The Express Tribune Newsletter: May 10, 2012

Today's Headlines

Politics of new provinces: PML-N throws ball back into PPP's court

Abdul Manan

A week after the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party blindsided the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz on the issue of South Punjab province, the PML-N outsmarted the latter with a jugglery of words.

Asghar Khan petition: ISI not under the command of army chief, says Gen Aslam Beg


Azam Khan

Former army chief General (retd) Mirza Aslam Beg has made an interesting disclosure before the apex court: The Directorate of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is a separate entity which is not under the command of the army chief.

PAC meeting: Watchdog pulls up bureaucrats for car abuse


Shahbaz Rana 

The parliament's accountability body reprimanded bureaucrats for flouting the recently-implemented cash-for-cars policy and sought a report from the finance ministry on its financial impact.

Contempt case: Gilani to stay until decision on appeal, says PPP


Qamar Zaman

A day after the apex court released the detailed judgment in the premier's contempt case, the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) hit back, saying the premier would continue to serve until the decision of the appeal._______________________________________________  

Business

Tackling circular debt: Govt to issue Rs70b term finance certificates

Zafar Bhutta

In an attempt to rein in the runaway inter-corporate debt and tackle the power crisis, the government has decided to raise Rs70 billion from the reserves of Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC) by issuing term finance certificates (TFCs).

Passing the buck: Govt considers removing cap on gas cess, petroleum levy

Zafar Bhutta

Finance and energy managers are seeking to increase infrastructure development cess on natural gas and petroleum levy on oil products in the upcoming budget to generate funds for the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project and bridge the fiscal deficit.

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Sports

Aisam, Rojer cruise on Madrid clay

Our Correspondents

Aisamul Haq Qureshi and his doubles partner Jean-Julien Rojer eased into the second round of the Madrid Open with a convincing 6-36, 7-5 win over Daniel Gimeno-Traver and Ivan Navarro in their first-round match yesterday.

Cricket: Shah adamant about World XI despite PCB's refusal

Fawad Hussain

Sindh Sports Minister Mohammad Ali Shah has vowed to host the 'World XI' side as planned despite the Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) refusal to sanction the national team or be part of proceedings.

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Life & Style

Zoheb Hasan: Yesteryear's heart-throb becomes a modern-day social activist

Saadia Qamar

He stole many a hearts with his mesmerising voice and his charming looks refuse to wear down with time.

Shakeel: The legend returns to theatre

Sher Khan

Over the last three days, renowned television actor Shakeel has been enthralling audiences at the Alhamra Arts Complex in Lahore. Living up to and even surpassing the viewers' expectations, the celebrated actor, who returned to theatre after a span of 25 years, once again delivered a flawless solo performance for his most recent stage play "Us Gali Na Jawin".

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Opinion

The ball's in Pakistan's court

Ejaz Haider

On environmental initiatives

Ahmad Rafay Alam

Change or perish

Zahrah Nasir

Tales from development hell

Nadir Hassan

IMF to the rescue, once again!

Syed Mohammad Ali
 

Blogs

Ho Yaqeen: Bringing hope and positivity to Pakistan

Sidrah Moiz Khan

The problem with owning large media corporations

Manal Shakir

A foreigner's love for Pakistan

Gordan Sumanski

PTI & PML-N: Saviours of justice or a national joke?

Aamir Saeed

Poll

Do you believe Pakistan needs to 'do more' on militancy, as Hillary Clinton says?

No (59%, 407 Votes)

Yes (41%, 288 Votes)

Total Voters: 695

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Dunya TV

Dunya TV


Asghar Khan case hearing to resume today

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary will resume hearing of Asghar Khan case today. The SC bench will resume the hearing in the light of former army chief Gen (retd) Mirza Aslam Beg statement in the case.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>During previous hearing on Wednesday the former army chief General (retd) Mirza Aslam Beg told the Supreme Court that he was not involved in the alleged disbursement of millions of rupees among the anti-PPP politicians to manipulate the 1990 general elections.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Beg informed the court that the alleged funds were transferred into the ISI&rsquo;s accounts, and not the Army&rsquo;s accounts and the relevant person having the knowledge of the accounts would be General (retd) Asad Durrani being the DG ISI at that time. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Beg has claimed that he neither had any knowledge of orders to distribute the funds by then president of Pakistan Ghulam Ishaq, nor was he aware of any illicit activity concerning the funds.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Sheikhupura: Girl killed after molestation

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>According to details, three accused of Jandiyala Road kidnapped 20-year-old Abida Bibi from Ferozwala and kept her at their compound for three days and molested her.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The accused forced the girl to drink acid to hide their crime after which the condition of the girl deteriorated and she raised alarm. Residents of the area reached the site and shifted the girl to hospital but she died one her way to the hospital.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Police have arrested an accused Faeaz and shifted the dead body to the hospital for autopsy.<br />&nbsp;</p>


