Prime Minister Imran Khan will visit Naran and Kaghan today (Monday).
He will inaugurate various development projects for the promotion of tourism in the area.
The Prime Minister will also meet delegations of notables of the area.
Pakistan Reports 914 More Covid-19 Cases, 20 Deaths
ISLAMABAD: The COVID-19 pandemic claimed 20 more lives in Pakistan during the last 24 hours, pushing the nationwide death toll to 22,231, quoting the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).
A total of 914 new cases of the virus emerged when 44,496 samples were tested during this period, taking the country’s caseload to 955,657.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) said the Covid-19 infection rate was recorded at 2.05%.
The number of people who have recovered from the disease since the first case of the pandemic was reported in the country climbed to 901,201 after 910 more people recuperated in the last 24 hours.
As of June 28, as many as 11,978,339 people have been partially vaccinated against the deadly infection while 2,815,454 fully vaccinated, the NCOC said.
A total of 14,793,793 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered across Pakistan thus far.
16,560 health workers contract COVID-19 in Pakistan
As many as 16,560 healthcare workers have been infected while battling the outbreak of COVID-19 in Pakistan, said sources.
According to sources at the Ministry of National Health, so far 9,893 doctors, 2,363 nurses and 4,304 other staff of hospitals have contracted the coronavirus.
While battling the deadly outbreak of COVID-19 in the country 163 healthcare workers have lost their lives, the sources said.
COVID-19 deaths lowest since June 1
ISLAMABAD, June 27 (DNA): The national tally on Sunday of total active COVID-19 cases was recorded 32,241 with 901 more people testing positive for the deadly virus and 1,347 people recovering from the disease during the last 24 hours.
Twenty-three corona patients have died during past 24 hours, 19 of whom were under treatment in the hospitals and four out of the hospitals had perished in their respective quarantines or homes, according to the latest update issued by the National command and Operation Centre (NCOC).Most of the deaths occurred in the Punjab followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Out of the total 23 deaths occurred, six of them died were under treatment on ventilators.
There were 1,941 Covid infected patients under treatment in critical condition in various Covid dedicated healthcare facilities of the country. The National Covid positivity ratio during past 24 hours was recorded 2.02 percent.
The Covid positivity ratio is the percentage of actual positive cases appearing in every 100 tests performed to identify infected individuals. The maximum ventilators were occupied in four major cities including Islamabad 22 percent, Lahore 17 percent, Bahawalpur 22 percent and Multan 27 percent.
NAB seeks access to tax record of politicians
Khayam Abbasi
ISLAMABAD: In a major development, the National Accountability Bureau has asked the government to give it access to local and offshore tax records of all politically exposed persons, bureaucrats and their families by introducing new legal amendments before approval of the budget.
The bureau has recommended four major amendments in the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 through the Finance Bill 2021, which the National Assembly is expected to approve next week on Tuesday. These proposals, if accepted by the government, will allow NAB to even reopen the past and closed transactions of the last 20 years, official documents showed.
The “request” for bringing these amendments in the Income Tax Ordinance with effect from the year 2001 is made at a time when the bureaucracy has already been complaining about overdoing by NAB. The opposition parties too have lodged protests over what they call “witch-hunting” by NAB.
NAB has asked to end immunity in sharing of local and offshore tax records of politically exposed persons including the members of parliament, bureaucracy, public servants and people in service of Pakistan, the holders of public office and their spouses and children, the documents showed.
Indian base at Jammu reports ‘drone attack’
The blasts, as per Indian media, were caused by drones while another IED explosive, meant for use in a possible strike at a “crowded place”, was thwarted
News Desk
JAMMU: Two blasts took place at an Indian Air Force base in Jammu airport during the early hours of Sunday, according to various Indian media reports.
The blasts, as per Indian media, were caused by drones while another IED explosive, meant for use in a possible strike at a “crowded place”, was thwarted, reports quoted Indian police as saying.
Two IAF personnel were injured in the blast, which took place a little before 2:00 am at the airport.
“Reports say the explosions, the first at 1.37 AM and the second at 1.43 AM, were heard a km away,” says the NDTV.
One of the bombs, as per the report, damaged the roof of a building in the technical section while the other exploded in an open area.
“Drones with payload were used in both the blasts at Jammu airfield. Another crude bomb was found by the Jammu police,” Jammu and Kashmir police chief Dilbagh Singh told news agency ANI, adding that this IED was to be detonated at a “crowded place”.
Indian Police have registered an FIR under the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The Act allows the arrest and detention of suspects up to six months without evidence.
