IKnowledge 4 You

General rules and debate guidelines

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 16:28:00 +0000

1. Speeches should be SEVEN minutes in duration. Speakers exceeding this may be penalised but should never be substantially less than this. In general you should speak for at least 6:45 and generally no more than 7:20-7:30. Ideally stay on your feet until you hear the 7th min bell and then finish (i.e. Mr. Speaker sir, I beg to........) and be in your seat by 7:15. Your times will be recorded by the timekeeper and given to the adjudicators as they leave to make their decision.

2. In general most debates are in English. The main competitions are all in English but occasionally there are other Language debates usually in conjunction with some other event/soc. Debating in Europe, Asia etc tends to be in the local language. At Worlds there is an English as a second language competition

3. A bell will be rung after the expiration of one minute and six minutes. The bell will be rung again at seven minutes and at regular intervals after that.

4. If the chair of the debate is the head of the host society he/she usually has a title e.g. Speaker, Auditor, etc. Most often the proper form of address is Mr Speaker/Madame Speaker. You must also acknowledge the adjudicators, if there are any. Some speakers will also acknowledge other members of the house, it is basically just a matter of personal preference as to how you begin your speech after acknowledging the chair and adjudicators. (e.g. "Mr Speaker, Madame Secretary, Adjudicators, Ladies & Gentlemen........................).

5. Points of information may only be offered after the expiration of one minute and may not be given after the expiration of six minutes. Points of information may only be given to opposing speakers and should generally be not more than 15 seconds in duration. The chairman may request a speaker to end a point of information at his/her discretion. Adjudicators also frown upon barracking (constantly interrupting the speaker by offering points) and the chair is expected to control this. Acceptance of points of information is at discretion of the competitor holding the floor. In competitive debates only the competitors may offer points of information however in non-competitive debates points will often be accepted from the audience. Once you have accepted a point of information you can't just ignore it and carry on. You must deal with it or risk the adjudicator's wrath.

6. In most societies Maiden speakers (i.e. speakers making a speech for the first time) have the protection of the chair. Other speakers may not offer them points of information unless they choose not to accept the protection of the chair. Even if they reject the protection of the chair most experienced speakers will not offer them a point unless they run into difficulty and it can help them. If you are good enough (or misfortunate enough depending on how you look at it) to be making your maiden speech in an intervarsity (rare but it has been known to happen) you do not have any special protection.

7. Points of order concerning the procedure of the debate must be addressed to the chair. These can be brought at any time and take priority over all other speeches. However these are only used in exceptional circumstances when the rules and standing orders are being abused and the speaker making the point must be certain that the point of order is appropriate. In British Parliamentary there is no such thing as Points of Personal Privilege (which are used in the US/Canada). At Worlds/Europeans it is made clear to the competitors in briefing that ONLY points of Information may be offered. Repeated attempts to offer any other sort of Point can be heavily penalised by the adjudicators.

8. Speakers must observe parliamentary language i.e. bad language is not permitted.

9. The use of Props is not permitted in a debate.

10. No amendment to the motion is permitted. You must debate the motion as presented and interpret it as best you can. You cannot define a motion in a Place/Time Specific sense (i.e. you cannot set the debate in Dublin 1916 and therefore attempt to limit the scope of the debate and information which the other teams can use)

11. The "house", which will often be referred to, is basically the chairperson competitors audience etc.

12. The speakers are evenly divided on both sides of the motion. Speakers for the motion are the "Proposition" or "Government", speakers against are the "Opposition".

13. The opening Prop speaker (sometimes called "Prime Minister") has to define or interpret the motion. If this definition is unreasonable or irrelevant then the opening opposition speaker may challenge the definition. But if the definition is relevant but just doesn't suit the opening opp. speaker attempting to redefine may not go down well with the adjudicators. If a definition is given and all the other speakers or teams completely ignore it then the defining speaker is effectively out of the debate. Definitions must also be fair and debatable "Truistic" or Self Proving arguments are not accepted. (e.g. The sea is full of water is pretty hard to reasonably argue against)For full guidelines as to who can redefine and when please refer to the Rules of British Parliamentary (e.g. the Sydney 2000 Rules).

14. The last speaker on each side is expected to sum up his/her side's argument and rebutt or refute the arguments of the other side. Generally this speaker will not add a great deal of new information to the debate.

15. Rebuttal is vital in any competitive speech. Any argument left unchallenged is allowed to stand. The later you come in a debate the more rebuttal you must use. Rebuttal basically involves ripping the opposing side's argument apart and exposing its weak points. However don't forget to make your own argument and ideally use that to rebutt. It is important to also point out that unlike the style of debating in some countries you do not have to defeat every one of the opponents points (but of course all the Key ones must be knocked down). If the Government makes 19 points and you only manage to hammer 17 in the time allowed then you will win and any attempt by the Government to point out that 2 of their arguments are left standing is basically grasping at straws.

16. Be careful to avoid leaving statements hanging in mid-air. If you say something important back it up. Just because you know something is true and where it came from that doesn't mean the audience/adjudicators know where it came from and why it's true. To a certain degree the safest bet is to assume that the audience know little or nothing about the subject.

17. Specialised Knowledge should not be used to unfairly define a motion. If you are a Legal, Scientific, Management, Computer etc student then you must remember that others in the debate may be "experts" in another field of study. Unfair definitions would include things like why the case of Smith versus Jones is more important to company law than Ryan versus Kelly. (These are just examples I have no idea if these cases even exist).

18. Just because you may not be competing this does not mean that you can take no part in the debate. All debates are usually opened up to the floor after the last speaker and once the adjudicators have retired. Often there is a prize for the best speaker here, but time allowed is usually no more than 3 min. to allow as many people take part as possible.

19. Heckling is also common in some debates. This involves members of the audience offering some good-humoured abuse to the competitors. However there is a fine line between heckling and barracking and members of the audience should remember to respect the speaker. Heckling can be scary at first but you will soon get used to it.

20. Private Members Time, PMT, is a period of time at the start of each debate where members may bring up a motion or issue that they wish to see debated. Speeches here are limited to 3 min. This is often a part of the debate, which is not only used to raise issues but also where many speakers show off their wit and humour.

21. Remember you do not necessarily have to believe the side of the motion you are on. You just have to make it appear as though you strongly believe in it for 7 min. In competitive debates you will have very little choice as to which side of a motion you get.

22. No matter how bad you think your speech is try to stay up for the full seven minutes. If the audience is giving you a hard time just remember that they probably want you to walk off so don't give them the pleasure. If the chair doesn't control the audience ask him/her to and put him on the spot with the adjudicators. Of course you have to be able to handle a reasonable amount of heckling.

23. You don't have to be a genius for facts and figures to do well. If you can remember an example, or fact which you researched, to back up your argument use it. However if you get stuck and can’t remember the exact details of the fact you want to use don’t worry about it. If the underlying details of the report, research etc are correct then the chances are you will not be challenged and the point will be made. If an opposing member corrects you and gives you the correct name of the report, researcher, institute etc then they are an idiot for backing up your case.

24. If you can use humour it can be extremely effective in a debate. You can ridicule and destroy an opponent's whole speech with a one-line joke attacking it. But don't go over the top, while humour helps, adjudicators may not be impressed by stand up routine with little substance. Although humour can be an advantage don't worry if you can't crack a joke to save your life (or speech). You'll be surprised at the number of speakers who have to really struggle to include humour in a speech while others do it
with ease

