You are 100% right.

long awaited

Correct decision.

Throughout your political career this is single one best decision by you.

Well done, let's move this country's thinking forward, not backward

It's makes sense and about time.

It is exactly true to the core depth of Islam if a scientific lunar calendar is developed.

Very good suggestion! However, I am not sure if the committee will consider it positively and blame Fawad for interfering in religious affairs.

He could use the biggest telescope in the world the 'habal'.. It was launched by our very own SUPARCO who know a thing or two about moons (not of Fawad's).

"who will bell the cat?" Great step fawad chaudry. But too late and at wrong time, 2Ramadan and 2Eid this year again are inevitable. You should have banned this atleast six month before or at least given a warning to all . Lashing at eleventh hour won't help. Better luck next year!!

well done, good decision for national unity

Moon sighting may be tagged with Saudi Arabia. The controversy would be over.

The first positive thing from Mr Chaudhry at last..

Its wrong decision as science can predict only new moon with 100 % accuracy not the visibility of hilal, we can take help of science for the negation of hilal visibility on the basis of age of new moon and angle but can not predict with 100 % accuracy the visibility of hilal. Fawad Chaudhry has to study science properly before making such a decision it will divide the nation instead of uniting the nation. I live in the US and monitoring the decision of the Hilal Committee (Pakistan) and they are making the decision which makes sense whereas other countries announce the moon (hilal) when the age of the moon is just a few hours and impossible to see the moon.

The first positive thing from Mr Chaudhry at last

Please leave the moon sighting committee alone and let them do their job. This is an already long settled issue.

Positive step..

Whatever he does, he can't resolve the moon sighting issues in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

Excellent step. It was tantamount to corruption to pay a bunch of old guys such a large amount of money without much satisfactory results. No wonder Mufti sahib is opposing the scientific approach. Way to go Fawad sahib!!!

Great work being done, carry on the g9vt is to decide moon dates and not governing.

This is exactly what is desired.

Bravo

Excellent;

Moon sighting is a means to an end, and not the goal. The goal is to decide whether it is really the start of a new month according to lunar calendar. If we can agree on this, then it is totally unnecessary to go looking for the moon whether through the naked eye or the telescope. Just use scientific calculations and you can get predictions with 100% accuracy for the next 100 years. Problem solved!

@Ishtiaque, Because you cannot see the moon in karachi, doesn't mean that the moon cannot be seen on a plane flying over Karachi over the clouds. The moon is still there, but your logic and understanding of science is hidden.

Wow you are my favorite in as much as this project

Good! Take Mullahs out of the decision making. Follow a since based calculator. We do all 5 prayers by following the clock, not by going out and check whether the Sun has risen or set.

Finally!!! We( expats) had to explain our managers, why we don’t have an exact date for our religious holiday? This will solve our issue and we can take days off ahead of time

Good decision..!

It has to be mainly visualised.

There are several wrist watches that show the moon phasing with utmost accuracy. You cannot sight the moon if it starts appearing after dipping down the horizon.

Is this a joke? 5 guys to sight the moon.

Finally, sense is prevailing in Pakistan!

great decision. No more committee and no more money waisting on this issue as it will bring people close

Step towards right direction. Please finish this stupidity & controversy of moon sighting once & forever. These people dividing the nation for merely sake of moon. Pity! Moulvis Taking huge amount for this show.

finally sanity prevailed..bravo minister sahb

‘Science and technology’ minister! What is their application? Moon sighting for religious purposes!

While some countries aspire to land on the moon some are satisfies with just laying an eye on it!

One country, one ramazan and one Eid celebration.

Look at these priorities. We have much bigger problems. The sighting of the moon is more of a political issue than the use of technology.

@Mumtaz, yes, agree.

@Ishtiaque, thank you. You are 100 percent accurate, it will be divisive and gontentious., with no agreement anytime soon.

@Troubled, study this subject in detail. Ishtiaque Sahib is correct.

@Ishtiaque, go back to school mister and make sure they teach math and physics whatever school you chose.

It boggles the mind that Pakistan is having a national discussion in 2019 about calculations that were settled in the early 17th century!!

Why committee, government should announce the date and every one must follow it. We need to have some sense of discipline and learn to obey.

Sign a contract with ISRO. Pakistan will get 100% accurate data.

wrong decision

This was not an issue even two millennium back.

Not again...

