Saday-e-Pakistan

Another pride for the nation: Guinness Record by a Pakistani Surgeon

2012-01-09T05:25:00.000-08:00

A Pakistani surgeon, The head of Surgical Department at the CDA Hospital, Dr. Naeem Taj, earns fame and good name for removing gallbladder of 25.5 centimeters size from the abdomen of a 77-year-old woman "Rasheeda Bibi" and set a new world record of removing such a large size gallbladder through laparoscopic procedure.

Dr. Syed Arshad Ali, Dr. Shabir Hussain, Dr. Naheeda, Dr. Tauqer, paramedical and nursing staff Ghulam Hussain, Naseem Awan, Nargis Batool, Malik M. Ismail, Ghulam Akbar and Aslam, assisted this unique kind of operation.

Dr. Naeem Taj informed that prior to this Dr. Manmohan Verma removed gallbladder of 25 centimeters from the abdomen of 50-year-old woman Karishna Devi in Kanpur, India, on August 17, 2009, which was performed by cutting abdomen, but the recent surgery was conducted through laparoscopic procedure.

He said that normally the size of gallbladder was estimated up to 8 centimeters and a normal operation takes only 30 minutes but this complicated operation was completed in 2 hours and all team members worked efficiently to remove the history’s largest gallbladder.

Local Operators Nokia and Telenor working together

2011-04-03T01:24:00.000-07:00

Two of the Industry Leaders, Nokia and Telenor are joining hands together to increase the Bandwidth of local Apps & content on Ovi Store. According to a Press Release issued recently,the first of the applications include games and comedy content. WeRPlay & Anahata Solutions are the apps development partners.

Commenting on the addition of new apps from Telenor Pakistan on Ovi Store, Nauman Durrani, Operator Relation Manager, Nokia Near East said, “We are really excited to be promoting Telenor Pakistan’s apps via our Ovi Store. These apps will be available to both local and international Nokia users. While this partnership will allow Ovi Store to host a greater variety of local apps, Telenor Pakistan will benefit from the vast scale and reach offered by the Ovi Store.”

Speaking about the partnership, Usman Javaid, Director Marketing, Telenor Pakistan said, “We appreciate Nokia’s Ovi Store for supporting apps published by Telenor Pakistan. This is the first time ever any mobile operator in Pakistan has ventured into handset-targeted apps. We specially invite freelancers & IT students to write apps for global mobile users. Telenor Pakistan will provide them with development, publishing and promotional support. To promote use of Ovi services in Pakistan, we will also be introducing an innovative data plan for Telenor mobile internet users which will enable them to access Ovi at attractive tariffs.”

Nokia’s Ovi Store continues to expand its offerings particularly locally developed apps so that consumers in Pakistan can enjoy mobile applications that match their preferences and lifestyle. As it gains momentum in Pakistan, Nokia’s Ovi Store aims to offer the most enriched, useful and streamlined user experience.

Good Bye Taseer, Good Bye Liberalism

2011-01-05T05:39:00.000-08:00

Very usual trend in Pakistan that is followed by politicians, media and now I am following the same; exploring a personality after his demise.

Salman Taseer was not an ordinary name. Born in 1946 and assassinated in 2011, the man left behind a lot of controversies to resolve. Belonging to the family of literates and great thinkers, and he himself was an intellectual who always had a different and outstanding opinion on controversial issues that lead him to success in business world but unfortunately many enemies in his political career.

The story started from Meher Bukhari’s show at Samaa Television. Salman Taseer was interviewed and there he declared his support to Asia Bibi, the lady who was sentenced to death by Court under Blasphemy Law. That was another controversy which I am not and don’t even want to discuss here.

Salman Taseer was a blunt speaker who always commented openly and straight forwardly on various issues either political or religious. His was a frequent user of Twitter, an emerging social networking tool, to give his personal opinion about different issues. This was and is another reason of his huge followership.

Salman Taseer lived the life of controversy and died leading to many more. In his life many political and religious leaders had issues not only with his open statement, but also with his western influenced lifestyles, the family’s way of celebrating weekends and parties (which is very common even in religious leaders though) and most importantly with the soft corner in his heart for non-muslims and Ahmedis specifically.

Jan 4, 2011 in Islamabad near his house in F-6, he was assassinated by an armed guard who shot him 27 bullets using AK-47. I was shocked at the brutal and insane killing of a human and a leader this way just in the name of Love for Messenger who himself said “killing one human is killing whole humanity”. But that was not it, the response from Ummah of Beloved Prophet (P.B.U.H) was even more insane and showed their insensitivity.

A huge sms campaign started right away, congratulating each other on his death. The notifications of early closure officers brought cheer for them; everybody was busy spreading messages of vacancy for the post of Governor of Punjab. The so called “Ulemas” whom this nation follows blindly asked people not to spread regrets and express sympathies on his assassination. Not only this, the other day many refuse to offer his Namaz-e-Jinaza. According to them, “Those favoring the person indulged in blasphemy are themselves blasphemous, they announced. Paying glowing tributes to Malik Mumtaz Hussain, and his courage, who killed Governor Salman Taseer, they said he is lover of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and is a ‘Ghazi’. Mumtaz had revived the 14-century-old tradition of Islam and put their head high in pride. It was only Prophet (PBUH) who could forgive any act of blasphemy but none other could ever do it”

After reading this, I am feeling ashamed of myself, calling myself and feeling myself part of this land, part of this group of people. I am a Muslim but unfortunately neither Quran, nor my parents or teachers taught me these definitions of being a Good Muslim. I belong to the religion who spread the message of peace not only among muslims but in the overall humanity. Please tell me one thing today - I don’t belong to this community, or these people

Wi-Tribe joining hands to support flood victims

2010-09-19T04:47:00.000-07:00

In Pakistan, wi-tribe employees organized a ‘Relief Drive’ using donations from their salaries to support victims of the devastating floods. wi-tribe employees volunteered their time to procure, pack, transport and distribute the goods themselves. With the much appreciated aid of the Pakistan Army stationed at Kot Addu, a very organized relief effort was executed, utilizing 100% of the funds to provide over 200 family care packages containing 1 month of relief rations and goods.

With each care package, wi-tribe provided a family of 5 with 1 ration sack (36 Kg of food supplies including powdered milk, cooking spices, rice, sugar, dates, cooking oil, pulses, energy biscuits, tea and non-food supplies including antiseptic soap, sanitary pads, candles, ORS, mosquito repellent, and anti-rash cream) + 1 sack of wheat (10 Kg) + 2 Jerry cans (with a capacity of 20 Litres each) + mineral water + 1 bag of mixed pickle (1 Kg), all amounting to 30 days of consumables for a family of 5.

Talking about the relief efforts, Mustafa Peracha, CEO of wi-tribe Pakistan said, “Considering the devastation that has taken place, we felt it was our obligation as members of society to reach out to those suffering in the wake of the floods. I am proud to say that wi-tribers worked as one team and initiated an internal relief effort drive to not only contribute financially to the cause, but also volunteered to visit the affected areas ourselves.”

While individual wi-tribe employees have donated generously to the cause, the wi-tribe Group has also made a donation to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which has worked in Pakistan since 1947 and is an international leader in bringing relief to war and disaster stricken areas around the world.

wi-tribe employees have joined hands to support the flood showing how even the smallest individual effort can collectively become effective. Visit www.wi-tribe.pk/relief to find out how you can help.

Angelina Jolie and her efforts for Flood Relief in Pakistan

2010-09-07T02:39:00.000-07:00

Hollywood star Angelina Jolie who is also the good will ambassador of UNHCR is struggling hard to draw world's attention towards 21 million people effected by the national disaster in form of flood.

Jolie, the 34-year-old actress and roving envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, would be travelling to affected communities in the northwest and would meet those involved in the relief efforts

Last week Jolie in a video message appealed for greater public support for Pakistan's relief efforts, and she has herself donated 100,000 dollars to the flood appeal.

The UNHCR is providing relief aid including shelter materials to those displaced by the disaster, which has killed 1,760 people by the official toll.

easypaisa launches International Home Transfer Service

2010-08-30T07:47:00.001-07:00

Tameer Microfinance Bank and Telenor Pakistan made another addition to the bouquet of easypaisa services with the launch of ‘International Home Transfer’ in collaboration with Xpress Money, UK. This service adds on to the existing domestic remittance service Money Transfer by providing international home remittances receiving facility in Pakistan. The latest easypaisa service can be availed by anyone with a valid CNIC irrespective of any mobile operator or bank affiliation through all Sales and Service Centres and Franchises of Telenor Pakistan and all branches of Tameer Microfinance Bank according to an official press release released today.

Vice President Financial Services Telenor Pakistan, Roar Bjaerum, announced the launch of 'International Home Transfer' service and shared, “Lack of financial infrastructure in many areas of Pakistan makes the process of receiving international remittances sent by loved ones abroad cumbersome. easypaisa International Home Transfer is meant to facilitate bridging this gap. At the same time, this service is part of our vision to offer wider range of financial services to increase financial inclusion in Pakistan.”

Speaking at the launch of International Home Transfer, the Chief Executive Officer Tameer Microfinance Bank, Nadeem Hussain said, “The regular stream of new additions in the easypaisa portfolio displays regulators confidence in the reliability and performance of the solution. This new service offers all the benefits of any conventional remittance service. We are making quick progress towards offering new services providing additional benefits to the customers.

The senders of funds from abroad can transfer the money through the wide network of Xpress agents present in more than 80 countries including United Arab Emirates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and United Kingdom. A transaction ID will be generated on sending the amount which, along with the CNIC, are required to claim the funds through all Telenor Pakistan Sale & Service Centers, Franchises and Tameer Microfinance Bank outlets. International remittances can play a valuable role in providing foreign exchange, but more importantly, also offer significant potential to support incomes of poor and vulnerable groups. Tameer Bank has been given a member status of Pakistan Remittances Initiative (PRI). PRI is a joint initiative of State Bank of Pakistan, Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Ministry of Finance aimed at increasing the inflow of remittances through legal channels. Keeping in mind the importance of international remittances to Pakistan’s economy, the International Home Transfer service is being offered without any charges.

Telenor Pakistan and Tameer Microfinance Bank's easypaisa International Home Transfer Service will extend its relationships to more transfer agents in addition to Xpress Money in the future.

Thank you Pakistani Cricketers!

2010-08-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

I want to say special thanks to Pakistani Cricket Team for donating their win bonuses of 3rd Test match to flood victims in Pakistan. According to a CNN press release, Pakistan's cricket team have donated half their win bonuses to help the relief victims of a flood in their home nation.