IAF teams, forensic data experts, and others are currently investigating the blasts, says an Indian media report.
So far, there have been no reported flight disruptions due to the attack. The Jammu airport is a dual-use facility managed by the IAF. It is also used to operate passenger flights.
Bilawal oblivious to PPP position in AJK: Fawad
Says PM Imran’s OBL statement a slip of tongue
Shujaat Hamza
ISLAMABAD, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain Sunday said Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Zardari was even oblivious to his party position in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) as only eight candidates were contesting the upcoming elections of AJK Legislative Assembly on PPP tickets.
In a tweet, he said the speech of Bilawal Zardari has clearly revealed the reality that he (Bilawal) does not know about his party’s position in AJK. He recalled that Bilawal Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Ms Maryam Nawaz had run their respective parties’ election campaigns crazily in the last elections of Gilgit-Baltistan.
However it was revealed subsequently that not even one third among the total aspirants were contesting the elections on the tickets of both PPP and PML-N at that time.
Meanwhile, State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Farrukh Habib Sunday said that the Kashmiri people will reject the ‘banarsi thug’ like Bilawal in the upcoming general elections.
While reacting to PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto’s speech, in which he dubbed Imran Khan a puppet prime minister, Farrukh Habib said that Bilawal used to make claims for victory during the election campaign of Gilgit Baltistan but their candidates forfeited security deposits. He further said the same would happen in the upcoming AJK elections. “The defeat is waiting for you in the Kashmir elections. The nation knows how you were making tall claims before the Gilgit Baltistan election but you had bitten the dust when results came out,” he said.
The minister said that Bilawal Bhutto was the heir of Asif Ali Zardari’s corruption, adding that the people of Kashmir knew that Imran Khan was their true ambassador and savior. Criticizing the PPP and Bilawal Bhutto, he said, “You and your party know nothing other than corruption.”
Farrukh said that that PTI’s position was much better than other parties in Kashmir and after the election, they would form a government there. He said that the track record showed that wherever Bilawal and Maryam Nawaz went, the PTI got record vote for there. He said that the people of Pakistan, Gilgit Baltistan and AJK considered the PTI a true public party.
Qureshi slams FATF’s decision to keep Pak on grey list
Bureau Report
MULTAN, June 27 (DNA): Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has once again raised fingers on FATF’s decision against removing Pakistan from the grey list and said that if it was a technical decision then the country would have been added to the white list.
“Now FATF members and the world has to decide if it is a technical or a politically motivated forum,” he said while addressing media in Multan.
The foreign minister said that even FATF members have admitted that Pakistan has shown compliance on 26 out of 27 points of the action plan from the anti-money laundering watchdog. He further rejected that the PTI government is responsible for the inclusion of Pakistan on the FATF grey list and said that it was during PML-N’s tenure when the country was added to the list.
“Rather during our tenure, we amended 14 laws and introduced some new ones to show compliance on FATF action plan,” Shah Mahmood Qureshi said.
Speaking on South Punjab issues, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that a piece of land has been identified for the Bahawalpur secretariat and after the South Punjab secretariat in Multan, its foundation would also be laid by the incumbent government. “We have identified a 30-acre land in Bahawalpur for a secretariat and soon its foundation will be laid,” he said. The foreign minister said that establishment of a GOR and a secretariat will be established on 63-acre land that has been transferred for the purpose. He said that Rs189 billion has been earmarked for South Punjab uplift projects and they would ensure at the money is spent on the projects announced.
“We have fulfilled our promise of a separate development plan for South Punjab and will ensure that every single penny of it would be spent by the end of the fiscal year,” the PTI vice chairman said adding that being the top party leader he is responsible for ensuring enforcement of PTI’s political agenda.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that Pakistan is not diplomatically isolated rather engaged with different parts of the world including Europe, the Muslim world, the US, Russia and the African continent to strengthen its relations.
Responding to the points of the opposition members, he said India’s designs to push Pakistan into diplomatic isolation have failed.
Fate of TAPI project hangs in the balance
The PTI government has seriously objected to this agreement and asked Turkmenistan that the existing agreement is not in the interest of the country
Special Report
ISLAMABAD: The Turkmen Gas Company on the much touted trans-nations (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) TAPI gas pipeline project of worth $10 billion even after the lapse of 5 years has so far failed to achieve financial closure as earlier it was scheduled to be attained in December 2016. (TAPI) pipeline will be a 1,814km trans-country natural gas pipeline running across four countries. Designed to serve for 30 years, the pipeline was expected to commence operations in 2021. It was expected to transport 33 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas a year
Now the authorities concerned in Pakistan are saying that Turkmenistan Gas Company is now tasked to complete the financial closure in 2021 which is why the project will come on stream in 2023 which was earlier due to be operational in 2020 under its original plan. Though the Turkmenistan authorities in its territory has laid down the 200 kilometers from Gylkynish—the gas field to Turkmen-Afghan border, but they have not achieved the financial closure of the project.
