Cleanliness drive launched

RAWALPINDI, April 26: The City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR) on Thursday started the second phase of cleanliness drive. The Municipal Services Department is going to launch the drive in four union councils under the supervision of local MNA and MPA.

The campaign was started in UC-31 (Mohallah Mehmood Ali Shah) and was inaugurated by MPA Malik Ghulam Raza. He along with Executive District Officer (EDO) Municipal Services Imtiaz Ahmed Malik and District Officer Solid Waste Management Dr. Mazhar Azeem visited all the streets of the union council and supervised the campaign.

In UC 21 (Shamsabad), Advocate Raja Muhammad Hanif, MPA, started the campaign and appealed to the public to cooperate with the workers of Solid Waste Department.

In UC-38 Akal Gharh, Workshop Mohallah, the campaign was started by local MPA Shahryar Riaz. In UC-10 (Khyaban-e-Sir Syed), the campaign was started by MPA Ziaullah Shah..— A Reporter

Lecture organised

ISLAMABAD, April 26: Critical Thinking Forum of the International Islamic University Islamabad (IUII) in collaboration with Iqbal International Institute for Research and Dialogue (IRD) organised a lecture of the Pakistani writer and journalist Muhammad Hanif at the Faisal Masjid campus of the university on Thursday. Dr. Mumtaz Ahmad, President IIUI was the chief guest.

A large number of faculty members and students of department of English attended the lecture, said a press release issued here.

Muhammad Hanif briefed the students about his literary work on various topics and shared his experiences of how creative writing excelled the art of studying and teaching.

He also commented on the famous poems of young Palestinian writer Rizwan and critically analyse ‘Reserve”, Rumours and Fabrication’. — APP

Adult literacy centres

ISLAMABAD, April 26: Federal Minister for Professional and Technical Training Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada on Thursday announced that National Commission for Human Development (NCHD) would establish 120,000 adult literacy centres with special focus on three million illiterates during the next financial year.

He was addressing at the concluding session of Inter-Provincial Forum on 'Early Childhood Education' arranged by Unesco, UNICEF and Agha Khan Foundation. Under the primary education programme, he said that NCHD had planned to establish around 18,000 feeder schools to educate 750,000 students. Basic Community Schools Project (BECS) of National Education Foundation (NEF) will standardise and expand more than 13000 schools. Mr.

Pirzada urged all the stakeholders especially the provincial authorities to accept the challenges and work to save the future of the coming generations. —APP

Education budget

ISLAMABAD, April 26: Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) on Thursday urged the government to increase budgetary allocation for education sector in upcoming budget to produce qualified scientists, researchers and economist to drive the economy forward and increase the rate of economic growth.

In a statement, ICCI President, Yassar Sakhi Butt said that government had introduced various education policies but education sector needed immediate attention from the public sector.—APP