Category: Information Technology

Former Pakistan pacer, Shoaib Akhtar, has suggested Babar Azam to transform himself into a “man of steel” if he wishes to lead the national side for a long period.

Akhtar’s remarks follow the statement of CEO Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Wasim Khan, in which he categorically stated that “Babar Azam will remain captain until Ehsan Mani and myself are here.”

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While responding to Khan’s statement, Akhter, during a show on PTV Sports, said “when you come in the limelight and go on the path of becoming a real star, some people will try to bring you down and make you suffer. That is the time when you have to show what you are made of. “

Babar Azam must evolve as a captain, player, and batsman so that everyone knows that he is a man of steel.

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He appeared cynical of the PCB CEO’s statement, adding that no one backs you if you are not a man of steel.

The 45-year old said that he has seen the highs and lows of cricket. He also recalled a similar statement of a former PCB Chairman who had assured that Rashid Latif would lead the side for six years.

The post Shoaib Akhtar Proves Why Babar Azam’s Captaincy Isn’t Certain appeared first on .

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The Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) will decide on removing the moratorium on new gas connections to industrial and captive power consumers in Balochistan, reported Express Tribune.

On 18 April 2011, the then prime minister had issued a directive to ban the issuance of new gas connections to both the commercial and the industrial consumers due to the expanding gap of demand and supply of natural gas. The moratorium was put in place for six months, countrywide. In September 2011, the ban was extended with certain caveats.

The moratorium imposed on the new commercial and industrial connections was extended for one year except for those who had paid connection charges, security deposit, or deposited the full cost of the pipeline to be laid for them. It was stated that the moratorium would not apply to Balochistan, but for industrial connections, it would be decided on a case-to-case basis by the petroleum minister.

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In January 2020, the Petroleum Division held a meeting and decided that a five-member committee would decide on the industrial gas connections for Balochistan. In July, the PM Office communicated that the prime minister had approved that the Petroleum Division shall place the summary before the CCoE.

Now the CCoE will be meeting to decide upon the case-by-case issuance of these gas connections.

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The Federal Cabinet has granted its explicit approval to convert the Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) signed between the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and the Government of Pakistan (GoP) into formal agreements.

Four dozen MoUs have been signed between the GOP and the IPPs whereby the issue of the mode and duration of payments are still contentious issues.

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The Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) approved the conversion of the MoUs into agreements to facilitate their transformation into practical contracts.

According to the draft Master Agreement for the MoUs in question, “the power purchaser shall work towards providing access to the bilateral market at the earliest, and the GoP shall actively support the creation of a competitive power market”.

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It also stated that “The company [IPP] agrees to be bound by the decision or determination of NEPRA for the mechanism for recoveries where applicable, pursuant to the reconciled numbers between the committee and the company to assess if the company has made any excess profit as filed before NEPRA”.

The post CCoE Approves MoUs Between Govt and IPPs to be Converted Into Formal Contract appeared first on .

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In yet another unfortunate development, two more players of the Pakistan cricket squad touring New Zealand have tested positive for COVID-19.

With this, the total number of positive cases in the 54-man squad has jumped up to 10.

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According to PCB, of the 10 positive cases, 2 were deemed historic and allowed to observe isolation period on the same floor as the other members of the Pakistan squad.

While confirming the latest cases, a spokesperson for the New Zealand Health Ministry said Day 9 swabs from the Pakistan team members, who have tested negative for COVID-19 so far, will be taken today.

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Led by captain Babar Azam, the Pakistan team had landed in Christchurch on 24 November. The visitors are observing the two-week mandatory quarantine required by the New Zealand government and haven’t been able to train since then.

Pakistan is set to take on New Zealand in 2 Tests and 3 T20s, with the tour set to formally begin with a T20 on 18 December.

The post NZ Tour: More Pakistani Players Test COVID-19 Positive appeared first on .

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Zong 4G has introduced an international roaming offer for customers traveling to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The offer is in continuation of Zong 4G’s industry-leading international roaming solutions to help Pakistanis stay connected with friends and family back home on their travels abroad.

Through the offer, Zong 4G’s prepaid customers can get 35 minutes and 1 GB of data at an affordable price of PKR 999 + tax. The extended validity of 90 days also makes Zong’s KSA international roaming bundle better than any other offer currently available in the market.

To subscribe to the offer, Zong’s prepaid customers can dial *4225#, call Zong helpline, or visit Zong’s online shop.

“Saudi Arabia is like a second home to Pakistanis besides being a religious center,” said Zong 4G’s official spokesperson. “Pakistanis frequently travel to KSA for work, or for Hajj and Umrah. Facilitating their connectivity with their loved ones in Pakistan as they travel is Zong 4G’s priority. We will continue enhancing our roaming portfolio through more innovative products and services for our customers.”

Zong 4G’s international roaming offers have been helping traveling Pakistanis to never lose connection with their friends and family back in the home country. Especially during the first Covid-19 crisis and now amid the pandemic’s second wave, these offers have proven instrumental for traveling Pakistanis.

