Magazine

There is no doubt that relationship matters in career advancement. Especially, in a country like Pakistan, it become difficult for professionals to achieve high rank positions if they don’t have close references, relations or friendships with people at higher levels. It is called nepotism. Nepotism and violation of merit has destroyed our institutions as incapable persons are being appointed on sensitive positions which also involve budgetary authority. National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) is one institution has been suffering due to the manse of nepotism and violation of merit. The State Bank of Pakistan recent inspection report mentioned a number of appointments at senior position in NBP in violation of rules and merit. A few examples are...

February 4, 2015 at 6:09 pm | News Desk

No instant change, Reforms take time Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif inaugurated a 60 kilometre long motorway project in Hazara in November 2014. This road will be completed at a cost of $ 27 million. By laying the foundations of a fenced four-lane motorway there, Pakistan has commenced off the multibillion dollar Pakistan-China Economic Corridor development programme. China-Pakistan economic corridor projects envisage $ 34 billion investment in the energy sector and around $ 11 billion in infrastructure. These projects offer immense opportunities to businesses and will give a boost to Pakistan’s economy. Earlier this month, PM Nawaz Sharif during his visit to China also signed deals worth $ 45.6 billion, which included projects co...

February 4, 2015 at 6:01 pm | News Desk

When Atrio Café and Grill opened at the end of 2012, its rooftop was all the rage, making the tensile structure on the rooftop a landmark of Jinnah Super Market. The inspiration came from the Sahara Mall in Dubai, says Kazim Hassan, the brain behind its interior. “The one in Dubai is a huge structure with multiple cones. Atrio rooftop structure is a miniature of that concept. The rooftop floor design of Atrio is inspired by grapevine” His inventory includes projects with massive budgets ranging from commercial projects to interior and set designing for dramas, movies and morning shows. However he terms Atrio Café and Grill his favorite until now. He hints about an upcoming restaurant in F-7 with another rooftop and a project, salon an...

January 22, 2015 at 10:00 pm | News Desk

Bina Sultan, (BNS) was invited to display her collections at a show in Seoul (South Korea), recently in November 2014. BNS managed to impress the Koreans by its variety of fusion outfits & its traditional garments. _e show consisted of a range of out_ts from their new collections "Kashmir" which hightlights the beauty of hand embellished garments. EA: For our readers, please shed light on your unbeaten career outline with us? BNS: _e career initially is an unstoppable struggle when your mind follows the ambition for what you want to do in life. With the passage of time, you decide upon your interest and passion and start your journey in the right direction. My entire career is about doing something I enjoy & being passionate a...

January 19, 2015 at 4:19 pm | News Desk

The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan (ICMAP) celebrated Convocation-2014 to honor its graduates. More than 100 graduating students gathered at ICMAP Islamabad Centre with their families, fellow students and friends, taking the chance to consider past achievements, aspirations and challenges before them. ­They cheered up together as the Chief Guest of the occasion, renowned nuclear Scientist Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, conferred degrees upon the ICMAP graduates. Dr. Qadeer Khan, in his speech, praised the senior fellows and faculty members of the institute for their excellence, distinction and efforts in elevating the institute’s image. Addressing the convocation at ICMAP in Islamabad, Dr A Q Khan said, “Nothing...

January 19, 2015 at 3:39 pm | News Desk

"I wish you spent the time protecting the White House that you spent protecting your reputation here today." ---Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachussetts to former Secret Service Director, Julia Pierson during her Congressional hearing Since the above quote was made, the United States Secret Service Director, Julia Pierson, has resigned. On September 19, 2014, a man jumped over the fence of the White House and entered the main floor...with a folding knife. Up to this point he was completely undetected. This is the White House we are talking about...the residence of the President of the United States. It would be another ten whole days until The Post would report that the White House intruder, Omar Gonzalez, had made it that far into the execut...

October 18, 2014 at 9:10 am | News Desk

Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan The United Arab Emirates has been taking part in many regional and international expos since its inception. It has been highly appreciated in all the expos it has participated. It was among the top ten pavilions at EXPO 2000 in Hannover. It was awarded a gold medal at EXPO Zaragoza 2008. It won a popular vote among the general public in Shanghai and came top in an academic study conducted by staff from UCLA who looked at public diplomacy criteria and the last but not the least received a silver medal in Yeosu.  Furthermore, the main film shown in Yeosu has also won three gold medals at international film festivals. It has been acknowledgement of its superior skills of management, HRM, capacity building, craftsmanshi...

October 9, 2014 at 1:33 pm | News Desk

Have you ever watched a camel take time for an energy boost?  If food is scarce a camel will simply dine on bones, fish, leather, or even the owner's tent. It can consume thorns and twigs. The camel's oral cavity lining is tough enough that almost anything can be eaten without injury to the mouth.  Camels are not picky. But we should be glad they cannot talk. If they talked like they eat it would be out of both sides of their mouths. The disarticulated jaw with the big teeth are quite a sight to behold. It would be absolutely mesmerizing to watch a camel speak. Camels are  ships of the desert. As a species, they are known by fancier names.  But when considering how they were created, camels should be known by a more simple designatio...

