August 2

Waqt Tv on Saarc/ India Pak relations-

Prep for submitions to assembly and rpes conference.

 

July 31

CNBC on climate change impact on agriculture yield

National security discussion

Madre Millat PML function

Korean ambassador dinner for PML President

 

news…

 

1.     Foreign Affairs

• Gilani’s coalition govt seems to be “too weak to act” as the country is seen grappling with internal disputes, and is weighed down by the pressures of a fast souring economy, says a report in the Time magazine.(TN)
• World Bank has categorically refused to fund water and power projects in AJK and the Northern Areas, including the Diamer-Bhasha Dam,(TN)
• US Congress moved to suspend a bid by Prez Bush’s administration to shift millions of dollars in aid to Pakistan from counter-terrorism programs to upgrading Isb’s F-16 fighter jets.(TN)
• Gilani has categorically denied any understanding with the US on allowing unilateral strikes into its territory.(TN)
• Pakistan’s peace talks with extremists have resulted in a 40 % rise in rebel activity in Afghanistan, where there are more foreigners on the battlefield, Nato and Afghan forces said. (TN)
• Due to Indian lobbying US decreased military aid to Pakistan.(Khabrain)

2.     Kashmir

• India’s army accused Pakistani troops of again breaking a ceasefire along the Line of Control by opening fire on Indian positions.(TN)

3.     Defense

• Bush suspects ISI role, says Mukhtar.(DT)

4.     Economy

• Increase in discount rate by the central bank by 1% has surprised economists as Pakistan is currently passing through stagflation phase where inflation is increasing despite an appreciable slowdown in growth.(TN)
• Discount rate hike to hurt industry: FPCCI. (TN)
• FM Naveed Qamar has said that the Shamshad Akhtar should also clarify about Rs 165 billion borrowing of the previous govt, which was adjusted by the present govt on June 30.(BR)
• Customs has raised import trade price of three major steel products by 19-34 percent, to $730 per ton on the back of rising steel prices in world market, sources said. (BR)
• NCHD said that it had no option but to close down its operations and lay off 80,000 employees with effect from next month if it could not manage its financial constraints.(DT)

5.     Price Hike

• Extraordinary increase in diesel prices may force 100,000 crew members of 4,000 boats to stay idle at homes, as the official ban on fishing will end on July 31. (TN)
• prices of computer hardware and accessories have increased by 15 to 20 percent in the local markets. (DT)

6.     Media

• Taliban re-occupy PTV booster in Bajaur. (DT)

7.     Environment

• While the country groans under massive load-shedding, two Independent Power Producers producing 1,786 MW of electricity have stunned the govt by putting it on a 30-day notice to pay their arrears of Rs 66 billion or they would switch off the plants.(TN)

8.      FATA

• Militants shot and killed an Afghan woman accused of being a US spy in N. Waziristan region (TN)
• Unidentified armed men kidnapped four officials of a bank in Kalaya, Orakzai Agency, as Taliban released two more govt officials abducted from Hangu recently.(TN)

9.     Interior Issue

• Federal govt has withdrawn a decision it took earlier to deport foreign students studying in Pakistani madrassa and has allowed them to complete their education. (DT)
• Forty-eight militants, including a commander, and five soldiers were killed and scores of others injured as fierce clashes continued in the restive Swat Valley for the second straight day. (TN)
• After a failed coup against the ISI and the IB, the interior ministry is now out to grab the NAB.(TN)
• TTP Swat accuses govt of violating peace accord. (TN)
• Taliban warn MPs from Swat to quit.(DT)
• TTP threatens suicide attacks. (DT)
• Gunmen kill DI Khan DAO in suspected sectarian attack. (TN)

10. Politics

• Taseer rules out governor’s rule in Punjab. (TN)
• Zardari has asked party’s parliamentarians hailing from the NWFP to show maximum flexibility to keep the coalition intact in the province.(TN)
• Rehman has hinted from Washington of the possible rolling of some heads in the bureaucracy for causing the recent ISI fiasco but the reports making rounds in Islamabad suggest that the PM’s adviser on interior might find his own head on the chopping block.(TN)
• NA session likely from August 13. (DT)
• PML-N has submitted an adjournment motion to the National Assembly Secretariat seeking a debate in the House on the closure of hundreds of textile units in Faisalabad due to the increasingly high gas and power tariffs.(DT)
• PML-N is likely to convene a meeting of its CWC within a week to consider its working relationship with the PPP.(DT)

11. Inter provincial Issues

• NWFP has wheat stock for only eight days and the province has even exhausted the strategic reserve of one lakh tons as Punjab continued with its ban on the supply of wheat to the Frontier.(TN)

 

July 30

Resource management meeting

NDI meeting parallel which Parliamentary aide attended

Capital talk

Prep work on agriculture yields

Moroccon day reception

 

News…

1.     Foreign Affairs

• PM has urged Washington to enhance Pakistan’s counterterrorism capacity as well as improve intelligence sharing for more effective results.(TN)
•  “Americans are a little impatient. Therefore, in future, I think we’ll have more cooperation on the intelligence side and we’ll do the job ourselves,”: PM. (TN)
• The US diplomat assured the prime minister of $115.5 million food security assistance to Pakistan, including $42.5 million over the next nine months.(TN)
• The prime minister was made to walk from his plane to the shed, almost a two-three minute walk, where at the shed gate none higher than Assistant Secretary Richard Boucher met him. During the walk, Gilani and his wife were seen quite perturbed as neither there was an ordinary carpet nor the customary red carpet, as is usual on official visits.(TN)
• India and Pakistan traded blame on Tuesday for a ceasefire violation along the Line of Control that left an Indian soldier dead.(TN)
• Pakistan probed reports that a senior al-Qaeda figure was among six people killed in a suspected US missile strike.The Army said it had not confirmed that Monday’s strike killed al-Qaeda operative Abu Khabab al-Masri, described by Washington as an expert who trained terrorists in the use of poisons and explosives.(TN)
• Afghanistan said that after the Pakistani PM made a commitment to Bush to secure the border with Afghanistan, it was now time for Pakistan to take action.(TN)
• Western govts should support Karzai against Pakistan and remain firm against any reaction from those speaking for the “spoilers”, a UN official has said.(DT)
• India, Pakistan leaders to meet as peace process hits snag. Mukherjee will meet Qureshi on the sidelines of SAARC summit ahead of Manmohan-Gilani meeting on Saturday. (DT)
• Talks on a new world trade pact broke down without agreement, delegates said, after more than a week of bitter wrangling.(DT)
• The allied forces in Afghanistan were seen advancing towards the Pakistani borders with tanks, artillery and other heavy arms. (DT)
• : Pakistan is expected to sign an agreement with Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan to import 1,000 megawatts of electricity from the two Central Asian states through Afghanistan. (D)
• C.I.A. Outlines Pakistan Links With Militants.(New York Times)

