Investiture ceremony

LAHORE, March 30: A simple but impressive investiture ceremony was held at the Corps Headquarters Auditorium here on Wednesday. Lahore Corps Commander Lt-Gen Rashad Mahmood, who was the chief guest on the occasion, decorated 89 officers, junior commissioned officers and soldiers with military honours and awards. The honours were awarded to the recipients in recognition of their acts of gallantry and performances in their respective fields, says a handout. The recipients of Tamgha-i-Basalat included Maj Sajid Farooq of Frontier Force Regiment and Capt Muhammad Azhar Manzoor of Armoured Corps.

IAEA raises alarm over Japan evacuations

SENDAI (Japan), March 30: The UN atomic watchdog said on Wednesday radiation in a village outside the evacuation zone around a stricken Japanese nuclear plant was above safe levels, urging that Japan reassess the situation. In its first such call, the International Atomic Energy Agency added its voice to that of Greenpeace in warning over radioactivity in Iitate village, where the government has already told residents not to drink tap water. Japan has struggled to contain its nuclear emergency since a 14-metre tsunami hit the Fukushima plant after a huge quake on March 11, with radioactive substances entering the air, sea and foodstuffs from the region. Iitate village is 40 kilometres northwest of the crisis-hit plant — outside both the government-imposed 20 kilometre exclusion zone and the 30-kilometre "stay indoors" zone. "The first assessment indicates that one of the IAEA operational criteria for evacuation is exceeded in Iitate village," the IAEA's head of nuclear safety and security, Denis Flory, told reporters in Vienna on Wednesday. The watchdog advised Japanese authorities to "carefully assess the situation and they have indicated that it is already under assessment," Flory said. But he added the IAEA, which does not have the mandate to order national authorities to act, was not calling for a general widening of the exclusion zone. Amid public fears over contamination from the world's worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl, campaign group Greenpeace called earlier Wednesday for the zone to be expanded to evacuate everyone within 30 kilometres of the plant. It said the government should consider moving children and pregnant women beyond that, after urging on Tuesday that residents of Iitate be moved. Radiation expert Jan van der Putte said "remaining in Iitate for just a few days could mean receiving the maximum permissible annual dose of radiation". On Wednesday he added: "Exposing a large number of people to this level of radiation creates a collective risk which is very significant over a long term, in terms of years. Our main concern is an increased incidence of cancer." The reading in Iitate village was 2 megabecquerels per square metre, a "ratio about two times higher than levels" at which the IAEA recommends evacuations, said the head of its Incident and Emergency Centre, Elena Buglova. The government on Monday told residents of Iitate not to drink tap water, with media reports saying 4,000 residents would be given bottled water. Radiation worries in the area worsened on Wednesday when iodine-131 detected in the Pacific Ocean water near Fukushima surged to a new high of 3,355 times the legal limit, officials said, against a previous high of 1,850 times the limit. "The figures are rising further," said nuclear safety agency spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama. "We need to find out as quickly as possible the cause and stop them from rising any higher." Japan has halted vegetable and dairy shipments from four prefectures around the plant and briefly said tap water in Tokyo should not be drunk by infants, but called for calm and said it was taking these measures as a precaution. However pressure to come up with fresh ideas intensified on Wednesday, as Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), which operates the stricken plant, admitted it had no idea when the situation would be under control. "Key factors are still unknown, such as how the nuclear incident will come to an end… In a word, the very difficult situation is expected to continue," TEPCO chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata told reporters. With crucial control room functions still disabled, experts are not sure what exactly is happening inside the stricken reactors — and some international experts warned that a meltdown may already be in progress. One of them is Richard Lahey, who was head of safety research for boiling-water reactors at General Electric when it installed the Fukushima units, and who was quoted by Britain's Guardian newspaper. Available reactor and radiation data from the troubled unit two "suggest that the core has melted through the bottom of the pressure vessel" and onto the concrete floor, he was quoted as saying by the daily. "I hope I am wrong, but that is certainly what the evidence is pointing towards." Japan faces a dilemma in containing the crisis: it must pump water into reactors to stop them from overheating, even as highly radioactive runoff leaks out, halting crucial repair work and threatening the environment.—AFP

Junta must prove it has withdrawn: UN

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called on Myanmar's powerful generals to prove that a new civilian government is a "genuine" end of five decades of military rule, his spokesman said. The authorities announced on Wednesday that the ruling junta's State Peace and Development Council had been dissolved. It is replaced by a nominally civilian government which many analysts said is controlled by the generals. "The Myanmar authorities now have an opportunity and, indeed, an obligation to their people, to demonstrate that this change is one of substance and that it is the start of a genuine move away from almost fifty years of direct military rule," Ban was quoted as saying by his spokesman Martin Nesirky. Ban made a new call for "inclusive dialogue" on broad political and economic reforms and said the government must answer "the longstanding aspirations of the Myanmar people for national reconciliation, democratization and respect for human rights remains."—AFP

Cricket fever sweeps aside Senate agenda

The senators got some work done by unanimously adopting a resolution condemning a suicide attack on a procession in Swabi. — File Photo ISLAMABAD: Cricket mania blew away the Senate proceedings on Wednesday as ministers stayed away from the house, forcing the chair to scrap the day's agenda amid an opposition protest. However, minutes before the house was adjourned until 10.30am on Thursday, the senators got some work done by unanimously adopting a resolution condemning a suicide attack on a procession in Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, just before JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman's arrival there to address a public rally. At the outset, opposition members pointed to mostly empty treasury benches and protested over the absence of the ministers. When Chairman Farooq H. Naek inquired from Leader of the House Nayyar Hossain Bokhari where all the cabinet members were, some opposition senators said all of them had gone to watch Pakistan-India Cricket World Cup semi-final in Mohali. They termed it a joke with parliament and later all of them staged a token walkout to mark their protest. The chairman was left with no option but to defer the question hour when he found that only one member of the cabinet, Inter-Provincial Coordination Minister Raza Rabbani, was present in the house. It was after JUI-F member Ghulam Ali broke the news of the suicide attack at Swabi inter-change of the Islamabad-Peshawar motorway that the chair allowed several members from both the opposition and government benches to speak to condemn the incident. The senator said he had just received the news that many people had been killed in the attack but his party chief was safe and sound. Senator Ismail Buledi of the JUI-F accused the government of failing to provide protection to people. Accusing unspecified "institutions" of involvement in terrorism in the country, he said that if an attack were aimed against Maulana Fazlur Rehman today, tomorrow others could be against President Asif Zardari and Nawaz Sharif. Former minister and JUI-F senator Rehmatullah Kakar called for the formation of a parliamentary body to investigate the incident and demanded that intelligence officials should also be summoned for interrogation. Senator Saleh Shah from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas blamed "intelligence agencies" for the ongoing terror incidents in the country and asked: "Why no officials from intelligence agencies or local administration are punished after such incidents? "These intelligence officials have not landed from heavens and there is a need to keep an eye on intelligence institutions." He said the Swabi incident had proved that there was no connection between terrorism and religion. A pro-PPP independent senator from Balochistan, Humayun Khan Mandokhel, termed the attack part of what he called a conspiracy hatched by foreign elements to eliminate Pakistan's leadership. Pointing fingers at India, he said: "There is a hand in these incidents of a neighbouring country with which we have a (cricket) match." Prof Khurshid Ahmed of Jamaat-i-Islami and Zafar Ali Shah of the Pakistan Muslim League-N called for reviewing the policy on the ongoing war on terrorism which they said had destroyed the peace in the whole region. Zahid Khan of the Awami National Party said terrorists wanted to take the country towards anarchy and wondered how political parties would be able to hold public meetings and how elections would be held in the future, if such attacks continued. Inter-Provincial Coordination Minister Raza Rabbani termed the incident a "shameful act" and assured the house that he would personally talk to the interior minister and the provincial chief minister to take swift action. Leader of the house Nayyar Bokhari gave a similar assurance and said a report from the provincial government would be presented in the house. Former minister Azam Swati presented the resolution condemning the attack and urging the government to bring the culprits to justice, with a ruling from the chair that an inquiry report be submitted to the house. Members of the visiting Afghan parliamentary delegation also witnessed the proceedings for some time.

