LAHORE – The funeral prayers for Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi, who passed away on Thursday night, were offered at Lahore’s Minar-i-Pakistan on Saturday afternoon.

Thousands of people gathered at the site to attend the funeral prayers with many complaining of mobile signal outages.

The city of Lahore started experiencing the impact of the death of the firebrand cleric when all entry points to the city and roads leading to his mosque faced traffic pressure, reporting long queues and jams. The pressure was set to grow today as thousands of his followers were expected to reach his funeral site and later to his burial site.

While some members of his party said he will be buried at his mosque in Chowk Yateem Khana, others have suggested his final resting place will be at the graveyard on Scheme Mor.

According to the Lahore chief traffic officer (CTO), five deputy superintendents of police (DSPs) and 36 inspectors were overseeing traffic arrangements in the city. In a statement, the CTO said that no point would be completely closed for traffic and diversions would be opened along the route of the funeral procession.

The funeral procession will move through the Niazi Shaheed Interchange, Bund Road, Babu Sabu Interchange and will stop at Scheme Mor.

Security in the city is on “high alert” on the directions of Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Umar Sheikh with extra personnel posted at the entry and exit points of Lahore.

The TLP chief passed away two days ago at the age of 54.

According to the party’s spokesperson, Hamza, Rizvi had been experiencing difficulty in breathing and was running a fever since a day earlier.

The spokesperson added that Rizvi was at his madressah on Multan Road when his condition deteriorated on Thursday evening. He was subsequently rushed to the Farooq Hospital in Iqbal Town, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Rizvi was later taken to Sheikh Zayed Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead, said Saad Rizvi, son of Khadim Hussain Rizvi.

He is survived by his wife, two sons and three daughters.

Rizvi made his last public appearance at a sit-in staged by thousands of TLP followers at Islamabad’s Faizabad interchange to protest the publication of blasphemous caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) in France.

The group had decided to end the sit-in on Monday after successful negotiations with the government.

KARACHI, NOV 21 /DNA/ – The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has said the positive growth in large-scale manufacturing (LSM) will help achieve the annual economic growth target, besides creating jobs if the trend continues in coming months, as the LSM output has grown 7.65 percent in Sept, besides reporting growth of 4.8 percent in the first quarter of current fiscal year. 

FPCCI President Mian Anjum Nisar, while addressing a delegation of various industrial sectors, who met him here in his office today, said that positive growth rate of the industry has given a ray of hope for the revival of economic activities in the country, fearing the data of Oct 2020 might be critical to sustain the momentum of industrial production during the second wave of pandemic in the country. 

He said that in 2019-20, the LSM output had fallen alarmingly by 10.17 percent yearly. The industrial production after suffering months of damage inflicted by the corona pandemic mainly in the construction, sugar, automobile, and pharmaceutical sectors is now clearly reflecting a revival in economic activities in the country. 

For the current fiscal year, the government had set the economic growth target at 2.1 percent, which will be better in the current economic situation but is not enough to create jobs for a growing population. 

Mian Anjum Nisar said that remarkable decline in interest rates and reduction in duties on raw materials are expected to further spur economic activities in the current fiscal year, as manufacturing activity showed that more than half of the sub-sectors in the LSM rose in September.He said that the growth has now broken a cycle of constant contraction in past over one year. He said that large businesses had been bearing the brunt of very high interest rate, issues of the Federal Board of Revenue and high energy prices.  

According to the data, large-scale manufacturing grew 4.8 percent in the first quarter of current fiscal year on the back of increased output in food, textile and mineral sectors. The LSM recorded 7.7 percent year-on-year growth in Sept, which kept hopes alive for a recovery after the large industrial sector contracted more than 10 percent in the previous fiscal year.  

Data shows that out of 15 major industries, nine saw a surge in production while output of five industries showed contraction in the first quarter compared to the same period of previous fiscal year. 

FPCCI President said that the industrial sector has a major contribution to the tax collection and the sector’s share in revenues is almost triple than its contribution to the overall economic output.  

According to the data, 11 types of industries registered an average 0.2 percent growth in the first quarter of current fiscal year.  

The manufacturing of chemical products increased almost 10 percent, paper and board almost 10 percent and rubber products nearly 8 percent. The pharmaceutical sector registered a growth rate of over 13 percent in the July-Sept period. The coke and petroleum sector output increased 2.7 percent. Industries that registered a dip in manufacturing included the automobile sector, which saw a contraction of 5.4 percent in the first quarter. Iron and steel production fell 8 percent, electronics 20 percent, leather products 45 percent, engineering products 37 percent and wood products 70 percent in the first quarter.  

Sectors that posted growth on a quarterly basis included textile that grew over 2 percent and non-metallic mineral products increased 22 percent during the July-Sept period. But the output of power looms has declined 50 percent in the first quarter while fertilizer sector showed 2 percent growth whereas the food, beverages and tobacco group recorded 13 percent growth in the first quarter. 

FPCCI chief Mian Anjum Nisar called for out-of-the-box solutions for economic growth, as COVID-19 has adversely impacted the world’s economy as well as Pakistan’s trade and industrial sectors.  

He said the government has already missed its annual export target for the first two years. For the current fiscal year, the export target was reset at $27.7 billion, requiring at least 6 percent growth. 

He said the government has to formulate long-term and consistent policies for the revival of industry and considerable improvement in exports, as contrary to regional countries, Pakistan’s exports have remained stagnant during the past 40 years, and unless attention was paid to all factors that hamper industrial and exports growth, the country might not be able to achieve desired results. Some of the impediments to industrial growth include cost of production, poor governance, obsolete technology, lower productivity, lack of competitiveness, supply constraints, and energy issues. DNA

RAWALPINDI, NOV 21 (DNA) – A stage play ‘Bhola Puter’ based on social issues was presented at Punjab Arts Council.  The play was written and directed by Sajjad Ahmed. The special guest of the function was Dr. Arif  Qureshi and Director ANF Muhammad Riaz Soomro.

Jhalak, Sapna Shah, Arshad khan, Hameed Babar, Anjum Abbasi, Saima Khan, Shehzadi, Naeem Tota, Naseem Gulzar, Babar Ali and Liaquat Shah were  among the actors of the play.

Dr. Arif Qureshi said that ‘we should prefer our families and friend over wealth. The Prayers of our parents are key our success in this world and life after. We are trying to restore the lost dignity of stage dramas.

Stage drama is closer to reality”, he added. In the end, he congratulated all the actors for presenting a beautiful drama. Assistant Director Arts Council Muhammad Suleman was also present on the occasion.

He said that all the actors played their roles well. The Council’s platform was always opened for standard dramas. The auditorium Arts Council was full of people to watch dramas.=DNA

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