برطانیہ کے موقر روزنامے فائنینشل ٹائمز کی ایک رپورٹ میں کہا گیا ہے کہ پاکستان اپنی فوجی ضرویات کے لیے امریکہ پر انحصار کم کر رہا ہے اور وہ تیزی سے چین کی طرف بڑھ رہا ہے۔
اس رپورٹ کے مطابق اب چین پاکستان کی عسکری ضرورتوں کو پورا کر رہا ہے۔ رپورٹ میں تنبیہ کی گئی ہے کہ اس تبدیلی سے علاقے کے جغرافیائی و سیاسی نکتہ نظر میں ایک قسم کا ردعمل دیکھنے کو مل سکتا ہے۔
اس رپورٹ میں بتایا گیا ہے کہ پاکستان کی امریکہ سے چین کی طرف منتقلی کی شروعات اوباما انتظامیہ کے آخری کچھ مہینوں میں ہی ہو گئی تھی جب امریکی کانگریس نے لڑاکا جنگی طیارے ایف 16 پاکستان کو بیچنے سے انکار کر دیا تھا۔
رپورٹ کے مطابق پاکستان کو اس کے بعد محسوس ہوا کہ عسکری طاقت کے حوالے سے امریکہ پر طویل وقت تک انحصار نہیں کیا جا سکتا ہے۔ فائنینشل ٹائمز کے مطابق پاکستان نے اس کے بعد ایف 16 طیاروں سے دھیان ہٹا کر چین کے ساتھ مل کر جے ایف 17 جنگی طیارے تیار کرنے پر کام شروع کیا۔
امریکی کانگریس نے ایف 16 کے معاملے پر پاکستان کے ساتھ سخت موقف اپنایا تو پاکستانی فوج نے دوسرے پارٹنر کی تلاش شروع کر دی اور یہ امریکہ کی جگہ چین نے لی یا پاکستان نے چین کی مدد سے گھر میں ہی ہتھیار تیار کرنے کی کوشش شروع کی۔
اس رپورٹ میں سٹاک ہوم انٹریشنل پیس ریسرچ انسٹی ٹیوٹ کے اعداد و شمار کا بھی استعمال کیا گیا ہے۔ امریکہ اور پاکستان کے درمیان سنہ 2010 سے لے کر اب تک کے ہتھیاروں سے متعلق معاہدوں کے اعداد و شمار دیے گئے ہیں۔
رپورٹ میں بتایا گیا ہے کہ امریکہ اور پاکستان کے درمیان ہتھیاروں کا معاہدہ ایک ارب ڈالر سے گر کر پچھلے سال 2.1 کروڑ تک پہنچ گیا ہے۔ حالانکہ اس دوران چین اور پاکستان کے درمیان بھی ہتھیاروں کے سودوں کے حجم میں گراوٹ آئی لیکن اس کی رفتار کافی دھیمی ہے۔
چین کے ساتھ پاکستان کا ہتھیاروں کا سودا 74.7 کروڑ ڈالر سے 51.4 کروڑ ڈالر تک پہنچ گیا۔ اس کے ساتھ ہی پاکستان کو ہتھیار بیچنے کے معاملے میں چین پہلے نمبر پر ہے۔
رپورٹ کا کہنا ہے کہ ایسی منتقلی تب ہو رہی ہے جب پاکستان کو لگ رہا ہے کہ انڈیا اور امریکہ قریب آرہے ہیں۔
حالانکہ رپورٹ کے مطابق اس کی شروعات 2011 میں پاکستانی زمین پر القاعدہ رہنما اسامہ بن لادن کے مارے جانے کے بعد سے ہی ہو گئی تھی۔ اس واقعے کے بعد دونوں ملکوں کے تعلقات تاریخی طور پر کشیدہ ہو گئے تھے۔
اسی سال جنوری میں امریکی صدر ڈونلڈ ٹرمپ نے اپنے ایک فیصلے سے پاکستان کو ملنے والی دو ارب ڈالر کی فوجی امداد بھی روک دی تھی۔
اس کے بعد دونوں ملکوں کے تعلقات مزید کشیدہ ہوئے۔ فائنینشل ٹائمز کے مطابق اس کا فوری اثر یہ ہوا کہ پاکستان بھی امریکہ کو پہلے سے کم توجہ دینے لگا۔
خاص طور پر افغانستان کے مسئلے پر پاکستان نے امریکہ کو ان سنا کرنا شروع کر دیا۔
فائنینشل ٹائمز سے یونیورسٹی آف ٹینسی میں ہاورڈ ایچ بیکر جونیئر سینٹر فار پبلک پالیسی کے ریسرچر ہیریسن اکنس نے کہا کہ ’ٹرمپ کی پالیسی سے پاکستان کا ہتھیاروں کے معاملے میں انحصار چین پر بڑھے گا۔ مطلب اب تک امریکہ فوجی ضروریات پورا کرتا تھا اور اب چین کرے گا۔‘
اس رپورٹ کا کہنا ہے کہ طویل المدت میں اس بڑھاؤ کا گہرا اثر ہوگا۔ رپورٹ کے مطابق پاکستان چین سے ہتھیار دہائیوں سے خریدتا آیا ہے۔
پاکستان کے امریکہ سے ہتھیار خریدنے میں مشکلات انڈیا کے ساتھ 1965 کی جنگ کے بعد شروع ہوگئی تھی۔ اس جنگ کے بعد پاکستان کی امریکہ کے ساتھ سیاسی مشکلات بڑھنے لگی تھیں اور چین قریب آیا۔
اس رپورٹ کا کہنا ہے کہ 1980 اور 1990 کی دہائیوں میں چین نے پاکستان کو جوہری ہتھیار تیار کرنے کی ٹیکنالوجی فراہم کروائی تھی۔ 1990 کی دہائی تک امریکہ کے لیے یہ حیران کن امر تھا کہ چین پاکستان کو جوہری ہتھیار لے جانے والے 30 ایم 11 میزائل بیچ چکا تھا۔
اس رپورٹ کا کہنا ہے کہ گذشتہ دہائی میں پاکستان اور چین کے درمیان فوجی تعلقات تبدیل ہوئے ہیں۔ چین اب پاکستان سے ہائی اینڈ سسٹم فروخت کر رہا ہے جس کے بارے میں امریکہ نے پاکستانی فوج کے لیے کبھی سوچا تھا۔
دفاعی ریسرچ کمپنی آئی ایچ ایم مارکیٹ کے تجزیہ کار جین گریوینٹ نے فائنینشل ٹائمز کو بتایا کہ ’پاکستان اور چین کے درمیان تعلقات اور تعاون آگے بڑھ چکا ہے۔‘
سنہ 2010 سے چین پاکستان کو اے-100 راکٹ لانچر اور ایچ کیو 16 ایئر ڈیفینس میزائل مہیا کر رہا ہے جبکہ وی ٹی 4 ٹینکوں کا تجربہ پاکستان کرنے والا ہے۔
اس رپورٹ کے مطابق پاکستان نے سنہ 2007 میں پہلی بار جے ایف 17 اڑایا تھا جس کی قیمت ایف 16 کی ایک تہائی تھی۔ اس کے بعد چین نے پاکستان کو اس کا ڈیزائن بھی فراہم کیا تاکہ پاکستان کی فوج اس کی تیاری خود ہی کر سکے۔
سنہ 2015 میں پاکستان نے افغانستان کی سرحد پر ڈرون حملہ کیا اور ڈرون پوری طرح چینی ٹیکنالوجی کا دکھائی دے رہا تھا۔
اکتوبر 2016 میں جب امریکہ ایف 16 کم قیمت میں دینے کو تیار نہیں ہوا تو ایک مہینے کے بعد ہی چین پانچ ارب ڈالر میں آٹھ جنگی بحری جہاز پاکستان کو دینے کے لیے راضی ہوگیا۔
پاکستان کے لیے چین کا یہ سب سے بڑا سودا تھا۔ رپورٹ کا کہنا ہے کہ یہ سب کچھ تب ہو رہا ہے جب پاکستان کو لگ رہا ہے کہ امریکہ انڈیا کے قریب آرہا ہے۔
عظمٰی حیدر کو اپنے خاوند کے لاپتہ ہونے کی اطلاع فون کے ذریعے 15 نومبر سنہ 2016 کو موصول ہوئی تھی۔ یہ فون کال ان کو ایک سکیورٹی اہلکارکی جانب سے آئی تھی جس میں ان کو بتایا گیا کہ ان کے خاوند نعیم حیدر کو کراچی کے علاقے گولی مارسے حراست میں لیا گیا ہے لیکن وہ کس کی حراست میں ہیں اور کون ان کو لے کر گیا ہے؟ یہ پوچھنے کا جب خیال آیا تب تک فون بند ہو چکا تھا۔
اس کے بعد نہ ہی اس شخص کا دوبارہ فون آیا اور نہ ہی کئی بار نمبر ملانے پر کسی نے فون اٹھایا۔ کچھ دن بعد وہ نمبر بھی بند ہو گیا۔
عظمیٰ نے بی بی سی کو بتایا کہ نعیم گمشدہ ہونے سے دو دن پہلے کربلا کی زیارات سے واپس آئے تھے۔ ’ہم 22 دن کے لیے بچوں کے ساتھ ایران، شام اور عراق میں موجود زیارت پر گئے تھے۔ واپس آنے کے دو دن بعد ہی نعیم لاپتہ ہو گئے لیکن ہمیں فون کے ذریعے بتایا گیا کہ ان کو لے جایا جا رہا ہے۔‘
میری عظمیٰ سے ملاقات ان کی ایک ہمسائے کے گھر رضویہ سوسائٹی میں ہوئی جہاں حال ہی میں شروع ہونے والی خط مہم (لیٹر کیمپین) سے متعلق بات چیت چل رہی تھی۔
کراچی میں اب تک جبری طور پر گمشدہ کیے گئے افراد کی بازیابی کے لیے کئی مہمات چلائی جا چکی ہیں۔ ان میں دستخط اور جیل بھرو تحریک بھی شامل ہیں۔
اس بار گمشدہ افراد کے خاندانوں نے چیف جسٹس آف پاکستان کو خط لکھنے کا سوچا ہے۔ یہ مہم پاسبانِ عزا تنظیم کے ماتحت نو اپریل سے 22 اپریل تک جاری رہے گی جس میں کراچی بھر سے گمشدہ افراد کے لواحقین چیف جسٹس میاں ثاقب نثار کو خط لکھ کر بھیجیں گے۔
عظمیٰ کے خیال میں ’اس سے کچھ تو ہو گا، مجھے لگتا ہے کہ اس بات کا نوٹس اگر چیف جسٹس لیں گے تو کچھ فرق پڑے گا۔‘
عظمیٰ جس ہمسائے کے گھر ’خط لکھو مہم ‘کا حصہ بننے آئیں ہیں ان کے اپنے بھائی شیراز حیدر پچھلے ڈیڑھ سال سے غائب ہیں۔
عظمٰی نے اپنا خط لکھ کر رکھتے ہوئے کہا ’میرا بیٹا دس مہینے کا ہو گیا ہے اور اس نے اب تک اپنے والد کو نہیں دیکھا۔ میرے لیے اس وقت یہ جاننا بہت ضروری ہے کہ نعیم کس حالت میں ہیں؟ تب تک اس قسم کی جتنی تحریکیں یا مہم چلیں گی میں اس میں شامل ہوں گی۔‘
