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March 12, 2020: National / International Current Affairs
1. NA approves Zainab Alert Bill with majority vote
• Lack of interest shown by lawmakers, especially by those sitting on treasury benches, on March 11, 2020 put National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser in an embarrassing situation, forcing him to defer an important debate on issues related to the agriculture sector after the house passed the Zainab Alert, Response and Recovery Bill, 2019, with a majority vote.
• The speaker, who had taken the personal initiative for holding the debate and had allocated nine hours` time for the discussion on the issues related to the agriculture sector, deferred the debate till Friday after opposition members protested over the absence of the minister and relevant officials of his ministry and threatened to disrupt proceedings by pointing out quorum, if he allowed the debate to continue.
• As soon as the speaker gave floor to Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) member Fakhar Imam to open the debate, PML-N MNA from Abbottabad and former deputy speaker of the assembly Murtaza Javed Abbasi interrupted and said the poor attendance of treasury members showed `seriousness` of the government in resolving farmers problems
2. Pilot martyred as F-16 crashes during March 23 parade rehearsal
• A Pakistan Air Force F-16 aircraft crashed on March 11, 2020 in Shakarparian the federal capital`s urban wilderness while participating in rehearsal for the coming Pakistan Day parade on March 23.
• The pilot of the aircraft, Wing Commander Nouman Akram, the Officer Commanding of PAF Base Mushaf stationed 9 Squadron, was martyred in the crash. There was no loss of life or damage to property on ground.
• The crash was filmed by some people witnessing the aerobatics being performed by the PAF fighter jet. In the video clips, which then went viral on social media, the aircraft could be seen performing a vertical loop man oeuvre before going down. Plume of smoke could later be seen billowing into the sky.
3. Amid fight against coronavirus, federal health secretary removed
• While the health ministry is in the limelight due to novel coronavirus scare, federal health secretary Dr Syed Taugir Hussain Shah was removed from the post on March 11, 2020.
• This was the second such removal in a week as on March 4, the then health secretary Dr Allah Bakhsh Malik (BS-22) was removed and Dr Shah (BS-21) was appointed as the in-charge additional secretary.
• Apparently, the latest change has come after the criticism made by Pakistan Awami Tehreel( (PAT) leader Dr Tahirul Qadri as Mr Shah was considered a close aide to former chief minister of Punjab Shahbaz Sharif and had served as principal secretary to the former CM at the time of the Model Town operation in 2014
4. MTI Act sails through Punjab Assembly
• Rejecting all amendments by the opposition and not with standing the protest by the medical fraternity, the Punjab Assembly on March 11, 2020 passed the Punjab Medical Teaching Institutions (Reforms) Bill, 2019 which gives state-run health facilities under the supervision of private-sector dominated boards of governors.
• Opposing the bill PML-N lawmakers Waris Kallu, ex-health minister Khwaja Salman Rafiq and Dr Mazhar Iqbal cautioned the gov-ernment that the system the new enactment proposed proved to be a failure in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and its replication in Punjab could `destroy` the healthcare system of the biggest province too. They said the government was passing the bill in haste without taking into consideration its repercussions
5. New York deploys National Guard to fight coronavirus
• New York is deploying National Guard troops for the first time in the coronavirus crisis to help contain the spread of the disease from an infection-hit suburb of New York City, the state’s governor said.
• Andrew Cuomo said authorities would set up a one-mile radius “containment zone” around the epicenter of an outbreak in New Rochelle in suburban Westchester County.
• Cuomo explained that all facilities in the zone that hold large gatherings, such as schools and temples, would be closed for two weeks beginning Thursday
6. Taliban reject govt`s offer to free 1,500 prisoners before talks
• The Taliban rejected the Afghan government`s attempt to resolve a spiralling crisis over the release of insurgent prisoners on March 11, 2020, as Kabul warned it was ready to resume offensive battlefield operations.
• A decree issued earlier by President Ashraf Ghani had raised hopes that Kabul`s offer to free 1,500 insurgents as a `gesture of goodwill` before talks begin, would prompt the Taliban to come to the negotiating table.
• But Taliban`s political spokesman Suhail Shaheen said that `5,000 prisoners should be released as a trust-building measure, and … this should be before the intra-Afghan talks` refusing to budge from a longstanding demand of the militants
7. Coronavirus crisis is now a pandemic, declares WHO
• Expressing alarm both about mounting infections and slow government responses, the World Health Organisation declared on March 11, 2020 that the global coronavirus crisis is now a pandemic but also said it`s not too late for countries to act.
• By reversing course and using the charged word pandemic that it had previously shied away from, the UN health agency appeared to want to shock lethargic countries into pulling out all the stops.
• We have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action. We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO chief.
8. Chaudhry Sarwar opens Punjab Governor’s House to paid functions
• Formally announcing the business plan of Governor’s House, Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar has said that Governor’s House lawn will be available for corporate sector at Rs1 million for each event.
• The Punjab governor that any function could also be arranged from Rs 500,000 in Darbar Hall. An amount of Rs50,000 will be charged for wedding photo shoots and Rs 1 million for commercial photo shoots while guided tours can be arranged at Governor’s House on Saturdays and Sundays. Booking of any function can be done through the website of Governor’s House. “We will try to carry out Governor’s House expenditure through the business plan. Under the business plan, the political parties will not be allowed to organise their events in Governor’s House,” said Muhammad Sarwar
9. UK health minister tested positive for coronavirus
• A UK health minister who mingled with hundreds of people last week is the first MP to have contracted coronavirus.
• Nadine Dorries attended a reception at Downing Street with Boris Johnson on Thursday and fell ill on Friday. She is self-isolating after her diagnosis was confirmed Tuesday night. Dorries, the minister for patient safety, had played a leading role in drawing up legislation to tackle the deadly virus that has killed six Brits.
10. India suspends all visas till April 15 to contain spread of virus
• India on March 11, 2020 suspended all visas, except a few categories such as diplomatic and employment, till April 15 in a bid to contain the spread of coronavirus, according to an official statement in Indian capital.
• The government also “strongly advised” Indians to avoid all non-essential travel abroad. The suspension will come into effect from March 13 at the port of departure. “All existing visas, except diplomatic, official, UN/International organisations, employment and project visas, stand suspended till 15th April 2020. This will come into effect from 1200 GMT on 13th March 2020 at the port of departure,” the statement said.
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