2.     Kashmir

• The ninth International Kashmir Peace Conference will be held at the Capitol Hill in Washington DC from July 31 to August 1. The conference is being jointly organised by Kashmir Centre Washington and the Association of Humanitarian Lawyers, KMS reported. (BR)
• While underlining the importance of resolving the Kashmir problem, Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama has accused Pakistan of tolerating or in some cases funding the Mujahideen in Kashmir. (The Nation)

3.     Defense

• Meeting a key Pentagon demand, Pakistan’s military is planning to move a major unit of its regular army into the Tribal Areas. (DT)
• Eleven people, including a Pakistan Army captain, a Subedar and nine militants, were killed during day-long clashes between the security forces and the Maulana Fazlullah-led militants in the Swat. (TN)
• Security forces late on Tuesday re-launched an operation in Swat after Taliban militants kidnapped 30 security forces personnel from a checkpost in Swat. (DT)

4.     Economy

• Pakistan is set to import masses of Compact Fluorescent Lamps, despite the fact that they have been found to be hazardous and are being withdrawn in many developed and developing countries. (TN)
• Businessmen and industrialists in Pakistan were extremely critical of the SBP’s monetary policy and raised concerns over the further increase in the discount rate and the continuous negligence of the suggestions of the business community.(TN)
• Oil falls below $121, lowest since May. (TN)
• Short-covering reduces KSE losses to 130 points. (TN)
• Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry criticized one per cent increase in the discount rate, which would be detrimental to industrial growth that is already under tremendous pressure owing to the high cost of doing business.(TN)
• Pakistan Sugar Mills Association Punjab Zone has criticised the govt’s decision to ban the export of sugar and allow its duty-free import.(TN)
• Another round of talks between the PTCL management and representatives of protesting employees drew a blank late on Tuesday night. The employees continue to stage sit-in at the heavily guarded PTCL Headquarters and have vowed not end their protest. (DT)
• SBP has further tightened its monetary policy for another six months to curb the rising inflationary trend by increasing the key discount rate by 100 basis points (bps). The central bank has also instructed federal government to retire Rs 84 billion during the current fiscal year. (BR)
• The SBP asked the federal government to retire Rs 84 billion during the current fiscal year, as the borrowing has already reached historic level and rising borrowing is creating fiscal and macroeconomic imbalances. (BR)
• Pakistan State Oil has the permission from the government to stop furnace oil supply to Pakistan Electric Power Company and Hub Power Company after their receivables touch Rs 22.87 billion. (BR)

5.     Price Hike

• LPG marketing companies have increased price of LPG by Rs5 to Rs73 per kg in Sindh and NWFP.(TN)
• Kisan Board Pakistan has announced to stage strong protest demonstration across the Punjab against the increase in fertilizer, diesel and electricity prices on August 7.(The Nation)
• The City District Government Peshawar, raised the intra-city transport fares by one rupee per stop irrespective of the Rs 2 per stop already increased by transporters on their own. (BR)

6.     Environment

• Pollution emitting industries, operating in federal capital’s residential areas, would shortly be shifted to the new Industrial Estate, being set up in Sector I-17, to save the nearby residents from health risks as well as protect the flora and fauna of the area.(TN)
• All the four federating units have been asked to rationalise their indents and submit water withdrawal plans to the Irsa within the next 24 hours, keeping in view the massive reduction of water inflows in the whole Indus Basin system. Water inflows in the system have decreased by over 30 per cent, from 400,000 to 280,000 cusecs, making it difficult to fill the Tarbela and Mangla Dams. The Indus River witnessed a huge dip in water inflows, from 250,000 cusecs to 160,000 cusecs, while Chenab experienced decline in inflows from 80,000 to 55,000 cusecs. Inflow in the River Kabul is down to 38,000 cusecs from 52,000, and in Jhelum, to 22,000 from 40,000 cusecs. (TN)
• Karachi Water and Sewerage Board has said that water supply of almost 150 million gallons was adversely affected due to power outage that lasted six to eight hours throughout the city. It said that all the pumping stations across the city became un functional suddenly due to the power outage. (BR)

7.     Interior Issue

• Jirga asks govt to withdraw troops from Hangu.(TN)
• Ten militants arrested in Dera Bugti. (DT)

8.     Social Issues

• Two new polio cases have been confirmed in the country, bringing the total number of sufferers of the crippling disease in the country to 20 this year. (TN)
• Bhit Island, with a population of over 11,000 people, suffers neglect at the hands of the authorities as the only govt-run basic health unit of the isle portrays a pitiful picture.(TN)
• The subcommittee of the Senate standing committee on Interior has suggested adopting effective measures to improve the performance of Drug Inspectors, who have a crucial role in detecting and destroying spurious drugs from the market. The committee also underlined the need to launch a well-planned and co-ordinated campaign for checking proliferation of spurious drugs. (BR)

9.     Politics

• Time for final word with PPP: Nawaz. (TN)
• APDM gives Aug 31 deadline for judges’ restoration. (TN)
• Islamabad High Court dismissed a contempt petition filed against the prez and others for flouting the court order delivered in a habeas corpus petition of nuclear scientist AQ Khan. (TN)
• PPP leader and former Punjab Governor Khar has said that the ‘will’ of BB which was shown by Asif Ali Zardari after her death was fake. (TN)
• PPP MPs meet Zardari to decide alliance’s fate today. (TN)
• “Decisions taken in haste cause embarrassment for the nation and country, therefore, decisions of national importance should be taken after considering all aspects.” Hamza shehbaz said. (BR)
• Zardari behind all crises: Pagaro. (The Nation)

 

 

 

July 29

Meeting with NGO on social issues including food security and future course of action.