اس گھر میں آئے ہوئے سب افراد کی ایک جیسی کہانیاں ہیں، جن میں ان کے رشتہ داروں کے اٹھائے جانے کے وقت سے لے کر، گاڑی، ان گاڑیوں میں سوار اہلکاروں کے حلیے، سب ملتے جلتے ہیں لیکن اس کے باوجود جواب کسی کے پاس نہیں ہے کہ جو گمشدہ ہیں وہ کہاں ہیں اور کب تک واپس آئیں گے؟
پاسبانِ عزا کے صدر اور انسانی حقوق کے کارکن راشد رضوی کے مطابق اب تک کراچی سے 28 شیعہ نوجوان جبری طور پر اٹھائے گئے ہیں اور ملک بھر سے 140 لیکن اس کے ساتھ ہی ان کا یہ بھی کہنا ہے کہ یہ اعداد و شمار انسانی حقوق کے اداروں کی مدد سے یکجا کیے گئے ہیں جیسے ہیومن رائٹس کمیشن آف پاکستان اور انھوں نے یہ بھی کہا کہ جبری طور پر گمشدہ افراد کی تعداد اس سے زیادہ ہے کیونکہ کئی معاملات میں گمشدہ کیے گئے افراد کے لواحقین منظرِ عام پر نہیں آتے ہیں۔
اسی وجہ سے بہت سے لوگوں نے اپنے اپنے گھروں سے خط لکھ کر جمع کیے تاکہ جو افراد ان کے ساتھ ہیں ان کے لیے مشکل نہ بن جائے۔
راشد رضوی کے بقول ’ہمارے کئی دھرنوں اور احتجاجوں میں سکیورٹی اہلکاروں نے کہا ہے کہ ان نوجوانوں کو اٹھانے کی وجہ دراصل ان کی عزاداری کے ذریعے شام اور عراق کی جنگوں میں شمولیت ہے لیکن اس بات میں کوئی سچائی نہیں ہے کہ ہمارے نوجوان کوئی جنگ لڑنے یہاں سے گئے ہیں۔‘
نیشنل کرائسز مینیجمنٹ سیل نے اگست 2016 میں اپنے ایک بیان میں کہا تھا کہ تقریباً 650 پاکستانی افراد مختلف جنگوں میں حصہ لینے پاکستان سے شام، عراق، افغانستان اور یمن گئے۔
اسی ادارے سے منسلک ایک افسر نے اس بات پر تشویش ظاہر کرتے ہوئے کہا ’اس طرح کے لوگوں کے لیے معاشرے میں دوبارہ شامل ہونا مشکل ہو جاتا ہے اور ایسے افراد معاشرے کے لیے خطرے کا باعث بنتے ہیں۔ ان افراد کی معاشرے میں شمولیت کے لیے ضروری اقدامات کیے جا رہے ہیں۔‘
لیکن جب نیشنل کاؤنٹر ٹیریزم اتھارٹی (نیکٹا) میں زم ہو گیا تب ایک نئے سرے سے دہشت گردی کے مقدمات کی جانچ پڑتال کا آغاز کیا گیاـ
اس بارے میں بات کرتے ہوئے نیکٹا کے نیشنل کوآرڈینیٹر احسان غنی نے بی بی سی کو بتایا کہ ان کا ادارہ چاہتا تھا کہ ان کے پاس اس قسم کی خبروں کو جانچنے کے لیے کوئی رسپانس ٹیم ہو جو اب ممکن ہو گیا ہےـ
’ہم نے ملک سے باہر جنگی مقامات پر جانے والے افراد کی وجوہات جانچنے کے لیے ایک رسپانس ٹیم تشکیل دی ہے جس میں قانون نافذ کرنے والے ادارے، انٹیلیجنس ایجنسی، پاسپورٹ اور امیگریشن کے اہلکار شامل ہیں، اس سے ہم پاکستان سے باہر جانے والے یا پھر جنگی مقامات پر جانے والوں کے بارے میں معلومات حاصل کر سکیں گے تاکہ ان کی کل تعداد معلوم ہو سکے۔ اس سے ہم یہ نتیجہ اخذ کر سکیں گے کہ ان کی وطن واپسی پر ان کو معاشرے میں واپس کیسے شامل کیا جائے کیونکہ ان کے لیے وطن واپسی کا مرحلہ سب سے مشکل ہوتا ہےـ‘
انھوں نے مزید کہا کہ اس وقت رسپانس ٹیم کی رپورٹ تشکیل نہیں دی جا سکی جس کی وجہ سے اس سال کے درست اعداد و شمار دینا مشکل ہو گا۔
دوسری طرف گمشدہ افراد کے لواحقین کہتے ہیں کہ زیارات کا جنگی مقامات پر ہونے کی وجہ سے وہاں جانے والے نوجوانوں کو اٹھا کر تفتیش کا نشانہ بنایا جاتا ہے۔
شمیم حیدر کی بہن غزالہ حیدر نے کہا ’میرا بھائی کسی جنگ پر نہیں گیا تھا اور نہ ہی جانے کا ارادہ رکھتا تھا۔ وہ اپنے ایم بی اے کی تیاری میں مصروف تھا اور اس کے علاوہ کوئی اور بات اس نے گھر میں نہیں کی۔‘
اس کے ساتھ ہی انھوں نے کہا ’اگر کوئی کسی بھی جرم میں ملوث ہے تو اس کو عدالت میں پیش کیا جائے اور جرم ثابت ہونے پر سزا دی جائے۔ اس طرح غائب کرنا قانوناً غلط ہے۔‘
راشد رضوی نے بتایا ’جو گمشدہ افراد واپس آئے ہیں ان میں سے بیشتر کا یہی کہنا ہے کہ ان کو شام اور عراق جانے کی وجہ سے یا وہاں سے زیارت کر کے واپس آنے پر اٹھایا گیا تھاـ ہماری زیارت ہمارے لیے مقدس ہے اور ہم یہ سمجھنے سے کاثر ہیں کہ وہاں جانے میں کیا برائی ہے؟‘
اس بارے میں جب رینجرز اور فوج کے ترجمان سے پوچھا گیا تو انھوں نے یہ کہہ کر جواب دینے سے انکار کردیا کہ انھیں میڈیا سے بات کرنے کی اجازت نہیں ہے اور ساتھ یہ بھی کہا کہ اس حوالے سے ’اعداد و شمار مکمل نہیں ہیں، اس لیے بات نہیں کی جا سکتی۔‘
جبری طور پر گمشدہ افراد کے بارے میں قانون نافذ کرنے والے اداروں کا زیادہ تر یہی جواب رہا ہےـ
اس سے پہلے بھی گمشدہ افراد کے کیس میں سپریم کورٹ کی طرف سے طلب کیے جانے پر بھی قانون نافذ کر ے والے ادارے عدالت میں نہیں پیش ہوئے ہیں۔
اپنا مذہب تبدیل کر کے ایک پاکستانی شہری سے شادی کرنے والی انڈین خاتون کا کہنا ہے کہ وہ اعظم کے ساتھ گذشتہ ڈیڑھ سال سے رابطے میں تھیں اور پاکستان آکر ان سے شادی کرنا چاہتی تھیں۔
کرن بالا انڈین پنجاب کی رہائشی ہیں اور لاہور میں انھوں نے اسلام قبول کرنے کے بعد اپنا نام آمنہ بی بی رکھ لیا ہے اور پاکستانی شہری اعظم کے ساتھ شادی کر لی ہے۔
بی بی سی کی نامہ نگار شمائلہ جعفری سے بات چیت کرتے ہوئے انھوں نے کہا کہ وہ ماضی میں پاکستان آنے کی کوششیں کر چکی تھیں تاہم انھیں ویزہ نہیں ملا۔
ان کا کہنا تھا کہ انھیں ایک اخبار کے ذریعے علم ہوا کہ سکھ یاتریوں کا ایک گروہ بیساکھی کی تقریبات میں شرکت کے لیے پاکستان جا رہا ہے، انھوں نے منصوبہ بنایا اور بطور یاتری ویزہ حاصل کیا۔
کرن بالا کا کہنا تھا کہ وہ یاتریوں کے ہمراہ پہلے حسن ابدال میں واقع پنجہ صاحب گردوارہ اور پھر ننکانہ صاحب گئیں۔ اس کے بعد لاہور آئیں اور اعظم کے ساتھ ان کی ملاقات دریائے راوی کے پل پر ہوئی۔
بعدازاں لاہور میں واقع جامعہ نعیمیہ میں انھوں نے اسلام قبول کیا اور لاہور کے علاقے ہنجروال کے رہائشی اعظم کے ساتھ نکاح کر لیا۔
کرن بالا نے بی بی سی کو بتایا کہ وہ انڈیا واپس نہیں جانا چاہتیں اور یہاں اپنے شوہر کے ہمراہ رہنا چاہتی ہیں۔
ان کے مطابق انھوں نے اپنے والد اور چچا کو اس فیصلے کے بارے میں آگاہ کر دیا ہے۔ ان کا کہنا تھا کہ وہ ان کے اس فیصلے پر ناراض ہیں لیکن وہ اپنا فیصلہ تبدیل نہیں کریں گی۔
کرن بالا کا کہنا تھا کہ ان کی پہلے شادی ہوچکی ہے اور ان کے شوہر کا چند سال قبل انتقال ہو گیا تھا۔ انھوں نے بچوں کے حوالے سے انڈین ذرائع ابلاغ کی ان خبروں کی بھی تردید کی۔
انھوں نے یہ دعویٰ بھی کیا کہ ان کا پاکستان میں انڈین ہائی کمیشن، گردوارہ پربھندک کمیٹی یا انڈیا اور پاکستانی حکام کے ساتھ کوئی رابطہ نہیں ہے۔
کرن بالا کا ویزہ 21 اپریل کو ختم ہو رہا ہے اور انھوں نے اپنے وکیل کے ذریعے ویزہ میں توسیع کی درخواست دائر کی ہے۔
دوسری جانب پاکستانی دفتر خارجہ کے ترجمان ڈاکٹر محمد فیصل نے بی بی سی کو بتایا تھا کہ 'ویزے میں توسیع کا اختیار وزارت داخلہ کے پاس ہے۔'
ان کا کہنا تھا کہ 'یہ ایک انسانی مسئلہ ہے اور اسے انسانی تناظر میں دیکھنا چاہیے۔ اگر کوئی فرد مذہب تبدیل کرنا اور یہاں رہنا چاہتا ہے تو یہ اس کا ذاتی مسئلہ ہے۔ اس کو سیاسی رنگ نہیں دینا چاہیے۔'
ادھر لاہور ہائی کورٹ نے وزارت داخلہ سے اس معاملے کو دیکھنے اور جلد فیصلہ کرنے کا کہا ہے۔
SUPARCO’s Rehbar-1 Rocket
Yes, we have a space program! The only problem is… it hasn’t actually sent something to space for a long, long time.
