PARIS: The world experienced an average of 26 more days of extreme heat over the last 12 months that would probably not have occurred without climate change, a report said on Tuesday. Heat is the leading cause of climate-related death and the report further points to the role of global warming in increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather around the world. For this study, scientists used the years 1991 to 2020 to determine what temperatures counted as within the top 10 per cent for each country over that period. Next, they looked at the 12 months to May…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
Temperatures in India’s capital New Delhi have soared to a record-high 49.9 degrees Celsius as authorities warn of water shortages in the sprawling mega-city. The India Meteorological Department (IMD), which reported “severe heat-wave conditions”, recorded the temperatures on Tuesday at two Delhi suburbs stations at Narela and Mungeshpur. The weather bureau said the temperatures were nine degrees higher than expected. Forecasters predict similar temperatures on Wednesday for the city with an estimated population of more than 30 million people, issuing a red alert warning notice for people to take care. The IMD’s red alert is a warning there is a…
ISLAMABAD: The government’s polio eradication efforts are apparently failing to achieve the desired results as more environmental samples have tested positive for the virus in the first five months of 2024 than in the entire preceding year. A recent stakeholders meeting for polio eradication in Qatar also noted that Pakistan’s situation was worse than Afghanistan. The current year’s tally of environmental samples tested positive for poliovirus has reached 148 from 39 districts after eight more revealed the presence of the crippling disease. In 2023, there were 126 positive detections from 28 districts. Three cases of poliovirus have also been reported this year.…
KARACHI: With ownership of more than 250 beach huts spread along the city’s coastline, the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) is earning a mere Rs16,000 per year in rent for each hut. Meanwhile, many of these huts are being used for commercial purposes, with contractors renting out these facilities at rates ranging from Rs300,000 to Rs400,000 per day. This fresh claim was made by Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab during a meeting with a delegation from the Beach House Owners Association at his office on Tuesday. The meeting aimed to discuss issues, challenges, and various proposals to make the beaches under city…
ISLAMABAD: A team of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), accompanied by Rawalpindi police, raided the offices of Bahria Town in Rawalpindi, officials privy to the development said on Tuesday. Though there was no official word from NAB or other authorities, some officials in the accountability bureau confirmed the development on the condition of anonymity. NAB spokesperson Birj Lal expressed ignorance about the ‘raid’, saying: “The raid might have been conducted by NAB Rawalpindi, but I cannot confirm it.” Another source said the intent behind the raid was to confiscate record related to the Al Qadir Trust case. Bahria Town owner…
NORTH WAZIRISTAN/SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: Some unidentified terrorists torched a girls’ middle school in the Razmak tehsil of North Waziristan district, while a police officer escaped unhurt in a remote-control bomb attack targeting his vehicle in South Waziristan district on Tuesday. Officials said that there were no casualties in the two incidents. An official told Dawn that on Monday night some unidentified attackers entered the building of Golden Arrow Girls Middle School in Shakhimar village of Razmak tehsil and set it on fire. The fire gutted the furniture, ceiling, computers, books and other equipment. Abrar, a member of Shakhimar Welfare Organisation, told Dawn this school was…
ISLAMABAD: A day after acting President Yousuf Raza Gilani promulgated the National Accountability (Amendment) Ordinance to extend maximum period of the physical remand of an accused in white-collar crime from 14 to 40 days, not only the leaders in the ruling PML-N but one of its allies also rejected the amendment. PML-N leader Khwaja Saad Rafiq, who has also faced NAB investigation and remained under remand for 90 days, outrightly rejected the ordinance. In a statement on social media platform X, he said: “Extending the physical remand from 14 to 40 days is a sad affair and it should be withdrawn.…
LAHORE: A report released by Human Rights Watch has urged parliament to reform the colonial-era Land Acquisition Act in line with international obligations, as the law, frequently used to forcibly evict low-income groups to enable development, exacerbates economic and social inequalities. The 48-page report, I Escaped with Only My Life: Abusive Forced Evictions in Pakistan, released on Tuesday documents widespread and abusive forced evictions that disproportionately affect the most economically and socially marginalised communities in Pakistan. The land acquisition law of 1894 provides the template for public land acquisition, allowing the Pakistani authorities to acquire land for vaguely defined “public purposes”…
RAWALPINDI: Police claimed to have solved the mystery of the murder of a constable seven days after his body was found lying along the roadside in the limits of Kahuta police station, and his wife and her paramour turned out to be the murderers. A police spokesman said that the deceased police constable, Mohammad Saleh’s body, was found lying along the roadside last Tuesday. After the body was found, the police registered the case on the complaint of the father of the deceased and launched an investigation. The deceased had gotten married to m a month ago. The wife of…
At least 28 people died and 22 were injured after a bus fell into a ravine in Washuk, Balochistan on Wednesday, according to officials. Speaking to Dawn.com, Basima Assistant Commissioner (AC) Ismail Mengal said the accident occurred when a tyre of the vehicle got burst, which led to it crashing into a hill and then plunging into a ravine. Three women and three children were also among the deceased, AC Mengal said. He noted that the bus, which had 45 to 50 passengers on board and was travelling from Turbat to Quetta overnight, suffered the accident at around 5 in the…
