US diplomat calls for action against all terror outfits ahead of Pakistan visit

A top US official called on Friday for Pakistan to take action against all extremist groups ahead of a visit to Islamabad, which has sought reconciliation with militants both at home and in Afghanistan. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman will meet on October 7-8 with officials in Pakistan, which has long faced US accusations of playing a double game in Afghanistan where the Taliban swept back to power in August. "We seek a strong partnership with Pakistan on counterterrorism and we expect sustained action against all militant and terrorist groups without distinction," Sherman told reporters. "Both of our countries have suffered terribly from the scourge of terrorism and we look forward to cooperative efforts to eliminate all regional and global terrorist threats," she said from Switzerland, her first stop on a trip that will also take her to India and Uzbekistan. Also read: Govt is engaging with TTP factions for peace, reconciliation: PM Pakistan points to its efforts against militants and the thousands who have died in attacks at home. Sherman praised Pakistan's calls for an inclusive government in Afghanistan. "We look to Pakistan to play a critical role in enabling that outcome," she said. The statement came hours after Prime Minister Imran Khan revealed that his government was in the process of dialogue with some of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) factions for “peace and reconciliation”. In an interview with TRT World, the premier said that some groups wanted to talk to the government for peace and reconciliation. "There are different groups which form TTP and we are in talks with some of the groups," he added. To a question regarding the help the government was getting from the Afghan Taliban, PM Imran said yes, since the talks were taking place in Afghanistan. (With input from News Desk)

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Schoolboy dies after getting ‘Covid vaccine shot’ in Punjab

The Punjab government formed an inquiry committee, which included a representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO), after a report claimed on Friday that a teenage boy died after receiving the coronavirus vaccine at a school in the Vehari district. Some 282 students, including 16-year-old Muhammad Mudassar, were vaccinated at the school on Wednesday. On Thursday, according to Mudassar’s family, the boy suddenly fell in his house at 4:30pm, while doing school homework. Mudassar was taken to the District Sadar Hospital in Vehari at 5.15pm, where medics said that he was already dead at the time of his arrival. According to the distract administration, the parents of the deceased had refused to conduct the post-mortem. The chief executive officer (CEO) of the District Health Authority, Vehari said that the health authorities took notice of Mudassar’s death and added that on the instructions of South Punjab Health Secretary Ajmal Bhatti an inquiry committee had been formed to submit its report with 24 hours. Also read:  Covid-19: dangerous side effects of vaccines? The inquiry committee comprises district health officer, Vehari; Deputy District Health Officer, Vehari; district vaccination superintendent, Vehari; and a representative of the WHO. The committee would submit its report on Saturday. Officials said that about 7,000 children, both male and female above the age of 12 years, were vaccinated across the district during the past two days but no vaccine reaction had been reported from any of the children, including the deceased Mudassar. Vehari Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mubeen Elahi said in a statement that the father of the deceased, Falak Sher, had refused to conduct the post-mortem during a meeting with him. However, he added, the physical examination of the body pointed to no vaccine reaction. Also read: Benefits outweigh the risks of AstraZeneca Covid shot as review continues: WHO “All of the students were administered the vaccine manufactured by Pfizer, which is globally approved and meets all the health standards,” the DC said. “All the students who were injected the shots are safe and coming to their schools regularly and none of them facing any sort of health issue.” He added that the administration was still trying to get the consent of the family for the deceased student’s autopsy to ascertain the cause of death. He added that instructions had also been issued for the care of the remaining children who were vaccinated along with the deceased. (WITH INPUT FROM APP)

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PM felicitates nation on FBR's Rs1,395b revenue collection

Prime Minister Imran Khan felicitated the nation on Friday for the Federal Board of Revenue's (FBR) achievement of collecting Rs1,395 billion in revenues in the first quarter of the financial year 2021-22. "I congratulate the nation on FBR’s achievement of collecting Rs.1,395 billion in Q1 of FA 2021-22 against the target of Rs.1,211 billion," the premier said on Twitter. Imran further said that the achievement represented "a growth of 38 percent in the revenues over the same period last year." I congratulate the nation on FBR’s achievement of collecting Rs.1,395 billion in Q1 of FA 2021-22 against the target of Rs.1,211 billion. This represents a growth of 38 percent in revenues over the same period last year. — Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) October 1, 2021   Earlier today, it was reported that the board exceeded its first quarter revenue target and received Rs1.4 trillion but failed to expand the tax base, as the number of return filers dropped 42% to just 1.8 million till the statutory deadline. Due to the failure to increase the number of tax return filers coupled with the collapse of information technology system on the last day, the FBR extended the deadline by 15 days from September 30, which was given in the Income Tax Ordinance. Read FBR struggles to broaden tax base The government had earlier promised to improve the FBR’s information technology system after the worst hacking last month. By the end of statutory deadline, less than 1.8 million people had filed tax returns for tax year 2021, down 1.3 million or 42% compared to tax year 2020, according to an official of the FBR. Apart from technical problems, the government has failed to instill confidence in taxpayers so that they could become filers of tax returns. Before becoming the prime minister, Imran Khan used to believe that the government of Nawaz Sharif was a hurdle in the way of widening the tax base and improving the tax collection. The revenue board was successful in maintaining a healthy momentum of increase in tax collection, largely aided by the rise in imports that provided more than half of the total tax revenues and also helped camouflage weaknesses in the economy.