The Space and Upper Atmosphere and Research commission, or SUPARCO for short, was founded with the help of Nobel Laureate Dr. Abdus Salam in the September of 1961, making Pakistan the first South Asian country to have a space program.
At its inception, it had noble ambitions and audaciously high goals (probably because it was run by scientists instead of blood-thirsty bureaucrats or military personnel). In less than a year (June, 1962) SUPARCO launched its first rocket, the Rehbar-1 becoming the tenth country in the world to do so, the first nine being the United States, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, France, Sweden, Italy, Canada, Japan and Israel. In other words, Pakistan actually launched a rocket to space before India, China, Korea and all of the other major economies in contemporary Rising Asia.
Later Salam laid the foundations for physics and aerospace research infrastructure and Air Commodore Władysław Turowicz, successor to Salam, created the Islamabad Mission Control Centre and the Islamabad Ionospheric Station in the early 1970s. American astronauts from the Apollo 17 mission actually visited Karachi to see SUPARCO’s headquarters in Karachi.
SUPARCO’s Badr-1 Satellite
The fact that a poor third-world country that had just been founded less than two decades ago had not only managed to create a fully functional space program but had also sent a rocket to space was astounding! Everything was going amazingly, almost unbelievably, well…. but then came the bureaucrats and politicians.
Next to nothing was done by SUPARCO throughout the late 1970s and the 1980s. There was a brief reawakening in the early 1990s when the Badr satellites were launched, but it was only temporary. Nowadays the organization that had once been the pride of the country, first space program of South Asian, the great brainchild of Dr. Abdus Salam has shrivelled to nothing but another medium through which the public’s tax-payer money can be illegally transferred to the accounts of the corrupt bureaucracy.
Perhaps one day we might yet see a revival. Who knows? Maybe SUPARCO might even launch a rover to the moon or Mars! But sadly, that day is unlikely to come at least in the near future.
Eggventure contains both simple and complicated stages, each level of game has its own significance and player need to achieve different goals at every level. All levels of game are designed according to physics measurements and programmed to give scientific hurdles to player for clearance.
All characters in eggventure are cute and active, enemies and Eggward is the main character that covers all stages on player’s commands. For these adventurous characters almost 16 costumes are set by default and players can choose from them by their own choices.
Following are the features of Eggventure
Features:
-Fun Story Line which is tracked to go on continuously till end
-More than 3, hand painted environments, which enhance visual beauty of game and different scenes
-Each level has its own physics based gameplay, challenges & enemy types which make players get completely involve in game
-High Score elements to challenge friends and being popular among them
-4 Player Cross Device Multiplayer (CO-OP & versus), this feature provides more than one player play game at a time. You can invite your friend or sibling to have fun with you
-More than 150 missions to complete, big way to get pleasure
-Around 16 Costumes (Super Suites with special abilities), player can choose any of 16 costume according to choice and need
-4 Upgradable Power-ups (Rain, Thunder, Slow-Mo, Shield), allows players to enjoy variety and help in tackling hurdles
How to get Eggventure
Eggventure is totally free and can be taken from itune store, it can be easily run and played in iphone, ipad and ipod touch. Special edition for iphone 5 has been launched and can be downloaded by visiting same app address.
https://itunes.apple.com/pk/app/eggventure/id719072183?ls=1&mt=8
you can also visit and know more about this game by clicking Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/JumpInStudios?ref=hl
here are some screenshots of Eggventure
The status of women in Pakistan diverges substantially across regions due to uneven socio-economic development, customs of different tribal and feudal system. This is the overall picture; however, if we dig a little deeper it is clear that today’s Pakistani women enjoy a better status than most Muslim women.
In Muslim countries mostly men are considered as systematic gender, and women are not given right to run state affairs. However, attempts have been made by the Pakistani government and enlightened groups to elevate the status of women in Pakistani politics. The founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah showed a positive attitude towards women and highlighted their importance in politics in his statement:
“No nation can rise to the height of glory unless your women are side by side with you”. Women are the important part of politics in Pakistan. In every era their participation in politics and in electoral process has been increased. Through politics women proved themselves as an important organ of politics and without having women in politics, no country can make significant progress. Many women groups and feminist organizations in Pakistan are working to eradicate socio-economic injustices against women in the country and to raise the status of women in Pakistani society. For the first time in Pakistan women were given the suffrage in 1947 under the Constitution. . Now due to a keen awareness among people, educational and working opportunities for the Pakistani women have been increased in the last few years.
The most prominent women leaders like Fatimah Jinnah, Benazir Bhutto and many others have done a lot for women empowerment in Pakistan. Benazir Bhutto after becoming the first Pakistani woman prime minister proved that even women can give their best in running the state affairs. The elections of 2013 have raised many questions about the casting the vote up until selections of parliamentary candidates.
