Day: October 14, 2020

KARACHI: Pakistani companies should remain vigilant about the latest development of international standards Confidence of the consumer is always proportionate to safety and reliability of a product and this confidence can only be achieved through standardization.

This was stated by Abdul Aleem Memon, Director General, Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) in the Seminar on the occasion of 51st World Standards Day 2020 on topic “Protecting the Planet with Standards”, which was organized by Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) at its Karachi head office.

Abdul Aleem Memo, Director General, PSQCA while speaking as the chief guest at the seminar, acknowledged the fact that industrialization, standardization and economic growth grow together as without standardization optimum growth cannot be achieved.

Moreover, International Standards, especially with regards to Pakistan, is one single important factor that could direct and channelize the entire outlook of business.

He welcomed all the guests for their presence and active participation to make this seminar success. He acknowledged the contribution of Chairmen of NSCs. He further said that the changing face of international video standards had led to single, globally acceptable technical standards for globally marketable products.

At the international level, standards are becoming a pillar of the new global video system. He said: “I urge Pakistani companies to remain vigilant about the latest development of international standards and get involved with PSQCA. I am very much hopeful that standardization with the collaborative efforts of the public and private sectors has maintained its dedication by bringing positive changes to this activity every year.” After the seminar, certificates were distributed by Memon to Chairmen of NSCs in recognition of their services in formulation of national standards.

KARACHI: Sparkling half-centuries by Azam Khan and Sarfaraz Ahmed carried Sindh into the semi-finals of the National T20 Cup with a 25-run win over Northern, the table-toppers, at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

Azam blasted 88 runs at a staggering strike rate of 204.65 to record what was the 22-year-old’s second half-century of the tournament and third of his overall T20 career.

The right-handed batsman stitched a crucial 130-run stand with his captain Sarfaraz, who stroked a scintillating 52 not out from 28 balls, for the fourth wicket from just 59 balls, which lifted Sindh to an imposing 221 for four.

The two had come together when Saud Shakeel, who replaced Asad Shafiq and scored 25 runs from 18 balls on the back of four fours, was caught by Haider Ali on the last ball of the ninth over on Mohammad Nawaz’s bowling. Sindh, who had been asked to bat first by Northern captain Imad Wasim, were 67 for three at that stage.

The partnership between Azam and Sarfaraz was largely dominated by the former as he contributed 84 runs that came at a strike rate of 233.

Azam stay at the crease was studded by eight sixes and five fours. He was dismissed by Mohammad Amir, who returned two for 42 in four overs after replacing Haris Rauf, on the second ball of the penultimate over.

Speaking about his innings, Azam said: “I feel an innings was due on me. I have been struggling to convert my starts into big scores. The plan now is to continue to play like this in the upcoming matches.

“Some boundaries early on provided me the desired confidence then Saifi bhai [Sarfaraz Ahmed] gave me a lot of support and confidence after he joined me in the middle. That I have had a few partnerships with him in the HBL Pakistan Super League 2020 also helped.”

Sarfaraz smashed three sixes and as many fours as he recorded his first half-century of the tournament.

Northern were provided a solid start by Umar Amin and Zeeshan Malik as both batsmen scored fighting half-centuries and knitted a 116-run stand for the first wicket. Umar, made 51 off 42 balls, hitting six fours and two sixes, while Zeeshan raced to 61 from 35 balls, smashing three sixes and six fours as his opening partner.

The run-chase, however, turned on its head on the last three balls of the 13th over.

Anwar Ali, who finished with two for 32 from four overs, dismissed both openers on back-to-back balls before Asif Ali (one off one) was run out on the last ball of the over.

A 39-run stand for the fourth wicket between Haider Ali and Shadab Khan promised to bring the run chase back on track. But, Mohammad Hasnain, who was the pick of the bowlers for Sindh with three for 28, accounted for Haider (27 off 13, four fours and a six) in the 17th over before dismissing Shadab, who scored 26 off 16 balls, and Rohail Nazir (four off two) in his next over as Northern fell 25 runs short of the 222-run target despite four wickets win in hand.

KARACHI: Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday expressed displeasure at Director Drug Regulatory Authority (DRA) over the increasing price of medicines.

A SHC bench, headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, heard a petition filed by a citizen through his counsel, Muhammad Vawda, against DRA for not confirming registration of imported medical testing machines. The court questioned what is the role of the task force formed to control the shortage and price of medicine?

“The prices of medicines have been increased arbitrarily,” Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar observed. He remarked the prices of medicines were increased as much as they wanted. Do you know how expensive it is to take any medicine?, asked Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar.

The court observed that there was no implementation on former chief justice Saqib Nisar pertaining to the reforms in drug regulatory authority.

Justice Mazhar remarked if you do not work, and then people come to court. “We want institutions to work, performance to be better,” he remarked.

The court also remarked that it is not a matter to come from Islamabad and standing up here. You give us in writing, when will you decide on the petitioner’s request? Court inquiries from the Director DRA.

Director DRA replied that meetings could not be held due to covid-19 situation, so the matter was delayed. The counsel of petitioner argued that Abbott applied for registration in 2018 under the Medical Devices Rules.

The petitioner stated that Abbott Company imports 1,200 products for malaria, dengue, coronavirus and other diseases. The Drug Regulatory Authority had given two hours for product registration, the petitioner said. He said despite the application, the products are not being registered. The Drug Regulatory Authority has more than 400 applications pending for registration of products, the petitioner said. The petitioner stated that blood testing in the country will stop if registration is not done by the authority.

