ISLAMABAD, Sep 16 (APP):Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman on Friday met Japanese Ambassador Mitsuhiro Wada and apprised him of the devastation caused by the floods across the country, current relief efforts and the assistance required for rehabilitation and reconstruction.

Ambassador Mitsuhiro Wada expressed the sincerest condolences on behalf of the government and the people of Japan on the loss of precious lives and the severe devastation caused by the floods.

Sherry Rehman told the ambassador, “We are still receiving new data. Some 1,508 people have lost their lives and more than 12,000 are injured. Over 300 bridges have been torn apart and nearly 13,000 km of roads severely damaged, cutting off access to the areas drowned in flood waters.”

She said instant rescue and humanitarian relief had become an urgent task, as those who had survived, could not find dry land to pitch their tents.

“We had cascading climate events occurring one after the other since the start to the year, with temperatures reaching 53 degrees in Sindh followed by heatwaves and three times the normal amount of GLOFs,” she added.

Spread of diseases like cholera, dengue and others, she said, would exacerbate the health crisis among the affected population as 33 million people had been impacted severely.

The ambassador briefed the minister on the humanitarian assistance and conveyed the extension of Emergency Grant Aid of $ 7 million to Pakistan by the Government of Japan.

The minister expressed her gratitude to the ambassador and said, “We are extremely thankful to the people of Japan for extending their support and looking to support Pakistan in rebuilding as resilience will require more funds. Our aim is to build back better with climate resilient infrastructure and to address the looming food, livelihood and water insecurities that will arise once the waters recede.”

                ISLAMABAD, Sep 16 (APP):Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has carried out an independent Quality of Service (QoS) Survey in 14 cities of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan in order to measure the performance and quality of Cellular Mobile Operators’ (CMOs) services being provided to their customers.

During the survey, KPIs enlisted in the Next Generation Mobile Service (NGMS) license and Cellular Mobile Network Quality of Service (QoS) Regulations 2021, were checked using state-of-the-art automated QoS monitoring and benchmarking tool, said a news release issued here on Friday.

The checked KPIs pertained to voice, network coverage, SMS and mobile broadband, and data services. The Drive test teams selected survey routes in such a manner to cover main roads, service roads, and the majority of sectors and colonies in the surveyed areas.

Based upon the compliance level of each KPI against the threshold defined in the respective licenses and QoS Regulations, CMOs have been ranked between first to fourth position in Mobile Network Coverage and Voice Services as per compliance level in surveyed cities.

Similarly, in the mobile broadband speed segment, the ranking has been done with respect to the highest data download and upload speed, network latency, and webpage loading time.

The survey results revealed that CMOs are compliant with respect to upload and download speed to a great extent, while network latency and webpage loading time was found below the threshold. Similarly, SMS and voice KPIs have also been found below the licensed threshold in some areas.

Eventually, necessary instructions have been issued to the operators for taking corrective measures so as to ensure improvement in the service quality up to the standards.

The service quality monitoring activity is being carried out by PTA field teams with the ultimate aim to pursue the operators for the provision of better mobile services and to promote healthy competition among the operators.

                ISLAMABAD, Sep 16 (APP):Ulema and Mashaykh belonging from all schools of thought called for flood victims’ help in their Friday sermons across the country.

On the call of Pakistan Ulema Council (PUC), the scholars urged the philanthropists to extend all out support to the people facing critical situation due to monsoon rains and flash floods in various areas of the country.

Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Interfaith Harmony and Middle East and PUC Chairman Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi said the winter season was near the corner and the flood affected people were left to live under an open sky.

He said it was a high time to seek the blessings of Allah Almighty by helping the people in need as “service to humanity is a service to God.”

Appreciating the religious organizations carrying out welfare work in the flood-hit areas, Ashrafi urged them to  accelerate the relief and rehabilitation activities in a bid to get them back to a normal life as soon as possible.

He also appealed the ‘Sahib-e-Nisab’ to pay their Zakat in advance to support the affected people as they were under severe financial crisis due this natural calamity.

“Allah Almighty would reward the philanthropists twice, first for paying their Zakat and second for helping their fellow beings at this trying time, “he added.

Ashrafi also urged the people who want to perform Nafli worships such as Umrah, Hajj or pay homage to other sacred places abroad to donate their savings for relief and rehabilitation of their flood affected brethren.

Sohail Ali

                LAHORE, Sep 16 (APP):Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Youth Affairs Shiza Fatima Khawaja presided over an online meeting to review progress on sports development schemes and youth projects on Friday.

The representative from all provinces, PILDAT and UNFPA participated in the online meeting. Deputy Secretary Planning/Admin Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab Imtiaz Ahmed and Director Admin Syed Umair Hassan represented Punjab in the high-profile meeting.

Deputy Secretary Planning/Admin Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab Imtiaz Ahmed and Director Admin Syed Umair Hassan briefed the chair about the Punjab’s sports development projects and different sports events organised under the banner Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab.

Shiza Fatima Khawaja appreciated the effective measures taken by Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab for the promotion of sports across the province.

Deputy Secretary Planning/Admin Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab Imtiaz Ahmed said that Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab has approved stipends for athletes and grant in aid for Sports Associations. “Pride of Punjab Sports Awards have also been initiated to acknowledge the meritorious services of sports icons of the country”.