Backlog of surgeries rises as doctors continue strike

ISLAMABAD, March 30: The backlog of routine surgical procedures in the city`s public sector hospitals crossed the 360 mark on Wednesday, as junior doctors continued their strike for better pay package. A senior physician requesting anonymity told Dawn that the demands of Young Doctors Association (YDA) should be resolved at the earliest as further delay would cripple the healthcare delivery system at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), Federal Government Services Hospital (Polyclinic) and the National Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine. Around 500 doctors working in these health facilities have been protesting for the last over 20 days. They have closed down the outpatient departments (OPDs) and are also refusing to carry out routine surgical procedures. The doctors` demands included induction of all their colleagues in BPS-18, pay increase from Rs22,000 to Rs70,000 and regularisation of doctors working on contractual basis for the last several years. The doctors continued holding demonstrations outside their respective hospitals. They were carrying banners and placards inscribed with calls for the ministry of health to meet their demands. The senior physician added that several heads of departments at Pims and Polyclinic had requested the YDA members to end their strike or at least allow the elective surgical procedures to lessen the sufferings of the patients. However, at the federal health ministry level, there seemed no development to resolve the crisis. According to one federal health ministry official, a complete file had been prepared but there were concerns in the ministry of finance and the establishment division that any increase in the salaries of the junior doctors would affect existing service and salary structures of all doctors. As per the current service structure, a young doctor with specialisation is inducted through the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) in the basic pay-scale 17 with a minimum salary of Rs30,000. "It will also increase the financial bill of the federal government and that is the reason which may restrain the finance ministry from taking any action on the matter," he said. The health ministry official said though the demands were very much genuine but a solution was possible only if both the YDA and the ministry resolved a few critical matters. A member of the YDA joint action committee, Dr Mohammad Ajmal, said they would not allow any elective surgical procedures till their demands were met. "We are also suffering as do the patients and we want to resume our duties but the health ministry is not interested in resolving the matter," he insisted.

Settlement issue delays water storage project

According to findings of the PMIC, failure to fill the reservoir to its increased capacity is causing a loss of Rs18 billion. — File Photo ISLAMABAD: Although the Mangla dam raising project was completed three years ago at a cost of Rs105 billion, authorities have not been able to use it to add to the water storage capacity because the issue of settling the affecting persons, has not been resolved. According to findings of the Prime Minister`s Inspection Commission (PMIC) after a detailed study, failure to fill the reservoir to its increased capacity is causing a loss of Rs18 billion in terms of agricultural and energy productions. The dam`s height has been raised to 1,230 feet from 1,210 feet. Talking to Dawn, Malik Amjad Ali Noon, chairman of PMIC, said it was unfortunate that Mangla dam which could store more water because of the completion of the project to raise the dam height but it could not be done. "Even if the resettlement of the affected villages starts tomorrow, it will take six to seven months which means we are definitely losing yet another high rainy season which is due in two months," Mr Noon said. Moreover, he said that unlike other dams, Mangla location was such that it started receiving water quite early. He said the commission had strongly recommended to the prime minister to resolve the settlement issue as soon as possible because it was causing heavy losses to the ministry of water and power and Wapda. Mr Noon said it was a matter of great concern for the government that after so much money had been spent on the project, the country was not able to make use of it. A limited number of affected people, he said, were complaining about non-payment and it was not difficult to resolve the matter. The dam raising project, taken in hand at an estimated cost of Rs53 billion in 2003, was completed in 2008 at a cost of about Rs105 billion about 98 per cent cost escalation. The project envisaged an addition of about 3.10 million acre feet (MAF) to its storage capacity of 4.5 MAF to about 7.6 MAF. But because of non-resolution of the resettlement issues the displaced persons have resisted the reservoir`s filing. Upraising of the dam was a major project in Wapda`s Vision 2025 Programme for Water Resources and Hydropower Development and was approved by the Musharraf government. The 11,000 feet long and 454 feet high Mangla dam was constructed in 1967 on the Jhelum River as a part of Indus Basin Project. Its 100 kilometres-long water reservoir had a storage capacity of 5.8 MAF which was reduced to 4.5 MAF by silting. The dam envisaged resettlement of about 50,000 people, but it was yet to be completed. The issue of compensation has also not been finally resolved. Mr Noon said the commission was also looking into three canals Katchi canal Rainee canal and Greater Thal canal which had been completed but remained unutilised. The three canals on the Indus zone were also constructed during the Musharraf government.

Pakistan, India to share real-time intelligence

The agreements between Indian Home Secretary G.K. Pillai and Pakistan's Interior Secretary Qamar Zaman Chaudhary went beyond the Thimphu spirit and revived the promise of Sharm el Sheikh. — AFP Photo NEW DELHI: Notorious naysayers in the India-Pakistan equation – their interior ministries – became unusual facilitators to a slew of ground-breaking agreements here on Tuesday, which includes sharing real-time intelligence to prevent terror attacks. The agreements between Indian Home Secretary G.K. Pillai and Pakistan's Interior Secretary Qamar Zaman Chaudhary went beyond the Thimphu spirit and revived the promise of Sharm el Sheikh. It was there that sharing of real-time intelligence was proposed only to be abandoned in the face of opposition from the hawks, not the least from intelligence and security establishment on both sides. A hotline link to the secretaries was proposed to give muscle to the new resolve. An equally noteworthy achievement concerned speeding up the tardy Mumbai terror probe. Probe teams from both sides will now be allowed to carry out investigations in across the border. "Pakistani side provided updates on the ongoing trial and investigation in Pakistan on the Mumbai terror attacks," said the joint statement following two days of talks. "Pakistan conveyed its readiness, in principle, based upon the principle of comity and reciprocity, to entertain a commission from India with respect to Mumbai terror attack investigations." Modalities and composition in this connection will be worked out through diplomatic channels. As for the reciprocity, the statement said: "Dates for the visit of the Judicial Commission from Pakistan in connection with Mumbai attack trial will be conveyed by India within four-six weeks." The statement stressed that their federal investigative agencies – India's NIA and Pakistan's FIA – "will continue to cooperate in the Mumbai terror attack investigations". It reported that the meeting was held in a cordial and friendly atmosphere. It was important for both sides to remain engaged on outstanding issues and, therefore, henceforth the interior secretary-level talks would be held bi-annually, the statement said. Both sides reiterated their commitment to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and reaffirmed the need to bring those responsible for such crimes to justice. India provided information on the ongoing Samjhautha Express blast case investigation. It was also agreed that after the filing of report in the court, updated information would be shared with the Pakistan authorities concerned. The interior secretaries "noted and welcomed the release of prisoners and fishermen by each other since the last round of talks". They agreed that both sides would release by April 15 those civilian prisoners/fishermen who have completed their sentence, whose nationality status has been confirmed by the respective governments and whose travel documents have been received. A complete list of prisoners in each other's custody will be exchanged by both sides on July 1, 2011. The problem of those who inadvertently cross the borders should be viewed sympathetically, and in a focused and sensitive manner, they agreed. "Accordingly, both sides also agreed to task the Coast Guard of India and Pakistan Maritime Security Agency to work on setting up a mechanism for release of inadvertent crossers (fishermen) and their boats on the same lines as the inadvertent crossers on land. The group will submit its report to the Home/Interior Secretaries before the next round of talks." Both sides commended the work done by the Judicial Committee on Prisoners for the release, repatriation and humane treatment of prisoners and agreed on the need for its continuation. The next meeting of the Judicial Committee would be held from April 19 to 23, 2011, in Pakistan. Both sides shared their concern over the growing menace of narcotics and drugs and agreed that cooperation between the nodal agencies of both sides whose chiefs would meet annually. The round starts with Pakistan hosting the first meeting in May. It was decided that their federal police would schedule a meeting to work out the technical details of moving forward on issues of human trafficking, counterfeit currency, cyber crimes and Red Corner Notices. Both sides agreed to set up a Joint Working Group to examine the modalities for streamlining the visa procedure/modalities and for giving a final shape to revision of the Bilateral Visa Agreement. The Indian home secretary accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan.