Laptop DVD Tray Won't Eject - How To Open A CD Or DVD Drive

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 15 Sep 2013 18:26:00 +0000

There are quite a few reasons the DVD tray in your laptop might fail to open when you hit the eject button. About the worst thing it can be is if the motor or gear train failed, which would mean replacing the drive. If the disc in the drive plays OK, you know that the power and the connector are fine. If not, you should try reseating the drive in the bay. It's also possible for the drive to be locked in software by the operating system, or for a power management scheme to have cut power to the drive. Check these by right clicking the drive icon and checking properties, or looking at you power management settings. But, when all else fails and you can't get the disc out of the drive, there's always, THE MIGHTY PAPERCLIP.
	CD and DVD drives for computers have been designed with an emergency release mechanism since time immemorial. Unlike your DVD player for your TV or your stereo CD player, the disc in your computer drive may be much more valuable than the drive itself. Yes, if you own the software legally, you should be able to get a replacement from the software company for a moderate charge, but maybe you need it now. In any case, the emergency release for the DVD tray doesn't require any special tools or skills, just a paperclip. Start by unbending a leg of the largest diameter paperclip that will fit in the hole on the faceplate of the drive. Next, insert it it straight into the hole, and if you're lucky, there will bee a little click before it goes in very far, and the tray will pop out a fraction of an inch.
In the picture to the right, I haven't used any force at all, beyond gently pushing in the paperclip, and the CD tray popped out that far by itself. From here, it's an easy task to pull it out all the way so the disc can be removed. Below, I'm opening the DVD drive out of a Sony Vaio, but the tray didn't spring out when the paperclip pushed in the release, which you can tell by feel. So I had to pull on it with my fingernail behind the plastic facade while depressing the release. It opened pretty stiffly for the first fraction of an inch, and then pulled right out the rest of the way. That pretty much covers what you'll encounter with manually opening an optical drive, either it will pop open as soon as the paperclip works the latch, or you'll have to help it along.
	But there are instances in which the emergency release won't get the tray to eject. The worst of these is if a disc shattered at high speed and jammed all the mechanics up with little shards of plastic. You'll know this is the case by the noise if you gently tilt the drive back and forth. Another possibility is that an adhesive label peeled off in the drive and has gummed up the works. In either case, the odds of the drive being salvageable aren't very good, but if it was a label failure, you should be able to rescue the disc by disassembling the drive around it until the tray ejects or the disc is accessible. And before you rush out and buy a supposed generic replacement for the drive, remember that while the connector may be standard, the drive shell is customized, and you may not be able to transfer all of the shell hardware from one drive to another for mounting.
When the paperclip trick works, it's one of the easiest laptop repairs you can do, and it's also pretty obvious when a stuck tray is the problem. But would youknow what to do if the tray opened and the laptop still wouldn't read DVD's? The Laptop Repair Workbook offers a two part approach to troubleshooting laptop hardware problems. We start by explaining the basic technologies and troubleshooting techniques, then we move on to advanced diagnostic flowcharts. The 191 page printable eBooks is available for instant download anywhere in the world, which beats getting it on CD in the mail!

Black snake in the grave

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 02 Sep 2013 06:32:00 +0000

Black snake in the grave all muslim should watch this video . and say " TOBBA "

Measures finalized for restoration of Chiltan Express

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 02 Sep 2013 06:11:00 +0000

SIBI : Measures have been firmed up for reintroducing Chiltan Express Train suspended for three years.
Highly placed sources said under these arrangements train would be started from September 15. It was suspended following death of Benazir Bhutto and burning of trains and railway stations by terrorists three year ago as due to dearth of engines and coaches Railways had stopped several trains including Chiltan train. Quetta Express was later restored by Chiltan train was not restored.
After coming into power people had pinned hopes in PML-N Government to resolve their problems including cheap travelling by train.
People have welcome government decision to restore Chiltan Express and demanded of government to restore other trains such as Night coach, Abasin Express and Mehran Express to provide people of cheap means of travelling.
Government was suffering lakhs of Rupees losses due to closure of Sibi-Harnai section and necessary steps are very much needed to make up such losses.

Syria crisis

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 18:44:00 +0000

Dozens of Conservative MPs refused to support the Prime Minister and sided with Labour in opposing a Government motion which supported the principle of military intervention. The motion backing the use of force "if necessary" was rejected by 285 votes to 272, a majority of 13 votes.

It is the first time that a British Government has been blocked from executing a military deployment and highlights the deep mistrust of official intelligence in the wake of the Iraq war.

^{Prime Minister David Cameron and Labour party leader Ed Miliband speak during the debate on Syria}

Within minutes of the embarrassing defeat, the Prime Minister said that he understood that there was not support for British action against Syria and indicated he would abandon any such plans. The decision came just hours after Britain had sent fighter jets to the region.

Mr Cameron had hoped to join America in launching cruise missile strikes against the Syrian regime as soon as this weekend after Assad was accused of deploying chemical weapons in a suburb of Damascus last week.

The Prime Minister had played a leading role in persuading President Obama of the need for action against Syria – with Britain tabling a draft United Nations resolution – and the Parliamentary vote may also undermine Mr Cameron’s international reputation.

“I strongly believe in the need for a tough response to the use of chemical weapons but I also believe in respecting the will of this House of Commons,” Mr Cameron said tonight.

“It is clear to me that the British Parliament, reflecting the views of the British people, does not want to see British military action. I get that and the Government will act accordingly.”

Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, said that the Parliamentary vote would be welcomed by the Syrian regime.

“I am disappointed,” he said. “We do believe that the use of chemical weapons in this way needs a clear and strong response.”

“There is a deep well of suspicion about military involvement in the middle east stemming largely from the experiences of Iraq.”

“I don’t think it is anything to do with the Prime Minister, I think it is to do with the legacy of experience."

It is the first time since the 1956 Suez crisis that an opposition has failed to support Government plans for a deployment of the armed forces.

The Coalition’s motion – which had already been watered down earlier in the week to allow for another Parliamentary vote before Britain took part in direct military action – was defeated by a majority of 13 votes.

In a night of febrile scenes in the Commons, senior Cabinet ministers openly accused those opposing the motion of giving “succour” to the Assad regime. Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, allegedly shouted at Conservative rebels who he described as a “disgrace”.

Labour demanded an official inquiry into the activities of the Prime Minister’s main spin doctor.

The Parliamentary vote may trigger a leadership crisis for Mr Cameron as Conservative MPs openly criticised the Prime Minister’s decision to recall Parliament and force a vote. He was accused of a massive miscalculation with Sir Gerald Howarth, a former defence minister, describing the Prime Minister’s actions as “rushed” and “cavalier”.

There were shouts of “resign” from the Labour benches as the results of the Parliamentary vote were read out by John Bercow, the Commons Speaker.

Mr Cameron has spent much of the week personally stressing the need for military action against the Assad regime. In his speech to Parliament today, the Prime Minister had insisted that Britain has a duty to “do the right thing” and intervene in the “humanitarian catastrophe” unfolding in Syria.

However, he also admitted that the intelligence assessment did not provide “100 percent” certainty of the evidence against the regime.

The Prime Minister told an emergency sitting of Parliament that the country should not be “paralysed” over its response to international crises in the wake of mistakes made in the run-up to the Iraq war.

He had implored MPs to “force themselves” to watch harrowing videos of small children suffering following a chemical weapons attack in Damascus last week which killed hundreds of ordinary Syrians.

^{Bodies of people said killed by nerve gas in the Ghouta region this week (Reuters)}

However, in a major blow to his authority, senior Conservative MPs spent the day standing up during the eight-hour Parliamentary debate to criticise the Government's plans to intervene in the Syrian crisis. Among those blocking the plans were David Davis, the former shadow Home Secretary, and former ministers.

Nick de Bois, Secretary of the Tory 1922 Committee, voted against the Government. He said it was an “extremely difficult decision”.

Ed Miliband refused to support the Government’s Parliamentary motion saying that he was, as yet, not fully convinced of the case against the Assad regime. The decision sparked an angry backlash from Downing Street who accused the Labour leader of “giving succour” to the Syrian dictator. This was strongly denied by senior Labour sources who said that the behaviour of Mr Cameron’s aides was “frankly insulting”.

Other developments today in the Syrian crisis saw:

• The publication of a British intelligence briefing which concluded that it was “highly likely” that the Assad regime was responsible for last week’s chemical weapons attack which killed more than 300 civilians.

• The release of the Attorney General’s legal advice which ruled that British could legally participate in military strikes against Syria to protect innocent civilians from further atrocities.

• The White House privately briefing senior figures in the US Senate and Congress on secret intelligence on the Assad regime which could pave the way for American action against Syria this weekend.

• President Assad pledge that Syria would “defend itself in the face of any aggression”.

The experience of the Iraq war was repeatedly raised by MPs during the debate – with several former Labour Cabinet ministers speaking and describing the “scars” of the mistakes made by the Blair administration.

“I am very clear about the fact that we have to learn the lessons of Iraq,” the Labour leader said. “Of course we have got to learn those lessons and one of the most important lessons was indeed about respect for the United Nations.”

He added: “I do not rule out supporting the Prime Minister but I believe he has to make a better case than he did today.”

During the course of the debate, a succession of senior Conservative and Labour MPs also made speeches expressing doubt over the wisdom of British action against Syria.

David Davis, the former shadow home secretary said that the intelligence “might just be wrong”.

Mr Davis said that chemical weapons were used either by Assad’s regime, by a rogue regime military unit, or by rebels “with the direct aim of dragging the West into the war”.

Jack Straw, the former foreign secretary, said “We all know - I have the scars about this - how easy it is to get into military action and how difficult it is to get out of it.”.

In a parallel debate in the House of Lords, Lord Hurd, the former foreign secretary, said: “I cannot for the life of me see how dropping some bombs or firing some missiles in the general direction of Syria, with targets probably some way removed from the actual weapons we’ve been criticising, I can’t see how that action is going to lessen the suffering of Syrian people.

