web analytics

ARY NEWS

Zahid Noor

  • Passengers travelling to Pakistan without health certificate stopped at UK airport

    Passengers travelling to Pakistan without health certificate stopped at UK airport

    MANCHESTER, United Kingdom: The passengers travelling to Pakistan without having coronavirus health certificate stopped at the airport by a foreign airline, ARY News reported on Friday.

    The passengers who are ready to depart to Pakistan have been stopped by the Etihad Airways’ staff for not possessing COVID-19 pandemic health certificate.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistani authorities had made it mandatory for the submission of coronavirus health certificate for the people arriving in the country.

    It emerged that the COVID-19 screening test is being conducted with the charges of 400 British pounds, whereas, the health report comes after 48 hours.

    On the other hand, Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) set condition to accept only health certificates generated within the time period of 24 hours.

    Earlier on Thursday, Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had clarified that the nationals returning back to Pakistan have been temporarily exempted from the submission of the coronavirus health certificates till March 21.

    The relaxation was given by the aviation authorities following the request of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Air Marshal Arshad Malik.

    CAA COVID-19 coronavirus health report exemption

    CAA directed in its NOTAM, obtained by ARY News, that allowed passengers ‘already airborne on direct flights for Pakistan prior to the time of effect’ March 21 (8:00 pm) would be allowed to disembark without the requirement of COVID-19 RT-PCR test result or certificate.

    The spokesperson of Aviation Division rejected the report of a private TV channel regarding a decision to remove the condition of RT-PCR test for coronavirus after March 21 and termed it ‘incorrect’. The statement added that the aviation division has not made any such decision.

  • UK postpones elections for local councils due to coronavirus

    UK postpones elections for local councils due to coronavirus

    LONDON: The United Kingdom (UK) has postponed elections for its local councils for one year due to spread of coronavirus which was scheduled to be held on May 7, ARY News reported on Friday.

    According to the British election commission, the move was adopted to contain the spread of COVID-19 which delayed polls in 118 local councils, London Assembly and the election of seven English regional mayors.

    Previously, the commission completed all arrangements for the upcoming polls and candidates were running their electoral campaigns since last few months.

    However, the rising number of cases of coronavirus pushed the local councils’ election into delay.

    It is pertinent to mention here that the number of coronavirus cases rises to 789 and 10 persons died with the disease.

    British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had warned on Thursday that many more families would see their loved ones die from coronavirus, as the government’s chief scientific adviser said Britain likely has as many as 10,000 people infected.

  • Another country to shut schools and universities over coronavirus

    Another country to shut schools and universities over coronavirus

    DUBLIN: Ireland will shut schools, universities and childcare facilities until March 29 and restrict mass gathering to slow the spread of the coronavirus, acting Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Thursday.

    Ireland’s chief medical officer said the government had turned to measures to try to delay the spread, rather than simply contain it, following fresh case information late on Wednesday.

    Details on new cases will be provided at 1730 GMT.

    Ireland confirmed its first death of a patient diagnosed with the coronavirus on Wednesday as the number of confirmed cases of the virus rose to 43 from 34 a day earlier. There are also 18 cases in Northern Ireland, the British region which shares an open border with the Irish republic.

    “From 6 p.m. today, the following measures are being put in place and they will stay in place until March 29: schools, colleges and childcare facilities will close from tomorrow, where possible teaching will be done online or remotely,” Varadkar said in statement.

    Within an hour, long queues formed at supermarkets in central Dublin despite repeated calls by ministers not to resort to panic buying.

    “Our advice is that all indoor mass gatherings of more than 100 people and outdoor mass gatherings of more than 500 people should be cancelled. You need to continue to go to work if you can, but where possible you should work from home.”

    Varadkar encouraged people to limit social interactions and for offices to stagger break times and hold meetings remotely to limit contact. While restaurants can stay open, they should look at how to operate social distancing, he added.

    Public transport will continue to operate and shops will remain open with plans in place to ensure supply chains will not be interrupted, he said.

    On Monday, Ireland cancelled all St. Patrick’s Day parades which draw hundreds of thousands of revellers, including tourists from around the world, each March.

  • England’s cricket team will soon visit Pakistan, says British HC

    England’s cricket team will soon visit Pakistan, says British HC

    MANCHESTER: British High Commissioner (HC) Dr Christian Turner on Saturday said security situation in Pakistan has improved, England’s cricket team will visit Pakistan soon to play cricket series, ARY News reported.

    Addressing a press conference in Manchester, Dr Christian Turner said Mayor of Manchester will visit Pakistan next year, along with a high-level delegation to review security situation.