I agree with him, long awaited decision. The whole world celebrates ramzan and eid on the same day. This decision will bring unity, which is much needed.

Very uneducated. No one does that even at NASA. Lunar dates are always predictable but never absolutely certain. So Mr. Fawad, who gave you the suggestion.

Waste of time and money

And don't forget, millions are spent by this committee every year, yet they seem to never be able to find the moon. All that money could easily be spent on feeding the poor during Ramazan.

It wont resolve anything, as there are many different ways of interpreting what constitutes a new moon

If you succeed I K will make you minister of religious affairs

Excellent decision. I hope that it will be implemented asap and there will be NO U TURN.

Good Job

Excellent idea

This is the superb effort in resolving a very very Big issue pertaining to our religious matter.

Excellent decision by Minister and we strongly support him

What a waste of ministerial time. In 21 century, Pakistan need application of Common Sense to settle the issue of moon sighting

interference in religious affairs not acceptable

@Ishtiaque, 100% agree with you on this! Thats what happens when we have got non science people running science ministry

“He made it clear that the government would not force people to follow the calendar issued by the scientific committee.” So what is the point of this whole scientific calendar? Don’t people already have access to one? There are numerous software available to predict moon visibility so this is just another white elephant in the making.

Soon will be reversed

At last somebody has the nerves to face these guys.

Now SPARCO's job is to advise on moon sighting. Should they not be doing something else?

I never ever thought I will ever write a word of praise for Fawad Chowdrey. But today, I have too. His initiative is long over due. Well done, good luck and as an advice include a maulvi as well in your committee.

Logic prevails at last

Rs3.06 million for sighting three moon. That is absurd.

@Farrukh Safdar, well said. The problem with him is whereever he goes he likes to be in the lime light often for beaten up reasons to create controversy at wrong time and setting. Wishing him better luck in future if he remain with his present portfolio in the future too.

@Farrukh Safdar, this is a knee jerk decision, unlike all the people commenting without reading the science behind it.

@Ishtiaque, ironically, the best follower of the moon for their calendar are the Chinese, we should engage with them at the scientific level to understand which method they have been following for thousands of years. We will also need to engage with the Saudis and turks. A harmonious and unanimous decision can be agreed upon, not quick, but best in the long run.

@RS, you missed the point.

Is this his job ?

Don’t backout ! No U turn on this issue please. We are fed up with this committee and waste of money every year .

If you carefully read the composition of the Committee, two experts inducted from the department of "Metrology". I was totally confused as what the experts of the science of measurement have to do with moon sighting. One of the experts from the Comsats University, Islamabad. Could not find any Department of Metrology in the University but I found Meteorology. It is sad that the Director to the Minister does not understand the difference between "meteorology" and "metrology" and still running the Ministry of Science and Technology.

I wish PTI would resolve this issue. People are literally held hostage by the moon sighting committee.

@Ishtiaque, What are you saying, are you in favor of scientific method or do you favor mufti's way?

Why does it need a Science & Technology minister to comment on religious affairs?

@Citizen,

Mr. Citizen,

Why not Iran?

As if IK did not already have enough problems, Fawad Chaudhry finds innovative ways to create more problems for him by creating religious controversies.

This step should have been taken 20 years ago but now previous government had the courage and will to do it. There are websites which can tell about the astronomical events like moon's age birth and visibility, solar and lunar eclipse with 100 percent accuracy upto 25 years at least with respect to differnt time zones and geographical location of a particular area any ware in the world. The minister deserves ful credit for taking the bold step to get rid of the RHC which was good for nothing and to make an Islamic Calendar and make use of the knowledge acquired by humans research in every field.

People should ask him some science and technology questions so that it can keep him busy, rather than poking his nose into another ministry affairs

@S, I want to take help from science, even the most advanced countries in science says the new moon birth can be calculated with 100 % accuracy but not the visibility so we can use science to say there will be no moon sighting if the age of the new moon on the basis of age and angle. For example, if the age of the new moon at the time of the sighting of the moon is just 2 hours then we know it is impossible to see the moon. In Islam, the new month starts when the new moon (hilal ) is visible not at the time of new moon birth. Moon is always there in the Universe it is only hidden from our eyes. So I want both science and human visibility, I think our Hilal committee is doing a good job so far by consulting with Weather Department and asking the location of the moon when someone says he had seen the moon,