Pakistan launches renewable energy policy

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Dec. 19 Pakistan's announced Monday the launch of the country's first formal renewable energy policy.The policy comprises three phases: short term medium term and long term, Federal Minister for Water and Power Ali Jatoi said. The short-term phase covers the period up to June 2008.The Policy for Development of Renewable Energy for Power Generation was approved by the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet, the Dawn newspaper reported Tuesday.

Jatoi said the policy provides incentives for private sector investments in renewable energy. Specifically, the country is hoping to find funding for independent power projects, spillover power projects and captive power projects and isolated grid projects.Renewable generation for small, individual use projects does not require special government permission and the incentives lie in the ability to sell the surplus power to distribution companies, Jatoi said.

Jatoi said the policy provides incentives for private sector investments in renewable energy. Specifically, the country is hoping to find funding for independent power projects, spillover power projects and captive power projects and isolated grid projects.Renewable generation for small, individual use projects does not require special government permission and the incentives lie in the ability to sell the surplus power to distribution companies, Jatoi said.END

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Women in Engineering

Women are a minority in the engineering fields worldwide. From the United States to Europe the number of women that are in the Physical Science and Engineering fields is far less that those of men. The few women that end up in these fields can find it challenging working in a predominantly male environment.

Following is a television interview that the World Business and Technology Television (WBT-TV), in collaboration with the Paksitan Science and Engineering Foundation (PakSEF) and the International Organization for Pakistani Women Engineers (IOPWE) conducted and aired in the Silicon Valley, San Jose, California: http://www.wbt-tv.com/videos.php?sid=20

In this TV segment WBT has profiled two highly successful women, one Ms Kamila Kraba a senior software engineer at Cisco Systems and Ms Hina Naqvi, who is holds a senior level engineering position at Adobe Systems and is the current president of IOPWE.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Seminar by Prof. Fayazuddin on Evolution of Science

Prof. Fayazuddin is one of Pakistan's most eminent physicists.
Recipient of the Hilal-e-Imtiaz (2002) and the Khwarizmi Laureate
Award (2003), he is author of three well-known books on particle
physics and quantum mechanics, and to mention only one of his
contributions to modern particle physics, is the
Kawarabashi-Suzuki-Riazuddin

-Fayyazuddin (KSRF) relation describing
properties of hadrons and mesons.

Prof. Riazuddin will be speaking on the Khwarzimic Science Society platform on:

DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE AND ITS IMPACT ON SOCIETY

on Friday, 22 December 2006, 11 am at:

Centre for Solid State Physics, Punjab University, Quaid-e-Azam (New)
Campus, Lahore.

This is a public lecture and will discuss the contribution of science
to the social evolution of mankind.

A detailed abstract and poster is available on our website:

http://www.khwarzimic.org

Please do take out some time to attend Prof. Fayazuddin's wonderful
exposition of the topic and do not forget to pass on this information
to friends and colleagues.

See you there,

Dr. Saadat Anwar Siddiqi
President
Khwarzimic Science Society

Cell: 0300-4866616

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Professional Technology Publications--A Lack there off

There is so much literature, so many publications published out of Pakistan. However, you wont find many Technology oriented publications other than the Sci-Tech Review DAWN prints each Saturday and Spider Magazine, which is also a DAWN publication. And even these two widely circulated publications aren't something a professional Scientist or Engineer would read. The content of Spider and Sci-Tech is geared for your average non-tech consumer.

These are great publications, no doubt about it but just not something a professional would consider reading or publishing in, other than for his/her personal pleasure.

With little Scientific and Technical publications, how is a country of 166M ever hope to advance itself in the Scientific and technical arena? Even our neighbors like India, China and Iran for crying out loud has a vibrant Scientific culture. What have we to say, other than try and blame government, blame the radicals, blame outside powers---that is all Pakistan's are good it, or it would seem point the finger at others not realizing that reform and progress begins at home.

How much longer will we wait for some boon to fall out of the sky, someone or something to come and say "here I have the solution"? Wake up my dear country folk--wake up and smell the roses, wake up to reality. No one is going yo come and hand us the solution on a silver platter. The solution to Pakistan's Scientific Culture resides within, not without. The solution reside with the Scientific intelligencia, that is with people like you. it is you who will bring change, it is you and you alone who can turn around the despicable situation in the Scientific Culture.

Lets not wait any longer, governments can only do so much---the rest is up to us. It is up to us to make good of the situation, to work with what little infrastructure government has put in place. The government can only provide the tools, it cannot be expected to conduct the cutting edge research and development. Tools, such as funding, University buildings, labs, technology park property, etc is what the what the government can provide. The rest is up to us. We have to take the first steps and boldly venture out into the unknown world of research and entrepreneurship.

So my fellow countrymen and countrywomen, are you ready? Ready for the challenge to boldly go where no Pakistani has gone before? To take the plunge, against all odds, follow your Scientific and Techie passions and make something out of it. [Abdulrahman Rafiq]

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2007

PakSEF's Winter Moot 2007

The 2nd Annual Karachi Winter Moot

Reviving our scientific heritage…

Come join us at the 2^nd Annual Karachi meeting to strategically position the PakSEF charter for the coming year of 2007.

Click for details and to RSVP

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

DENGUE FEVER: A POSSIBLE THREAT TO OUR LIVES?

The Khwarzimic Science Society has organized a popular lecture on Thursday,30 November 2006:

The speaker will be Dr. Waseem Akram, Assistant Professor, Department of Agro-entomology, Agriculture University, Faisalabad. He is currently leading a researh group in Faisalabad conducting research on ways of counteracting and forecasting the outbreak of mosquito-related diseases, especially those protracted from the Asian Tiger mosquito: Asian Tiger Aedes albopictus/aegyptus. Dr. Waseem Akram is also the Associate Editor of the journal, "Entomological Research", published by the Blackwell Publishing Asia Pvt. Ltd.

I would request you to extend this invitation to your colleagues, friends and family members. This is an important topic that concerns our health and safeties. The numerous deaths reported due to dengue fever in our country are really a wake-up call to changing our societal lifestyles and pressing upon the government and non-government organizations to act swiftly and
soundly. Please do not miss out.


The time and venue for the lecture are 12 pm (noon), at the Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Quaid-e-Azam (New) Campus, Punjab University, Lahore. The date is Thursday, 30 November, 2006.

Best regards,

Muhammad Sabieh Anwar
Joint Secretary Khwarzimic Science Society, Lahore



Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Establishment of a VLSI Center for Excellence

On November 16th, 2006 PakSEF endorsed an effort initiated by Saad Rahman on the ASIC-Pakistan e-list to establish a VLSI Center of Excellence in Pakistan. This effort has taking the form of a document which is being compiled by various contributors from around the world.

The document can be viewed at http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dc23v8tg_0fcfxq9.

This is a collaborative effort by Pakistani and Pakistani expatriate Electrical/Electronic engineering professionals. Contact Saad Rahman if you or anyone you know would like to contribute to this effort.

PakSEF is a non-profit professional organization established in 2002 for the promotion and development of Pakistan's Scientific Culture. TO join PakSEF send an email to Abdulrahman Rafiq. Membership is USD 20 or PKR 1,200 per year made payable via PayPal.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

NED Seminar: Cell-Planning for Cellular Networks

A seminar has been arranged for the passing out final year students to facilitate them in preparing for the forth-coming interviews in the telecom companies. The seminar will enable you to acquire knowledge which is only gained by working experience and usually not covered in the text books or the curriculum.

Speaker:
Mr. Jahangir Ali, an NED graduate, has an 8 years experience of cellular nework planning and optimization with major operators/vendors in Europe. He has extensive experience of managing and optimizing the GSM/UMTS systems to achieve key performance indicators (KPIs) for the quality of service (QoS) and to support marketing plans. He has continously worked in multi-vendor environment like Nokia, Motorola, Nortel etc. He has toyed virtually with all the propreitary tools available for radio planning, frequency planning, drive test and peformance monitoring in cellular networks.

Mr. Jahangir has a Masters degree from well-known French school and a specialization course on comptuer netowrks from Supelec.

Date, Time and Venue:
30th November, 1400 to 1600 hours in the VLSI & DSP Lab.

Registration:
Only 20-25 interested participants will be registered. Go to the DSP & VLSI Lab for registration or contact Adeel Razi, razi_adeel@yahoo.com.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Residency & Fellowship Seminar in Silicon Valley

RESIDENCY & FELLOWSHIP SEMINAR

FOR INDIAN & PAKISTANI YOUNG PHYSICIANS IN CALIFORNIA

Organized by AAPIO* & APPNA**

November21st 2006Time: 05:45 - 08:00 pm

VENUE:HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS

Newark, Ca. 94560

Phone: (510) 795-7995)

Guest Speakers: Program Directors from well reputed programs in CA including
Alameda County Oakland Hospital California Pacific Medical Center & Kaiser Permanente.