Mohali a test of cricketing skill and diplomacy

Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (R) and Pakistan cricket team captain Shahid Afridi (L) meet during a press conference at The Punjab Cricket Associaton (PCA) Stadium in Mohali on March 29, 2011. — AFP Photo ISLAMABAD: The prime ministers of Pakistan and India will meet under pressure on Wednesday like the cricket teams of the traditional rivals at the Mohali ground of Indian Punjab that will be the focus of millions of eyes across the world. It will be both diplomacy and sport at their high when Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh will sit side by side at the Mohali stadium to watch their teams play in what will be a highly-charged second World Cup semi-final. Mr Gilani will fly to Mohali with a large delegation, including ministers and politicians from both the ruling coalition and opposition, for a day's trip, which officials and analysts hope will take the peace process between the two nuclear rivals forward. While each of the two nations will wish its team to win to enter the final of the cricket's biggest contest, they will be one in wishing their leaders to succeed in their peace encounter, only two days after the resumption of a troubled dialogue process. It will be the third round of the so-called 'cricket diplomacy' between the two countries, after similar trips to India by then military rulers General Ziaul Haq in February 1987 and General Pervez Musharraf in April 2005, but first involving the elected leaders of both the countries. When Mr Singh sent invitations to both President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani—though Islamabad decided on sending the prime minister—to join him in bucking up their respective cricket teams, political pundits termed it a major policy shift in India. But on their domestic fronts, both the prime ministers are facing increasing political hostility which requires them to show results without being seen as soft to each other. Besides facing a host of corruption scandals allegedly involving his cabinet colleagues, according to recently published WikiLeaks cables, Prime Minister Singh is reported to be isolated within his own inner circles in his conviction for a friendly relationship with Pakistan. Mr Singh is a 'great believer' in talks and negotiations with Islamabad, but his colleagues within the ruling Congress party don't share his belief, said one of the cables recently published in The Hindu, a widely-circulated English daily in India. Entangled in multiple financial scams, the main opposition BJP is increasingly calling for Mr Singh's resignation. Things are not much different when it comes to Prime Minister Gilani, whose government is facing similar condition in Pakistan. He has recently lost a couple of coalition partners in the centre who didn't agree with the policies of his government. Besides facing serious governance issues, the ruling PPP's popularity level has also nosedived in the recent past due to its lack of implementation on various rulings of the Supreme Court. The main opposition party, the PML-N, has also increased criticism aimed at the Gilani government and eying early elections. Besides the security establishment's reluctance to have friendly ties with India, Pakistan's right-wing political parties have always pressed for a hard line in dealings with New Delhi. Therefore, independent observers think that even if they want it, the two prime ministers will have to move mountains to make a real difference in the overall outlook of ties between the two countries. A foreign ministry official said the meeting between the two prime ministers would go a along way in improving the overall atmospherics which had suffered heavily after the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks. "If today Prime Minister Gilani has accepted invitation of his Indian counterpart, tomorrow, it wouldn't be easy for him (Mr Singh) to turn down a similar request sent by the government of Pakistan," said the official. According to information available on Tuesday night from sources in the Prime Minister's Secretariat, Mr Gilani's delegation will include Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar, Information Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan, former ministers Sherry Rehman and Qamar Zaman Kaira, Fata parliamentary group leader Munir Khan Orakzai, States and Frontier Regions Minister Engineer Shaukatullah, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, Religious Affairs Minister Khurshid Ahmed Shah, ANP leader Asfandyar Wali Khan, JUI leader Laiq Ahmad Khan, MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar, PML-N MNA Abdul Qadir Baloch, PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain. However, the sources said, last-minute changes in the delegation could not be ruled out.

Pleas for retaining central role of HEC rejected

ISLAMABAD, March 29: The commission on implementation of the 18th Amendment has rejected appeals for retaining the central role of the Higher Education Commission and decided to devolve all its functions to the provinces, except those relating to its role as higher educational standardisation body by reframing its ordinance accordingly. "The HEC act will be revisited and reframed to shed its role as centralised funding authority because under the 'new state structure' emerging in the aftermath of the 18th Amendment, there is no room for such a role," the commission's chairman, Senator Mian Raza Rabbani, said at a press conference here on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the establishment division is all set to issue in 24 hours a notification about devolution of five ministries and six portions of various federal ministries to the provinces. The federal cabinet had on Monday given a go-ahead to the completion of second phase of devolution under the 18th Amendment. There was a public outburst against the proposed devolution of the HEC and vice-chancellors of more than 36 public sector universities, led by HEC Chairman Dr Javed Leghari, also met the commission on implementation of the 18th Amendment on Saturday to express their concern over the government's move. The ministries being devolved are: education, social welfare and special education, tourism, livestock and dairy development and culture. The portions include lotteries, capital gains tax and GST on services from the finance ministry, navigation and inland water wing from the ports and shipping ministry, arms act (issuance of arms licence, except banned bore) from the interior ministry, wills and testaments, trusts, arbitration, bankruptcy and insolvency from the law and justice ministry and a portion of the commerce ministry. The ministries of special initiatives, Zakat and Ushr, population welfare, youth affairs, local government and rural development had been devolved to the provinces in the first phase in December last year. The 18th Amendment has given the eight-member commission powers to issue orders, undertake proceedings and make amendments to regulations, enactments, notifications, rules or orders as may be necessary to further the objectives of clause 8 of Article 270(AA) of the Constitution. It is interesting to note that a three-judge Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, has accepted a petition challenging the devolution of the federal education ministry. Accompanied by the commission's members Syed Naveed Qamar, Senator Dr Abdul Malik and Senator Rehmatullah Kakar, Mr Rabbani told reporters that 17,440 employees would be affected by the devolution, of them 14,390 were based in Islamabad. Most of them are teaching staff who have been accommodated in other ministries.

Punjab govt accused of selling Rs3.8bn track for Rs90million

PML-Q Senator and a former information minister in the previous military regime Mohammad Ali Durrani claimed that the fisheries department of the Punjab government had sold the railway track which was the only link between Ahmadpur and the Panjnad Headworks.— Photo by APP ISLAMABAD: Senate Chairman Farooq Naek has directed the federal government to present a comprehensive report on the alleged shady sale of 40-kilometre-long railway track in Bahawalpur by the Punjab government when the house meets on Wednesday morning. "Please ask the minister to come to the house with a comprehensive report on the matter," Mr Naek directed Leader of the House Nayyar Bokhari to convey the message to federal Minister for Railways Ghulam Ahmed Bilour after an opposition senator belonging to Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q) drew the attention of the house towards the alleged sale of 40-km railway track in Bahawalpur worth Rs3.8 billion for a price of only Rs90 million to a Lahore-based company, the Nawaz and Co, by the Punjab government. PML-Q Senator and a former information minister in the previous military regime Mohammad Ali Durrani claimed that the fisheries department of the Punjab government had sold the railway track which was the only link between Ahmadpur and the Panjnad Headworks. The senator alleged that the 40-km track had been sold at a price which was even less than the cost of laying a 1-km-long track. He claimed that while making this deal, the Punjab government had even breached its own rules as the railway record showed that Rs800 million had been offered for the same track in 2004 but the-then administration had rejected that amount. Senator Durrani also shared copies of two letters written by the Pakistan Railways authorities in Multan asking the Punjab government not to go for the sale and seek a "no objection certificate" from it but the sale was made setting aside these communiqué. He said the railway authorities had also sent copies of these letters to district coordination officer (DCO), Bahawalpur, and the chief engineer (irrigation) but the same were trashed and the government went ahead with its sale plans which reflected "irregularities in the deal". "Rather than cancelling the deal, the fisheries and the police officials escorted the employees of Nawaz and Co and the track dismantling process was launched. The wooden and metal tracks were loaded into huge trucks and sent to Lahore under the supervision of police officials," added the senator. He termed it a "mega corruption scam" and called for a thorough probe into it. He asked the Senate chairman to use his powers and get the deal cancelled and the track reinstalled. "If this house fails in getting the corrupt officials fixed, the people of the country will be justified in believing that parliament is merely a debating club and is helpless in checking corrupt practices," he added.