He said that first Youth Hostel (180 capacity) is ready and functional at Nishtar Park Sports Complex. “Punjab Youth Ambassador Programme has also been initiated and initially world snooker champion Ahsan Ramzan, tennis star Aisamul Haq, athlete Sahib-e-Asra and young record-breaking mountaineer Shehroz Kashif have been nominated Youth Ambassadors of Punjab”.

Briefing the chair, Director Admin,SBP Syed Umair Hassan said besides other effective sports promotion measures, Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab also organized a flood relief camp at Nishtar Park Sports Complex for the help of flood victims. “We organised several events such as E-Rozgaar Meetup, E-Sports Soobai Series, Punjab Talent Hunt Programme, E-Learning Centres in recent past”.

He further informed the chair that Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab has built five international standard tennis courts and Punjab’s first tennis academy adjacent to State of the Art Tennis Stadium at Nishtar Park Sports Complex. “Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab is organizing sports events of different games regularly to provide maximum playing opportunities to talented male and female players of the province,” he added.

Sohail Ali

                LAHORE, Sep 16 (APP):The Pakistan Cricket Boards Pathway Programme enters its last week before the participants join their respective Pakistan Junior League sides, end September.

The five foreign coaches hired to work for the Engro Cricket Coaching Project under the pathway programme are focusing on sharpening the cricketing skills of the next generation of Pakistan stars here at the National High Performance Centre.

Renowned fielding coach Julien Fountain and batting coach Toby Radford arrived in Lahore earlier this week to join power-hitting coach Julian Wood, bowling coach Gordon Parsons and strength and conditioning coach Nick Webb to complete the foreign coaches’ roster for the Engro Cricket Coaching Project.

Fountain has rich experience of fielding professional sides including his stint with the Pakistan senior team, 2012-2014. Besides Pakistan, Fountain has also worked with Bangladesh, West Indies and various domestic and franchise sides around the world including Quetta Gladiators. 

Fountain was with the Gladiators for the first six editions of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Julien Fountain said on Friday: “Pakistan is just like home for me, I am thrilled to be here again, the pathway programme is a fantastic initiative and I am looking forward to an exciting time with these youngsters who are the future stars of Pakistan cricket.

“In my earlier stints both with the national side and at the academy, I have found the players incredibly receptive and keen on learning and I am glad that this time around I am fully dedicated to working with them as at the U19 level we can develop some great athletes and fielders.

“Coaching these youngsters will help Pakistan cricket build a foundation to give these young players, the skill, the technique, the tactics, the attitude and the life skills so that when they come into the Pakistan system for real, they will have the ability to deal with not only the foreign coaches but they will have the ability to fit in a professional system very quickly and that can only help Pakistan cricket.

“Fielding is as experts say, one discipline of the game that you can improve on even if you don’t have the natural talent for it. The basic mantra of fielding that I want to instil in these players is wicket-taking, the fielders have to go on the field with the belief that they can take wickets [through run outs and catches].”

More than 60 players between 16 and 19 years of age are being trained by the coaches while PCB’s local coaches are also providing assistance in various disciplines in the revolutionary pathway programme that is aimed at developing the future stars from an all-round perspective.

Besides receiving world-class cricket coaching under the Engro Cricket Coaching Project, the players will also get education and life skills training.

The players will get the opportunity of showcasing their newly learned skills at the inaugural edition of the six-team Pakistan Junior League that commences in Lahore on Thursday, 6 October.

ISLAMABAD: /DNA/ – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted briefings on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) for resident diplomatic missions of several countries from East and Central Asia and the Middle East.

Chaired by the Additional Secretary (Asia-Pacific), two rounds of briefings were convened on 15 and 16 September 2022. The panel of briefers also included senior officials of the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, and the Board of Investment.

In her briefing, the Additional Secretary shared the underlying vision of CPEC, which was based on Pakistan’s desire for connectivity and interest in deepening linkages with Central Asia, the Middle East, and the East Asian region. She emphasized that CPEC had added a new dimension in the Pakistan-China All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership, which was based on mutual understanding and respect. Pakistan welcomes development partners and enterprises from around the world to strengthen investment and trade linkages and consider opportunities in Special Economic Zones (SEZ).

Thanking the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant Government departments for the briefing, participating diplomatic missions underscored abiding mutual interest in enhancing economic cooperation.

                ISLAMABAD, Sep 16 (APP):The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday adjourned hearing in the case pertaining to non- payment of compensations to the affectees of Capital Development Authority (CDA) various sectors.

Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard the case filed by the CDA affectees.

Chairman CDA couldn’t appear before the court as the bench summoned him again in personal capacity on next hearing.

CDA’s counsel informed the court that Chairman CDA Capt. (reted) Muhammad Usman was in Karachi to attend a meeting about Dengue control.

The court said that it would hear the CDA’s chief once he returned.

Member Estate CDA Afnan Alam said that the authority had started payment of compensation to the affectees in line of the court’s orders.

The CDA, he said, had prepared a plan to address the issues of affectees.

The chief justice observed that the affectees had also done wrong by submitting fake claims.

The petitioners adopted the stance that the CDA’s machinery was still working on their lands despite the stay order of this court.

The CDA official contradicted the petitioners and said that the authority was not violating the court orders.

The court asked the CDA officials to submit report after addressing the issues of affectees. The case was then adjourned till September 20.