Anti-narcotics: campaign body to check tobacco use

HYDERABAD: 

The district implementation committee on tobacco control has formed an enforcement team to discourage the use of tobacco in public places, educational institutions, restaurants and recreational places in Hyderabad.

The team comprises police officers, health officers and district coordinator for tobacco control. It was formed in a meeting held by the implementation committee on Friday, under the chair of additional deputy commissioner Abid Saleem Qureshi.

The participants of the meeting observed that tobacco use is causing deaths of 0.1 mllion people every year in Pakistan through cancer and heart diseases. They expressed that there is a dire need to eliminate this menace from the society with the help of people of all segments.

The meeting decided to install anti-tobacco signboards on the roads with the help of  Hyderabad Municipal Corporation. Coordinator tobacco control Abdul Ghaffar Sheerani briefed the attendees  of the meeting on ways to control tobacco.

Pakistan Won the first T 20 Against West Indies

West Indies 152/7 (20/20 ov)

Pakistan 158/8 (20.0/20 ov)

Pakistan won by 2 wickets (with 0 balls remaining)

• Pakistan in West Indies T20I Series - 1st T20I
• T20I no. 321 | 2013 season
• Played at Arnos Vale Ground, Kingstown, St Vincent
• 27 July 2013 (20-over match)

	West Indies innings (20 overs maximum)		R	M	B	4s	6s	SR
	J Charles†	b Mohammad Hafeez	1	1	2	0	0	50.00
	CH Gayle	lbw b Mohammad Hafeez	5	10	6	1	0	83.33
	MN Samuels	c & b Zulfiqar Babar	25	23	22	4	1	113.63
	LMP Simmons	b Zulfiqar Babar	6	8	5	0	1	120.00
	DJ Bravo	c Saeed Ajmal b Zulfiqar Babar	25	40	35	2	0	71.42
	KA Pollard	not out	49	53	36	4	2	136.11
	DJG Sammy*	c Hammad Azam b Mohammad Irfan	30	17	14	2	3	214.28
	SP Narine	run out (Ahmed Shehzad/Mohammad Irfan)	0	2	0	0	0	-
	Extras	(b 2, lb 3, w 6)	11
	Total	(7 wickets; 20 overs)	152	(7.60 runs per over)

Did not bat S Badree, TL Best, ST Gabriel

Fall of wickets 1-2 (Charles, 0.3 ov), 2-13 (Gayle, 2.5 ov), 3-33 (Simmons, 4.4 ov), 4-42 (Samuels, 6.2 ov) 5-98 (Bravo, 15.5 ov), 6-151 (Sammy, 19.5 ov), 7-152 (Narine, 19.6 ov)

	Bowling	O	M	R	W	Econ
	Mohammad Hafeez	2	0	4	2	2.00
	Mohammad Irfan	3	0	39	1	13.00
	Zulfiqar Babar	4	0	23	3	5.75
	Saeed Ajmal	4	0	23	0	5.75	(1w)
	Shahid Afridi	4	0	24	0	6.00
	Junaid Khan	3	0	34	0	11.33	(1w)

	Pakistan innings (target: 153 runs from 20 overs)		R	M	B	4s	6s	SR
	Nasir Jamshed	c Simmons b Gabriel	6	4	4	0	1	150.00
	Ahmed Shehzad	c Pollard b Badree	3	9	6	0	0	50.00
	Mohammad Hafeez*	c Gabriel b Narine	13	19	7	3	0	185.71
	Umar Amin	st †Charles b Samuels	47	41	34	9	0	138.23
	Umar Akmal†	run out (Sammy)	9	13	9	1	0	100.00
	Hammad Azam	c Pollard b Gabriel	10	27	15	0	0	66.66
	Shahid Afridi	c Bravo b Gabriel	46	36	27	4	2	170.37
	Zulfiqar Babar	not out	13	27	17	1	1	76.47
	Saeed Ajmal	run out (Simmons)	0	7	1	0	0	0.00
	Junaid Khan	not out	0	2	0	0	0	-
	Extras	(lb 2, w 9)	11
	Total	(8 wickets; 20 overs)	158	(7.90 runs per over)