“I think it’s likely to increase and expand the civil war in Syria, not likely to bring it to an end.”

The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke of his fears that Christians in Syria would be targeted in the wake of any strike.

However, other senior Parliamentarians offered backing for the Prime Minister. Sir Malcolm Rifkind, the head of the Intelligence and Security committee, said: “At this very moment, the Assad regime in Damascus are watching very carefully as to whether they will get away with what they have done.”

“If they get away with what they have done, if there is no significant international response of any kind, then we can be absolutely certain that the forces within Damascus will be successful in saying we must continue to use these whenever there is a military rationale for doing so.

“There is no guarantee that a military strike against military targets will work, but there is every certainty that if we don’t make that effort to punish and deter, then these actions will indeed continue.”

Lord Ashdown, the former Liberal Democrat leader, said: “We are, I think, living under the shadow, sadly, of Iraq. But this is not Iraq. We are not putting boots on the ground, we are not invading, we are not seeking to govern somebody else’s country and, above all, this is not George W Bush, this is Barack Obama.

“And you only need to look at this American president and what he has done to see how nervous, how hesitant, how cautious he is about action.”

Tonight, American reports suggested that President Obama was now drawing up plans to intervene in Syria without international assistance.

By Robert Winnett,

Political Editor

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Add Different - Multi Colored Popular Post Widget In blogger

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 29 Aug 2013 07:02:00 +0000

Education Under Attack

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 28 Aug 2013 19:55:00 +0000

New report shows alarming funding gaps for education in conflict-affected countries

There are now fewer than 1000 days to go until the end date for the Millennium Development Goals. In all the debates about post-2015 frameworks and how best to define learning it is easy to lose sight (by some distance!) of the fact that the world is on track to miss the key education goal: Getting all children in primary school.This is a joint blog post by Will Paxton and Elin Martinez

Today Malala Yousafzai – the Pakistani schoolgirl shot by the Taliban just for wanting to learn – celebrates her 16^th birthday by occupying the United Nations building and making her first speech. Remembering her story, Will Paxton and Elin Martinez present some key findings from a new Save the Children report on education in conflict-affected countries.

Recent years have seen a slowdown in progress – the overall number of primary- aged children out of school was 57 million in 2011, just 4 million below the number in 2008.

In a new report, Attacks on Education: the impact of conflict and grave violations on children’s futures released by Save the Children today we focus on one of the reasons progress has been slow: the particular difficulty to get children in school in conflict affected countries. The report has been inspired by the experience and bravery of Malala Yousafzai, who today is leading an occupation of the UN to draw attention to the global education crisis.

No progress on education in conflict affected countries?

In partnership with UNESCO’s Global Monitoring Report (GMR) team, Save the Children looked at the number of children out of school in countries affected by conflict. This is the most comprehensive assessment of these numbers since the GMR’s own report The Hidden Crisis: Armed conflict and education. The key findings in thenew data released today are:

In 2011, there were 28.5 million primary school-aged children out of school in conflict-affected countries: a small increase on the 2008 number, which was 28 million.

The proportion of out-of-school children in conflict affected countries has increased significantly – from 42% in 2008 to 50% in 2011.

When lower secondary school-aged children are included, nearly 50 million children are out of school in conflict-affected countries.

For both primary and secondary school, girls are disproportionately more likely to be out of school than boys: 55% of the 28.5 million are girls.

As always there are some health warnings with this kind of data – for example, as conflicts emerge and deepen, such as in Syria, it takes some time for the data to catch up. It is also possible that the underlying problem in some contexts is less conflict and more state fragility.

But in many cases conflict is patently the cause of children being kept out of school. In our report we highlight what appears to be a growing trend towards schools, teachers and pupils being the target of attacks.

In 2012 alone more than 3,600 attacks on education were recorded by the United Nations, a dramatic increase on the number recorded in 2011.

These ranged from pupils being attacked, just as was the case with Malala, to schools being bombed or teachers being singled out.

Both the ‘education challenge’ in conflict- affected countries and the apparent trend towards increased targeting of education have important policy implications.

Focusing on conflict affected countries and humanitarian aid

One implication is the relatively well established argument that development aid should be more targeted at conflict affected countries. Donors like the UK Department for International Development (DfID) are leading the way on this, with 30% of its development budget being allocated to conflict-affected fragile states by 2014. And the Global Partnership for Education is also continuing to shift its focus to such countries, including by providing flexible disbursements during a crisis.

But other donors are laggards. Worryingly, previous key donors, like the Netherlands, have backed away from education and other donors have not stepped up to cover this gap. As a recent OECD report shows, the lack of funding available to conflict-affected fragile states is having serious knock-on effects on investment in basic services.

On humanitarian aid the picture is not positive either. The chart below shows the recent trend in the percentage of humanitarian aid which is allocated to education – in short it was and remains a ‘Cinderella service’ in the humanitarian world.

Source: New research from the Education For All Global Monitoring Report.
See http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002216/221668E.pdf

As part of the new analysis that the GMR team carried out for Save the Children we also assessed the funding shortfall in 2012 – that is the gap between assessed need and the level of funding provided. This figure was a shocking $221 million. No one is denying that basic needs like shelter and food are priorities in humanitarian contexts. But surely there is something wrong when education, with its potential to provide a hub for delivering other services and given the costs of disrupting a child’s education, is allocated a mere 1.4% of humanitarian aid.

Looking ahead to 2015

In 2015, Malala will be celebrating her 18^th birthday. What better present to her than to have made sufficient progress on ensuring all children are receiving a quality education, particularly in the most challenging environments for children. This will require concerted action on many fronts, but critical will be a continued and improved focus on countries struggling with the effects of conflict.

history of sibi

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 07:19:00 +0000

Origin
Sibi district was established in October 1903 then covering the present districts of Sibi, Ziarat, Dera Bugti, Kohlu, and Nasirabad.

Namehistory of sibi
The district is named after its headquarters, the town of Sibi, which in its turn derives its name from Siwi, a Hindu lady of Sewa race who is said to have ruled over this part of the country in former times.

Boundaries
The district borders on Ziarat district in the north, and in the north east on Loralai district. In the east and south east it borders on Kohlu district. To the south and south west lies Bolan district and in the north west it borders on Mastung district and Quetta district.

History of Colonial Administration
The British colonial influence started extending to Sibi region in the late forties of the 19th century, when in 1839, Misri Khan, the head of Panri tribe, tendered his services to Shah Shuja, and was taken into British service with a number of his followers, who were styled the "Baloch Levy. Subsequent events are a story of long and intense tribal wars that paved the way for ultimate annexation of the Sibi region to the British colonial empire. An entertaining account of the political events after Misri Khan's induction into British service is given in an old (undated) Gazetteer of Sibi; of which relevant excerpts are presented below:

"In March 1841, Mr. Ross Bell, the Political Agent in upper Sind, deputed one of his assistants with a detachment of troops, under the command of Colonel Wilson of the Bombay Cavalry, to collect the arrears of revenue due from Khajaks of Sibi on behalf of Shah Shuja. The detachment was accompanied by Misri Khan, and on the Khajaks refusing to comply with the demands, attacked the town, but were repulsed with heavy loss....... Reinforcements from Bagh were sent up under General Brooks. But before they could arrive the Khajaks abandoned their town, the defence of which were then demolished. The Khajaks were permitted to return during the following year and the town was rebuilt. From November 1841 to September 1842 an Assistant Political officer, resided at Sibi. When the British troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan on the termination of the war, the district was handed over by the British to the Khan of Kalat, but it does not appear to have been occupied by him, and in 1843 again came under the Baruzai rule ----. up to the second Afghan war Sibi continued to be held by the Baruzai chiefs as governors of the Afghan rulers; but owing to the constant raids and encroachments of the Marris, the country was, at the request of the Sardars and people, occupied at the commencement of the war by a detachment of troops from Jacobabad...... In November 1887 the Kach-Kowas and Harnai valleys, Sibi, Duki and Thal-Chotiali were declared parts of British India...... Owing to the disputes between the Zarkuns and the Marris, Kohlu was brought under the British protection and added to the Thal-Chotiali district in 1892. In February 1891 Sanjawi was again transferred to Thal-Chotiali, and Barkhan was added in April 1892. On reconstruction of the district in October 1903, the Barkhan, Duki and Sajawi tehsils were transferred to the new Loralai district, and the name of the Thal-Chotiali district was changed into that of Sibi district."

