Lahore : Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif’s mother Shamim Akhtar has passed away in London, the party confirmed on Sunday.

The development was confirmed by senior PML-N leader Ataullah Tarar, who announced the tragic news on Twitter. Begum Shamim Akhtar was 90 years old.

“Mian Nawaz Sharif and Mian Shahbaz Sharif’s respected mother has passed away,” he tweeted.

Begum Shamim Akhtar had been ill for quite some time and was being treated in London, said PML-N sources. She passed away this morning, according to party sources, at the Avenfield Apartments where she was staying with Nawaz Sharif.

According to party sources, Begum Shamim Akhtar had been ill since the past week and her condition had been fragile due to her old age.

Speaking to Geo News, Ataullah Tarar said that he spoke to Suleman Shahbaz over the phone who confirmed his grandmothers death and said that arrangements are being made to bring the body to Pakistan for burial.

He said that PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shahbaz had been informed about Begum Shamim Akhtar’s death. Tarar said that a request will be submitted to the court to allow Shahbaz and Hamza Shahbaz to be released on payroll so they can attend the funeral.

As soon as news broke of Begum Shamim Akhtar’s demise, condolences from all quarters started pouring in. PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and former president Asif Zardari expressed their grief over her death.

KARACHI : Pakistan Navy Ship (PNS) Zulfiqar visited Aqaba port of Jordan, said PN spokesperson on Sunday.

According to the spokesman of the Pakistan Navy, PNS Zulfiqar was warmly welcomed by the hosts at the Aqaba port and the Commanding Officer met the host officials and discussed issues of mutual interest.Commander Royal Force of Jordan inspected PNS Zulfiqar.

The Jordanian authorities were also apprised of the Indian atrocities in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and the plight of Kashmiri people.

The ships of the two countries also took part in a joint exercise.

Earlier in the month of July,

Yarmook, a state-of-the-art 2300-tonne Corvette Pakistan Naval Ship (PNS), was inducted into the country’s naval fleet.

The commissioning ceremony of the modern naval ship was held a Pakistan Navy Dockyard in Keemari Karachi.

Speaking at the occasion, the Naval chief had said that the introduction of this vessel into the naval fleet would significantly enhance Pakistan Navy’s capability to safeguard its maritime borders.

Shaping the Future of Journalism by Strengthening Accountability and Content Diversity

Islamabad– Pakistan’s most prestigious and sought-after journalism  Recognition, the AGAHI Awards, recognizes 43 journalists for media excellence and ethics. The AGAHI Awards in its Eighth year received thousands of submissions in more than 40 categories from across

the country. A jury of national and international experts, development specialists, academicians,  and  media  professionals,  evaluated  the  submissions  made  by journalists from print, television, radio, and the online media.

The  AGAHI  Awards  are  the  annual  event  in  Pakistan  to  benchmark  journalism excellence   in   Pakistan,   recognizing   courage   and   commitment   showcasing outstanding contributions of journalists from across the country. Over the years, the  winners  have  produced  work,  often  in  the  face  of  political  and  economic pressures  sustaining  public  trust  in  the  media  impacting  the  lives  of  people  all over the country.

The  AGAHI  Awards  aim  to  encourage  fact-based,  data-driven  news  reporting and investigative journalism in Pakistan. The AGAHI Awards celebrate content centric to human interest and impact driven journalism in the country.

Leading   opinion-makers,   field   reporters,   senior   journalists,   policymakers, ambassadors,    diplomats,    public    policy    experts,    academicians,    leading professionals  from  the  media  industry  and  representatives  from  think  tanks attended the award ceremony.

Puruesh Chaudhary, President AGAHI and the co-founder of the AGAHI Awards in her keynote address said, “the AGAHI Awards is a commitment to promote ethical   journalistic   practices   for   safeguarding   public   interest.   The   Awards encourage  journalists  to  use  the  AGAHI  Awards  evaluation  criteria,  to  gauge their  content  to  be  unbiased,  balanced,  and  accountable.  This  year  we  have seen the dramatic rise on the use of technology in education, health, information communications;  however,  we  need  to  equally  reflect  on  the  importance  of human  expression  and  media  freedom,  both  fundamentally  critical  to  our collective evolution.

