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RAWALPINDI, Aug 13 (APP): Jashan-e-Azadi preparations reached at its peak on Saturday as the citizens were getting ready to celebrate the Independence Day with zeal and now the citizens are all set to celebrate the 75th Independence Day on Sunday with great enthusiasm and national zeal. Rawalpindi District Administration, District Police, City Traffic Police (CTP), Punjab Emergency Service, Rescue-1122 and Civil Defence have finalized all the arrangements as the region is all set to celebrate Independence Day in befitting manner on August 14, Sunday. With the start of August, Jashan-e-Azadi preparations were started here in every nook and corner of the city to celebrate Independence Day with great enthusiasm and national fervour.  All the main buildings including Rawalpindi Railway Station, Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonment Board offices, Askari Plaza, Mall Road, Metro Track, Murree Road, RDA, WASA and PHA buildings, National Bank Saddar Main Branch, Bank Road, Mall Road and sever...

RAWALPINDI, Aug 12: The City Traffic Police (CTP) on Friday issued a traffic plan to facilitate the commuters and general public on August 14, Pakistan Independence Day to be celebrated on Sunday. According to Duty Officer, CTP Headquarters, special pickets would be erected in the city and on entry points of Murree to thwart one-wheeling particularly on  August 14 and one-wheelers would be sent behind the bars. The traffic plan was made and announced by Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Naveed Irshad, he added. He said, extra force of traffic wardens would be deployed on all the roads of Rawalpindi city and in Murree to handle traffic load on August 14. Over 600 CTP personnel would be on special duty on Aug 13 night and on August 14 to regulate traffic on city roads, he added. He said CTO had constituted seven special squads comprising wardens and officers to curb one-wheeling and car stunts by the youngsters. 34 checking pickets would also be set up, he added. He said that the traffic w...

PESHAWAR, Aug 11: Minister for Education Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Shahram Tarakai on Thursday instructed all the concerned quarters to monitor the government's drive for the implementation of 'Halka Basta' and Single Curriculum Act-2020, including school registrations, renewal and enrollment of kids in schools. He directed the teams concerned for conducting awareness sessions to ensure implementation. In this regard, a five-day program organized for Malakand region ended on Wednesday in which registration, renewal and up-gradation of more than 700 schools were carried out according to the instructions of the education minister, and the managing director private schools.  The five-day campaign was organized in Swat, Malakand, Dir Upper, Dir Lower, Buner, Shangla and Bajaur for the registration, upgrading and renewal of schools under the supervision of Schools Regulatory Authority, KP. Talking to media, Kabir Afridi disclosed that 443 schools were renewed in the campaign, up-gradat...

RAWALPINDI, Aug 10: Preparations for Independence Day celebrations have gained momentum in the garrison city with people and organizations paying attention to all the details and arrangements imperative to mark the grand day in style.  According to the program finalized in Rawalpindi division, the day, like other parts of the country, would dawn with special prayers in mosques for the integrity, solidarity and prosperity of the country. The day is celebrated all over the country every year with flag-raising ceremonies, paying tributes to the national heroes and fireworks on its eve. In Rawalpindi, vendors have set up stalls of colourful bunties, national flags, banners and pictures of national heroes who struggled day and night to achieve a common goal. National songs nowadays are in the air which gives the message that the whole the nation is united and tidy. The national flags would be hoisted at all important buildings to celebrate the day in a befitting manner.

RAWALPINDI, Aug 06: The Rawalpindi Police have deployed over 6,000 cops to provide security cover to 447 processions and 1925 Majlis to be held in various parts of the city from 6th-10th Muharram.  According to the police spokesman, Rawalpindi Police has made special managements to ensure foolproof security during Muharram. During Muharram, more than 2,000 volunteers would perform duties along with officers and volunteers of the district police, ladies police, elite force, traffic police and dolphin force, he added.  He said special arrangements had been made for the training of volunteers whereas officers and officials from Punjab Highway Patrol and Punjab Constabulary would also perform security duties. Although, the senior officers were ensuring security arrangements by reviewing the routes of the processions, the personnel were also being briefed in advance to manage the routes' security arrangements, he added.  Moreover, prohibition on display of weapons and use of l...

  ISLAMABAD, Aug 5: The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Friday said the country received unprecedented rainfall during the prevailing monsoon season which was 133% above average. The prevailing abnormal monsoon rainfall pattern has surpassed the past 30-year record of rains in the season, the NDMA spokesperson in a news release said. The rainfall ratio recorded in the federating units of the country revealed that the Balochistan province has been inundated by massive downpours and has received over 305% rains, whereas in Sindh the rainfall tendency recorded was 218% more, in Punjab more than 101%, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 26% more rains than average, in Gilgit Baltistan (GB) 68% more rains, and in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) 9% more than average rains were recorded during the ongoing season. The damages and deaths due to rains and floods being recorded noted 11 deaths in various incidents amid monsoon rains in the past 24 hours. The total number of death...

