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New CEC to be appointed Deep conspiracy behind Imran Khan blames with political parties’ Karachi terror wave, T20 for India’s consensus: Gilani says Altaf Hussain test plight PAGE 03
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pakistantoday.com.pk
rs15.00 Vol ii no 216 22 pages Karachi — edition
Wednesday, 1 february, 2012 rabi-ul-awal 8, 1433
Petrol price increased by Rs 5.37 per litre, HOBC by Rs 6.29, HSD by Rs 4.64, LDO by Rs 3.43 g OGRA raises cess on CNG by 10 percent
g
ISLAMABAD
W
AMeR SIAL
ITHOUT showing any mercy to the people already cornered by inflation and economic instability, the government apathetically passed on the full impact of rising international oil prices to the consumers on Tuesday by raising POL prices to a record high, an increase of 3 to 6 percent accompanied by a 10 percent increase in cess on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) with effect from February 1 (today). According to a notification from the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), the price of petrol has been increased by Rs 5.37 per litre to Rs 94.91 per litre, High Octane Blended Component (HOBC) by Rs 6.29 to Rs 118.20 per litre, High Speed Diesel (HSD) by Rs 4.64 to Rs 103.46 per litre, Light Diesel Oil (LDO) by Rs 3.43 to Rs 90.21 per litre and Super Kerosene Oil (SKO) by Rs 2.78 to Rs 92.02 per litre. Another notification issued by OGRA said CNG prices in Region I (comprising Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Potohar including
Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Gujjar Khan) had been increased by Rs 0.71 to Rs 74.29 per kg, and in Region II (comprising Sindh and Punjab) by Rs 0.36 to Rs 69.60 per kg. The All Pakistan CNG Association (APCNGA) condemned the increase in gas cess. An official source said OGRA had recommended adjusting the increase in POL prices by lowering the petroleum levy (PL), as consumers were also paying GST on fuel. The Petroleum Ministry also supported OGRA’s recommendation, but the Finance Ministry rejected it nonetheless. Earlier, at the meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Petroleum, Petroleum Secretary Ejaz Chaudhary made a spirited defence of Petroleum Minister Dr Asim Hussain for giving a before-time statement on increase in POL prices, which parliamentarians had criticised as a cue for hoarders to stock supplies. However, the secretary said the people in the business were well aware of
10 killed as violence sweeps Karachi anew
the situation as they monitored the international oil prices on a daily basis and the impact could easily be calculated online. He said that the ministry was working on a formula to bring price parity in various fuel
prices to end the excessive demand
for gas. He said the prices of fuels could be brought at par with each other by reducing the PL.
Drones do target Pakistan: Obama g
KARACHI AAMIR MAJeeD
Another spell of violence besieged the volatile city of Karachi as at least 10 people, including the wife and daughter of a Balochistan Assembly member, were killed in different incidents of violence in the last 24 hours. The MPA’s wife and daughter were killed in Clifton Block-09 along with their driver. The Clifton Police station house officer (SHO) said two unidentified gunmen had stopped their car (registration number ANR-353) and opened fire at them, killing 35-year-old Zamrah, the wife of MPA Sardar Bakhtiar Domki, Janaan, their 13year-old daughter, and the family’s 36-year-old driver Barkat. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) South Naeem Sheikh said police had found 9mm bullet casings from the scene of the murders. A first information report (FIR) (No 27/12) under Section 302/34 and 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) had been registered on behalf of the state against unidentified culprits at the Clifton Police Station, he added. In a separate incident, a man and a woman were killed and two other people were injured when unidentified gunmen attacked a mobile phone service provider’s office in North Nazimabad Block-B. The victims were identified as Faiza Zeeshan, 26, and Mazhar Butt, 45. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) West Imran Yaqoob claimed the attack might have been carried out by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. In yet another incident, a doctor was killed near Malir Halt while he was on his way to his clinic. Saudabad Police SHO Zulfiqar Bajwa said the victim, identified as Dr Ashfaq, subscribed to the Deobandi school of thought and was likely killed because of his religious leaning. He said the doctor’s murder was likely part of the current spree of sectarian violence in the city. Late on Tuesday night, another four people were killed in various parts of the city. A 30-year-old man was gunned down by unidentified men the Shah Latif Police precincts. Police said the body was taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) but the identity of the victim could not be ascertained. An 18-year-old boy was shot dead in Mughal Hazara Goth, Gulistan-e-Johar Block-3. Officials at the local police station identified the victim as Naeem Abbas, son of Ansar Ali, and claimed he was another victim of sectarian violence. A 45-year-old man was killed in Pathan Goth in the SITE area. Officials at the local police station identified the man as Umar Rehman son of Aziz-ur-Rehman. A 27-year-old man was gunned down in Ramswami in the Garden Police precincts. The victim was identified as Muhammad Ahmed. The reasons behind these murders could not be determined immediately.
piCture | page 22
Pakistan shrugs off confirmation but acknowledges that US programme has ‘tactical advantages’ WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD AFP/StAFF RePoRt
file photo
US President Barack Obama has confirmed for the first time that US drones have targeted Taliban and al Qaeda militants on Pakistani soil, a programme that has escalated under his administration. The Pakistani government however, appeared to shrug off the confirmation but made a rare public acknowledgement that the programme had “tactical advantages”. Asked about drones in a chat with web users on Google+ and YouTube, Obama said “a lot of these strikes have been in the FATA”. “For the most part, they’ve been very precise precision strikes against al Qaeda and their affiliates, and we’re very careful in terms of how it’s been applied,” Obama said on Monday. “This is a targeted focused effort at people who are on a list of active terrorists, who are trying to go in and harm Americans, hit American facilities, American bases, and so on.” He said many strikes were carried out “on al Qaeda operatives in places where the capacities of that military in that country may not be able to get them”, such as the Tribal Areas. “For us to be able to get them in another way would involve probably a lot more intrusive military action than the ones we’re already engaging in.” According to an AFP tally, 45 US missile strikes were reported in the tribal belt in 2009, 101 in 2010 and 64 in 2011.
The New America Foundation think tank in Washington says drone strikes in Pakistan have killed between 1,715 and 2,680 people in the past eight years. Human rights campaigners have expressed deep concern over increased use of drone strikes. The State Department also confirmed it used surveillance drones to protect US diplomats in so-called “critical threat environments” overseas. The United States had until now refused to discuss the strikes publicly, but the programme has dramatically increased as the Obama administration looks to withdraw all foreign combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2014. TacTical advanTages: “Notwithstanding tactical advantages of drone strikes, we are of the firm view that these are unlawful, counterproductive and hence unacceptable,” Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit told AFP in a text message on Monday. “Our view has always been very clear and position principled,” he added. It was back in October last year that the US defense secretary Leon Panetta acknowledged the CIA’s drone programme but he did not specifically say that they were used in Pakistan. According to US and other western officials, Pakistani authorities agree to the programme despite popular opposition at home. But the authorities in western Continued on page 04