ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum on Thursday expressed dismay over the “casual attitude” of some government departments leading to delays in import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by the private sector. The committee was briefed by the officials of various government entities, including the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL), and petroleum secretary Ali Raza Bhutta. Committee chairman Senator Abdul Qadir inquired about the reasons for delays in the import of LNG during the winter months. Other committee members also inquired about the sale and supply agreement between the Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL)…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
LAHORE: As part of its strategy to help businesses have the exciting journey into the world of e-commerce, the Alibaba group on Thursday asked Pakistan’s business community to join hands and use its platform for online trading. “We are pleased to work with all of you. And I would request to use our proven e-commerce platform and avail the opportunity to trade with the world,” said Alibaba country manager Songsong while speaking to the business community at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI). “I am telling you that the future of e-commerce is very strong,” he added. He…
NEW DELHI: Election rallies were cancelled in India’s heartland on Thursday as authorities fret over a sudden Covid surge, driven by the Omicron variant, which has seen confirmed infections nearly triple in two days. Teeming crowds have thronged campaign events for next month’s poll in Uttar Pradesh — the country’s most populous state with over 200 million people and a pillar of support for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Prime Minister Narendra Modi has traversed key cities to cut the ribbon on infrastructure projects and partake in Hindu religious rituals to boost the state government’s prospects. But with several…
ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Thursday unanimously rejected the proposed 17 per cent sales tax on formula milk saying it will affect the growth and health of infants. Deliberating at length the clauses of the Finance Supplementary Bill 2021 for the second day, the committee meeting, chaired by Senator Talha Mahmood, also rejected most of the tax proposals on the plea that these will accelerate inflation. The committee unanimously rejected the proposed 17pc sales tax on articles of jewellery or parts of precious metal from the existing 1.5pc value of gold and 2pc value of…
NEW DELHI: An 84-year-old man in India claims to have taken 11 Covid vaccine doses saying it has made him healthier, Times of India reported on Thursday. It said Brahmdeo Mandal, a resident of Orai village in Bihar, believes he has got rid of several ailments after taking the multiple jabs. The matter came to light on Tuesday when Brahmdeo visited another vaccination site to take 12th dose, the report said. It quoted Madhepura civil surgeon A N Shahi as saying an enquiry has been initiated as to how a person took so many doses of Covid vaccine on a single Aadhaar (official…
TOKYO: The Japanese capital of Tokyo shivered under an unusually prolonged snowfall on Thursday, with heavy snow warnings issued for the city and surrounding areas for the first time in four years. Tokyo often sees snow once or twice a winter, but substantial accumulations are rare. Thursday’s fall was brought about by a combination of a low pressure system and temperatures that have chilled the city for well over a week. The snow began falling around noon and by 3pm local time, some 5 cm had accumulated, while temperatures hovered just below 0 degrees Celsius (32 F). The snow continued…
RAWALPINDI: Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa on Thursday underscored the importance of peace and reconciliation initiatives in Afghanistan. During a meeting with Deputy Chief of Turkish General Staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu at the General Headquarters, Gen Bajwa stressed the need for global convergence and sincere efforts to avert a looming humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan, says a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations. The army chief said: “We highly value our brotherly relations with Turkey which are deeply rooted in history and entrenched in our cultural and religious affinities.” The two generals discussed the matters…
SEOUL: North Korea has successfully tested a hypersonic missile, state media reported on Thursday, in the first major weapons test by the nuclear-armed nation this year. This was the second reported test of what Pyongyang claimed were hypersonic gliding missiles, as it pursues the sophisticated technology despite international sanctions and condemnation. Hypersonic missiles move far faster and are more agile than standard ones, making them much harder for missile defence systems — on which the United States is spending billions — to intercept. The missile fired on Wednesday carried a “hypersonic gliding warhead” that “precisely hit a target 700 km…
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday hit out at anti-vaccine campaigners’ “mumbo jumbo” and “nonsense” in his toughest attack yet on those opposed to Covid-19 jabs. “I want to say to the anti-vax campaigners, the people who are putting this mumbo jumbo on social media: they are completely wrong,” Johnson told journalists. “You haven’t heard me say that before, because I think it’s important we have a voluntary approach in this country and we’re going to keep a voluntary approach,” he said, during a visit to a vaccination centre. The UK, already among the European countries worst hit…
WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden on Thursday savaged Donald Trump’s “lies” and attempt to overturn the 2020 election, vowing on the first anniversary of the January 6 Capitol riot that he would let no one put a “dagger at the throat of democracy.” After largely ignoring Trump for a year, Biden took off the gloves, describing the Republican as a cheat whose ego wouldn’t let him accept defeat and whose supporters almost shattered US democracy when they stormed Congress to prevent certification of the election. “This was an armed insurrection,” Biden said in a speech from Statuary Hall inside the Capitol, where a…