Post-Independence Period
The district underwent reorganization in the post-independence period to create Nasirabad division, Dera Bugti district, Kohlu district and Ziarat district. Following the post-1947 administrative re-organisation, the district's territorial jurisdiction has shrunk from 11,390 sq. miles as it was in 1903, to 7.796 sq. miles. The old description of it being a district covering vast and varied climatological zones, as it once was, is no longer true.

Sibi Travel Information

Sibi is a small town in the present western Balochistan province of Pakistan. It was once the head quarter of Sewistan province of Sindh kingdome and was named after the hindu tribe Sewa which inhabited here before 1880 when British laid out plans for the Railways and made Sibbi an important post of theirs. British named the new town as Sandemandabad after Sir Robert Sandeman popular british officer who ruled Dera Ghazi Khan and had organized pacts with Khan of Kalat to establish ties with Balouch chiefs of tribes.

Sibi has been a meeting point for Balouch chiefs and public since centuries, even today every 4th & 5th of February a Horse & cattle show is organised which is in continuation of the ancient annual meeting of all the chiefs of Balouchistan. The Horse & Cattle show is a great occasion to see Balouch people and the herds and know the culture of Balouchistan.

Sibi is also an interesting spot if you are driving from Quetta to Sukkur or vice versa

We offer special Excursions to Sibi from Quetta as well as from Sukkur please contact us for more details.

History of Sibi

The history of the town goes back to 13th century and due to its exposed position between the mouths of the Harnai and Bolan passes it had suffered frequent assaults and sieges - including one by the British in 1841. During British rule the town became an important junction on the Sind-Peshin railway where the Harnai line and the Quetta loop line meet, near the entrance of the Bolan Pass, 88 m southeast of Quetta. According to the 1901 census of India the population of Sibi was 4551. In 1903 the Victoria Memorial Hall was built from public funds, a piped water supply to the town was provided by military funds from the river Nari at a cost of Rs.115,000.

Sibi is a historical city of Balochistan. It is sometimes also known as Sivi[citation needed], purportedly named for a Hindu princess. Most of its population belong to Panni Pashtuns, Panni is the branch of Ghourghust and brother of a famous Pashtun tribe Kakar. Sibi is an agricultural city. Pashtoons (Panni) are the owner of 98% of landmass, while 2% land is owned by Balochs. There is also a historical fort in Sibi. This fort was built in the period on Hindu Rule and still exist in a bad condition

Tours of Sibbi

Sibbi is visited as a stop over during the journey from Sukkur to Quetta The imortant place to visit is the Sibbi Museum and the little bazaar in the city. One can also have an excursion of Sibbi either from Quetta or Sukkur.

Important Places/Buildings
Important places/buildings are:

Fort Mir Chakar Khan.
Victoria Hall built in 1903; now named Jirga Hall.
Nari Gauge; from where the Nari canal takes off.
Sohbat Sarai (Inn).
Sibi Stadium, the venue of the famous Sibi week.

Why we get education for better job or for a better character?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 07:13:00 +0000

purpose of education according to me is character building. However , my definition doesnt mean that the other the purpose is denied. Among our needs it is our physiological need to fulfil our tummies. After ur physiological needs are fulfilled only then can u think of other things. Like scientist get remuneration for their research so that they are free of the tension of earning and taking care of his ownself and his families.
a scientist with hunger pangs will come up with ideas of how to cook best recipe for lunch. a person with hunger thinks from his stomach than from his brain. But this doesnt mean that this is the only thing we need. As every one is selfish to some degree in his best intrests he wants to keep something better for himself than the other person which provides him motivation , this motivation may culiminate so that people heap huge amounts of money which are not for his immediate use. Yet knowledge that it buys everything brings him ways of achieving it in all the possible ways he can think of.
Human develpement is measured with bulk of its educated people. More educated people u have more character formation should have taken place of them.And more happily they should have been living. But we have example contrary to this belief. Although sole purpose of education is to shape our character, make us peaceloving, useful citizens who prefer to live in brotherhood with all diversities of beliefs. Srilanka is an example of the countries despite having very hight ratio of education ,peace is wanting there. there are continual communal strifes, fights.
Another country with high education rate is Israel but it is doer of evil , usurper of rights of palestinians. On a generalised level enemy of muslims.
We know USA has high no. of top ranking universities in top hundrad universities with names like Harvard, and MIT. It leads in science and technology. Most people are educated. But it acts like a watchdog of the world. It has killed many millions of people in Iraq , vietnam, hiroshima nagasaki, afganistan for all kinds of ulterior motives. it drives policies of all countries. pakistans policy is shaped with respect to america. indian strech their begging hand for nuclear deals. soviet union suffered at their impeccable war plans.
on a moral aspect their constitution gives them right to do all types of activties in the name of liberty. if u are over eighteen years u are entitled to all immoral activities. states takes responisbility only u report injustice was done to u. other wise its all ok.
we have taken so much from them in the good name of education all the immoral activities. our immature minds are continuously bombarded with their ideas and philosphies. we let it go. i think character building as a sole purpose of education is contradiction here.
with refrence to your question. Suppose there is a hypothetical city in which there are educated and uneducated people but there is no criteria of qualifications for requisite job. Who will most likely get the job in that city ? for example in that city there is vacany of the post of carpenter. And there are two candidates one who is educated in this particular skill , the other who just knows how to cut a peace of wood disregarding proportions in which it should have been cut. most likely the person with learning in that particular skill get that job. Likewise in history all educated people were more regarded than uneducated people, at any given time oppurtunities were available to educated people than the other group, they were respected , held in high positions because of their intrest in continual development of their virtues. plato had an academy in greek , he was held with high regards even now, and he definately lived his life with honor, his character was matchless. like wise people hold aristotle in the same coins. In those times there was no sophitication such as is present in our modern times like u got to be mba in order to get a certain job. muslim philosphers , scientist were held in same high positions of character and led happy , satisfying life . Imam gazzali held top level post in bhagdad, ibne rushid in west enjoyed same thing. same goes with ibe sina, ibn haitum.
At this point it is clear that purpose of education is twofold , and that it is more likely for an educated person at any given time to attain a job than an uneducated person. But question is why has the other most important function of education not been achieved? Answer is not simple. we are specialists in physics, we are specialists in medicine, we are specialists in aeronautics, we are specilist finding new petroleum reservoirs. but are we specialists at understanding ourselves? ofcourse we know deep , complicated anatomical strucutres and recess of our bodies but do we know how to control our anger ? do we know how to employ it judiciously, and when to employ it ? do we know how to help poor ? and if we do , do we feel the same peace of mind when we feed them as we feel with ourselves? Do we know how to be humble ? do we know how not be selfish? Do we know how not to decieve our friends? do we know how to ponder over things which wud earn us something in next life ? when will bonds of selfishness break ? when will genocide end? when will peace prevail?
See it is not the laws of gravitation which will teach u how to behave with ur elders, nor the projectile motion at 45 degree which will best achieve prayers of a poor man. nor organic chemistry which will teach u how to humble urself when u are robbed. it is this education which is missing. and it is my loud claim that we will lag behind as long as we lack it

Police: Fifth suspect arrested in Mumbai gang rape case

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 07:09:00 +0000

Police: Fifth suspect arrested in Mumbai gang rape case

Mumbai, India (CNN) -- Indian police arrested a fifth suspect Sunday in the alleged gang rape of a female photographer, authorities said, in a case that has renewed outrage over safety of women in the nation.

Soon after the sexual assault Thursday, police chief Satyapal Singh said they were searching for five suspects.

The alleged rape of the 23-year-old woman in the financial hub of Mumbai is the latest shocking sexual assault to make headlines in the South Asian nation.

The photographer and a male colleague were on assignment in the area for a print publication when some men approached them, according to Mumbai police commissioner Satypal Singh.

"I pleaded with them to let us go, but they shouted at me and threatened me," the woman said. She and her colleague were taken further inside the mill complex.According to the woman, he refused to let her talk to his boss, instead leading them away. Then, somewhere near the exit, one of the accused pointed at the photojournalist's colleague, saying he was responsible for a killing a few days ago.

There, they offered their camera and phone, begging to be let go. Instead, "they tied my friend's hands with (a) belt" as two others joined the group, the woman said.

"Three people stayed with my friend, and the two took me behind a wall," she added.

That's where the attack allegedly occurred. The victim said her mother called her phone multiple times, before one of the men switched it off. The woman said she was threatened with, among other things, sharp pieces of a broken beer bottle.

Police have since released sketches of all five suspects.

The victim was in stable condition at a local hospital.

The attack shocked Mumbai residents, who consider their city safer than the capital, New Delhi.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 221 rape cases were reported in Mumbai in 2012.