Did not bat Mohammad Irfan

Fall of wickets 1-7 (Nasir Jamshed, 0.4 ov), 2-10 (Ahmed Shehzad, 1.4 ov), 3-45 (Mohammad Hafeez, 4.5 ov) 4-77 (Umar Akmal, 8.2 ov), 5-86 (Umar Amin, 11.1 ov), 6-116 (Hammad Azam, 14.6 ov), 7-145 (Shahid Afridi, 18.2 ov),8-152 (Saeed Ajmal, 19.5 ov)

	Bowling	O	M	R	W	Econ
	ST Gabriel	4	0	44	3	11.00	(6w)
	S Badree	3	0	27	1	9.00
	SP Narine	4	0	24	1	6.00
	TL Best	4	0	24	0	6.00	(1w)
	MN Samuels	4	0	33	1	8.25
	DJG Sammy	1	0	4	0	4.00

Match details

Toss West Indies, who chose to bat Series Pakistan led the 2-match series 1-0

T20I debuts Umar Amin and Zulfiqar Babar (Pakistan) Player of the match tba

Umpires GO Brathwaite and PJ Nero TV umpire JS Wilson Match referee DC Boon (Australia) Reserve umpire DK Butler

Match notes

Powerplay: Overs 0.1 - 6.0 (Mandatory - 41 runs, 3 wickets) West Indies: 50 runs in 7.3 overs (45 balls), Extras 0 5th Wicket: 50 runs in 50 balls (DJ Bravo 19, KA Pollard 31, Ex 2) West Indies: 100 runs in 16.4 overs (100 balls), Extras 4 Rain: West Indies - 114/5 in 17.1 overs (KA Pollard 37, DJG Sammy 5) Rain: West Indies - 124/5 in 18.3 overs (KA Pollard 39, DJG Sammy 12) West Indies: 150 runs in 19.4 overs (118 balls), Extras 11 6th Wicket: 50 runs in 23 balls (KA Pollard 16, DJG Sammy 30, Ex 7) Innings Break: West Indies - 152/7 in 20.0 overs (KA Pollard 49) Powerplay: Overs 0.1 - 6.0 (Mandatory - 61 runs, 3 wickets) Pakistan: 50 runs in 5.3 overs (33 balls), Extras 3 Pakistan: 100 runs in 12.2 overs (74 balls), Extras 4 Pakistan: 150 runs in 19.1 overs (115 balls), Extras 10

Pakistan, West Indies ready to shift gears

KARACHI: 

The Twenty20 leg of the tour will not only see the two sides shift gears but also a change at the helm as Pakistan and West Indies clash in the first of the two-match series today in Kingston.

The tourists, pumped by a 3-1 victory in the 50-over format, will now be led by Mohammad Hafeez while Darren Sammy, who lifted the World Twenty20 trophy last year, is back as captain taking guard from Dwayne Bravo for the home side.

Interestingly, both opponents, who have a good reputation in the shortest version of the game, have met just once in Twenty20s with West Indies clinching the tie by seven runs in their 2011 home series.     

However, the hosts will be looking to bounce back after a disappointing series loss in the One-Day Internationals (ODI).

The swashbuckling Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels return in the format after missing games against Zimbabwe. Despite failure in the ODI series, Gayle remains the main threat to Pakistan with his explosive batting trait. Samuels, on the other hand, peaked to form in the ODI series and will be high on confidence.

Spotlight on Hafeez 

Pakistan have been doing well in Twenty20s, beating Australia in the home series in UAE, levelling with India 1-1 and winning the only game that could be played on their tour of South Africa.

