Today’s top Pakistan current affairs 15 June, 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
- Pakistan Will Continue To Play Its Constructive Role For Afghan Peace Talks: Qureshi. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi says that Pakistan will continue to play its constructive role for the success of Intra-Afghan Peace talks.
- Less Than Thousand Cases Of Corona In A Day Reported In The Country. As many as 59 people lost their lives against the coronavirus while less than 1000 cases after four months in the last twenty hours as third wave of coronavirus is declining.
- FM Qureshi Will Go Turkey On Three Day Visit To Attend Antalya Forum. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will visit Turkey in the current week where he will attend a forum in Antalya city of Turkey.
- Only Four Pilgrims Would Be Allowed in One Tent During Hajj: KSA. Muslims of all nationalities residing in Saudi Arabia are allowed to register for this year’s Haj pilgrimage equally, according to a Saudi official.
- Govt Increases Price of Petrol. Government on Tuesday approved an increase of Rs2.13 per litre in the price of petrol.
- UAE likely to extend ban on Pakistani arrivals. The United Arab Emirates may extend its ban on arrivals from Pakistan beyond July 7.
- Sindh govt announces to block SIM cards of unvaccinated citizens. The Sindh government has decided to block SIM cards of all those citizens who refuse to get themselves vaccinated against Covid-19.
- Pakistan revises guidelines, allows AstraZeneca shot for under 40s. In a bid to help inoculate people who need to travel abroad for education or jobs, the federal government has revised guidelines for the AstraZeneca vaccine and allowed citizens who are 18 or older to get the jab
- Rupee extends losses against US dollar. The Pakistani rupee depreciated 60 paisas against the United States (US) dollar in the interbank currency market on Tuesday.
Spotlight by The NewsRun
1. COVID-19 IN PAKISTAN
- 24-hour recap: Pakistan reported 1,019 cases and 34 deaths in 24 hours. Pakistan also conducted 39,214 tests in the span of 24 hours (P.S. this data was last updated on June 14 at 6:34 am).
- NCOC launches video encouraging COVID-19 vaccinations: The National Command and Operation Centre shared a video Sunday educating and encouraging people to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Created in collaboration with Jazz, the video is aimed at clearing misconceptions citizens may have about getting vaccinated. Pakistan has administered more than 11 million doses so far.
- No vaccine, no cell phone service: Pakistan’s Punjab province threatened to block cell phone service to anyone who refuses to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Officials are trying to think of ways to boost the province’s “dismal” vaccination rate. The provincial govt wanted to vaccinate 420,000 people per day. However, only 52,000 people a day have been coming to get their shot. Many Pakistanis are apparently worried about the vaccine’s side effects, even though some symptoms are generally a sign that the vaccine is working. Plus, fake news and misinformation are also contributing to vaccine hesitancy in Pakistan.
2. FM Qureshi says Pakistan won’t take blame for deteriorating Afghan peace
What’s going on? Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Pakistan would not accept any responsibility if it was blamed for a deterioration in the Afghan peace process.
The details: His speech came at the inaugural session of the Pak-Afghan Bilateral Dialogue in Islamabad Monday ahead of Afghan president Ashraf Ghani’s trip to Washington D.C. He warned that it would not help if Ghani and his advisors blamed Pakistan for “all the ills” in Afghanistan and the lack of progress in the peace process. Qureshi said that Pakistan has been “honest and sincere” in fostering a peace process in Afghanistan.
Tell me more: Qureshi said that Afghan leadership needs to steer the country toward peace and counter terrorism, adding that Pakistan has “paid a price” for lives lost and economic setbacks in the country owing to instability in Afghanistan. He stressed that while Pakistan would not interfere in Afghanistan’s internal affairs, it wanted to engage with leaders of every ethnicity in Afghanistan who are “important for peace and reconciliation.”
The context: Earlier this month Qureshi lashed out at Afghanistan’s National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib for calling Pakistan a “brothel house.” Mohib had alleged that Pakistan’s intelligence agency supports the Taliban in Afghanistan. Pakistan is reportedly a key player in the peace process in Afghanistan. At the same time, U.S. troops are withdrawing from the country after 20 years.
The bottom line: The withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan has given rise to several additional concerns, Qureshi said. These include an increase in violence, an increase in the number of refugees to Pakistan and the possibility of a civil war in Afghanistan if no peace settlement is reached.
3. Teenager in Lahore shot dead by drunk police constable
On Sunday a police constable in Lahore’s Shahdara area shot dead 18-year-old Zain Jaleel over a minor argument before fleeing the scene. Police moved the body to a morgue and registered a case against accused suspect, constable Waseem. Jaleel’s mother told the media that the drunk constable shot her son 18 times, after which he kicked him repeatedly.
- Now what? Police officers said they’re conducting raids to arrest the suspect whose whereabouts have not been reported yet. The victim’s mother wants Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar to take notice of the incident and bring justice to her son. According to The News, a pedestrian Amjad Ali was also injured in the shooting.
4. Pakistani online grocery platform raises $5.2 million in a Series A funding round
The Lahore-based online grocery startup, GrocerApp, raised $5.2 million in a Series A round led by Dubai-based investment firm, Hayaat Global. This funding round came after GrocerApp raised $1 million in a seed investment last year. Ahmad Saeed, Hassaan Sadiq, and Rai Bilal founded GrocerApp in 2016. Users in Pakistan can order their groceries for same-day delivery in most cases via its web and mobile apps. GrocerApp started in Lahore, but has expanded to Islamabad, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad. Now, the startup aims to launch in Karachi as well. GrocerApp has some competition in the space from other companies like Airlift, Cheetay, and Foodpanda, which have also launched grocery delivery services.
- In related news: Pakistani startups raised around $85 million in the first five months of this year, surpassing the total amount of $65.6 million raised in 2020. A large chunk of the funding went to e-commerce, but a lot of deals (pre-seed and seed) were also made in Fintech. Fintech companies raised about $22 million, mostly in foreign funding. The Fintech companies that got funding include TAG Innovation, KTrade and Abhi. Pakistan’s increasing mobile phone penetration and growing young population are reportedly attracting foreign funding in local startups. Plus, there is more focus on the Fintech space since Pakistan has a big retail, wholesale and trade sector that needs a better financial ecosystem.
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