ISLAMABAD : Prime Minister Imran Khan has criticised the leadership of opposition alliance, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), over deliberately risking lives and safety of the nationals amid a new spike in coronavirus pandemic to seek ‘NRO’.

PM Imran Khan said in his Twitter messages, “They [opposition leaders] think this is their last means of pressuring us for NRO – which will never happen.”

He added that they have never worked a day in their lives and their royal lifestyles are directly dependent on saving their families ill-gotten, illegally acquired wealth through robbing and impoverish the nation.

The premier said that the opposition leaders had opposed the federal government over deciding on initiating smart lockdown amid COVID-19 spread to save the poor people from becoming destitute besides save the economy from total collapse.

While pointing out the dual-standards of the opposition leadership, PM Khan said that the opposition leaders had earlier demanded a complete lockdown due to COVID-19 and now they want to hold public gatherings not caring for the lives and safety of people amid a new wave of the virus.

He said, “Problem confronting us in Pak during COVID 19 is of a political leadership that has never gone through any democratic struggle, nor worked with ordinary citizens to understand the problems they confront, nor contributed in any substantive way for betterment of ordinary citizens.”

It is pertinent to mention here that the opposition alliance Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) had announced to hold a public meeting on November 30 in Multan.

The local administration had denied permission to the opposition parties for the meeting owing to increasing virus cases in the second wave of the COVID-19 in the country.

Earlier in the day, the Multan administration took control of Qila Kohna Qasim Bagh stadium again besides arresting various Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) leaders and workers belonging to different political parties including Kasim Gillani, the son of ex-premier Yousaf Raza Gillani after they stormed into the venue by removing barriers,

Multan police and administration blocked the central routes of the Qila Kohna Qasim Bagh stadium and removed the tents, chairs and other equipment from the venue of the PDM rally besides deploying additional contingents of security officials.

ISLAMABAD : Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Justice retired Javed Iqbal on Sunday has directed not to take any further action against Deputy Chairman Senate Saleem Mandviwalla before considering all legal elements of the case.

The directions were issued by the chairman NAB after taking notice of allegations leveled by Mr. Mandviwalla in a presser earlier in the day, said a declaration issued by the anti-graft body.Justice retired Javed Iqbal has sought a complete record of the concerned case.

The declaration further said that the anti-graft watchdog respects all parliamentarians and a decision about further action will be taken after considering all sides of the case.

Earlier in the day, Deputy Chairman of Senate Saleem Mandviwalla had called National Accountability Bureau (NAB) a blackmailing organization and alleged that people only go for plea bargain to save their honor.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, he said that Prime Minister Imran Khan earlier assured of neutral accountability but the opposition is being victimized he alleged.

DNA

ISLAMABAD,  NOV 29 – An agreement signed between Kube Publishing (Leicester, UK) and IPS Press – the publishing and bookselling arm of Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), Islamabad – will enable readers in Pakistan and Afghanistan to buy low-priced local editions of all books of the popular UK-based Islamic publisher.

The agreement signed by Haris Ahmad, CEO, Kube Publishing and Naufil Shahrukh, GM-IPS has also authorized IPS Press to exclusively import and distribute all Kube titles in the assigned territory.

The first title to be published under this arrangement is the Pakistan edition of Revive Your Heart: Putting Life in Perspective, authored by renowned Islamic scholar and motivational speaker Nouman Ali Khan. =DNA

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KARACHI: The result of today’s Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT 2020) would be announced in the next 10 days, a top official of the Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) told that.

Vice-President PMC Barrister Ali Raza said that over 125,000 aspiring candidates had registered for the MDCAT 2020 held today across Pakistan.

“Only 138 students informed the PMC about them being COVID-19 positive and we will take their exam on December 13,” the PMC official said.

The PMC will finalise the MDCAT results in the next 7 to 10 days, Ali Raza said.

When asked about the difficulties faced today, Raza said he visited several testing centres in Islamabad and Rawalpindi and other council members also reviewed arrangements at different centres across the country but did not find any complaints about the measures taken by the authorities.

“I asked students about the implementation of coronavirus SOPs and syllabus and they were satisfied with the steps,” the PMC VP assured.