 

1.     Foreign Affairs

• PM said that if there is an American hand behind the attacks then it would be an act against the sovereignty of Pakistan.(TN)
• Bush made an unambiguous commitment to respect Pakistan’s sovereignty and paid tributes to democracy in the country.(TN)
• “The president offered $115 million over two years in food aid and $42.5 million of that will be available over the next six to nine months,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters.(TN)
• Afghan intelligence agency accused Pakistani agents of training thousands of militants to attack Indian road projects in Afghanistan.(TN)
• Afghan Minister for Information, Tourism, Culture and Youth Affairs Abdul Karim Khurrum on Monday stressed the need for holding second round of Pak-Afghan Jirga for peaceful settlement of regional issues. (TN)
• Pakistan and India have not been able to resolve issue of Kishan-Ganga hydroelectric project during third day of deliberations which concluded. (TN)
• Al-Qaeda urges Muslims to kill Saudi king. (TN)
• Because of immense US pressure, Pakistan has still not decided whether to press for a vote on the India-specific IAEA safeguards agreement when the UN nuclear watchdog’s board of governors meets. An approval of the proposed safeguards agreement by the IAEA will be a decisive step in the completion of the India-US nuclear deal. (D)

2.     Kashmir

• Charging that Pakistan has tolerated or in some cases funded the Mujahideen in Kashmir, Democratic presidential nominee Obama said such efforts are “counterproductive” for Isb.(TN) Kashmir ‘constant instigator’ of tension between India, Pakistan: Obama. (BR)

3.     Defense

• Six people, including three children and a similar number of suspected foreign militants, were killed and four others were seriously injured when an unmanned US drone reportedly fired four hellfire missiles at Zyara Leeta village of South Waziristan Agency. (TN)
• India said that Pakistani troops crossed into held Kashmir and opened fire. Indian troops returned fire, and at least four soldiers were killed. Indian army spokesman Brig Gopala Krishnan Murali called the attack a “brazen violation of ceasefire”. One Indian soldier died and “three or four” Pakistani soldiers were killed in “retaliatory fire” in the Kupwara area of the region, Murali said.(TN)
• Pakistan denies clash with Indian troops along LoC. (BR)
• Acting Commander of US Central Command, Lt-Gen Martin E Dempsey, handed over four F-16 jet fighter aircrafts to Air Chief Marshal Tanvir Mahmood Ahmad. (TN)
• Three officials of an intelligence agency were shot dead in Matta in the restive Swat district. Sources said the slain officials belonged to an intelligence agency.(TN)
• It was Zardari’s decision to control ISI. (TN)

 

4.     Economy

• KSE falls 453 points on fears of discount rate hike. Karachi stocks market came under severe selling pressure ahead of SBP Monetary Policy 2008-2009 to be announced on Tuesday. (TN)
• LSE slides 164 points. (TN)

• Analysts see SBP raising rates by 50-150 bps. (TN)
• Oil rises near $124 a barrel. (DT)

5.     Price Hike

• World Food Programme has warned Pakistan that the impact of high food prices will persist for the next three to four years and the country this year will face a wheat shortage of four million tonnes. WFP said poor people were spending 70 per cent of their household budget on food compared to 45 per cent in the past. (TN)

6.     Media

• Lahore Press Club general council meeting has demanded the Punjab govt release funds for journalistsí housing colony, besides retrieving the land in B-block from qabza mafia.(TN)
• Local Taliban on Monday took over a PTV booster in Barang tehsil of Bajaur Agency. (DT)

7.     Environment

• Water inflow in the Indus River system has dropped to an alarming level of 281,000 cusecs per day from 500,000 recorded last week, and IRSA has asked the provinces to submit revised water requisitions by Wednesday. (DT)
• Around 99 percent of water supplied to the population is unfit for human consumption due to which over 200,000 children under five die from diarrhoea, typhoid fever, cholera and hepatitis A and E every year. Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources scientist Hifza Rasheed said. (DT)
• Electricity shortfall recorded as 5,948MW after hitting the record high-level of 7,075MW owing to the forced shutdown of more than 24 units of power generation plants. (The Nation)

8.     Interior Issue

• The govt has declared eight settled districts of the NWFP as “high security zones” with emphasis on beefing up security in these zones to avert any possible attack from the local Taliban. These eight districts are Peshawar, Mardan, Kohat, Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Nowshera, Abbottabad and Tank.(TN)
• NWFP cabinet with Chief Minister Hoti in the chair approved the local govt reform package and decided to restore the transport department, besides constituting a special committee to prepare recommendations for the meeting of the Council of Common Interest.(TN)

• USE of official resources in Water and Sanitation Agency is not a new phenomenon and the PML-N lawmakers are no exception as several of them are using vehicles, offices and other resources of the agency to perform their ‘duties’.(TN)

Politics

• PML-N has conveyed its feelings to the PPP about PPP’s failure to consult with its coalition partners on important matters, PML-N leader Pervez Rasheed said. (DT)
• APDM has decided to launch a country-wide anti-govt movement. A meeting of the APDM held to decided to launch the movement but failed to reach a consensus on any final date for the purpose.(TN)
• Nawaz Sharif to return today. (DT)

 

July 28

visited a madrassah in Islamabad- Spanish delegation was also there -

news

 

What a mess the govt has made on the ISI issue. Honestly!

1)    Foreign Affairs

• Extremist Hindu organization Visva Hindu Prasad has begun campaign against the Muslims after a series of bomb blasts in Gujarat and announced to launch a movement against Jihadi terrorism in India from tomorrow.(TN)
• Politically ill-advised developments in Isb to take over control of the ISI are deeply linked to PM’s US visit, as the most painful and probably the only sticking point in his talks with the Bush administration would be the role of Pakistani agencies inside Afghanistan, Fata and against the US interests. (TN)
• ISI’s functions to be discussed in US.(D)
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs has finally sprung into action to counter the Indian efforts to get a country-specific safeguards agreement from the IAEA and then move on to seeking similar concessions from the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group. (TN)
• Pakistan’s ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani when asked about stopping of Pakistan nuclear diplomacy under US pressure said this report is not reliable nor there is any documentary evidence.(TN)
• Seventy Taliban were killed in Afghanistan when helicopter gunships and ground fighting repulsed an attack by about 100 rebels near the Pakistani border. (TN)
• Eight killed in Istanbul blasts.(TN)
• Centcom chief General David Peters and Commander of the Nato’s International Security Assistance Force  in Afghanistan David W McKiernan would visit Islamabad today(TN)
• Pakistan writes to 60 countries on US-India nuke deal.(TN)
• Pakistan has found evidence of involvement of foreign hands in creating anarchy in Hangu, Swat and different areas of Fata. Pakistan has also decided to raise the issue before Afghan and Indian govts.(TN)
• Bush urged to accord free market access to Pakistani traders.(BR)
• UK Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the Rt Hon Hazel Blears MP, arrives in Pakistan.(BR)