Having beaten England by four wickets in the third Test at the Oval last week -- leaving Pakistan 2-1 behind in the series with one Test left to play -- the nation's top cricketers offered $54,400 in a bid to help their stricken countrymen.

The contribution to the flood relief effort, which was announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board, is the latest in a number of fund-raising efforts aimed at helping those who have been affected by the disaster in recent weeks.

"The PCB chairman has announced a winning bonus ... and all the players and officials have donated half of the bonus in flood-relief funds," the PCB said in a statement.

Protesting againt the worst killing ever happened

2010-08-24T10:31:00.000-07:00

As you all know, two of our beloved brothers are brutally slaughtered in Sialkot by wild beasts in the Holy Month of Ramzan. Millions of Pakistanis watched the video and many still watching - Will you be one of them too? If not join us for a peaceful protest on Wednesday 25 Aug, at 5 pm in front of Islamabad Press Club to raise your voice against this injustice. Join our hands and make difference this time.

O Nation ! Pakistan is calling you today - will you help ?

2010-08-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

Nobody is unaware of the situation in the state caused due to floods. According to different stats and figures, almost 20 millions have been directly effected by the flood in Pakistan and indirect victims are countless. But what we are doing for them ? yeah this is a big question mark - Many of us are silent, few looking, few others trying and some of them are working hard to pull over it.

I am sure many of you are willing to support or help the victims, but do not know the reliable and trust worthy medium to donate. I would request you to generously donate for your brothers and sisters . Because this time Pakistan need us !! Move forward and help your country mates !!

Another step towards innovative ideas

2010-06-14T12:24:00.000-07:00

According to the official press release issued by Telenor, it as one of the project sponsors, has provided financial assistance to Pak Wheelers, a group of 11 engineering students of EME College, NUST, Islamabad to build Prodigy, Pakistan’s first hybrid car. The vehicle will represent Pakistan in the Shell Eco-Marathon Asia 2010 to be held in Malaysia in July. Telenor Pakistan will provide Team Leader Syed Hassaan Ali with international communication facilities during the competition to enable him to share live updates.

The single-seater Prodigy has a gasoline-run combustion engine that works in conjunction with electric motors that makes it run more efficiently. It harvests energy lost during breaking and reuses it for moving. Energy is stored in super capacitor banks through a micro controller based Energy Management Unit. Prodigy has a fiber glass body and can go up to 250 km in just one liter of fuel.

Affan Haider, Head of Corporate Communications & Responsibility, Telenor Pakistan while commenting on the project said: “Telenor Pakistan appreciates Pak Wheelers commitment behind Prodigy. We have always encouraged innovative ideas, especially those that are environmentally responsible. With projects ranging from low energy lighting solutions for our offices to establishing cellular sites that run on solar energy, Telenor continue to promote a greener, healthier and eco-friendly Pakistan.”

When Pak Wheelers began their senior year project, they had a commitment to an environment friendly cause but little financial resources. Their goal was to hoist Pakistan’s flag in the Shell Eco- Marathon Asia 2010. Helping them in their aim are sponsors from the corporate sector that have provided financial support for Prodigy.

Coke Studio Season 3 : Rohail Hayaat definitely knows what he’s doing !

2010-06-09T11:27:00.000-07:00

When we first heard Meesha Shafi, currently Overload’s lead vocal, the throw of her voice was so big that all that came to mind was “Rock star Alert” and seeing her later along side Arif Lohar, a Pakistani folk legend, seemed to be a unique idea but it remained to be heard. “Alif Allah” is by no means an easy project as it’s a very well preserved folk melody, many have tried their luck with this melody prior to the coke studio sessions, but hats off to Meesha, she rose to the occasion. Their were moments in the performance when she actually overlapped Arif Lohar. It was not an easy transition and she showed a lot of promise. Meesha has a lot to offer to the Pakistani music scene.

Zeb & Haniya seem to have found a nice comfort zone with Rohail. Their own versatility gives Rohail a good ground for some really melodic experiments. The Pashto-Persian songs by Zeb and Haniya were definitely targeting the pashto speaking audiences but Rohail created such catchy fusions of the traditional Afghani folk with the main stream pop that although we don’t understand most of “Bibi Sanam Janem” but the funky rhythm with the traditional Rubab gets us moving.

Arieb Azhar fits in very well to the sufi theme of the coke studio but his first performance for this season was a bit unfitting. “Na Raindee hay” has very strong lyrics but it couldn’t fit well in to the episode.

Its so good to see Karavan after such a long time and to no surprise Tanseer Daar has still got it. A mellow song, well arranged but it would have been great to hear Gumby at the drums with Karavan though Sikandar also did a good job. Looking forward to hear more of Karavan in coke studio sessions and waiting for their upcoming album. Yaadein is no doubt a great comeback song for Karavan.

Abida Parveen is always a treat to the ears. Over the ears she has established herself as a Sufi music icon and has earned the recognition and fan following of global audiences. She is no doubt the queen of Sufi music. Her appearance at the coke studio sessions is itself a proof of the recognition and fan following it has earned. It would not have been easy for anyone playing alongside an icon but it was an awesome performance. The ambience Ramooz-e-Ishq created was sublime, especially Gumby keeping up with the Sufi style of music. Rohail’s maturity at his work is reflected especially in this performance.

There’s more to come and we’re waiting anxiously !

Common Man Vs Hurricane Budget & Hurricane Phet

2010-06-06T21:31:00.000-07:00

The second time in 2 days the courageous Pakistani nation is struck by a hurricane, it was hurricane Phet this evening that hit Pakistan’s coastal areas and is still having its toll on the coastal population. But hey ! that’s something we can’t control, that’s something which we refer to as nature’s fury, something that’s all about post-damage control… but Hurricane Phet is not as devastating as Hurricane Budget, that hit us all on June 5… something that we could control, something that we brought upon us ourselves, something that’s all about pre-damage control… Hurricane Phet is sure to leave behind a trail of destruction but Hurricane Budget has not only left trails of disappointment but it has paved the way for a series of itsy bitsy hurricanes to follow for at least next three months. Hurricane Phet claimed precious lives today but they will eventually find peace. Hurricane Budget will kill the poor masses everyday and still not let them find peace. Its a few more hours and than Hurricane Phet will be history but Hurricane Budget will continue to haunt.

Hurricane Phet is a hurricane inside and a hurricane outside but Hurricane Budget is two faced. Without going in to the intense and highly misleading salient points of the budget and so called relief with which the nation was gifted let us all observe a One Minute Silence for the poor, innocent masses and Yes, A Round of Applauds for the respected IMF for packing a punch in to a already broken jaw. Thanks to the Government for entertaining us with their display of mastery in manipulation and not to forget Us, ourselves, We the People, who never let go of false hope and don’t make matters right.

Minister of State / Chairman, Board of Investment assures full support to Chairman Telenor Group

2010-05-28T04:54:00.000-07:00

According to a press release issued by Telenor Pakistan, Mr. Saleem H. Mandviwalla, Minister of State / Chairman, Board of Investment (BOI) held a detailed and interactive session with a 5 member delegation of Telenor Group which was headed by Mr. Harald Norvik, Chairman Telenor Group. Senior management of Telenor including Mr. Sigve Brekke, Head of Asia, Telenor Group, Mr. Jon Eddy Abdullah, CEO Telenor Pakistan and Mr. Aamir Ibrahim, Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Affairs Division, Telenor Pakistan.

Mr. Mandviwalla noted that Telenor is now a flagship company of Pakistan which has captured a sizable market share within a very short period of time through their operations in the country, and lauded Telenor Group for recognizing the potential in the cellular market of Pakistan and investing a significant amount of US$ 2 billion in this sector. The delegation called on Chairman BOI to discuss various issues regarding the current tax rate situation in Pakistan.

Telenor Group argued that the current GST for telecom companies is higher than any other sector amounting to 19.5% and an introduction of value added tax (VAT) in this sector would reduce this rate and help telecom companies in the country to focus in other areas of investment. Mr. Ibrahim mentioned that currently telecom sectors contribute approximately Rs. 120 billion in advance tax and GST to the Government of Pakistan. He also stated that just recently the Cabinet resolved the Access Promotion Contribution (APC) issue and have allowed a 2-2.5 cent APC which is still less than 5 cents which is provided to PTCL even though most access has been given by cellular companies in the country. Most people do not even have a landline to their name and are solely dependent on their cellular phones.

Mr. Abdullah noted that the decision on APC will allow Telenor to reinvest and help them to focus on expansion in untapped areas and municipalities in Pakistan. He further mentioned that currently only 30-40% of areas are covered in Pakistan and currently 60-70% population is a subscribed with a cellular network. Therefore there is a tremendous opportunity to introduce cellular services in remote areas of Pakistan. The noted that Balochistan proposes a tremendous opportunity, if the Government can provide adequate facilities and security to telecom companies in the province. Mr. Bekke noted that the only way the telecom industry will achieve further growth is if telecom companies and the Government work in tandem.

The notion that the telecom sector is stagnant was negated by CEO Pakistan, and he stated that there is still room for expansion in Pakistan and Telenor sees a growth potential of 15-20 million customers to its existing customer base of 95 million. Mr. Abdullah also noted that since their establishment in Pakistan, Telenor has not repatriated a single dollar as they believe in a long term investment perspective and have reinvested all their earnings back in to Telenor Pakistan. He praised the working of the Universal Service Fund (USF) and how it has helped to streamline bidding processes for broadband, fiber and GSM contracts for under served and un-served areas of Pakistan.

In the end Mr. Norvick appreciated the Board of Investment’s guidance and assistance during their set up and throughout their tenure in Pakistan. He stated that the meeting and productive discussion at the Board of Investment has provided him with an increased understanding about the investment climate in Pakistan and some of the challenges such as inflation, energy shortages and specifically taxation regime. He reiterated Telenor Group’s strong commitment to Pakistan and in the development of the Pakistani telecommunications industry for the good of the Pakistani people. He also stated that he was impressed with the results that Telenor Pakistan has delivered and is also one of the best performing companies within Telenor Group itself. Mr. Norvick stated that this was due to the presence of a dedicated management and a skilled workforce that has made their Pakistani operation world class.

Mr. Saleem H. Mandviwalla assured the Telenor Group that they will voice their concerns of taxation with the concerned authorities and facilitate and assist them in every possible way. He praised Telenor’s commitment in Pakistan and appreciated their expansion plans in the country.

