LAHORE: In a significant move to prioritise and address children’s rights, Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan has announced the formation of the first-ever Parliamentary Caucus for Child Rights in the provincial assembly. The initiative aims to establish a collaborative platform to address pressing issues related to children’s welfare and rights across the province. The caucus will be led by MPA Sarah Ahmad, who has been appointed as the convener of the committee,
Child Rights in Focus
KASUR: An eight-year-old boy was burnt alive at a brick kiln on 16th January in the limits of Mandi Usmanwala police station. According to police, Ayan, whose parents worked at the brick kiln, was roasting potatoes at one of the points at the kiln, when he suddenly fell into the fire. As a result, he suffered critical burns. He was being rushed to hospital when he succumbed to his burns. Police handed over the
ISLAMABAD: The 72nd case of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) for 2024 has been confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health. Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) officials 15-January-2025 reported that the latest victim is a young girl from Dera Ismail Khan in South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with symptoms of the disease emerging on December 31. Dera Ismail Khan has emerged as a polio hotspot, reporting 11 cases throughout
ISLAMABAD: A day after concerns were shown by lawmakers on the floor of the National Assembly, the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training on 14th January decided to provide an additional budget of Rs40 million to the Directorate General of Special Education, which deals with the education of special children. The directorate has been facing financial issues since it was transferred from the Ministry of Human Rights to the Ministry of Education in
LARKANA: A special secretary of education department on 15th January began probe into reports of open sale in the town’s markets of textbooks published by Sindh Textbook Board for free distribution in government schools. Special Secretary (admin, coordination & law) Syed Imdad Ali Shah, who was appointed by secretary of education as inquiry officer to look into reports of textbooks’ sale in Larkana and other districts of the province, not only visited the textbooks’
KARACHI: While police have failed to recover a minor boy kidnapped over a week ago in North Karachi, the kidnapping of two more children has sent ripples of concern among people, forcing the Sindh chief minister to order police to take practical measures for their immediate recovery. The CM not only ordered the Karachi police chief to remain in touch with the victims’ parents and ensure immediate recovery, he also directed him to increase
BAHAWALPUR: Three minor boys, one of them mentally-challenged, were allegedly raped by as many suspects, including a prayer leader and an 11-year-old boy, in separate incidents in the limits of different police stations in Lodhran district during the past 24 hours. According to police, in the first incident, a prayer leader allegedly raped a seven-year-old boy in a room adjacent to a mosque at Basti Khanda of mauza Kote Lal Shah in the limits
LAHORE: The Punjab police investigation department is all set to field 1,450 specially trained officers to run the Special Sexual Offences Investigation Units (SSOIUs) across the province in alignment with the Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) Act. These dedicated units were established in Punjab under section 9 of the Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) Act 2021 following the longstanding complaints of defective investigations into the rape and other sexual crime cases. The establishment of SSOIUs was
ISLAMABAD: The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) has confirmed Pakistan’s 71st case of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) for 2024. The case involves a 58-month-old boy from Jacobabad, Sindh, with symptoms reported on December 27, 2024. This marks the fifth polio case reported from Jacobabad alone, highlighting persistent challenges in combating the disease despite repeated mass vaccination campaigns. The national tally of WPV1 cases in 2024
PESHAWAR: Beaten by his teacher with stick right on his eyebrow, Hamza Hussain, a grade six student at a historical school here on 14 January 2024, had to have multiple stitches, setting a new example of corporal punishment. Father of the wounded student told The News that he was shocked to see his son having plaster on his forehead and his uniform stained with blood. “I was there to pick him after school,” he
SAHIWAL: The body of a 10-year-old boy was found at Chak 113/12-L, tehsil Chichawatni, in what appears to be a revenge killing over a court marriage issue. The boy, Muhammad Zubair, son of Muhammad Riaz Nabi, had gone missing on January 13 and his body was found in the forest by his family and villagers on Tuesday morning. A few years ago, Riaz Nabi’s family moved to Chichawatni city. His eldest son, Iqbal, contracted
Says province’s model outperforms all other provinces and Centre KARACHI. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on January 13 that the Sindh government’s heath sector initiatives under a public-private partnership outperformed not only all the other provinces but also those undertaken by the federal government. Speaking at a ceremony at Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi, organised by the Dow University of Health Sciences, the PPP chairman lauded the Sindh government for its significant