2)    Defence

• Short of withdrawing the controversial Cabinet Division’s notification on the relocation of the ISI, the govt took a U-turn, saying the premier intelligence outfit would continue working under the PM.(TN)
• Analysts agree that bad timing and ill-planning to establish control over the intelligence agencies have tarnished the image of PM inside and outside the country and exposed the hidden differences between different state organs responsible for national security. (TN)
• ISI controversy result of misunderstanding: ISPR.(DT)
• am not aware of any notification about putting the ISI under the control of the Interior Ministry, ARY One World quoted PM’s Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik as saying.(DT)

3)    Economy

• Inflation is being made worse by PPP-led govt: Rs 240 billion borrowed from SBP in 13 weeks. (BR)
• SBP Governor Dr Shamshad has urged the federal govt to take ‘draconian measures’ to bring the country’s derailed economy back on track, including withdrawal of subsidy on POL prices. (BR)
• Sugar industry has shown inability to enter into an agreement with the govt for co-generation of power, saying that the tariff offered by National Electric Power Regulatory Authority was not enough to take on the job.(BR)
• PM criticised the SBP for its failure to take timely measures to avert the financial scam in the Bank of Punjab (BR)
• Talks between PTCL workers, management fail again.(DT)

• A kilogram of ‘atta’ costs 22 rupees, 70 per cent up on a year ago, while a 49-rupee bag of rice is 123 per cent dearer.(TN)

4)    Media

• A senior Washington-based Pakistani journalist, Nayyar Zaidi, has been under detention in the United States, since March, for reasons not known.(BR)  

5)    Environment

• The ‘timber mafia’ is responsible for funding militancy in the NWFP and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, and the provincial government is devising a strategy to crack down on the covert industry, Environment Minister Hameedullah Jan Afridi said.(DT)
• protest was demanding the federal and Sindh govts to abolish the recently-formed Federal Thar Coal Authority and the Thar Coal Energy Board immediately.(TN)
• Hundreds of growers staged a demonstration against shortage of irrigation water for the last 10 years in Sehra Minor.(TN)

6)    FATA Interior Issue

• Mangal Bagh, the head of the defunct militant organisation Lashkar-e-Islam, made his first appearance in Bara Bazaar, after a military operation in the Khyber Agency last month.(TN)

• A boy was killed and seven others injured, two of them seriously, when a bomb exploded in a market in Charbagh Tehsil of Swat Valley.(TN)
• Roads and bus stands across the province presented a deserted look Sunday as the long-distance transporters observed a complete wheel-jam strike in NWFP.(TN)
• chief of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, Swat chapter, Maulana Fazlullah  warned to carry out suicide attacks if the govt relaunched the military operation in the valley.(TN)
• Police arrested a militant in a raid conducted on the Zarghoon Road in Quetta, an official said. Shafiqur Rehman Rind was wanted to the police in over 100 cases of target killings and sectarian violence(TN)
• Militants in Swat valley have decided to release a CD covering their activities against the law-enforcers and the alleged injustices committed by the security forces in the valley.(TN)
• 20 miscreants, three FC men killed in Dera Bugti clash.(BR)
• Eight tribes of Hangu district decided not to provide shelter to the Taliban or any other militant outfit and to co-operate with the govt.(DT)

7)    Social Issues

• Over 100 per cent increase was recorded in rape cases in Multan district in the first six months of year as compared to last year.(D)
• Members of the Pakistan Hindu Council condemned looting of some 250 women at a Jacobabad temple earlier this week.(TN)
• Hindus of the city are struggling to take complete control of the located historical Manora Island temple dedicated to Hindu god Varun Rai. They want to acquire rights to 11,000 square feet that the temple is built on, instead of the 2,500 square feet that the Pakistan govt recently handed over.(DT)

    Politics

• Zardari till 11 pm on Saturday night was adamant on keeping the ISI and IB under the control of the Interior Ministry.(TN)
• NWFP govt failed to control law, order: JUI-F.(TN)
• Taseer said that he was not satisfied with the Punjab govt food stamp scheme because of an inappropriate database, which might affect the results of the project.(TN)
• PPP trying to divide deposed judges: Qazi.(TN)
• MQM will play the role of a full time opposition in the next parliament session by taking up all the important issues confronting the masses of this country.(TN)

