Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif informed the Islamabad High Court that it was not possible for him to return to Pakistan and surrender. The PML-N supremo informed the court of his inability to return through a review petition against the IHC’s order that had directed him to surrender before the court by September 10.
The cabinet has allowed the maritime ministry to launch a ferry service for passengers travelling to and from all possible destinations across the world. announced Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi. Zaidi said the ferry service would operate like the Pakistan International Airlines. There would be a port security force similar to the airport security force, he added.
Rehana Gul, a 27-year-old resident of Peshawar, is the first ever blind radio presenter in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Blind by birth, Rehana positions herself behind the radio console at FM 92.2 to tell stories of people with disabilities, describe their struggles and share inspirational tales of their successes. Policy makers, researchers and medical doctors come on the line to provide commentary and answer questions.
Inspector General of Police, Shoaib Dastgir, has reportedly been removed and transferred as the secretary of the Narcotics Control Division by the Punjab government. Dastgir had refused to work under the PTI government over the recent appointment of Umar Sheikh as the Lahore capital city police officer (CCPO) without his consultation, and had asked the chief minister to transfer him to a “suitable location”.
Over 600 costly plants installed in various towns and villages of the desert district to provide safe drinking water to over 1.8 million residents of Tharparkar have been shut by the operators and workers. They said that they have stopped working because they haven’t been paid for the past eight months. The operators were hired by a private firm, Pak Oasis, to look after the plants.
A recent study has revealed that nine out of 10 Covid-19 patients in Karachi were asymptomatic, meaning only one in 10 show symptoms of the deadly pandemic. The study conducted by Aga Khan University researchers suggested hospitals in Pakistan did not face the same strain as hospitals in Spain and United Kingdom because most patients did not experience any symptoms and did not require treatment.
Educational institutions across Pakistan will reopen in phases starting September 15, Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mehmood announced. In the first phase, all higher education institutions including universities, professional colleges, vocational institutes, as well as classes nine till 12 will resume on Sept 15. A week later, on Sept 23, classes six, seven and eight will be allowed to return to schools following a review.
Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan (AWKUM) has become the country’s top-ranked university, according to the recently published Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2021. AWKUM has dethroned Quaid-e-Azam University (QAU) which was ranked as the best Pakistani university in 2020. Overall, 17 Pakistani universities have been included in the 2021 rankings. University of Oxford has topped the rankings for the fifth consecutive year.
In a landmark judgement concerning ‘honour killing’ cases, the Supreme Court has said that the word ‘ghairat’ must not be used to describe killings in the name of ‘honour’ as murder is ‘never honourbale and it should not be described as such’. “It will help deter such killings if the term ghairat is not used to describe them”, the top court said.
Pakistan’s educational institutions will remain open on Saturdays and will have no winter vacations this year, according to a notification issued by the federal education ministry. The institutions have been instructed to hold special classes on Saturdays. Schools, colleges, universities, and madrassas in Pakistan are expected to reopen on September 15 but a final decision will be taken on September 7.