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is the sovereign democratic country which follows the bicameral political system and has parliamentary form of government. There are a total o 342 seats for the National Assembly out of which 60 are reserved for women and 10 for minorities. Reserved seats for women were given by General Pervez Musharraf under the Legal Framework Order 2002 and were incorporated into the Constitution through the 17th amendment. It is important to note here that there is no seat reserved for women in FATA and to Include FATA women into the mainstream of politics there is need for constitutional amendments and there is long way to go for it.
Reforms can be brought to parliament by the active NA members for inclusion of women representatives from FATA, but these long-awaited reforms can be seen as a historic first step towards politically mainstreaming FATA. Effective implementation and enforcement of the reforms will require awareness in local population and authorities, adequate resources and monitoring, and sustained efforts to address remaining deficiencies. Only then FATA women will b able to participate in the electoral process of country.
Reserved seats system for women is often criticized by many people; they oppose this system because due to this only elite class woman can make her way to parliament only and poor women can’t even think of it. But this is not true for all the women working in parliament; most of women activist MNAs have been working very well for the empowerment of women. This system is paving way for many other women to move forward and play their role in the state affairs. Due to this reserved seats system, women have been actively participating in it but here we need to have electoral reforms to include greater number of women in the mainstream politics. We need to introduce such system for their selection in the state legislative system where no one will question the eligibility of women legislators. Although women participation in politics is rising, the participation of women in the political parties and in the political structure at the local, provincial, and national levels remains insignificant due to cultural and structural problems.
It has been concluded that the electoral process provides women with the opportunity to be a key player in parliamentary decision making. Pakistan is no more a male-dominated society and women are given due representation; in 2008 for the first time in Pakistan a female speaker of the National Assembly was sworn in. However, bits of skepticism do arise keeping in view that women have their reserved seats in parliament. But over the past decade women parliamentarians have actively participated in democratic processes and they are no more silent spectators of the parliamentary proceedings. Many of women actively participate in the election campaigns etc. However, despite all this progress over the years, it is not feasible to recommend that the reserved seats system should end.
Such a policy will allow the modern urban women representative to make their way to parliament and the orthodox school of thought may not allow women to contest elections. In order to keep a balanced representation, it is recommended that we should still follow this system. However, there still exist people who do not encourage women to be part of the democratic process. Thus, few women parliamentarians turn out to be courageous and bold. Politics abolishes the concept of timid and shy women and in order to survive on this platform women need to stand against all odds.
In a country like Pakistan where half of women are barred from the voting right it becomes imperative to focus on the role of women participation in electoral process.
In today’s world cinemas hold much significance in a society mostly because it gives the people the environment and incentive to get entertained largely because of the use of advance 3D technology and high definition projection screens that has a captivating effect on people. A large faction of people in society are seen heading to cinemas for their own respective purposes that include avoid being a hermit, to enter the new folds of modernization, displacement of hardships and pressures in life, to be a part of cool movie gossips circulating the society. But have we pondered that how cinemas has increasingly penetrated and made sneaky entry into our cultural norms which are our identity. Every now and then we see how the cinemas have bombarded the audience with latest movies in an appealing and exaggerated manner. And the audience is consciously and unconsciously taking the effects of these movies unaware that they are buying foreign cultural logos and introducing them in our society by ways of identifying themselves with the movie characters, drawing inspiration from the scenarios that are presented and inferring ways aiding in pursuit of a happy life. Thereby our lifestyles, preferences, tastes and ways of interacting with society have changed. The cinemas of Pakistan are the good index of foreign culture and the main reason behind it is that they partake of the stuff of cultural life. The owners of the cinemas are much eager to get their hands on latest English and Indian movies than Pakistani movies which are rare ,for they have a know how that they have frequent cinema attendees helping them in generating larger incomes for them. We feel privileged and say with pride when we somehow manage to be a part of the premier show as it is something crucial that we would be missing out in our lives. And then we do not hesitate in fixing the borrowed customs, sumptuous living styles and ideas manifested through large movie screens for the suitability of our living.
Pakistani cinemas are more focused towards income aspects and are mostly targeting the elite class with higher ticket purchasing powers and do not bother to allocate time slots to show Pakistani movies that were once the beauty of Pakistani cinemas such as Armaan , Dosti etc which help in revitalizing and reminding the essence of Pakistani culture. When cinemas are used for brand promotions purposes then why not they can be used for cultural promotion purposes. It would serve as an incentive to our present generation to be well acquainted with our culture norms. Movies like Bol and Waar do create a buzz in Pakistani cinema markets once or twice in a year but even these movies were seen by the cultural critics as giving an exaggerated false picture of Pakistani culture emphasizing on abuse of women, homeless children and widespread terrorism. The frequent screening of western and Indian movies by cinema houses has made cinemas their cultural mirror. As a result westernized trends and Indian rituals and culture have so deeply intruded into our culture that the social values and Islamic values in our society have faded away. Indian movies like Kahani and Barfi are tapping the culture of Bengal. Whereas Hollywood movies like Gatsby with much colors and glitters are giving vivid description to the local audience of their own uplifted standards of society and luxurious living styles
Going to cinemas is good for rejoicing. It is fun to watch movie scenes with ecstatic movie fans but we should not adopt the foreign culture exhibited through films in our local society and should be incisive in protecting our culture. The cinemas also need to be sensitive to cultural issues when deciding on screening of different movies.
Child labor is an intricate issue especially for developing countries like Pakistan where there is no protection for people’s rights, leave alone children’s rights. But more importantly the use of child labor in the textile industry and sports goods industry of Pakistan has been a source of serious concern for the country over the past few years. Use of child labor began in 1960 and since then it has been used as a means to expand the manufacturing base in Pakistan.
Before the 60′s child labor was widespread within family businesses but seldom did children work outside home. With the increase in the number of new factories and a desire by factory owners to lower labor costs, Pakistan’s explosion of a child based labor force stacked the country’s economy. Poverty is by far the most important reason for the use of child labor in Pakistan’s manufacturing industry. Majority of the families in Pakistan lie below the poverty line which leaves them with no option but to send their children to work so they can add to the family income.
Increase in inflationary pressure affects the poor and the underprivileged segment of the society the most. Rising prices of basic necessities and high utility bills, displacement adds to the vulnerability to the worst forms of child labor. There is a deficiency of the Education System in Pakistan which leads to children going to work rather than going to schools to acquire education. The educational facilities available in small cities of the country are so poor and insufficient that parents have no motivation to send their children to schools so they prefer sending their children to work in the factories.
In a developing country like Pakistan there are hardly any traces of Labor Protection found. Although there are various laws to protect exploitation of labor they are rarely implemented. ILO programs and initiatives also change the bitter situation. Now the manufacturers were bound to provide details about production, labors etc. over a period of 18 months. Members of IPEC made regular visits to the production centers to determine whether there was any child labor employed in the industry. When traces of child labor were found IPEC ordered the manufacturers to take immediate action or else their membership from IPEC would be removed.
However, various steps have been taken to eradicate child labor from the industries; a change in the local attitude of the workers is the most significant factor to maintain a long lasting impact on the prevalence of child labor in the country. Awareness among workers about labors rights is a necessary thing.
Institute for Research Advocacy and Development (IRADA) has held two-day training program on ‘Promoting labor rights in Pakistan’. Representatives of different media groups, including print and electronic media, news agencies, web developers, community radio and others participated in the training. Aoun Sahi, Journalist/ trainer gave presentation on labor issues and discussed the subject of labor rights in detail. The other participants also discussed the rights of workers, constitutional and legal protection to Labor rights, and decent work agenda of International Labor Organization.
It’s the theme of two days discussion that awareness does play a key role in the rural areas among labors, state should create awareness among labors in rural areas and implementation of the labor laws is urgently needed which is also the requirement of the justice. The training program is being supervised by the Aftab Alam and Lala Hassan Pathan. Both are agreed that more efforts are required to bring in majority of labor under unions which is not possible without government support. Agriculture sector is excluded from labor laws in Pakistan and the agriculture work force has no protection, not even on paper. Labor rights in agriculture sector are neglected while agriculture sector is main contributor to economy. Bonded labor is another serious challenge which is highly neglected despite provision of laws such as Bonded Labor System (Abolition) Act of 1992.
Health and safety of workers, equal opportunity, elimination of child labor, minimum age of workers, social security, skill development, workers’ rights and relation with employers, workers’ freedom of association, dispute and conflict resolution, and improvement in labor laws need attention.
Pakistan’s third deep-sea port, Gwadar might not only transform Makran region into an important industrial and trade center, it is also likely to become instrumental in attracting tourists to this ancient land, which is dotted with sites of great historic interest. A brief account of some sites is given below:
Some 240 KM along Karachi-Gwadar highway, near Hinglaj in Lasbela district, the presence of Kuldevi is commemorated in a small shrine embedded in the rock in Kirthar Mountains. For Hindus, she is the revered Mata Hinglaj, the supreme Kuldevi. Local Muslims know her as BibiNani. The shrine marks the spot where, according to legend, the head of Devi was buried by her grieving husband Shiva. He disposed of her other 51 body parts all over India. In April each year, devotees congregate there in thousands to affirm their faith in her powers.