Media on the ISI Saga and PM Visit

• Short of withdrawing the controversial Cabinet Division’s notification on the relocation of the Inter-Services Intelligence, the govt took a U-turn, saying the premier intelligence outfit would continue working under the PM.
• The notification regarding the control of the ISI is being “misinterpreted”, said the official spokesman.
• The spokesman said: “The said notification only re-emphasises more coordination between the interior ministry and the ISI in relation to war on terror and internal security.”
• It was also promised that a detailed clarification in a comprehensive notification would be provided, which had not come out till the filing of this report.
• The controversial Cabinet Division notification, however, has not yet been withdrawn in Toto or in partial.
• The govt will take some time to settle down on this issue as this single move, taken just a day before the prime minister lands in Washington on his official trip, has undermined the writ of the four-month-old PPP-led government,” said a senior official.
• The armed forces personnel have reportedly reacted strongly against the amateurish move of the government. Critics say the move was aimed at destroying the functioning of the premier intelligence outfit dealing with external counter-intelligence.
• As the key decision-makers jetted their way towards the US, they left the country in a state of confusion by first issuing an ill planned, sort of arbitrary, notification to place the ISI under the interior ministry and then hastily clarifying its intent in a press release issued very late in the night.
• The politically ill-advised developments in Islamabad to take over control of ISI are deeply linked to Prime Minister Gilani’s US visit, as the most painful and probably the only sticking point in his talks with the Bush administration would be the role of Pakistani agencies inside Afghanistan, Fata and against the US interests.
• Informed members of the PM’s entourage, who have arrived in advance, privately say Gilani will be put on the spot in some of his top-level meetings, confronted with evidence that some out-of-control parts of the Pakistani agencies, either with or without Islamabad’s nod, were working at odds with the US goals and this has to be curbed by the political government if it wants generous economic and political support from Washington and even its allies and friends, including Saudi Arabia.
• Yet the manner in which Gilani and even Asif Ali Zardari handled the matter so casually and without deep thought has now caused not only a public embarrassment for the prime minister, even before he landed on the US soil, but he will be hard pressed to avoid the gazing looks of uniformed US generals when they seek answers to their pointed questions.
• The issue of controlling the undesirable role of the agencies will be too hot to handle for an inexperienced prime minister. Thus, he was more than eager to take some decision on who would control the ISI before landing at the Andrews Air Force Base.
• US side is prepared with all kinds of evidence, videos, audios plus transcripts to show Gilani that his agencies were playing double games in seriously stopping the terrorists inside Pakistan from operating freely.
• One such example to quote is the press conference addressed by Baitullah Mehsud with dozens of journalists travelling inside Fata to secret locations which, the US side claims, could never have remained secret from the vigilant Pakistani agencies. But if a terrorist can call and address a news conference with all TV and media presence in full force, there is no excuse for the agencies not to know where he was located.
• The Pakistani side is also preparing its own counter arguments claiming that if the US can immediately track down the voice of Baitullah Mehsud, within hours after Benazir Bhutto’s murder claiming responsibility for the heinous act, why could they not track down and share the information with Pakistan on the whereabouts of the militant leader so that Pakistan could act in real time.
• Rehman Malik has repeatedly said on Pakistani TV channels that the president, the Army chief, the prime minister and Asif Ali Zardari were not only consulted but had agreed to the change of command of the ISI but each of these players, importantly the presidency and the GHQ, have said categorically that they were not on board. So, Malik has to do a lot of explaining on what was going on and why he was making misleading claims.
• It is not the first time that Malik has been acting in such an arbitrary manner and his action of postponing the by-elections without consulting anyone, a decision which had to be reversed, was a similar attempt at exercising power that did not exist in the manner he wanted to use it.
• The cryptic remarks of some of the military people made to important journalists about imagining a situation in which the ISI would be run by Malik indicate the level of mistrust and contempt about some of the unelected leaders in the PPP government. But they are thriving and it is a deepening mystery why.
• Prime Minister Gilani only discussed the need for improving coordination and information between civilian and Army intelligence agencies a few days ago. The president agreed to this proposal but the notification issued by the Cabinet Division on July 26 shocked all and created panic in Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
• Two emergency calls from Rawalpindi to London forced PM to change the decision of placing the ISI under the Interior Ministry within a few hours.
• Gilani was informed that the Army, and especially the ISI, was trying its best to stay away from politics for the past many months but his decision to place the ISI under the control of Rehman Malik would be seen as an attempt to again politicise the ISI for achieving certain political objectives.
• Zardari suggested to the prime minister that the country could not afford any misunderstandings between the armed forces and the civilian govt, so it will be better to reverse the decision immediately.
• PPP chief Asif Ali Zardari said after the decision was made public that the move will improve the image of the military, since in the past it had received much flak for being the sponsor of devious doings and of pursuing a foreign policy independent of the elected government.
• However, there is one valid criticism of the decision and this is that placing the agency under the control of the interior ministry may make it even more vulnerable to being misused to suit a government’s political and ulterior ends.
• Having said that, as pointed out already it is imperative that all the state’s intelligence-gathering institutions be controlled by civilians eventually and be answerable to parliament. This is because the ISI and the IB have often been accused of in fact working to undermine elected governments. To this effect, the remarks of both the interior and defence ministries made to the Supreme Court in 2006 (while a habeas corpus hearing into some citizens who had disappeared was being conducted) that neither exerted any command over the ISI are instructive.

 

 

 

July 27

Sunday- I read ‘ The case of the exploding mangoes’. Mohammad Hanif is an extemely acomplished journalist/author. I had the unique opportunity of being his intern when he was with Newsline before I left for LSE. I remember visiting Bilawal House as an intern for an interview with the Editor and Hanif when Mohtarma’s first govt was dismissed.

news…

1.     Foreign Affairs

• United Nations High Commission for Refugees has called for allowing Afghan refugees to stay in Pakistan for at least four more years.(D)
• Sixteen small bombs exploded in Ahmedabad, killing 32 people and wounding 100.(TN)
• Pakistan-India talks on the controversial Kishanganga hydro-electric project continued. Indian media reports said India had accelerated the work on the project as it wanted to complete it before major work was completed on the Chinese-assisted Neelum-Jhelum project in Azad Kashmir.(TN)
• Iran possesses over 5,000 centrifuges, says Ahmadinejad. (D)

2.     Defense

• Govt placed the premier civil intelligence agency, the IB, and the ISI under the Interior Ministry in an effort to clip the wings of the latter. (TN)
• “The relocation of the ISI is misplaced, as it would increase the role of the ISI in internal political affairs – an issue which got flaks from the political fraternity of the country since the creation of the agency,” a senior official told.(TN)
• Zardari has claimed that the decision to place the ISI under the Interior Ministry is a step towards the civilian rule and also to save the Army from controversies and a bad name. (TN)
• Indian troops fire at LoC: ISPR. (TN)
• India ‘concerned’ over Pakistan getting $230m to upgrade F-16s. (TN)
• A contingent of US Special Forces, or Green Berets, will team up with Indian soldiers to train in jungle warfare. (D)

3.     Economy

• govt has decided to place a ban on the export of sugar and remove import duty on the commodity, pre-empting a sugar crisis that could occur in the next two to three months.(TN)
• Govt to provide Rs5bn subsidy on CNG bus imports. (TN)
• The government has referred “oil, sugar, fertilisers and CNG cartels matter” to the Competition Commission of Pakistan for an investigation. (D)

4.     Price Hike

• Unilateral increase in fares by local transporters in the wake of hike in petroleum prices triggered scuffles among conductors and commuters, while the authorities concerned are least interested in addressing the issue.(TN)
• Cement prices during a short span of one week went up by Rs32 per bag to Rs380 and CNG price by Rs11.22 to Rs47.57 per kg, revealed the Federal Bureau of Statistics figures. (TN)
• Poultry prices in the city have increased by about Rs40 per cent during the last few days owing to the recent surge in demand and rise in transportation charges. (D)
• Wholesale price of gram pulse has surged to Rs62 from Rs60 per kg while its retail price has increased to Rs70 from Rs64-65 per kg. The wholesale rate of kabli chana (small) has gone up to Rs53 from Rs48 per kg, thus pushing up its retail rate to Rs60 from Rs55 per kg. (D)

