Author: dailybalochistantimes.com

Hyderabad: A high level meeting chaired by the Deputy Commissioner (DC) Jamshoro Ghazanfar Ali Qadri was held to review arrangements for the 773rd annual Urs of Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, scheduled from February 18 to 20, 2025.

According to a handout issued on Tuesday, the meeting was attended by SSP Jamshoro Muhammad Zafar Siddique Chhanga, Chief Administrator Auqaf Irshad Ali Samo, Director Culture Sher Muhammad Mehar, Additional DC-I Nooruddin Hingorjo, Director Syed Abdullah Shah Institute of Medical Sciences Dr. Moinuddin Siddiqui, District Information Officer Alamgir Ranjhani and representatives from police, Rangers, Special Branch, Local Government, Irrigation and other departments.

Addressing the participants, DC Qadri emphasized ensuring basic facilities for visitors, adding that millions of visitors were also expected to attend this year. He directed officials to submit contingency plans to the DC office and instructed police to ensure foolproof security. SSP Chhanga outlined the deployment of 4,920 personnel, installation of CCTV cameras, walkthrough gates and the establishment of a central control room for monitoring. Apart from this, the services of rangers will also be taken for security, while plain clothes officials will also perform their duties.

The health department and PPHI were tasked with setting up medical camps and ensuring ambulance availability. District Health Officer Imamuddin Khoso committed to organizing 56 medical camps, while Dr. Moinuddin Siddiqui of Syed Abdullah Shah Institute confirmed emergency measures would be enhanced.

The local government officials were directed to submit a report on fire brigade readiness within seven days, with any faulty vehicles to be repaired urgently. Moreover, Rescue 1122 and Sindh Solid Waste Management services will be active during the event. HESCO was also directed to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply.

The meeting was informed that to prevent untoward incidents, Navy personnel will patrol Arral Wah and Danistar Wah canals using boats.

A special committee under the DC's leadership was formed to oversee arrangements, ensuring a smooth and secure Urs for all visitors.

Peshawar: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Khan Gandapur here Tuesday chaired a meeting to discuss measures needed to combat air pollution and improve quality of air.

The meeting among others was attended by cabinet members including Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif and Pir Musawir Shah, Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry, Additional Chief Secretary Planning and Development Ikramullah Khan, relevant administrative secretaries and other senior officials.

The meeting comprehensively deliberated on issues related to air quality and took numerous important decisions to control air pollution. Participants decided to introduce an Electric Vehicle Policy in the province to address air pollution challenges and finalizing an action plan aimed at improving the Air Quality Index (AQI) and controlling the smog in Peshawar and adjacent districts.

It was said that proposed action plan would be presented to the provincial cabinet for final approval and a task force would be established to ensure its effective implementation. The meeting also agreed to form a committee under headship of Additional Chief Secretary Planning and Development to oversee the measures and efforts of all relevant departments and institutions.

It was decided to establish a modern control room for real-time monitoring of Air Quality in Peshawar and surrounding districts. The meeting also decided to install an Emission Monitoring System to regularly monitor industrial emissions and develop a mechanism for emission testing of vehicles at entry and exit points of Peshawar.

The process of issuing vehicle fitness certificates would be digitized, and brick kilns across the province will be registered and shifted to Zigzag Technology in phased manner. Relevant authorities were also directed to strictly enforce the decision to close illegal crushing plants in the province and take strict action against industrial units causing air pollution. Similarly, it was agreed to take action against petrol pumps selling substandard fuel and to establish Air Quality Monitoring Stations at all divisional headquarters.

Moreover, air purification Towers would be installed in Peshawar and steps would be taken to enhance the capacity of Environmental Protection Agency. To reduce smog and air pollution, effective and meaningful collaboration would be established between relevant departments, academia and donor agencies, meeting concurred.

A public awareness campaign would also be launched to educate people about the negative effects of air pollution and environment-friendly trees would be planted on a large scale during the upcoming plantation campaign.

The meeting was informed about current air quality in Peshawar, factors harming the air quality and other related issues. It was noted that the largest contributor to air pollution is the transport sector that is responsible for 58% of air pollution followed by road side dust which contributes 17%.

Addressing the meeting, the Chief Minister said that air pollution is a critical issue and immediate measures are necessary to prevent it from becoming a more serious problem, adding that government was committed to effectively addressing this challenge.

"Identifying the contributing factors accurately and devising a comprehensive and practical strategy to address them is the need of the hour", he remarked and assured that the government would prioritize providing the necessary resources for the implementation of the action plan.

The Chief Minister directed that timelines be set for the implementation of proposed measures to ensure better outcomes and developing an effective coordination system among all relevant departments and institutions.

He emphasized special attention to tree planting and green belts in government offices, roadsides and other public places besides regular cleaning of roads in urban areas. He directed educational institutions to take special initiatives to raise awareness among children about air pollution.

Peshawar: Toseef Nawab, 7th-semester student from the Industrial Engineering Department, University of Engineering and Technology, Peshawar has emerged as a winner in the Students Category of the 'NUST X UNDP Innovation and Entrepreneurship Award', an initiative supported by UNDP and USAID in collaboration with NUST, Islamabad.

Toseef would receive the grant of Rs. 1 million as part of the Business Development Support Fund and has been invited to join a tailored incubation program to further enhance his business idea.

The project addresses a critical environmental issue in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where more than 700 marble factories generate an estimated 300 tons of marble slurry waste annually.

This waste has detrimental effects on agricultural lands and aquatic ecosystems. His innovative solution involves waste management by reusing marble slurry to create tuff tiles and curb stones, offering an environmentally sustainable and cost-effective alternative.

Earlier, Toseef was shortlisted to attend a two-week boot camp at NUST, which he successfully completed refining his project idea further.