KARACHI: Despite the World Health Organization (WHO) identifying the provision of clean drinking water as a fundamental human right, till this day, locals in Pakistan’s industrial hub, Karachi, continue to suffer the perilous health repercussions of consuming contaminated water. From February to April this year, the Health Department of Sindh obtained more than 50 water samples from different districts of the city before testing them at the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB’s) laboratory.
Child Rights in Focus
TOBA TEK SINGH: Madina Town police of Faisalabad arrested on 26th September 2024 a couple for torturing a teenage girl, shaving her head as a punishment for refusing to work as a maid. According to the first information report (FIR), investigating officer Muhammad Atif Shahzad said Alisha Bibi (15), a resident of Chak 409-GB, Tandlianwala, told the police that she was brought to Faisalabad by a couple for a job from her village. They
RAWALPINDI: Speakers at a seminar warned that Pakistan was witnessing an alarming increase in eye cancer cases among children. Addressing the seminar titled: “Story of challenges and opportunities”, Prof Dr Tayyab Afghani, HOD Oculoplastics said children’s eye cancer in Pakistan was higher than India and China, and genetic diagnosis can reduce children’s eye cancer cases. Dr Afghani said that 2,000 children with eye cancer have been registered of whom 500 have fully recovered. He
There have been numerous attempts by private members of Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate to amend the country’s Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929. In recent years, the proposed amendments have been repeatedly tabled and rejected. These include the Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Bill 2014, moved by MNAs Marvi Memon, Shaista Pervaiz, and the late Pervaiz Malik; a similar bill introduced by Senator Seher Kamran in 2017; and another by Senator Sherry Rehman in
A ban has been imposed forthwith on expenditure on any extracurricular and co-curricular activities conducted by all education boards in Sindh, in view of the current financial constraints as reported by education boards and observed through respective reconciliation statements by the same. In this regard, Deputy Secretary Boards Ahsan Randhawa has sent a letter to all board chairmen. It is reported that educational boards of Sindh regularly charge co-curricular activities and scout fees along
GUJAR KHAN: Kallar Syedan police have registered a case against a man for allegedly raping a boy who reportedly injured the suspect when he put up resistance on 25th September 2024. According to details, the case was registered on the complaint of the victim’s father, who told Kallar Syedan police that his 15-year-old son returned from school on Tuesday and went to a man who was repeatedly calling on his mobile phone. He said
MUZAFFARGARH: A seven-year-old boy was allegedly tortured by some suspects over suspicion of theft in the Langrwah area of Alipur tehsil, some 120 kilometers away from the city. Reports said the suspects tied Muhammad Nasir with ropes, held him by his feet, and forced him to apologise for alleged theft. They laughed at the boy’s cries and recorded a video, which was later circulated on social media. After the video went viral, District Police
ISLAMABAD: A man kidnapped a toddler and demanded his stolen motorcycle in ransom. The incident came to light after a case was registered with Tarnol police station on the complaint of the girl’s father. According to the police, the suspect was a close friend of the complainant and resided in Lahore. On September 20, he and his family came over to the complainant’s house, located in Islam Market, Tarnol, on a motorcycle and stayed
A FEW weeks ago, an 11-year-old girl in Karachi was kidnapped, tortured, raped, and murdered. Her body was discarded in a garbage dump. The Sindh Police responded swiftly, and apprehended the suspect. The culprit may face justice. But is this the end of the story? Unfortunately, such horrifying incidents are common, and each new tragedy eclipses the previous one in the public’s memory. Only cases that capture media attention or come under the radar
Islamabad: Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal on 25-September-2024 complained about a ‘decline in literacy rates’ in the country since the decentralisation of education in 2010, and advocated for educational reforms. “The 18th Constitutional Amendment, which transferred educational authority to the provinces, has had negative effects, contributing to lower literacy rates in the country. Education reforms are necessary, but they will not be effective until teacher training is improved,” the minister told the first
CHINIOT: The Punjab government has launched the Public Schools Reorganisation Programme (PSRP), through which around 5,000 schools across the province have been handed over to private sector management. In Chiniot district, 86 schools were included in this initiative, with 70 handed over to the NGO Akhuwat, 10 to educated youths, and six to a group of entrepreneurs. One such school — Government Primary School Riazwala in Bhowana — was assigned to Ali Waqas under
ISLAMABAD: The first meeting of the Education Task Force on 25th September 2024 termed the state of affairs in the education sector alarming and called for immediate steps to improve the situation. The meeting was chaired by Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal and attended by State Minister for Information Technology Shaza Fatima Khawaja, chief secretaries from all provinces, and representatives from the Ministry of Education, Unicef, UNDP, FCDO, Unesco,