Deputy speaker, ministers walk out of PA session

QUETTA, March 29: The deputy speaker and six ministers walked out of a session of the Balochistan Assembly on Tuesday in protest against the government`s failure to supply electricity to agriculture tube-wells. Deputy Speaker Syed Matiullah Agha and ministers Zamarak Khan Piralizai, Sultan Tareen, Mir Abdur Rehman, Shah Nawaz Marri, Mir Tariq Masuri, Ammal Kalmati and Basant Lal said the energy crisis and suspension of electricity for 10 days had destroyed agriculture in the province. Speaker Nawab Aslam Bhootani said the ministers should not have walked out of the session because such protests could not solve the problems. He said that no doubt people were confronted with a power crisis, but it was also true that the government and the departments concerned had been making efforts to restore the power supply. The ministers said that there was power crisis because of blowing of electricity towers and pylons, but it was also a fact that repair work by Qesco was very slow owing to which farmers` orchards and crops were badly affected. They said that thousands of farmers led by the Zamindar Action Committee held a demonstration outside the assembly on Saturday and they were assured that if electricity was not restored they would also join the protest by not attending the session. Finance Minister Mir Asim Kurd did not agree with fellow colleagues that Qesco was solely responsible for the power crisis and the repair work was in progress despite the fact that three Frontier Corps personnel were killed and the two staff members of Qesco lost their legs in blasts during the repair work. The speaker asked the law minister to submit detailed report in the next session from the forest department about the violation of agreement by petroleum refining and petro-chemical corporation as pointed out by the minister. Minister Zahoor Buledi said on point of order that the company had signed an agreement in 1996 with the provincial government for growing trees on 5,000 acres of leased land allotted by the government in the Vendor area of Lasbela district. He said that under the agreement the company was bound not to sublet the land to another company or individual without the prior approval of the provincial government, but the company violated the agreement by subletting a portion of it. Law Minister Shama Parveen Magsi tabled the Balochistan Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Bill 2011 in absence of home minister that was passed by the house. The session was adjourned till Friday.

4 accused in Rs9.6bn sales tax scam held

ISLAMABAD, March 29: The four accused arrested so far in connection with alleged sales tax fraud of Rs9.6 billion were produced before a special judge (customs, taxation and anti-smuggling) in Lahore on Tuesday. Dawn Sources in the Federal Board of Revenue told that the court granted physical custody of Khalid Mehmood, Mohammad Khalil, Rana Saqeem and Rana Shahzad Ali for 10 days. The FBR had lodged an FIR against the accused, including 127 major beneficiaries of fake sales tax invoices, each of them having caused a loss of about Rs10 million to the national exchequer. The sources said that after the arrest of the four accused, the directorate-general intelligence and investigations widened its inquiry and conducted raids for more accused who had issued fake invoices by creating 144 dummy firms. While investigating a case of fake invoices of Rs2.1 billion sales tax, the directorate-general intellige nce and investigation found clues which led to the unearthing of a racket which had created 144 dummy firms which were registered in the regional tax offices in Lahore, Faisalabad and Karachi and issued invoices to different sales tax-registered persons across the country. According to the FIR, some of the major industrial units found to be allegedly involved in the scam are: Exide Pakistan, Hero Motors, AGE Industries, Excel Engineering, Dewan Sugar Mills, Crown Motorcycle Company, Atta Cable, Century Engineering Industry, Pak Precise Engineering, Allied Engineering, Flying Kraft Paper Mills, Hussain Engineering Works, Atlas Battery Ltd., Hasan Board Industries, Ravi Autos, Horizon Paper and Board Mills, M.B. Dyes Chemicals and Silk Industry, Dewan Cement Ltd., Abdullah Sugar Mills, Al-Karam Paper Mills, Ansari Sugar Mills, Plum Qingqi Motor Ltd., Meric Electrical Industry, Faisal Sanitary Fitting Industries, International Metal Industries, T.U. Plastic Industry and F ateh Motors.

Illegal money awaits match decision

KARACHI, March 29: How money works during the Cricket World Cup is not known even to currency dealers although a huge speculative amount of over $1 billion is said to have been involved in betting for the semi-final between Pakistan and India being played in Mohali on Wednesday. Several currency dealers said they knew some big shots involved in betting who worked as agents for main gamblers sitting in Dubai and Mumbai. The currency market on Tuesday did not reflect any trend of buying or selling US dollars which would be used to make settlements after the decision of the match. "We know nothing about this kind of transactions. The betting people will never come to us as we do legal business," said Malik Bostan, president of the Forex Association of Pakistan. He said people involved in betting might have their own illegal network for transaction. Another money changer said there would be large-scale transfer of money in or outside Pakistan once the Mohali match was decided. A few will gain while thousands will lose. There is no restriction on transaction of foreign currency from Pakistan but a large transaction requires identification and purpose under the rule set by the State Bank of Pakistan. Dollar transfer is legal, but in case of India many travellers use hawala system because no direct banking exists between the two countries. "I know huge transactions will take place after the match decision but no official channel will be used," said currency expert Anwar Jamal. He denied having knowledge about `other channels` of transaction of money from Karachi to Mumbai. "I got information from Dubai that the UAE Central Bank had asked banks to keep a check on large transactions," said Mr Jamal. Some Pakistani bankers said they had no specific instructions from the State Bank in this regard mainly because all transactions were identified and destinations of outflows were mentioned. They said there was no need to issue such instructions in Pakistan. Currency dealers said their market would not reflect any sign of loss or gain in betting in the Mohali semi-final but one would have some indications later. "The illegally earned money would not be deposited in banks or be sold in the market immediately. Slowly and gradually it would become part of the formal economy," said a banker.

Gilani’s visit: clarification

ISLAMABAD, March 29: In reference to a report "Kashmir not on Gilani's visit agenda" published in Dawn's Tuesday issue, a government spokesman has said that the headline is not in consonance with the contents of the report based on a briefing by Information Minister Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan. The spokesman said: "For the record, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani will be going to India upon the invitation of his Indian counterpart to watch a game of cricket, as a demonstration of the democratic government's unflinching commitment to regional peace and cooperation with all its neighbours, including India. "However, at no point, must this be seen as the democratic government's compromising its primary responsibility of protecting and promoting Pakistan's national interests, including a peaceful and just resolution of the Kashmir issue."