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Panel clears bill to punish defiling of Jinnah’s portrait

Senate Standing Committee on Interior unanimously passed The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2020 aimed at maintaining the prestige of the national flag and the portrait of the founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam on Thursday.           The bill was moved by Senator Syed Muhammad Sabir Shah while the committee met under the chairmanship of Senator Mohsin Aziz. The bill stated, "Whoever deliberately defiles or puts on fire the portrait of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, removes it from any office or premises or other property of the government, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years but shall not be less than six months or with fine which shall not be less than Rs50,000 or with both."   The senators were unanimous on the bill and also strongly condemned destruction of the statue of Jinnah in a bomb attack in Balochistan.         Defiling of the national flag is already a criminal offence in the Pakistan Penal Code but enhancement in its punishment has been proposed in the bill in order to make it more detrimental.

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US Senate bill aimed at building pressure on Biden: FM

In the wake of a proposed bill moved in the US Senate seeking sanctions against Pakistan along with the Afghan Taliban, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi alleged that the Republicans tabled the bill to build pressure on US President Joe Biden. “The opponents of Pakistan in the US are active and we are well aware of them,” he said while speaking to a private news channel on Wednesday. The foreign minister was of the view that the anti-Biden administration in Congress viewed it (Afghanistan debacle) as a major opportunity to “mount pressure” on Biden. He added that Pakistan cooperated with the US at every step, questioning if the Ashraf Ghani government surrendered how it became Pakistan’s responsibility. FM Qureshi said: “Besides India, some forces want to target and destabilise Pakistan and put the whole burden of the Afghan situation on Pakistan.” The minister said that he agreed to continue to engage with the US in a meeting with his US counterpart, revealing that soon an important US personality would visit Pakistan. According to State Department’s announcement, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman will visit Pakistan on October 7-8. Read Don’t repeat past mistakes, Qureshi tells Blinken Qureshi recalled Pakistan’s support to the war on terror, saying that the country sacrificed 80,000 lives and suffered a loss of $150 billion. “Pakistan disbanded al-Qaeda and played a positive role in the Afghan peace process,” he added. The foreign minister further claimed that the US was shocked by the fact that its 20-year advanced technology and resources were in vain. He also spoke about Pakistan’s concerns about the Ghani government and its popularity among the Afghan people. Qureshi was of the view that the US “never heeded” to such suggestions by Pakistan. On PM’s UNGA address, the FM said that PM Imran Khan presented Pakistan’s viewpoint on the emerging situation in Afghanistan. The prime minister shed light on the issue in the backdrop of the present Afghan situation, he added. “The world must know the pivotal role Pakistan played in ending terrorism and the price it had to pay in exchange for cooperation with the West,” Qureshi said. He called for building new strategies for stability and peace in the region. The FM added that Pakistan continued to consult with all other stakeholders on the issue.

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China’s image tainted by PM’s allegations: PML-N

PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday lashed out at Prime Minister Imran Khan saying by questioning the transparency of the motorways built by his party under the CPEC, the premier was either accusing China or organisations under the Pakistan armed forces of corruption and embezzlement. “[PM] Imran had a strategy of coming up with these accusations as a diversion from how badly he was demolishing Pakistan's economy and crushing the people [under inflation],” the PML-N leader said while addressing a news conference in Islamabad. “This reflects Imran’s ‘sick mentality’ that he did not even think before defiling the image and reputation of Pakistan Army's subsidiaries like FWO and NLC,” he added. “These allegations” by Imran also tainted [the image of] Pakistan's strongest friend and most trusted ally China, which is a dangerous act clearly against the national interest.” The PML-N leader maintained that different roads had different costs based on their specifications and engineering designs according to the land and topographical requirements. He observed that the Chinese ambassador had tweeted praise for the Havelian-Thakot project as a model of engineering expertise, which had received an international award, while the PTI government was alleging corruption in the same project. Iqbal challenged the premier to write to the Chinese p¬resident to initiate an inquiry about the Multan-Sukkur Motorway over which the PTI ministers alleged Rs50-70 billion kickbacks. He reminded PM Imran that the JIT over these allegations was still pending. “Imran must answer which projects are a victim of corruption because Multan-Sukkur Motorway, Havelian-Thakot and East Bay in Gwadar are all directly invested by China and have nothing to do with the government of Pakistan.” Iqbal censured the PTI government for asking China to renegotiate the financial deal for the energy projects during the recent JCC meetings. Read Govt, PML-N bicker over UK court verdict “Why should the foreign investors take the brunt for the incompetence and incapacity of the unqualified PTI government,” he questioned. He slammed the premier for calling CPEC projects a “burden on Pakistan's economy” and installing “excess capacity of electricity”. He noted that the power capacity was installed keeping in consideration the 5.8% growth rate and said had that growth continued under the PTI the capacity would not have been enough. “Because Imran crashed Pakistan's economy to negative growth, the demand for electricity was suppressed.” Iqbal reminded that Jaglot-Skardu, Jakhat-Challas, Rurbat-Hoshab, Hoshab-Sohrab highways, M2 Lahore-Islamabad, Lahore-Sialkot Motorway, Karachi, Sehwan-Rattu Dero and Thaliyan Link Road were built by Pakistan Army's FWO. Taking a dig at the premier, Iqbal asked him to tell the nation “how much money did FWO make through corruption by over-invoicing the projects”. He also refuted PM Imran’s statement that Matiari-Lahore transmission line was delayed by the PML-N since 2013 pointing out that its agreement was signed in May 2018 and date of commissioning was set for September 2021. “Imran should read about things before opening his mouth,” he said¬. “This (Matiari-Lahore) is Pakistan's first high voltage transmission line and the world's second. This was the state-of-the-art project [initiated] by the PML-N, he added.