    The high commissioner said Pakistan is ranked in top three countries in terms of trade with the British. “Currently the trade volume between both the countries stands at 3.3 billion pounds.”

    Dr Christian Turner vowed to double the trade volume between both the countries. The UK would explore the potential of investments in such areas as clean energy, combating climate change, health, education and tourism sectors in Pakistan, he added.

    Read more: COAS Bajwa, UK high commissioner discuss matters of mutual interest  

    Back in the month of January, British High Commissioner to Pakistan Dr. Christian Turner had called on Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance Abdul Hafeez Shaikh to discuss issues related to mutual interests between both the countries.

    Abdul Hafeez Shaikh had said that economic development without expenditures and investments is not long-lasting and the incumbent government wants economic progress linked with improvement in the country’s exports.

  • Nawaz’s return is possible if courts issue orders, says Lord Nazir Ahmed

    Nawaz’s return is possible if courts issue orders, says Lord Nazir Ahmed

    LONDON: British House of Lords Member Nazir Ahmed on Thursday said that Nawaz Sharif’s return from London is possible if Pakistani courts issue orders regarding him, ARY NEWS reported.

    “If Pakistani courts order his return then it is possible to bring him back to the country,” he said adding that British government respects Pakistani courts.

    He said that the court orders are given priority over any political moves from a government. “Although his repatriation from London is a difficult task but it is not an impossible one, ” he said.

    Lord Nazir Ahmed further cast his doubts on the intentions of the incumbent government in bringing back Nawaz Sharif. “The masses now look towards the government for concrete efforts in this regard,” he said adding that the task could be achieved if the government shows its seriousness on the matter.

    Former Law Minister Punjab, Rana Sanaullah on Wednesday claimed that his ailing leader Nawaz Sharif was likely to undergo proper treatment this week or the next week.

    Talking to media persons outside the Lahore High Court, the politician in an answer to a question about the tentative date for the arrival of Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif to Pakistan, Rana said that he is likely to return during this month.

    Read More: Court rejects plea to hold daily proceedings against Rana Sanaullah

    Sana added that Shehbaz Sharif was staying back in London due to the consistently deteriorating health of the former premier, otherwise he would’ve been back by now.

    He also claimed that as soon as Nawaz Sharif’s health saw improvement, Shehbaz Sharif will surely return.

  • Former member EU parliament bashes Int’l community’s role on Kashmir

    Former member EU parliament bashes Int’l community’s role on Kashmir

    A former member of the European Parliament Sajjad Haider in an exclusive interview with ARY News on Thursday said that the silence of international community on prevalent human rights violations in India is a cause of serious concern, ARY News reported.

    Haider said that international powers have superseded their business interests rather than pay heed to the gross violations being carried out by India against their minorities.

    Read More: Foreign Office rejects Indian narrative of ‘normalcy’ in occupied Kashmir 

    He continued that when American President Donald Trump tried to mediate the dispute between the two countries and the afflicted people of Kashmir, India moved in and illegally annexed Kashmir.

    This time around, Trump’s visit sparked a massive wave of racially motivated attacks on the minorities in the Indian capital of Delhi, said Haider.

    He said that these are very troubling and testing time for Muslims across the globe and America’s role on both occasions had remained unfortunate, to say the least.

    Read More: Indian police arrest five more youth during crackdown operations occupied Kashmir

    Haider went on to claim that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on whatever is happening in India is his agreement and support to the transgressions being carried out, Gujrat riots and Modi’s role in them should not be ignored.

    In conclusion, the former member European parliament said that the real catalysts of taking things to things to this bloody extremes are the international powers who have thus far refused to play their roles to the best of their abilities.

  • Country moving on right trajectory, says governor Punjab

    Country moving on right trajectory, says governor Punjab

    MANCHESTER: Governor Punjab Chaudhry Sarwar on Wednesday said that country is moving on the right path under dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

    Talking to ARY News after arriving in Manchester along with a delegation of Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Chaudhry Sarwar said despite of crunch times, the country is now moving in right trajectory.

    The governor called upon the British investors to benefit from the business-friendly policies in Pakistan and added that confidence of international investors is now being restored.

    Replying to a query, he said the whole world is appreciating PM Imran Khan’s role in US-Taliban peace deal. “Some powers are unable to digest the peace accord.”

    Read more: Govt seeks deportation of Nawaz Sharif from London

    Commenting on plight of Muslims in India and occupied Kashmir, the governor said Muslims have rejected the controversial Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) and went to say a bill condemning the CAA will soon be introduced in Europe too.

    Chaudhry Sarwar said he has no information of penning letter to the British government for deportation of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and further added that the federal government along with the Punjab’s provincial government is dealing with the matter.