Prior to the Saudi Arabia bundle, Zong has introduced prepaid roaming offers for China, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Turkey, and other countries.

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The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has launched an online management system to automate the licensing, registration, inspection, and other various functions of the country’s apex drug authority.

Named the ‘Pakistan Integrated Regulatory Information Management System’ (PIRIMS), the online system integrates DRAP’s functions and processes in an organized manner in alignment with the guidelines and best practices of the WHO.

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On Wednesday, the Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health, Dr. Faisal Sultan, formally launched PIRIMS at DRAP headquarters in Islamabad.

While addressing the event, Dr. Sultan said that the launch of PIRIMS has led DRAP to take another step towards transparency and efficiency.

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DRAP has developed PIRIMS in collaboration with USAID’s Promoting Quality of Medicine Plus (PQM+) Program.

It also supports Common Technical Document (CTD) submissions, the online inspection reporting of pharmaceutical firms, quality assurance and market surveillance of medicines, and adverse drug reaction reporting.

The post DRAP Launches Integrated Regulatory Information Management System appeared first on .

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According to reports coming out of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) likely originated in India sometime during summers of 2019. Researchers argued that Wuhan is the place where the first human to human transmission of the virus occurred.

The Chinese research paper sets a precedent that outwardly disregards a velodrome of accusations directed towards the People’s Republic. Before the virus hit Wuhan, the Chinese research shows it had already mutated in a previous transmission with humans. The paper further suggests the COVID RNA’s geographic information and level of mutation point all logic towards India, where the first human to human transmission occurred prior to the Wuhan outbreak.

Although it hasn’t been peer-reviewed yet, the Chinese research paper was drafted on the basis of the phylogenetic analysis, a technique used to study mutation sequences of a virus prior to its origin. The analysis theoretically rules out Wuhan as ground zero of the COVID-19 outbreak, rather nominates Bangladesh, India, Greece, Italy, Czech Republic, Russia, Serbia, Australia, and the United States. Estimating the time it would take for the virus to evolve, the paper claimed the virus first emerged in July or August 2019.

From May to June 2019, the second-longest recorded heat-wave had rampaged in northern-central India and Pakistan, which created a serious water crisis in this region. The water shortage made wild animals, such as monkeys, engage in the deadly fight over water among each other and would have surely increased the chance of human-wild animal interactions.

The Chinese research also suggested that since India and Bangladesh recorded fewer layers of mutation in the transmission sequences since they’re neighbors, it’s highly possible for the first transmission to have happened in the subcontinent. India’s healthcare system was highlighted to support the possibility of the virus appearing there.

As known for all, the hygiene condition is imperfect and the public medical system is less efficient in the subcontinent. Thus, it is conceivable that a virus with flu-like symptom could spread undetectably for several months there.

The SARS-CoV-2 is a bi-product of an imperfect hygiene regimen and a staggering healthcare system. The research paper from the Chinese Academy of Sciences suggests all hints point towards the slums of Mumbai.

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Google Pixel 5 is the latest phone from Google that was released a few months back. The company claims that the device is made entirely out of plastic and recycled aluminum, but JerryRigEverything’s latest durability test shows that it is heavily coated in plastic instead.

The scratch test revealed the truth behind Google’s all “metal” phone, which showed that the handset is covered in thick layers of plastic all over. Google calls this material “bio-resin” which is just another name for plastic alloy but there is metal beneath all the plastic, though you would have to dig in quite a bit.

Zack was unable to perform the burn test as he accidentally killed the phone while digging into the rear panel. However, the phone performed remarkably well in the bend test, showing little to no flexing when bent from the edges.

Apart from all the falsely advertised plastic, the Google Pixel is quite a sturdy phone. Furthermore, the phone is also IP68 water and dust resistant, meaning that it should hold its own fairly well when submerged in water or exposed to dusty environments.

Check out the video below for more details.

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Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue, Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, chaired the fourth meeting of the FBR Policy Board held at the FBR Headquarters, Islamabad, today.

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Member Customs Operations made a detailed presentation on Customs Valuation (Under-invoicing). The presentation highlighted measures to be taken to plug in gaps and enhance custom revenues in the future. FBR has issued Valuation Rulings and entered into Electronic Data Exchange (EDE) agreements with China, Iran, Afghanistan, etc., to address the issue of under-invoicing of imports effectively. These agreements have yielded positive results.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce, Abdul Razak Dawood, Minister for Privatization, Mian Mohammad Soomro, SAPM on Revenue, Dr. Waqar Masood, Adviser to the PM on Institutional Reforms and Austerity, Dr. Ishrat Hussain, and Minister for Industries and Production, Hammad Azhar, participated in the meeting.

The Adviser stressed the need to evaluate the clearance time with reference to our regional trading partners to make FBR more competitive.

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