Youtube is back in Pakistan

2010-05-26T23:45:00.000-07:00

Finally!! i was desperately looking for youtube these days. Not because of accessing offensive content actually, but a lot of my tasks were pending because of this. I had to look for few videos, desings and few clips for some wedding preparations in the family.

Apart from this, i think Youtube is a little relief in the sense that when you get bore at work, you can find interesting videos there. Though sometimes it is a little distractor too, but only in case if you start your day by logging onto this at first.

Anyhow, its good to see Youtube back in Pakistan. I hope Facebook would soon be back too, or may be we will get another local social networking tool by the same time. Nobody knows :)

Happy Surfing Everyone!!

Facebook and Youtube would be back in Pakistan

2010-05-26T04:36:00.000-07:00

Just heard from Twitter that Facebook and Youtube would soon be back in Pakistan. I don't know its good and bad, but a lot of social networking addicts are very happy for this news.

The point to discuss here is that are we realy dependent on online social mediums for social networkings? Do we really think it is important for us as air and water? If it is, i wonder what we are going to give our next generation.

Please share your feedback, i am conducting a research survey these days to understand the impact of these social networking tools on our lives. I will share your comments and will update you with the results of this survey soon :)

Keep posting!!

Back to Work!!

2010-05-25T04:29:00.000-07:00

Only an hour and few minutes left in office timings and it seems like this is my last day at work today :P For no reason, but i seriously do not why.

Anyhow, first of all i apologize for getting back to this hobby after a long long time. I have been away for quite long i suppose, may be 3 or 4 months. I thank all of you for keep reading and commenting which i approved today :P

The reason why i was away was my tough routine, few committments and studies. But now i have realised that i should live my life independently. May be i ll quit few of my activities in few days but i am damn sure that i will not quit this hoby now. So lets wait and watch.

By the way keep posting and motivating me :) Your feedback work as a fuel for me :)

Blind Cricket Talent Hunt

2009-12-30T06:41:00.000-08:00

According to the recent press release issued here, ‘Khuddar Pakistan Blind Cricket Talent Hunt’ began on 5th October 2009 spreading over two phases of selection that covered all parts of the country. A total of 16 schools for the visually impaired from 11 cities participated in the talent hunt. At the end of the selection process, a training camp was set up by PBCC in Islamabad , during which the selected forty four students were trained by the National Team Coach, Nafees Ahmed as well as other national level physical trainers. At the end of the camp, 15 students were selected as players for the first Blind Junior National team. At the closing ceremony held at the PAF Cricket Ground, team players were awarded certificates by Air Commodore Hassan Kamran, Chairman PBCC, Syed Sultan Shah and Executive Corporate Communication Telenor Pakistan, Sohaib Mustafa.

Through this program, Telenor Pakistan and PBCC are hoping to facilitate the blind with personal benefits such as fitness, stress relief, resilience, discipline, team work and leadership opportunities.

T20 Champions not playing IPL 2010

2009-12-07T22:42:00.000-08:00

Isn't is sad ? We were expecting T20 champs in IPL 2009 this time :(. Lalit Modi, Chairman of Indian premier League told to a news channel that Pakistan players wont be a part of IPL 2010. Not too strange but offcourse sad to know.

A few days ago PCB said that their players can now take part in season 3 of the tournament as they have got clearance from internal and foreign ministry of Pakistan. But, PCB were not able to get the visas for their players.

Lalit Modi, told the news channel that the exchange window for IPL 2010 is just 2 days away so they can not extend the deadline for Pakistan players. He said, they are informing the IPL Franchises that they can now go for the replacement for Pakistan players.

Any how seems like once again only the opening and closing ceremony would be fascinating :P Lets wait and watch :)

A message from Imanae Malik - From the clouds of Heaven

2009-12-06T22:23:00.000-08:00

The management of the hospital has launched a SMS campaign to fool people into thinking that the hospital is innocent and that it was only the fault of the duty doctor. They are stating that the hospital management has invested huge sums of money to provide a quality service in Pakistan. A Quality Service? The hospital was set up as a profit making organization...NOT a Charity!!

We should NOT be fooled by these claims.

Wake Up Lahore....Wake Up Pakistan!!!!!!!!

Do not be fooled by these gimmicks. Don't give them the opportunity to take your loved ones away from you.

May Allah rest her soul in peace. Please do not forget to visit http://imanae.co.uk/ and support this cause for saving many other lives.

Break Over !!

2009-12-05T03:16:00.000-08:00

Sometimes breaks are good not only for your physical or mental health, but for self assessement and realization too. Like in my case, i took a long break to decide should i continue writing or not.

At one moment, i realised i was not fulfilling the committment i made with my ownself about my writing passion. Anyhow, i ll keep the story short here. I have realised and got to know the bitter realities now. So, my decision is to keep writing here and i am sure you will get good stuff to read once again :) Keep Reading and motivating writers . Your little appreciation can make big difference here.

Disability Awareness Training

2009-09-07T00:11:00.000-07:00

Persons with disabilities face discrimination in many areas of their lives; Very True . DAT has been designed by persons with disabilities to enable those who come in contact with the disabled community to understand the nature of these discriminatory practices and eradicate them from our society.

Recently, Telenor Pakistan launched a flagship project "Khuddar Pakistan" with an aim to become the most disabled-friendly company in Pakistan in terms of employment, service, and community support.

To do this, Telenor Pakistan will, for the first time in Pakistan, integrate persons with disabilities fully into the organization, create awareness about their abilities, and include them fully into everyday life with the help of assistive technologies. An awesome effort i must say. They will work in collaboration with its disability advisor STEP (SPECIAL TALENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM).

So this is what they say and prove "We believe growth comes from truly understanding the needs of people to drive relevant change". I love Telenor not only for being the leading operator and giving cheap calling rates, but for playing a major role in development of social and public sector of this state.

Defence Day of Pakistan

2009-09-06T08:19:00.000-07:00

The Defence of Pakistan Day is being observed on Sunday with traditional zeal and solemnity to pay homage to all those who rendered the supreme sacrifice during the 1965 war. The nation is observing this day every year with a renewed pledge to sacrifice everything to defend the geographical and ideological frontiers of the country.

The day will dawn with special prayers in all the mosques for the wellbeing and prosperity of the country. In addition to this ‘Fateha Khawani’ will be held at the graves of the Shuhada, while special prayers will be offered for the preservation of the integrity and sovereignty of Pakistan.

Pakistan's Supreme Court rejects petition seeking Musharraf trial

2009-08-27T07:25:00.000-07:00

According to the Press Release at News blog, the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday, while putting up objections, rejected a constitutional petition seeking trial of former President Pervez Musharraf under Article 6 of the Constitution of Pakistan, the local NNI news agency reported.

The court said that the petitioner had no locus standi to move the petition and the Supreme Court was not the proper forum to file such petition.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Zafar Ali Shah had filed the petition under Article 184(3) of the Constitution making federal government and Pervez Musharraf as respondents in the case.

The petitioner citing the Supreme Court's verdict that had declared the Nov. 3, 2007 acts by then President Musharraf as illegal and void, pleaded the court to order the government to register the case against former Army Chief under Article 6.

The Constitution's Article 6 says: "Any person who abrogates or attempts or conspires to abrogate, subverts or attempts or conspires to subvert the Constitution by use of force or show of force or by any other unconstitutional means shall be guilty of high treason."

In his plea, Shah maintained that Musharraf committed high treason against the state by declaring emergency on Nov. 3, 2007 and dismissing more than 60 judges of the apex courts.

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani earlier had ruled out his government would seek a trial of the former military president for high treason, at the risk of a political fallout.

The opposition leader Chaudhry Nisar had accused the ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) of forgetting its promises in the past to try Musharraf.

Musharraf resigned in 2008 under the yoke of impeachment from the new rulers who torpedoed his allies in the general elections.

Pakistan ends July’09 with 95.55Mn mobile subscribers

2009-08-27T01:13:00.000-07:00

Pakistan’s mobile market according to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority has reported a penetration level of 58.5% at the end of July. The mobile segment, in July added 1 million mobile suscribers taking the total mobile subscriber base to 95.55 million.

Of the total base, Mobilink led the market with 29.5 million (31%) subscribers while Telenor stood second with 21.3 million (22%) followed by Ufone with 21% market share.The highest monthly additions were achieved by Mobilink with 414,000 new subscribers followed by Telenor and Warid with 406,000 and 255,000 new subscribers respectively. For more details , follow WirlessNews.

Call Your Friends Abroad with Lowest Call Rates - Thankyou Telenor !!

2009-08-26T16:25:00.000-07:00

Telenor extends its lowest rates and concerns to Telenor customers who’s friends and families are living aboard by providing them lowest calls and sms rates for international direct dialing. Now with Telenor, customers can call to USA,UK and Canada as low as Rs 0.99/30 sec. Through this offer customers can now share joys and smiles with loved ones abroad in simple and economical rates.Through this offer, Telenor has also revised the international direct dialing tariff for all other international destinations as well.For more details,visit Telenor.

Teaching Women Mountaineers in Pakistan!!

2009-08-25T20:57:00.000-07:00

In 2007, a group of American Alpine Club women planned to travel to Pakistan to help organize and teach a Pakistani Women’s Climbing Camp, in conjunction with the Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP). That plan was postponed in the wake of the violent siege of the Red Mosque in Islamabad in July 2007. This year, however, the ACP followed through on the original inspiration and organized a training expedition for 22 young women in the mountains of Hunza. ACP president and AAC honorary member Nazir Sabir describes the event:

The Alpine Club of Pakistan organized a Women’s Alpine Mountaineering Training expedition to the Passu Glacier in Hunza from July 10 to 24. Twenty-two female students from Punjab University in Lahore, Fatima Jinnah University in Rawalpindi, and Karakoram University in Gilgit took part. The training was aimed at preparing these girls in rock, ice, and snow climbing techniques that are essential for high-altitude climbing.

The trainees were taken to a 2,800-meter base camp at Borit Lake in Hunza, where they learned rock and ice climbing skills, belaying, and rappelling, and also were equipped with the necessary theoretical knowledge about ecology, geology, geomorphology, navigation, mountain weather and hazards, high-altitude sickness, cure and prevention, waste management, and other mountain-related issues. Apart from this, they were also trained in crevasse rescue techniques and assembling and dismantling fixed ropes. The ACP instructional team was comprised of Afzel Sherazi, Prof. Mehmood Pervaiz, Farid Ahmad, Attaulah Khan, and Muhammad Tauqeer.

