Sri Lankan authorities urged to send cricket teams to Pakistan

Karachi Observer Report


KARACHI: The Sri Lankan cricket authorities have been urged to resume sending teams to Pakistan.

The special request was made during the dinner-reception hosted in the honour of the visiting Pakistan Panthers Veterans cricket squad in Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, the other day.

Former Test captain and batting legend, Zaheer Abbas, who is also the Cricket Ambassador of the touring party, expressed the hope that the Sri Lankans will consider their request of sending their teams to Pakistan.

“The need of the hour is sending of teams to play in Pakistan. We desire Sri Lanka to play cricket in Pakistan. As neighbors and friends in cricket it’s our humble request to let other Sri Lankan cricket teams to play against Pakistan if there are reservations about sending the national team,” Zaheer Abbas remarked in his speech.

He acknowledged the Sri Lankan hospitality which made him feel the beautiful Island as his second home. He appreciated the Veterans series being arranged in the region. He conveyed his special thanks to Chandana Amaradasa and his team at Island Leisure for the excellent arrangements.

Fawad Ijaz Khan, captain of the squad and Chairman of the Pakistan Veterans Cricket Association (PVCA), explained the importance of their role in cricket.

“In Pakistan a cricketer is considered a senior above 35 years, veteran above 50 years and super veteran above 60 years of age once he is retired from international cricketing career. When considering the conditions in the region including Sri Lanka and India, above 35 years seniors’ cricket could be promoted with a lot of competition. This would attract a lot of media and commercial sponsorships which makes it highly marketable,” the PVCA Chairman observed.

“The PVCA initiated a series of cricket matches against India which succeeded as an annual event. This tour to Sri Lanka would be another landmark event for Pakistani veterans who look forward to a Triangular Veterans Series with India and Sri Lanka in the future,” Fawad Ijaz added.

Ashiq Hussain Qureshi, CEO, PVCA, stressed on the social welfare projects being carried out by the association apart from working for the betterment of the game.

“Joining hands with Imran Khan Foundation to provide healthcare facilities in Pakistan and working towards a better retirement scheme for the cricketers feature proninently in the list of our priorities,” he said.

A few of the Sri Lankan cricketers of the past added colour to the occasion with the presence of renowned gentlemen of the game like Michael Tissera, Roy Dias, Asoka De Silva and Anura Tennekoon who shared the golden memories with their Pakistani counterparts. It was a chance for all of them to meet once again and perhaps continue with their style in cricket as veterans in the game. Mr. Upali Dharmadasa Chairman and Prakash Schaffter Secretary of Sri Lanka Cricket also witnessed a Match in Colombo and met the Pakistani Team there.

A team of veteran Pakistani cricketers are currently undertaking a goodwill tour of Sri Lanka. They have played two matches in Colombo before having moved to Kandy for the last couple of games.

Pakistan Panthers Veterans secure second successive win in Sri Lanka

Karachi Observer Report

KARACHI: Pakistani Panther Veterans registered their successive win during their ongoing tour of Sri Lanka when they whipped Western Province Veterans by 39 runs at the P. Sara Ground in Colombo on October 3. 

Pakistan’s veteran outfit, captained by Fawad Ijaz Khan and containing former Test and first-class cricketers, is currently on a goodwill tour visiting Sri Lanka where they will play their last two matches in Kandy against Kandurata Veterans XI later in the week. They had overpowered Western Province Veterans by three wickets in the opening game.

Pakistani Panther Veterans made the most of friendly batting conditions and easy paced pitch while batting first after winning the toss. Jaffer Qureshi led the run spree with an aggressive 106 while the momentum was sustained by the other batsmen.

Skipper Fawad Ijaz contributed an attractive 33 while Mansoor Akhtar, a former Test cricketer, contributed 21. The innings ended with a flourish as Ashraf Pakhali and Najeeb Sadiq remained undefeated on 43 and 22 respectively to raise the total to 274 in 35 overs despite fine bowling by A J Samarasekara and M D F Ravindra, who shared five wickets between them.

