— the fact that 95 per cent of sludge had been removed from Karachi’s three main storm drains within five days after the task had been taken over by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to start a clean-up campaign in Karachi and giving the task to the Frontier Works Organisation after the devastation caused by late July’s monsoon rains. People say the provincial government should hang its head in shame that it could not do anything in years, let alone days.
— the plan of the present government to have a uniform curriculum for all schools, whether they are private or in the government sector. People think this is an unrealistic goal since the previous curriculums have been used for ages and it’s not an easy task to shift from one method to another as there are not enough schools, or teachers in government schools with the ability to teach at a higher level of subjects and it will drag students of private schools down to the level of government ones.
— the fact that the CDA is procrastinating over the order of the Supreme Court that a Mall which was built on a plot of land meant for a hospital should be retrieved and the land used for its original purpose. People say while it is a well-known fact that powerful people in the country usually get away with breaking the law through influence or corruption, the orders of the Supreme Court should take precedence over everything else, no matter who is involved.
— the ban on plastic bags which has been extended to other cities and what a farce it is as the ban is not even being enforced in the larger cities. People say either the government should refrain from passing laws or if it does, then the authorities should see that they are implemented otherwise it shows an inherent weakness and secondly, unless the influential factory owners stop the manufacture of the bags, their use will continue.
— the fact that the CM of Punjab has been summoned by NAB to answer questions about a case in which he is involved and how the opposition should be satisfied that the accountability court is going after anyone who is involved in unfair practices. People say that the average citizen of the country thinks NAB is doing a good job although it is tardy in its workings and needs to speed up the process of its operating mandate.
— the death of a pair of lions, revealing the sorry state of affairs at our zoos. The lion was injured; kept hungry and not given any medicine, while a video showed that the caretakers ignited a fire in his cage to make him unconscious instead of using a tranquilizer. People say the persons responsible for this negligence were ordered by the Islamabad High Court to shift all animals to safe sanctuaries in eight weeks, which was ignored, so they should be held responsible.
— that according to health experts, viral hepatitis seems to be one of the major health concerns which has been severely overlooked because of the corona virus pandemic and the current daily death toll is 300, which is more than caused by the virus. Gastroenterologists have reported that more than 15 million people in the country are infected with hepatitis B and C without even being aware of their disease, transmitting the virus to others, so people say an awareness campaign is vital. — I.H.