Come & get your questions answered. A unique opportunity for you to talk to the program directors face to face.

Spots are limited, so kindly RSVP latest by Sunday, Nov 19th 2006 to aifra.ahmed@gmail.com

For Details, contact: Aifra Ahmed

408-332-6153, aifra.ahmed@gmail.com

*AAPIO: American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (www.aapio.org)

**APPNA: Association of Physicians of Pakistani descent of North America (www.appna.org)

[CALL FOR PAPERS] IEEE Conference @ UET Lahore | 11 - 12 April 2007 |

Call For Papers: ICEEE 2007 International on Electrical Engineering


Dates to Remember:

Full Paper Submission: 30 December 2006
Camera Ready Papers: 15 February 2007
Registration Deadline: 15 March 2007
Conference: 11 - 12 April 2007

Conference Topics:

Telecommunication
Embedded Systems & Reconfigurable
Computing
VLSI System, Design for testabilit y
Digital Signal/Image Processing
Control Systems
Power Elec tronic s
Wireless Communication
Biomedical Engineering
Power Generation, Transmission and
U tilization
Computer Networks
A r tificial Intelligence
Data Mining

Contact:

Department of Electrical Engineering
University of Engineering & Technology, Lahore 54890, Pakistan
Ph: +92-42-6829229, Fax: +92-42-6827504, Email: icee2007@uet.edu.pk, URL: http://www.icee2007.org

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Modern Engineering and Science---Where did it all begin?

Part 2:







From the modern astrolab to modern optics, medieval Islamic civilization holds the answers to the beginnings of our present-day technological advance civilization.



The root of modern scientific methods, verifying theory with experiment, the concept that light indeed travels in straight lines was first confirmed by a Muslim Scientist name of Al-Hythem. The list is endless, numerous books and historical accounts have been written on Islamic civilizations contributions to present-day Science and Engineering.



This video merely scraps the surface of a vast array of historical knowledge that can shed a brighter on our present-day technological advancement.




Copyright 2006 Pakistan Science & Engineering Foundation (PakSEF)
A not-for-profit professional organization, www.paksef.org/info.htm

Lahore: Wireless Rural Connectivity Conference and Hands-on Workshop

Everyone is invited to the "Wireless Rural Connectivity Conference and
Hands-on Workshop" Nov 15, 2006 in Lahore. Registration is free and open to
all but nominations with name, contact address and phone; organization
should reach the President P@SHA Ms. Jehan Ara at jehan@cyber. net.pk or
jehan@wiredet. com as soon as possible. If anyone wishes to participate in
this initiative, we would welcome the support with the possibility of
identifying a town or village in Lahore that can be utilized for a hands-on
workshop. Please also inform as many people as you can so that we have a
good turnout and a larger number of people benefit. NGOs, technology people,
government reps, students etc all need to be a part of this.

READ BELOW THIS LINE:

Wireless Rural Connectivity Conference and Hands-on Workshop Nov 15, 2006 in
Lahore - Everyone is invited!

P@SHA (Pakistan Software Houses Association) is planning a Rural Networking
conference and Hands-on Workshop on Nov 15, 2006 in Lahore in collaboration
with Cisco Systems and the Punjab IT Board. The intent is to have a one day
conference followed by a hands-on workshop and actually deployment in one of
the towns or villages close to Lahore if an effort can be identified that
will benefit and can benefit from local support for the first 3 months while
they are learning the ropes. BytesForAll Network South Asia is spreading the
word to all corners of the country.

INTERNATIONAL SPEAKERS

Jim Forster
Co-author of the book "Wireless Networking for the Developing World" and
Cisco's 30th employee (they now number in the tens of thousands) is coming
to Lahore at our request for the Keynote address and to be part of several
panels.

Malcolm Maston
An entrepreneur in the telecoms and IT sectors. In the early 1980's he was a
pioneer of the UK broadband industry and eventually sold his interests to
the US RBOC, Pacific Telesis. As a result of this experience, he began to
develop and enunciate the principles for the emerging digital world of an
OPLAN (open public local access network) as the "4th Utility". He then
formed COLT Telecoms as an OPLAN - Europe's first all-fibre public
telecommunications network but exited the Company when it abandoned the
'open' strategy. Since then he has promoted the OPLAN concept consistently
around the world - doing so now in the name of the OPLAN Foundation
(www.oplan.org) which he founded in 2005 as a not-for-profit body dedicated
to 'opening minds to open networks'. In late 2004, The OPLAN Foundation was
appointed to advise the World Bank on the relevance of 'open access' for the
developing world. He is an advisor to various European cities developing
their own OPLAN strategies and has written widely on the topic for bodies
such as the Institute of Economic Affairs and the Technical University,
Delft, Netherlands. Educated at the University of Nottingham and the Harvard
Business School, he serves on the boards of various private companies
including OpenPlanet Ltd. (www.open-planet. net ) which partners cities and
communities to develop their own OPLANs - serving citizens above all others.

Bjarke Nielsen
An educational leader at DIIRWB (Djursland International Institute of Rural
Wireless Broadband) and he founded the DjurslandS.net, one of the World's
biggest non-commercial rural wireless networks, connecting rural schools,
-institutions, -firms and -up to now more than 5000 rural households to the
Internet.

DIIRWB
Is an institute for training builders of cheap rural wireless broadband,
based on the experience of establishing and running of the DjurslandS.net .
DIIRWB is a cooperation of the "Computer Support Community of Djursland" and
"the Grenaa Technical School".

Bjarke
Founded the Computer Support Community of Djursland in 1993 and has
been its chairman ever since. He is also the chairman of GrenaaS.net, the
area-network of Grenaa, the largest city on Djursland. He also chairs all
pilot projects on rural wireless networks in the EU-funded "Baltic Rural
Broadband Project" in the countries around the Baltic sea in Northern
Europe, and are also project-responsible for the Danish part called
"Networking Djursland". He is a member of the EU-funded think-tank or
advisory-board on "Broadband Access, Innovation & Regional Development" for
the North SeaArea. He is also one of the trendsetting coordinators of the
World Summits on Free Information Infrastructures.

Other speakers include:

Malcolm Bjarke - Open networks advocate from the UK

Corinna"Elektra" Aichele.
Elektra's main interests include autonomous power systems and wireless
communication (antennas, wireless long shots, mesh networking).
Shemadeasmall Linux distro based on slack-ware geared to wireless mesh
networking.

Sebastian Büttrich (http://wire. less.dk/) is a generalist in technology with
a background in scientific programming and physics. Originally from Berlin,
Germany, he worked with IconMedialab in Copenhagen from 1997 until 2002.
HeholdsaPh.D. in quantum physics from the Technical University of Berlin.
His physics background includes fields like RF and microwave spectroscopy,
photo voltaic systems, and advanced maths. He is also a performing and
recording musician.

Vickram Crishna & Dr. Arun Mehta
Internet activists and Community Radio specialists. They have helped set up
WiFi Networks in rural areas of India

LET'S BENEFIT TOGETHER

This is a team of individuals who each, in their own field, are actively
participating in the ever-expanding Internet by pushing its reach farther
than ever before. The massive popularity of wireless networking has caused
equipment costs to continually plummet, while equipment capabilities
continue to sharply increase. The following experts will be visiting
Pakistan for the conference and hands-on workshop.

By taking advantage of this state of affairs, people can finally begin to
have a stake in building their own communications infrastructure. This is
not only possible, but has been done. This team intends to provide the
information and talk about the tools that are needed to start a network
project in our local community.

Wireless infrastructure can be built for very little cost compared to
traditional wired alternatives. But building wireless networks is only
partly about saving money. By providing people in your local community with
cheaper and easier access to information, they will directly benefit from
what the Internet has to offer. The time and effort saved by having access
to the global network of information translates into wealth on a local
scale, as more work can be done in less time and with less effort.

Let's take advantage of this team being here and if any of you can identify
an effort close to Lahore where deployment can take place right away, these
people can actually show hands-on how it's done. We will also have local
Pakistani experts present who can help expand this initiative into a mass
effort.

If any of you wish to participate in this initiative, we would welcome the
support. Please also inform as many people as you can so that we have a good
turnout and a larger number of people benefit. NGOs, technology people,
government reps, students etc all need to be a part of this.

At BytesForAll, we are already spreading the word to relevant people and
wish all the success to this event.

ABOUT JEHAN ARA

Ms. Jehan Ara, President of P@SHA (Pakistan Software Houses Association) , is
an active Bytesforall. org admin member as well as part of Pakistan ICT
Policy Monitor Network. She is known to be always very keen on bringing ICT
revolution into mainstream development agenda and see it contributing for
people's good.

