Articles and letters may be edited for the purposes of clarity and space. They are published in good faith with a view to enlightening all the stakeholders. However, the contents of these writings may not necessarily match the views of the newspaper.
Asthma, a challenge
Asthma has become one of the most common disease effecting the people all over world. It is a diseases which effects the lungs of the people and destroy the respiratory system. Unfortunately, all countries of the world are the victim of the disease. Pakistan has been very problematic with regard of this perilous disease. In Pakistan mostly children are victimized by asthma. Air Pollution and climate change in Pakistan has put a huge increase in the number of victims of asthma disease. The number of asthma disease patients in Pakistan is alarming. 7.3 million adults and more than 15 million children are affected by asthma. More painfully, 180, 000 people have lost their precious lives due to this perilous disease. Karachi, the largest city of Pakistan, has been very unfortunate with regard to asthma disease where 40% population of the city is living in the high asthma risk environment.
Asthma is a threat to life. It deserves special attention. The medical authorities need to take this matter more seriously.
ZARNAZ MAYAR
Turbat
Global warming in Pakistan
Pakistan makes small input to total global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, less than 1 percent but it is among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. Pakistan has very low technical and financial capacity to overcome its adverse impact. The emission in the country from refineries, industries, and thermal power plants are causing heart diseases, lung disorder and cancer.
Coastal areas bordering the Arabian Sea in the south of Pakistan will be at greatest risk due to increased flooding from the sea and in some cases rivers. In Himalayas, the glacier melt is projected to increase flooding will affect water resources within the next two to three decades. This will be followed by decreased river flows overtimes as glaciers recede.
Availability of fresh water is also predictable to lessen which will lead to biodiversity loss and reduction of availability of fresh water for the population. Being a mainly agriculture economy, climate change is estimated to decrease crop yield in Pakistan, which in turn will affect livelihood and food production. Combining the decreased yield with the current rapid growth and urbanization in the country, the danger of hunger and food security will remain high.
Due to droughts and floods, endemic mortality and morbidity because of diseases are predictable to high. Cholera will also aggravate due to increase in a costal water temperature. The change in climate will also exacerbate the existing social inequalities of resource use and intensify social factors leading to displacement, conflicts, instability of people and changes in migration pattern.
HADIA AZIZ
Islamabad
Smoking kills
Everyone knows smoking can cause lung cancer. But it also causes a whole array of other varieties of the disease, from pancreatic cancer to leukemia. Now, new research sheds light on just how deadly tobacco can be when smokers get cancer.
Nicotine from cigarettes is as addictive as heroin. Nicotine addiction is hard to beat because it changes your brain. The brain develops extra nicotine receptors to accommodate the large doses of nicotine from tobacco. When the brain stops getting the nicotine it’s used to, the result is nicotine withdrawal. You may feel anxious, irritable and have strong cravings for nicotine.
Smoking raises your blood pressure and puts stress on your heart. Overtime, stress on the heart can weaken it, making it less able to pump blood to other parts of your body. Carbon monoxide from inhaled cigarette smoke also contributes to the lack of oxygen, making the heart work even harder. This increases the risk of heart disease, including heart attacks. Quitting smoking cuts cardiovascular risks. Just 1 year after quitting smoking, your risk for a heart attack drops sharply.
Within 2 to 5 years after quitting smoking, your risk for stroke may reduce to about that of a nonsmoker’s. If you quit smoking, your risks for cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus and bladder drop by half within 5 years. Ten years after you quit smoking, your risk for dying from lung cancer drops by half.
YOUSAF JAMIL
Wah Cantt
Put down video culture
With the access to every one of the mobile phones, the practice of making videos has become commonplace. It is a tragedy in our society that wherever we see an error, we make a video of it and make it viral. If a patient is dying due to lack of treatment, the video is made viral instead of facilitating it. They think this is a huge slap in the face of the administration, if the same patient is lifted and transported to a good hospital in a timely manner, it is possible that his life will be saved.
Every citizen should think of helping others individually, rather than making videos so we can get a better image of the country in front of the world.
MISBAH SIDDIQUE
Chakwal
The verdict and national security
Keeping in view the present-day complex and challenging crisis, Prime Minister has signed the letter of extension of COAS service tenure. Under Article 243 (4b) and 255 of Pakistan Army Act 1952, PM and President have executive authority to extend or reappoint COAS.
An application against the extension/reappointment of present Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who, under Operation Radd ul Fasad, started action against terrorists and other militant forces and did the job superbly, had been submitted to the Supreme Court. The SC in its verdict allowed a 6-month extension in the service of the COAS, wherein the Government was advised to enact legislation accordingly. This extension is not the first of its kind. Previously, a three-year extension of General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani has been made under the same circumstances by democratic government. The said case was challenged in Islamabad High Court which was turned down. In the past, certain SC decisions have harmed national interests and created serious problems for the country. The judgment of honourable CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry on Reko Diq case resulted in six billion fine on the state.