PESHAWAR, Jul 22: Provincial Assembly on Friday passed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Forests Amendment Bill 2022 with the objective of sustainable growth and protection of forests of the province.  The bill was passed for making Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Forest Ordinance 2022 as an Act by bringing some amendments in it.  In the legislation, penalties in shape of imprisonment and fines have been enhanced for those found involved in destruction of government controlled forests. In the section three of the ordinance, amendment was made to increase sentence of two years imprisonment to three years and fine of Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 500,000 for the violators. The law also enabled Divisional Forest Officers serving in newly merged districts to punish those found involve in degradation of forest. Amendments were also brought for changes in surcharge over commercial cutting in government and private owned forests.  According to law, government would also take necessary measures for protection of Forest...

ISLAMABAD, Jul 19: Today, Google is launching Android Earthquake Alerts System in Pakistan. Android Earthquake Alerts System is a no-cost, helpful Android feature that detects earthquakes around the world and alerts people,” said a news statement.  The system uses accelerometers in active android smart phones to detect seismic activities. It alerts people in two ways — via search and directly on the android mobile device itself. “The system provides near-instant information to Google Search. When people look up “earthquake” or “earthquake near me,” they will find relevant results, along with helpful resources on what to do after an earthquake. Users who do not wish to receive these alerts can turn this off in device settings.” It was noted that Pakistan had experienced several earthquakes in the past especially in the northern and western parts of the country. With the expansion of this earthquake alerts system, Android users in Pakistan may receive automatic early warning alerts t...

ISLAMABAD, Jul 14:The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Thursday urged the masses to ensure precautionary measures amid impending disaster risks as heavier monsoon rainfalls were predicted in various parts of the country.  The NDMA on its official Twitter handle shared the public awareness infographic mentioning various precautionary measures to be adopted during multiple disaster hazards during rainy weather. It mentioned that there were multiple natural disasters to take place during impending Monsoon rains including the risk of flashflood in hilly and urban areas, land sliding and flood threat in streams and drains, sinking or submergence of bridges and road networks, urban flooding and water stagnation in low lying areas and rupturing of electric pole and power cables. The NDMA advised the public to ensure safety measures to circumvent any hazard and risk to life or property during the above mentioned disasters. It said that the public should remain abreast with ...

PESHAWAR, Jul 13: Pakistan Education Champions Network hailed decision to provide free transportation facilities for female students in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.  According to a press release issued here on Wednesday, the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recently announced free transportation facilities for female students.   Mehmood Khan, the Chief Minister (CM) of KP, has approved free transportation for female students attending any public sector school in the province, to increase the literacy rate of young women.  Many young girls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province were discouraged from continuing their education each year because of the long distances between their homes and schools and the lack of affordable transportation options for them to travel. Initially, the PTC (Parent-Teacher Council) fund would be used for a pilot project in remote areas of the province, according to the details provided by the Elementary and Secondary Education Department (ESED). In 2022...

ISLAMABAD, Jun 30:The process of payments of Rs. 2000 for the new eligible beneficiaries applied for the “Sasta Petrol/Sasta Diesel” scheme of the government through sending SMS to the 786 will start from July 4. According to the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) Pakistan, the eligible beneficiaries of the scheme who registered through 786 will start getting their payment of Rs. 2000. However, the existing beneficiaries of Benazir Kafalat program are already receiving their payments of Rs. 2000 from the designated banks. Till Wednesday, out of eight million registered families of Benazir Kafalat program, Rs. 6.67 billion has been disbursed among 3,339,000 families. After receiving payment message from BISP, the registered families of Benazir Kafalat Program belonged from Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan may receive their payments from biometric ATMs of Habib Bank and those from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir from Bank Alfalah. All those who are not reg...

ISLAMABAD, Jun 27: A five-day anti-polio campaign started across the country from Monday to administer anti-polio vaccine to the children up to five years of age. According to details, in Punjab, 39,000 health workers were taking part in the the week-long campaign to administer anti-polio vaccine to over five million children in seven districts, including Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, DG Khan, Bahawalpur, Layyah and Mianwali. In Sindh, the special anti-polio drive started in Karachi and Hyderabad divisions and other high-risk districts of Sindh from Monday while in Larkana, Sukkur and Shaheed Benazirabad divisions, the drive will start from Wednesday. Over 30,000 polio workers will administer anti-polio drops to over 3.3 million children in the high risk union councils. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, about 2.6 million children would be administered anti-polio drops during a five day campaign. Over 11,000 teams will take part in the campaign. Similarly in Balochistan, 4,900 teams will admin...

LAHORE, Jun 24:The Pakistan Railways will introduce a "Safar Saheli" mobile application to facilitate women passengers during traveling by a train.  According to the PR sources on Friday, a special room in the PR Police IG office has been set up to operate the application.  PR CEO Farrukh Temor Ghilzai has constituted a committee to monitor the work on the app.  The committee members, including Divisional Commercial Officer Zeeshan Shehzad, DEE M Akbar Shah and DSTE Ali Nawab Khan, visited the room and check preparations for the application.  The committee vowed that the app would soon be activated and after its launch, safety of women passengers would be ensured.