SC appoints Jabbar to monitor cable operators

The Chief Justice agreed to the possibility of cable operators resorting to extreme step and observed that the action be taken immediately after the matches were over. – File Photo ISLAMABAD: Agreeing to a suggestion by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) to penalise the cable operators guilty of violating an earlier court order only after the Cricket World Cup event is over, the Supreme Court appointed on Tuesday former information minister Javed Jabbar to monitor the programmes relayed by the cable operators to ensure smooth transmission of a private sport channel. A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Mohammad Sair Ali and Justice Ghulam Rabbani that had taken up a contempt petition moved by the Independent Music Group asked Javed Jabbar to help implement the Supreme Court order by ensuring over 3,000 cable operators desist from obstructing cricket semi-final as well as the Cricket World Cup final tournament being telecast by the private sport channel, `Geo Super`. Mr Jabbar will also bring to the notice of Pemra any violation of the Supreme Court orders he observes either through a telephone call or by an email. The suggestion to penalise the cable operators found guilty of violating the apex court`s order was put forth by Pemra`s legal counsel Ali Raza who feared that immediate action would prompt cable operators to go on strike to blackout the entire mega cricketing tournament like they did recently. The Chief Justice agreed to the possibility of cable operators resorting to extreme step and observed that the action be taken immediately after the matches were over. The court also pointed out that orders passed by the Supreme Court being the apex judicial authority was bound to be honoured and respected by every individual saying no body be allowed to violate such orders contrary to the Article 190 of the Constitution which required the institutions to come in aid of the Supreme Court in implementing any court orders. "We are conscious of the fact that being a regulatory authority Pemra is doing its best to monitor cable operators spreading all over the country," the order said and expected that the authority would utilise available resources to implement the order across the country. The order said the court expected that all sundry would implement the order failing which this court would be constraint to take an appropriate action against them. The Pemra counsel submitted that the authority took action against 76 cable operators by seizing their equipments and suspending their licenses on the complaints of the petitioner adding every possible effort were being taken to implement the order of the apex court in letter and spirit even though it was difficult to monitor each and every operator. Akram Sheikh representing the petitioner expressed the apprehension that the cable operators might resort to buffering or scrambling transmission of Geo Super during the World Cup semi-finals and the final. He said the private channel had acquired the exclusive right to broadcast the ICC cricket events within the territory of Pakistan. Mr Sheikh argued that despite the earlier order to ensure that except Geo Super no other private channel should air cricketing events a good number of operators have violated the order and even at times changed Geo Super from one place to another.

Sobho`s nephew, friend kidnapped

LARKANA, March 29: Nephew of veteran communist leader Sobho Gianchandani, along with his friend Rafiq Chandio, has been kidnapped. Both Dileep and Rafiq Chandio, residents of Dari Mohalla, and insurance agents by profession, had left for Garhi Khairo on Thursday last to sell a policy, said Bachal Das, brother-in-law of Dileep Kumar. Neither they reached Garhi Khairo nor returned home. Dileep`s cell phone was found switched-off when his wife and other relatives tried to contact him, said Mr Das. On Tuesday, relatives of Rafiq Chandio received a phone call from his captors who seeking ransom money for his release. They also asked them to convey a similar message to family of Dileep. Bachal Das said that the callers did not identify themselves and simply asked for arranging ransom without mentioning the figure. "We have informed the district police officer (DPO) of Larkana," he said and added, that the callers contacted us twice at 12.00 noon and 4pm saying that they would again contact them, Bachal Das said. "We met Deputy-Inspector General of Larkana range Din Mohammed Baloch on Monday who assured us of recovering Dileep and his friend,“ he said. The DPO, however, told them on Monday that they had gone missing from another district and police were trying to trace them, he said.

Hyderabad in grip of cricket frenzy

HYDERABAD, March 29: When it comes to obsession with cricket in the country, Hyderabad is no exception. Wednesday`s semi-final has generated passion among people of all ages and walks of life. Arrangements have been made throughout the city to savour the clash of titans. People are interested more in the Pakistan-India semi final than about who qualifies for the World Cup final following the Sri Lanka-New Zealand semi final. Hyderabad is the only city in Sindh, apart from Karachi, which has an international cricket centre – Niaz Stadium – where Pakistan has an unbeaten record both in test and one-day cricket. The stadium has long been neglected by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) even though the ground was given to the PCB by the district government under an agreement to upgrade it. No work has started as yet. Afzal Nagori is amazed to see the craze among people who are thronging his sports shop to buy the Pakistani team`s green coloured shirt and full cricket kit. He inherited the business – Ibrahim Sports – from his late father, but he doesn`t remember people ever getting involved so deeply in a Pakistan-India match. Maybe, he believes, it is media – which was not that powerful until recent past – that has stirred so much hype by previewing the game round the clock for the past one week. "Perhaps we were not expecting that our team will qualify for the semi-final despite skipper Shahid Afridi`s prediction that his charges will storm into the last four," remarked Nagori. Buyers are ready to purchase their favourite cricket items at inflated prices. "I haven`t played cricket but I am buying a cricket kit as we plan to watch the match on a big screen," said Zeeshan Ansari, a college student who had come to Afzal`s shop to get a kit. A quality national colour shirt, which was available at Rs750, is now being sold for Rs1,000. Lesser varieties range between Rs400 and Rs500. Sports items are mostly bought from Sialkot since that city is famed for its expertise in manufacturing sports goods. "I have exhausted my current stock and booked some orders from sellers that I will be providing them shirts by tonight," Nagori said. BIG SCREENS: The newest fad this time is of watching cricket on the big screen. "I am myself putting a 50 inch mega LCD (liquid crystal display) outside my shop with echo sound," said Ghazi Salahuddin, a volunteer of Cantonment peace committee. He wants to make the event enjoyable and memorable for everyone. "But we will make sure that it should remain purely a sporting event and no ill will is caused against any country," Ghazi said. He has taken an important initiative of keeping in touch with volunteers of different temples in Cantonment area to face eventuality. "Our committee has some non-Muslim volunteers," he said. The New Majestic cinema has decided to telecast the match live and is offering tickets in advance. "Rs100 will be charged for each ticket as I am investing around Rs50,000 for the event," said a cricket lover Asif Khan, who works for a cellular company. The SRTC area mobile phone market union, led by Shabbir Siddiqui, has also made arrangements for Wednesday`s match. Their programme is being sponsored by a company that deals in cell phones. A musical concert is in the pipeline if Pakistan win. "The main road to our market will remain closed as we are setting up a stage to put up a huge screen for shopkeepers and customers," said Mr Siddiqui. Availability of big screens might become a problem. LCDs are the second option in that case. SWEETS OF SUCCESS: And if Pakistan beat India people will certainly throng sweetmeat shops to celebrate the event. Owners of most shops have doubled the volume of their orders for Wednesday. "I have raised the quantity for tomorrow. My friends in the business have done the same," said Ahmed Ali, owner of a popular outlet in the cantonment area. Television mechanics are also having a good time. According to Afzal, he was as busy as a bee on Tuesday as everyone was keen to get his faulty set in order for the big day.

Project of five burns centres hits snags

RATODERO (Larkana), March 29: The project of five burns wards in different hospitals of Sindh, which the provincial government has approved, may be delayed for want of required equipment and instruments. The estimated cost of the project is Rs182.695 million with a capital cost of Rs19 million and a revenue cost of Rs163.645 million. The capital cost budget was placed at the disposal of the concerned drawing and disbursing officer but the revenue component was withheld by the health department with the commitment that it would itself procure all the required equipment and instruments but so far they have failed to do so. An officer of the health department told PPI on condition of anonymity that revenue component was withheld only to receive commission directly from the suppliers and, if the rate of commission is not settled, then this project will face the same fate as of CT Scan and MRI projects which were started during the previous coalition government and could not be started anywhere in Sindh. The 14-bed burns ward building is complete at CMCH and this centre was to start operation by end of June 2011 but there are no such signs at all as the provincial health department has done nothing to fulfil its primary duty of opening letter of credits for import of instruments/equipment as required under the approved PC-1.These wards are being established in the Sindh Government Hospital, Liaquatabad, Karachi, Liaquat University Hospital, Hyderabad, Chandka Medical College Hospital (CMCH), Larkana, Ghulam Mohammad Mahar Medical College Hospital, Sukkur, and Civil Hospital, Mirpurkhas. Burns wards are vital for hospitals of interior Sindh as all such patients are currently shifted to Karachi and many of them lose their lives before getting any treatment. Equipment and instruments would be procured for establishing operation theatres, Intensive Care Units, recover y rooms, dressing rooms and sterilisation rooms etc. These equipment and instruments include: Skin grafting knives, skin graft masher carrier, free masher, pneumatic dermatome complete with hand piece case, autoclave, surgical drum, oxygen cylinder & flow meter, ceiling OT light, anaesthesia machines, micro-surgical instruments, central monitoring system, defibrillators, ventilators (adult/pads), OT tables, Laryngoscope, diathermies etc. The staff required at CMCH for running the burns ward include Deputy Director (BS-18), two senior medical officers (BS-18), six male/female medical officers of BS- 17, four staff nurses of BS-16, three dialysis technician of BS -9, OT technician & OT assistants, attendants, ward servants, watchmen, sanitary workers and naib qasids.