Sir Thomas Holdich, in his book “India” (published in 1904) records that the object of veneration by the Muslim and the Hindu is “probably the same goddess who was known to the Chaldeans as Nana a thousand years before the time of Prophet Abraham. According to him, “nothing testifies so strongly to the unchangeable nature of the geographical link formed by Makran between East and West than does this remarkable Ziarat,” which is revered by the Muslim and the Hindus who visit it to pay their respects to the saint.
Close to the shrine is a well, said to be of unfathomable depth, whose water is regarded as sacred and is taken in bottles by pilgrims to their homes. At a short distance is a tank of water called AlailKund, where pilgrims perform ablutions. Pilgrims also throw a coconut forcibly into the water, and if bubbles arise in sufficient quantities above the surface, the individual considers that his sins have been forgiven. The other places, according to Lasbella District Gazeteer, which the pilgrims to Hinglaj visited, are: Chaurasi, Guru Nanak-ka-saran, Gorakhji-ki-dhuni and JholiJhar.
Shah Bilawal: Shah Bilawal’s shrine stands among Pab hills, near a village of the same name, west of the ViraHab stream. Shah Bilawal was a Sayed saint from Sindh, who settled, around 900 AH, at Lahut from where he moved to the shrine’s present site. The shrine is held in veneration both by Hindus and Muslims.
Lahut-i-Lamakan: Another shrine of repute, which was frequented by devotees from all over India, at all seasons, is Lahut-i-Lamakan lying about 6½ kilometers from Shah Bilawal. Close to the shrine is a structure, resembling a manger and some upright peg-like stones which, according to an unsubstantiated local tradition, were used by Hazrat Ali for his famous mare.
Cave Dwellings: About 20 kilometers towards Bela’s north, beyond a range of low hills and Poorally river, the rocks rise perpendicularly to a height of around 140-150 meter, and are excavated in some place, where there is footing to ascend, up to the summit. These are the excavations of ShuhrRoghun and they are more numerous along the lower part of the hill and form distinct houses. They consist in general of a room 15 square feet, forming a kind of open verandah, with an interior chamber of the same dimensions, to which one can gain admittance by a door. There are niches for lamps in many, and a place built up and covered in, apparently intended to hold grain.
Legend of Badi-ul-Jamal and Saif-ul-Maluk: In the reign of Solomon, according to a legend, the city of cave dwellings was governed by a king celebrated for his wisdom, and great beauty of his only daughter – Badi-ul-Jamal. She was adored by seven young men, who perished one after the other in defending the object of their adoration from the designs of half-a-dozen demons who, attracted by Badi-ul-Jamal’s surpassing beauty, made repeated attempts to carry her off. At that interesting period, Saif-ul-Maluk – son of Egypt’s king – an extra-ordinarily brave and handsome man of his time, arrived at ShuhrRoghun. Saif-ul-Maluk had been dispatched by his father in the hope that he might conquer a few kingdoms for himself. The princess fell in love with him. The demon lovers were in despair, and made a desperate effort to carry her off, but were all slain in the attempt by the prince. The father of the fair princess rewarded him for his gallantry with the hand of his daughter, and the happy couple lived to reign for many years, in peace and security, over ShuhrRoghun. At the summit, the hill has a mosque where the princess is said to have been rescued by Saif-ul-Maluk.
Hinidan Tombs: These tombs are situated, in a Muslim cemetery, near Hinidan and Hab rivers’ confluence, about 80 kilometers from Karachi. Scattered among the graves are 71 highly ornamented sepulchers of unknown origin, which afford evidence of super-terrene burial with a universally south to the north direction. These ornamented sepulchers may be divided into two groups; 27 small ones consisting of one sarcophagus, and 41 large ones having two, and in one instance even three, sarcophagi placed upon the other. The tombs are either single or built in rows numbering from two to eight, sometimes raised on a common plinth. The lower sarcophagus is generally constructed of eight vertical slabs, three on each long and one on each short side. These are covered by three slabs on which the second sarcophagus is raised, similar to the lower one, but slightly smaller in its dimensions. On the upper sarcophagus four or five layers of slabs are laid horizontally, gradually diminishing in size so as to give the whole structure the general appearance of a slender pyramid. The topmost slab is set vertically, its northern end carved in the form of a cylinder, which projects above it and is terminated in a knob. These slabs are all carved and the whole structure bears peculiar designs and ornamentations.
Chandra Kups: The Chandra Kups are mud volcanoes, which are a feature of special interest along the Bela coast. Found at different places along the coast, they are conical in form, with apex flattened and discolored, and differ in size, height and circumference which, in some cases, is 90 meter. The Hindus look on the volcanoes as the habitation of a deity and consult them in the same way as the Delphic oracle was consulted in the olden times. They throw coconuts and bread into the crater and receive their reply in the shape of an answering gurgle. Another story regarding them is that there are 84 of them and they spring from 84 parts of a ball of ashes thrown to the ground, in a paroxysm of anger, by Shiva.
Legend of Sassi and Punnun: The Baloch legend about Sassi and Punnun is one of the most common tales of the Indus Valley, repeatedly commemorated in Persian, Balochi, Sindhi and Pujabi verse. Born of Brahman parents at Bhambur in lower Sind, Sassi was abandoned by her parents on the river in consequence of a revelation that she would become a Muslim. She was picked up by a washer-man. The foundling grew into a beautiful girl and Punnun from KechMakran fell immensely in love with her. But, Punnun’s father, who was against the uneven match, sent men to drug Punnun and carry him off. Sassi started in haste to overtake him, and near Paboni in Lasbela she fell exhausted, overcoming with thirst. Suddenly, a spring broke forth to quench her thirst. On regaining consciousness, Punnun left Kech, once again, for Sassi. On the way, he stopped near a newly dug grave. On learning that this was Sassi’s grave, Punnun could not bear the pang and died then and there. Instantly, there appeared an opening in the grave, which sucked in Punnun’s body.
The soft sandy beaches of Makran, with sea water beyond Pasni being clear from all types of pollutants, are ideal for swimming. The minimum temperature, in winter, in the Makran coastal belt remains above 13 degree centigrade, a phenomenon due to which the seawater here remains warm even during winter when elsewhere, in particular around Europe, America, Japan and Korea, it happens to be icy cold, if not freezing. Due to these features, Makran has the potential to become an ideal tourist paradise, if equipped with water sports, gliding and ancillary infrastructural facilities.
Pakistan has been confronting daunting challenges since its creation in 1947.In world politics and emerging dynamics at global level, Pakistan has somehow failed to obtain an enviable reputation. Albeit, it’s literal symbolization as “Land of the Pure”, Pakistan comprehends a very little reference to such meaning. Ironically, Pakistan has attained the status of an unstable fractured state with pockets controlled by multiple elements. Under such paralyzed conditions, Pakistan is deeply overwhelmed by severe consequences that need both attention and action.
Amidst an avalanche of misfortunes, extremism is one of the gravest disasters that have distorted the sovereignty of our homeland. Unfortunately, Pakistan had fell prey to extremists who have been successful in manipulating youth through their fanatically designed propaganda.
In a recent conversation with Ahmed Rashid, a renowned author, he expressed his views on the ongoing verge of global terrorism. According to him, terrorism is a like a nightmare to the people of Pakistan, but it lacks a proper status as a subject of specialization in Pakistani curriculum. He further argued, that the point of failure is due to our negligence in forming a clear cut, conceptual and a united narrative against extremism. He stressed that the most perilous enemy of today is not external but within us, as he quoted that “Kiyani took 10 years to say we have an internal threat.” In concluding remarks, he asserted that “the debate is pathetic, whether to fight or negotiate“, he opined that unless the system of brainwashing is not brought to a halt, the jihad factories would continue manufacturing Fidayeen(suicide bombers) for their self-constituted Islamic war.
Realistically, the seminary culture that was once designed by Zia with Saudi and American funds has succeeded to the utmost point, building strongholds at grass root levels, covering towns and neighborhoods of every city and village. This is something unceasingly violent we have in Pakistan, where religion is the most favorite reason to kill. It is what happened in February 2012 Kohistan Shia Massacre, with Hazaras in Quetta, with Christians in Peshawar, with Sunnis in Milad-e-Nabi and is an everyday story of Pakistan. Sorrowfully, the democratic and judicial system has failed to prosecute those who are responsible for such heinous crimes, yet they are being provided safe havens. Who will deny the astounding confidence of militants when they promulgated an assault on DI Khan jail and managed to free over 250 militants? Despite all this, is it right to give the militants a chance so that they can again play soccer with the decapitated heads of Pakistani soldiers.
We want to give peace a chance!
What is Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan? It is an organization of pessimistic idealists fighting against infidels for a global cause of imposing their own version of Islam, according to which they can rape the infidel women, slave their children, kill their men, excrete modern educational system, demolish social and political values, and abhorrently suppress the freedom of all the people.