ISLAMABAD, Jun 21: Government has started the process of making payments of Rs.2000 to the existing eight million beneficiaries of the Benazir Kafalat program in view of rising prices of petroleum products in the country. The payments have started under the Sasta Petrol/Sasta Diesel Scheme of the government which is being executed under the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP). According to the BISP, after receiving payment message from BISP, the registered families of Benazir Kafalat Program belonged from Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan may receive their payments from biometric ATMs of Habib Bank and those from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir from Bank Alfalah. All those who are not registered in Benazir Kafalat and have applied in the scheme by sending an SMS to 786 are requested to wait for the message of eligibility and payment.   They will receive a payment message shortly after the message of fulfilling the required eligibility criteria. It...

ISLAMABAD, Jun 20: The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Monday issued advisory for all departments concerned to remain alert as series of heavy rains may start in the country from today. According to the latest advisory released by Pakistan Meteorological Department, the series of torrential rains with winds and thundershowers, beginning in upper and central parts of the country from Monday, will continue till Wednesday. The relevant authorities including all provincial departments, National Highway Authority, Frontier Works Organisation and other institutions asked to remain alert and take precautionary measures to avoid any untoward incidents. The new rain spell might trigger landslides in vulnerable areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Galyat, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. The heavy falls my generate flash flooding in local nullahs in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The NDMA has also advised public living in low-lying areas to remain alert and immediately report any kind of emerge...

ISLAMABAD, Jun 20: On the direction of Inspector General of National Highway and Motorway Police (NH&MP) Khalid Mahmood, the department will launch a demerit point system.  The system will rely on a national driving license repository (NLDR) of over 8 million driving licenses, said a press release.  Demerit points for various violations are defined in the National Highways Safety Ordinance 2000 (Section 86). Driving licenses shall be suspended, as per the law, when demerit points exceed twenty within two years.  NH&MP officers can now retrieve prior violations and challans through the violator's CNIC, telephone number, and license number.  This initiative is a part of the '#NoMore' campaign, whereby a zero-tolerance enforcement regime has been introduced with the help of technological innovations like well-equipped spotters, next-generation speed cameras, drones, body-worn cameras and intelligent management systems for public service vehicles (PSVs).  Th...

ISLAMABAD, May 30: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday granted interim bail to Tiktok star accused Mrs. Nosheen Saeed known as ‘Dolly’ till June 8, in case pertaining to setting a fire in forests of Margalla Hills.  Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri heard the case filed by the Tiktok star seeking her pre-arrest bail.       At the outset of hearing, the court expressed annoyance with the petitioner’s lawyer over late appearance. The court said the lawyer had requested the court to hear the matter on the same day but he himself was absence.  The advocate prayed the court to grant some time for case preparation at this the bench adjourned the case till June 8. The court accepted the bail against surety bonds worth Rs100,000. It may be mentioned here that earlier a lower court had canceled the interim bail of the accused. The Tiktok star allegedly set fire in the forest of Margallah Hills to prepare her modeling videos for social media.

MULTAN, May 29: The recreational activities have been increased at swimming pools as the temperature has jumped over 40 degree centigrade from last few weeks in Multan and the suburban areas.  A large number of people, especially, youngsters start approaching swimming pools in order to get a sigh of relief from the scorching heat. Most of the swimming pools are situated outside the city areas, while few are within the city limits.  The swimming pool owners have increased the bathing charges as the sun crossed 40 degree centigrade. The bathing fee of Rs 500 was being charged from each person at the swimming pools which was Rs 250 to 350 in the previous years.  The business of swimming pool remained almost closed during the last two years due to coronavirus. Now, most of the owners have completed the repairing work of pools and make operational while renovation and repairing work was continued on many others. 

LAHORE, May 27:No case of monkey pox has been reported in the country, however, precautionary measures have been taken by the government departments. These views were expressed by members Punjab Assembly Khawaja Salman Rafique and Khawaja Imran Nazeer while talking to the media at a seminar held here on Friday. They informed that the diagnostic test lab facility has been provided in the BSL-III Lab of the Institute of Public Health (IPH). Earlier while addressing the seminar, Dean IPH Professor Sobia Qazi said that symptoms of small pox and chicken pox are very similar with the viral disease monkey pox, therefore, clinicians should get more information regarding the disease so that they could differentiate between the diseases and without solid reason and lab test, do not declare similar skin disease cases as monkey pox patients. Director Communicable Disease Control Dr Shahid Magsi informed the participants that no monkey pox case has so far been reported in this region including Paki...

  ISLAMABAD, May 27:Youm-e-Takbeer will be observed on Saturday with national zeal and fervour to commemorate historic nuclear tests at Chagai in 1998. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has also released a national song in connection with the "Youm-e-Takbeer". It was aimed at highlighting the importance of "Youm-e-Takbeer" Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif had already announced ten-day celebrations on the completion of 24 years of nuclear tests.