Sources believe, TAPI may not see the light of the day because India is involved in this project. Turkmenistan is keen to keep India as part of the project, despite negative vibes from Islamabad. A govt source told on the condition of not being named that Indian presence in the project has caused delays in the implementation and if India remains there, this project may never complete.
The Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India Pipeline (TAPI), also known as Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline, is a natural gas pipeline being developed by the Galkynysh – TAPI Pipeline Company Limited with participation of the Asian Development Bank. The pipeline will transport natural gas from the Galkynysh Gas Field in Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and then to India. Construction on the project started in Turkmenistan on 13 December 2015, work on the Afghan section began in February 2018, and work on the Pakistani section was planned to commence in December 2018.
Unless and until the Turkmen authorities change the agreement about the gas delivery point and review about the gas prices, Pakistan will not give its ownership to the project. Under the existing agreement, Turkmenistan will provide the gas to Pakistan at Turkmen-Afghan border and the gas transit loss in the territory of Afghanistan will be borne by Pakistan. However, the PTI government has seriously objected to this agreement and asked Turkmenistan that the existing agreement is not in the interest of the country. The government said that Pakistan’s liabilities will only be invoked when the gas is delivered at Pak-Afghan border not at Turkmen-Afghan border and Pakistan will not be responsible for any gas loss during transit through territory of Afghanistan.
The sources said the government of Pakistan has already constituted a Price Negotiation Committee for TAPI gas. Sources say the project may be commissioned by end of 2023 if everything goes well. Technical discussions on gas price are ongoing between the Petroleum Division and the Turkmen side. Sources say that Pakistani side is rather more interested in CASA 1000 gas project, which is already at an advanced stage. The President of Tajikistan Imomali Rahmon was in Pakistan few weeks ago and besides other thing the progress on CASA 1000 was also discussed threadbare. Tajikistan is a key partner in CASA 1000 along with Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan. It is basically Tajik gas that will come to Pakistan, at highly competitive rates.
PM Imran urges youth to gear up for ‘biggest tree planting campaign in Pakistan’s history’
ISLAMABAD, JUN 27 – Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday asked all Pakistanis, especially the youth, to prepare themselves for the “biggest tree planting campaign in Pakistan’s history” ahead of the monsoon season this year.
The premier shared an infographic on Twitter that showed the number of trees per person in different countries. According to the chart, there are 10,163 trees per person in Canada, 699 per person in the United States, 130 per person in China, 28 per person in India and five trees per person in Pakistan.
“We have a lot of catching up to do,” the premier noted in his tweet. “And we will be gearing up this monsoon season for our plantation drive — the biggest in Pakistan’s history.”
Earlier this year, Prime Minister Imran launched the Spring Tree Plantation Campaign 2021, vowing that his government would make a “green Pakistan” by planting 10 billion trees.
According to the Pakistan Economic Survey 2020-21 that was released last month, the target of planting around 350 million trees and 814.6m plants across the country in that time period under the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme (TBTTP) had been achieved.
The success of the Billion Trees Afforestation Project (BTAP) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa encouraged the government to launch the TBTTP across the country; the programme was approved by Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) at a cost of Rs125.1bn.
The programme was launched for the revival of forest and wildlife resources in Pakistan and intended to improve the overall conservation of existing protected areas besides promoting eco-tourism, community engagement and create jobs.
During phase-I of the programme, plantation/regeneration of 3.2bn trees will be completed.
The government is confident that a target to plant one billion trees will be achieved by June 2021 and this project is expected to deliver an environmental dividend in preserving atmospheric health, reducing greenhouse gas effects, lowering cases of random floods, lowering rains, droughts and enhancing other biodiversity supportive actions.
The federal government also plans to incentivise students to plant trees by offering 20 extra marks to students who plant at least 20 saplings. Legislation to this effect is being introduced in parliament and is aimed at integrating youth in the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami plantation project, according to Minister for Climate Change Zartaj Gul.
The minister said the unique effort was being developed to require each university graduate to plant at least 20 trees during the course of their education, in accordance with the prime minister’s vision of a clean and green Pakistan.