“They were hopeful of good results.”

Ali Raza said the PMC took prompt action on reports of test paper being leaked in Peshawar. The law enforcement agencies were asked to apprehend the culprits involved in the case.

“Even the PMC did not have the paper so after the test started and we compared it with the one leaked on social media and found it to be fake.”

The PMC official added that the commission is working on a centralised information system which would help them disseminate information in real-time.

ISLAMABAD : Kaavan elephant of Marghazar Zoo will shortly leave in a chartered flight to its new home in Cambodia today (Sunday).

Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on environment Malik Amin Aslam reached the Zoo to farewell to the world’s loneliest elephant.An eight-member medical and technical team conducted various tests of Kaavan before its shift to the Chaklala Airbase, from where he would be transported to Cambodia via a Russian chartered jet.

Speaking on the occasion, Malik Amin Aslam said that they are seeing-off Kaavan with an open heart and added that the federal government has put all necessary arrangements in place for his transfer.

Environment SAPM Aslam hoped that Kaavan will now lead his life cheerfully with other elephants in Cambodia.

Kaavan was brought in Pakistan back in 1985 as a gift from Sri Lanka when he was one-year-old, whose inappropriate living conditions in Marghazar Zoo had irked onlookers as he remained chained and that, too, in a tiny enclosure.

Back in May this year, the Islamabad High Court decreed relocation of Kaavan since he was treated cruelly by the authorities concerned.

Kaavan’s plight was given a boost over the years by American pop icon Cher, who publicly campaigned for the elephant’s relocation. Cher was due to arrive in Islamabad later in the week to finally meet the elephant she had worked for years to rescue and see him off.

ISLAMABAD, 29 Nov, 2020

Research shows that Pakistan has the highest rate of breast cancer than any other Asian country as approximately 90,000 new cases are diagnosed every year out of which 40,000 succumb to the disease. Estimates say1 in 10 women may develop Breast Cancer in their lifetime in Pakistan. The situation is not much different in other developing countries.

An ardent advocate of socio-economic well-being of populations, the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (COMSATS) highlighted this global health issue by holding a webinar on “Breast Cancer Awareness: Give Hope, Save Lives”today in Islamabad at its Secretariat, contributing to the global campaign of necessary awareness raising. Held virtually owing to the COVID-19 concerns, the webinar was joined by experts and participants online.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador (Retd.) Fauzia Nasreen (Advisor at COMSATS)emphasized on the measures that should be taken for overcoming lack of knowledge,appropriate facilities, family support and fear related to cancer in our society. She remarked that early diagnosis, access to proper medical facilities, affordable and timely care are the cornerstones of breast cancer control. She warned to take breast cancer seriously and learn about the techniques of self-diagnosis for an early detection of the disease.

Dr.Samina Naeem, ex-Associate Prof of Health Services Academy, and consultant at WHO, Pakistan, gave a comprehensive overview of the disease and stressed upon the importance of breaking the stereotypes and taboos related to it.

A survivor’s perspective also came from Dr.Fauzia Cheema, who shared the story of her experience of battling breast cancer from a point of view of a doctor facing the disease. Hers was an educational account and objective overview of healthcare system’s problems related to treatment of the disease and related social and psychological aspects.

In her keynote address, Dr.Farheen Raza, from Radiology Department of PIMS Hospital Islamabad,emphasized onscreening and the need to have community-based health education component including focused and small group discussions to overcome the social taboos and stigma attached to female illnesses. It was informed that the Federal Breast Cancer Screening Center (FBCSC)is the first ever public facility located inside Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) that offers free screening mammography for women of all socio-economic strata and is a walk-in facility. She proposed a one stop breast cancer clinic with aim to answer financial, cultural, mental and physical needs of women all under one roof as one of the ways forward towards reducing breast cancer.

From COMSATS Headquarters and Coordinator of the session, Dr. Azeem Fareed, opined that awareness is not only needed among women but also among men as they are part of the family and are equal part of the recovery journey. As a part of the pioneer team of telehealth in Pakistan, she also hoped to initiate tele-medicine training for medical practitioners in remote areas forhelping to address the issue nationwide.