After completion of their training, the women climbed Borit Sar (5,640m), did few high-altitude walks, and traversed glacial terrain before returning to Islamabad on July 23. The Alpine Club of Pakistan organized a reception on their return, and a ceremony was held at Sports Complex Islamabad at which Brig. (Retd.) Mir Gulistan Janjua, former governor of the Northwest Frontier Province and a past president of the ACP, distributed certificates among all the participants. Speaking on the occasion, Brig. Janjua applauded the efforts by the Alpine Club and reiterated the need for similar youth training programs in future. Nazir Sabir, president of the ACP, apprised the audience about the scope of the training, thanked the participants for completing such an extensive program, and offered his hope that this effort by the ACP will help shape the future of women’s mountaineering in Pakistan. Extracted from American Alpine Club

A Picture from Pakistan - I

2009-08-25T10:33:00.001-07:00

Mushi Saluting Khan Sb.:)

PAEC - Post Graduate Scholarships for Engineers

2009-08-25T09:33:00.000-07:00

KANUPP INSTITUTE OF NUCLEAR POWER ENGINEERING Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission offers post graduate fellowships to Engineers leading to Master of Science Degree in the field of Nuclear Power Engineering at KINPOE, Karachi, affiliated with PIEAS.

• Candidates having B.E./B.Sc.(Engg. ) degree in any of the fields specified in application form are eligible

• Degrees must have been obtained from Pakistan Engineering Council approved institutions.

• Stipend of Rs. 15,000/- per month and full tuition fee waiver.

• Free bachelor hostel for outstation fellows subject to availability.

• Free hospitalization and transport facilities.

Subject to PAEC’s requirement and their suitability, fellows may be inducted in PAEC on completion of their first year of studies. The inducted fellows shall be paid regular salary and they will have to complete their degree before actually joining their assigned places of duty. For further details visit here.

Blessings of Ramadan - Olper's Advertisement

2009-08-25T05:04:00.000-07:00

Always a step ahead - Telenor Pakistan!! The Most Preferred Employer

2009-08-24T08:15:00.002-07:00

According to the latest press release issued by Telenor Pakistan, it has been chosen as the most preferred employer for their HR practices in a survey conducted by ROZEE.PK. The survey is an initiative of ROZEE.PK, Pakistan’s online recruitment company with the objective to connect talent with opportunity. As a part of their research program, ROZEE.PK developed a poll for the visitors and the registrants of the web site about their perception of top ten HR brands of Pakistan from 2005 to 2009.

Country Consultant Google Pakistan, Badar Khushnood, Manager HR, United Bank Limited Asma Ahmed, Director, Head of HR PakistanTobacco Company LTd., Q. M Shahed, Manager HR Development TCS, Sajid Mehmood Khan are some of the best Human Resource specialists who served on the Advisory Board for the survey.

Vice President Human Capital Division Telenor Pakistan Nayab Baig said, “Telenor Pakistan is pleased with the results of the Top Employers survey conducted by Rozee.PK. We appreciate the initiative and believe that such surveys help to create an in-depth understanding of our culture, environment and perception of HR practices in the market. Telenor Pakistan is dedicated to improvement through our people which we believe are our greatest strength.”

A total of 13,753 fully completed surveys were received which were further analyzed and validated by employing statistical software. 739 companies were covered by participants in this survey and 126 universities were represented by survey respondents. More than 66% of respondents are working professionals. Telenor Pakistan was voted as the most preferred employer by a pool of professionals between the ages of 22 and 40.

The responses were based on a number of factors that professionals found to be important in their employers. These were: work/life balance, flexible work schedules, progressive, compensation arrangements, clearly defined roles and policies, readily available assistance in the work place, progressive management style, room for growth and above all a trusting environment.

Telenor Pakistan is the top employer choice of respondents in Islamabad despite a heavy telecom presence that has a staggering 56% representation of all companies in the industry. Telenor Pakistan has won the Pakistan Society of Human Resources Management’s (PSHRM) Preferred Graduate Employer Award for Most Preferred Telecommunications Company for 2007. Telenor Pakistan has also won the Pakistan Society of Human Resources Management’s (PSHRM) HR Excellence Award for Employee Life Cycle Engagement HR Initiative. Telenor Pakistan was also declared runner-up for Best Place to Work Award across all industries for the year 2008. Telenor Pakistan has won the Middle East Call Center Award for Best Recruitment Program in 2008.

Smonte Technologies - People at their best !

2009-08-24T04:57:00.000-07:00

Development top notch mobile applications not only for iPhone but also for other platforms including Symbian, Blackberry, Android, J2ME, Windows Mobile, Palm OS. On top they are also targeting Japanese world including Applications development in S ! Appli (Softbank) and I ! Appli (NttDocomo).

One of their best application "iWound" is in TOP 3 in "New and Noteworthy" and Top 10 in Paid Apps in Apple UK App stores.

Since they are Pakistani, i could not resist posting about them. Do have a look at their strategy and portfoil.

Wedding Pics of Ali Zafar - Famous Pakistani Singer and Composer

2009-08-16T22:55:00.000-07:00

Telenor at its Best! Jashn-e-Azadi Mubarak

2009-08-14T05:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Pakistan

2009-08-14T00:27:00.000-07:00

14th August, day of Independence , and another birthday today. We all are celebrating it with full enthusiasm and motivation. There are flags flying over roofs of houses, shopping plazas, markets, buildings, cars and many other places. People are wearing badges, enjoying and celebrating the joys of independence together. May Allah bless our country and keep us united like this the whole year and whole century. Ameen.

Telenor Personal WebLounge; Life at ease

2009-08-10T23:44:00.000-07:00

"We believe growth comes from truly understanding the needs of people to drive relevant change". No doubt and this is what Telenor is proving each and everytime by introducing a new service or an innovative idea. After Khuddar Pakistan, Free Nights and 7/7 offer, the weblounge and Golden Number offer is just unbelievably hot.

The service actually allows its customer to order a golden number via web and the sim will be delivered to his address with in few hours. Rest of the details can be manage online - Isn't it amazing ? For a person like me who spends most of the time at web , and manage life via web; It is :)

The procedure is very simple and i am sure would not be complicated for non-IT people as well. You can follow 8 steps Amir has mentioned at propakistani to manage rest of the things. Get a golden number today and manage it via web. Telenor is making your life more easier by giving cheap rates for calling and giving convenient ways to manage your package. Keep it up!!

Baitullah Mahsood Killed!!

2009-08-06T23:26:00.000-07:00

According to few press releases i have seen over web, the worst enemy of Pakistan, Baitullah Mahsood has been killed in a missile attack 2 days ago along with his wife and few companions. An intelligence officer state that his funeral has already taken place.

The chief of Taliban, Baitullah Mehsud has a $5 million U.S. bounty on his head, was usspected in many criminal activities in Pakistan including suicider attacks, killing and unrest in many cities of Pakistan. Interior Minister of Pakistan Rahman Malik has confirmed this news.

Lets hope he really has been died because he was the real enemy of Pakistan and Islam. Lets pray for the peace and prosperity of this state.

H.S.S.C Part 1 Result to be announced on 8th of Aug, 2009

2009-08-06T23:12:00.000-07:00

For all the First Year student of Federal Board, here goes the good news for you. Federal Board of Intermediate and secondary Education is announcing you result tomorrow, i.e. 8th of August, 2009 at 11:30 am , early the morning. Early because i know you guys are waking up late these days and enjoying summer vacations. So best of luck for all of you and i hope you all will get good marks :)

Free Nights !! Yeah Free

2009-08-05T02:09:00.000-07:00

A great news for Telenor customers once again. Now through “Talkshawk Late Night Offer” you can enjoy free calls from Telenor to Telenor, F&F numbers after 4 minutes from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. plus no need to subscribe to this offer as it is pre-activated on Talkshawk 30 second, Talkshawk Har second and Talkshawk har minute.

Call your friends and talk to them as long as your loved ones are willing to listen to you :P. I remember during my teens i have been in these ativities; looking for the best packages that is affordable, talking to my friends, adding people in conferences, discussing notes, lectures, teachers and students :P The crazy teenage and crazy call packages. Old days are gone now, friends chose new paths of life but the ony thing that is still with me after 5 years is my Telenor connection and few new crazy friends :) HAHAHA

Enjoy your age and be young always !!!

Happy Birthday Nadia Ali

2009-08-03T22:55:00.000-07:00

Nadia Ali, a famous Pakistani American singer and Song writer celebrated her 29th birthday yesterday. She is one of my favourite singers and i lover her songs especially Is It Love and Kiss You.

Nadia was born in Libya to Pakistani parents in 1980. The family then relocated to Queens, New York City, when she was still a small child, and has remained there until this day. She has been the part iiO band but now she is pursuing a solo career in the field of Music.

I hope she has millions of fans out there and they will not forget to wish her :)

Days of Recession and TeraData Employees

2009-08-02T23:07:00.000-07:00

SSC part I and II Result - Punjab Board

2009-07-31T02:11:00.000-07:00

End of July and Begining of Aug brings many good news for students since this is the period of declaration of their Board Results. After HSSC PartII, which was announced yesterday, now All Punjab Board is announcing the result for SSC part I and II tomorrow i.e. 1st of August, 2009. I hope and pray this August will bring a lot of happy news for the students. Wish them all a great success in life and life hereAfter :)

Real Picture of Pakistan

2009-07-30T22:49:00.000-07:00

Pakistan Vs Srilanka; Watch Live

2009-07-30T03:20:00.000-07:00

Watch the live details of match at LiveMATCH. Pakistanis are 78/5 at the moment and chasing 233 target. Best of luck for them to achieve the target.

F.B.I.S.E. HSSC Part II Result

2009-07-29T12:27:00.000-07:00

Ok bachoo, time for another announcement of result. HSSC part II students are very anxious and i hope many of them will not be able to sleep today since tomorrow their result will be announced. The FBISE site states that it will be announced tomorrow , 30th of July, 09 at 1:00 pm. Students can check their results from Site and sms by following the same formal procedure. Best of luck to all the students for their result and future :)

Bloggers Meet Up July, 09'

2009-07-27T21:46:00.000-07:00

Finally after a long long time, Some one thought to plan a bloggers meet up in Islamabad and surprisingly this time, it was not Baddar :). Marketing Team of Telenor Islamabad took this initiative. Arrangements were made in the Cafeteria of their F-11 Building. A levish tiled floor, multimedia, fancy lights and laughters of young Bloggers and Entrepreneur made the evening more refreshing.

There were many fimiliar faces like Saad Hamid, Amir Atta, Owais, Ahsan Mukhtar, Alam and met many new like Salman, Zeeshan and Raheel.