No meat, no dairy, no problem

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The proposition of a less meat and dairy infused diet continues to gain momentum, and creep into public consciousness.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>If defining this betterness has become increasingly more difficult, the core of the answer is known to everyone: eat more plants. And if the diet that most starkly represents this &mdash; veganism &mdash; is no longer considered bizarre or unreasonably spartan, neither is it exactly mainstream. (For the record, vegans don&rsquo;t simply avoid meat; they eschew all animal products, including dairy, eggs and even honey.)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Many vegan dishes, however, are already beloved: we eat fruit salad, peanut butter and jelly, beans and rice, eggplant in garlic sauce. The problem faced by many of us &mdash; brought up as we were with plates whose center was filled with a piece of an animal &mdash; is in imagining less-traditional vegan dishes that are creative, filling, interesting and not especially challenging to either put together or enjoy.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>My point here is to make semi-veganism work for you. Once a week, let bean burgers stand in for hamburgers, leave the meat out of your pasta sauce, make a risotto the likes of which you&rsquo;ve probably never had &mdash; and you may just find yourself eating &ldquo;better.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>These recipes serve about four, and in all, the addition of salt and pepper is taken for granted. This is not a gimmick or even a diet. It&rsquo;s a path, and the smart resolution might be to get on it. <br />&nbsp;</p>


Gilani rejects claims Pakistan sheltered Osama

Posted:

<p><br /><br />Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday rejected claims&nbsp; that Bin Laden was residing in Pakistan with the help of the country&rsquo;s military and said that Pakistan had not been &lsquo;complicit&rsquo; in sheltering Osama bin Laden.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In an interview to British media, Gilani said that the reason Bin Laden was able to live undetected for so long inside Pakistan was down to a universal &lsquo;intelligence failure&rsquo;.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Prime Minister admitted that the relationship between Pakistan and Obama administration were not going through a good phase.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Gilani intimated that he didn&rsquo;t know whether al-Zawahiri was in Pakistan.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;If there is any credible information please share it with us, so we can be quick and achieve our targets,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Asked if Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader, might also be in the country, the prime minister replied: &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know. Please tell us.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The PM further said that the CIA was far more &ldquo;powerful&rdquo; than Pakistan&rsquo;s ISI intelligence service, and would have a better idea of the two banned outfit leaders.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Karachi: FC personnel deployed at check posts in Lyari

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>According to police officials, FC personnel have been deployed at 15 entry and exit points in Lyari area of Karachi, including Pak Colony, Lee Market and Baghdadi.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>According to the sources, two temporary FC pickets were also established on Lyari Expressway where the FC personnel will monitor entry and exit points at Miran Naka and Chakiwara areas.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The sources further informed that the FC personnel will also assist police in targeted operation in Lyari.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Eight people killed in Brazil helicopter crash

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>A police helicopter crashed in Brazil, killing all eight passengers, including federal agents and a man accused of murdering seven people.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The accident took place in the city of Piranhas, in the central-western state of Goias, as the agents and the suspect were flying back from the city of Doverlandia, were the alleged crime took place.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>One local resident, the ranch famer Edmar Vivella, described the moment of the accident.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;The man looked up to the sky and told me a helicopter was crashing. One of them said &nbsp;Oh my god, everyone will die.&nbsp; It was like the helicopter was doing flyovers. It was spinning on the air and then disappeared,&quot; he said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The man accused of murder, Aparecido Souza Alvez, had been charged with killing a farm owner and six others with the help of three accomplices in April. He was recently filmed taking part in a re-enactment of the alleged crimes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Rescuers have so far recovered one body from the scene of the crash.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The cause of the helicopter accident is still under police investigation.<br />&nbsp;</p>


CEC chairs meeting to review SC verdict against PM

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Chief Election Commissioner, Justice Shakir Ullah Jan, presided over the meeting which was also attended by Secretary Election Commission and other members.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The meeting reviewed the Supreme Court (SC) verdict in Contempt of court case against Prime Minister Syed yousuf Raza Gilani and also the reply of Supreme Court on the letter written by Election Commission.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The meeting also discussed Election Commission&rsquo;s authority to review the eligibility of PM. The sources said the CEC will meet again to review Supreme Court detailed verdict.<br />&nbsp;</p>


