Day: June 1, 2022

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Beaconhouse Founder Nasreen Kasuri honoured with SDPI’s Living Legend Award for unmatched services in education

Islamabad, June 01, 2022 (PPI-OT):In a ceremony held at the Serena Hotel in Islamabad, Mrs. Nasreen Mahmud Kasuri, Founder and Chairperson of Beaconhouse Group, has been presented with the honorary Living Legend Award by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) in recognition of her invaluable role towards the development of the education sector in Pakistan over four and a half decades.

The award ceremony was moderated by Abid Qaiyum Suleri, Executive Director at SDPI and hosted a panel of distinguished speakers, including Shahid Hafeez Kardar, former Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and Vice-Chancellor of Beaconhouse National University (BNU); Salima Hashmi, art curator, and former Dean of the National College of Arts; Dr Feriha Peracha, Director and Supervising Psychologist at Sabaoon Project; Sartaj Aziz, former Federal Minister and former Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of Pakistan; Dr Ishrat Hussain, former Dean and Director Institute of Business Administration (IBA) and Chairman of the National Commission of Government Reforms; Dr Salman Shah, former Finance Minister of Pakistan and advisor to the Chief Minister of Punjab and Ambassador (retired) Shafqat Kakakhel, former UN Assistant Secretary General and Chairperson of SDPI. The award ceremony was attended by prominent diplomats, media persons, and representatives from the education sector.

On behalf of the Institute, Ambassador (retd) Shafqat Kakakhel, the former UN Assistant Secretary-General and Chairperson of SDPI Board of Governors, presented the award to Mrs Kasuri at the event. SDPI’s Living Legend Award is bestowed upon those visionary individuals, who have achieved excellence in diverse fields, including sustainable development, educational and cultural advancement, and the promotion of democratic governance, justice and human rights. The selection of the award recipients is done without any political, ethnic, denominational or gender-based considerations.

Speaking at the occasion, Mr. Shafqat Kakakhel lauded the role of the living legend for introducing the quality learning system in Pakistan 46 years ago through the Beaconhouse School System. He said: “We have gathered here to pay tributes to Mrs. Nasreen Mahmud Kasuri in recognition of her outstanding and unique contributions to the promotion of high-quality education from primary up to the higher secondary and even university levels in Pakistan.

Speaking at the occasion, Mrs. Kasuri said, “I am truly honoured to receive this acknowledgement from SDPI. It brings me great pride to see what started as a vision to provide quality education to the children of Pakistan over four decades ago is setting new benchmarks today. It has been a lifetime of learning for me and inculcating values of learning onto thousands of whom have passed out from the Beaconhouse system over the years. Education is fundamental for nation building and I remain committed to offering the skills needed to stand proud and play a role in the future of a prosperous Pakistan.”

Mrs. Nasreen Mahmud Kasuri established Les Anges Montessori Academy in Lahore in 1975 and set the foundation for the Beaconhouse network which has now developed into Pakistan’s largest setup of private educational institutions catering to over 315,000 students. Employing 62 percent women at Beaconhouse, Mrs. Kasuri’s role has remained pivotal in women empowerment in Pakistan in addition to quality education, offering these women economic opportunities and financial independence. In 2006, she was awarded the Sitaara-e-Eisaar by the Government of Pakistan for her philanthropic contributions to society.

SDPI, established under the Pakistan National Conservation Strategy, is a non-profit organization that serves as a source of expertise for policy analysis and development, policy intervention, and policy programme advisory. The institute focuses on strengthening civil society through research and collaborations and keeps the country’s development as its top agenda. Through this award, SDPI has earlier extended its gratitude to Madam Nisar Aziz Butt, Agha Nasir, Munnu Bhai, Mr. Shoaib Sultan Khan, Mr Iftikhar Arif, Mr Sartaj Aziz, and Syed Babar Ali Shah. This recognition for Mrs. Nasreen Mahmud Kasuri by SDPI is a tribute to her efforts towards building generations of young Pakistani men and women into educated, progressive individuals.

For more information, contact:

Beaconhouse Group Corporate Office,

Beaconhouse

10-11 Gurumangat Road, Gulberg-III, Lahore, Pakistan

Tel: +92-42-111-232-266

Fax: +92-42-35712027

Email: info@beaconhouse.net

Website: https://www.beaconhouse.net/

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Pakistan Athletics team returned to Lahore from Mashhad, Iran after securing the 3rd position by winning 5 medals in 2nd Imam Reza International Athletics Championship

Lahore, June 01, 2022 (PPI-OT):It is informed that Pakistan Athletics team returned to Lahore from Mashhad, Iran today (01.06.2022) after securing the 3rd position by winning 5 medals in 2nd Imam Reza International Athletics Championship.

Pakistan Athletics team was warmly welcomed by Muhammad Zafar, Secretary General, Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP), senior management of AFP and officials of Pakistan Sports Board (PSB).