It started around 6:15 pm, with a motivational and inspirational video by Telenor. After that Raheel who was also kind of a host [:P] invited all the bloggers to come turn by turn and introuduce themselves and their Blogs. Saad started with Sizlopedia, then Amir with Propakistani, myself with Saday-e-Pakistan, Owaeis with Babu's Notes, Ahsan with Listphobia, Alam with Pakiology and Zeeshan with his interesting experience with Blogging and Social Networking Sites. He even offered his Customised packages to the young bloggers :P

On behalf of Islamabad Bloggers, i really want to thank Marketing Team of Telenor[Raheel, Meher, Faheem, their manager and the guy whom i met somewhere and then forgot his name :P]. It was great to know them and rest of the bloggers. Superb work and Keep in touch!!

Khuddar Pakistan

2009-07-23T23:17:00.000-07:00

Telenor Pakistan shows its concern towards our fellow persons with disabilities by addressing the challenges they face. Telenor Pakistan’s flagship corporate responsibility has taken this initiative under the name of “Khuddar Pakistan”. Through this initiative Telenor wants to change the public mindset by creating awareness about thei abilities and develop technologies that will give them opportunity to actively participate in our society. Currently Telenor is the only company in Pakistan to have a formal disability advisor and a disability advisory panel. Telenor has the first corporate products & services/career website that is fully accessible and staff participate in the first formal employee volunteerism drive in the corporate sector to work with persona with disabilities.

Osama's Son has been Killed in US Attack in Pakistan

2009-07-22T22:17:00.000-07:00

According to a press release at Breaking News 24/7, the son of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has been killed by a US missile attack in Pakistan, US National Public Radio has reported.

Saad bin Laden was believed killed in a missile strike from a US drone earlier this year, intelligence officials told the broadcaster Wednesday.

An unnamed intelligence source said US spy agencies were “80 to 85 percent” sure the younger bin Laden had been killed, the report said.

Though he was an Al Qaeda member, he was not believed to be a significant part of the organisation.

Rumours about Telenor and China Mobile Merger/Acquisition

2009-07-22T02:29:00.000-07:00

A recent post at Propakistani put many telcos and people working for telcos at unrest. It has been heard that Telenor group is interested to sell its shares in Pakistan and is holding talks with the China Mobile.

Though both the operators have denied any such development, sources said that negotiations were being held secretly at the group level.

Though Telenor, a Norwegian company, has a subscriber-base of 20 million or so in Pakistan, it has been deliberating to sell its management shares since long because of ‘security issues’.

The Telenor group has already focused on India for investment, as it recently sought to buy about 67 per cent shares of Unitech Wireless and telecom arm of Unitech Ltd in India.

The Indian market is experiencing a major growth in mobile penetration and currently it stands at 27 per cent with a total population of about 1.2 billion.

There has been a lot of potential in the market and the global operators see it a best place for future market.

China Mobile’s first international business venture, Zong, currently has over six million subscribers.

Before the merger talks with the Telenor group, the China Mobile had offered to buy the management shares of Warid Telecom Pakistan.

However, deal could not materialize owing to price issue.

Mobilink, Telenor, Ufone, Warid and Zong (CM-Pak) have reportedly conveyed to the PTA that there was a room for only ‘four’ players.

A PTA official said there were chances that by 2010, the country may have four operators.
The number of cell-phone users in Pakistan has reached over 90 million. Though Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) shows declining trend over the last few years, aggressive marketing and expansion of network has enabled mobile operators to grab more subscribers on their networks.

New Discounted Offers by Telenor TalkShawk

2009-07-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

Got a news about Telenor Talkshawk today. Offering “Discounted Offer” using which users can make calls 20 paisa/30 sec in Rs.7 for 7 Hrs (10 a.m. to 5p.m.). To activate this package users have to SMS “7” and send it to 555.

This package is unbelievably HOT and will be a good news for users like me who make frequent long calls :) -I am really feeling lucky to be the Telenor user. Check out more details about this package here and enjoy calling freely :)

Disaster in Karachi due to RAIN

2009-07-19T22:12:00.001-07:00

First Parking Plaza in Karachi

2009-07-19T22:00:00.000-07:00

Rain; Blessing for Few, Disaster for Rest

2009-07-18T10:52:00.000-07:00

According to latest Geo Updates, Ten people died and 40 others injured in separate rain related incidents in the metropolitan city of Karachi. The deaths mainly occurred due to electrocution, traffic accidents and collapsing of structures.

2ND Test Match in Hands of Pakistan Now

2009-07-13T21:16:00.001-07:00

Debutant Fawad Alam scored an unbeaten century as Pakistan produced a remarkable turnaround to claw their way back in the second Test against Sri Lanka on Monday.

The tourists, who were bowled out for 90 in their first innings, hit back to dismiss Sri Lanka for 240 and then cruised to 178-1 in their second knock by stumps on the second day.

Left-handed Alam led the way with a determined 102 not out to give Pakistan a lead of 28 runs with nine wickets in hand on a dry pitch that appeared to have eased out under the hot sun.

The fearless 23-year-old from Karachi moved to 98 by lofting left-arm spinner Rangana Herath for a six over mid-wicket and then flicked the next ball for two runs to reach the coveted century.

Alam put on 85 for the first wicket with Khurram Manzoor, who made 38 before he was caught behind by wicket-keeper Tillakaratne Dilshan off Herath.

Another Blast :(

2009-07-12T23:48:00.000-07:00

At least nine people, including seven children, have been killed and dozens wounded when a bomb exploded in an Islamic seminary in Pakistan, police said.

More than a dozen mud-built houses collapsed after the powerful explosion shook the village near Mian Channu in Punjab province on Monday.

The seminary was based in a house in which children were taught the Quran.

"It appears that the blast was caused by some explosives placed inside the house," Kamran Khan, police chief in the area, said.

A doctor at the town's hospital said at least 60 people were wounded.

Many people were trapped under rubble, and the explosion's cause is unclear.

Mobilink FnF protesting over layoffs : Coutesy Propakistani.com

2009-07-11T05:25:00.000-07:00

Here i am forwarding the post made by Jazzy at Propakistani about the protest of Mobilink FNF at recent layoffs. He took the picture of the Banner displayed in front of Beverley Center Office, although later on Management somehow managed to remove that off. Now the employees at Mobilink can actually confirm this state of unrest- Comments always appreciated.

F.B.I.S.E SSC part-1 Result: Count Down Starts

2009-07-06T21:55:00.000-07:00

Almost 30 minutes are left in the announcement of Result for SSC part 1 students of Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education and i can also imagine the anxiety students must have been feeling. We all have been through this phase and each time at the announcement of result, it reminds me my time.

The result will be announced today 7th of July, 09 at 11:30 am. Result will also be available on SMS and on Telephone. FOR SMS i.e Rs.5+tax Per SMSSimply send a text message to 5050 with your roll number to see result:FB For Example: FB 900001 FOR TELEPHONE i.e Rs.5+tax Per MinuteSimply dial 090011777 and follow the directions.

Best of Luck all students and i hope everybody will get the reward for his/her struggle.

Shandur Polo Festival is on now :)

2009-07-06T04:26:00.000-07:00

Shandur Polo festival will be held from July 7 - 9, 2008. The phone company Telenor Pakistan has sponsored the most exciting polo tournament of the region. Travel & Ciulture Services has organised a special tour for the tournament for locals as well as the Pakistani clients. Please visit our Shandur Polo Tour page for details.

The three day polo tournament organized by Gilgit and Chitral polo clubs will be played at Shandur pass 12000 feet above sea level. The tournament will be played between local administration and Telenor Pakistan. More than 12,000 local and international visitors, the festival will witness a traditional polo tournament between the teams of Gilgit & Chitral from 7th- 9th July, 2008It is a place unique and exotic in itself, surrounded by some of the most spectacular mountain scenery in the world. The event marks the annual rivalry between the polo teams of Gilgit and Chitral. Supporters of both sides travel long distances from the remote parts, to watch the thrilling game. The event offers a fascinating insight into the lifestyle of the people of this region. Their culture and indigenous customs are a delight to observe for the visitors. Some added attractions for the visitors at the Shandur Polo Festival this year will be: horse racing without saddles, tampooq bazi, selection of the best horse of Chitral and the Northern Areas, paragliding and motorized gliding. Visitors will also witness a beautiful display of fireworks by an international company, known for their recent work at the Olympic Torch ceremony held in Islamabad. The first Shandur Polo Tournament was played in 1833. A British Political Agent Major Cobb, who had the polo ground at Shandur named after himself, organized the first tournament. He was fond of playing the game under the full moon. Since then polo in Shandur has been a tradition. The most spectacular polo of present times is played at the Shandur Top between Gilgit and Chitral teams every July at 12,250ft. above seal level, the splendor and glory of polo is an event not to be missed.

SSC Part 1 Result will be announced on 7th of July, 09

2009-07-06T02:27:00.000-07:00

Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education will announce the result for Secondary School Certificate Exam Part 1 tomorrow at 11:30 am. Result will also be available on SMS.Simply send a text message to 5050 with your roll number to see result:FB For Example: FB 700001

On behalf of Saday-e-Pakistan team, i wish all the students best of luck. May Allah reward them for their struggles :)

Med-IT @ ALGERIA International Exhibition on Information Technology

2009-07-06T02:23:00.000-07:00

MED-IT is a leading exhibition on Information Technologies (IT, Internet, Telecoms) held every year since 2004 in Algiers, under the patronage of Ministry of Post, Information Technology and Communication. Med-IT is also labeled by Ubifrance and is supported by the Ministry Delegate for Foreign Trade in French. The exhibition is scheduled to be held from 18 – 20 May, 2009 at Palais de la Culture, Algiers (Algeria).PSEB member companies interested to participate in this exhibition may contact the organizers of the event at the following:

MeD-IT 2009

Venue: Palais de la Culture, Algiers (Algeria)

Tel: 00-213-21-918 475

Email: info@xcom.fr

Website: www.med-it.com/trophees-med-it-alger

Pakistan won hockey test series against England

2009-07-03T01:15:00.000-07:00

LONDON: Pakistan hockey team has defeated England convincingly in the second test mach here by 3-2 goals, thus bagging the three-match test series by 2-0 on Friday, Geo news said.

In the thirteenth minute of the first half, Waqas Shareef scored first goal from Pakistan while Muhammad Imran, scoring second goal from Pakistan in the twenty-fifth minute of the first half, got Pakistan 2-0 lead.

The team gradually lost grip on the match in the second half but in the fifty-fifth minute of the match, Hafeez Khan made the third goal from Pakistan however, English team, coming back into the game, had managed to score two goals thirteen minutes before the final whistle of the match.

