ISLAMABAD: Drug-resistant pathogens causing sepsis, ventilator-associated pneumonia, difficult-to-treat urinary infections and drug-resistant tuberculosis are now among Pakistan’s most serious public health threats, federal health officials say, warning that antimicrobial resistance in priority bacterial and fungal pathogens could claim more than 262,000 lives in the country over the next 25 years unless antibiotic misuse and infection control failures are addressed. Pakistan has become the first country in the World Health Organisation’s Eastern Mediterranean Region to
Child Rights in Focus
LAHORE: Punjab’s education system is increasingly being taken over by the private sector, as government policies falter and public institutions are pushed toward privatization. In recent years, academies have become essential for matric and intermediate exam preparation, fostering a marks-driven culture and leaving students heavily reliant on what is now a sprawling coaching cartel. The rising number of tuition centres is alarming educationists and parents alike. Poor teaching quality in government schools, heavy curricular
PESHWAR: Every day, 15-year-old Mashal Khan, a sixth-grade student, walks three kilometres from his home to his government high school in Jalala. The journey takes him longer than other children and is especially arduous because he was born with disability in both feet. “It is very difficult for me to reach school on time and I try to start out earlier than other children,” says Mashal. “But on rainy days, I cannot attend school
Not all parents have an equal chance of success at saving their child from a fatal illness. Unfortunately, while fate determines lifespan, so does geography. According to experts, childhood cancer survival rates exceed 80 per cent in wealthy countries but in low- and middle-income countries, such as Pakistan, they drop below 30 percent. This unsettling reality is underscored by the fact that around 10,000 children are diagnosed with cancer in the country every year.
KARACHI: Speakers at a programme on 21 Feb expressed concern over growing social acceptance of rape cases and demanded effective implementation of the anti-rape law. A dialogue on ‘Surge in rape cases: silence of society, lack of institutional and judicial response and commitment’ was organised by the Sindh Women Lawyers Alliance (SWLA) at its office, where a comprehensive discussion was held on the rising incidents in rape cases and the justice system. There was
HYDERABAD: The Sindh government has completed the province’s first-ever real-time digital birth registrations in major public teaching hospitals, describing it as a landmark step in public sector reform and digital governance, said an official announcement issued here on 21 Feb. Four newborns were registered digitally immediately after birth at Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences (LUMHS), Jamshoro/Hyderabad, and Ghulam Mohammad Mahar Medical College Hospital, Sukkur, it added. The registrations were processed through the
UMERKOT: A grieving Hindu family in Umerkot has desperately demanded safe return of their teenage daughter who was allegedly abducted under deceptive circumstances. On Feb 16, the girl, an eleventh grade student, went to a local fair at the Shiv temple and did not return home. Her mother and a sister-in-law held a press conference on Friday at the Umerkot Press Club to share the family’s ordeal and appeal for an urgent action. The
KARACHI: Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah on Feb 20 said that 92percent of the school education budget was spent on salaries and pensions, lamenting that the education sector had become a source of employment rather than a focus on learning. Furnishing a statement and replies to lawmakers’ written and verbal queries in the Sindh Assembly, he said that the provincial government had initially decided to recruit 50,000 teachers in 2021, and 95,000 teachers have
KARACHI: Sindh Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah informed the provincial assembly that the government has allocated over Rs18 billion for schools and authorised principals to spend funds on daily needs. He was responding to questions during the education department’s Q&A session on Friday, chaired by Speaker Syed Owais Qadir Shah. MQM-P lawmaker Quratulain Khan raised concerns about inadequate science labs for students preparing for matriculation practical exams. The minister acknowledged the shortage, noting that
ISLAMABAD: Reviewing the HIV situation in the country, the National Assembly Standing Committee on National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination on Friday raised concerns about lack of complete information in a report submitted by the health ministry. The committee specifically noted that several requested details were missing, including HIV data from Balochistan. The committee met under the chairmanship of Dr Mahesh Kumar Malani to examine health sector regulatory and policy matters. The meeting was
ISLAMABAD: Approximately 31.9 million births of children registered at respective union councils are yet to be recorded into National Database and Registration Authority’s (Nadra’s) central system. According to annual performance report recently submitted by Nadra to the Ministry of Interior, a total of 227 million individuals are registered with Nadra. Overall, nearly 97pc of the country’s population is now included in the registration system. Among registered individuals, 48 per cent are women and 52pc
KARACHI: Announcing that the Sindh Textbook Board (STBB) has achieved its publication target by preparing 52 million textbook sets for the academic year 2026-27, Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah has said every student will have new textbooks on the first day of the new academic year i.e. April 1. He said this while speaking at a programme held to distribute textbooks among students at the Government Girls Lower Secondary School, Neelam Colony, Clifton, on