Author: Noc Team

Srilanka rejects Pakistan tour offer in October on security

Sri Lanka has turned down an offer to tour Pakistan because of security concerns, the Sri Lankan cricket board said on Tuesday. “We have refused to tour Pakistan,” a Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) spokesman said. “We are concerned about the security and that’s why we said no to them.”

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had been hopeful of coaxing the Sri Lankans into touring the country but Sunday’s Taliban attack on a naval air force base near Karachi’s National Stadium dealt a severe blow to the prospects.

Pakistan has not hosted international cricket since the Sri Lankan team visited the country in 2009 when gunmen attacked their team bus in Lahore, killing seven people. The PCB recently made another attempt to convince the Sri Lankans to tour Pakistan.

Ex-captain pulls out of Ireland series

Shahid Afridi has withdrawn altogether from two One Day Internationals (ODIs) against Ireland for personal reasons, an official said on Tuesday. The popular all-rounder was last week replaced by Misbah-ul-Haq despite leading Pakistan to the semi-final of the World Cup and a 3-2 one-day series win over the West Indies.

It was seen as apparent punishment by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for Afridi’s public criticism of coach Waqar Younis for interfering in team selection on the West Indies tour. “Afridi has informed us that his father has been admitted to hospital for liver treatment and he wants to be with him and would not be available for the two matches in Ireland,” and no replacement will be sent for Afridi, PCB spokesman Nadeem Sarwar told the reporters.

Pakistan outplay West Indies to draw Test series

Pakistan beat West Indies by 196 runs on the fifth day of the second test Tuesday to draw their two test series 1-1. Slow left-armer Abdur Rehman finished with figures of 4-65 as West Indies, resuming on 130 for five and needing to bat through the day to win the series, were bowled out for 230 before lunch. Off-spinner Saeed Ajmal did the damage with the key wickets of Brendan Nash (30), skipper Darren Sammy (41) and Ravi Rampaul (20).

It was always going to be too much for West Indies to bat through the day having already lost their top order but it was a sorry end to their innings when Kemar Roach was run out for 12. Any chance of resistance dissipated when Nash edged Ajmal to Taufeeq Umar at slip and then Baugh became the latest in a series of West Indies batsmen to fall lbw to Rehman. Sammy was caught at midwicket off a dreadful shot off Ajmal and although Rampaul showed some defiance, it ultimately proved futile.

Sexual harassment in educational institutions of Pakistan

The suspension of a teacher on charges of sexually harassing students at the University of Peshawar sets a laudable historical precedent and is an indicator that attitudes towards women’s rights in Pakistan may finally be shifting.

Patriarchal traditions have meant that for too long the harassment of women has been institutionalised in educational organisations. The systemic harassment of young nursing students by doctors shows that there is still a long way to go. Last year, a 22-year-old nursing student at the Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre in Karachi was severely injured when she tried to escape from a doctor trying to rape her. In educational institutions, women are routinely harassed by teachers and students, and often coerced into trading sexual favours for grades.

According to research, sexual harassment in educational institutions ranges from touching and standing too close to sharing vulgar jokes and sexual invitations. The problem is so deep-rooted that sexually harassing women is considered a form of recreation rather than a crime, with the focus squarely on the victim’s conduct and appearance rather than on the aggressor. For the past couple of years, a local NGO has taken efforts to introduce and disseminate a taxonomy of aggressors to shift focus away from the victim.

The suspended lecturer from the University of Peshawar now faces a provincial inquiry, and more female students — who have, so far, feared speaking out about their ordeal — are expected to come forward with their complaints. Earlier this year, with the passage of the sexual harassment bill, Pakistan became the first South Asian country to declare sexual harassment a crime. Provincial governments were called upon to appoint ombudspersons to hear the complaints of women against harassment but, though all legal and institutional mechanisms are present, implementing the laws has remained a challenge. This case is a welcome indicator that the good work the NGOs and the media have been doing in this regard may finally be showing some results.

A couple living together fights over 2400 times a year

The average couple bickers 2,455 times a year, a survey revealed yesterday – equal to almost seven times a day. The biggest single reason for a tiff is not listening to what the other is saying, which is responsible for around 112 cross exchanges a year. Annoyance about over-spending, especially on impulsive or unnecessary purchases, leads to 109 disputes – with money in general being the cause of a further 108.

Laziness caused 105 outbursts while snoring provoked 102. What to eat for dinner leads to 92 barneys a year – and 80 tiffs are about a partner walking mud into the house. Driving too fast, walking past items that need taking upstairs and what to watch on television are the cause of conflict more than once a week. Sex – particularly a lack of it or the timing – also causes 88 bust-ups a year.

The survey also showed the average couple will argue about disciplining the children 88 times, and have a further 79 disputes about spoiling them. And there are even 69 clashes because one person has failed to say “I love you” enough. The figures were revealed in a study of 3,000 people, either married or in relationships, by ensure home insurance.

More than 700,000 non Tax Payers will be Brought in Tax Net

7 hundred thousand non tax payers will bring in net tax. Finance minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh said that federal budgets will be presented on 3rd June. Due to current defense situation reduction in defense budget is not possible.

7 hundred thousand people are identified who has many accounts and they were not paying tax according to their income, from them 50,000 were issued notices; all will bring under net tax, next tax budget will be according to public wishes for which stake holders alliance parliamentarians will taken in confidence.

Base commander of PNS Mehran changed

PNS Mehran Base Commander Commodore Raja Tahir has been removed from his post after being suspended and Commodore Khalid Parvez has been appointed new base commander. According to the defence sources, Commodore Raja Tahir would remain suspended till the completion of the inquiry.

Four navy personnel currently in Adiala prison were also questioned during preliminary investigations. The all were court-martialed. None of them had ever been posted to PNS Mehran Base.

Importance of Biodiversity – Urgent need of mass awareness

Provincial Minister for Environment, Wajid Ali Khan has called upon all the stakeholders to create awareness among people regarding importance of bio-diversity so that the species facing threats could be saved from being extinct. Addressing a function jointly arranged by Wildlife Department, Environment Protection Agency (EPA), Forest and Fisheries Departments, Wajid Ali Khan said its time to give serious consideration to issues concerning biodiversity and earth.

It is need of the hour to create awareness among the masses about threats like habitat loss, deforestation, pollution, global warming etc. The People must be educated about proper use of natural resources on sustainable basis. “If these issues were not given serious consideration, we would not only create problems for our coming generation, but also for ourselves,” Wajid warned.

Doctors save a baby by putting her in fridge

A baby who didn’t breathe for 17 minutes was saved after being put in a ‘fridge’ for three days,  she was born, Sophie Fleet swallowed fluids which caused a blockage in her airways and starved her brain of oxygen. Doctors treated her using medically-induced hypothermia, lowering her body temperature from the normal 37°C to 33.5°C for three days by putting Sophie into a special ‘fridge’ suit pumped with water to keep her body cool.

This reduced pressure on Sophie’s brain, thereby preventing further brain damage. She could go home with her parents nine days later, and only sustained mild brain damage. Sophie’s parents know that the outcome could have been much worse – their daughter could have suffered either severe or brain damage – without the hypothermia.