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Small arms galore IN a statement not long ago, the Interior Ministry announced its plan for re-launching the de-weaponization campaign. One wonders if such announcement was made in the wake of preparations for the UN biannual meeting...		More arms licences is a possible answer INTERIOR Minister Faisal Saleh Hayat says the government has plans to eradicate illegal weapons as part of “a cogent and durable law and order policy”, but would launch a “full-throttle” de-weaponization campaign only after all....
A visiting delegation SOMEONE violently knocked at the door of my one-room apartment at dead of night. Startled, I woke up. My heart wobbled. Before I could leave my bed I heard the knock again. Clearly it was an aggressive knock. Friends do not knock at your door like that....		When will mummy come home? GOD! Its only two o’clock ... three more hours when mummy returns. In fact make that three-and-a-half or four with the traffic and her chores and even then ... I have...
Learning to compete IT IS the survival of the smartest and the fastest. To survive in today’s cutthroat market conditions companies must learn to compete for the future. Those companies which take a peep and then a leap in the future will be the winners of tomorrow. To compete for the future, a company must possess industry and foresight....		The Afghan question OVER 60,000 Afghan refugees were about to abandon the sprawling Katcha Garhi camp by the end of June after they had received eviction notices from the Afghan Commissionerate, asking them either to go back to their war-shattered country or....
A click and a meow IN A country where veterinary hospitals can be counted on your fingertips, the best way, on most occasions, is to go online. Be it a regular pet such as a cat,...		A sunny English summer WORCESTER was where visiting teams used to start their tour of England and where Bradman routinely made a double century. It was also the home of Lea & Perrins Worcester sauce...
Water woes THIS year a wave of panic spread amongst the personnel of the Karachi water management who were making preparations to convert the oncoming season into a ‘profitable’ one. With the political government in place, and the local government...		Mental health in doldrums THE increasing rate of crime, suicide, heart attack and other physiological ailment force one to think what could be the reason? Likewise, various complex and incurable physiological ailments have sprouted up which were never heard of before....
The journey continues THE first year of textile studies drew to an end and I planned to spend my summer vacations in Switzerland, simply because there were mountains there. In the meantime, an English classfellow of mine, Johnny, who was a regular vagabond...		Lahoris and their interactive nature THE gradual disintegration of the public sphere in Lahore, the country’s capital of culture and learning, has been a cause of concern for intellectuals and egalitarian opinion leaders alike. Gone are the days when tea stalls...
Movements for peace AS VOICES for peace were too low to be heard activists decided to launch well organized movements against war to mobilize people in favour of peace. There were two approaches to these movements: one was to...		A journey of enlightenment and discovery MY UMRAH trip this time, the first made after 1977, turned into a journey of enlightenment and discovery in terms of does and don’ts. Like the 1977 visit, this time, it was during the relatively lean months of Safar and Rabiul Awwal. But the crowd compared to...
Khalida Husain turns to the novel WRITERS in days gone by were fortunate in having the freedom lost to us. They had the freedom to write in accordance with their own lights. The listeners and the readers...		Unveiling ocean’s mysteries THE calm, soothing, translucent and colourful life of the world under the sea with its mystique can tantalize anyone’s curiosity. The world within the ocean with its many hues and colours may be a fascination for some, and exploring it...
The fresh start is not fresh enough NOT many would be interested, and understandably so, in what is happening in the triangular contest in England involving, in addition to the hosts, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Basically, an overdose...		Unnecessary controversy IT IS rare for Pakistan hockey to get the kind of extensive coverage in the national print media that it has been getting in the last few days. Most of it,...
The three-billion-dollar ballyhoo! OKAY, by now we all know that Sehba and Pervez had a fun day in the mountains of Maryland. The hosts, George and Laura laid out a red carpet and all the niceties that go with it. Winding up the tete-a-tete...		Weaving into the tapestries of time THE aura around Syed Azhar Samdani is that of a man who understands carpets not only as decorative and functional pieces but as trademarks of history as well. This is what is reflected in his unique work. Samdani restores fine antique...
A tribute to the milkmaid A HEAVILY armed, sturdy young man dismounted from his horse and looked around the hilly tract of land. His weather-beaten face showed traces of immeasurable agony. He had strayed into...		Machines, the heartless fiends GOING through the article, Machine, the heartless friends (June 15) was an interesting experience. The writer seemed to be a great critic of man-made mechanical devices, perhaps even to the extent...
MOSAIC: First hydrogen service station A FILLING station for hydrogen-powered vehicles, said to be the first in the world, opened in Iceland recently. “In time, what is happening in Iceland will show to the rest of the world that hydrogen fuel is a real, commercial possibility that will lead to a cleaner, pollution-free environment,” said the Iceland Industry....		Newsmaker TO survive for so long in the cut-throat world of Australian cricket, one needs to be Steve Waugh. It requires all the grit, determination, resolve, commitment and, indeed, the skills that Waugh has shown over the years. But above all, one has to have...