Consequently, Pakistan hockey thrashed England by 3-2 in the second test match, winning the test series by 2-0.

Courtesy, Geo Sports

11 more killed in US Missile Strike in Pakistan

2009-07-02T22:38:00.000-07:00

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani intelligence officials say suspected U.S. missiles have hit a Taliban target in northwest Pakistan. There was no immediate word on casualties.

The two officials say the attack took place early Friday in South Waziristan. The region is part of the lawless tribal belt along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan where top Taliban and al-Qaida leaders are believed to be hiding.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Paki Ladies and Home Industries

2009-07-02T22:21:00.000-07:00

I was surfing few news of Pakistan today over twitter and got to know about few ladies who are working in Pakistan and in need of loan to continue working on their projects.

Shahnaz baji wants a loan to buy material (beads, colored thread, and clothes) for her decorative embroidery business.

Sabran baji wants a loan to buy a movie camera for her movie making business. Bushra baji wants a loan to buy electric supplies (wires, switches, and switch boards) for her electric supplies business.

Suraiya baji wants a loan to buy groceries for her grocery shop.

Another Shahnaz baji is the leader of this group. She is a very caring lady. Her members are very happy with her because she supports them in their businesses. Her husband's name is Amanat ali. They have lived in the city of Arifwala, Pakistan for the past 10 years. Both of them are very hard working, and they help each other. Her husband deals with seasonal fruit. He buys fruit wholesale and sells it to the fruit shops in various towns. Shahnaz baji helps him by packing the fruit in boxes. She is applying for a loan to buy seasonal fruits to expand her husband’s fruit-selling business.

This is a group loan. The loan funds will be distributed among the group members, each of whom will invest in her own business. The members mutually guarantee one another's loans. If one member does not repay, the other members are responsible.

Story taken from Kiva whose mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty.

Here Goes the First Rain of MonSoon in Islamabad

2009-07-02T02:48:00.000-07:00

Today finally the moon soon period started and we are expecting heavy shower this time. The first rain in Islamabad started around 3:00 pm in the evening. The weather was quite sunny early morning but overall it was pleasant. Right after the lunch time, heavy roar of clouds were heard and soon the black clouds covered the whole sky. In the result, it is raining here in Islamabad Today.

The weather report at Nation shows that Monsoon forecasting season of the year 2009 is commencing from June 30 (today), a day ahead of the meteorological calculations. The first monsoon current is likely to come from Arabian Sea at 5,000 feet with moderate intensity. It will benefit Sindh, Southern And Central Punjab including the provincial metropolis.

So lets hope for the heavy showers this time and enjoy the moonsoon with tasty samosas and other festivities associated with rain :)

8 Digit Telephone Numbers from Now Onwards - Lahore and Karachi

2009-06-30T22:59:00.001-07:00

PTCL announced in all local papers today that all Telephone numbers for Lahore and Karachi will comprise of 8 digits instead of 7 digits. In order to make it 8 digital 3 digit will be added in front of all numbers. Rest of the number will remain the same. For example 5259000 will be converted to 3-5259000. There is no change in the country code though. Here is the enclosed advertisement from PTCL. Call Helpline for further details or visit website.

Annual Result for SSC Part-II FBISE will be announced today

2009-06-29T00:27:00.000-07:00

The ANNUAL result for SSC part II Composite of Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education wil be announced today 29th of June, 09 at 4:00 pm. Only 2 hours and few minutes have been left in the result and i am sure many students will be waiting anxiously for the result.

Just got to know that Result will be available on SMS and on Telephone. For SMS,simply send a text message to 5050 with your roll number to see result:FB For Example: FB 500001 and for telephone simply dial 090011777 and follow the directions. Best of luck for all the matric students and I hope you get the reward for your struggles and hard work.

Finally the most awaiting good news - 20-20 World Cup 2009

2009-06-21T11:43:00.000-07:00

And Finally Pakistan become World Champion today !! A great success and most awaited success. I will soon share the pictures and videos from the streets of Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi - Its the great success after all - Each and every person in this country and outside Pakistan whose heart beats for Pakistan is happy today - We are thankful to Almighty Allah for this great success :)

Good Luck Pakistani Cricket Team!!

2009-06-21T04:26:00.000-07:00

The final match of Twenty 20 World Cup match has been scheduled today [21st of June, 2009] around 8:00 PM. Whole Paki nation is looking forward for this Cup. People specially youngsters have made different arrangements according to their own capacity. Match will be presented Live on mega screens like Cinepax in major cities like Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Apart from that there are special arrangements at different places. Many Restaurants like Pizza Hut, McDonalds, Haunted Hill, Gloria, KFC and many others have offered special packages at this event. However, few people have security concerns so they have planned it on large multimedia screens at their home. So, in other words Whole nation is desperately waiting for tonight and praying for the success of Paki Team. I am sure and i wish may this cup come home this time - May Allah bless this nation with a great news today. It feels great to see the whole nation united today raising flags, playing milli naghmas, replacing their display pics at facebook, msn, twitter and many other social profiles with the green and white flag. Tweeps are promoting #PakCricket at Twitter. Hence everybody is waiting for tonight and praying for the success of Pakistani Team.

Best of Luck Paki Boys :)

20 % Tax on each SMS in Pakistan ? Debate is Open

2009-06-20T03:58:00.000-07:00

Youth organisations in Lahore protested against the Government's decision to levy a 20 per cent tax on short messaging service (SMS) on Friday.

The protest against the tax, announced in the annual budget for the financial year 2009-10, was held in front of the Lahore Press Club.Organised by the Progressive Youth Front (PYF), the protest provided an interesting spectacle for the passers-by, who were amazed by the youth shouting slogans against SMS being taxed.

"People here are struggling to make both ends meet, but these young people are protesting against taxation on SMS, which sounds funny," the Daily Times quoted Abbas, a young man who was standing on the curb, and staring at the protesters with mock amazement, as saying.Another passer-by said that the tax on SMS was quite justified, and that most young people wasted their time in sending pointless chain messages.But PYF Coordinator Kashif said that the youth of Pakistan lived without basic facilities, and cheap SMS was the only "luxury" they could enjoy. He said that it was deplorable that youngsters were being deprived of that facility.He did not deny that young people were circulating indecent and meaningless SMS.

However, he insisted that the tax imposed on SMS was a great blow for the young people who stayed in contact with each other through the "service". He said that the young people, who had left their native cities to study in urban centres, stayed in touch with their families back home through SMS. He claimed that the PYF had conducted a survey and found that an overwhelming majority of young people opposed the Government's decision.

Kashif said that telecommunication companies should also raise their voices against the tax. "The government is already taxing calling cards. It should withdraw the tax on SMS," he added.

I believe, SMS itself are not bad; its the usage of sms these days that is going in the wrong direction. Youngsters are used to of using the lowest sms packages offered by different companies and therefore are misleaded. This is an open debate and i want you to share your views about this new tax.

Wikipedia Calling Pakistan "Porkistan"

2009-06-18T02:33:00.001-07:00

Really sad to know How and Why Wikipedia is using the word "Porkistan" for the world's second largest Muslim population state in the World "Pakistan" knowing the fact that even calling this word is considered Haram in Islam. I condemn this act of Wikipedia and have decided from now onwards, that i will not use this service until and unless they will make it correct. Find the word [at many places] yourself and then make decision.

Pakistan Beat Korea with 5-1 in Junior Hockey World

2009-06-17T22:57:00.000-07:00

LAHORE: Pakistan beat South Korea 5-1 in the last match of Super Eight round of Junior Men’s Hockey World Cup at Johor Bahru, Malaysia, on Wednesday.

According to the information received here, Pakistan were leading by three goals to nil at the end of the first half. Abbas Haider opened the account with a field goal in the 4th minute.

Mohammad Zubair scored two goals in 17th and 45th minutes, while Abdul Haseem Khan also scored two in the 29th and 68th minutes. Koreas lone goal was scored by Dong Hyun on a penalty-corner in the 70th minute.

Earlier, the Netherlands and Germany played a 1-1 draw and Australia beat New Zealand 2-0. The Netherlands, Germany, Australia and New Zealand have reached to the semi-finals.—Official Press Release by Dawn News.

Abdul Sattar Edhi - A Gift to Pakistan !!

2009-06-17T22:52:00.001-07:00

Love, compassion, service to humanity, devotion, sincerity, humbleness, inspiration & devotion are all different names for on man on earth, we proudly present to the world as a gift, known as Abdul Sattar Edhi.

Edhi is a well known name to the world of service and humanity. Edhi is for Karachi what Mother Teresa is to Calcutta. But more than that Edhi is an angel on earth not only for Karachi & Pakistan but to the whole world. From Karachi to all over Pakistan. From Azad Kashmir to Tsunami & from Lebanon to Katrina this one man with a primary-school education has almost single-handedly created one of the largest and most successful health and welfare networks in Asia. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, as of 1997, Edhi Foundation operates the world’s largest volunteer ambulance service.

Edhi is our No.1 & the best gift to the world. He has done more then a Nobel Prize would mean. For more than half a century, Abdul Sattar Edhi, has been living proof that a determined individual can mobilize others to alleviate misery and, in so doing, knit together the social fabric of a nation. He is truly a role model to follow and a great hero of our time. Our curriculum books definitely need a chapter on him at least. He is the best thing probably that happened to Pakistan in last 59 years of our history.

Born in 1928 in Bantwa, Gujarat, India, Edhi’s family belonged to the industrious Memon community. From a young age his mother taught Edhi to be kind towards others and to help the poor. In 1947 the family migrated to Pakistan and settled in Karachi. That was a time of great emotional trauma and social and political upheaval. Edhi became involved in social work and began working with welfare organizations and soon started his own dispensary, providing medical aid to the poor. He bought his first ambulance, an old van which he called the “poor man’s van” and went around the city providing medical help and burying unclaimed bodies. His van became his advertisement and soon he came to be known for his work with the poor. As a consequence, donations started pouring in and his operations expanded, employing additional nurses and staff.

The lion’s share of the Edhi Foundation’s $10-million budget comes from private donations from individual Pakistanis inside and outside the country. Some donors have been very generous. One family donated two villas in the wealthy Karachi suburb of Clifton for use as a residence and school for around 250 girls. A Pakistani expatriate in the UK donated office buildings worth ¬£1.4 million ($2.5 million) that became the British headquarters of the foundation, which organizes local charity services both for expatriates and in support of the foundation’s work in Pakistan. In addition to money and property, contributors donate clothes, appliances, furniture-even goat and chicken meat, sometimes by the ton. The organization uses a portion of these gifts to feed and clothe residents of the homes; the rest is given away to other hospitals, prisons and disaster victims.