Sexual harassment in India: 'The story you never wanted to hear'

But figures provided by the government show that there has been a rape reported to police every day in Mumbai between January and March. The average number of reported rapes in a month in 2013 in the city rose to 30.33, from 19.25 in 2012.

Delhi Police said the number of reported rapes in the capital had jumped from 179 for the first 3½ months of last year to 463 for the same period this year.

A rise in the number of rapes reported does not necessarily mean that more are being committed. It may be that recent high-profile cases have encouraged women to come forward with complaints.

The case mirrors the December gang rape and death of a 23-year-old university student in the Indian capital.

The victim later died at a hospital in Singapore, sparking an outcry that quickly grew to include widespread concerns about women's safety and inequalities, triggering demonstrations in various cities.

In response, the nation's lawmakers have introduced tougher laws and punishments for sexual crimes and harassment. Despite such action, frequent episodes of sexual violence are reported in India.

Across India, 24,923 cases of rape were reported last year, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.

India grapples with rape and sexual violence

Afghanistan's Karzai in Pakistan for key talks on Taliban

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 07:03:00 +0000

President Karzai wants Pakistan to support the stalled Afghan peace process

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is due to meet Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad for talks on restarting a peace process with the Taliban.

The BBC's Karen Allen in Kabul says Mr Karzai will be pressing Mr Sharif to release senior Taliban prisoners.

The insurgents refuse to talk with Mr Karzai, dismissing him as a US puppet.

Afghanistan also believes Taliban safe havens in Pakistan are the main cause of increased violence in the country.

Elements of Pakistan's intelligence service have long been accused of backing the Afghan Taliban and giving them refuge on Pakistani soil - something Islamabad strongly denies.

It will be President Karzai's first meeting with Mr Sharif, who took office after winning elections in June.

"The first item with Pakistan will be the peace negotiations," Mr Karzai told a news conference before leaving Kabul.

He praised Mr Sharif for having "all the right intentions for stability and peace", but conceded that previous visits to Pakistan had not succeeded in improving security in Afghanistan.

"I'm hopeful, but not sure, I will only go with hopes, and wish they materialise," he said.

Top of Mr Karzai's demands are the release of high-profile Taliban prisoners held in Pakistan in the hope that this will help jump-start direct talks with insurgents, our correspondent says.

Both leaders know that economic fortunes on either side of the border depend on more stability, she adds.

Meanwhile Pakistan will be looking for more trading opportunities and strategic supply routes through Afghanistan.

Mr Karzai was said to be furious when the Taliban opened a liaison office in Qatar in June. He insists that his government should take a central role in any peace talks.

Mark Zuckerberg's own Facebook timeline hacked by Palestinian researcher

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 19:26:00 +0000

This Jan. 3, 2011, file photo shows Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg smiling in San Francisco.

shadow.art and photography

If you want to let Facebook know that there is a security bug that allows anyone to post on your Timeline, then demonstrating it on Mark Zuckerberg's Timeline seems like a surefire way to get the social network's attention.

That's exactly what Palestinian security researcher and hacker Khalil Shreateh did. Shreateh figured out that by entering in some website URLs, grabbing one's Facebook ID and doing some other non-obvious copying and pasting, he could post something on a non-friend's Facebook Timeline.

Shreateh first reported the bug to Facebook's White Hat Security team, which responded to his initial report by saying, "this is not a bug." That's when Shreateh decided to try it out on Facebook CEO Zuckerberg's Timeline.

WHAT TO KNOW

Security researcher hacked into Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook to demonstrate a security hole
Facebook has since fixed the bug

"First sorry for breaking your privacy and post to your wall," Shreateh wrote on Zuckerberg's Timeline. "I has no other choice to make after all the reports I sent to Facebook team."

Facebook Might Be Making You Sad

The Timeline is a collection of users' personal photos, stories and experiences.

Facebook patched the security hole Thursday and clarified that the original tip was not ignored, but that there simply wasn't enough information provided.

"We should have asked for additional repro [reproduction] instructions after his initial report," Facebook software engineer Matt Jones wrote on Hacker News, a forum for the security community. "Unfortunately, all he submitted was a link to the post he'd already made … Had he included the video initially, we would have caught this much more quickly."

Shreateh has since posted a YouTube video showing exactly how he was able to post something on a non-friend's Timeline.

Jones also suggested that Shreateh's English was hard to understand, but clarified that Facebook gets hundreds of reports and that some of the "best reports come from people whose English isn't great."

With its White Hat program, Facebook allows security researchers to report security vulnerabilities and receive a monetary reward for reporting certain security bugs. Shreateh, however, was not paid for finding this vulnerability because he violated the White Hat Terms of Service by demonstrating the exploit by using the accounts of real people without their permission.

On the other hand, can you really put a price on hacking into Mark Zuckerberg's Timeline?

Quddusi Sahab Ki Bewah

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 17 Aug 2013 11:55:00 +0000

Quddusi Sahab Ki Bewah

Genre	Family Drama Comedy
Written by	Fasi Bari Khan
Directed by	Mazhar Moin
Creative director(s)	Nauman Qamar
Starring	Hina Dilpazeer Shehnaz Pervaiz Shabbir Jan Uroosa Siddiqui Badar Khalil Waqar Hussain Mirza Shahi Maqsood Bhai Ubaida Ansari
Country of origin	Pakistan
Original language(s)	Urdu
No. of episodes	71 as of 2nd Jun 2013
Production
Producer(s)	ECrew Entertainment
Location(s)	Pakistan
Running time	56-60 min.
Broadcast
Original channel	ARY Digital
Original run	2012 – present

Quddusi Sahab Ki Bewah is a comedy drama which premiered in 2012 on ARY Digital The drama series became a hit just after its telecast due to a unique storyline, authentic humor and most importantly due to Hina Dilpazeer's acting and her portrayal of multiple roles and characters which have became an instant hit. It is the follow up Television series of successful telefims written by Fasih Bari Khan and directed by Mazhar Moin such as 'Shakoor Sahab',Saray Ghat Ki Farzana, Bawli Bitiya, Pichaal Periyan, Ronak Jahan Ka Nafsiyati Gharaana and Burns Road Ki Niloufer

Plot

It is a story of two families living in upper and lower stories of a house. The householder Aleem-ud-Din lives upstairs with his family consisting of his wife Nunhi, a divorced daughter Bhunarya, a son Maqsood and daughter-in-law Rooh Afzaa. While Abdul Qudussi's widow, Shakooran live downstairs as tenant with her three daughters Khajusta Jahan, Badraka Jahan Shagufta Jahan and a son Abdul Wudood Ahmad. Aqeela bhabhi is also a major character who is a neighbor and a good friend of Shakooran. Both the families later on are shifted to a new house which is owned by Shakooran, when Shagufta Jahan is married to Aleem-ud-Din. Aqeela is kicked out of her own house by her sons and lives with Shakooran, who makes her do all the housework.

Cast and characters[edit source | editbeta]

Role	Portrayed by
Shakooran Begum	Hina Dilpazeer
Badraka Jahan
Mursaleen Mian (Hotel's owner in Murree)
Rooh Afza
Bangali Baji
Nazima Khatoon (Aleemuddin's sister)
Nazeer Khan
Tina Gul (Rooh Afza's mother)
Elaichi (Transgender)
Tamizini
Khajusta Jahan	Shehnaz Pervaiz
Shagufta Jahan	Uroosa Siddique
Maqsood	Maqsood Bhai
Wudood Ahmed	Waqar Hussain
Nunhi	Ubaida Ansari
Bhunarya	Hira Sheikh
Aqeela Bhabhi	Badar Khalil
Aleem-ud-Din Sahab	Mirza Shahi
Durdana	Asma Abbas
Farzana	Sajal Ali
Mawlawi Saheb	Irfan Khoosat
Farhat Arra	Sangeeta
Afifa	Sarah
Sidiqa	Minal Khan

Popularit

The drama series became heavily popular soon after its telecast and although unable to beat records of Humsafar,Zindagi Gulzar Hai and Aik Naee Cinderella,It was still able to beat Pakistani dramas such as Qaid-e-Tanhai, Mera Saaein 2, Thakan and Pakvilla in competition.Hina Dilpazeer's acting is praised very much and especially her variety of roles. Many people mistake her nomination at the 2012 Lux Style Awards for her multiple roles for Quddusi Sahab Ki Bewah, though she was actually nominated for drama serial Tum Ho Ke Chup.