5.     Environment

• The federal govt has assured that it would provide funds for a project in forestry worth Rs3 billion to the NWFP.(TN)
• The federal govt would develop new multipurpose water reservoirs worth US$22 billion on priority basis to cope with the increasing demand of water and electricity, Infrastructure Project Development Facility head, Ghulam Murtaza Satti said.(TN)
• Wapda chairman Shakeel Ahmed Durrani said that Quetta would soon have a 150MW rental powerhouse and work on the Dadu-Khuzdar, Kot Addo and Dera Ghazi Khan-Loralai transmission lines would start shortly. (D)
• The issue of productive exploitation of coal reserves of Sindh for setting up of coal-fired electric generation projects in the province seems to have been put again in limbo after the formation of the Thar Coal and Energy Board. The Sindh Mines and Mineral Development Department instantly questioned the composition of the board and its terms of reference in an official communication on July 24. (D)

6.     FATA / Interior Issue

• 12 militants, three FC men killed in Dera Bugti. (TN)
• Lal Masjid Action Committee does not want any confrontation and is ready to hold a composite and fruitful dialogue with the govt for the resolution of all issues in a peaceful manner.(TN)

7.     Social Issues

• Five polio cases detected in NWFP: EDO health. (TN)

Politics

• Politicians should not hold meetings in foreign lands: Gilani. (TN)
• Senate session on August 4.(TN)
• Talibanisation to plunge Karachi into ethnic, sectarian violence: Farook Sattar. (TN)
• The chief of the Wifaq-ul-Madaris-ul-Arabia, Maulana Muhammad Hanif Jalandhri, has rejected fears of Talibanisation in Karachi.(TN)

 

July 26 contd

I got home early afternoon for a change and painted with the kids after months…But it wasn’t meant to be a relaxed afternoon…

6.30pm I heard through TV bulletin about the accident of school kids in Ayubia. I had a gut feel which said go. You might be able to help only because of your MNA tag. Just go… I followed my gut feel and I hit the road by 7pm with only one set of directions from 115 that the kids were in a district hospital in Abbotabad. I had calculated 2 hours to get there. I was wrong. It took me 3.5 hours to trace them at Ayub Medical Complex… I tried to establish facts first. Saw the 8 different affectees of the total 36 who were admitted in different wards, spoke to their attendants. Figured out their issues of how they were not getting required tests on govt expenses nor medicine nor assistance for the rest of the kids who had managed to survive, Even the one dead body ghusul and ambulance back to Lorali Balochistan (which is where they were from) was not being arranged on govt expenses. After 45minutes of roaming the wards and examining the issue list I got to see head honcho Chief Executive of the Hospital. When I put him face to face with the attendants of the affectees only then did their issues started getting resolved. Suddenly local ANP political team showed up. Suddenly local District Nazim showed up – All with their big political statements. I left the hospital in Abbotabad for Islamabad around midnight having got commitments that the affectees would be well taken care of. I also did some follow up work from Islamabad the next morning and was satisfied that they were being taken care of finally.

My conclusions from this trip were that Pakistan is a major victim of the VIP culture (yes I have had these comments from those who have written to me on this website- I agree with them on this point).. Where the poor are left to the mercy of God alone. Where if you are a VIP you can get the systems to function. Imagine if this bus which fell off the road in Ayubia had your own children, or children from elitist schools. Would the systems have worked better. For sure! But since this bus had the awaam’s kids in it the results of the rescue effort were different…None of the local VIPs including PMLN MNA, MPAs or Local govt people had shown up or done anything. Why had the system in the hospital not functioned? Why did it take me to call Governor NWFP who was most helpful to get them some assistance. It was not the Governor’s direct responsibility it was the DCOs. Why couldn’t the DCO whose job it was to help these poor people have done it without our getting involved? Too many questions of why when there is an emergency govt mechanisms cant be counted on. And from my party perspective I had Omar Ayub guiding me through the bureaucratic maze on phone constantly. I am grateful. They say family upbringing shows. And it certainly is true for him. Gentleman and helpful all the time and with all. I discovered during my talk with the affectees that they didn’t expect MNAs to show up or help because they were such ‘barai loag’!! Sad state of affairs if the awaam has such perceptions about their own representative of the people. My conversation with the Nazim was an eye opener. He was an independent Nazim who claimed that all govts were useless and only Talibans could fix this country because they ate very little roti and didnt hoard like all govts and would fix the systems in this country. Scary thought!

Anyway, I intend working on emergency procedures so that we can be more efficient in disaster and emergency situations. I am glad I went. I was able to help and learn how to fix the system for future. Walking the talk is the only way. Niyaat saaf, manzil assan…

 

July 26

 working on food security –

news

1)    Foreign Affairs

• Pakistan needs to do more to prevent Taliban militants from launching attacks into Afghanistan from its territory, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said.(TN)
• Hussain Haroon to replace Munir Akram at UN.(TN)
• India has decided to go ahead with the controversial 330-MW Kishanganga project coming up on the River Neelam.(DT)

2)    Northern Areas

• Flour crisis deepens in Ghizar as strike of Flour Mills Association continues. (K2)

3)    Economy

• Rs 5bn subsidy to import CNG buses.(TN)
• Pakistan needs tighter fiscal, monetary policy: IMF.(TN)

4)    Price Hike

• Pakistan Railways has announced to increase fares of different categories of passenger trains by 8 to 15 per cent from July 26.(TN)
• Chicken price up by Rs 29 per kg in three days.(TN)
• Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), for the week ended on July 24, for the lowest income group up to Rs3,000, has registered increase of 0.60 percent over the previous week.(TN)
• Transporters want another 15% to 25% increase in fares’.(DT)
• Essential items 33.59 percent dearer for low income group. Weekly inflation measured by SPI surged 32.22 percent in week ending on July 24 over the same period of last year on the back of recent increase in oil prices.(BR)
• Banks in Pakistan are earning windfall profits by taking undue advantage of the weak regulatory framework and are behaving like a cartel within the policy space provided to them by the State Bank.(D)