Ironically, we ask for peace from those who probably haven’t heard this word before, but why should we be shameful for carrying out our obligate duty-nonetheless we are a sovereign state, but does the so called sovereignty really matters when we “do as they say not as they do.” Taliban or better to say them “students of faith”, with long hairs and scruffy beards, brandishing riffles, holding knifes, raising slogans of “Allah hu Akbar“, while beheading people are our own disenfranchised folks. Decades ago, they were dear to all of us but now how can they be so cruel, for whom they work and with whose support? Creating a mockery of state’s sovereignty, it’s a tremendous fact that our political elites profess double standard policies like running with the hare and hunting with the hound- where their own interests are secured and public is left over wondering in fool’s paradise. This is the reason that the suffering families not ready to bargain the blood of their martyrs never get justice. They are always obsessed to silence by authoritarian politicians.
Reflection of our own actions!
“As you sow, so shall you reap?” We have to admit that what we are facing today is due to our own faults. We created the militants, and used them as a tool for our foreign policy objectives. We haven’t had leaders who can lead from the front. Neither the previous nor the current government has taken terrorism issue seriously. Such impotence of security apparatus, lack of political wisdom, inefficiency of judicial system, and extra legal actions by state actors can be depicted when not a single convicted terrorist was punished in the previous democratic era setting a precedent for the current incumbency to follow. Despite, being under the pledge of allegiance as representatives of the state of Pakistan, these politicians provide sanctuary to their affiliated non state actors, just to keep up their leverage amongst rivalries. In words of Lord Acton “power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely”. It is a dilemma that we have found out to zip our tongues when no other speak truth-we fold our eyes when it is necessary to find out-we block our ears when someone shouts out for aid and justice. This is our reflection in the mirror of reality. The future of Pakistan hinges on its present. If such circumstances remain unabated, what kind of Pakistan the next generation will live in.
We all know the importance of education. It is the most important aspect of any nation’s survival today. Education builds the nations; it determines the future of a nation. So that’s why we have to adopt our Education Policies very carefully because our future depends on these policies.
ISLAM also tells us about Education and its importance. The real essence of Education according to ISLAM is “to know ALLAH” but I think in our country we truly lost. Neither our schools nor our madrassa’s (Islamic Education Centers) are truly educating our youth in this regard. In schools, we are just preparing them for “Money”. We aren’t educating them we are just preparing “Money Machines”. We are only increasing the burden of the books for our children and just enrolling them in a reputed, big school for what, just for social status???
On the other hand in our madrassas we are preparing people who finds very difficult to adjust in the modern society. Sometimes it seems that they are from another planet. A madrassa student can’t compete even in our country then the World is so far from him. He finds very difficult to even speak to a school boy. It is crystal clear that Islamic Education is necessary for Muslims but it is also a fact that without modern education no one can compete in this world. There are many examples of Muslim Scholars who not only study the Holy Quran but also mastered the other subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy and many more, with the help of Holy Quraan. I think with the current education system we are narrowing the way for our children instead of widening it. There is no doubt that our children are very talented, both in schools and in madrassas, we just need to give them proper ways to groom, give them the space to become Quaid-E-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Allama Iqbal, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Alberoni, Abnalhasam, or Einstein, Newton, Thomas Edison. The education system we are running with is not working anymore. We have to find a way to bridge this gap between school and madrassa.
Robert Maynard Hutchins describes it as
The object of education is to prepare the young to educate themselves throughout their lives.
We should give our youth the way to educate themselves.
Edward Everett said that
Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army.
Sadly, in Pakistan we are spending more budgets on our arms than on education which depicts our ideology about education!!! Since 1947 not a single government is able to change this scenario. In price of a grenade almost 20 to 30 children can go to school for the whole year and the other picture…. a grenade can kill 20 to 30 grown people!!!!!!. So a grenade is damaging in two ways stopping children education and then killing innocent people!!! Why not authorities think about this? Answer…. we all know that!!! Don’t we?
Now lets talk about our Policy Makers, it seems they are not working enough. Every year policy for education is reviewed by the government but the results are same…. Illiteracy rate is going upwards in Pakistan according to a recent survey. Somebody starting, “Nai Roshni School”, somebody starting, “Parha Likha Punjab” etc, for what to educate Pakistan? Well, I don’t think so. These “People” are playing with our nation for the last 60 years just for their on profits and aims. We should and we have to think about our children education now that are we educating them in the right way? If not, what should we do? We have to act now otherwise it’s going to be too late for PAKISTAN!!!
The Economic Advisory Council, in its session chaired by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, took numerous crucial suggestion and recommendations into consideration, with increase in the salaries of the government servants up to 10 percent and to maintain the market prices of the daily use commodities being the most important ones. However, final decision on the matter was postponed to the time right before the announcement of budget.
This second economic budget of the incumbent government has matchless importance. It is true that when the PML (N) government announced the last Budget (2013-14), the situation was really uncertain and alarming and this fact can be gauged from the fact that one of the senior leaders of the party said that when their party took charge, they were startled to see the gravity of the situation. But the government took the challenge, and after prioritizing the maladies, started working with commitment and dedication. The net result of these efforts was that the government successfully brought the Dollar down from 109 to 98 rupees. Moreover, it also signed many Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with many countries to initiate power production projects, including Hydel, Solar, Nuclear and Wind, to immediately meet the energy needs of the country. Although this objection is also raised that these MoUs are of no legal value and will prove useless, this is also an undeniable fact that to reach some formal pact, the MoUs are the first steps to create an atmosphere of affability.
The main three serious ills Pakistan is facing at the moment are energy crisis, soaring inflation and the remorseless increase in poverty. As far as energy crisis is concerned, the government is making serious efforts to meet this challenge and many a projects have been started in this regard. Many new licenses have also been issued for the discovery of oil and gas reservoirs. It is hoped that after the first three months of this summer season, load shedding will be abated. There seems no urgent solution to this problem.
The uncontrolled inflation and rapid increase in poverty has made the lives of the common people deplorable and they are deprived of their unalienable rights. In the aforementioned session of EAC, it was conceded that over 50 percent unfortunate population of Pakistan was languishing below the poverty line. The increase in poverty is so rampant that now situation has reached to the level that not only the lower, but many well-off people of lower-middle and middle class are facing serious difficulty in keeps body and soul together. The unnerving increase in the prices of sugar, flour, vegetables and fruits depicts as if there is no price control mechanism existing in the country altogether. In this situation, the finance minister’s proposal for 10 percent increase in the salaries of the government servants was really a welcoming and comforting omen. In the established democracies and welfare states, the governments give such incentives and reliefs to their salaried class so they could keep pace with the rest of the society with absolute ease.
However, on the other hand, even a cursory look into the recent history will reveal this undeniable fact that from the past seven years, the salaries of the government employees had been increased up to 150 percent, but then inflation was also allowed to soar on almost the same pattern. This is another fact that no government ever took some serious step in increasing salaries of the workers of private sector, although the number of the people working in the private sector is far higher than that of public sector. The owners of private ventures do not even bother thinking of increase in the wages of their staff members.
This is a promising sign that the Foreign Exchange Reserves have reached $ 12 billion. Even opponents cannot deny this fact. The people at the helm of affairs too cannot deny the reality that despite this increase in the Foreign Exchange Reserves, nothing substantial could be done to alleviate poverty. According to a report, the annual income of the country’s employee class is between 360 and 512 dollars. This unfortunately means that majority of these employees of Pakistan is earning between 5 and 7 thousand rupees per month. As in Pakistan those with 200 rupees income per day will be considered below the poverty line, so, over 50 percent people are rotting below the poverty line.
This is true that mostly the people having feudal background reached the powers corridors and the further heaped their treasures without even bothering about the plight of the poor people. The rich is getting richer, while poor is getting poorer. It is hoped that the new budget will be people friendly and the deprived ones will be the first priority of the government. The announcement of the incumbent government should not be limited just to the lip-service, but there should be practical steps in this regard. Let’s hope for the best!
Sports in Pakistan have taken an obvious blip in recent times. From beyond you can look and say that all is well and good, but is it the case really?
I have lived in the distinct city of Quetta. From which I have seen extraordinary talents in sports. Mostly in football because that is my main field but through my different observations I have found out that talent is densely packed in Baluchistan. You can see little football players with quick feet and shooting which you won’t believe. Their body strength isn’t to be laughed at as well as they posses incredible strength for small guys. That’s not to say that they are all small they come in all shapes and sizes, abundant in talent as well. Moving on to cricket which is a well-known game in Pakistan, You see people playing on the streets and they are really good. You think to that if someone comes in and teach these guys a few things then they can be great players surely? Unfortunately that’s where the problem lies.
You think of countries like England and Germany where they have these brilliant systems to get the best out of youth. One has to wonder that why doesn’t Pakistan replicate their ways? They have a tendency to replicate every other thing! It’s not like we are living in the 1990′s, its 2014 now and you look at some of the world; you do find that there is little progress in Pakistan. That’s not to say that there aren’t certain factors which prevent, but they can be easily avoided or dealt with.