They possess an impressive pace attack with Mohammad Irfan in good form, finishing as the best pacer in the ODIs with nine wickets at an average of just over 20, while Junaid Khan also proved his mettle with seven wickets in the last three games after being sidelined for the opening matches. Saeed Ajmal and Shahid Afridi – the top wicket-takers in the last series with 10 scalps – will also pose a challenge to the West Indies firepower.

However, Pakistan will be without talismanic ODI captain Misbahul Haq, who has been anchoring the team’s struggling batting in the format. In contrast Hafeez, the Twenty20 captain has been suffering a grey patch, failing in the 50-over series by managing just 105 from five innings.

Former Pakistan Cricket Board chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed said that Hafeez was due a big performance and his return to form was vital for Pakistan.

“Hafeez must return to form,” said Ahmed. “It is very important for a captain to perform and Hafeez must work hard to regain form.”

India claims Pakistani crossborder firing injures their soldier

SRINAGAR: Following claims from Pakistan that Indian firing had killed at least one soldier and injured another, Indian authorities claimed that a member of their Border Secuiry Force (BSF) had been injured in one of the two incidents of ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops on Saturday, New Delhi Television reported.

According to the report, Pakistani troops allegedly used mortars, RPGs and heavy machine guns to fire at a BSF post at Hiranagar in Samba sector of Jammu and Kashmir leading to heavy firing exchanges.

Officers of the Army and BSF said that Head Constable Baljeet Singh from the 68 Battalion was injured in the firing and had to be hospitalised.

Indian officers claimed that Pakistan had committed two ceasefire violations, with Pakistani troops firing at the Indian Army posts in Poonch sector near the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir earlier in the day.

“Pakistani troops have targeted Indian posts by firing rocket projectile grenades (RPGs) and heavy machine guns along LoC in Doda Battalion forward area in Poonch district since 0730 hours today,” a senior Army officer said.

Indian troops retaliated effectively, resulting in heavy exchanges which were on for five hours, the officer said.

According to India, this is sixth ceasefire violation in July this year.

Calling it a day: Canadian oil and gas firm decides to quit Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Canadian oil and gas exploration firm Niko Resources (Pakistan) Limited (NRPL) has decided to pack up and quit Pakistan apparently because of low wellhead gas prices that make it difficult to sustain operations.

NRPL, a subsidiary of Canada’s Niko Resources Limited, was exploring hydrocarbons in four offshore blocks in Indus namely Indus-X, Indus-Y, Indus-Z and Indus North. The company has collected 2,000 square kilometres of 3-D seismic data in these blocks.

“Now, Niko Resources has served a notice, announcing its decision to quit these four blocks and wind up the company in Pakistan,” an official said.

Niko is a Calgary-based independent international oil and gas company with operations in India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Kurdistan, Trinidad, Madagascar and Pakistan.

It is one of the fastest growing companies in the industry with market capitalisation of over $5 billion in the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NKO. The government of Pakistan had awarded the four blocks to Niko in March 2008 for offshore drilling.

According to sources, low wellhead gas price for offshore fields was one of the key reasons which forced Niko Resources to stop operations in Pakistan.

“Drilling of an onshore well requires expenditure of $15 million whereas an offshore well needs spending of $80 to $100 million,” a source said, adding exploration companies working on offshore fields had been demanding more incentives to make drilling for oil and gas economically viable.

Sources revealed that Canadian High Commissioner to Pakistan met Federal Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the first week of July. During the deliberations, Abbasi asked the high commissioner to persuade Niko Resources to take back its decision of leaving Pakistan as the government “is now offering incentives for offshore drilling.”

In the new Petroleum Policy 2012, the price of gas discovered in the Offshore Shallow Zone will be $7 per million British thermal units (mmbtu), for Offshore Deep Zone the price will be $8 per mmbtu and for Offshore Ultra Deep Zone the price will be $9 per mmbtu.

A bonanza of $1 per mmbtu has also been announced for the first gas discovery in the offshore field.

Abbasi told the diplomat that Pakistan had huge reserves of natural resources and there were ample opportunities for investment in the oil, gas and mineral sectors. “We welcome Canadian investment and technical support in the oil and gas sector in Pakistan,” he said.