Chasing a formidable y target of 275 runs in 35 overs, Western Province Veterans responded positively but ran out of steam in the end to be bowled for 236 in 32.5 overs. 

Useful contributions from Nallaiah Devarajan (29), Asoka De Silva (29), Lindan Hannibal (24) and M D F Ravindra (21) kept the match alive but the fine bowling by the Pakistan trio of Ghaffar Kazmi (3-18), Najeeb Sadiq (3-25) and Jaffer Qureshi (3-53) won the day for the visitors. Jaffer Qureshi was adjudged Man of the Match for his terrific all-round performance.

Summarized scores:

Pakistan Panthers Veterans XI: 274-5 in 35 overs (Jaffer Qureshi 106, Fawad Ijaz Khan 33, Manzoor Akhtar 21, Ashraf Pakhali 43 not out, Najeeb Sadiq 22 not out; A J Samarasekara 3-48, M D F Ravindra 2-43)

Western Province Veterans XI: 236 in 32.5 overs (Nallaiah Devarajan 29, Asoka De Silva 29, Lindan Hannibal 24, M D F Ravindra 21; Ghaffar Kazmi 3-18, Najeeb Sadiq 3-25, Jaffer Qureshi 3-53).

Result: Pakistan Panthers Veterans XI won by 39 runs

Mahtab Rashidi delivers inspiration speech at SSUET

Karachi Observer Report

Former Sindh Secretary for Information and Education, Mrs Mahtab Akbar Rashdi has said that the younger generation is our replica in which we have great hopes as future is waiting for them.

She was addressing a students and faculty members of Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology (SSUET) while delivering a lecture on the topic of “Professional Grooming- Personal excellence comes first” the other day.

Mrs Rashdi was the first woman who joined Sindh Government as Secretary and served at different important positions till her retirement from service.

“We are the past and you are our replica and we want to you grow” she told the students.

“We have great hopes in our younger generation and they have all the opportunities to grow with knowledge and technology being in their reach”

At the outset of her lecture she paid rich tributes to great reformer Sir Syed Ahmed Khan for his vision for the Muslims of the sub-continent and produced people like Mr Z.A. Nizami and many other outstanding personalities.

She said that Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah carved out this country and today we are proud of our country and our being Pakistanis.

Telling that “we are the past now and you are the future”, Mrs Rashdi told the students that now it was for them to achieve which they are to achieve as being future hope of the country.

She said that when she and people like her entered the practical life, no one was there to tell them about professional grooming. But whatever they learnt, they had it from their home, parents and ultimately their teachers.

Mahtab pointed out that today is the world of competition and it is time fior them to learn how to march ahead as their strength is to be channelized for the country.

With the help of slides she explained to them at length as to what is a professional image and how to create it and quoted Laura Morgan Roberts who said that “if you are not managing your own professional image, others are”.

She categorized professional image as desired and undesired ones and explained as to what steps they can take to ensure that they are projecting the professional image they want. Their concern should be as to what their key constituent might say about them when they are not in the room.

She informed them about components of professional image which include personal appearance through clothing, grooming and personal behavior through manners and etiquettes and communication effectiveness.

Mrs Rashdi reminded them that judgments are made about people based on the professional image they display. She told them to think of a person who made a reat first impression on them and said having a good professional image is key because they never get a second chance to make a first impression.

She dilated upon projecting professional image matters, attributes of a professional image, appropriate professional appearance, professional personal behavior, manners and etiquettes, non-verbal communication and verbal and written communication.

In his presidential remarks on the occasion, the Chancellor SSUET, Mr Z.A. Nizami assured that such lecture sessions will continue for grooming of youth for augmentation of their knowledge to help lead them to their successful future career..

Mr Nizami said the University will continuously hold grooming lectures for its students with regard to their behavior and appearance for which all required facilities will be provided and which the university was already doing through career planning.