Single man holding Islamabad hostage arrested

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 13:03:00 +0000

SLAMABAD (Online): After a deadly armed standoff of 5 hours Federal police captured the armed person alive along with his wife.
Leader of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Zamurd Khan showed utmost courage and bravery when he tried to capture the armed person empty handed.
The person opened fire and a bullet passed very near to Zamurd Khan but quick response of snipers saved Zamurd’s life as snipers shoot four bullets in the feet of armed persons and arrested him.
The drama started here on constitution Avenue on Thursday when an armed person in a car along with his wife and two children opened fire on policemen, created turmoil and refused to surrender near Kalsoom plaza near.
The man, later identified as Sikander son of Muhammad Malik, armed with at least two assault rifles, an AK-47 and an SMG, started shooting near Jinnah Avenue, he was driving a black Toyota Corolla, RLD 1750 bearing a fake number plate.
The man fired several shots after which police and media arrived at the scene.
Talking to media, Sikandar said that he have adopted the right path and would not surrender, adding that he did not talk to any government official.
He demanded of the state to depose the present government, implementation of Islamic system and to hold elections under the Islamic system.
He belonged to Mohala Qazipura of Punjab’s Hafizabad area, the woman was his wife and her name was Kanwal and children named Abdullah and Farwa.
He is the youngest among five brothers and sisters, two brothers lived in Lahore while two in Dubai and he have another wife, Hania, in Dubai, media reported.
This man had also lived in Dubai for over 20 years. Few years back, he returned to country and settled in Hafizabad but his eldest son is in Dubai police.
According to media reports, one of the kids was injured evident from a bandage on his forehead.
The man has demanded presence of at least five senior police officials for further talks and negotiations with him. He has also revealed on the scene that he is doing it all for Islam and he demand of Islam in the country.
His wife, who has been shuttling between the police and her armed husband as a messenger, told the police that his husband would only negotiate with a high-ranking police official.
His neighbors in Hafizabad informed that Sikandar is a man of strange conduct and do not have good reputation in the locality.
Upon this SSP operation, Dr Rizwan walked over to the individual and tried to talk him into dropping his weapons.
The man has made some ambiguous demands in between the negotiations with SSP Dr. Rizwan through that woman.
The police and rangers cordoned off the area while four sharp shooters have been also placed in different directions to take action when get chance.
Despite repeated request from the police officials, the armed man has refused to surrender the weapons and him.
Interior Minister Ch. Nisar Ali Khan has directed Islamabad Police to make every effort to arrest the gunman alive.
He said no harm should be done to the woman and children.

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) came down hard on the government for its failure to appropriately act amid Thursday's incident when a gunman challenged its writ.

Speaking outside the National Assembly, PTI senior leader Shah Mehmmod Qureshi and PPP leader Syed Naveed Qamar severally criticized the government.

Qureshi said that it seemed on Thursday a leaderless government was operating in the country. He said the assembly session was adjourned on the pretext of Friday prayer so that the opposition parties could not speak on yesterday’s episode.

He added that on the one hand the government said it would take the opposition on board while chalking out national security policy while on the other, it was not even ready to listen to the opposition.

Speaking on the occasion, PPP leader Naveed Qamar criticized Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan for his absence from the house.

He said that an armed man paralyzed the government and its failure prompted PPP leader Zamurud Khan to intervene.

To a question, the opposition leaders said that they were united on the matters related to national interest.

The standoff began in Islamabad around 5:30 pm on Thursday when police flagged down the car for a traffic violation in the central Jinnah Avenue neighbourhood -- less than a kilometre from the presidency and parliament buildings.

The armed man later, identified as Sikandar, then started firing into the air, forcing markets and shops in the area to close. Crowds of onlookers gathered at a distance, as TV anchors broadcasting the incident live on air queried how police checkpoints had failed to stop an armed man from driving into the sensitive area.

The standoff ended at 11:00 pm after Zamurud Khan, a leader of the opposition Pakistan Peoples Party who was acting as a negotiator, jumped on the gunman and tried to disarm him.

Sikandar broke free and fired at Khan, who was not injured. Police and paramilitary commandos then shot the gunman as he tried to flee, hauling him away as blood poured from his wounds. The children were unharmed.

Tib e nabvi PBUH urdu pdf book free download

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 19:50:00 +0000

Author: Imam Ibn e Qayyim Al-Jozia

Translator: Hakeem Aziz ur Rahman Azmi

Publisher: Maktaba Muhammadia

Pages: 493

Language: Urdu

Size: 10.7 MB

Format: PDF

Click here to READ onlion

Dicing with death for a moustache in Pakistan

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 19:44:00 +0000

PESHAWAR, Pakistan / Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa — Pakistani businessman Malik Amir Mohammad Khan Afridi has been kidnapped, threatened with death, forcibly displaced and lives apart from his family: all because of his enormous moustache.

Impeccably trimmed to 30 inches (76 centimetres), Afridi spends 30 minutes a day washing, combing, oiling and twirling his facial hair into two arches that reach to his forehead, defying gravity.

"People give me a lot of respect. It's my identity," said the 48-year-old grandfather in the northwestern city of Peshawar, when asked why he was prepared to risk everything for his whiskers.

"I feel happy. When it's ordinary, no one gives me any attention. I got used to all the attention and I like it a lot," he said.

For centuries, a luxuriant moustache has been a sign of virility and authority on the Indian sub-continent.

But in Pakistan, Islamist militants try to enforce religious doctrine that a moustache must be trimmed, if not shaved off.

So Afridi went from celebrity to prisoner of Lashkar-e-Islam, then a rival and now an ally of the Taliban in the tribal district of Khyber on the Afghan border.

First the group demanded protection money of $500 a month. When he refused, four gunmen turned up at his house in 2009.

He says they held him prisoner for a month in a cave and only released him when he cut it off.

"I was scared they would kill me, so that's why I sacrificed my moustache," he said.

He fled to relative safety in Peshawar. But he grew his facial hair back and in 2012 the threats started again: telephone calls from people threatening to slit his throat.

So he left the Taliban-hit northwest altogether, moving to the Punjabi city of Faisalabad and returning to Peshawar to visit his family only once or twice a month.

"I'm still scared," he says. "I'm in Peshawar to spend Ramadan with my family but most of the time I stay at home and tell people I'm in Faisalabad if they want to meet me," he says.

His only concession is the holy Muslim fasting month, when a free-standing moustache interferes with his daily ablutions and he keeps it smoothed across his face and tucked behind his ears.

It costs $150 a month to maintain -- more than a Pakistani teacher can earn -- although he gets a moustache bursary of $50 from the home district in the lawless tribal belt he was forced to flee.

The Khyber administration pays anything from $10 to $60 a month to men with particularly eye-catching moustaches as a symbolic gesture of appreciation for the bravery and virility traditionally associated with such facial hair.

Both tribesmen and members of the security forces can qualify for the sum, which is handed out at the discretion of the chief administrator.

Afridi has a hair dryer, bars of soap, shampoo, an alleged German oil from Dubai whose label he has ripped off so no one knows its alchemy, a mirror and an old bottle of homemade coconut oil.

Then there are towels and a hair brush.

He massages the secret oil into his whiskers, twiddles and twirls them in front of the mirror and dries them to stand on end, before striding around a shopping mall, quickly attracting a crowd.

An opinion piece published in Pakistan's Daily Times newspaper last year drew parallels between power and a luxuriant moustache, although current Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the only man in the country to win a third term in office, is clean shaven.

It also had a word of advice for elected leaders, who three times in the past have been deposed by military coups... led by the only three generals in the country with moustaches.

"Never appoint a moustachioed chief of the army staff or a chief justice if you wish to govern in peace," it warned.

Richard McCallum, the author of "Hair India - A Guide to the Bizarre Beards and Magnificent Moustaches of Hindustan," says moustaches are also popular in the Indian military and the police.

"Men with moustaches seem to be considered to command more respect, are considered more virile, more manly and a little bit older," he told AFP.

"When you get away from metro areas, India is still a patriarchal place. Men are men and the men like to show off and preen."

But Afridi's wife and 10 children are less keen.

"Sometimes my family tell me 'cut it, it would be better if you lived with us.' I can leave my family, I can leave Pakistan, but I can never cut my moustache again," he said.

So his dream is to find political asylum or represent Pakistan at an international competition, if only he can get a visa.

But he has a way to go. An Indian holds the record for the world's longest moustache at 4.29 metres (14 feet).

Ram Singh Chauhan has even appeared in Bollywood films and had a cameo in the 1983 James Bond film "Octopussy."

"I'm trying to move my family abroad. To America, Canada, Britain or even to Dubai but I need asylum," Afridi told AFP.

"I don't like smoking. I'm not fond of snuff, or drinking. This is the only choice in my life. I'd even sacrifice food, but not the moustache. It's my life. It's not part of my life. It is my life."

