Pakistan certifies first organic cotton bale
Balochistan on Wednesday marked the certification of Pakistan's first organic cotton bale at a ceremony held at Kot Sabzal. Balochistan's Minister for Agriculture Engineer Zamrak Khan said the provincial
Dawn (Pakistan)
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Another five dengue cases reported
Five more patients with suspected dengue virus reported at different government hospitals in the city during Monday night and Tuesday, raising the number of such cases reported this year to 287. Focal person of the Dengue Surveillance Cell Dr Shakeel Malik said that one of the patients was discharged from a hospital after his complete recovery. He said 34 patients with suspected dengue virus were still under treatment in different hospitals, along with two confirmed dengue cases.
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Chitral forest a windfall' for timber mafia
The timber mafia in NWFP has wreaked havoc on the forest of Chitral by illegally felling green trees and smuggling them to other parts of the country. However, the government has failed to take action against the network despite initiating investigations through the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
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Illegal tree felling costs govt Rs87 million
Trees covering almost 95 per cent of the around 28,000 acres of forests in Hyderabad have been illegally felled during the last seven years, says a report. The report, prepared by Hyderabad Forests Conservator Habibullah Nizamani, puts the losses, besides the degradation of the environment owing to deforestation, at over Rs87 million. Sources said that it was just the tip of the iceberg as the report was based on the position of forest cover in just one district of the province. The situation was also expected to be similar in other districts of the province, they said.
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Sepa launching study to find noise levels
The Sindh Environmental Protection Agency is launching a study on Thursday to measure noise levels at various city spots, it has been learnt. According to sources, the study, second in more than a decade and a half, will be carried out at different places at different times so that the level of noise pollution could be recorded. The sources said longer exposure to a high level of noise affected human health, causing a loss of hearing, stress, etc, which in turn lowered the level of tolerance in people owing to which they tended to lose temper at the slightest of provocation.
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Sutlej in flood at two places
Vast swathes of countryside along the banks of Sutlej River were inundated after India opened the spillway relasing large amounts of water, causing low to medium flood in the river between Ganda Singhwala and Suleimanki. A peak of 65,000 cusecs was passing through Ganda Singhwala and 68,000 cusecs through Suleimanki, Flood Forecasting Division chief Hazrat Mir told Dawn on Sunday evening. He said the river was in low flood at both the places but several villages in Kasur, Okara and Pakpattan districts had been flooded.
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Crops drying up in tail-end areas
The Sindh Chamber of Agriculture said on Sunday that the water rotation programme being followed despite swelling Indus River, had led to complete destruction of standing sugarcane crop on thousands of acres of land in Khairpur Gambho at the tail-end of Naseer Canal. A meeting of the chamber chaired by Syed Qamaruzzaman Shah demanded supply of water to tail-end growers and regretted that the sugar mill owners had withheld tens of millions of rupees they owed to growers.
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Rs10bn relief package sought from centre
The NWFP Assembly on Wednesday sought Rs10 billion relief package from the federal government for rehabilitation of flood affected people in Peshawar district. Awami National Party lawmaker Alamzeb Khan tabled the resolution in the House, which was unanimously passed. Treasury and opposition benches jointly asked Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to visit flood-hit areas in Peshawar and other parts of the province.
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Dengue fever claims two more lives
Two patients believed to be suffering from dengue fever have died during the last 24 hours at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre and the Civil Hospital Karachi, said health officials on Wednesday. The two patients were among the 94 admitted to various public and private sector hospitals during the last one month with symptoms of dengue.
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CM promises transparency in food scheme
Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has said measures have been taken to ensure transparency in the Rs22 billion Food Stamp Scheme, which is being launched on Independence Day (today). According to a handout issued here on Wednesday, Sharif told a meeting on the food scheme that lists of deserving people had been compiled in a transparent manner.
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Over 1m trees to be planted'
More than one million trees will be planted in Karachi by December this year, City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal said in a statement issued by the city government. While inspecting trees plantation in various areas of the city, he said that the work to make Karachi green was under way. He said that the city government had earmarked Rs1.8 billion for the improvement of the city's environment. He directed the officials concern to accelerate the pace of work.