On this occasion bouquets were presented to the athletics team by the management of AFP and PSB on behalf of Major General (R) Muhammad Akram Sahi, President AFP and Col (R) Muhammad Asif Zaman, Director General PSB.

The detail of performance of athletes is as follows:

Sr# – Name – Event – Medal

1. Shajar Abbas – 200m – Gold

2. Muhammad Yasir – Javelin Throw – Gold

3. Abdul Mueed – 400m – Silver (200m – Bronze)

4. Sharoz Khan – High Jump – Silver

For more information, contact:

Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP)

Website: http://www.afp.com.pk/welcome.php

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FAO-UN delegation discussed with UVAS scientist to curb Lumpy Skin Disease

Lahore, June 01, 2022 (PPI-OT): The Technical Mission from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation (FAO-UN) led by Dr Phoebe Readford along with Dr Ross De Clifford and Dr Muhammad Afzal visited the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences Lahore called on Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Nasim Ahmad here on Wednesday at City Campus.

Meanwhile a detailed meeting was held in syndicate room with FAO-UN delegation regarding Lumpy Skin Disease Virus (LSDV) control and adopting preventive measures to save livestock sector (Cattle and Buffalo). Prof Dr Nasim Ahmad and chaired the meeting while Dean Faculty of Biosciences Prof Dr Habib-ur-Rehman, Director Institute of Microbiology Prof Dr Tahir Yaqub, Dr Kamran Ashraf and other senior faculty members of UVAS were present.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof Dr Nasim Ahmad gave detailed presentation regarding UVAS initiatives to combat skin disease Virus (LSDV) in Pakistan. In which he spoke about the Institute of Microbiology submitted projects and ongoing research MPhil and PhD programs, different UVAS publications on LSD, LSDV diagnostic facilities and test conducted in University Diagnostic Laboratory (UDL). He also spoke about the role of LSDV outbreak investigation through questionnaire and personal interview conducted by UVAS Department of Epidemiology and Public Health to curb lumpy skin disease. Earlier, he also spoke about the history of UVAS, various degree programs, research, training and services of UVAS.

During the meeting, FAO-UN delegation sought suggestions and technical inputs from UVAS senior faculty member to control LSDV. All the participants of meeting put forward various suggestions to address this issue to save livestock sector. The participants urged on the importance of biosecurity and they suggested that it is necessary to conduct, webinar, workshops and farmers training programs to create awareness among them that how to deal with this disease, preventive measures to control its transmission and suggested register reliable vaccine for the treatment of animal.

The participants also suggested to starting various clinical trials on vaccine, study on vector control and prevention of cattle transportation especially in the affected areas to unvaccinated animals (cattle and buffalo). At the end of meeting Dr Phoebe Readford lauded UVAS efforts for the prevention of deadly LSDV disease to save livestock sector in Pakistan. Later, FAO-UN delegation visited various departments of UVAS including Veterinary Academy, Bio-Safety level-3 Laboratory, Pet Centre, Quality Operation Laboratory, University Diagnostics Laboratory and Outdoor Hospital etc.

For more information, contact:

Public Relations Officer

University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS)

Syed Abdul Qadir Jillani (Out Fall) Road,

Lahore – Pakistan

Tel: +92-42-99211374, +92-42-99211449

Email: webmaster@uvas.edu.pk

Website: www.uvas.edu.pk

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KSBL x CFO Conference

Karachi, June 01, 2022 (PPI-OT):KSBL is proud to have partnered with The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) for their flagship CFO Conference 2022 – Embracing the role as Chief Value Officer held in Karachi and Lahore on the 17th and 19th May 2022. The Conference allowed business and finance leaders to share their knowledge, expertise, and engage in discussions pertaining to the current economic challenges.

KSBL as Knowledge Partner to ICAP, played a pivotal role in identifying the theme and agenda for the conference. During the conference, KSBL presented the findings of its newly launched CFO Survey. The survey checks the pulse of the finance leaders on the macro and micro trends of Pakistani economy.

For more information, contact:

Karachi School of Business and Leadership (KSBL)

National Stadium Road, Opposite Liaquat National Hospital,

Karachi – 74800, Pakistan

UAN: +92-21-111-11-KSBL (5725)

Tel: +92-21-34855382, +92-21-38771999

Email: dean@ksbl.edu.pk

Website: https://www.ksbl.edu.pk

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IGP and Chief Secretary will be summoned in the Privileges Committee of the Punjab Assembly and punished: Ch Parvez

Lahore, June 01, 2022 (PPI-OT):A delegation of lawyers led by Jahangir A. Jhoja, former President Lahore High Court Bar called on Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Parvez Elahi. The current political situation in the country and the constitutional and political crisis in Punjab were discussed during the meeting.