Poor parents sell son in Sheikuhpura

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Aug 2013 16:33:00 +0000

SHEIKHUPURA: Police have recovered a minor sold by his parents in Diska area of Sheikhupura, Geo News reported Monday.

Imran Ashraf, a resident of Nawankot, told Geo News that he had sold his son to a philanthropist to repay a loan.

He said that though the deal, brokered by her mother-in-law was agreed at Rs60, 000, only Rs10, 000 was given to him.

Ashraf said he decided to take his child back on the voice of his conscience. Geo News helped police to recover the child from Diska.

Pakistan Taliban fighter asks Malala to come home

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 06:15:00 +0000

A Taliban commander has written to Pakistani girl activist Malala Yousafzai, saying he regretted her shooting last year by militants and urging her to come home.

Yousafzai, now 16, was shot at close range by Taliban gunmen in October as she left school in Swat Valley in northwestern Pakistan. She was flown to Britain for treatment and has not returned since due to persistent Taliban threats against her.

On 12 July, she addressed the world in an electrifying speech at the United Nations in which she said the pen was mightier than the sword.

In a fiery, densely written letter packed with references to philosophers and politicians, commander Adnan Rasheed said he wished he could have told her to "refrain from anti-Taliban activities" to prevent the attack.

"My all emotions were brotherly for you because we belong to same Yousafzai tribe," he wrote in the English-language letter dated July 15 and confirmed as authentic by the Taliban.

"When you were attacked it was shocking for me. I wished it would never happened and I had advised you before."

"At the end I advise you to come back home," Rasheed wrote, adding that she should join a female Islamic school and "use your pen for Islam".

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the assassination attempt on Yousafzai. Two of her classmates were also wounded.

She was treated in Pakistan before the United Arab Emirates provided an air ambulance to fly her to Britain, where doctors mended parts of her skull with a titanium plate.

Rasheed, a former Pakistan Air Force officer once jailed for trying to assassinate General Pervez Musharraf, denied the Taliban had attacked her because of her campaign against Taliban efforts to deny girls education.

"Please mind that Taliban or Mujahideen are not against the education of any men or women or girl," he wrote in his letter, which reads like a lecture to Malala.

"Taliban believe that you were intentionally writing against them and running a smearing campaign to malign their efforts to establish Islamic system in Swat and your writings were provocative."

In the four-page letter, he goes on to accuse the West of imposing its standards on other nations and attacks figures including U.S. President Barack Obama and former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, as well as the English and Jews.

Attack on education

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 13 Jul 2013 09:19:00 +0000

The weather changes so drastically here and if it weren’t for all the goats and maize, I’d swear I was still in Cleveland! We’ll have a few days of gorgeous weather and sunshine, and then the clouds roll in suddenly and it’s downpour from as little as 15 minutes to a couple hours or days. The roads flood and become impassable, but the scenery is spectacularly green!

This week, we continued our lessons on action verbs. We experimented with different games, trying to find the best one, but the clear winner is the Action Race. It allows the kids to go outside and run off some of their pent up energy. Each week, we base our lessons on what the teachers have been teaching the learners, as well as needs we see from our experiences after school.

We are combating the problem with our feeding program and its stupendous lack of sustainability by planting cassava, maize, moringa trees, and potatoes in the land surrounding the school. Hopefully this will provide us with a good source of snacks for the kids in all of our after school activities. Nearly 300 kids per week participate in an activity, be it English, tinsmithing, tailoring, or band. It would be great to have a completely sustainable feeding program for all of these kids.

Sunday marks a bittersweet moment as it is the departure of the first volunteer since I have been in Malawi . Tahlia is headed back to Australia after a productive time here. She was working at the Nandumbo Health Centre and assisting the staff there. Her knowledge as a nurse is invaluable and she used that knowledge to train the staff, which will ideally motivate and increase successful outcomes at the clinic. Hopefully, Tahlia will spread the word about HELP and volunteering and encourage others to join us in our mission to assist others.

India launches vast food aid program

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 09 Jul 2013 09:12:00 +0000

india's government has launched a program to provide subsidized food to two-thirds of the population. Critics believe the plan undermines the country's small farmers and is a move to win votes. It is arguably one the largest food aid programs in the world. India's ruling party, the Indian National Congress called it a 'game changer in terms of poverty eradication.' The National Food Security Bill approved by the Indian government on Wednesday, July 3, is the latest attempt to tackle the problem of endemic hunger in a country where nearly half of its children under the age of five are chronically malnourished, according to the government's own estimates. Despite the remarkable growth rates of the past two decades, India ranked 65 out 79 nations on last year's Global Hunger Index issued by the International Food Policy Research Institute. Furthermore, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization reported that over 200 million Indians were undernourished in 2012. Food for 800 million people The bill, which was passed by ordinance and still requires ratification by both houses of parliament, is set to provide subsidized food to two-thirds of India's population. There are already many food guarantee schemes for the poorest of the poor. However, the new bill is expected to vastly increase the target group. About 75 percent of the rural population and 25 percent of the urban population is supposed to benefit from the measure. According to the bill, around 800 million people will thus get a kilo of rice at three rupees (five US cents), wheat at two rupees and millet at one rupee. The bill already has the backing of some prominent citizens such as Nobel Prize-winning economist Armatya Sen. 'The pushing through of the food security bill right now is a very important step to take,' Sen told German public broadcaster ARD. Harsh criticism However, not everyone agrees with the government's position. Some experts believe the program will have exactly the opposite impact. 'The huge finances should be viewed as a subsidy to corporations who are being allowed to take over India's agriculture,' said Indian human rights and environmental activist Vandana Shiva. She believes, therefore, the proposed act will aggravate hunger because 'it leaves the food system to be shaped by corporate greed.' The expert from Research Foundation for Science Technology Ecology Navdanya told DW she believes that ensuring the production of safe, healthy and nutritious food is the government's top food security priority. But 'on this count the act totally fails,' she said. As far as ecological and social foundations of food production are concerned, Shiva decried the measure 'as an anti-food security act.' In her opinion, the new measures undermine the livelihoods of millions of small Indian farmers, thus threatening the country's food sovereignty. Christian Wagner, India expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs shares a similar view on the program. 'I don't believe the program will help alleviate India's endemic malnutrition in the long run,' Wagner told DW. On the contrary, he added, the scheme would probably turn into a 'bureaucratic monster' and fail to tackle the more pressing the issues of supporting India's agricultural sector. The cost and the implementation of the program have also drawn heavy criticism. Estimates suggest the bill could cost the Indian state $22.3 billion per year. Some experts believe this could exacerbate fiscal problems at a time when economic growth is slowing. Latest GDP figures show that the Indian economy expanded by five percent last fiscal year - the slowest pace in a decade, adding to pressure on the government to speed up economic reforms. Rampant corruption India already has programs in place to subsidize goods ranging from kerosene to cooking gas, fertilizers and wheat to people living below the poverty line. But they have a reputation for being inefficient and undermined by corruption. According to a study by India's Planning Commission, only about 42 percent of the subsidized food grains released from the Central Pool reach the target group. Despite the challenges ahead, independent Delhi-based journalist Amit Baruah believes that the new measures are necessary. 'A huge financial outlay will be called for but given India's pressing poverty, the scheme is to be welcomed, especially since huge numbers of people still lack access to food.' A vote-winning move? The landmark welfare scheme was pushed by the head of the Congress Party, Sonia Gandhi, who had insisted on honoring a 2009 election pledge despite concerns about the impact on government finances and food prices. Opposition parties, however, have slammed the minority government for sidestepping parliament and resorting to an executive order to implement the program. They view it as a political move by the ruling party to win a third term. 'There are definitely elements of populism involved. Politicians often act with ulterior motives and the ruling coalition will definitely use it as a talking point in the general elections due by May 2014,' says Baruah. Critics of the bill also emphasize that there has not been enough discussion of the program's effect on prices and on farmers. Furthermore, the bill leaves out the aspect of where the extra goods are to be stored. In the state of Punjab alone, for instance, tons of grain rot every year due to the lack of storage facilities. India expert Wagner believes that although the program may benefit some, it still runs the risk of being ineffective because of what he calls 'the three Cs:' high costs, lack of cooperation between central and local governments was well as the rampant corruption which already overshadows previous aid programs.

Pakistan, IMF agree on $5.3 billion loan deal

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 09 Jul 2013 09:07:00 +0000

ISLAMABAD: The government of Pakistan Thursday agreed to a $5.3 billion loan deal with International Monetary Fund (IMF) to boost its foreign exchange reserves, fight an acute energy crisis, and prop up depreciating rupee, Geo News reported.

"The government of Pakistan and IMF have reached an agreement for a three-year programme of at least 5.3 billion dollars under an extended fund facility," Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced during a joint press conference with the IMF mission here.