Work on Larkana road suspended

LARKANA, March 29: Conversion of 28- kilometer long Larkana-Mohenjodaro road into a dual carriageway, stopped since December 2010 due to paucity of funds, has made the road users to suffer. The Rs3.5billion project had been left at the stage of `water bound` coat, a source privy to the project affairs told Dawn. He confirmed that so far 57 per cent of the work had been completed which abruptly was stopped in December 2010. He said that `insurance` guarantee of the company carrying out work on the project was another problem which also delayed the project. Initially launched on May 14, 2009, the project was to complete in a period of 12 month. Its date of completion was later extended to November 2011. However, due to shortage of funds, it may not complete by November 2011 which may further add to miseries of road users, he added. The entire machinery, including asphalt, plant, pavers, rol lers, dumpers, along with skilled labour, was lying idle since suspension of work. During July 2010, only a two-kilometer portion of the road could be completed. Under NHA rules, the contractor could claim demurrages for its staff and machinery lying idle on the site. The District Coordination Officer (DCO) of Larkana, Abdul Aleem Lashari, said funding problem was the major reason for stoppage of work but hastened to add that certain doubtful insurance documents of the construction company had also caused the delay. Abrupt stoppage of work on the project was quite worrisome, he said adding that the matter had been conveyed to the quarters concerned. This is an important project which could bring a positive change in Larkana and, therefore, should be started at the earliest, Mr Lashari suggested. President of the Larkana Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Bashir Ahmed Shaikh, said that abandoning of the project was disappointing for people of Larkana. It serves as the main communication artery towards the historical site of Mohenjodaro, airport, cadet college, and the proposed campuses of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Medical University and Qauaid-i-Awam University of Science and Technology and Larkana Industrial Estate, he added. Work on it should resume without wastage of time, he said and appealed to president, prime minister and other concerned agencies for early release of funds for the purpose. Dawn has learnt that the chief secretary of Sindh and Member Construction of NHA Aurangzeb Khan will meet in Karachi on March 30 to discuss the current status of NHA`s projects in Sindh, including Larkana-Mohenjodaro road. Sources in the NHA do not see urgent availability of required funds for the project which ran into trouble in July 2010 when the department of archaeology objected over its design, which according to it, would damage parts of the historical site.

Girl kidnapped, thrown in unconscious state

HYDERABAD, March 29: The family of a female student, thrown outside the house of her relatives in an unconscious state on Tuesday, have appealed to Sindh Governor and higher authorities to ensure justice to them. An uncle of the girl narrating the ordeal said that his niece, a first-year student of the Liaquat University of Medical Sciences (LUMHS) was kidnapped from the campus on Tuesday and later found unconscious outside the house of a relative in Qasimabad. She has been taken to a private hospital and was reportedly still unconscious and unable to share her ordeal with the family. No legal proceedings had been initiated. The family had earlier reported to the university`s Vice-Chancellor against the activists of student wing of a nationalist party for threatening the girl on her refusal to befriend them. No action was taken then, he said. "Resultantly, her mother accompanied her for one month and it was only today that the girl went alone," said her uncle and denied any family dispute involving his niece. Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Noshad A. Shaikh of the LUMHS admitted that the family did bring into his notice about the threats but the girl didn`t identify anyone. He said that it appeared to be a family issue and those harassing the girl doesn`t belong to his university. He said that the family informed the administration about the disappearance of girl after 2pm on Tuesday, after the classes were over. They said that the girl didn`t reach home after boarding the point bus after which the university was searched, said the vice-chancellor. However, uncle of the girl was adamant that his family had identified those harassing her for the last three months. We repeatedly disclosed the names of boys to Director Administration Dr Khadim Lakhiar and Director Academics Dr Shafi Jatoi but without any results, he said. "Lakhair particularly insisted and asked our family not to press the matter further on the plea that it would tantamount to inviting more trouble," and these officials said that those harassing our girl belonged to a nationalist group, he said. She also started getting SMS from different numbers.

Monitors dispute figures about breaches` length

HYDERABAD, March 29: The parliamentary committee, appointed to monitor ongoing work on rehabilitation of flood-ravaged irrigation network in Sindh, has disputed figures provided by the irrigation department about total length of breaches that occurred in dykes of River Indus and banks of canal during last summer`s flood. President Asif Ali Zardari has formed the six-member body led by MPA Dr Ahmed Ali Shah. Sindh Irrigation Secretary Rafiq Memon says that exact figure of length of the breaches would be available in a week after a survey which is under way. The body frequently submits its audit report to the president after its visits to flood-hit areas in Sindh. After visits to Thatta, Jamshoro, Larkana and Dadu districts, the committee says in the second report that according to irrigation officials, length of the flood-hit area was 592 kilometres. But, the assessment/survey which was conducted by the committee through a government agency calculated the length just 173km. "The irrigation department`s figure is 80 per cent exaggerated, which is likely to reflect badly on government`s spending," it said. According to Karachi-based Sindh Assembly sources, the committee got its own verification done by programme monitoring unit (PMU) of the National Programme for Improvement of Watercourses (NPIW). Officials of the Sindh irrigation department had given a briefing to members of Sindh Assembly in Karachi last month about devastations caused by flood last summer and resultant damages to canal breaches. Sources close to the committee told Dawn that members had raised another point that was again related to payment of money to contractors. For instance, they quoted example of plugging of breaches in the embankment of Manchhar Lake for which soil was being collected from 14km away, but local people said that soil was available at a small distance. And the soil being used is wet which won`t lead to compaction in bund, according to the people. Soil for this purpose is to be collected from the area which is called `borrow area` because according to irrigation officials, it is essential that the content of soil must match with that of the damaged embankment. "The contractor is collecting the soil from far away place to claim heavy bill," said the sources. A source, after going through the report, said that irrigation officials did not supervise works and were totally oblivious of consequences of their attitude because most of shortcomings noted by the committee had to be addressed by engineers primarily. The committee recommended that contractors who were habitual of going into litigation after doing 50 per cent of work should be discouraged. This way they make additional money. Assembly sources pointed out that the committee members did not want to build pressure on irrigation officials as far as exaggerated claim of damages and transparency was concerned so that contractors might not suspend work. "The committee will then be blamed for suspension of work at this crucial stage when flooding season is just three months away. Therefore, it is taking things lightly," sources said. They said that the committee wanted early completion of works and all breaches plugged at major sites like Molchand Surjani Bund at Kot Almo in Thatta district and Tori Bund near Kandhkot. Irrigation officials did not provide estimates of works to committee members which was otherwise necessary for transparency, the sources said. Everyone from the Sindh chief minister to the irrigation minister is emphasising transparency in works but the way irrigation officials dealt with the committee members, belonging to treasury benches, has given an otherwise impression. "The committee`s report might not have covered distributaries or minors that were damaged in floods. I think both figures (of damaged area) of 552km and 173km are not correct," the irrigation secretary insisted. According to him, actual measurement would be about the breach of site against which payment would be made. He said that there were minors and distributaries washed away by floods completely.