In an email conversation Jehan informed that for this event she took
advantage of a major connectivity Summit called AirJaldi Summit
http://summit. airjaldi. com/ held in neighboring country India (in
Dharamsala). At the summit, she was able to convince some globally renowned
leading experts in the field to spare some more time and make a side trip to
Pakistan for a wireless networking event to be organized in Lahore on 15-16
November 2006.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Dengue fever: a lethal outbreak

[By Qurat ul ain Siddiqui]

DENGUE fever, known to health experts for more than 200 years and now turning into a health issue of epic proportions, used to be known as the break-bone fever because of the severe joint and muscle pains it caused which made the patient feel as if his/her bones were breaking.

Dengue isn’t really a novel phenomenon as far as South Asia is concerned, though it is an older one for Africa. More recently, India has also been severely affected by the virus with the death toll from dengue exceeding 100 (more than 30 dead in Delhi only) along with more than 5,000 people admitted to hospitals as “dengue-positive” patients. This initial outbreak eventually turned into an epidemic and it is now expected that the toll may exceed that of 1996 when it claimed more than 400 lives and left more than 10,000 people infected. A similar situation is also developing in Latin America and the Carribean. Cuba and the Dominican Republic are some of the more affected Latin American countries victimised by the infection with thousands of people contracting it (along with the ones suffering from dengue haemorrhagic fever or DHF) during the past few years. DHF is mostly a disease of the tropical and sub-tropical regions and even in those areas it is more likely to be found in the more densely populated places.

Dengue is commonly said to occur in two forms: as dengue fever and as dengue haemorrhagic fever. Dengue fever is an acute flu-like condition which affects people of all ages but is very seldom fatal. On the other hand, DHF is a more dangerous, even lethal form of dengue. The two are essentially forms of Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHFs) – a group of illnesses that are caused by a distinct families of viruses, transmitted to humans by an infected female mosquito Aedes Aegypti, which is commonly known as the Yellow Fever Mosquito. It has the capability and the capacity to host various viruses such as the dengue fever virus (known as the arbovirus that is predominantly transmitted by mosquitoes and ticks), Chikungunya (a much rarer form of viral fever) virus and the yellow fever virus.

One must point out here that it is the mosquitoes that become infected with the virus when they bite infected humans. Oddly enough, this particular mosquito breeds only in clean water containers like barrels, buckets, drums, tanks, flower vases, water coolers, discarded tires, toilet bowls and other such places, including the ones where rainwater collects, which is a practice contrary to that of the malaria-causing mosquito that thrives and procreates in dingy waters.

Dengue is infectious, with the first symptoms occurring during initial five to seven days after being bitten by the infected Aedes Aegypti mosquito. It is characterised by a sudden onset of high fever accompanied by severe headaches, muscle and joint ache, nausea and vomiting as well as rashes. The dengue rash is usually bright red in colour, occurring initially on the lower limbs and the chest and in some cases which then spreads to most of the body. Some cases also involve loss of appetite and the ability to taste things. In certain severe cases, the Sindh Health Department advisory states that the patient may bleed from the mouth, nose, in the vomit or stool, as a result of internal or external bleeding. Symptoms, however, may not be the same for all cases as some cases develop milder indicators which can be misdiagnosed as flu or some other viral infection and later develop into a more serious, even deadly form of the disease. It is for this reason that people may pass on the disease unwittingly until someone with more conspicuous symptoms is discovered, said a local medical practitioner, though dengue patients are usually believed to spread the infection only through mosquitoes or blood products and that too as long as they are feverish.

However, all dengue patients undergo a progressive decrease in their blood platelet count which worsens the condition in cases where bleeding has already started and poses an imminent threat to the ones who aren’t already bleeding, but their condition might worsen. Since bleeding with the low platelet count takes a non-stop turn, an ample supply of platelets and blood is required which may not always be available everywhere all the time. Also, all dengue patients are required to get a blood test done every day to see if the platelets count is getting better.

According to the World Health Organisation (Who), DHF, a more acute form of dengue, has a five per cent mortality rate though this may increase if the cases are not properly handled and treated. On the other hand, with proper treatment and therapy mortality rates may be minimised. Also, according to a Who report, people at a higher risk for dengue transmission are children, travellers and tourists, whereas adults residing in endemic areas are also susceptible to contracting the disease.

There is no vaccine that can effectively and entirely cure dengue, though research is being conducted in this area with the use of biotechnology and genetic engineering. According to a Who document, “a live, attenuated, vaccine for all four types of dengue is now in clinical trials in Thailand,” which is where it was first recognised in the ’50s (along with Philippines) during dengue epidemics, whereas now it has spread to many Asian and Latin American regions.

The only effective and available way of controlling and eventually eliminating the disease is by destroying the mosquito breeding places along with effectively treating patients identified as carriers. These patients can at best be given plenty of fluids and measures should be taken to control their fever. With quick and careful treatment, most patients may survive without having to go through blood transfusion. As for the Aedes Aegypti’s breeding places, they can be eliminated by various means such as by tightly covering water storage containers, draining rainwater regularly and disposing off garbage. Even though the virus may survive without the host as well as within, precautionary measures are advised to be taken as seriously as possible, even required.

Karachi presently has, according to official estimates, more than 800 people suspected of being dengue-positive. About 100 new cases were reported last week in different hospitals of the city, whereas more than a hundred people have been discharged during the past few days. However, the average number of dengue case registration has gradually increased over the past few weeks and is still on the rise. One of the first reported deaths this year (in early October), however, was that of a man in his ’40s from Karachi’s Akhtar Colony.

It is hard to determine, let alone tell, who was the first infectee and from where it all started as far as Karachi is concerned, though a young doctor working at a local government hospital spoke of another doctor who died of DHF no less than six months ago, which indicates that the dengue that we see today is, possibly, no sudden phenomenon. It has been there for the past few months, though rather sporadic in its appearance.

A medical practitioner from Liaquat National Hospital, who requested anonymity, said that a terminal case of DHF was registered at this hospital about six months ago. The patient was rejected admission at another reputable hospital for the very reason that his condition had worsened to the point of incurability. Despite continuous insistence on the part of health experts and the provincial advisory issued with regard to DHF – not transferable from one person to another – the doctor is also of the opinion that DHF patients should be kept in quarantine instead of an open ward as droplets or any secretion from a dengue-positive’s body can infect another person. However, now that the city is dreading the growing dengue threat, hospitals are hopefully going to try and live up to their reputation and perform their duties in this seemingly precarious situation.

A medical operative at a local government hospital revealed (on condition of anonymity) that the doctors were not even properly briefed about handling the cases as they began to increase in number. She was also uncomfortable with the fact that dengue patients were not being kept in a separate ward. “In fact,” she said, “you can find dengue patients’ wards that deal or at least are supposed to deal with something entirely different.” When asked whether she thought the situation was turning into an epidemic, she felt that “it already has become one, and if not, then it will, because things don’t seem to be changing around here, and in that case we shouldn’t expect different results.” When asked about ways to prevent dengue from spreading further, she said that other than keeping and treating the dengue-positive patients in isolation, the city administration, apart from the “fumigation spree” that it is on these days, should also deal with the city’s sewerage system along with regularly checking up on abandoned construction sites as well as various potholes and dilapidated streets throughout the metropolis.

The virus, it appears, cannot be prevented from spreading and the dengue-infected mosquitoes from breeding if these aspects which, according to her, are in fact the problem, go unattended. “The dengue problem in Karachi, if considered with some insight, leads to a Pandora’s box which I don’t think anyone here would want to open,” she said.

Things have become better with regards to the diagnostic facilities available to the people. Earlier, it was only one other private hospital along with Liaquat National Hospital, that had the equipment for conducting diagnostic tests for dengue, whereas government hospitals would send blood samples of suspected infectees to the National Institute of Health, Islamabad, which took three to four days to send its report on the samples. However, the health department’s recent announcement that all patients hospitalised either at private or public hospitals can get their tests done at the Sindh Services Hospital, Blood transfusion Centre without charge, is a much desired development given the current crisis.

The government is trying to do its bit by assisting patients with laboratory facilities for diagnosis; however, the aerial and ground sprays that began a few days ago give more of an unorganized, helter-skelter picture and are not believed to be as effective as desired by various health experts around the city.

At the same time, the number of people wanting to be tested for dengue is gradually increasing; an indicator that the average Karachiite is taking the threat rather seriously. Paranoia, one may say, but it is not without good cause. A lab operative at a local private hospital informed that contrary to prior practice, tests can be administered without a medical prescription which was also one reason people would show up more frequently for a test. He informed that an average number of 20 people were getting tested every day, out of which 20-25 per cent would turn out to be carriers of the virus.