( Image credit : EF )

Whether he is counseling a battered wife, rescuing an accident victim, feeding a poor child, sheltering a homeless family or washing an unidentified and unclaimed corpse before burial, Edhi and Bilquis, his wife of 38 years, help thousands of Pakistanis each day. Contactpakistan summarizes Edhi well: “Edhi is a mobile institution ready to respond … anxious to comfort and console the anguished souls. Endurance, perseverance, patience, struggle, sympathy and compassion along with sacrifice of his personal comforts, are the important elements on which rests the philosophy of Abdul Sattar Edhi.“

Pakistan Vs SouthAfrica - Who will reach the Final?

2009-06-17T22:43:00.000-07:00

Everbody is desperately looking for today's semi-finals of Twenty 20 World cup between Pakistan and South Africa. South Africa is definitely hot favorite team of everyone,but we should keep this thing in mind that South Africa has a bad habit of making blunders in important matches ( They have lost three semi-finals in World cups) and Pakistan has a habit of surprising everyone in important matches (World cup 1992)

South Africa has been a consistent team throughout this tournament and they have outclassed every opposition team,but Pakistan has a secret weapon called reverse swing which can really trouble South african batting line up.Other than that Pakistani spinners are also a serious threat for South Africa because tradtionally Proteas are not good players of spin bowling.According to our analysis if Pakistan succeeds in posting a decent total of aorund 150 runs while batting first or restricts SA team within 150 runs,then Pakistan has a very good chance of beating mighty Proteas.

All the best for Paskistani Team and we hope some miracle will happen today and Pakistan will repeat the history of World Cup 1992. Good Luck Pakis :)

Yes - This land will not be used for Terorrism

2009-06-16T08:08:00.000-07:00

President Asif Ali Zardari has assured Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that Pakistani soil will not be allowed to be used for terrorist activities and all measures would be taken to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice.

Zardari urged the Indian prime minister at a meeting here for resumption of the composite dialogue between the two countries, an online news agency said.

He said Pakistani soil was not being used for terrorism against any other country and emphasised that "we are fighting a war against terrorism and the world must wake up and take notice of the enormous sacrifices we have made".

Zardari, according to Online, said: "We are the worst victims of terrorism and our armed forces are continuously engaged in combat operation to fight militancy."

While the two leaders held one-on-one discussions, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters: "Both countries stand to gain by resuming dialogue. It will be a sensible thing to resume dialogue as soon as possible. It will be in mutual interest to do so." (IANS)

Official Press Release by HedlinesIndia

General Kayani First Army Chief of Pakistan to make F-16 Flight

2009-06-15T09:46:00.000-07:00

ISLAMABAD - Pakistani Army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani Monday flew a combat mission against the Taliban, riding as the co-pilot in an F-16 jet for an aerial overview of the offensive against the militants in the country’s restive northwest.

In doing so, he became the first army chief to fly in an F-16 jet. The aircraft was flown by a wing commander of the Pakistani Air Force.

Earlier, while addressing soldiers and airmen at a forward air base, Kayani said Pakistan did not need any foreign help in the war on terror and that the armed forces were “fully equipped to root out the extremists”.

Describing the Pakistani armed forces as the “finest in the world”, he said they were capable of “thwarting any external or internal challenge”.

“A handful of extremists want to destabilise the country with their nefarious tactics. This is not a war of Islam but some anti-state elements who have pushed us to the wall and we had to start a military action against them,” Online news agency quoted Kayani as saying of the military’s anti-Taliban operations in Swat and two other districts of the North West Frontier Province that entered their 50th day Monday.

“We will not end military operations in the Swat Valley till all the militants are defeated,” he mantained.

Kayani said 126 soldiers have been killed in the operations.

He also announced that the soldiers involved in the operations would get double salaries from July 1.

The military began its operations April 26 after the Taliban reneged on a controversial peace deal with the NWFP government and instead moved south from their Swat headquarters and occupied Buner, which is just 100 km from Islamabad.

The operations had begun in Lower Dir, the home district of Taliban-backed radical cleric Sufi Mohammad, who had brokered the peace deal and who is the father-in-law of Swat Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah. They later spread to Buner and Lower Dir.

The military says it has largely secured Buner and Lower Dir districts and is now engaged in mopping up operations in Swat.

To go by military figures, over 1,400 Taliban have been killed in the fighting. There is, however, no independent confirmation of this as the media has been barred from the battle zone.

Some three million civilians have been displaced from the three districts by the military operations.

Buoyed by their successes in the NWFP, the military has also moved against the militants in the Buner district to the south and is planning a full-scale offensive against Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud, whose writ runs in much of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) along the Afghanistan border.

Tanveer Sharif - CEO of a Leading Mobile VoIP Service!!

2009-06-15T03:50:00.000-07:00

Tanveer Sharif, a Danish based Pakistani Citizen and owner of a leading Mobile VoIP service named Vopium. As Founder of Vopium, Tanveer Sharif has been involved in building up the company from scratch. In April 2008, he negotiated an investment deal of USD 6.8M dollars in the company.

Tanveer comes from a CEO position in Venture Cup, an organization under Mckinsey and Co. He has also a long track record from the public sector where he worked as advisor for Danish Parliamentarians as well as for different Danish ministeries.

He was elected member of Copenhagen County Council from 2002-2006, where he represented his party in the Social and Health Committees.

Before that he worked in the IT field for Danish companies like, Soft Design and Columbus IT partners.Tanveer is a Business Administration graduate from Copenhagen Business School and ESC Rouen, France.

In an answer to a question at TattleTech, that how he see the future of conventional landline usage and how much of that market share can VoIP absorb? He says "First of all Vopium offers a solution provides the cheapest call option to user may it be via VOIP, GSM or Wifi, or even landline. For landlines we have a service we call just dial, thus we are aiming for a bigger piece of the pie. The future will still see a decrease in landline usage, in most developing countries it is already no longer main stream. Globally alternate services like Vopium will see real growth as the trends shift to mobile only, low cost calling services. "

Tanveer is a man with the great and innovative ideas and forthsight. His mind works very fast and he is indeed a problemsolver. He listens to his employees and believes in them. Huma Bakhsh , Lars, Ali Durrani, Asad Parvez and many other feels great working with him and we all [Pakistanis] are proud of him.

Dr. Sarfraz Naeemi [Shaheed] - Another Great Pakistani Leader

2009-06-15T01:59:00.000-07:00

Micronet Broadband - Great Service and Great Customer Support

2009-06-14T08:08:00.000-07:00

I was not able to Open Blogger.com today. I tried different experiments like changing browsers, quittng and shutting down things and then restarting my machine but nothing worked. I thought to call Micronet Broadband guys and i was surprised he resolved the issues not only in seconds but he also gave me the logical reasons of everything just like doctor advices you. It was really something great - highly dedicated and commitment with their customers. Not only me , but many other customers are happy with their services. You can read more reviews here.

It is good to know that good people and services still exists in this state and i am highly impressed with the reliable service and instant response. Good Luck MBL guys and i hope the service will remain the same in future :)

Younus: We must start as we mean to go on

2009-06-13T03:44:00.000-07:00

Pakistan captain Younus Khan put his team's latest ICC World Twenty20 defeat down to the poor beginnings in each innings against Sri Lanka.

Opening bowler Sohail Tanvir began with three wides and two no-balls in an 11-ball first over to set Sri Lanka on the way to a match-winning 150-7 at the end of their 20 overs.

Pakistan then slipped to 35-3 in reply and never seemed capable of mounting a successful chase.
"At the moment we are starting badly in every single game," lamented Younus." [In Sri Lanka's innings there were] back-to-back no-balls [from] Sohail [who is] struggling for form but is a potential matchwinner. Then when we batted we only had one good partnership."

Younus (50 off 37 balls) took part in the only stand of substance for Pakistan of 66 with Misbah-ul-Haq but his partner's 28-ball 21 did little to help the scoring rate.

Younus conceded: "If you have a partnership then you have to go all the way and finish the game for the team. The key is to keep wickets and rotate the strike. We must have partnerships in bowling and batting [to be successful]."

All-rounder Abdul Razzaq is now part of the squad as a replacement for hamstring-victim Yasir Arafat. Younus refused to confirm whether the veteran will force his way into the side for a must-win game against New Zealand at the Oval on Saturday.

"Abdul Razzaq is here and training. I'll let you know tomorrow if he's playing!" For more 20 20 News click here.

Pakistan, A Sleeping Superpower

2009-06-13T00:02:00.000-07:00

In the 60s the building that we all know as Habib Bank Plaza in Karachi was the tallest building all the way from the Middle East down to Singapore.

In the 1960s almost every army, navy and air force in the Middle East was manned by Pakistani officers and men. We literally raised those armed forces.

Many airlines that operate from the Gulf have actually been trained, organized and manned by PIA. Sure, Pakistan has fallen on tough times. But let all Pakistanis take strength from the fact that this great country needs to be put back on the track from which it got derailed in the 1960s. We Pakistanis have to once again regain our lost glory.

Way back in the 1960s Pakistan was truly on the move.

The early Ayub years gave us the “Green Revolution” because of the construction and commissioning of dams such as Mangla and Tarbela. Barrages were erected all the way down to the Guddu near Hyderabad.

These dams and barrages gave birth to an efficient network of canals and small distributaries which in the sixties not only made Pakistan self-sufficient but surplus in agricultural products.

In the 60s the building that we all know as Habib Bank Plaza in Karachi was the tallest building all the way from the Middle East down to Singapore. In the 1960s almost every army, navy and air force in the Middle East was manned by Pakistani officers and men. We literally raised those armed forces.

Many airlines that operate from the Gulf have actually been trained, organized and manned by PIA staff when they initially started operations. Today they are amongst the best in the world while PIA is in a total mess.

In 1972 it was Pakistan that created history and paved the way for the world to move in the direction that it actually has moved by being instrumental in bringing about President Richard Nixon’s visit to Beijing (then Peking). That visit helped both China and USA equally and opened the world to be shaped as it is today. Not long after that, in 1979, if Pakistan had not taken on the USSR on its own initially, along with the Afghan Mujahideen, the world today would have been very different.

One can go on recounting many more aspects of Pakistan to show what a potently viable country it should have been today with an economy strong enough to stand it in good stead for exercising an independent foreign policy as well as in bringing about an environment in which the country would have had a content population which would, in turn, have excluded space to all sorts of disruptions.