On the occasion Mrs Rashdi was presented university plaque and souvenirs by Chancellor Mr Z A Nizami.

As it was Defence of Pakistan Day, the participants and guests lit the candles to demonstrate their commitment to the Defence of Pakistan and in memory of the martyrs of 1965 war with India.

"My Parliamentary Dairies" launched in Karachi

Marvi Memon, a former parliamentarian, launched her book ‘My Parliamentary Dairies’ at a five-star hotel of Karachi on August 27. Addressing the launching ceremony, Marvi remarked that during her three years in the National Assembly, she had a choice; either to enjoy the perks of power ignoring the injustice with 99% of Pakistanis and playing the politics of hypocrisy or strive to bring a change in the system. “So I decided to bring that change”, she said.
Marvi said that she had taken her first step. She traveled through the length and breadth of Pakistan to highlight the issues and injustices that enslaved the nation. She spoke about people’s struggle for rights on the floor of the House, in the streets and in front of the judiciary. Marvi said that her people and she lived, laughed, cried, ate and struggled together and most importantly believed in each other. The former MNA said that she simply fought for people’s rights.
“We have to rediscover the meaning of Pakistan and act honesty and loyally with our family and country or we can continue watching and contributing to the downward slide till the meaning of Pakistan becomes irrelevant,” she pointed out. “We should treat each other as the Quaid-e-Azam advised, with no discrimination and no distinction among the communities, castes or creeds,” Marvi urged.
She has dedicated the book to her son Murtaza and all children of Pakistan. She plans to have the book translated and published not only in Urdu and Sindhi but all other national and regional languages. Marvi served as Member of Parliament from March 2008 to June 2011 as a PML MNA. She resigned from her party and parliament in order to set new standards in politics. She was born in Karachi in July 1972. After schooling in Karachi, Paris and Kuwait, she graduated from the London School of Economics with a B.Sc (Econ) Honors in International Relations. She started her career as a banker at Citibank Pakistan where she specialized in Marketing and Quality Management for the consumer bank.
www.Jumbopublishing.com

DCO KARACHI URGE FLOUR MILL OWNERS TO MAKE SUBSIDIZED FLOUR SCHEME EASY

DCO Karachi Mohammad Hussain Syed has expressed apprehension on that the general public was not receiving the benefits of Rs2billion and 26 crores subsidy given by the government on flour during Ramazan-ul-Mubarak. Addressing a meeting in Civic Center on Wednesday he asked the flour mill owners and food department to make the whole procedure easy and better so that the people could avail its benefits. 

The meeting was attended by EDO Revenue Ghanor Leghari, Addl. EDO Revenue Matanat Ali Khan, District Officer Revenue, DDOs Revenue, representatives of Food Department of Sindh Government and floor mills association. 

The meeting reviewed in detail, the benefits receiving by public from subsidized flour scheme. DCO Karachi urged the mill owners and food department to make the delivery of subsidized flour easier so that it could reach to maximum number of poor people in city. He also directed DDOs Revenue to check that how many flour bags were brought to market. He also instructed to compile the complete record of delivery of subsidized flour on town level.

Pak-American student receives US President’s education award

Ali Adil Baloch, born to the parents of Pakistani descent, has received outstanding achievement award in education from United States President Barack Obama.

According to a report published in The Capital Post, a Washington DC-based daily newspaper, recently Ali, from Maryland, has been recognized for having scored consistently high in all his subjects and was awarded this certificate at the end of his elementary school tenure.

The achievement award programme is sponsored by the United States Department of Education (DoE) in association with National Association of Secondary School Principals. It was developed to help principals recognize and honor students who have achieved higher academic goals through their hard work and dedication to learning.

Ali, born to the parents of Pakistani descent, Adil Baloch and Salma Baloch, is one such student who was recognized by his school (Jones Lane Elementary School) and was conferred this award of achievement.

The President's Award for educational excellence recognizes academic success in the classroom. To be eligible for President's Award of educational excellence, students at each award level (elementary, middle, or high school) must meet score 90% or above on a 100-grade scale.

