ISLAMABAD, Jan 09 (DNA): SAPM Dr. Sania Nishtar visited Tank and South
Waziristan on Saturday to meet the four tribal jirgas.

She launched the Ehsaas survey registration in South Waziristan. The
survey is 65% complete in Tank district. She briefed the elders and
influentials of tribal jirgas on the purpose and approach of ongoing
Ehsaas survey.

“Ehsaas has launched a new digital survey in southern districts of KP
including Tank and South Waziristan to benefit deserving households
through Ehsaas. Tank and South Waziristan are the most underprivileged
districts of KP with high rates of poverty, malnutrition and infant
mortality. To address the needs of the vulnerable, the survey approach
is being accelerated across the southern tribal districts of KP. With
the support of local teachers under the technical handholding of Ehsaas,
we are trying to complete the survey in these areas at the earliest”,
said Dr. Sania.

According to Ehsaas policy, the survey will ensure the inclusion of poor
families in several Ehsaas initiatives- Kafaalat, Waseela-eTaleem
Digital, Undergraduate Scholarship, Amdan, Interest Free Loan and
Nashonuma.

“I appeal to tribal Jirgas to facilitate survey teams when they go door
to door in the region to collect household data. Poverty profiling of
the households is being done through a computer aided digital system and
would be completed in the next few months,” Dr. Sania stated while
addressing Jirgas, adding that government has executed the new Ehsaas
survey on apolitical basis so that no deserving family is left out from
the flagship social protection programme.

Replying a question, Dr. Sania said that the “Ehsaas National
Socio-economic Registry Survey is apolitical and nondiscriminatory in
nature and has been rolled out nationwide to benefit the vulnerable
irrespective of their religion, ethnicity or area. Tribal people should
participate in the survey to get benefits from a multitude of
conditional and unconditional cash transfer programmes under Ehsaas.”

She thanked the local teachers for doing a commendable job in executing
survey enumerations. They are responsible citizens, which is why we have
engaged them in this very sensitive responsibility of household data
collection. “Helping the vulnerable populations and lifting the lagging
districts is one of the main priority goals of Ehsaas,” Dr. Sania
concluded. Earlier in the morning, Dr. Sania held a press conference
with the local press and media in Tank to describe the methodology and
digital approach adopted for the Ehsaas survey.

She also answered the questions of the local media regarding Ehsaas
survey and several cash transfers under Ehsaas for the underprivileged.
The trip also featured visits to households in Wana, South Waziristan
and Christian Hospital Colony, Tank to examine the digital registration
of families through the survey. According to Ehsaas policy, when the
survey nears completion in each district, the Ehsaas Registration Desks
are opened in each district being surveyed to ensure the inclusion of
left out families.

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Kyrgyzstan’s Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbaev met with members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Observer Mission.

The observers have arrived in Bishkek to monitor the preparation and conduct of the early presidential elections and the referendum to determine the form of government in the Kyrgyz Republic, the press service of the Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

During the meeting, Ruslan Kazakbaev expressed gratitude to the international observers for their interest and participation in the important event of the Kyrgyz Republic.

The minister informed about the efforts made by the country’s leadership to hold clean and democratic elections.

He confirmed Kyrgyzstan remains fully committed to all its international obligations and to the strict implementation of all previously signed bilateral and multilateral treaties and agreements.

Regarding cooperation within the SCO, Kazakbaev noted that the republic’s participation in the Organization is one of the priorities in the foreign policy of the state.

At the same time, the foreign minister pointed out that despite the existing difficulties related to the pandemic, the SCO member states are actively cooperating on a number of issues within the Organization, including in politics, security, economy, investments, finance, trade, transport and other areas.

Thanks to close cooperation, major SCO events were successfully organized in 2020, such as meetings of the SCO Council of Heads of State and SCO Council of Heads of Government (Prime Ministers) via videoconference.

In his turn, Coordinator of the SCO Observer Mission, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Aleksei Chepa informed about the work of the Mission in monitoring the preparation for Kyrgyzstan’s presidential elections and the referendum, and expressed confidence that the upcoming elections and the referendum would be as transparent and dignified as possible.

LAHORE, Jan 09 (DNA): Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan, Special Assistant to Chief
Minister Punjab for Information, has said that the corrupt gang of PDM
even politicized the Machh tragedy.

Firdous said that instead of mourning the loss of the Hazaras, Maryam
and Bilawal did political point scoring in Quetta. She said that after
coronavirus, politicizing the Machh tragedy is a reflection of the
opposition’s vile mindset. They should look inward before making
baseless allegations as the government and the nation are with the
Hazara community in their hour of grief.

“The government will not leave the affected families stranded”, she
said. The Special Assistant for Information said that the PDM played a
role in the recent spread of coronavirus in Pakistan; the number of
patients in Punjab has risen to 144,111 and 600 new cases were reported
in the last 24 hours. She said that 4,242 deaths have been reported from
corona in Punjab, 21 of which occurred in the last 24 hours.