The minister said that the mutually agreed markup rate for the loan had been set at 3 percent.

Replying to a question, Dar said the new government had no choice but to borrow to avoid a balance of payments crisis.

"The borrowed money will be used to service external debts as we just cannot let Pakistan default on its payments, said he.

"We have not carried the begging bowl in our hands nor are we getting a grant, Pakistan is a member of IMF," Dar said.

Dar said the Pakistan had targeted a fiscal deficit of 4 of gross domestic product (GDP) in the next three years.

To a question he said that the federal government could not tax the agriculture sector as it was a provincial matter.

Finance minister also said that the loss-making state-owned enterprises (SOEs) would be restructured to help boost the economy.

Speaking on the occasion, IMF mission chief, Jeffrey Franks, said the loan agreement would be formally approved by Fund's executive board in early September.

"The interest rate will be set at 3 percent and that the loan will be payable over a longer period than conventional stand-by arrangements", he said.

The interest rate would be set at three percent and that the loan would be payable over a longer period than conventional stand-by arrangements, he added.

Franks said the aim was to bring down the fiscal deficit -- which neared nine percent last year -- to a more sustainable level and reform the energy sector to help resolve severe power cuts that have sapped growth potential.

He added an agreement with the State Bank of Pakistan was also designed to help rebuild forex reserves and keep inflation at acceptable

Franks told newsmen that the government of Pakistan had itself structured the loan programme according to its specific requirements.

Giving details Franks said the agreement necessitated reforms in Pakistan's energy sector as it aimed at improving the south Asian country's ailing economy.

"Pakistan will have to bring its loss-making SOEs back on a profitable track as they are eating away at the country's economy big time", said Franks

IMF mission chief said such liabilities could be privatized to give Pakistan's economy a breather, which would generate significant revenues.

Warning of ballooning fiscal deficit, Franks said the loan agreement also calls for a reduction in Pakistan's fiscal deficit.

As part of the loan agreement, Franks added, the Pakistani government had developed plans to improve tax collection and to eliminate tax loop holes and exemptions.

"The overall focus on this programme is to boost economic growth so we can have a better future for all Pakistanis," he said. "There will be some difficult decisions... but these will be necessary decisions to make sure that the economy is stable going forward."

According to a declaration issued by the IMF after the agreement the government of Pakistan was advised to abolish all the SROs and tax exemptions, widen the tax tax net, and improve revenue collection.

Dua for Sehri Iftari

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 04 Jul 2013 08:56:00 +0000

Warid Mobile Service Up For Sale In Pakistan

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 30 Jun 2013 16:30:00 +0000

Warid Telecom the mobile operator in Pakistan is on for sale. Abu Dhabi owner of Warid Telecom is ready to sell out the mobile service and China Mobile (Zong) and Etisalat (PTCL co-owner) has shown interest in buying Warid Telecom, according to media reports.

According to reports Warid company is ready to sell out all 100-per cent of shares of Warid Telecom whereas Warid owners are also interested in selling a smaller controlling stake. In 2007 Warid sold its 30% stake Singapore Telecommunication company SingTel. However in January 2013 it bought back 30% stakes from Singtel of Singapore.

Warid was launched in 2005 in Pakistan and it has 12.54 million mobile subscribers at the end of March, 2013. In 2010-11 Warid had 17.39 million subscribers. Now Warid is the smallest mobile operator in Pakistan in terms of mobile subscriber.

Pakistan’s mobile subscriber has rose by 12.2% to 122.1 million from 2010-11 to March, 2013 which means Warid’s market share fell from 16% to 10.3%.

Nik Wallenda defies death with successful tightrope walk over ‘Grand Canyon’

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 16:38:00 +0000

Nik Wallenda proved again Sunday that he is indeed the King of the High Wire, becoming the first person to walk a tightrope over the “Grand Canyon” in what was billed as a life or death stunt.

Indeed it was a death-defying act, crossing a 1,500-foot-deep canyon on a 2-inch steel rope, but it was a bit misleading, considering it wasn’t exactly the Grand Canyon.

The place where Wallenda made his 1,400-foot-long tightrope walk was actually over Little Colorado Gorge in the Little Colorado River Navajo Tribal Park, land of the Navajo Nation, located near Cameron, Arizona, according Forbes magazine.

‘King of the High Wire’ takes ‘life or death’ walk over 1,500-foot drop, but it was actually over Little Colorado Gorge; it was dramatic nevertheless

A tweet from Grand Canyon National Park on Sunday also made it clear the stunt was not in the park itself.

“The event would not have been approved in Grand Canyon National Park,” Maureen Oltrogge, the park’s public affairs officer, told Forbes.

But Navajo Nation gave Wallenda and Discovery Channel permission to use a gorge on its land.

The stunt was no-less dramatic, no-less grand, however.

Unlike his historic crossing of Niagara Falls last year when he wore a safety harness for the first time in his life, Wallenda returned to his modus operandi and did the breath-taking walk without a safety harness or safety net.

A misstep would have meant plunging to the bottom of the gorge and Little Colorado River below, a drop measuring more than the height of the Empire State Building.

A global audience watched live on Discovery Channel or Discovery.com as Wallenda successfully performed his highest tightrope walk ever, a 22-minute, 54-second endeavor that was every bit as intense and entertaining as expected.

“I did it,” he said on Discovery Channel, tears running down his face just moments after getting off the wire.

Asked how he was feeling, he replied, “Emotional.” Then he asked for some water.

“It was way more windy [than expected], and the movement of the cable, the sidewalls, as I was walking, were getting in the way and were confusing me as the pendulums were swinging against them. So I tried to react and when I react, I take the rhythm into the cable. It took every bit of me to stay focused that entire time. My arms are aching like you’d never believe.”

Before he began his walk, Wallenda gathered with family and evangelist Joel Osteen for a prayer before he was delivered by helicopter to the other side of the gorge for the start.

Temperatures were 85 degrees with southwest winds of 6 to 13 mph with one wind gust measuring 48 mph.

Almost as soon as he began, Wallenda, a devout Christian, began praying.

“How I love you, Jesus … You’re my Savior, yes Jesus … God, you’re so good. Thank you for this opportunity. Calm these winds in the name of Jesus.”

Twice during the walk, Wallenda kneeled down, providing some tense moments as his balancing poll swayed in the wind. The photo above shows the second time he kneeled. We presume what he was doing was trying to take the inconsistent bounce out of the wire and get the cable back into a smooth rhythm, as he spoke about in his interview.

Near the conclusion of his walk, which measured 1,400 feet, or nearly the length of five football fields, Wallenda ran to the end of the wire, jumped off, and then kissed the ground with a huge sigh of relief. No doubt those watching live exhaled, themselves.

Wallenda, 34, a married father of three who holds six Guinness World Records for various high-wire and acrobatic feats, signed a contract with Discovery Channel in 2012 for near-exclusive broadcast rights of his acts. He has made several death-defying tightrope walks, all performed without a safety harness or net.

In 2011, he walked a 100-foot wire at a height of 121 feet between two towers of a hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was a re-creation of the stunt that killed his great-grandfather Karl Wallenda in 1978 when a gust of wind caused him to lose his balance and fall.

In 2010, Wallenda rode a bicycle along a high-wire 260 feet above the ocean at the Atlantis Paradise Island resort in the Bahamas for a Guinness World Record for highest bike ride on a high-wire. He then took his longest tightrope walk of his career, going 2,000 feet over the resort’s lagoon at a height of 250 feet.

And, of course, there was the tightrope walk directly over Niagara Falls last year.

What could possibly be next?

“My dream for my next stunt is to walk between two skyscrapers in New York City,” Wallenda told Discovery Channel. “I can imagine the millions of fans that will be there watching, and that really is what holds me up, my fans.”

Well, then, as Frank Sinatra would say, start spreading the news. But whatever he does next, whether it’s NYC or not, no doubt his fans will be watching.

Ch Nisar says govt ready for talks to resolve Balochistan issue

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 14:08:00 +0000

QUETTA: Interior Minster Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has said that government was ready to resolve Balochistan issue through dialogue but added in the same breath that Islamabad would enter talks with those who are willing to do so.
Speaking to media on Sunday flanked by Balochistan Chief Minster Abdul Malik, he said that the government would not hold talks with those hell-bent on sticking to extremism.
The minister expressed resolve that the government would heal the wounds of estranged elements.

Chaudhry Nisar announced posthumous gallantry award for Quetta Deputy Commissioner who lost his live during militant attack in Bolan Medical Complex on Saturday.

A relatively composed Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Malik in his brief media talk expressed resolve to address all the problems facing Balochistan.

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