Ali was responsible for presenting his class to the crowd at his class’s graduation ceremony. Despite his academic excellence, Ali is also one of the top performers in his school’s chess club. He loves roller coasters, loves to plays golf with his dad and takes online classes of the Holy Quran regularly.

Youth to take a leading part in the country politics in future: Ahmed Chinoy

KARACHI: Renowned politician and focal personality of political circles Marvi Memon has expressed hopes that the Pakistani youth will change their country’s destiny.

She expressed these views while addressing the third session of the ‘Youth Leadership Development Programme 2011,’ organized by All Pakistan Memon Federation (APMF) Education Board at the National Museum of Pakistan.

The 10-week programme has been launched for Pakistani youngsters between the ages of 17 to 25 years with the slogan of ‘Ae Jazba-e-Dil Gar Me Chahon’ for invoking leadership ability in them. In each session of the programme, leadership in separate sectors is being discussed.

Memon was the chief guest of the third session of programme, which was organized to discuss political leadership. Addressing the session she said that the youth of Pakistan was her only hope.

She expressed her disappointment with the ongoing rulers and politicians present on the floors of assemblies and parliament and said that positive change can be attained if an alternate leadership comprising the youngsters replaces them.

She urged the youth to discharge their duties by casting vote so as to take an active part in constructing the future of Pakistan. Memon highlighted the need of alternative leadership and said that a process was being undertaken and contacts were being made on several levels. She vowed to unite the youth power of both rural and urban areas.

Commenting over the current political situation she said, “Current assembly is a debating club where issues are not solved they are in fact created, political parties fight for power and musical chairs of opposition and treasury benches are played for vested interests”.

Commenting over her resignation she said that she went to the assembly for her people and she has returned for her people. She said that she had been overwhelmed with the respect in response for her decision from across the country.

She termed her struggle as Karavan-e-Haq and said that the only purpose of her struggle was the provision of clean leadership, which will give Pakistanis ‘Rozgar, Tahafuz, Insaaf, and Taraqee’.

Talking about the qualities of her visionary real leadership she said that leadership will be from the people, it will live, eat, suffer, laugh, dream, and progress with them. It will not be only a VIP leadership, which only addresses them through large jalsas. It will be accessible, available, in their streets, their fields. It will understand their pains of not having clean water to drink, their endless load shedding traumas, their gas shortages, their dirty streets without proper sewerage issue. In short it will understand their daily troubles.

She said that talks about the formation of new party was before time. She was of the view that at the time she does not require any separate political forum and people of Pakistan were her platform. To a question she said that under her vision a great alliance of all those politicians, who feel pain of people, is going to be formed and will clean sweep the Pakistani politics.

Responding to a question about the chances of a coalition among existing prominent political parties she said that how would those elements found a greater alliance against corrupts, who had already bestowed them with life. Only Pakistani people will form a greater alliance, which would turn the fate of the country.

On the occasion, Chief Executive Officer Learning Minds Sohail Zindani delivered an eye-opening presentation and highlighted the civic responsibility of Youth in the current political scenario.

An interesting activity was undertaken amid that session in regard with politics. Six political parties were formed. The parties designed their manifesto, announced their candidates and election was held after a short election campaign on the basis of party agenda. Zonar Ponawala was the successful candidate on the occasion. The activity was held so as the participants could examine and understand the political process.

APMF president Ahmed Chinoy urged the youth to take a leading part in the country politics in future and said that their critical contribution will help Pakistan to get politically strong and prosperous.

APMF-Education Board Director Education Rehana Naz also expressed her views on the occasion. She also urged youth to realize their responsibility.

Muhammad Yousuf Adil Chairman APMF-Education Board, Rehana Naz, Director Education, Abdul Razzaq Vayani, Ibrahim Mamdani, Altaf Bawany, Shabbir Bilwani, Farooq Members YLDP Committee also attended the programme.