Many hospitals however portray a rather dismal picture when it comes to dealing with dengue. At one of the most crucial medical facilities in Karachi, the “information” section operative did not know whether the hospital housed a specific ward for dengue-positive patients, let alone for those suffering from DHF. This chaotic scenario was seen at a renowned medical facility which has admitted possibly the largest number of dengue cases in Karachi. Dengue-positive cases are also being identified in some areas of Punjab and, therefore, it is a matter of growing concern that it is gradually spreading to different parts of the country.

The use of biological weapons against certain groups of people comes as nothing new to the human world. The use of smallpox-contaminated blankets by the colonising British against the Native Americans and the Russian attack on Swedes with plague-infected corpses are examples. In the current context also, the spread of dengue fever is a cause for speculation and inquiry, considering that it spread extremely quickly. Who knows whether the disease known as dengue fever is an actual disease or just one of the many biological weapons that are being developed around the world.

The writer is a freelance contributor

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

KARACHI: Harmful effects of X-rays

[Published in DAWN]

KARACHI, Oct 29: There could be harmful effects of X-rays on patients, paramedics and general public visiting the hospitals.

Such harmful effects were known almost immediately after they were discovered, an Indian doctor said.

“If judiciously used, X-rays are not harmful otherwise they can cause havoc,” Dr Sneh Bhargava, Radiologist at Sitaram Bhartia Institute, Delhi, told a TV channel.

As far as the human body is concerned there are three systems, which are affected by X-rays. First, is the genitalia, which if affected may have a negative effect on the progeny. The other main system that is affected is the skin. You can get a rash, hair loss and apart from being cosmetically harmful, they also predispose to cancer. The third system that is affected is the blood. If the red blood cells are affected, you can suffer from anaemia and if the white blood cells are affected, they can attack your immune system and make you vulnerable to various diseases, Dr Bhargava said.

X-rays are electromagnetic radiations in a wave form just like gamma, ultraviolet, infrared and radio waves. The only difference is that they have a different wavelength and because of this difference they have different properties. X-rays, for instance, can pass through wood and the human body just like light can pass through glass. When X-rays pass through the body, a part of it is absorbed and some part goes right through. For instance, the bone in an X-ray looks white whereas the lungs in an X-ray look black.

A patient should be exposed to an X-ray only when doctors need more information than what just a physical examination can give. However, X-ray should not be repeated before three months.

Radiation worker must protect himself against the main beam of X-rays. One can stand behind a lead screen to avoid the harmful effect of X-rays. The lead completely absorbs the X-rays and you are safe.

If you are a radiologist, you must wear lead gloves and apron.

A proper machine should have no leakage. Every machine should be checked annually by a trained physicist. They can record whether or not there is any leakage with a dosimeter or with a film. It is necessary that you have a physicist check the equipment. If the machine is off, there is no leakage and if the machine is on, rays must go through a specific point and not get scattered anywhere.

X-rays should not be done during pregnancy. There is no question of doing abdominal X-ray nowadays because ultrasound is available. If you want to know anything about the baby, the correct method is the ultrasound. Ultrasound is totally safe, as it has no ionising properties like X-rays.

Today, with other types of non-ionising radiations available like ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, X-rays should be used minimally.–PPI

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Northern Lahore declared sensitive: Dengue virus

[by DAWN Staff Reporter]

LAHORE, Oct 29: The City District Government Lahore has made the city railway station and its adjoining areas as focal point for its campaign against the feared dengue fever epidemic as the CDGL officials claim that the mosquito causing the disease has shifted to Punjab through passengers who came from Sindh to celebrate Eid here.

All the three dengue fever cases detected so far - Sarfaraz, 16, Fiaz, 45, and Ali Tariq, 18, - belonged to Misri Shah. Blood samples of residents of the locality are being collected to detect more such cases.

At a meeting of the CDGL authorities held here on Sunday with DCO Muhammad Ijaz in the chair, EDO (health) Dr Inamul Haq claimed that the `aedes’ mosquito shifted from Sindh when people from there came to Punjab on the eve of Eid.

So far 2,000 dengue cases have been detected across the country, most of them in Karachi and Hyderabad.

Dr Haq said all localities adjoining the city railway station and of northern Lahore like Misri Shah, Shadbagh, Naulakha Bazaar, Railway Road, Lunda Bazaar, Badami Bagh and Chah Miran had been declared as sensitive and were being fumigated with fog spray.

Out of a total of 1,650 lady health workers in the provincial metropolis, 35 had been deputed in Misri Shah for creating awareness about the disease and precautionary measures, he said.

He also claimed that 11 mobile teams had been formed for prevention of dengue fever, provision of specialist doctors and laboratories at all state-run hospitals had been set up where the required stock of medicines had also been provided.

Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi has meanwhile directed health department officials to take effective steps for controlling dengue virus in the province and ensure availability of medicines for its treatment, says a handout.

The chief minister issued the directions while presiding over a meeting held here on Sunday to review implementation of the health sector reforms programme.

MINISTER: Health Minister Dr Tahir Ali Javed claimed that his department had completed all the arrangements.

He said the availability of necessary medicines in all public sector hospitals would be ensured.

The minister said that health services director had been appointed focal person for prevention and control of dengue fever and he would be responsible to have close liaison with the medical superintendents of all the public sector hospitals, EDOs (health) of the province. He would also contact the allied

Departments, arrange procurement of all required items for the safety of medical and paramedical staff treating dengue victims.

Dengue fever cases rise to 70, civic paper over cracks

[By Baqir Sajjad Syed. DAWN]

SLAMABAD, Oct 29: With the number of confirmed cases of dengue fever closing to 100 in the twin cities, senior officials of civic agencies are claiming that the situation is perfectly under control and there is nothing to be worried about.

The number of confirmed cases of dengue fever in the twin cities had risen to 71 by Saturday afternoon. The problem is more intense in Rawalpindi, where 41 cases have been confirmed compared to 30 reported in the capital. Fresh figures for Sunday were not available being a holiday.

However, the speed with which the disease is spreading in the twin cities can be judged from the fact that in the first week of the outbreak of disease from October 12-19, 25 confirmed cases were reported, while in the second week from October 20-28, 46 fresh cases were reported, almost double the number of cases reported during the first week.

Doctors have termed the situation epidemic, believing that the number of cases being reported is just the tip of the iceberg.

Federal Health Secretary Anwar Mehmood had recently said that dengue fever was not a health issue alone and was also related to our environment. He believed the role of municipal administration was all the more important since fumigation, fogging and removal of solid waste from the cities was their job.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has endorsed this view saying that proper vector control by involving municipal administrations and social mobilisation and education of the people about the disease can effectively contribute towards controlling the disease.

Capital Development Authority’s Director Health Services Dr Saeed Ahmed told this reporter that the situation was under control. He said the figure of just 30 was not significant for Islamabad having a population of over 1.5 million.

He claimed that the authority had been spraying and fogging in the city since the start of the October. He contended that falling temperatures would finish off the problem.

City District Nazim Raja Javed Ikhlas also said that the number of cases was quite insignificant, as some of those testing positive had travelled to Rawalpindi for Eid vacations.

Rawalpindi district government had started fumigation from October 23. Executive District Officer (Health) Dr Zafar Iqbal Gondal was not ready to concede that the health department was slow to respond. Mr. Gondal insisted that he was the first in Punjab to launch the awareness campaign and anti-mosquito spray.

The general public is critical of the performance of the civic agencies to control the disease. While the affluent are ordering fumigation of their homes and the schools where their children study, the poor and the disadvantaged living in slums, the general public thinks, have been left at the mercy of the mosquitoes.

Notwithstanding the tall claims of the officials of civic agencies, their failure is quite evident from their failure in controlling malaria also spread by mosquitoes.

Malaria outbreaks occur every year in this season and because of ineffective control the malarial parasite has become multi- drug resistant and is showing an alarming re-emergence. The preventive measures for malaria and dengue fever are the same.

Commenting on the views of the civic agencies about the issue, a senior medical practitioner said: “It is good to paint a rosy picture, but there’s need to be careful so that it does not impact on the ongoing or planned interventions. We should not be alarmist and should not be minimalists either.”

The brighter side of the whole episode is that districts like Rawalpindi previously relying on outdated equipment for fumigation have started purchasing modern equipment.


Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Pakistan gets its first satellite broadband IP hub

Pakistan is now on the satellite broadband hub with the commissioning of the Infosat 51F.

Comstar ISA Ltd, a leading satellite service provider, Thursday announced the completion of the installation, testing and commissioning phase of the hub in Karachi.

The hub is now commercially available to users throughout the country, Pakistan Times newspaper quoted company officials as saying.

The Infosat I-Direct Hub has been installed in the country in collaboration with Infosat Communications. Infosat is a Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE) subsidiary and the largest broadband satellite operator in Canada.