5)    Environment

• Kachi Canal, being built at the cost of Rs 51 billion, would bring a green revolution in Balochistan, as it would irrigate 713,000 acres of barren land in the province.(TN) PML govt inititiative
• Managing Director Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited, Abdur Rashid Loon, has cautioned that the country might face a severe gas crisis after five years if more reservoirs are not discovered.(TN)
• Emily Woodhouse of the Imperial College London has said that due to climate change the coastal communities are at high risk and there is lack of research in Pakistan.(BR)

6)    Interior

• Dozens of militants took control of four highly important security posts vacated by the FC personnel on the Pak-Afghan border in the restive Bajaur tribal region.(TN)
• JUI-F-led Jirga that was negotiating peace between the Lashkar-e-Islam  and the Ansarul Islam in the remote Tirah Valley of Khyber Agency has got cold-shoulder.(TN)
• One person was injured when some unidentified gunmen opened fire on a trailer carrying a US consignment to Afghanistan near Sheikhwal area of Landi Kotal. (TN)
• Jaish-e-Muhammad group in Miranshah, North Waziristan Agency of the Tribal Areas, has assassinated Raja Dilawar Mahmood on suspicion that he was siding with a group presently engaged with the govt to resolve the issue of Jamia Hafsa in Islamabad.(TN)

• As the peace accord between the NWFP govt and the Swat Taliban has virtually become ineffective, violence in the militancy-shattered Swat Valley is spiralling with each passing day.(TN)
• Adviser to the PM on Interior, Rehman Malik, has claimed that at least one al-Qaeda man and around 32 hardcore deputy commander-level militant Taliban were arrested from Hangu during operation.(TN)
• The management of the demolished Jamia Hafsa here on Friday announced that it would itself start the reconstruction of the seminary if the govt did not take any decision to that effect soon.(TN)
• A contempt of court petition has been filed in Supreme Court  against interior secretary, CDA and Islamabad administration for non-complying with the SC orders in connection with Lal Masjid case.(TN)
• 10 miscreants held in Swat.(TN)
• Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan will not launch operation against the NWFP government after the expiry of the deadline that they had issued, Online quoted TTP spokesman Maulvi Omar as saying.(DT)

7)    Politics

• Punjab govt has expressed inability to provide funds from provincial resources for development projects that may be announced by the Prez and PM.(BR)
• PM in unequivocal terms declared that he was not a powerless prime minister of the country, adding “no one has the power to dissolve the assemblies.”(TN)
• Zardari leaves for Dubai.(TN)
• Ex-internees remind PPP of election manifesto.(D)
• The appointment of parliamentary secretaries for five key ministries briefly held by the PML-N ministers and sidelining of some federal secretaries has put under severe stress the relations between the two main coalition partners PPP and PMLN.(TN)

    PML

• local leaders PML warned the Punjab govt of agitation if victimisation of its workers didn’t stop.(DT)

9)    Judicial Issues

• PML-N reiterated that it would not show any flexibility on the restoration of judiciary to the pre-November 3, 2007 position.(TN)
• PMLN would form a working relationship with the PCO judges in order to resolve people’s issues, said Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan .(DT)

 

 

 

July 25

Working on agriculture yields after climate change impact- walking the talk…

news

1.     Foreign Affairs

•  Nato will not enter Pakistan to hunt Taliban insurgents, but reserves the right to hit the militants there should they attack alliance troops across the border in Afghanistan, the alliance’s chief said. (TN)
• Gilani seeks Singh’s help to combat terror. (TN)
• Karzai protects drug trade: ex-US official. (TN)
• PM will face searching questions about his commitment to fighting the Taliban and al-Qaeda militants along the Afghan border when he flies to Washington this weekend.(TN)
• A Pakistani delegation on Thursday left for New Delhi to hold talks on the Kishan Ganga project. (DT)

2.     Kashmir

• A suspected Islamic militant threw a hand grenade at group of migrant labourers in held Kashmir, killing a woman and her four children, one of two deadly attacks that claimed nine lives. (TN)

3.     Economy

• WB to lend $5.5m for water reservoirs’ cell. (TN)
• OGRA is still waiting for a formal notification from authority concerned which empowers it to move against CNG stations for charging exorbitant rates of CNG. (TN)
• Managing Director Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited, Abdur Rashid Loon cautioned that the country might face severe gas crisis after five years if more reservoirs were not explored.(TN)
• PTCL workers threaten to jam network today. (D)

4.     Price Hike

• Dropping another bombshell on the public following the recent rise in the POL products, Federal Minister for Power and Water Ashraf said that increase in electricity tariff was inevitable.(TN)
• Pakistani manufacturers of edible oil are holding back the benefits of a sharp fall in international price of palm oil as consumers continue to suffer from worst inflation in decades. (TN)
• Adviser to PM on Industry and Production Wattoo has said that the govt would not wave off subsidies on rice, flour, wheat and pulses, while efforts were underway to restore the subsidy on sugar.(TN)
• Sindh govt approves 9% hike in water rates. (DT)
• APDM to hold protests against price hike. (DT)
• Imported galvanised steel price up by Rs 4,000 per ton. (BR)

5.     Environment

• Phoolnagar police have registered a case against five officials of a food company on the application of a fish farmer who has alleged that the company’s poisonous chemical waste has killed thousands of fish in his farm in Gagar village.(D)
• Environmental Protection Agency said that the station recorded ozone levels of 191 ug/m3 (microgrammes per metre cubed), which exceeds the international World Health Organisation guidelines of 100 ug/m3. The level of respirable dust was 238 ug/m3, whereas the WHO standard is 20 ug/m3.(D)

6.     Interior Issue

• Advisor to the PM on Interior Rahman has said that India was supporting Bramdagh Bugti in “his terrorist activities”, and that the evidences would soon be surfaced.(TN) Compare this to Minister Commerce launching pro India trade policy! Contradictions in one cabinet and foreign policy execution.
• situation in the NWFP is extremely worrisome as the Wednesday’s meeting of coalition partners was warned in plain words that the Frontier province was on a fast track of breaking away from Pakistan because of Isb’s blind following of Washington’s war on terror.(TN)
• A petition has been filed before the Supreme Court of Pakistan to restraint the govt from inviting the help of the UN for investigation into the murder of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, terming it an act against the sovereignty of Pakistan. (TN)
• Sindh Home Department has recommended to the Federal Govt to provide Pakistani citizenship to more than 20,000 illegal aliens in Karachi as well as granting them amnesty.(TN)
• Members of the cabinet committee on FCR have been asked to come up with proposals about repealing or amending the FCR provision that empowers the authorities to raze property of criminals or their relatives as a punishment.(D)