Pakistan has a vast onshore and offshore sedimentary area covering 827,268 square kilometres, of which around 30% is being explored.

Owing to existing opportunities, transparent and predictable policies and presence of major international exploration firms like ENI and BHP, there is vast potential of investment in Pakistan, Abbasi said.

Missing Spanish climbers ‘dead’

MADRID: Three Spanish climbers who went missing in the mountains of northern Pakistan earlier this week were pronounced dead on Friday, their colleagues on the expedition said.

“After losing contact with them on the morning of July 22 and given the adverse climatic conditions at altitude in the following days, we made one more flight search that confirmed our worst fears: the three have died,” they said in a statement.

The organiser of the expedition, Javier Garrido, had contacted the three mountaineers, Abel Alonso, Xevi Gomez and Alvaro Paredes, for the last time on Monday when they were sheltered close to base camp.

The group was descending towards the Gasherbrum-I peak last weekend when four of them lost the rest of the team, the president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, Manzoor Hussain, had told AFP on Tuesday.

“One of the four mountaineers who was lost managed to find the path and returned to base camp,” he said.

“The other three disappeared. No one knows where they are. It appears they were caught in a snow storm.”

Earlier this week Pakistani authorities also abandoned the search for three Iranian mountaineers who disappeared while attempting to scale a mountain known as Broad Peak.

The three Spaniards’ colleagues published the statement on the blog of Alfredo Garcia, who had been briefly missing before managing to return to the base camp.

MLAs take back no-confidence motion against AJK PM

MUZAFFARABAD: The no-confidence motion – moved against Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majid – was taken back on Friday,  News reported.

The move comes after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif asked Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz’s (PML-N) members to stay impartial on the issue.

Two members of the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly (MLAs) from the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had submitted the no-trust motion against him on July 22 in a surprise attempt to bring an in-house change in the assembly.

“Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majid [has] failed to deliver [on his promise of] good governance, implement merit and root out corruption in government departments,” alleged the MLAs, Majid Khan and Muhammad Hussain Sargala, in the charge-sheet they submitted to the assembly’s secretary, Chaudhry Basharat.

This was the fourth time a no-confidence motion was moved against a sitting AJK prime minister. Three earlier motions were successfully passed and the premiers were sent home packing.

K-P governor refuses to term Fata attacks as sectarian

PESHAWAR: A day after twin blasts tore through a market and a vehicle stand in the Shia dominated town of Parachinar, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Governor Shaukatullah Khan said on Saturday that the attacks were not sectarian, Radio Pakistan reported.

Talking to a delegation of elders of Islamabad based residents of Kurram Agency‚ he said that terrorist attacks in Kurram Agency target innocents.

The Governor also directed the authorities concerned to make strict security arrangements in the Agency and urged residents to keep a close watch on the entry of foreigners into their respective areas.

As many as 52 people were killed and over 100 people were injured in twin bombings at the main market of Parachinar and a vehicle stand.

Tragedy averted: Suspected suicide bomber shot dead in Quetta

QUETTA: Residents of Aliabad area of Hazara town in Quetta seem to have foiled a suicide attack after they shot and killed an alleged suicide bomber, News reported.

The suicide bomber was making his way towards the neighbourhood Imam Bargah when the locals noticed his suspicious behavior, and one of them shot at him. The bomber was hit in the head and killed on the spot.

According to eye witnesses, security officials were not near the scene when the alleged bomber tried to enter the area on his cycle.

An inspection of the body later revealed that the suspect was wearing a suicide vest with ball bearings and carried a grenade.

The locals of the area have formed an unofficial security force that looks out for the neighbourhood along with official security forces in light of the ongoing sectarian killings that have spread through the area, Express News correspondent Arif Mehmood reported.

The bomber’s body has been shifted to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH).

Residents reported that the area had previously seen a number of deadly suicide attacks in recent years with heavy casualties.