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‘Remove unsafe billboards’

Acting on the warning indicated in the meteorological department’s forecast for Cyclone Shaheen, the district administration of Karachi has issued orders to remove all unsafe billboards from the city. In the past, billboards and hoardings uprooted by stormy winds have caused loss of life and property in the metropolis. As gusts of winds, blowing at more than 30km per hour, brought down trees and electricity poles, Karachi Commissioner Naveed Ahmed Sheikh directed all the deputy commissioners to get unsafe billboards removed in their districts on an urgent basis. He directed the administrative heads of the districts to make an emergency visit to their respective districts and inspect the presence of billboards installed on buildings, roofs, and other unsafe places and order their removal. The commissioner also appealed to the citizens to exercise precaution and remain confined to their homes during this time and avoid leaving their homes unnecessarily, especially for outings to the sea. In view of public safety, Commissioner Sheikh has imposed Section 144 on beaches barring people from heading to the seaside till October 15. Power poles, trees uprooted Three poles fell due to strong winds in front of Millennium Shopping Mall in Gulistan-e-Jauhar. Fortunately, no casualties were reported but a rickshaw was destroyed. According to details, strong winds and gusts continued to blow in different parts of the city yesterday. In the afternoon, three poles fell in front of the Millennium Shopping Mall in Gulistan-e-Jauhar. Fortunately, no casualties were reported as the three poles fell. Traffic on the road was suspended for some time. Traffic police personnel immediately diverted the traffic to alternative routes. Shortly afterward the machinery reached the spot and the poles were removed from the road after which the flow of traffic was restored. An electricity pole also fell on a rickshaw, while in another incident a power pole fell on a car near Frere Hall. However, no casualties were reported. Power utility expresses remorse K-Electric has expressed immense grief over various rain-related incidents that occurred in the city causing damage to the public property and infrastructure. According to KE's official spokesperson, subsequent to the heavy spell of rain in the metropolis, the incident of a tree falling in the area near Frere Hall Park caused damage to the electric pole of the power entity and the vehicle parked in its surrounding. After which the K-Electric teams immediately reached the spot of the incident to tackle the situation. Due to precautionary measures, the power supply was temporarily shut down in the area which has been restored now, KE spokesperson said. KE further advised the citizens to adopt all necessary precautionary measures during the rainfall spell by maintaining a distance from power infrastructure including poles, transformers, downed power lines, and PMTs in order to avoid any untoward incident. Emergency relief review Meanwhile, Special Assistant to CM Waqar Mehdi presided over a meeting on rain emergency at the office of Deputy Commissioner West Karachi. The district abounds in slums and impoverished areas remain vulnerable to urban flooding due to the Lyari River and seafront. West Municipal Commissioner Ashfaq Mallah said they have set up rain emergency points at various places and teams have been equipped with 14 dewatering pumps to remove clogged rainwater in affected areas. Separately, Provincial Minister for Excise & Taxation Mukesh Kumar Chawla visited Saddar, Clifton, Lyari and other areas along with the South district deputy commissioner to review storm preps. Police deploy special units Rain emergency has been declared in the city following the forecast of possible heavy rains by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) in Karachi and all field commanders have been directed by the Karachi Police Chief Imran Yaqub Minhas to remain in their designated areas and be prepared to handle the emergency situation. According to a spokesperson, officers and personnel from Karachi Police Operations and Traffic and all SDPOs, SHOs, and Traffic SOs will be present on the roads. The Rain Emergency Unit of the Special Security Unit is also prepared to deal with the urban flood situation and help the people. Patrol police vehicles are equipped with the necessary tools, tubes, and equipment, besides items to be used to remove vehicles stuck in the rain. All the officers of the traffic police will provide full assistance to the citizens in removing their vehicles. According to the spokesman of the Traffic Police, in view of the rain forecast for Karachi by PMD, DIG Traffic Iqbal Dara has issued special instructions to the SPs, DSPs, and Section House Officers of all the districts. Traffic police will deploy its vehicle lifters and cranes to clear stranded cars from roads. To know the traffic situation, citizens can call the Traffic Police Helpline 1915 or tune in to Traffic Police Radio FM-88.6 for updates.

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