  • England, Pakistan join hands to ensure clean, affordable drinking water for South Punjab

    England, Pakistan join hands to ensure clean, affordable drinking water for South Punjab

    MANCHESTER: Huddersfield senior research fellow Dr Muhammad Usman Ghori will be working with Pakistani officials to bring clean, affordable drinking water to the people of South Punjab, ARY News reported on Thursday. 

    Fresh, clean water supply will be a reality in Pakistan, particularly in South Punjab, following the announcement of an international partnership spearheaded by the Pakistan government, alongside other key stakeholders, and driven by the University of Huddersfield.

    Read More: Punjab governor briefs PM Imran on clean water project

    The initiative, led by University of Huddersfield Senior Research Fellow Dr Muhammad Usman Ghori, will transform the water supplies in the region into affordable drinking water for the benefit of the whole population and also will provide a sustainable option of raw material to fabricate healthcare products.

    It is an initiative that is much needed by a considerable population of Pakistan. In a recent study, the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) found that a sizeable portion of the supplied water was not suitable for human consumption. The contaminated water was contributing to a significant number of deaths every year and a large part of Pakistan’s GDP was spent on health care of people who suffer from water-borne diseases.

    Read More: Punjab govt approves installation of advanced water meters

    However, a solution to providing a clean water supply is present in abundance in the region’s Koh-e-Suleiman mountain range in the form of a raw nano-clay with properties that can be targeted for a number of health-giving applications.

  • Why has India been hushing up facts if all is well, asks British minister

    Why has India been hushing up facts if all is well, asks British minister

    MANCHESTER: British shadow foreign minister Afzal Khan says his ministry is looking into India’s denying Debbie Abrahams, leader of the UK Parliament’s All Party Parliamentary Group for Kashmir, entry into the country.

    Talking to ARY News, he said New Delhi would be made to account for the deportation of the British MP.

    He said the issue would be raised at higher echelons of the government.

    Afzal Khan asked why has India been hiding the facts when it says all is well.

    Hitting out at Indian brutalities in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, he said the disputed territory is reeling from an eight-month-long lockdown. He stressed there is a need for talks between Pakistan and India on the Kashmir issue.

    Read More: British MP denounces India deporting Debbie Abrahams

    The British minister said there are more than one lac jobs of doctors and nurses in the National Health Service of the United Kingdom. Besides, he added there are thousands of employment opportunities in technology and other sectors of the country, for which Pakistanis can seek visa as per its new policy.

    He expressed satisfaction over the prevailing security situation in Pakistan saying it has led to improvement in foreign investors’ confidence. He added Pakistan is moving ahead in a right direction, results of which would be witnessed in the foreseeable future.

    Read More: British lawmaker denied entry to India over critical stance on Kashmir

  • British MP denounces India deporting Debbie Abrahams

    British MP denounces India deporting Debbie Abrahams

    Labour Party MP in the British Parliament Hilary Benn has denounced the treatment meted out to Debbie Abrahams, leader of the UK Parliament’s All Party Parliamentary Group for Kashmir, by India.

    Talking exclusively to ARY News here, he said the British MP was denied entry into the country as she was kept from meeting her Indian relatives due to her extensive work on the Kashmir issue from the group’s platform ruffling a few feathers in New Delhi.

    The UK lawmaker further said the Kashmir issue won’t be resolved without dialogue, stressing the need for talks to solve the decades-old dispute souring ties between the two nuclear-armed countries.

    He expressed concern over what he said a dangerous situation in the occupied Kashmir where human rights violations are continuing unabated. He said the time has come to kick start talks to bring an end to human rights violations in the disputed region.

    There is a crying need for talks between Pakistan and India to solve the Kashmir dispute, Hilary Benn said.

    To a question, he said India’s treatment of Debbie Abrahams would be brought into notice of the UK parliament.

    Read More: British lawmaker denied entry to India over critical stance on Kashmir

    India earlier this week denied entry to a British lawmaker, Debbie Abrahams who has been critical of policies of New Delhi over Kashmir after she landed at New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.

    Taking to the Micro-blogging website Twitter on the matter, Abrahams questioned the behaviour saying: “Why did the Indian Government revoke my visa after it was granted? Why didn’t they let me get a ‘visa on arrival’? Is it because I have been critical of the Indian Government on #Kashmir human rights issues?”

    Debbie said: “Just to be clear, I have Indian relatives who I was meant to be visiting with & have Indian members of staff accompanying me. The reason I got into politics is advance social justice & human rights for all. I will continue to challenge my own Government & others on these issues.”