KARACHI: On the call of Grad Health Alliance Sindh, paramedics and doctors continued their full day OPD boycott on second consecutive day here in the hospitals of District Shikarpur on Wednesday, to press the authorities to accept their justified demands.

Due to strike in the hospitals of Shikarpur, Madeji and others, patients suffered torments as they had to return home without getting treatment.

The healthcare service providers were protesting and observing the strike on the call of the Grand Health Alliance Sindh which is a conglomerate of the organizations of doctors, paramedics and nurses.

They demanded restoration of Health Risk Allowance and solution to other issues forthwith. They threatened the provincial government of continuing their strike till their demands are met.

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that coronavirus has claimed four more lives, lifting the death toll to 2,566 and infecting 241 others across Sindh.

This he said in a statement issued here from CM House on Wednesday. Shah said that four more patients had lost their lives overnight, lifting the death toll to 2,566 that constituted 1.8 percent death rate. He added that 177 more patients had recovered overnight. The number of patients recovered so far has reached to 133,651 that came to 95 percent recovery rate.

The CM said that 9,234 tests were conducted against which 241 cases were detected that came to 2.6 percent current detection rate. So far 1,501,018 samples have been tested which diagnosed 140,997 cases allover Sindh that constituted overall 9.4 percent detection rate.

According to the statement, currently 4,780 patients are under treatment, of them 4,529 are in home isolation, six at isolation centers and 245 at different hospitals. The condition of 188 patients was stated to be critical, including 25 shifted to ventilators.

Shah said that out of 241 new cases, 145 had been detected from Karachi, including 59 from South, 44 East, 20 Korangi, 12 West, seven central and three Malir.

Naushehro Feroze has 10 cases, Badin seven, Matiari six, Sanghar five, Dadu, Hyderabad and Thatta four each, Tando Mohammad Khan and Jamshoro three each, Larkana, Mirpurkhas and Tando Allahyar two each, Jacobabad, Khairpur, Shaheed Benazirabad and Sukkur one each.

KARACHI: On the call of the Sindh Taraqi Passand Party (STPP), a shutter down strike was observed across Sindh on Wednesday against issuance of Pakistan Islands Development Authority Ordinance 2020 and the Centre’s bid to occupy Sindh’s two islands- Bundal and Buddu, located off Karachi coast.

The strike was observed in Hyderabad, Larkana, Mirpurkhas, Nawabshah, Khairpur, Naushehro Feroz, Dadu and other cities and towns of Sindh. The shops and bazaars were closed in the cities and business as well as social activities were also suspended in response to the strike. Seven activists of STP were arrested in Nawabshah and Kotri for protest against strike.

The leaders of the STP while speaking on the occasion called for immediate abolition of the presidential ordinance and end to the occupation of the Sindh’s islands which are major source of livelihood for local fishermen and other people.

The twin islands of Bundal and Buddu, which have recently been taken over by the federal government through a presidential ordinance, are located at the mouth of Korangi Creek and spread over 10,000 acres. The islands have escaped the onslaught of real estate developers twice over the past two decades, first in 2006 and then in 2013.

KARACHI: Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association (PPMA) has demanded continuity of the system of linking medicine prices with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) as the bare minimum requirement for the drug industry for availability of quality medicines at the most affordable prices in the country.

The newly elected Chairman of PPMA Tauqeer Ul Haq while speaking at a press briefing said on Wednesday that linkage of medicine prices with CPI under the new drug pricing regime should continue for uninterrupted production by Pakistan’s pharmaceutical industry.

He said that medicine prices should be periodically reviewed in view of the inflation as up to 95 per cent raw material used in drug manufacturing was imported.

He said that in the past a number of essential drugs had become vanished in the market as their production had become infeasible for the medicine industry in absence of the system of periodic review of the prices.

PPMA chairman said that patients were left with no option other than using smuggled medicines of questionable quality when the local industry were not able to produce essential drugs due to sheer economic reasons.

He said the periodic review of the drug prices would ensure that drug industry would play a vital role in economic progress of the country by generating sizable employment opportunities for fresh university graduates and labourers alike.

He said that such pricing regime would also allow enhancing export of medicines from Pakistan manifold that currently stood at Rs 300 billion annually. Haq said that pharmaceutical industry required such incentives so that it should continue its research and production activities for introducing new medicines in the market for greater good of the health care system.

He said that prices of 94 essential drugs had been recently increased by the government as all these medicines were extreme hardship cases as their price enhancement had been pending for over a decade.

He said that federal cabinet over two years back had approved increase in prices of these drugs as this decision had to be implemented to ensure availability of these essential medicines.

The PPMA chairman said that it was utterly wrong to assume that prices of medicines were generally high in Pakistan as compared to the regional countries. He said the average price of a medicine pack in Pakistan was just Rs 160, which was quite low as compared to the prevailing drug rates in the regional countries.

He demanded special incentives for the pharmaceutical industry of Pakistan like reduction in duties, taxes, and rates of the utility services so that drug manufacturers could further enhance their role in provision of quality health care services to people.

He mentioned that pharmaceutical industry had continued their production without any interruption during the countrywide lockdown against the spread of coronavirus so that quality medicines at most affordable rates were available to the people for their safety against Covid-19.

He said the pharmaceutical industry also ensured provision of medicines at affordable rates to the government-run and charitable hospitals across the country. Also speaking on the occasion, former PPMA chairman Dr Kaiser Waheed said that with right incentives and pricing regime the pharmaceutical industry would be in a position to produce medicines for cancer patients and manufacture biosimilars.

He said the PPMA provided utmost support to the government authorities including the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan for crackdown against spurious and smuggled drugs available in the market.