Bench, a Pakistani short-film made by actor and director Usman Mukhtar has been nominated in the best short-film category at the Independent Short Awards festival in Los Angeles (LA), USA. The film explores the struggles faced by a coupled played by Chaudhry and Mukhtar. At the moment, the film is doing festival rounds. It will be screen in Pakistan soon.
A Karachi based company, Crown Group has introduced its own range of electric cars in Pakistan. The company displayed a number of environmentally friendly vehicles, including motorcycles, auto-rickshaws, cars and ambulances, which it says are energy efficient. The starting price for an electric car, a pilot project, is Rs400,000. It’s a two-door hatchback with a seating capacity of two persons.
The government of Pakistan is going to create Pakistan’s first artificial intelligence centre with China’s help for Rs1 billion in a bid to set up technology zones across the country. This is part of its Rs6.26 billion plan to digitise the country. Parliament is also going to be digitised. The IT ministry plans to use technology to record attendance, votes and quorum. This will cost Rs8 million.
Mobile accessory prices soar in Pakistan as markets depend on Chinese imports are running out of supplies due to coronavirus fears. This includes mobile phone hardware, accessories and spare electronic parts. According to an importer, they have reached a historic low in the stock of supplies. The market has responded to the dwindling supplies by raising prices. LCD screens for mobile phones that cost between Rs900 and Rs1,000 now cost Rs1,800.
The Supreme Court has told Air Marshal Arshad Mehmood Malik to choose between the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) and PIA. He cannot hold two posts at once, said the bench, which declared his appointment as chief of the national airlines illegal. The court said PIA needs a permanent CEO that will make it into an international standard airline. It should be providing better services to passengers, it said.
Attorney-General Anwar Mansoor Khan resigned in a surprise move on Thursday after the Pakistan Bar Council demanded he do so. He was the chairman of the PBC by virtue of his post as attorney-general. I didn’t t want to leave them behind, he said. He added that he decided to resign last night. His resignation letter has been sent to the president.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has suspended hard-hitting middle-order batsman, Umar Akmal, just before the start of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2020. Umar was suspended for violating the players’ code of conduct during a fitness test at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), Lahore, earlier this month while inside sources say that he has been suspended under PCB’s anti-corruption code.
Petrol pumps in various areas of the metropolis have started to shut down after authorities closed oil terminals in Keamari. Oil terminals closed after aeroallergen from soybean dust reportedly caused at least 14 deaths and affected hundreds more. Petrol pumps in Saddar and on Shahrah-e-Faisal and Karsaz have already closed down while throngs of cars rushed to join queues outside those that were still open.
Pakistani weightlifter, Rabia Shahzad has won gold at the Glasgow Open Classic Weightlifting Championship 2020. Rabia Shahzad, aged 21, studies at IBA Karachi and trains independently without depending on any sort of support from the Pakistan Weightlifting Federation. Last year, Rabia Shahzad, clinched the gold medal at the Hampshire Weightlifting Championship held in the United Kingdom.
A special Lahore anti-terrorism court sentenced three men to death for the 2014 suicide attack at the Wagah Border. The court announced the verdict on Wednesday. It found three men, Haseebullah, Saeed Jhan and Hussain, guilty and sentenced them to death five times. It also imposed a 300-year imprisonment and life imprisonments on the men. They have also been ordered to pay a Rs10 million fine.