Amir Jahangir, Chief Executive Officer, Mishal Pakistan and co-founder, AGAHI Awards,  shared  his  vision  for  creating  the  awards  and  said  “the  media  in Pakistan is transitioning from passive consumption to an interactive model, this transition  is  not  only  confronting  media  sustainability  but  also  creativity  and skillset challenges as well. This change is also exposing media to be exploitedby both the state and non-state actors for information laundering. We must collectively ensure the journalists and content creators have freedom and independence to work in an environment that supports fairness, truth and accountability in Pakistan.”

Speaking  on  the  occasion,  Moonis  Abdullah  Alvi,  Chief  Executive  Officer,  K-Electric,  said,  “Journalists  are information  guardians.  It  is  because  of  their  efforts  that  people  can  learn  about  the  world  around  them.  I remember reading news stories as a young executive and imagining the events unfolding in my own mind as I read on. That is the power of journalism. To inform, educate and empower the mind. It is an honor for KE to be part of the Agahi Awards. We look forward to supporting and recognizing the efforts of Pakistan’s journalistic community even more in the future.”

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will be compelled to go into a complete lockdown if the coronavirus cases continue to surge across the country at the same rate and the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) will be responsible for the consequences, tweeted PM Imran Khan on Sunday.

Taking to Twitter, the prime minister blamed the PDM for “deliberately endangering lives and livelihoods” by holding jalsas across the country with coronavirus cases in Pakistan on the rise.

“If [coronavirus] cases continue to rise at the rate we are seeing, we will be compelled to go into complete lockdown and the PDM will be responsible for [the] consequences,” he tweeted.

Reiterating his often-repeated stance, the premier told Opposition parties that he would not grant them an NRO even if they held “a million jalsas”.

“Opposition is callously destroying people’s lives & livelihoods in their desperation to get an NRO. Let me make it clear: they can hold a million jalsas but will not get any NRO,” he tweeted.

However, the prime minister said he did not want to take the lockdown measure as it would hurt the economy and create problems for the people. He lashed out at the Opposition by saying that its “only goal is NRO at whatever cost to the lives of people & the country’s economy”.

“I do not want to take measures like a lockdown that will start hurting our economy which at the moment is showing signs of a robust recovery. Unfortunately, the Opposition’s only goal is NRO at whatever cost to the lives of people & the country’s economy,” he tweeted.

PDM, KP govt face-off over Peshawar rally
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had denied permission a few days ago to the PDM to hold a public gathering in Peshawar today.

Authorities had said that the matter was considered by the district administration and capital city police under Section 14 of the KP Civil Administration Act 2020. The government officials did a field assessment and held a meeting with the jalsa organisers.

But, citing a November 2 notification issued by the KP government banning large public gatherings owing to the rising coronavirus positivity rate in the community, the deputy commissioner denied permission to hold the jalsa “after considering all aspects, and to safeguard human lives due to potential spread of COVID-19”.

However, the PDM said it would carry on its jalsa in Peshawar, with JUI-F chief and the PDM’s president, Maulana Fazlur Rehman saying that the government was the “coronavirus”.

LAHORE : Chief Minister of Punjab (CM) Usman Buzdar on Sunday introduced ‘Insaaf Medicine Card’ under the Punjab Sehat Sahulat programme to facilitate people suffering from various diseases including AIDS, hepatitis, and tuberculosis.

According to details, the patients would be given Insaaf Medicine Card after registration at the Taluka Headquarters Hospitals and District Headquarters Hospitals. The patients can get free medicines from different centers.CM Buzdar also directed to establish desks for Hepatitis, TB and AIDS at various hospitals to facilitate the patients.

On the occasion, the CM said that ensuring free health-related facilities to the people is the government’s first priority. We will continue to take strategies to provide the best medical assistance to the nation, he pledged.

Earlier this month, the Punjab government had decided to expand the scope of Sehat Insaf Cards in phases to provide health insurance facilities to the citizens.

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar chaired a high-level session where he was given a briefing over the details of medical facilities and the issuance of Sehat Insaf Cards among citizens.