What, then, went wrong and why do people now talk in terms of whether Pakistan will be able to outlast its present crisis?

Pakistan indeed lost its way in the years that followed the incidents I have quoted; military coups, the judicial murder of an elected prime minister, frequent derailing of the political process, an erratic foreign policy pursued by a bunch of minds that were driven by reasons other than prudent statecraft, importing of self-seeking bankers and making them prime ministers, denying of provincial autonomy to the federating units, allowing ethnic and other kinds of militancy to grow, letting fiefdoms be created right under the nose of the state, making talent become subservient to cronyism, treating education as if it was insignificant and so much more is all responsible for the dire straits we find ourselves in after having made a great start in the early years of our freedom.

It is said that South Korea laid its foundations for progress and prosperity on Pakistan’s First Five Year Plan. Pakistan never made a second five-year plan and in fact the First Five Year Plan was followed by unplanned improvisation. Who knows, had Pakistan followed its own First Five Year Plan like South Korea did, in the subsequent years Pakistan too may well have been one of the biggest economies of the world today. (South Korea is now the fourth-biggest of Asia and the world’s 15th.)

Most Pakistanis are known to have a strong faith in the country’s ability to bounce back from the wilderness. Pakistan is not a country that can be written off because a handful of insurgents have taken the state on frontally and because the state has not responded as responsibly as it ought to have ever since the crisis was evolving. Reacting to situations when crises explode in the face cannot be the best of situations for any state.

Where have all the leaders gone?

The present crisis should never have gotten to where it now stands. Now that it has and now that it has to be handled, let all Pakistanis take strength from the fact that this great country needs to be put back on the track from which it got derailed in the 1960s.

We Pakistanis have to once again regain our lost glory and win back our rightful, respectable and dignified place in the comity of nations. We can and must do it.

Text taken from CurrentAffais.com.

Razzaq Coming Back to 20 - 20 World Cup - Good Luck Team!!

2009-06-11T22:16:00.000-07:00

Pakistan captain Younus Khan is looking forward to welcoming back Abdul Razzaq into the fold after the all-rounder's late call up into the World Twenty20 squad in England.

Razzaq has been given his chance after Yasir Arafat was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament with a hamstring injury. His return also marks his re-integration into the Pakistan side following an amnesty for former players in the Indian Cricket League - the rival Twenty20 event to the officially sanctioned Indian Premier League.

A hard-hitting batsman and lively reverse-swing bowling make the 29-year-old a potential match-winner.Although Razzaq will arrive in England too late for Pakistan's opening match of the second phase Super Eights against Sri Lanka at Lord's on Friday, Younus believes he can still have an impact during the rest of the tournament.

"This game is not possible but I think he will manage the last two games," Younus told reporters at Lord's here on Thursday. "He is a good name in world cricket and in Twenty20 he is a fantastic all-rounder."He is a senior guy and his return will be good for Pakistan cricket - he would be in any team in the world," added Younus, who could have Razzaq available for Pakistan's second Super Eights match against New Zealand.

Pakistan lost to arch-rivals India by five runs in the inaugural final of the World Twenty20 in South Africa two years ago.They looked a shadow of that side during a 48-run thrashing by hosts England first time out at this tournament but bounced back with a convincing win over minnows the Netherlands to book their place in the second round."People know that if Pakistan do things right at the right time we can beat any team," Younus stressed.His refusal to take Twenty20 too seriously and generally relaxed, happy go lucky style of captaincy, have led to raised eyebrows in some quarters.But Younus defended his approach by saying:

"I am a simple guy, sometimes people think I am wrong because when we lose I am still laughing. You must look forward, if you lose or win."This is life," he insisted. "Sometimes you have good days, sometimes you have bad days."We are focusing on the first two games of this Super Eights. If we win them then we will be in the semi-finals."

Innhain Phir Wohi SWAT Do !!

2009-06-11T04:14:00.000-07:00

Wo Jo dar badar,

Khaak basar hue,

Wo Jo Lutt gaey,

be-ghar huey,

Wo na mangen tum se tumhara ghar,

Na tumhara sukh,

Na tumhara darr,

Wo tou chahte hain guzar basar,

Unhe Wadiyon main umer bhar,

Ye kara wakt,

Ye Talkhiyan,

Ye Gardishen,

Ye Bijlian,

Hai Hamaray Rab ka ye Imtehaan,

Chalo Kaflon ko karo Rawan,

Aao mil k unka sath do,

Jo madad karaay wo haath do,

k yah apni dharte k loug hain,

inhain zindage ki soughat do,

Innhain phir wohi SWAT do,

Innhain phir wohi SWAT do

Islamabad - 7th Avenue View

2009-06-09T22:41:00.000-07:00

The shrine of your street is my refuge! - Iqbal !!

2009-06-09T22:20:00.000-07:00

Allama Iqbal, great poet-philosopher and active political leader, was born at Sialkot, Punjab, in 1877. He descended from a family of Kashmiri Brahmins, who had embraced Islam about 300 years earlier.

Iqbal received his early education in the traditional maktab. Later he joined the Sialkot Mission School, from where he passed his matriculation examination. In 1897, he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Government College, Lahore. Two years later, he secured his Masters Degree and was appointed in the Oriental College, Lahore, as a lecturer of history, philosophy and English. He later proceeded to Europe for higher studies. Having obtained a degree at Cambridge, he secured his doctorate at Munich and finally qualified as a barrister.

He returned to India in 1908. Besides teaching and practicing law, Iqbal continued to write poetry. He resigned from government service in 1911 and took up the task of propagating individual thinking among the Muslims through his poetry.

By 1928, his reputation as a great Muslim philosopher was solidly established and he was invited to deliver lectures at Hyderabad, Aligarh and Madras. These series of lectures were later published as a book "The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam". In 1930, Iqbal was invited to preside over the open session of the Muslim League at Allahabad. In his historic Allahabad Address, Iqbal visualized an independent and sovereign state for the Muslims of North-Western India. In 1932, Iqbal came to England as a Muslim delegate to the Third Round Table Conference.

In later years, when the Quaid had left India and was residing in England, Allama Iqbal wrote to him conveying to him his personal views on political problems and state of affairs of the Indian Muslims, and also persuading him to come back. These letters are dated from June 1936 to November 1937. This series of correspondence is now a part of important historic documents concerning Pakistan's struggle for freedom.

On April 21, 1938, the great Muslim poet-philosopher and champion of the Muslim cause, passed away. He lies buried next to the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - True Pakistani Legend!!

2009-06-08T10:15:00.000-07:00

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was born on October 13, 1948 in the city of Faisalabad, Pakistan. He was the fifth child and first son of Ustad Fateh Ali Khan, a distinguished and legendary musicologist, vocalist, instrumentalist, and Qawwal. Nusrat's family, which included his four older sisters and his younger brother, Farrukh Fateh Ali Khan grew up in central Lyallpur, in a small flat which was rented from a local businessman. In 1979, Nusrat married his first cousin, Naheed (the daughter of Fateh Ali Khan's brother, Salamat Ali Khan);

Qawwali is a performance art that has traditionally been passed down within families. Nusrat's family has an unbroken tradition of performing Qawwali for approximately 600 years[citation needed]. Nusrat's father was initially reluctant to allow him to enter the family business, instead hoping his son would become a doctor or an engineer, having felt Qawwals had a low social status. However, Nusrat's enthusiasm for Qawwali eventually persuaded his father to train him in the art. Nusrat began by learning to play tabla alongside his father before progressing to learn Raag Vidya and Bolbandish. He then went on to learn to sing within the classical framework of khayal in the Qawwal Bachchon Ka Gharana and was taught dhrupad from the Dagar family.

Khan's training with his father was cut short when his father died in 1964, leaving Nusrat's paternal uncles, Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan and Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, to complete his training.

His first performance was at a traditional graveside ceremony for his father, known as chehlum, which took place forty days after his father's death. In 1971, after the death of Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan, Nusrat became the official leader of the family Qawwali party and the party became known as Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Mujahid Mubarak Ali Khan & Party. Nusrat assumed leadership of the party, despite the fact that Mujahid Mubarak Ali Khan, who was Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan's son, was considerably older than him.

Nusrat's first public performance as the leader of the Qawwali party was at a studio recording broadcast as part of an annual music festival organised by Radio Pakistan, known as Jashn-e-Baharan. Nusrat went on to distinguish himself from other Qawwals and became renowned on the Indian subcontinent and in the Muslim world. He sang mainly in Urdu and Punjabi and occasionally in Persian, Brajbhasha and Hindi. His first major hit in Pakistan was the song Haq Ali Ali, which was performed in a traditional style and with traditional instrumentation. The song featured restrained use of Nusrat's sargam improvisations and attracted a large number of listeners.

Early in his career, Nusrat was signed up by Oriental Star Agencies [OSA] of Birmingham UK to their Star Cassette Label. OSA sponsored regular concert tours by Nusrat to the U.K. from the early '80s onwards, and released much of this live material (albeit not always very well recorded) on cassette, CD, videotape and DVD. The vast majority of Nusrat's qawwali performances that are available today in video format on various labels comes from these OSA-sponsored concert tours.

Captain Bilal Zafar Shaheed; Bullets can't harm me

2009-06-07T22:19:00.000-07:00

“In the volleys of fire…in the thunder of bombs, there are a few who just do not stop…knowing that they are surrounded by death…knowing that they could leave their wives widows and children orphans…but they just keep on moving because something is pumping in their hearts…and flowing through their veins known as honour, devotion and motivation…death over surrender…that is why they say death before disgrace…Pakistan Army Zindabad”.

Last message of Captain Bilal Zafar, a commando of the Pakistan army SSG (the world’s best elite force), embraced martyrdom on the 17th of May, 2009 - fighting terrorists and militants in the embattled valley of Swat.

He always used to say “Bullets can’t harm me”, and thus it proved true. He was hit on the arm by a bullet but he carried on until he was hit by an RPG (Rocket propelled grenade) where he embraced martyrdom on the spot.

“Think not of those who are slain in Allah’s way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord; They rejoice in the bounty provided by Allah. And with regard to those left behind, who have not yet joined them (in their bliss), the (martyr’s) glory in the fact that on them is no fear, nor have they (cause to) grieve.”

We salute his courage; Let this martyrdom also dispel the notion that the army lacks any motivation to defeat these extremist militants, it is obvious that their spirits are very high.

Long Live Pakistan; Long Live Pakistan Armed Forces!!

National Anthem of Pakistan; United We Stand, Divided We Fall

2009-06-07T22:01:00.000-07:00