged that the princess’s bodyguard attacked him after she accused him of taking photos and videos of her in September 2016. He alleged the guard hit him, tied up his wrists, put a gun to his head and ordered him to kiss the princess’s feet.

    Eid previously said he was working in a bathroom in the apartment on Paris’ exclusive Avenue Foch and took photographs of the furniture “for reference” when he noticed the princess’s reflection in the mirror. He shared that when the princess saw him, she allegedly ordered her bodyguard to take his phone. Eid claimed that the bodyguard then manhandled him and kicked him in the face.

    Eid further added that the princess insulted him, saying, “You’re all the same, bastards, dogs. You’ll see how you should speak to a princess, how one should speak to the royal family.”

    He said that the bodyguard then put a gun to the back of his head and gave him two choices: “Kiss the princess’s feet or risk further assault.”

    After he was released from the apartment, Eid registered a complaint with the police who questioned the princess for two hours before letting her go. Three days later, she left the country.

    Hassa’s lawyer denied all the charges and said that the princess is “totally innocent of the allegations that have been made against her.” He added that they would file for an appeal.