With the commissioning of the hub, Infosat completed the first phase of its investment in Comstar and formally took control of 22 percent shareholding in Comstar ISA Ltd. This is first of its kind investment by a satellite services company in Pakistan.

Sami Bajwa, CEO and president of Comstar, said Infosat Connect services were being launched in Pakistan would aim to offer the same level of service that customers in North America have been accustomed to.

John Robertson, president and CEO of Infosat Communication, said Infosat's substantial investment in Pakistan both in terms of equipment and human resources proves his organisations commitment to Pakistan.

'We are here to stay for the long term,' Robertson was quoted as saying.


Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Natural Cure for Dengue Fever

Natural Cure for Dengue Fever
by a member of PakSEF VSTTT

I would like to share this interesting discovery from a classmate's
son who has just recovered from dengue fever. Apparently, his son was
in the critical stage at the SJMC ICU when his platelet count dropped
to 15 after blood transfusion also.

His father was so worried that he sought another friend's
recommendation and his son was saved. He confessed to me that he give
his son raw juice of the papaya leaves. From a platelet count as low
as 45 after blood transfusion, it jumped to 135 after drinking the raw
papaya leaf juice. Even the doctors and nurses were surprised. After
the second day he was discharged. So he asked me to pass this good
news around.

Accordingly it is raw papaya leaves 2 pcs just clean and pound and
squeeze the juice thro cloth filter. You will only get one tablespoon
per leaf. So, use two tablespoons per serving once a day. No need to
boil or cook or rinse with hot water, it will lose its strength. Only
the leafy part has to be taken, no stem or sap. It is very bitter and
you have to swallow it. But it works wonders!!!!

Papaya Juice - Cure for Dengue

You may have heard this elsewhere, but if not, I am glad to inform you
that papaya juice is a natural cure for dengue fever. As dengue fever
is ram! pant now, I think it's good to share this with all.

A friend of mine had dengue last year. It was a very serious situation
for her as her platelet count had dropped to 28,000 after 3 days in
hospital and water had started to fill in her lungs. She had
difficulty in breathing. She was only 32-years old. Doctor said
there's no cure for dengue. We just have to wait for her body immune
system to build up resistance against dengue and fight its own battle.

She already had 2 blood transfusions and all of us were praying very
hard as her platelet continued to drop since the first day she was
admitted.

Fortunately her mother-in-law heard that papaya juice would help to
reduce the fever and got some papaya leaves, pounded them and squeezed
the juice out for her. The next day, her platelet count start! ed to
increase, her fever subsided. She was given papaya juice regularly and
she recovered after 3 days!!! Amazing but true.

Papaya juice has a cooling effect thus, it helps to reduce the heat in
one's body. I found that its also good when one is having sore throat.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Dengue Fever Issue---a cause for concern

Dengue not just a health issue: official
By Nasir Iqbal, DAWN

ISLAMABAD, Oct 24: Feeling the heat of dengue fever, the health ministry on Tuesday said vector control was the only solution to check the outbreak of dengue fever in some parts of the country for which the role of municipal administrations became pivotal.

“Dengue fever is not a health issue alone and also related to our environment,” federal secretary, health, Anwar Mehmood told reporters at the health ministry.

The role of municipal administration becomes all the more important since fumigation, fogging and removal of solid waste from the cities was their job, the secretary said.

World Health Organisation (WHO) representative Dr Khalif Bile also endorsed the health secretary’s point of view saying proper case management, vector control by involving municipal administrations, social mobilisation and education among the people could create a big difference in controlling the disease.

WHO, he said, was closely working with the ministry for effective case management of the dengue fever and to develop human resource for containing the disease.

“We expect that all the municipal departments would play a proactive role in helping us by doing proper garbage disposal and giving proper treatment to water storage tanks,” the secretary said.

The secretary also denied that a dengue patient had died in a Rawalpindi hospital on Monday, saying the mosquito-borne viral infection was not the cause of the 14-year-old girl’s death.

Dr Nilofer Ansari, Acting Medical Superintendent of the Cantonment General Hospital (DGH) said Mehreen was brought to the hospital from Pindi Gheb with ‘Septic Shock’ (a different kind of infection) and not with dengue.

About the growing number of suspected cases, Anwar Mehmood said, the people were coming in a large number in the hospitals because of better awareness created by the media.

“The current spike, though much severe, is the continuation of the November last year’s outbreak of dengue fever in Karachi. However, the fatality rate remained contained around a little over 2 per cent which is also dropping to 1.86 per cent due to better case management by hospitals”, he said. It will subside as the winter sets in, he added. During the first spike in 2005, the fatality rate was seven per cent.

Out of a total of 81 blood samples in Rawalpindi and Islamabad over the last three weeks, 34 samples, including three of the Shifa International Hospital, have been confirmed.

As regards to Karachi, a total of 1,392 patients with symptoms of dengue disease were admitted to different hospitals in Karachi since October 2. Of these 455 were found to be positive for the virus. 25 deaths have been reported so far from the infection in Karachi.

In addition three cases have also been confirmed in Khushab and Chakwal each, four in Kotli (Azad Kashmir) and one in Peshawar.END


Steps taken to check dengue fever: Aziz
DAWN report

ISLAMABAD, Oct 24: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Tuesday the government would check the spread of dengue fever and there was no shortage of testing kits or other required facilities to deal with the situation.

“Special treatment units have been established at all the hospitals across the country, with hospitals in major cities put on high alert and there is no problem of medical or paramedical staff despite Eid holidays,” the prime minister told journalists during a visit to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims).

The prime minister inquired after Dengue patients as well as the under-treatment children and distributed Eid gifts among them.

He said there were four dengue patients being treated at Pims, adding that some others had been discharged after effective treatment.

The government, he said, had ensured the availability of testing kits in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and other major cities.

Answering a question, Mr Aziz said the government was taking all out measures, including the use of anti-mosquito sprays, to contain the disease.—APP

KARACHI: Number of VHF cases on the rise
By Mukhtar Alam, DAWN

KARACHI, Oct 24: With more than 50 cases of the viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) reporting every day at a few major hospitals of the city alone every day, the disease is taking the shape of an epidemic that has struck both slums and posh areas equally.

The number of such cases reporting at big public and private hospitals, as well as small clinics and other health care centres, is on the increase. The Sindh health department’s Dengue Fever Cell recorded arrival of 55 fresh cases at nine government and private hospitals during the past 24 hours ending at 2pm Tuesday.

Of the 1,392 suspected VHF patients admitted to various hospitals since June 2006, 431 have already been declared dengue-positive cases, bringing the percentage of these patients from among the total VHF patients to 30.96 by Tuesday.

This percentage is on a higher side at the private hospitals where normally a patient from a well-off family is admitted. The Aga Khan University Hospital said that it had 21 in-house VHF/dengue patients, 11 of them having been tested dengue positive and the remaining ones negative.

According to the Dengue Information and Surveillance Cell, of the 353 patients admitted to the AKUH over a period of four months, 100 have been tested dengue positive. At another private facility, the Liaquat National Hospital, the tally of dengue positive cases has reached 130. The Ziauddin Hospital has 52 and the Bismillah Taqi Hospital 45 dengue positive cases at present.

A total of 22 people have died from the VHF since its outbreak. The diseases, including dengue, have claimed three lives in the interior of Sindh whereas four patients with the symptoms linked to the dengue fever are admitted to two hospitals, one in Sukkur and the other in Larkana. Three patients have been tested dengue positive, said an official of the Cell.

Meanwhile, patients with suspected VHF were brought to various hospitals from Defence, Clifton, PECHS, Bahadurabad, Liaquatabad, F B Area, Korangi, Landhi, North Karachi, New Karachi, North Nazimabad, Orangi, Nazimabad, Baldia, Golimar, Gulistan-i-Jauhar, Garden, Saddar, Gulshan-i-Iqbal, Shah Faisal and Malir.

According to the Dengue Fever Cell, 160 patients are under treatment at 12 hospitals while 47 have since been discharged during the past 24 hours.

The number of in-house patient as of Tuesday was as follows: AKUH: 21 (12 new), LNH: 38 (11 new), CHK: seven (two new), Ziauddin Hospital: 28 (10 new), JPMC: 30(eight new), Bismillah Taqi Hospital: five (four new), Hamid Hospital: one (no new), NICH: seven (four new), Abbasi Shaheed Hospital: 14 (two new), Baqai Hospital: five(two new), Star Gate Hospital Malir: three (no new) and Afroze Medical Centre: one (no new).

Experts have once again urged the government to scan all those areas which have been providing breeding grounds to the Aedes Aegypti, the mosquito class responsible for the dengue infliction and spread.