Discussing more! Through judicial activism, an attempt is being made to create division between Army and the Government. The continuation of the services by present COAS, it is need of the hour as the country is facing complex internal and external security issues. Foreign media especially Indian media kept on commenting and broadcasting this case happily making fun of Pakistan’s supreme institutions. This case was discussed openly which has harmed the image of Pakistan collectively. The SC being a supreme institution of Pakistan and Pakistani media are earnestly requested to act benevolently about sensitive issues involving security institutions and national interests.
Maemuna Sadaf
Rawalpindi
Co-education
Co-education is now a broadly accepted concept in almost all education institutions. In Pakistan too, the co-education system is widespread in both government and private educational institutions.
While most people in the country have started favouring this system of education, there are a few mostly from traditional backgrounds who compete against the idea of both the genders studying together.
However, we need to realize that our country is a developing nation. One that lacks the adequate amount of funds to spend on its education system and also has to prioritize in investing on other domains as well. As a result, spending its limited finances on building separate schools for girls and boys is not a sensible move. Therefore, co-ed is the best option for now.
More importantly, interaction between boys and girls in schools and colleges helps both in their practical lives. In a co-ed system, the competition in studies is also high. This prepares pupils to learn better and score better grades. This is however not to say that this system doesn’t have its disadvantages but those can be resolved by taking necessary precautions.
MAHAD ANSAR
Rawalpindi
5th generation warfare
5th Generation warfare is manipulation of actors, networks, institutions or any generational warfare forces to achieve set of goals across a combination of socioeconomic and political domains. The purpose of 5th generation warfare is to create chaos and anarchy in a country, creating confusion and disappointment among youths and spreading disinformation. This Cognitive Domain warfare finds its roots in electronic and print media, political meetings and protests, poor condition of law and order etc. Social media in such warfare is used to promote sectarian violence, which has always been very sensitive issue in Pakistan. Social media is spreading disappointment among the youth in Pakistan economy of Pakistan which is very likely to affect. Social media is the main source of propagating fake news and through these fake news; it is consistently defaming institutions of Pakistan, which are vital for the stability and prosperity of the country.
5th Generation warfare is to be fought with high sense and knowledge of Information Technology domain. Individuals to remain abreast with latest propaganda techniques adopted by attackers in order to influence their target. Government body to ensure proper monitoring of social media networks and should allow controlled transmission on electronic media.
FATIMA SHAHID KHOKHAR
Wah Cantt
Dengue season
For the past few years, the people of Pakistan have had to face a new threat every time the monsoon rains come around. The roads get flooded and attract mosquitoes in droves and now they carry dengue with them. Dengue has been a huge threat for quite some time and a few years ago an intense government drive to eradicate it made some progress in containing this virus. However, once the number of deaths and affected patients went down, the government moved on to other issues and completely forgot about this problem.
However, dengue is back and initial reports suggest that it is going to have the same kind of detrimental effect it had all those years ago. I need not remind the government that on that occasion, thousands of people lost their lives to this deadly virus, and I implore them to put a stop to this threat once and for all. I also ask the public of Pakistan to adhere by the rules of the government, and take preventive measures in their own homes to stem the spread of dengue.
MUHAMMAD WAQAS KHAN
Dera Ismail Khan
Wrong parking
Rawalpindi is one of the populous cities of Pakistan. Rawalpindi is adjacent to Pakistan’s capital Islamabad, and the two are jointly known as the “twin cities” on account of strong social and economic links between the cities. Raja Bazar Rawalpindi is the main commercial hub and known for shopping located near Fawara chowk Rawalpindi. Raja Bazaar covers a very wide range of small markets and bazaars. Traffic jam in Raja Bazaar is commonly known due to heavy traffic and the main reason behind jam is wrong parking. There is a parking plaza by Rawalpindi Development Authority at main Fawara Chowk but very large amount of wrong parking can be seen in main Raja Bazaar Road, Liaquat Bagh Road, Ganj Mandi Road and Jinnah Road all the time. Though the roads are quite wide but because of wrong parking, half of the roads are covered by these wrong parkings which cause very severe jam of traffic.
Traffic police seem helpless to these wrong parkings because they are unable to tackle this issue. I would like to urge Rawalpindi Development Authority, City Traffic Police Incharge and other concerned persons to come up with some better strategy to tackle this issue because it usually causes a heavy traffic jam. Maybe addition of some new parking areas can be helpful to tackle this situation.
QAISAR ANSAR
Rawalpindi