Chinese experts` team visits dyke, canals

LARKANA, March 29: A three-member team of water experts from China, along with the irrigation officials, visited Akil-Aghani dyke of the River Indus, Khirthar Canal and Saifullah Magsi branch (canal) on Tuesday. The superintendent engineer, Khirthar Canal and Saifullah Magsi branch, Shafqat Wadho, told this correspondent that the Chinese experts team, led by Mr Fang, would assess the level of damages caused to the irrigation system during last year`s flood. The federal government, in consultation with the Sindh irrigation department had engaged the team, he said, adding that it would compile its observations which would later be submitted to the Chinese government, an official of the department said. China may extend funding for repair and rehabilitation of damaged systems after submission of report by the experts team, sources said. The superintendent engineer, Larkana dyke division, irrigation depar tment, Abdul Rehman Nizamani, briefed the team members at Akil-Aghani dyke in presence of Noor Mohammed Baloch, the chief resident engineer of a consultancy firm hired by the government of Sindh, Abdul Qadir Palijo, Superintendent Engineer of Kotri Barrage and the focal person of Sindh irrigation department. The team members would visit Manchhar Lake on Wednesday, source said. After visiting canals and the dyke, members of the team also took a round of Mohenjodaro. CANALS CLOSURE: The Sukkur Barrage authorities announced that Dadu Canal and North Western Canal would remain closed from April 1 to 30 for annual maintenance.

29 released on bail

SUKKUR, March 29: Twenty-nine Lady Health Workers (LHWs) and five male employees of the National Programme for Family Planning and Primary Health were released on bail from a prison here on Tuesday. Their release came after lawyers posted bonds worth Rs25,000 each in an anti-terrorism court. They were arrested during a sit-in by the LHWs, supervisors and drivers on the National Highway at Kammoon Shaheed, Ghotki district, on March 22 in order to stress their demand for regularisation of their services. Abdul Khaliq, a resident of Thull, and advocate Rai Jan Mohammad Mahar of Sadiqabad, who were also arrested along with the protesters, were still in prison because their relatives were unable to reach the court in time to submit bail documents. Bushra Khoso, representing the protesters, told journalists after her release that "our struggle will continue until the government issues a notification about regularisation of our services". "We are ready to go to jail once again for our cause." LAWYER ARRESTED: Rai Jan Mohammad Mahar, the advocate, was arrested by police when he was merely passing through a place where the lady health workers were carrying out their protest, one of his colleagues alleged. Mr Panhwar clarified that Jan Mohammad was not taking part in the sit-in or siding with the agitators in any manner. "He was returning to Sadiqabad, his home town, after pleading a case in Ghotki. Police forcibly pulled him out from his car and booked him along with the protesting LHWs." Mr Panhwar said Mr Mahar's Honda Civic car was still with police, alleging that an official had brought it into his personal use.

Kidnapped child freed

SUKKUR, March 29: A five-year-old boy, who was kidnapped from near his house in Jacobabad on March 5, was recovered on Tuesday. Prithvi Kumar, son of Amrat Lal, was kidnapped when he went to a grocery shop to buy toffees. According to sources in the department, police had arrested a suspect, Gulzar Jagirani, three days ago and during interrogation he confessed to being involved in the kidnapping and informed the police about the area where he had been kept. A heavy contingent of police cordoned the village of Mohabbat Laro, located in the border area of Sindh Balochistan, and asked the kidnappers to surrender. However they fled, leaving Prithvi behind in a hut. After the kidnapping, people, traders and activists had put heavy pressure on the district administration and the police for his recovery. Protest demonstrations were held in Jacobabad from March 6 to 29 and a complete shutter down strike was observed in the city on Tuesday. Due t o the 25-day protest, which is the unprecedented in the history of Jacobabad, police were compelled to take action for the release of the boy from the clutches of kidnappers.

LHWs to resume movement after census

HYDERABAD, March 29: The protesting Lady Health Workers (LHWs) have consented to briefly suspend their ongoing campaign and take part in the national consensus beginning from April 15. Nevertheless, they reiterated to resume the campaign soon after the process, and with more velocity, if their demand of job regularisation was not met. General Secretary of the All Pakistan Lady Health Workers Association, Sindh Chapter, Ms Noor Bano Mallah demanded a judicial inquiry into police brutality against hundreds of LHWs during their sit-in on the National Highway at Kammoon Shaheed in Ghotki district on March 22. She also called for immediate release of imprisoned colleagues along with withdrawal of false terrorism cases against them. The LHWs were appointed under the National Programme for Family Planning and Primary Health in 1994 introduced by the late Benazir Bhutto and their services were still not regularised, she said. Some 17 years have passed since then. "It was on the orders of the Chief Justice of Pakistan that we were allowed the minimum wages of Rs7,000 per month as previously the LHWs weren't even accepted as workers under the Labour Policy and were drawing merely Rs2,900 as monthly remuneration, she said." "There are 112,000 lady workers out of 130,400 employees working all over the country under the National Programme with 25,000 working in Sindh alone. The ratio of female health workers is 100 per cent with the exception of supervisors and drivers, she said.Noor Bano Mallah praised the MNA Marvi Memon for her dedication and commitment and for joining in their 48-hour-long sit-in, besides enduring baton-charge and tear-gas shelling. She pleaded not to give the campaign a political shade. She was addressing a press conference at the press club on Tuesday. Our Mirpurkhas correspondent adds: Rallies and demonstrations continued in different parts of Sindh against police for detaining, registering false cases and roughly treating the protesting LHWs last week. The agitating LHWs, supervisors and drivers of six talukas, wearing black arm-bands and carrying placards, took out a rally from the Civil Hospital to the press club. They kept raising slogans for the acceptance of their demands. Chairperson, Lady Health Workers' Association Bushra Arain said in a telephonic address that the struggle would continue till the acceptance of their demands. She lamented the arrest, torture and registration of false cases against peaceful demonstrators by Ubauro police. She demanded regular transfer of monthly dues in the accounts of supervisors, drivers and health workers for better results. The government should ensure return of vehicle meant for the programme from the possession of MNAs and MPAs. The government should immediately issue regularisation of services notification and fill in the vacant positions on merit, Ms Bushra demanded. She warned of boycotting the upcoming round of anti-polio campaign if their demands were not met.

New polio case traced to refusal

PESHAWAR, March 29: A new case of polio has been reported in the semi-tribal Frontier Region of Lakki Marwat, as parents continue to refuse vaccination of their children in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata. Deputy director of the Expanded Programme of Immunisation, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Dr Jan Baz Afridi told Dawn on Tuesday that an 18-month-old boy Shaban, son of Aslam Khan, tested positive for poliomyelitis at the National Institute of Health, Islamabad. Shaban, of village Zawara Mella Gabba Shadikhel of tehsil FR Lakki Marwat, did not receive any dose of oral polio vaccine because his parents would not allow that, he said. With the new case, the total number of polio cases in the country reached 24, 12 of them in Fata, three in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, four in Balochistan and five in Sindh. Mr Afridi said that 21,844 children missed the vaccine during the March 7-9 polio vaccination campaign because their parents spurned the vaccinators. Majority of the refusal cases were reported from Kohat, Hangu, Lakki Marwat, Tank and all other areas adjacent to the Fata. Still, he said, the vaccinators covered 4.24 million under-five children out the 4.54 million targeted by the there-day campaign. These included 168,039 Afghan refugee children. He said that 312,240 children were missed because they were not at home when the vaccinating teams visited their area. Scores of other children were missed because of security reasons as health workers were not willing to visit violence-hit areas, according to the EPI chief. According to officials, lack of facilities for the health workers was also a problem that hampered the vaccination campaign. They said that several interventions by the health department to improve coverage of children had not delivered results due to which it was feared that the province might lose the international funding for the campaign. STAFF BOYCOTT: The staff of All Fata Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation on Tuesday held a protest demonstration here against the delay in disbursement of their salaries and announced to suspend administering vaccines to children in the tribal areas. Talking to media persons, the protestors said that they had not been paid their salaries for the last nine months and they were facing serious financial problems.