You think of football and cricket in the UK, It’s been there since the mid 1850s.Thats is a long time ago. Till now they have exercised the best methods. Indeed it is something that other countries have replicated well; you look at India for example. They have become a global brand with their IPL and they have even established a football league. They are having a right go at it, the same can’t be said about Pakistan.
It’s not like the government isn’t generating money. We all know how well it does generate, and how much does it generate. They could set up proper academies in each city or at least the capital of each district. Set up proper competitions in school, colleges and universities to pick out the best players and offer them contracts.They could set up scouting networks so that they can extract those pure talents from everywhere. Why not establish a domestic league? Or even a regional league? There will be crowds and sponsors! People can establish their own clubs, whether it be in football, cricket or hockey etc. The clubs in turn will make their own stadiums, which can be used for domestic and international matches. The clubs will then invest in foreign coaches and staff, who will come from overseas .Which means it will also attract foreign fans and encourage the local ones too. The sponsors can be foreign as well, Think of Nike or Adidas. So will the tickets sold for each match. The government will no doubt put a hefty tax to suck up some of the money. Then the scouting networks can pick out the best players in the league and deputize them for international duties. Imagine a international football match in Pakistan, Foreign teams and fans coming over. This will be very good for the economy and tourism as well. The advantages are endless really.
After reading that the question pops up that why doesn’t the government invest in sports? For how long will they keep up sucking up all the money for uses which are better left unmentioned? Probably forever, until there is a probable voice(s) which can force them to establish these ideas. Everyone also needs to realize that not everyone is a gem in education. Talents come in multiple forms and one of them is sports. Everyone expects children to prosper in education, but what if he doesn’t have the same brain as the next one? What if you give him a football and he excels with it? All these possibilities have to be taken in account. If a child can be given a gift in studies then a child can also be given a gift in sports. Until the government establishes all these ideas it will be hard for parents to be convinced, they will be reluctant to accept it because they will think that there are less opportunities (and money) in the sports field. It’s the responsibility of the government to convince everyone that sports has a future and one in the limelight.
In the end you can believe whatever you want to. To give you a taste of reality here is a question, for a country which really prides itself with cricket, when was the last time we played a home international match? After which I ask the question again, Are things really well and dandy?
According to CIA World Fact Book “Pakistan remains stuck in a low-income, low-growth trap, with growth averaging about 3.5% per year from 2008 to 2013 which was Ex-President Asif Ali Zardari regime in Pakistan. Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz government inherited many challenges to must address long standing issues related to government revenues and energy production in order to spur the amount of economic growth that will be necessary to employ its growing and rapidly urbanizing population. Other long term challenges include expanding investment in education and healthcare, adapting to the effects of climate change and natural disasters, and reducing dependence on foreign donors.
Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz cabinet took the oath when Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was bombing in the war of terrorism which was imposed on our countrymen, after Pervez Musharf’s decision to bow down in the line of fire which shaken economic foundation of Pakistan and gave birth to many terrorists in reaction of counter terrorism attacks.
Baluchistan was igniting in insurgencies due to feelings of deprivation in the Baloch tribes and Baloch insurgents were raising their voice for their rights and for their beloved missing persons. Karachi the economic hub of Pakistan was weeping over the mutilated dead bodies of its citizens while lords of its soil were ruling all the provinces and Punjab was formulating merit policies and delivering laptop to his young students.
Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz achieved heavy mandate in general election 2013 but in spite of having the authority to formulate PMLN government in more than two provinces, party leadership preferred to split the power in all democratic parties according to their mandate. Baluchistan was handed over to Baloch nationalist Muhammad Malick where anti state sentiment was growing up due to deprivations.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was assigned to Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf’sPervez Khattak according to their mandate.Pakistan People Party and Muttahida Quami Movement were allowed to rule the Sindh and Pakistan Muslim League came in to chairs to govern the Punjab and Federal.
Since the begging of his rule Nawaz government with his expert team putting all his efforts day in and day out for social capital growth, economic development, institutional reforms, infrastructural expansion and rule of law implementation with a future vision to achieve global millennium development goals.
All the core team worked hard to design the objectives of Nawaz government entitled as vision 2025 which is going to be launched soon. Vision 2025 is framed around the seven main pillars like
- Putting People First : Developing Human and Social Capital: covers education, higher education, population, health, youth, genderequality and womendevelopment, inclusionofvulnerable segments, interfaithharmony andreligiousdiversity, art, culture& heritage, sports and ethical andvaluesdrivensociety.
- Achieving Sustained, Indigenous andInclusive Growth: includes macroeconomic framework, productivity growth, strategic initiatives, formalizing the parallel economy, resource mobilization, urban development and smart cities and social protection framework.
- Governance, Institutional Reform & Modernization of the Public Sector: encompasses the governance framework, enabling the private sector, high performance & fast governance for the future and civil service reforms.
- Energy, Water & Food Security: covers energy, integrated energy development model, energy efficiency, water, food security, nutrition and climate change.
- Private Sector & Entrepreneurship Led Growth: includes strengthening institutions, removing infrastructure bottlenecks, macro-economic stability, privatization, public private partnership (ppp), encouraging investment and small and medium enterprises.
- Developing a Competitive Knowledge Economy through Value Addition: includes firm commitment to enhancing competitiveness, fixing the basics for a healthy and educated workforce, laying the foundations of a knowledge economy, increasing goods market efficiency, increasing labor market efficiency, greater financial market sophistication, information and communication technology, tapping large domestic and regional market size, cluster based development, value chain improvements, driving innovation, technology parks and business incubation centers, applying knowledge for increased productivity in agriculture, increasing competitiveness of industry and manufacturing, tapping natural endowments in mining and minerals and increasing competitiveness in the services sector.
- Modernizing Transportation Infrastructure & Greater Regional Connectivity: includes roads, railways, aviation, ports, Pakistan’s regional connectivity potential, opportunities for realizing the vision and China-Pakistan economic corridor.
All the core team is striving to achieve the objectives of vision 2025 keeping in view the priority areas, to facilitate local and international investors to invest and plant alternative energy plants to gear up our sick industries, to create enabling atmosphere to sustainable growth rate all over the country without gender and geographic discrimination, to generate new business and job opportunities by modernization of existing infrastructure with the help of public private partnership, improving competitiveness in industry and trade sector, opening economic corridor for global business communities to invest in Pakistan to improve our falling economies.
It is an eye opener for all responsible citizens of this Pak Land that in two dictators regimes we are put in to game of bomb and blood, first time when we were used as to manufacture Mujahidins to fight with infidels all over the globe, especially to disintegrate power of Soviet Union and second time we were put into War of Terrorism to safeguard the heinous designs of war mongers for their corporate objectives and during ruling era of Pakistan People’s Party we lost East Pakistan to fulfill the dream of rule.
It is time to stand with Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz government because Pakistan cannot afford any more killings in the name of revolution, no more marches in the name of change and no more coup d’état on democracy in the name of national interest. We all should believe in the continuity of the democratic process for institutional maturity and organization growth and to put all our efforts for a better Pakistan in future.
Lahore can be best described as a city that is just so wonderful, so very fabulous that every nook and corner of the city speaks of certain vibrancy, certain zeal, a spirit of life which cannot be found elsewhere in the world.
A well known city for its arts, architecture and history is associated with the dark side of Pakistan-terrorists, bomb blasts, poverty and lack of education. Many of us decide to live a safe life someplace abroad than here because they never know when the next bomb is going to drop. People are not secure here but at the end of the day, it is still home for us. Despite all the hardships we face, there are a lot of things you could only find here.
People rarely look beyond the dark side of Lahore; they are not able to see the humour in everyday things that take place in this city which make it so unique. But most vividly, the Great Spirit is visible in the people of Lahore, the Zinda Dilan-e-Lahore.
Driving around in the city, you will see hilarious advice pasted behind the rickshaws such as “Ye mere baap ka paisa aur meri maa ki dua hai” which translates as “I am driving because of my father’s money and my mother’s blessings. These words will leave you in tears. There is an old saying, that in every Lahori , there is a Mughal Prince.
Only in Lahore will you see those without air conditioned houses to retreat into, truly enjoying the essence of a hot Pakistani summer by taking a dip in the Canal that runs in between the main Canal Road.
It is a city where most of people seem to be riding the metro bus for entertainment rather than transport purpose.
The people of Lahore, when they want to emphasize the uniqueness of their city say:
“Lahore, Lahore ae”.
These are the truths about my homeland Lahore
In densely populated country like Pakistan, one can easily observe the presence of street beggars hanging around in pitiable conditions. Although people began begging due to multiple reasons such as poverty, illiteracy and unemployment, yet beggars are a blot on humanity. Begging is as easy as falling of a log; therefore it is a shortcut for earning normal livelihood. This is the reason why most of the physically fit youngsters in Pakistan opt for such pathetic job. Begging on the streets has engendered a venomous practice. Indeed, begging has become a profession supervised by Mafia rackets that train, recruit and relocate young men, women and children. The Mafia lords run groups of beggars who pay them extortion on daily basis.
