ISLAMABAD: The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad has confirmed the presence of the wild poliovirus in environmental samples from 15 cities across Pakistan. These findings, based on samples collected between early and mid-September 2024, highlight the continued circulation of the virus in key urban and rural areas, reinforcing the urgent need for enhanced polio eradication efforts. Dera Ghazi Khan, a district already dealing with
Child Rights in Focus
OKARA: A 15-year-old boy was allegedly raped by two suspects at Chak 22/4-L. As per FIR, the suspect called the victim’s mother on Sept 1 and asked her to send her son to Mandi Bahauddin for a job. When the boy reached there, the suspect, along with his accomplice, administered drugs to him and raped him. They also made a video of the incident to blackmail the victim and continued raping him for three
SHANGLA: Over a dozen government schools for girls in Shangla district have been closed, while a majority of primary schools for girls have been functioning with a single teacher since January 2023, with educators fearing a decline in girls’ education. Official sources told Dawn that over a dozen schools in parts of Shangla had been completely closed since January 2023 when the caretaker government in the province was installed. They said teachers were transferred from schools
GUJRAT: Police arrested a prayer leader on charge of raping his minor student in the mosque in the Azizpura locality of Saddar Kharian. Reports said the father of a 12-year-old boy lodged a complaint with the police, saying that his son had gone to have a Holy Quran lesson from the prayer leader who would also teach other students in the mosque. The suspect took his son to a small room where the sound
KARACHI: Renowned scholar Dr Zakir Naik has said that forced conversion of religion is strictly forbidden in Islam. He said this while speaking at a programme held at Sindh Governor House on Thursday evening. Governor Kamran Tessori, consuls general of Islamic countries, ulema of different schools of thought and a large number of people attended the event. Dr Naik said Islam has the concept of inviting people to the faith, but “if non-Muslims decline,
BAJAUR: In a first step towards ensuring the protection and welfare of children in the merged districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) supported child protection unit (CPU) was inaugurated here on 3rd October. Social Welfare Department’s Additional Secretary Mohammad Farooq was the chief guest on the occasion, while Deputy Commissioner Shahid Ali Khan and other senior officials were also in attendance at the CPU office. Speaking on the occasion, Mohammad
PESHAWAR: Health experts have expressed concern over the growing incidence of genetic disorders and asked the people to undergo pre-marriage screening in cousin marriages to put brakes on thalassaemia and other ailments. They were speaking at a seminar organised by Dosti Foundation at Khyber Medical University here on 2nd October, according to a press release. Special secretary health Syed Abdul Ghafoor Shah, who was the chief guest, emphasised that cousin marriages remained a strong
KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on 02-October-2024 directed the provincial education department to complete the reconstruction of 3,328 flood-affected schools and arrange funds for the remaining 16,480 damaged schools. Officials said that while presiding over a meeting, the CM directed the education department to complete the reconstruction of 3,328 schools of the 19,808 damaged by the 2022 floods during the current financial year. The meeting was held at the CM House
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s fight against polio has encountered fresh setbacks with the confirmation of two new cases of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in children from the districts of Zhob and Tank. Health officials now report a total of 28 cases in 2024, raising concerns over the country’s expanding public health challenge. The latest victims are a young girl from Zhob, Balochistan, and a boy from Tank in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), according to the Regional
KARACHI: A sessions court on Tuesday sentenced a man, said to be an alcoholic, to 14 years in prison for raping her teenage daughter. Additional District and Sessions Judge Ghulam Mustafa Laghari, who is also presiding officer of the Gender Based-Trial Court (Central), found Muhammad Mukhtiar, 40, guilty of raping her 15-year-old daughter in their house on May 12, 2023. The prosecution examined eight witnesses, including the victim, and their testimonies were corroborated with
Peshawar. The Peshawar High Court has ordered the release of four Afghan refugee girls on bail. They were arrested for allegedly being in possession of gold at the Torkham checkpoint. Justice Ijaz Anwar heard the appeal filed by the girls. During the hearing, their lawyers, Shahid Raza Khan and Bilal Dawoodzai, informed the court that the petitioners are from Afghanistan. The girls, Ayesha, 8, Asma, 10, Faheema, 12, and Faheem, are currently residing at
ISLAMABAD: Polio eradication authorities in Pakistan reported two more polio cases on 01-October-2024, raising the total number of children paralyzed by the virus this year to 26. The cases, confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health, involve children from Karachi East and Sujawal districts in Sindh, where environmental samples have recently detected the presence of poliovirus. This marks the first case of the year for both