Siasat Wala Blog

ISLAMABAD: Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood said on Wednesday the United States (US) has recognised the “atrocities being perpetrated by India on its 200 million Muslim citizens.” Weighing in on the US Commission on International Religious Freedom’s annual report, he said in a Twitter statement: “Such Nazi like actions sponsored by the government against an entire community are hard to imagine in this day and age but Modi has done it before in Gujrat.” Finally the US has also recognised the atrocities being perpetrated by India on its 200 million Muslim citizens. Such Nazi like actions sponsored by the government against an entire community are hard to imagine in this day and age but Modi has done it before in Gujrat — Shafqat Mahmood (@Shafqat_Mahmood) April 29, 2020 The US body in its report said the Citizenship Amendment Act, passed in December by the Parliament in majority-Hindu India, violates religious freedom especially for Muslims. Read More:  FM draws O...

QUETTA: The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Wednesday dispatched the fourth consignment of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) for doctors and health workers of Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, ARY News reported. According to NDMA Spokesperson, these PPE include surgical masks, N-95 masks, protective gowns, gloves, shoe covers, surgical head covers, face shields, protective goggles, and sanitizers. The consignment included 38798 surgical masks, 1600 N-95 masks, 7292 protective gears, 2240 surgical gloves and 1303 shoes to be used in intensive care units of hospitals. It also contained 1676 surgical caps, 318 protection glass, 808 face shields and 200 thermal guns, bottles of sanitizers. Similarly, 29098 surgical masks , 1200 N-95 masks, 5469 protective gears, 1680 surgical gloves and 997 shoes have been dispatched to Gilgit Baltistan hospitals. The spokesperson said the provision of PPEs is also continuing to hospitals of Punjab, Sindh, and Azad Kashmir. The Na...

KARACHI: The Sindh government on Wednesday fixed 1.4 million tons of wheat procurement target for the current crop, ARY News reported. Sindh Food department has issued stern directives for the regional deputy directors, district food controllers and other concerned staff to meet the target. The procurement of wheat started from March 26 and so far 40 per cent of the target has been achieved. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah not happy with the performance of the department so far. The officers of the Food department have been urged to utilize all out efforts to achieve the procurement target of wheat in the province. Read more: Committee formed to probe wheat crisis begins its working in Sindh The director food Sindh has been asked to monitor the purchasing process and godowns’ position. It is worth mentioning here that Senate Standing Committee on National Food Security and Research in its last meeting had recommended fixing minimum wheat support price at Rs1,400 per 40 ...

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday took up a petition challenging the Sindh government’s notification calling for a 20 per cent cut in school fees, reported ARY News. A state counsel stated before the SHC bench hearing the case that the government has withdrawn the notification and brought an ordinance, making it mandatory for all education institutes to charge 80 per cent of the total monthly fees. He said the ordinance has been sent over to the Sindh governor for approval, adding the instant petition has become infructuous since the notification in question has been taken back. The bench questioned director general of private schools Mansoob Siddiqui under what law the notification was issued. Read More: CM Usman Buzdar announces 20 per cent reduction in school fees in Punjab To which, he replied he put out the notification for a 20 per cent cut in school fees on the directives of the Sindh chief minister. The judges chided Siddiqui asking if he would jump into a...

KARACHI: An accountability court in Karachi on Wednesday directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to furnish comments on a plea for unblocking CNICs of Sindh Assembly Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani and other accused persons in the assets beyond means case, ARY News reported. The PPP leader Agha Siraj Durrani along with his family members showed up before the court as it resumed hearing the case. The speaker’s lawyer stated before the court that the CNICs of five accused are still blocked despite the fact that they have been granted bail. He requested the court to issue directives for the authorities concerned to unblock their CNICs. The court directed the corruption watchdog to submit comments in this regard on May 30. Agha Siraj Durrani was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) last year on February 20 on charges of accumulating assets beyond known sources of income. In Dec, the Sindh High Court (SHC) ordered his release on bail . The court ordered him to fu...

US oil prices rebounded above $14 a barrel Wednesday, a day after a sell-off sparked by a major fund selling its short-term holdings of the commodity amid virus-triggered storage concerns. West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark, for June delivery jumped 14.5 percent to $14.13 a barrel in Asian morning trade. It had plunged by more than 21 percent at one point Tuesday after the United States Oil Fund — a major US exchange-traded fund (ETF) — started selling its short-term contracts of the commodity. Brent crude, the international benchmark, was trading 3.27 percent higher at $21.13 a barrel. Traders “are bargain hunting after a couple of days of massive sell-offs”, OANDA senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley told AFP. ANZ Bank said in a note that the market was hit by volatility Tuesday “as ETFs and index funds moved contract positions amid renewed concerns of negative prices” in short-term holdings. The Oil Fund had sold its contracts due to expire in June to move into longer-...

KARACHI: Faisal Edhi, the head of Edhi Foundation and the son of philanthropist late Abdul Sattar Edhi, has again tested positive for the coronavirus, ARY News reported on Wednesday. The Faisal Edhi head went into self-isolation after testing positive for the coronavirus on April 21. Faisal Edhi against underwent coronavirus test at the PIMS hospital on April 27, in which he was again diagnosed COVID-19 positive. Last week, the Sindh Health Department had confirmed that the coronavirus report of social worker Faisal has come positive. Edhi is in Islamabad at the moment. His son Saad Edhi , in a statement, had said that Faisal Edhi was currently in Islamabad and was doing better. “He has not been admitted to any hospital and is self-isolating,” he said. He further said that everyone who had come in contact with his father will be tested for the virus. Before testing positive for the coronavirus for the first time, the head of the Edhi Foundation met Prime Minister Imran Khan in I...