These beggars use different techniques and tactics by exaggerating their condition to utmost deprivation. It is a dilemma in our society that young children are kidnapped or picked up from homes, orphanages or streets, molested and forced to beg. Ironically, these children are made addicted to lethal drugs that are injurious to their health. Almost all the child beggars are addicted to solvents, alcohol and charras(powerful Afghan hashish often laced with opium). This drives the children to forget where they are, but it also helps the gang masters to keep them under control. In a report conducted by UN Human rights watch it was noted that a large number of child beggars in underdeveloped countries faced symptoms of mental disorder, while some were even vulnerable to aids. Kids like Zeeshan alias ‘shani’ are addicted to lethal drugs and even molested by their masters like sex slaves.
Although many non-governmental and international organizations are working to prevent children falling into clutches of gangsters, yet millions of children are living a devastating life.
In addition to that young women are highly involved in street begging. In the most poverty ridden families, men are accompanied by their women to beg for alms. Young girls are preferred for this purpose as they easily attract the glance of public. These female beggars know human psychology and work according to that.
A recent research showed that babies are rent out to young ladies on daily basis in Pakistan for an amount of 1500 rupees. These females then carry babies to crowded areas where they pursue the people so doggedly that people are fed up with them. Once outside the railway station, I met a women street beggar who likely in her twenties, in a grim condition, wearing half torn clothes, rolling with her untidy bushy hairs, lifting a baby who seemed to be vague in the red-hot heat of summer, depicted herself in extreme helplessness.
Though the smell coming out of her unclean body was malodorous, I didn’t hesitate to pause for a while to know about her. By throwing her a 100 rupee note, I persuaded her to disclose herself righteously in return of a reward. At first, she abstained from stating anything but a 500 rupee note was enough for her to expose the ground realities.
She told her name as Rehana and lives in a dirty shack on the outskirts of Lahore. She wasn’t the mother of that baby and told me how the whole drama is planned,
“I take one baby with me every day. I feed the baby with half a bean of opium. He sleeps quietly on the street, and I roam here and there pointing towards him. Before going back to my place, I pour water on his face, and make him drink water. Sometimes he vomits!”
When I asked her that why she doesn’t do any other work, she argued that,
“No one would like to give us any job, we aren’t even considered a part of this society, we are merely untouchables, so the solitary work we can do is begging.”
When I asked her, how women are treated in nomadic culture, she responded that
“We (the females) are the best source of income for our kin, even Some of our girls indulge in prostitution to make a good sum of money. Yet, as far as employment is concerned our men, mostly shirk their duties.”
Raising my tensions, I inquired about the health of their children, she confidently answered that,
“Our children have more immunity then yours because we survive in dust and dirt- nothing serious happens to them so they are okay with all circumstances.”
Contrary to what she had said, it is a fact that when these children are not given their fixed dose, they cry, shiver, and complain of body ache. Undoubtedly, I saw that she possessed no sensation of moral and ethical values; instead she had strong justifications to try out her miserable profession. Indeed, from the medical point of view, these street beggars like Rehana carry with them infection and roam from place to place spreading epidemics.
Realistically street begging is a grave crime and should be suppressed with iron fist. To end this menace, traffickers and gang lords running the beggars industry should be brought to justice as they are the real monsters of our society. Consequently those who support them should be punished accordingly.
By all accounts, begging should be banned by law. A legislator must be enacted to put an end to this profession. However, it is a fact that people involved in street begging are mostly uneducated and unskillful. In order to end this malicious culture, our government should take punitive measures by providing free education and building institutes of rehabilitation for deserving cases. It is true to say that if wishes were horses, beggars would ride. A man’s dignity lies in his own hand, life without self-esteem and respect is worthless.
A few days ago, I watched a video clip of a Hindu MNA from PTI, Lal Chand Malhi, in which he gave a fiery speech, pointing towards the discriminatory, and in fact, derogatory attitude of the Pakistani society towards the Hindu community.
He objected to the way in which the Hindu style of worship is mocked. Malhi also lamented about the conflation of Pakistani Hindus with the Indian state by saying,
“inko gali deni hoti hai India ko, galian de dete hain Hindu ko.”
(They want to abuse India, instead they abuse Hindus).
He claimed that Hindus are equal citizens of Pakistan, and complained that Pakistani society does not treat them as such. He also pointed towards the forceful conversions of Hindus into Muslims in several parts of Sindh.
The MNA was eloquent, which merely accentuated the content of the speech. Each word hit me like a brick and shook me to my very core. Everything he said and objected to was absolutely correct.
A flashback of the time when I was a teenager, a student in an elite, all-boys school in Lahore dawned upon me. I still remember the Urdu textbooks that always portrayed Hindus as anti-Pakistan, and framed the Pakistan-movement as a struggle between conniving and brutal Hindus and pious Muslims. I still remember that several of our teachers used to make fun of Hindus openly in the classroom. Such framing invariably creates a blanket negative opinion of all Hindus, and invariably leads to instinctive hateful knee-jerk reactions.
Once such impression become part of our instinctive makeup, they become permanent, and we start viewing the world through these coloured lenses.
As I look back, I realise that mine was a school which was relatively ‘liberal’ in the Pakistani context; I shudder to even think of the material taught in ‘normal’ schools.
Today, we think of Hindus as some kind of monolithic group, which is bigoted and hates Pakistan, as well as Muslims. What escapes us is that identity is multi-faceted and increasingly complex. In fact, Pakistani-Hindus, in our heads, are ‘anti-Pakistan’ and anti-Muslim simply because their faith.
This is disgusting and shameful, because Pakistani-Hindus are as Pakistani as we (Muslims) are. We complain of mistreatment of the Indian government and people towards Indian-Muslims, while completely forgetting that we are guilty of the same crime. In fact, ours is somewhat of greater intensity. We fail to acknowledge that we lose the moral advantage when we are guilty of the same crime.
Yes, today, intolerance in India is on the rise. Today, their textbooks are being changed to reflect a particular point of view. However, what they are doing now, we have done for decades!
Let me candidly ask all my fellow Pakistani-Muslims, particularly those who are concerned about the plight of Muslims in India: have you ever bothered about the treatment reserved for our Hindus? Today, many are worried – rightly so – about the way India is changing. But have we ever wondered about the way Pakistan has always been?
India today is simply becoming Pakistan, to put it simply; an intolerant nation.
Pakistani-Hindus are an endangered minority who become even more vulnerable keeping in mind the context of Pakistan’s historical creation. In principle, this should have made us more careful, but instead, we have become more brazen, resulting in Hindus becoming one of the most neglected minority groups in our society. Malhi was right when he cried about the apathy of the parliament members on forceful conversions, as the reality is, our society simply does not care. To some of us, what happened to Pakistani-Hindus is ‘justified’ merely because Indian-Muslims face equal or worse fates.
Yes, there are times when certain incidents make it to the news, but they quickly lose traction. For example, the gang rape of a young Hindu boy in Sindh is making headlines at the moment. But one of the most tragic parts of the incident is that it involves local office-bearers of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) – a party which always tries to project itself as liberal.
However, I know this will soon be forgotten. In fact, I have seen several posts on social media which trivialise this incident on the pretext that Indian-Muslims face atrocities that are ‘far worse’. Treatment of Indian-Muslim seems to be becoming the main paradigm through which we look at Pakistani-Hindus.
What we as a society need to realise is that being part of the majority comes with a responsibility – the position of privilege must not be misused to malign a minority. Hindus are the biggest religious non-Muslim minority group in Pakistan, and it is thus an obligation on us to ensure they live with dignity and respect in their country.
They have the same rights; to life, liberty, and happiness, as all of us. Ultimately, when we oppress or even neglect the plight of our Hindu minority, we undermine our own concerns for the welfare of Indian-Muslims.
معروف گلوکار علی ظفر نے میشا شفیع کی جانب سے جنسی ہراسانی کے الزامات کو مسترد کرتے ہوئے کہا کہ معاملے کو عدالت لے کر جاؤں گا۔
پاکستان کے معروف گلوکار علی ظفر نے گلوکارہ میشا شفیع کے الزامات پر رد عمل دیتے ہوئے سماجی رابطے کی ویب سائٹ پر ٹوئٹ کیا جس میں ان کا کہنا تھا کہ خاموش رہنا کوئی آپشن نہیں ہے جب کہ بہتان تراشی اور جھوٹے الزامات کے خلاف نہ صرف خود کے لیے بلکہ اپنی فیملی اور دوستوں کے لیے بھی کھڑا ہوا اور آج بھی میں یہی کروں گا کیوں کہ میرے پاس چھپانے کو کچھ بھی نہیں ہے۔
علی ظفر کا کہنا تھا کہ میشا شفیع کے الزامات کی سختی سے تردید کرتا ہوں، الزام کا جواب الزام سے نہیں دوں گا بلکہ سنجیدگی اور پیشہ ورانہ طریقے سے اس کا جواب دوں گا انہوں نے میشا شفیع کے خلاف عدالت جانے کا اعلان کرتے ہوئے کہا کہ معاملے کوعدالت لے کر جاؤں گا اور یقین رکھتا ہوں کہ سچ ہمیشہ غالب ہوتا ہے۔
#MeToo