7.     Social Issues

• Sindh has reported the third case of poliomyelitis in Pakistan during the last six days. (TN)
• As many as 88,098 civil cases remain pending before 50 civil judges of the provincial capital’s courts by the end of June, 2008. (TN)
• 95 gastroenteritis patients treated at PIMS in 24 hours. (TN)
• Karachi wins the lead spot for the ‘cheapest city to live in’ title, according to a survey carried by a human resource firm, Mercer.(TN)
• Around 65 public sector schools have been destroyed in the militancy-hit areas of the Frontier province until now, while another 22,000 needed to be set up in the province, said NWFP Minister for Schools and Literacy Sardar Hussain Babak.(TN)
• indifferent attitude of the district govt to the wheel-jam strike of NWFP public transport associations put another economic burden on Peshawarites as the association announced a unilateral increase in the fares of local as well as out-of-city transport service.(TN)

8.     Politics

• The PPP, PML-N, JUI-F and MQM have expressed consensus over the holding of an all parties’ conference to deal with extremism. (DT)
• 14 parliamentary secretaries confirmed by prime minister. (TN)
• On the special directives of Zardari, the federal government has appointed PPP’s former MNA Ghulam Murtaza Satti as head of Infrastructure Project Development Facility. (TN)
• Governor Salman Taseer brushed aside speculations about a PPP plan to form government in Punjab minus the PML-N, saying the PPP had gone extra hundred miles to keep the ruling coalition intact. (TN)
• Deposed judge of the Lahore High Court, Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif has said Zardari is not restoring the pre-November 3 judiciary because he fears reinstated judges might reopen cases against him.(TN)
• NWFP Minister for Health Syed Zahir Ali Shah is said to be the third PPP minister in the provincial cabinet, who has conveyed his reservations to the party leadership against the ‘interference’ of ANP in his ministry.(TN)
• In a surprise move, the govt sacked finance secretary Farrukh Qayum and appointed Dr Waqar Masud to succeed him. Former finance minister Ishaq Dar had appointed Farrukh Qayum a few months ago after removing Dr Waqar Masud.(TN)
• National Reconstruction Bureau has started consultation with provinces regarding handing over the control of LG system to provincial govts. (D)
• Local leaders of coalition partners (PPP and PML-N) have entered a stand-off over reconstitution of reconciliatory committees in capital’s police stations. (D)

 

July 24

Press conference in Islamabad with MNA Ayaz Shirazi and MNA Waqqas Akram on Trade policy and other issues. Busines Plus talkshow and foreign media interaction.

 

news…

 

1.     Foreign Affairs

• Presently, Pakistan portrays a worst-case scenario because the government in Islamabad instead of aggressively pursuing the militants in the tribal areas was offering them sanctuaries in return for a ceasefire, a top US official has said.(TN)
• Taliban commander nabbed in Quetta was former governor of Helmand. (TN)
• Pakistan is warning that a deal on opening some of India’s nuclear facilities to outside inspection could lead to a renewed atomic arms race between the two rivals.(TN)
• India and Pakistan have prepared an anti-terrorism mechanism that will eliminate terrorism and bring prosperity to the region, Indian FM Pranab Mukherjee said.(DT)
• US to convince Pakistan not to vote against India at IAEA. (BR)

2.     Northern Areas

• Not a single medical and engineering college for students in Gilgit and Batistan. (K2)

•  

3.     Economy

• It was a day of protests in the provincial capital as eight different organizations demonstrated to press the govt for acceptance of their demands.(TN)
• Farmers refuse to cultivate maize if exports are banned. (TN)
• flourmill owners refused to supply 20kg ‘atta’ bags at Rs375, the rate recently fixed by the Punjab CM. (TN)
• KCCI meeting today to discuss price hike. (BR)
• Pakistan Auto Parts Exporters Association Chairman has strongly opposed the government decision to import CNG buses from India and said it would kill the domestic auto-parts manufacturing industry.(BR)

4.     Price Hike

• 10 to 60% increase in prices of kitchen items. (TN)
• Paper prices up by 8 to 25 percent. (BR)
• Urea prices shoot up by Rs115. (D)

5.     Information Technology

• Karachi police raided five computer shops here in the Boat Basin area and seized 14 new computers and 1,509 pirated software CDs for violating intellectual property rights. (TN)

6.     Environment

• Unchecked pollution has destroyed the coastal areas near Karachi and has also resulted in the destruction of marine life, especially oyster (Mollusks) beds, which are an important source of foreign exchange in addition to maintaining the ecological balance. (TN)
• Sindh High Court  issued notices to Advocate General Sindh, Ministry of Mines and Minerals and others against the proposed setting up of stone crushing plant near the Thatta area.(TN)

7.     FATA

• The peace jirga of Fazlur Rahman-led Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam failed to bear fruits on the second consecutive day as talks between the two rival groups of Khyber Agency. (TN)

8.     Interior Issue

• ANP believes that there is no possibility of peace in NWFP as long as militant sanctuaries remain in the Tribal Areas. (DT)
• Intelligence and law enforcement agencies have been put on high alert based on the news that Baitullah Mehsud has prepared a hit list of around 300 high-profile figures, including political leaders.(DT)
• shutter-down strike will be observed in Balochistan against “the massacre of the Baloch in a military operation in Dera Bugti”, the Baloch Republican Party has announced. (DT)
• Three killed, six injured in Swat shooting. (DT)

9.     Social Issues

• Pakistan spending on health lowest in the region: World Bank report. (BR)
• Three unidentified bandits looted more than 200 Hindu women when they were worshiping at a temple in Jacobabad. (TN)
• Hospitals breeding ground for child abduction. (TN)
• 172 schools without head teachers in Pindi district. (DT)

10. Politics

• Grandson of Nawab Akbar Bugti, Barahamdagh Bugti, has said that he would accept any help from India, Afghanistan and Iran to defend Balochistan.(TN)
• Khosa to replace Qayyum but stay as senator. (TN)
• PPP has decided to delay the expansion of the federal cabinet until next month. (DT)
• Govt has decided to hand over control of local bodies to provincial govts.(D)
• Coalition partners condemned Zardari for not consulting partners as debate in meeting got blistering. (Khabrain)

11. Judicial Issues

• Zardari refused to reinstate sacked chief justice of Pakistan, during a meeting of leaders of the ruling coalition,(DT)