Pakistan certifies first organic cotton bale
Balochistan on Wednesday marked the certification of Pakistan's first organic cotton bale at a ceremony held at Kot Sabzal. Balochistan's Minister for Agriculture Engineer Zamrak Khan said the provincial
Dawn (Pakistan)
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Inefficiency blamed for nagging water shortage
The Sindh Chamber of Agriculture on Sunday blamed inefficiency of Irrigation Department officials for persistent water shortage in the province even after enormous increase in water level in the River Indus. The chamber's president Syed Qamaruzzaman Shah said at the chamber's weekly meeting that although the river was flowing to its full capacity the water was not being released into the channels and they were running dry. The meeting blamed the officials' inefficiency for nagging water shortage problem and said the growers were crying hoarse for water but they received nothing.
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Hunza village produces its own electricity
Minister for Finance and Privatisation Syed Naveed Qamar has said that community participation is vital for sustainable development. He was speaking at a public rally in Ahmedabad, a hamlet 15 kilometres north of Aliabad, the headquarter of Hunza, after opening a hydro-power project. The 350-KVA micro-hydel power station was constructed by the villagers with the technical help of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme and financial assistance of the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF).
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Govt hospitals without anti-rabies vaccine
No state-run hospitals in the Okara district have possessed with the anti-rabies vaccine for more than a year forcing the victims to purchase the costly vaccine from the market.
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Flood inundates 15 villages
Spate in Nullah Deg inundated 15 villages of Pasrur tehsil on Sunday, damaging standing crops and forcing locals to shift to safer places. The flood and rainwater spilled out from the banks of nullah after heavy rains in catchment areas of the stream on Saturday night, inundating Hunjali, Jhaatokey, Mehtabpur, Chahoor Kalan, Nawaadey, Jussiwala and some other villages. District Coordination Officer (DCO) Captain Atta Muhammad Khan (retired) said the situation was under control and no loss of life or property was reported from the area as yet.
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Call to tackle hepatitis on war footing
District Nazim Kanwar Naveed Jamil has said that hepatitis-B and C are posing a great challenge to the world, including Pakistan, and the issue needs to be tackled on war footing. He was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of a free medical camp set-up at Behram village by Ehasas Welfare Trust here on Sunday. He said used syringes and blades were the root-causes of transfer of hepatitis from one person to another and advised patients to purchase new syringes before going to doctors for injection.
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Probe into mangroves destruction ordered
Sindh Home Minister Dr Zulfiqar Ali Mirza, who also holds the portfolio of forests, has directed the forest secretary to intensify the efforts to check illegal felling of trees and illegal transportation of timber to protect forestry and environment.
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Plan for uninterrupted water supply
Dis-trict Nazim Kanwar Naveed Jamil has said that the water supply system will be directly linked with an automatic changeover system under which the supply will not be affected even during the power loadshedding. He was speaking at a meeting of officials of the Hyderabad Development Authority, Wasa, Hyderabad Development Package and Hesco at his secretariat on Friday. Mr Jamil said all central pumping stations would be directly linked with a high-tension line through an automatic changeover switch system to ensure uninterrupted water supply to the people even during loadshedding.
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Iran invited to take part in mega housing projects
The government has proposed Iran to participate in the upcoming mega housing projects in the country. The proposal was made during a meeting between Federal Minister for Housing and Works Rehmatullah Kakar and Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan Mashallah Shakeri here on Friday. They discussed bilateral cooperation in different sectors, including housing and construction sectors.
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Growers demand judicial inquiry into canal breach
The Abadgar Action Committee on Friday criticised continuation of the water rotation programme even after improved water level in the river and demanded a judicial inquiry into the Rohri Canal breach, which inundated hundreds of acres of land and several villages. The committee chairman, Allah Bachayo Zounr, said at a news conference at the press club that the water rotation programme in the Massu sub-division despite availability of enough water in the river had caused huge losses to growers.
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Disaster management cell set up in Mansehra
The Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (Erra) has established the first ever Disaster Risk Reduction Management Cell here on Friday. District Coordinator Officer (DCO) Israr Khan inaugurated the cell during a ceremony. Speaking on the occasion he appreciated establishment of the cell and said that after the October 8, 2005 earthquake, it was need of the hour to train people to cope with natural calamities. The DCO said that Mansehra was a high-risk district where floods and landsliding were common following the devastating earthquake.