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 09 (DNA): The newly appointed Inspector General of Police
(IGP) Islamabad Qazi Jamil ur Rehman on Saturday directed for elaborate
and effective policing measures to eradicate crime from the city and
ensure justice to people at their door steps.

In his maiden meeting to review crime situation, the IGP directed to
enhance police patrolling and deployment in those areas where crime rate
is comparatively high. He asked to compile fresh list of proclaimed
offenders and absconders wanted to police in various crime cases.

The meeting was attended among others by DIG (Operations) Waqar Uddin
Syed, SSP (CTD), Additional SP and Zonal SPs. DIG (Operations) told that
most of the criminals wanted to police in heinous crime have been
arrested while the Zonal SPs briefed the participants of the meeting
about efforts to curb crime in the city.

The IGP directed to improve the investigation system at the level of
police stations and to further update the `Tasdeeq app’ of Islamabad
police. He said that information about crime in a particular area should
be immediately transferred by the Duty Officer of the relevant police
station to all police wings. In case of theft of vehicle, the duty
officer of the relevant police station should immediately share the
details and picture of stolen vehicle with all police station through
`whats app’. He asked to share same procedure in case of dacoity in any
area.

The IGP said that safety city cameras and its system would be upgraded
while snap checking system to be improved. He asked all SPs to brief the
policemen before assigning them duty and to monitor the performance of
their subordinates. Islamabad police chief asked to coordinate with
relevant department for restoration of street lights and to collect data
of laborers working in different areas. The IGP said that performance of
SHOs would be monitored on regular basis and those having poor
performance would be removed.

He asked all Zonal SPs to reach the crime scene themselves and also
ensure effective crackdown against absconders, auto-thieves and
professional alm-seekers. He asked to improve the police intelligence
system for effective action against criminals and ensure protection to
the lives and property of the citizens. Qazi Jameel ur Rehamn directed
police officials to adopt courteous attitude with citizens and ensure
renewed efforts to against crime. He said those showing good performance
would be encouraged while dereliction of duties would not tolerated. The
IGP also stressed to ensure welfare steps for the policemen and make
collective efforts to make Islamabad crime free city.

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LAHORE, Jan 09 (DNA): Some of the lawyers of Lahore Bar Association were
shown indulging in aerial firing to celebrate the winning of their
candidates in the Bar Elections.

Several videos of Lahore-based lawyers have emerged, wherein they can be
seen that resorting to aerial firing outside the court. A video of the
incident has also gone viral on social media. The third clause of the
‘Prohibition of Firing and Use of Explosive Substances at Marriage and
Other Ceremonies Act, 1988’ bars firing on any occasion.

The clause states: “firing and the use of explosive substances on
marriages or other such ceremonies, including political receptions or
processions or stray firing at a public place is prohibited”. All
violators “shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may
extend to one year or with fine which may extend to Rs10,000 or both.”

Earlier in 2019, A group of more than 200 lawyers, who had an ongoing
‘tussle’ with the doctors of the PIC, had stormed the hospital,
vandalised property and damaged dozens of vehicles. They also set ablaze
a police van during their assault.

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DNA

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan categorically rejected the malicious statement by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), regarding conviction of a UN-designated individual by an Anti-Terrorism Court in Pakistan.

India has no locus standi to comment on the independent judicial mechanisms of Pakistan. In this regard the only ‘compliance’ that interests Pakistan is abiding by its own statutes and fulfillment of its international obligations.

The investigations, prosecutions and subsequent convictions, through due process, are a reflection of the effectiveness of Pakistan’s legal system, which operates independent of any extraneous factors or influences. India’s assertions to link Pakistan’s due legal process with FATF are unfortunate. It is yet another Indian attempt to politicize FATF and use its processes against Pakistan. Pakistan reiterates its commitment to impartiality, confidentiality and technical nature of the FATF process.

Indian insinuations against Pakistan are in fact a vain attempt to conceal its failures to bring to justice those blatantly involved in state terrorism and brutal suppression against the subjugated people of IIOJK and other minority communities.

As for the hypocritical Indian assertions regarding the ‘terror infrastructure’ and ‘individual terrorists’, irrefutable evidence has already been provided by Pakistan to the international community of the active aiding, abetting, planning, promoting, financing and execution of terrorist activities by India against Pakistan, with impunity.

India would do well to put its own house in order and rein in its terror infrastructure that is aimed at destabilizing India’s neighboring countries in order to fulfill the extremist agenda of the RSS-BJP regime.

We also expect the UN counter-terrorism bodies to proceed on the basis of concrete evidence provided by Pakistan; urge India to renounce the use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy; and play their part in securing the dismantling of the Indian terrorist infrastructure.