October 5, 2014 at 12:36 pm | News Desk

Married as a child bride at age 12 in rural Pakistan, Ghulam Sughra Solangi rose against all odds to become a leader and voice for  oppressed women in her community. She is a renowned trailblazer for women’s rights and leadership who has spent most of her life struggling for the rights of marginalized communities in rural Sindh. She is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Marvi Rural Development Organization and she is one of the luckiest Pakistani women who became first Ashoka Fellow in 1999 and in 2011 received International Women of Courage Award by the US Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton.  EA: Our readers would like to know about our early life and how you begin your career. SS: I was born on March 02, 1970 in ...

October 5, 2014 at 11:52 am | News Desk

Let’s have an adventure Jehanzaib Malik  ‘A healthy mind is found in a healthy body’ is a conventionally held statement that has been culturally communicated to most of us. However, owing to commercialization of life-styles and even sports, a very few can afford to spare time to indulge in, at least, conventional sports such as hockey, cricket and football. Generally, from school to university level, students – the best of the youth- were institutionally engaged in such healthy and productive activities. Those golden days, I must sadly say, are over. These days, the sports situation is so pathetic in Pakistan that even our culturally rich-in-sports educational institutions no longer offer much to the youth. Hence, the latter’s ...

October 5, 2014 at 9:25 am | News Desk

The first thing first: there is no threat to the democratic process in the country from the armed forces. It's on record that the forces' high command has exhibited extreme patience and helped the civil rulers in confronting serious challenges by conducting it through heavy waters of poor governance; yet the underlying tone of most of the high-decibel oratory in joint session of parliament was that the sit-ins at the D-Chowk are part of a 'plan' to wrap up the democratic system. The hard fact is that the sit-inners have challenged the government headed by Nawaz Sharif that enjoys a comfortable majority in the parliament, and is fully empowered to handle it. Perhaps, it is the common fear of being wrapped up, based on our history that has ge...

September 18, 2014 at 5:49 pm | News Desk

Zafar Aziz Chaudhry However hard I have tried not to worry about the frequent power outages which have assaulted us with redoubled vigour these days, and notwithstanding the golden rules of Dale Carnegie to banish worry in all unforeseen circumstances, I confess that I have not been able to be pacified by taking it all in my stride. In a well-lighted room, when life rolls on in its usual routine, suddenly pitch darkness engulfs the room bringing all activities to a grinding halt. Darkness is equated to death and depravity in the realm of literature, because it virtually devours life which manifests itself only in light. Shakespeare uses the metaphor of darkness to illustrate Macbeth’s slide towards depravity. Macbeth cannot face...

September 18, 2014 at 2:45 am | News Desk

The day I hit the keyboard with an intention to comment on the remonstration staged by Pakistan Tehrik e Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehrik (PAT), Pakistan played cricket series deciding ODI and got comprehensively beaten by Sri Lanka. I doubt if anyone, even a fervent cricketer, followed the match. The entire nation was held hostage to political stage show alongside the parliament telecast live in real time. We may be forgiven for missing out on the cricket match but can we defend ourselves on ignoring catastrophic issue of much greater national implications such as internally displaced persons (IDPs) bearing the inclement weather conditions under open sky besides lacking all the necessities they deserve as the citizens of Pakistan. Ne...

September 18, 2014 at 2:35 am | News Desk

Saleem Shaikh Along with dozens of other farmers in the western Himalayan village of Namli Mera, Muhammad Naeem had been planning to give up agriculture and move to a nearby city. Resigned to opening a roadside coffee stall or working as a labourer in an auto shop, Naeem decided two years ago to abandon his potato fields after losing much of his three hectares of terraced farmland to soil erosion and landslides – problems that have become more frequent due to intense rainfall in the area. Namli Mera, located on the northern border of Ayubia National Park some 80 km from Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad, was once famous for its sparkling natural springs. But in recent years the village has become better known for its uns...

September 18, 2014 at 2:16 am | News Desk

Sughra Tunio Life is full of hardships for women like Gul Mehreen, who live in tough mountain terrain in the north of Pakistan. Their villages located in Hunza Nagar Valley are isolated and still don’t have an access to electricity making it even more difficult for them to survive harsh conditions. But thanks to a small project, Mehreen now takes delight in cooking and other daily household chores. A micro-hydel power station has been installed that now supplies clean and cheap energy to her village called Ahmadabad, where Gul Mehreen lives, making the lives of the residents, especially women much easier. In the villages, it is the womenfolk who are responsible for all cooking-related activities and they work really hard, ...

September 18, 2014 at 1:25 am | News Desk

Be cautious while purchasing a dry battery for your uninterrupted power supply (UPS) or solar power system, as an expired, outdated junk of dry batteries has flooded the market in pretext of imported batteries. The manufacturing date on these imported batteries is not mentioned. Therefore, while purchasing, it is utmost necessary for the buyer to check the manufacturing date. The increasing use of UPS and solar power systems in Pakistan has raised the demand for dry batteries which have flooded the markets. Largely, the dry batteries available in markets do not have their manufacturing date inscribed on them. Investigations reveal that some importers are deceiving consumers and local distributors by importing expired/used dry batterie...

August 15, 2014 at 12:12 pm | News Desk