Today’s top Pakistan current affairs March 24, 2021 with download link available in pdf. These are the latest breaking news about Pakistan which will be helpful for aspirants in test preparation of current affairs, Pakistan affairs, General knowledge for NTS, PPSC, CSS, FPSC, KPPSC, SPSC, BPSC, AJKPSC, OTS, PTS, and other Govt Jobs, exams & MDCAT, ECAT Entry test preparation.
One Liner
- Closure Of Schools Announced Till April 11 In Districts Badly Affected By Covid-19. The government has decided that the educational institutions will remain closed in the selected districts including Islamabad till 11th of next month due to the rising cases of coronavirus.
- All Educational Institutions In Province Will Remain Open: Saeed Ghani. Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani on Wednesday said that all educational institutions in the province will remain open under strict coronavirus related Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
- Dubai’s Finance Minister Dies. The United Arab Emirates finance minister and the deputy ruler of the emirate of Dubai, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has died, Dubai’s ruler said on Twitter on Wednesday.
- PIA crew gets UN recognition for babysitting child onboard. Pakistan International Airlines official Touheed Daudpota has been honoured as the HeForShe champion by UN Women Pakistan.
- Pakistan, India talks on contentions water projects resume second day. The water talks between the Indus Water Commissioners of Pakistan and India resumed on second day here, Indian media reported on Wednesday.
- Govt likely to make important decisions regarding electronic voting. The federal government has summoned an important meeting to discuss matters related to electronic voting and the provision of the right to vote to overseas Pakistanis
- Balochistan decides against closing educational institutions. Balochistan has decided against closing the schools and other educational institutions, quoting a government official
- Rupee strengthens against US dollar. The Pakistani rupee strengthened by 46 paisa against the United States (US) dollar in the inter-bank currency market on Wednesday.
- Gold prices fall in domestic market. The per tola gold price on Wednesday witnessed a decrease of Rs 350 to Rs 107,150 in the domestic market
Spotlight by The NewsRun
1. COVID-19 IN PAKISTAN
- 24-hour count: Pakistan reported 3,301 new cases and 30 deaths in 24 hours. Pakistan also conducted 38,282 tests in the span of 24 hours (P.S. this data was last updated on March 24 at 8:08am).
- Pakistan finally purchased vaccines: Pakistan bought more than 1 million doses of China’s Sinopharm and CanSino Biologics COVID-19 vaccines. This is reportedly Pakistan’s first vaccine purchase from any manufacturer. Up till now, Pakistan was relying on donated vaccines. The vaccines are scheduled to be delivered this month. Pakistan also plans to buy another 7 million doses from the same companies. Pakistan aims to vaccinate around 70 million people out of its 220 million population to reach sufficient community immunity. So far, around 100 million people under the age of 18 don’t have to get vaccinated.
2. Strengthening the Pak-US partnership
What’s going on? US Democratic President, Joe Biden, wrote a letter to Pakistan’s President, Arif Alvi. In the letter, President Biden said, “Pakistan has long been a close partner of the US, and it’s my great honor to congratulate you and the Pakistani people on your National Day this March 23…we look forward to strengthening our partnership in the year ahead.”
The details: The US is doubling down on its shared goals with Pakistan, like regional stability, addressing climate change, and tackling COVID-19. President Biden also mentioned Afghanistan. He emphasized that both Pakistan and the US want to see an end to the Afghan conflict.
Tell me more: This month, the US Special Envoy for Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, and Commander of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission and US Forces in Afghanistan, General Scott Miller, met Pakistan’s Army Chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa. They talked about the Afghan peace process.
How’s the peace process going? Even though the Afghan Taliban and Afghan govt kicked off direct talks in Doha last year in September, the peace process is currently stalled. There’s a resurgence of violence in Afghanistan, and disagreements over the negotiation agenda.
The context: In February 2020, the US and Taliban struck a deal. According to the deal, the US and its NATO allies will withdraw all troops from Afghanistan in 14 months, in exchange for security and counter-terrorism guarantees from the Taliban. The US also urged the Taliban to start negotiating for a peace deal with the Afghan govt, so the country doesn’t erupt into chaos once the US and NATO head out.
Concerns: Afghan officials are worried that a rushed US-Taliban deal could result in lingering security challenges. Women’s rights activists are also concerned about the hardline Islamist insurgent group making a power grab once international troops leave.
A little history: US forces have been present in Afghanistan since 2001, when US-led troops removed the Taliban regime from power. Then US President, George W. Bush, told the Taliban to deliver Osama bin Laden to US authorities, since he masterminded the September 11 terrorist attacks. When the Taliban said ‘nope,’ the US said, ‘we’re coming for you.’ There has been an ongoing conflict between the Taliban and Afghan govt for years. Initially, the Taliban refused to sit down with Afghan govt officials, calling them “American puppets.”
The bottom line: Pakistan is seen as a key player in the Afghan peace process. The US acknowledged Pakistan’s help in bringing the Taliban to the negotiating table. Recently, Khalilzad highlighted Pakistan’s continued role in the peace process.
3. And the Pride of Performance Award goes to
President Alvi handed out the President’s Award for Pride of Performance yesterday. Even though the govt announced the awards on Independence Day last year, the awards were scheduled to be handed out on Pakistan Day, March 23, 2021. Recipients included actor Humayun Saeed, actress Sakina Samo, religious scholar Maulana Tariq Jameel, and singer/actor Ali Zafar. The Pride of Performance is a civil award that recognizes people who have made contributions to society in the fields of literature, art, sports, science and education.
- Something to know: In December 2020, Minister for Human Rights, Shireen Mazari, spoke about women’s empowerment during a press talk at the president’s house. She went on to say, “we as a govt should discourage and disown any man who has been suspected of harassment. We should not consider them for national awards.” However, Zafar received a civil award yesterday. In April 2018, Pakistani singer, Meesha Shafi, accused Zafar of sexual misconduct. Zafar denied Shafi’s allegations. There is no final verdict in the harassment case yet.
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