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HAUNTING IMAGES OF KASHMIR

ALI SUKHANVER

London based Indian writer Mirza Waheed very vehemently exposed the real face of the Indian atrocities in Kashmir in his article ‘India is blinding young Kashmiri protesters’. The article was published on 18th July 2016. He says, “Two sets of images have haunted me these last few days. One is a series of photos of people splashing bucket-loads of water to wash away blood from the streets of Kashmir, where Indian forces have shot dead at least 45 people since 9 July. The other set of images is that of scores of young men with bandages on their eyes, before or after undergoing surgery to remove tiny steel pellets from their retinas. Indian forces deployed in Kashmir now routinely use pellet guns to stymie roadside demonstrations.” India is continuously trying to negate the fact that Kashmir belongs to the people of Kashmir; the Kashmiris are a nation, having an individual identity, a separate culture and independent traditional values; and they could never be treated like animals. They are looking to the world around them in search of someone who could save them from the horrible, miserable blazing inferno of human rights violation.Read More »HAUNTING IMAGES OF KASHMIR

When Pakistan real estate got a jolt

The realty sector, one of the major investment avenues suffered a huge setback in the middle of 2016 after the federal government decided to determine the fair market value of properties being bought and sold by people and collect taxes accordingly.

The first six months of the calendar year were in fact encouraging as markets had started recovering from the phase of subdued growth. Of these, the Karachi market needs a special mention as it was earlier performing below par because of the repercussions of terrorism and bad law and order that had dogged the city for years.

A modest improvement in the real estate market of Pakistan’s biggest metropolitan city rekindled investor confidence with huge demand coming from domestic investors, overseas Pakistanis and to some extent international investors.Read More »When Pakistan real estate got a jolt

New Islamabad Airport to open from 14th August 2016

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Associated Press of Pakistan

The new Islamabad international airport will be operational by Aug 14 next year as 82 per cent of the work on the project has been completed.

“I will inaugurate the new airport on Aug 14, 2017,” said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif while chairing a meeting on aviation affairs.

He was briefed on the status and progress of work on airports in different parts of the country, including Bannu and Mansehra.

The prime minister was informed that efforts were being made to complete the airport project within the allocated financial resources.

The project was divided into three main packages — airside, passenger terminal and landside.Read More »New Islamabad Airport to open from 14th August 2016

Pakistani elite must stop abusing power

If nation is to progress, says outgoing UNDP country chief

Marc-Andre Franche, the former country director for United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Pakistan, has said that a critical change in the country can happen only when the elite, the politicians and the wealthy sections of society sacrifice their short term goals and stop abusing their power to enrich themselves, or favour their friends and extended families.

Franche, who had been the UNDP country director for the last four years, bid farewell to Pakistan to take up the position of Chief of Financing at the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund. He made these remarks during an interview to a Pakistan daily shortly before his departure.

“If there is one thing I leave with, it is a sense that the only way a critical change will happen in Pakistan is when the elite of this country, the politicians and the wealthy sections of the society, will sacrifice their short term, individual and family interest, in the benefit of the nation,” Franche said.Read More »Pakistani elite must stop abusing power

Pakistan Property transfer business nosedives since last budget

The business of property transfers has nosedived since the announcement of the new evaluation system and imposition of fresh taxes on real estate sector in the budget for 2016-17.

Property dealers told The Nation on Sunday that the new system introduced by the federal government had totally halted registration of properties all over Pakistan, causing frustration among applicants and huge losses of revenue to the government.

Senior Vice Chairman of Association of Builders and Developers of Pakistan (ABAD) Arif Yousuf Jeewa said that the registration of properties had completely stopped throughout the country due to rigid attitude of the registrars, who now asked the applicants to produce stamp duty according to property valuation notified by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) instead of DC rates.

“All registrars, throughout the country, are rejecting those property cases presented on the basis of DC valuation, saying that they will only accept those applications having stamp duty according to immovable property valuation fixed by the FBR.Read More »Pakistan Property transfer business nosedives since last budget