US panel cuts foreign aid, military aid to Pakistan

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>A House of Representatives panel moved Wednesday to cut the foreign aid budget by some 9 percent, targeting economic aid and contributions to the United Nations and the World Bank.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Despite the cuts, the legislation won bipartisan backing from the Appropriations foreign aid panel, although it is sure to draw a White House veto threat because it&nbsp;s in line with a broader Republican spending plan that breaks faith with last year&nbsp;s budget and debt pact with President Barack Obama.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The panel maintains aid to Israel and Egypt at the administration&nbsp;s requests but denies $800 million that was requested for a special fund for training and equipping Pakistan&nbsp;s military in counterinsurgency tactics. The move appears to reflect wariness on the part of lawmakers toward the government of Pakistan, which failed to find Osama bin Laden for years until the US military killed him a year ago.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Democratic Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. accused Pakistan of &quot;harboring a fugitive&quot; and likened the US-Pakistan relationship to a &quot;bad marriage.&quot;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;It is a difficult relationship,&quot; said Rep. Kay Granger, the foreign aid measure&nbsp;s lead author.<br /><br /><br /><br />&nbsp;</p>


Dunya News exposes Indian media propaganda

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>According to details, the Indian TV channel India Today aired a concocted news that Mumbai police have released pictures of three Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists and claimed that they have entered Mumbai.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Dunya News exposed Indian media propaganda and talked to these persons who are present in Lahore. Two of them are traders of Hafeez Centre while the third is a security guard.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Talking to Dunya News they said that they never went to India nor they have ever applied for Indian visa. They expressed concern about the Indian channel propaganda.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Meanwhile, the traders&rsquo; community has announced to stage protest against the evil designs of the Indian media and demanded of the government to take notice of this incident.<br />&nbsp;</p>


High acid content in energy drinks damages tooth enamel: Study

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>An alarming spike in the consumption of sports and energy drinks, especially among teens, is irreversibly damaging the tooth enamel with their high acid content, says a study.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;Most of these patients are shocked to learn that these drinks are essentially bathing their teeth with acid,&quot; says Poonam Jain of the Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine, who led the study.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Damage caused to tooth enamel is irreversible, and without the protection of enamel, teeth become overly sensitive, prone to cavities, and more likely to decay, the journal General Dentistry reports.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Researchers examined the acidity levels in 13 sports and nine energy drinks. They found that the acidity levels can vary between beverages and flavours of the same brand, according to a Southern Illinois statement.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>To test the effect of the acidity levels, researchers immersed samples of human tooth enamel in each beverage for 15 minutes, followed by immersion in artificial saliva for two hours. This cycle was repeated four times a day for five days, and the samples were stored in fresh artificial saliva at all other times.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;This type of testing simulates the same exposure that a large proportion of American teens and young adults are subjecting their teeth to on a regular basis when they drink one of these beverages every few hours,&quot; says Jain, also director, Community and Preventive Dentistry Program at Illinois.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Researchers found that damage to enamel was evident after only five days of exposure to sports or energy drinks, although energy drinks showed a significantly greater potential to damage teeth than sports drinks. In fact, the authors found that energy drinks caused twice as much damage to teeth as sports drinks.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>With a reported 30 to 50 percent of US teens consuming energy drinks, and as many as 62 percent consuming at least one sports drink per day, it is important to educate parents and young adults about the downside of these drinks.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;Teens regularly come into my office with these types of symptoms, but they dont know why,&quot; says Academy of General Dentistry spokeswoman Jennifer Bone.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Bone recommends that her patients minimise their intake of sports and energy drinks. She also advises them to chew sugar-free gum or rinse the mouth with water following consumption of the drinks.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;Both tactics increase saliva flow, which naturally helps to return the acidity levels in the mouth to normal,&quot; says Bone.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Nowshehra: 8 hurt as militants blow up Ajmal Khatak's shrine

Posted:

<p><br />An under construction mausoleum of ANP leader as well as poet Ajmal Khatak also destroyed.</p><p><br />According to police, two bombs exploded intermittently in the graveyard, damaging under-construction building of the mausoleum for which about Rs 3 billion had been allocated by the provincial government.</p><p><br />After mishap, police reached the site of occurrence and cordoned off the area and started search operation but nobody could be arrested.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Provincial Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain condemned the incident and said that Ajmal Khatak was a great personality; he was hero of the nation. Terrorists have committed a cheap action by hitting the building.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The injured persons including Dunya News spokesman Mehmoodul Hasan, were shifted to hospital by rescue teams. <br />&nbsp;</p>