In another development, the Ziauddin University Hospital has decided to perform dengue IGM test at its North Nazimabad, Clifton and Keamari campuses at a reduced rate of Rs600 in line with the directive by Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad and Minister for Health Syed Sardar Ahmed, said a press release of the hospital.END

Dengue Fever Kills 23 in Pakistan
Yahoo News Story

Twenty-three people have died and more than 1,000 been infected in a month-long outbreak of dengue fever, Pakistan health chiefs have said.

The latest casualties were an 11-year-old boy and a girl of eight who died of the mosquito-borne virus in a children's hospital in the southern port city of Karachi earlier this week, the government of Sindh province said Thursday.

"The death toll is now 23, with 20 in Karachi, while over 1,000 cases have been reported so far in Sindh province this a month," provincial spokesman Salahuddin Haider told AFP.

"It's deadly and has hit Karachi badly with hospitals full of dengue fever patients, but the government has provided machines to carry out a massive spray in the city," Haider said.

Authorities in the capital Islamabad and nearby Rawalpindi have also issued public advice for preventing the spread of the female Aedes mosquitos that carry the virus.

In neighbouring India, the death toll from a dengue outbreak rose to 107 on Wednesday. END

Dengue Deaths Put Pakistanis on Alert
by Reuters by way of the New York Times

KARACHI, Pakistan, Oct. 14 (Reuters) — Dengue fever has killed at least 17 people in Pakistan’s biggest city, Karachi, in the past four months, five of them since the beginning of October, health officials said Saturday.

A high alert has been declared in the city’s hospitals after about 250 people tested positive for the disease, they said.

“We have had 17 reported deaths from the virus in various hospitals,” said Abdul Majid, a health official in the southern province of Sindh, which includes Karachi.

“It is not a panic-like situation, but yes, in the last few weeks cases have been increasing on a daily basis,” he said.

Indian health authorities have been battling dengue too, reporting nearly 4,900 cases, including 94 deaths, in recent weeks.

But Saturday’s announcement in Pakistan was the first that dengue was raging there as well. Opposition politicians, some aid workers and the news media have criticized the city government for not anticipating the disease after the rainy season and for not carrying out proper fumigation drives.

Dengue is a disease of the tropics and is carried by the Aedes mosquito, which bites during the day. The mosquitoes usually breed in trapped rainwater. END

About Dengue Courtesy of the CDC

Dengue (DF) and dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) are caused by one of four closely related, but antigenically distinct, virus serotypes (DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, and DEN-4), of the genus Flavivirus. Infection with one of these serotypes provides immunity to only that serotype for life, so persons living in a dengue-endemic area can have more than one dengue infection during their lifetime. DF and DHF are primarily diseases of tropical and sub tropical areas, and the four different dengue serotypes are maintained in a cycle that involves humans and the Aedes mosquito. However, Aedes aegypti, a domestic, day-biting mosquito that prefers to feed on humans, is the most common Aedes species. Infections produce a spectrum of clinical illness ranging from a nonspecific viral syndrome to severe and fatal hemorrhagic disease. Important risk factors for DHF include the strain of the infecting virus, as well as the age, and especially the prior dengue infection history of the patient. click to learn more

opyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Oracle to launch online programme to promote IT learning in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Oracle Corporation, a software manufacturing company will start an online school level educational programme www.Think.Com by December this year to promote teaching of Information Technology in Pakistan.

The programme is aimed at providing the students an opportunity to improve their skills in IT and giving them a chance of pursuing their studies abroad.

The primary schools in rural areas have also been included in the educational programme, said Regional Managing Director, Asia Pacific, of the Company, Natasak Rodjanapiches.

He said, schools participating in the program, would be linked to each other through a website.

Replying to a question, Natasak said through this educational programme, Oracle would also link up students in Pakistan with students abroad and would play a role in promoting the exchange of culture and civilization.

He said initially the programme would be launched from 8 or 12 schools and later more schools would be included.

Replying to another question, he said, Oracle basically assisted in preparing standard software programmes. However, it was also providing services and investing in other sectors like telecom, oil and gas, mobile phone sector, pharmaceuticals and defense.

"We feel huge opportunities for development and investment exist in telecom and information technology sectors in Pakistan and Oracle was working out a strategy in Pakistan for offering scholarships to talented students who displayed outstanding performance in IT and telecom sectors," he said.

He said the ' www.Think.Com ' programme would also be used to improve professional capabilities of the teachers. www.Think.com turns students into multimedia authors for a global community and allows peers to think and learn together.●



Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Pakistani woman to go into space

ISLAMABAD: Namira Salim, a Paris-based Pakistani artist who has made her mark on the international scene as a talented and internationally accomplished artist with a strong commitment to the arts and humanity, has been selected as an astronaut to go into space in the Virgin Galactic Space Ship in 2008.

Namira will also be publishing her first book of English poetry this year, which is inspired by Urdu Ghazal. In all, her passion for humanity, art and music will come together in the form of music videos, which will light the stars with her songs.

Gifted with diverse creativity, Namira has long played the role of a goodwill and peace ambassador; her art has been exhibited during top humanitarian summits at the United Nations, Unesco and during the historic Saarc Summit in Pakistan two years ago.

Speaking at a ceremony organised here by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for Namira Salim — the first prospective Pakistani astronaut — here on Thursday, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Tariq Azeem said that Pakistani women have potential to make waves in all spheres of life and Namira Salim is one of them who will set a new direction by venturing into space. He said the concept of enlightened moderation given by the president and the idea to make Pakistan an energy corridor of the region as spelled out by the prime minister are the hard facts, which “we need to comprehend.”

The minister said the world would witness Pakistani women could stand by their male peers in all fields. He said the space venture of first Pakistani woman would set a new direction for other Pakistani women and encourage them utilize all their talent to the fullest. He said Pakistanis were contributing in various constructive fields and have earned good name at home as well as abroad.

Tariq Azeem said in May this year the government introduced Adam Khan, a formula-one driver who represents Pakistan in international car racing events, and now “we have a daughter of our country who will take our flag into the space.”

The minister said the government is committed to bringing about a change in every field of national activity to improve the living standard of people, especially women. The government, he said, would continue highlighting achievements of the talented Pakistanis like Adam Khan and Namira and show the world “the potential our people possess.”

On the occasion, Additional Secretary Information Ehsan Yousaf said introducing Namira Salim to the media that it is part of a segment within the Pakistan Image Project known as ‘Faces of Pakistan.’ He said under this segment “we introduce Pakistanis who are and would be contributing in various constructive fields, thus presenting an enlightened image of Pakistan.”

“Now we are introducing a lady who would carry the national flag into space. We are proud of our younger generation and proud to present Namira Salim as the first Pakistani to go into space and carry the Pakistani flag,” he added. Addressing the ceremony, Namira Salim said she would be on the Virgin Galactic Space Ship that would commence its commercial operations in 2008 with 100 people.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

NWFP: Health Minister Launches Preventive Campaign

PeSHAWAR—The NWFP Minister for Health Inayatullah while underlining the need of shifting focus from curative to preventive side to control disease effectively has ordered launching campaign for creating awareness among masses through easy and simple methods.

He was addressing as chief guest at an awareness seminar arranged by Provincial AIDS Control Program at Bagh-e-Naran Hayatabad the other day. The seminar was attended by local people, elected representatives and social workers. Provincial Manager AIDS Control Program, Dr. Mohammad Zafar, Dr. Amir Rehman Jadoon and Nazim Hayatabad Union Council, Mohammad Ishaq also addressed the seminar.

The health Minister said that hepatitis B&C were spreading in the society at alarming rate and had become major public health issues. He informed that Government was taking steps to make people aware of dangerous diseases. He elaborated that training activities to educate media men, religious scholars, elected representatives and health workers about health problems had so far been arranged.

He went on to say that steps were also being taken to create awareness among common people about diseases. The Health Minister asked all segments of the society to play their active role in prevention of diseases. He also directed concerned authorities to inform general public about their responsibility in controlling diseases. The Health Minister ordered high-ups of the Health Department to arrange awareness activities at public places. “Target public sites for sensitization so that more and more people can be educated” he asserted.

The Minister also directed for transferring information about public health issues to the masses in easy way. “Use local terminologies to help people understand effectively”he directed. The Minister cautioned people to be careful about the use of water and blood. “Taking care of these two liquids can minimize 60% to 70% of the diseases”, he remarked.

Speaking on the occasion various experts expressed concern over spread of hepatitis B&C and HIV/AIDS in the society. The experts while underlining the need of creating mass awareness about the dangerous diseases advised people to avoid reuse of syringes, contaminated surgical equipments and shaving items. Similarly they stressed the need of the transfusion of only screened blood and abiding by the Islamic principles to ensure sound health.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Broad band connectivity and its installation in Sindh

Reported by John Khakur Das

Karachi—Governor Sindh Dr. Ishrat-ul-Ebad Khan on Friday announced that all government officers will be provided with broad band connectivity and its installation will start from Karachi spreading to the entire province later on.