Village sinks as landslide blocks stream in Chitral

CHITRAL, March 29: Several houses have been submerged into water in Oveer valley in upper Chitral after a massive landslide blocked a stream flowing through the area. Talking to Dawn by telephone on Tuesday, the dwellers of Riri village Rahim Baig, Shahid Ali and Zahidullah said that the water was accumulating in the lake that formed after the landslide on Monday night. They said that the village was sinking fast into the water and more houses had been inundated rendering the people homeless.The road leading to the upper parts of the valley has also been blocked, leaving the people stranded on both sides of the stream. The residents of the Riri village said that they were running short of daily use items and demanded immediate rescue efforts and airdropping of food. Meanwhile, four more houses had collapsed due to the landslide in Jugoomi village in Koh union council while five houses were also under potential danger. The villagers have shifted to s afer places. Programme officer of the Focus Humanitarian Assistance in Chitral Wali Mohammad told Dawn that geological experts had been dispatched to the affected areas to assess the situation while relief measures would be initiated shortly. He said that a report had been submitted to the district administration recommending appropriate measures to rescue the villagers from the rising waters.

‘Peshawar through the ages’ shown in flowers

PESHAWAR, March 29: Celebrating the 2,500 years of Peshawar as the oldest living city of South Asia, the Floral Art Society of Peshawar brought together women members of floral art societies from other cities, who exhibited their skills of traditional flower arrangement on Tuesday. In relation to the theme of the floral show 'Peshawar through the ages', the artists arranged flowers and plants by mixing their work with the traditional arts of the city to depict how Peshawar once was. Tourism Corporation of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had collaborated with the society to organise the floral exhibition to show their skills to women of this province. The exhibition attracted a large number of visitors. Nowshaba Khalil, former president of the International Floral Society and now a council member of Floral Art Society, Karachi, demonstrated through her floral art how she remembered vines of Peshawar as a little girl when she visited the city with her parents. President of FAS, Peshawar, Fareeda Nishtar also demonstrated her skills to a large number of women.Johar Jamal, secretary of the FAS, said that those who lived in Peshawar and remembered it as a city of greenery and flowers could not see it as a barren and polluted city with broken roads. "We want to raise awareness among people, especially the youth, that they should make this city greener and more beautiful," she said while stressing the need for more such exhibitions. She said that they had been holding meetings with municipal authorities to decorate the city by planting trees and flowers instead of erecting concrete structures at crossroads. Other visitors also praised the art of how beauty of simple flowers and roses could be enhanced through different arrangements. On this occasion, Abid Haneef announced the launch of Horticulture Society of Pakistan's Peshawar chapter, which would raise awareness of horticulture. Shamim Saadullah Khan, former Principal of Aitcheson College and a horticulturist, said that he came to Peshawar after 38 years and there was no smell of sweet peas. He said that people of Peshawar should raise their voice whenever they felt the need to safeguard the beauty and greenery of the city.

New polio case traced to refusal

PESHAWAR, March 29: A new case of polio has been reported in the semi-tribal Frontier Region of Lakki Marwat, as parents continue to refuse vaccination of their children in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata. Deputy director of the Expanded Programme of Immunisation, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Dr Jan Baz Afridi told Dawn on Tuesday that an 18-month-old boy Shaban, son of Aslam Khan, tested positive for poliomyelitis at the National Institute of Health, Islamabad. Shaban, of village Zawara Mella Gabba Shadikhel of tehsil FR Lakki Marwat, did not receive any dose of oral polio vaccine because his parents would not allow that, he said. With the new case, the total number of polio cases in the country reached 24, 12 of them in Fata, three in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, four in Balochistan and five in Sindh. Mr Afridi said that 21,844 children missed the vaccine during the March 7-9 polio vaccination campaign because their parents spurned the vaccina tors. Majority of the refusal cases were reported from Kohat, Hangu, Lakki Marwat, Tank and all other areas adjacent to the Fata. Still, he said, the vaccinators covered 4.24 million under-five children out the 4.54 million targeted by the there-day campaign. These included 168,039 Afghan refugee children. He said that 312,240 children were missed because they were not at home when the vaccinating teams visited their area. Scores of other children were missed because of security reasons as health workers were not willing to visit violence-hit areas, according to the EPI chief. According to officials, lack of facilities for the health workers was also a problem that hampered the vaccination campaign. They said that several interventions by the health department to improve coverage of children had not delivered results due to which it was feared that the province might lose the international funding for the campaign. STAFF BOYCOTT: The staff of All Fata Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation on Tuesday held a protest demonstration here against the delay in disbursement of their salaries and announced to suspend administering vaccines to children in the tribal areas. Talking to media persons, the protestors said that they had not been paid their salaries for the last nine months and they were facing serious financial problems. They said that the immunisation staff in other provinces was provided all incentives and paid salaries on regular basis, but those working in this region were forced to work without wages. They said that the workers would attend the duty only after payment of their salaries.

PA resounds with protest: Sana ‘tried to gag’ opposition over Davis

LAHORE, March 29: Raymond Davis case kept haunting the Punjab Assembly session on Tuesday as the People's Party-led opposition alleged its members were being threatened of 'dire consequences' for raising the issue. Some of the PPP members also staged a sit-in before the podium of Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal, protesting the 'threats' and urging the chair to take action against the accused, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan. After alleging that Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and the provincial law minister were on board with regard to release of the CIA operative, the PPP MPAs had to go on the back foot when the treasury started raising slogans against the CIA operative's lawyer, Zahid Bokhari, who happened to be father of a party lawmaker Azma Bokhari. The opposition, it is learnt, was prepared to rap Shahbaz Sharif over the Raymond case, but an "unexpected" counterattack by the treasury forced it to retreat. Shaukat Basra, the PPP deputy parliamentary leader, told the media outside the assembly building that Zahid Bokhari had left the country after receiving life threats. He alleged that Rana Sana also threatened Azma Bokhari that she could be implicated in various cases if she "stressed" on the Raymond issue. In the house, Basra challenged the law minister to face the opposition when Rana Sana quietly left the house. Basra said his party accepted the challenge thrown by Shahbaz Sharif that if proven involved in the release of Raymond, the PML-N government would resign. He regretted that instead of taking the house into confidence on the issue the chief minister chose to give his version in a press conference. It was the Opposition's day when proceedings of the house started over an hour late than its scheduled time of 10am on Monday. Immediately after recitation of the Holy Quran, the Opposition tried to "take over" the proceedings, making it difficult for the speaker to run the house, as PPP members insisted on speaking on "Raymond Davis deal", alleging Shahbaz Sharif and Rana Sana were fully involved in the US national's release process. "The Raymond deal was struck in Raiwind," they alleged, as the house reverberated with a 'sloganeering contest' between the two sides of the political divide. At one stage the Speaker had to point out that some schoolchildren had come to witness the house proceedings so the elected public representatives should behave themselves. He also ordered expunging of controversial and unethical words from the house proceedings record. Amid the deafening noise, the chair asked parliamentary secretary for industries Rana Tajammul to respond to the queries in the Question Hour, making the Opposition to stage a walkout. PPP's Faiza Malik, however, returned to the house to point out lack of quorum. But the treasury managed to assemble enough members, after ringing bells for five minutes, to continue the business. The chair had to intervene time and again to rescue Rana Tajammal, as mostly he was unable to respond to supplementary queries, asking the movers they should put up a fresh (written) question. The parliamentary secretary even failed to name the officer who was probing a postal office fraud in the Food Stamp Scheme of the Punjab government. The war of words between the treasury and the Opposition was still raging when the chair adjourned the proceedings for 30 minutes for Zohr prayer break at 1.15pm. The house met again at 2.55pm only to be immediately adjourned for Wednesday morning, apparently to avert the onslaught over the Raymond issue.