Today’s top Pakistan current affairs April 23, 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
- Canada Bans Flights From Pakistan, India. Canada suspended all passenger flights from Pakistan and India on Thursday for 30 days, Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra announced, citing increased Covid-19 cases detected in travelers arriving from these countries.
- Pak Army To Help Police To Ensure Implementation on SOPS: PM Khan. Minister Imran Khan on Friday, while briefing the nation about the prevailing situation in the country regarding COVID-19, said Pakistan Army will help police to ensure implementation on the coronavirus standard operating procedures (SOPs).
- Restaurants, schools closed as Fed govt announces fresh COVID restrictions. Federal Minister for Planning and Development and Head of the National Command Operation Centre (NCOC) Asad Umar on Friday announced that Pakistan Army would be on the roads to enforce COVID-19 SOPs in the country amid concerns over rising virus cases
- NCOC issues guidelines for Chinese Sinovac vaccines. The government of Pakistan via National Command Operation Center (NCOC) has on Friday rolled out guidelines for the storage and jabbing of the Chinese coronavirus vaccine Sinovac of which the country received a shipment of 500,000 doses yesterday
- FM Qureshi Reaches Turkey on Official Visit. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has arrived in Istanbul on a two-day official visit to Turkey.
- Edhi foundation offers India 50 ambulances to fight Covid-19 crisis. India recorded over 300,000 new cases and 2,263 deaths from coronavirus in the last 24 hours. Its capital New Delhi continues to be among the worst hit cities, with hundreds of thousands of new infections and many new hospitalisations in the last few days.
- Islamabad’s PIMS hospital runs out of beds for COVID-19 patients. Islamabad’s PIMS hospital has run out of beds for people due to increasing number of the coronavirus patients, the hospital management informed the health ministry Friday.
- Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia bans arrivals from Pakistan, four others countries. Saudi Arabia has restricted arrivals from Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and the Philippines, the Saudi aviation authority announced Friday.
- Pakistani rupee declines against US dollar. The Pakistani rupee depreciated 41 paisas against the United States (US) dollar on the last day of week’s trading in the interbank currency market on Friday.
- Zimbabwe shock Pakistan with 19-run win in second T20I in Harare. Zimbabwe pulled off a shock 19-run win over Pakistan, successfully defending 118 to win the second T20 international in Harare and level the three-match series at 1-1.
Spotlight by The NewsRun
1. COVID-19 IN PAKISTAN
- 24-hour recap: Pakistan reported 5,870 cases and 144 deaths in 24 hours. Pakistan also conducted 53,818 tests in the span of 24 hours (P.S. this data was last updated on April 23 at 4:00am).
- Is the Pfizer vaccine coming to Pakistan? A health official claimed that the COVAX initiative will give Pakistan at least 100,000 doses of the two-shot Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine by June this year (P.S. COVAX donates COVID-19 vaccines to poorer nations). Clinical trials demonstrated that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is 95% effective against symptomatic, laboratory-
confirmed COVID-19. Back in February, Pakistan said it expects to receive 2.8 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine by March 2 under the COVAX scheme, but that hasn’t happened yet. What we’re trying to say is, people in Pakistan shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for the Western-developed Pfizer vaccine to arrive anytime soon, since there have been delays in getting other Western-developed vaccines as well (e.g. Oxford-AstraZeneca).
- Which COVID-19 vaccines is Pakistan using right now? Pakistan has approved the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine, the Chinese CanSino vaccine, the Chinese Sinovac vaccine, Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine, and the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for emergency use. So far, Pakistan has only received doses from Chinese and Russian vaccine-makers. As of April, 22, 2021, less than 1% of the population has been vaccinated.
2. Pakistani college student burned in acid attack
What’s going on? Police in New York are searching for an unidentified man suspected of throwing acid on Nafiah Ikram, a 21-year-old Pakistani-Muslim college student studying at Hofstra University. She lives in the Long Island area of New York. The attack took place on the evening of March 17, and the perpetrator still hasn’t been caught.
The details: Ikram had just arrived at her home in Elmont, Long Island after her work shift at CVS when she saw a man watching from the corner. She said the unknown man charged at her and tossed a cup of liquid in her face. The liquid is believed to be battery acid. The suspect is reportedly a tall, thin man wearing a hooded sweatshirt and gloves.
Looking ahead: According to NBC News, the Nassau County Police Department issued a $10,000 reward to anyone who can identify the suspect or offer information that leads to his arrest. However, New York Post said the reward money is $20,000. The reason for the attack is still a mystery. Ikram and her family have no idea who could have done it. The legal director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in New York is calling for a hate crime investigation.
Something to know: “Top Chef ” and “Taste the Nation” host, Padma Lakshmi, is also voicing her support for Ikram and her family. Lakshmi said she was close to the family, and has known them for over a decade.
The bottom line: Ikram was young and studying medicine. Now, she has lost a year of college, has burns across her face and arms, and might lose her eyesight. Ikram said she can just see colors. Her entire life changed within minutes.
3. An alleged motive to disrupt stability and progress
There’s more on the Quetta bomb blast, which happened at the Serena Hotel’s parking area. The death toll has gone up to five. A suicide bomber reportedly used explosives, and stayed in the car with those explosives. Quetta is the capital of Pakistan’s Balochistan province, home of the deep-sea Gwadar port. This area has an important role in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a large scale infrastructure project that China is investing heavily in. That’s why Interior Minister, Sheikh Rasheed, believes the people behind the attack are against Pakistan’s development. He also claimed the attackers want to disrupt the stability gained under the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) govt. Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan condemned the incident, saying Pakistan will “remain alert to all internal and external threats.”
- Backstory: The bomb blast occurred on Wednesday night at 10:15 pm. This venue is known to be a luxury hotel. Govt officials and visiting dignitaries usually stay here. Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP), also known as the Pakistani Taliban, reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack. China’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Nong Rong, was staying at the Serena Hotel, along with other Chinese officials. However, Ambassador Rong was not at the hotel when the blast took place. Foreign Office Spokesperson, Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, reiterated that all Chinese nationals and diplomats were safe. The incident is being investigated.
[dkpdf-button]