Addressing a delegation of Pakistan Telecommunication Company led by Chie Executive of Etislat Mohammad Bamakhrama the Governor pointed out that Karachi has plenty of potential for such investment as most of the country’s big investors live here. He asked PTCL to offer an acceptable package for the officers.

Karachi is a city, which has plenty of opportunities for infrastructure improvement and setting up of industries as it is a consumer-based city offering conducive environment in the region.

He emphasised on the need for a good quality and cheap package for the consumers that should include best after sale services. In Karachi all utility companies are stakeholders so there is no room for negligence or inefficiency. He asked all of them to cooperate and work in coordination with city government so that people could reap rich benefits.

The Governor was quite firm in expressing faith in the process of privatisation citing example of Karachi Electric Supply Company, which has received full support of the government even in difficult times. It was his firm belief that such companies, which take over charge of utility services, are well reputed and it was but obvious that they will face initial problems in settling down for the bright future.

Meanwhile presiding over a meeting of the law enforcing departments the Governor made sure that foolproof security arrangements are on board for the Independence Day celebrations.

He also alerted the police to brace themselves for the impending dangers of floods in Sindh and asked them to coordinate with concerned departments to meet any emergency in that respect.

Dr. Ishrat also reviewed progress on street crime control and directed to prepare an action plan to reduce incidents of mobile phones and car snatching.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Musharraf reaches for the moon

* President announces Rs 500m grant for IST
* Government planning to produce 1,500 PhDs every year by 2010

ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to put Pakistan on the map of nations exploring space, said President General Pervez Musharraf at the graduation ceremony of the Institute of Space Technology’s (IST) first batch of BSc in aeronautical, aeronautical engineering and communication systems engineering on Friday.

“We must explore space and bring its benefits to the people of Pakistan,” he said at the ceremony attended by federal ministers, services chiefs, senior government officials and the institute’s faculty. He vowed to launch a manned flight to space and even the moon in the coming years. Musharraf said the country’s space programme had been neglected in the past, and adequate funds had not been provided for its development. He said the government was providing funds to all research and strategic organisations to achieve the desired results.

The government had brought Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission under the National Command Authority’s control to bring the commission at par with strategic organisations, he said, adding that the government had realised the potential of space in terms of socio-economic development and security.

Recalling his visit to SUPARCO last year, the president said he was pleased to see the progress made by a team of young engineers and technicians. Giving his vision of Pakistan’s space programme, he asked SUPARCO to develop the country’s capacity to make and launch various types of satellites, especially communication, remote sensing and metrological satellites. “We expect SUPARCO to deliver as PAEC, NESCOM and KRL delivered in the nuclear and missile fields,” he said, asking graduating students to dedicate themselves to the vision’s fulfilment.

Human resources were the key to Pakistan’s success in various fields, including space technology, he said, adding, “We are trying our best to improve the quality of education for people at the grassroots level. This is the future.”

He said the government was targeting to produce 1,500 PhDs every year by 2010 to improve the education faculty.

Musharraf said an improvement in human resources would lead Pakistan to a knowledge-based society and transform its economy. He said it was unfortunate that a developing country like Pakistan was involved in agriculture only, since, “Agriculture is not going to take us to new heights and boost our economy.” Highlighting the importance of science and technology, he said the difference between a developing country and a small but developed country was that the latter possessed knowledge-based economy and modern technology.

Progress in science and technology had helped Pakistan reduce the cost of products, he said while expressing satisfaction over the fact that Pakistan was moving a path of knowledge-based economy.

The president announced a Rs 500 million grant for IST in the first stage and a similar sum in the second stage. agencies

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Global Warming: Skin Cancer on Rise in Pakistan

KARACHI - Dermatologists are concerned on the growing cases of skin cancer in Pakistan, Dr Azam Samdani, head of the Department of Dermatology at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, said Friday.

Dr Samdani said that according to estimates about two percent of patients of skin ailments were suffering from skin cancer. He said the disease was curable at the initial stage. However, he warned that the disease could be fatal if the patient delays treatment. “It could be so painful that patients wish early deaths,” he told The Nation.

Dr Samdani said that due to global warming and dents in the Ozone layers, the ultraviolet rays were hitting humans bodies, causing serious damages to them. He said that all undressed and uncovered parts of the body are vulnerable to the skin damages. The main cause of spreading the disease to dangerous levels is that most of patients go to quakes and apply local ointments, which further damage the skin’s upper portion.

The diseases are more prevalent among those who live mostly out side in the sun. Farmers, construction workers, are more prone to the disease. He viewed that people are not well aware of the risk of skin diseases.

Dr Samdani said that at a given day in the JPMC alone, 250 to 300 patients visit the dermatology department. About two percent patients reported in the centre suffer from different kinds of skin cancer, the number may be much more but statistics are not available. Speaking about the gravity of the disease, the doctor said that as the sunrays are coming to the earth without getting filtered through the Ozone layers, the risk of skin disorders especially cancer has increased manifold particularly among people who stay in direct contact with sun light for long hours.

Most of the people do not know they have some skin problem that requires medical treatment. Apathy and monetary problems both causes dominate the general attitude of the masses. People do not go to the doctor for skin disease because skin diseases do not pose any threat to life.

“At an advanced stage, skin cancer cannot be treated. It is one of prolonging and chronic cancers. Fortunately, some kinds of skin cancer are curable if they are treated at early stages,” Dr Samdani added.

“Skin problems are more considered as beauty problem as compare to a medical disorder therefore instead of consulting with a dermatologists, due to lack of general knowledge, people go to beauticians for suggestions and remedies, he said and pointed out that acne was a common problem among young and middle aged people.

Acne causes disfigure, it may also go down shoulders to chest and back. Such skin diseases like acne and eczema may cause problems of lack of social acceptability. It causes problems like social acceptability or hurdles in marriage and jobs.

Matrimonial relations, stress, PMS and menstrual cycle affect and cause changes in skin. Bad effects in sun, due to environment, pollution, carbon particles, dust, etc. Sun damage awareness is less among the masses, due to less ozone the damages are getting intense.

Skin is the largest organ of human body. The skin contains secretions that can kill bacteria and the pigment melanin provides a chemical pigment defence against ultraviolet light that can damage skin cells. Most of the skin problems are caused by infections and bacteria. Epidermis, dermis and subcutaneous. Infections and bacteria attack the outer layer of skin - epidermis.

Talking about Karachi, Dr Samdani said that overcrowding, poor living and unhygienic conditions contribute to scabies, infections and most of skin diseases. “Skin disease can be inherent, or can be caused by allergies and internal disorders of the body,” he said. Eczema is of various kinds that can be inherent like atopic eczema or it can also be caused by allergies.
Allergies that cause eczema results due to, Nickel in gold causes such allergies among females, in male cement and chemicals direct contact causes skin diseases. Eczema and skin diseases cause by other associate diseases. Solar damage is important. It causes eczema, allergies, reaction, extreme skin and chronic skin cancer.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

2nd South Asian Sanitation Conference on September 20

ISLAMABAD – The Federal Minister for Environment, Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat has said that Pakistan will host a two-day 2nd South Asian Sanitation Conference on September 20 2006, which will be witnessed by the representatives from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and other countries whereas, more than Rs 210 million have been allocated by the donors agencies in this regard.

He expressed these views while talking to Ronald Van Dijk, Acting Representative, UNICEF and Thowai Zai, Sectional Chief, Water & Environmental Sanitation, UNICEF. Overall situation of sanitation of the region was discussed in the meeting. Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat said that hosting SACOSAN-II is a matter of great honor for Pakistan.

He said that the conference was to be held on November 21, 2005, which was postponed due to the tragedy of 8th October. He said that representatives of international NGOs will also participate in the conference.
Elaborating the objectives of the conference, he said that it will help the general public to accelerate the progress of sanitation and hygiene in South Asia alongwith improvement in quality of life.

He said that Ministry of Environment, under the obligation of Dhaka Declaration after consultation with the Ministry of Health, has taken upon itself to organise the 2nd South Asian Conference on Sanitation.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Pakistan close to Nuclear Energy deal with China

ISLAMABAD-Pakistan and China are close to ink the landmark accord on nuclear energy cooperation, under which Islamabad will acquire six reactors of 300 megawatts each.
“Negotiations on nuclear energy cooperation between Pakistan and China are in final stages and the deal is most likely to be reached at during the forthcoming visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao in November, this year,” said an official here on Friday.

He said Pakistan also wanted to acquire a nuclear power reactor of 600 megawatts from China but the Chinese have just started using its first such reactors hence its provision to Pakistan would take some time.

The nuclear energy cooperation deal with China has brought great solace to Pakistan, as the United States is not willing to extend such cooperation to Islamabad despite the months’ long talks between the allied nations in war on terror.