Eating slowly helps to stave off diabetes

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Want to stave off diabetes? Eat slowly, says a new study. Researchers at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences have found that people who wolf down their food are two-and-a half times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than those who savour their meal.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>This is in line with previous research that found links between eating quickly and obesity. But it is the first time that the speed at which people eat has been identified as an independent risk factor for Type 2 diabetes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>For their study, the researchers compared 234 newly diagnosed Type 2 diabetes patients to 468 people free from the disease. The participants were quizzed on diabetes risk factors and asked to rate their eating speed. Body weights and measurements were also taken, the Daily Express reported.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>After adjusting for other factors including a family history of diabetes, exercise habits and smoking, the researchers found those with faster eating habits had a more than two times greater risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Lead researcher Dr Lina Radzeviciene said: &quot;The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes is increasing globally and becoming a world pandemic. Its important to identify modifiable risk factors that may help people reduce their chances of developing the disease.&quot;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Type 2 diabetes, which normally develops during middle age and is associated with obesity or an unhealthy lifestyle, is a largely preventable disease that is controlled through a healthy diet and exercise, even if an individual finds it a struggle to lose weight.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Dr Radzevicienes team now hopes to perform a larger study looking at how types of food, calorie intake, exercise, and psychological and emotional well-being affect diabetes risk factors. <br />&nbsp;</p>


Yoghurt useful to remain slim and healthy

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Scientists, who set out to better understand the effects of yoghurt on obesity, have revealed that not only does the treat make mice slimmer; it also makes them sexier.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But Massa&shy;chusetts Institute of Technology researchers Eric Alm and Susan Erdman wanted to know why.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe it has to do with the healthy bacteria that live in our guts,&rdquo; ABC News quoted Alm, an evolutionary biologist, explaining how there are 10 times more bacteria in the body than human cells, as saying.&nbsp;&ldquo;Maybe probiotics in the yoghurt have something to do with the effects on weight.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>To test the theory, Alm and Erdman fed one group of mice a normal mouse diet and the other group the same diet with a mouse-sized serving of vanilla yoghurt.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;One of the first things we noticed was their fur coat,&rdquo; said Erdman, assistant director of comparative medicine at MIT.<br />&ldquo;It was so thick and shiny; shockingly shiny.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But shiny fur was not the only aspect that set the yoghurt-eating mice apart from their siblings: They were also slimmer, and the males had &ldquo;swagger.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;We knew there was something different in the males, but we weren&rsquo;t sure what it was at first,&rdquo; Erdman said.&nbsp;&ldquo;You know when someone&rsquo;s at the top of their game, how they carry themselves differently? Well, imagine that in a mouse.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>A lab technician would soon find out what was giving these males their sexy strut.&nbsp;&ldquo;She noticed their testicles were protruding out really far,&rdquo; Erdman said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It turns out their testicles were 5 percent bigger than those of their non-yoghurt eating counterparts, and 15 percent bigger than those of mice on a diet designed to mimic &ldquo;junk food&rdquo; in humans. And in this case, bigger was better.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;Almost everything about the fertility of those males is enhanced,&rdquo; Erdman said, explaining how yoghurt-eating males mated faster and produced more offspring.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;There were legitimate physiological differences in males fed probiotics, not just the extra sexiness.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>On the other hand, female mice that ate yoghurt were even shinier than the males, and tended to be better moms to their larger litters.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;We think it&rsquo;s the probiotics in the yogurt,&rdquo; Alm said.&ldquo;We think those organisms are somehow directly interacting with the mice to produce these effects.&rdquo;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Although the study is still in progress, the findings could have implications for human fertility, weight control and hair health.&nbsp;&ldquo;When I saw those fur coats, I thought about adding more yogurt to my diet,&rdquo; Erdman added.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Computerised machines to be installed in KPK jails

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would install a state-of-the-art computer machine to get fingerprints of more than 30,000 extremists and terrorists who have been kept in jails around the province.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>After getting the fingerprints, National Database Regulatory Authority (NADRA) will check and endorse them.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Through the process of checking, the identification of these prisoners will be completed. On the other, NADRA will have their complete record.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>According to sources, this process will facilitate the government organizations to conduct investigation of the prisoners kept in Central Jail Peshawar, Central Jail Dera Ismail Khan, Central Jail Haripur and prisons all around the province.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The fingerprints of women and children had already been taken, sources said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Close-circuit cameras have already been installed in Central Jail Peshawar while work regarding the installation of mobile phone jammers will start from May.<br />&nbsp;</p>


PCB seeks postponement of 'World XI' tour

Posted:

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has suggested to postpone the &nbsp;World XI&nbsp; match for a mutually agreed date in future as the national team is busy in preparations for Sri Lanka tour.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The PCB Spokesman said, &quot;Hosting an international team is a meticulous job and requires huge amount of planning and groundwork on security and other aspects of the visit to organize it in a befitting manner.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Earlier, The PCB has received a letter from Sports Minister Sindh Dr. Mohammad Ali Shah, informing PCB of a visit of &nbsp;World XI&nbsp; to Pakistan and a requested that the National Team available for the matches to be played on 25th and 26th May 2012.<br />&nbsp;</p>


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