Ch Parvez Elahi said that action will be taken on the police violence on the members of the Punjab Assembly, the IGP and the Chief Secretary are the real culprit in this whole matter. The IGP and Chief Secretary will be summoned in the Privileges Committee of the Punjab Assembly and punished.

Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi said that European Union and Commonwealth countries are bringing a resolution on this incident. He said that I don’t believe in anything from the PML-N. If the no-confidence motion comes, then Hamza Shahbaz will be no longer Chief Minister, waiting for the court decision, 20 turncoats of PTI are asking for N-League ticket but Hamza Shahbaz is not meeting them, Maryam Nawaz is also talking about election, this is what Imran Khan said.

He further said that if the rulers arrest Imran Khan, they will dig their own political grave. The crisis in Punjab will end when Hamza Shahbaz goes home. Government ministers have no worth nor any thought or vision of their own. Governor takes oath from Chief Minister, how can the Speaker National Assembly administer the oath?

Ch Parvez Elahi said that Imran Khan should be appreciated that he stopped his workers to avert bloodshed when he was in D-Chowk where police shelled tear gas. Police broke into houses of PTI workers which resulted in three deaths, Yasmeen Rashid is a cancer patient yet they dragged her too. He further said that Imran Khan has given a few days to the government to announce the date of elections at the earliest.

The delegation includes Asif Cheema, Former Secretary, Supreme Court Bar, Arshad Jahangir Johja, Former President, Lahore Bar Association, Sarmad Ghani Chattha, Tayyab Usman Randhawa, Chaudhry Ali Zeb Paracha, Hafiz Muhammad Shahzeb, Ali Hassan, Nadir Duggal, Former Additional Advocate General Punjab.

For more information, contact:

Mediacell, Pakistan Muslim League

30-C, Chaudhry Zahoor Elahi Road,

Gulberg-II, Lahore, Pakistan

Tel: +92-42-35878428

Fax: +92-42-35877329

Website: www.pmlmediacell.com

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Becoming a Knowledge Creator through my Final Year Thesis

Karachi, June 01, 2022 (PPI-OT):I submitted the final draft of my thesis on April 29, 2022 to my principal advisor, and it felt as if I had finally achieved something I had been longing for, for years.

My thesis titled, “Towards Access and Equitable Treatment: Afghan Refugees in Pakistan’s Higher Education System” investigates the challenges faced by young Afghan refugees in the country in their pursuit to higher education. The study is a sequential mixed method research and uses a participatory human-justice approach to include participant voices in the study design, implementation and analysis. As simple as this might sound, choosing my senior year thesis topic was nothing short of a journey itself.

The Social Development and Policy program lets you choose from a variety of courses

Like every major offered at Habib University, the Social Development and Policy program has a set of core (mandatory) courses that equip you with theoretical knowledge and practical skills that eventually help in final-year research projects, getting your desired internships or possibly employment. Apart from the core curriculum of the respective majors, students also get to choose from a variety of elective courses each semester to carve individual academic paths that align with their interests. One such elective that I took was titled Migration Diaspora and Transnationalism in Spring 2019. The course content, its teaching methodology, and fieldwork component opened my eyes to realities that I had long ignored in life.

In the next semester, I took the core course Qualitative Research Methods, which helped me design a research question and create drafts of data collection tools for the potential study. At that point, I was not aware that I had already started working for my thesis project.

My thesis advisors helped strengthen my research proposal

As my final year approached, I already had an idea what my thesis research topic was going to be but at the same time I was very unsure of the methods of data collection and analysis. Since I had no funding I also decided to restrict my research to Karachi despite my aim to conduct a nationwide study. Thanks to my incredible thesis advisors, Dr. Sahaab Bader and Dr. Aaron Mulvany, my research proposal was strong enough to get me an undergraduate research grant from the Center for Security, Strategy and Policy Research in Lahore. The grants solved my numerous problems; not only did it help me in the expansion of the study on a national scale but it also allowed me to hire research assistants, purchase software licenses which were used for analysis, while covering my intercity travel costs.

Habib’s incredible work-study program helped me become a better researcher

Data analysis and writing the discussion were the most difficult parts of my thesis. Though the collection of data is a time-consuming and hectic process, it was just the tip of the iceberg. But with the constant support of my peers and critical feedback from my advisors, my passion to keep going only increased. Despite the general hardships I faced in this year-long research, it was nothing short of an evolutionary learning experience.

I was lucky enough to avail the summer research fellowships and research assistantships as part of the university’s work-study programs as it trained me to become a responsible researcher.

As a student at Habib, that too of the SDP program, you will receive ample opportunities that transition you from a student to a knowledge producer. A thesis project is just the beginning of your potentially ever-lasting journey of knowledge production.

This blog was written by Muhammad Hamza Raza, Social Development and Policy major from the Class of 2022.

For more information, contact:

Habib University

Karachi, Pakistan

Tel: +92-21-34301051-55

Email: marketing@habib.edu.pk

Website: www.habib.edu.pk