With Chinese cooperation, Pak would build six new nuclear reactors in next 10 years having capacity of 2,000 megawatts, the official said. This was part of Pak’s plan to increase the capacity of N-power generation to over 8,000 megawatts by 2025, he added. China has already helped Pak build a nuclear reactor of 350 megawatts at Chashma near and it was currently building one more at the same place with the same capacity.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

PESHAWAR: 7,816 TB cases detected in three months

PESHAWAR, Aug 11: The Provincial TB Control Programme has detected 7,816 cases in the province in the second quarter of the current year, officials said.

The patients would be provided free diagnosis and treatment for eight consecutive months under the DOTS (directly-observed treatment short course) at the district level offices.

Officials said that 6,245 patients had been registered in the first quarter of this year.

They said that 1,536 patients (897 females and 639 males) had been registered in five quake-hit districts in the second quarter of the current year. During the first quarter, the officials said, 1,090 cases had been registered in these districts.

A breakdown of the figures shows that in Abbottabad there were 509 patients, in Mansehra 492 patients, in Shangla district 294 patients, in Battagram 107 patients and in Kohistan district 134 patients.

EPI WORKERS: Director General Health Services NWFP Dr Jalilur Rehman has directed the workers of the expanded programme on immunisation (EPI) to work with commitment and team spirit for effective immunisation.

He was addressing a three-day master trainers’ workshop on the ‘social mobilisation for the EPI’ here on Friday.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

PESHAWAR: Gastro, skin diseases break out in Mardan

PESHAWAR, Aug 11: The water in residential areas of Mardan over the past week has complicated health problems, as hundreds of people have reported to the relief camps with cholera, gastroenteritis and skin diseases.

Every third person visiting the health facilities was complaining of skin problem and this was because of the stagnant water in residential areas, Dr Hidayatullah, the Health Management Information System Coordinator, said.

The doctor said most of the patients got infected while cleaning their homes or work places, where floodwater had mixed with sewage.

Sources said cholera and gastroenteritis had affected hundreds of people because of the failure of the municipal staff to drain out the water.

Dr Hidayatullah said 120 cases of cholera and gastroenteritis had been reported in the flood-affected areas.

A few cases of Malaria have also been reported but a district headquarters official said arrangements had been made to control the disease.


Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

KARACHI: Centre urged to help fight fuel-based pollution

KARACHI, Aug 11: The clean air coordination committee of the city government on Friday urged the federal government to take measures to reduce sulphur quantity in petroleum products to contain environmental pollution and save human health.

The meeting held here with the committee chairman and City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal in the chair noted that in Pakistan, fuel had the highest quantity of sulphur, one of the major sources of air pollution, than any other country of the world.

It decided to formally request the federal government through a letter to take steps to reduce the sulphur quantity to control pollution especially in Karachi, where environmental pollution was on the rise with the increase in its population.

The meeting stressed the need for making motor vehicle fitness section more effective and called for setting time frame of its privatisation as it had been, in principle, to give the section to private sector.

It was told that talks were under way in this context with a Malaysian firm while land had been allotted at the city government-run bus terminal for establishing the section.

After the privatisation of motor vehicle fitness section, the menace of smoke-emitting vehicles, the major cause of air pollution, could be properly checked.

The meeting also discussed imposing ban on plastic bags and decided to put a ban on the same gradually and increase their weight and price to discourage its use.

It was observed that with the increase in the process of plastic bags, people would use them repeatedly and this would eventually eliminate the problems of choked sewerage lines and pollution. It also considered improving CNG vehicles and called for installing converters in such vehicles.

Speaking on the occasion, City Nazim Mustafa Kamal assured that the recommendations from experts to control pollution and save human health from its hazardous effects would be mulled over and implemented.

He asked the committee members to submit their recommendations so that they could be included in the agenda for next meeting. The nazim stressed the need for step-wise progress towards the betterment of the environment.

Mr Kamal said that the city government was making efforts to improve the transport system and make it environment-friendly. For the purpose, new buses would be inducted gradually on the city roads.

He said that the city government was making efforts to bring Karachi at par with international standards in terms of environment to provide citizens with healthy atmosphere.

DIG Traffic Falak Khurshid told the meeting that the government had introduced new four-stroke CNG rickshaws while two-stroke rickshaws had been given one-year deadline to get their engines changed to environment-friendly ones. Action would be taken against them after one year, he added

It was decided that the recommendations would be considered in next the meeting of the committee and implementation of its decisions would be made sure.

Representatives of the city government Mass Transit Cell, transport and communications department, Suparco, Hydrocarbon Development Institute of Pakistan, Sindh Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), NED’s environmental engineering department, Aga Khan University’s health sciences department, Urban Resource Centre, Pakistan Environmental Assessment Association, KCCI, Karachi Transport Ittehad, IUCN, Sindh Transport Department, Automobile Corporation of Pakistan and others attended the meeting.—PPI


Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

US, Pakistan agree to work in IT sector

ISLAMABAD, Aug 11: The United States and Pakistan on Friday agreed to work together to enhance and upgrade IT disciplines in major universities, promote broadband internet and increase computer usage in Pakistan.

The two sides also agreed to increase bilateral cooperation in e-governance, spectrum management, human resource development and capacity-building.

A statement issued here said that the agreement was reached during a meeting between Minister for Information Technology Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari and US Coordinator for International Communications and Information David A Gross. State Minister Ishaq Khan Khakwani, Secretary Furrukh Qayyum and other senior officials also attended the meeting.

Mr Gross said he had been thoroughly impressed with the scale of progress achieved by Pakistan in the telecom sector within the past three to five years. It had not only won Pakistan recognition in the form of prestigious GSMA Award but also put Pakistan prominently on the radar screen of international IT firms.

“Until a couple of years ago, Pakistan was not even heard of in the telecom arena. But 37 million mobile phone subscribers within a couple of years point to the vision and the effort of the government in moving from old system to the new telecommunication system,” he said.

He said the US was keen to work closely with Pakistan on increasing broadband and computer usage, promoting content development in local languages and improving high-end professional human resource.


Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Pakistan's First Open Source Software Competition

UIT Computer Society a chartered Student Chapter of Association for Computing Machinery (USA) is organizing the National Multi-Competition Event named "CyberNet U-Tech 2006" on 18th & 19th August 2006. This Event will instigate and embellish a whole new dimension of Information Technology by organizing 7 different competitions including OpenIdeas, ModulationMax and Solution.Net competitions for the first time in any National IT Event in Pakistan.

OpenIdeas is an open source software competition dedicated to provide the platform for Open Source Developers to exhibit their skills to a wide IT literate audience. U-Tech 2006 holds the pride to introduce Open Ideas for the first time in such National IT Event in Pakistan. The software will be analysed by a panel of expert judges from industry and academia. A multi-phase evaluation will result an attractive and productive Open Source Software for Industry.

Large number of participants and audience are expected from universities and IT industry.


Interested individuals are encouraged to visit U-Tech website http://www.utech.org.pk and send their registration information at info@utech.org.pk by 10th August 2006 .

Reported by: M. Qasim Pasta, Chairman UITCS ACM Student Chapter, via pakgrid@yahoogroups.com.

He can be reached at: http://mqpasta.blogspot.com/

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006

Pakistan's IT exports hit $72m

Islamabad, Aug 5 (IANS) Pakistan's information technology (IT) industry has registered exports worth $72 million in the financial year 2005-06, a record 56 percent annual increase over exports of $46 million in 2004-05.

Much of it is thanks to government's promotion, concessions and huge tax holidays.

Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) managing director Yusuf Hussain appreciated the efforts of the ministry of IT and telecom.

He also congratulated the growing industry on this achievement, giving due credit to all the stakeholders for the success and promised them continued support from the government through the PSEB, The News said.

The maximum contribution to these earnings had come from computer software export, accounting for 63 percent of the total exports, with an overall increase of 44 percent compared to computer software exports last year, it added.

"According to statistics released by the State Bank of Pakistan, the country's central bank, on July 24 to PSEB, there is an overall 56 percent annual increase in IT exports by Pakistani IT companies," it said quoting a PSEB statement issued in Karachi.

"The government of Pakistan has been proactively developing the IT sector for the last few years," it said.

"The top five companies that have contributed the maximum share to IT exports are Netsol Technologies, Ovex Technologies, TRG Private Ltd, Systems Private Ltd and Elixir Technologies," said the PSEB statement.

"The incentives include tax exemption till 2016, establishment of IT parks with low rent, foreign ownership of equity invested in IT and 100 per cent repatriation of profit allowed to IT companies."

Major spending had taken place in hardware consultancy services, software consultancy services, maintenance or repair of computers, export of computer software and other computer services.

Copyright C. PakSEF 2002 - 2006