Gender equality and women’s rights

 Gender equality is at the very heart of human rights and United Nations values.

Gender-based discrimination is prohibited under almost every human rights treaty. Despite much progress made in securing women’s rights globally, millions of women and girls continue to experience discrimination and violence, being denied of their equality, dignity and autonomy, and even a life.

Promoting women’s human rights and achieving gender equality are core commitments of the UN Human Rights Office. We promote women and girls’ equal enjoyment of all human rights, including freedom from violence, sexual and reproductive rights, access to justice, socio-economic equality, and participation in decision-making.

The impact of COVID-19 on violence against women and girls, on their health, education and livelihoods is significant. This guidance note gives key steps for States and stakeholders to ensure women and girls take part in the design of recovery plans.

Right to a Better World is a documentary video series exploring how human rights-based tactics can be used to achieve sexual and reproductive health rights for all – and drive meaningful progress towards the fulfilment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Babar Azam was hesitant to play final T20 against New Zealand Babar Azam was hesitant to play final T20 against New Zealand

 Babar Azam was pressured to play T20 with a groin injury against New Zealand.Despite his injury, Babar traveled across the continent for a BPL match 2 days later.

• New Zealand won the series 4-1, with Pakistan winning the last match.

Nevertheless, he was persuaded to play but he could only score 13 runs off 24 balls and got dismissed. He also missed a catch and hardly fielded in the second innings. The bowlers saved the day for Pakistan by winning the match by 42 runs and avoiding a 5-0 loss. Babar was the highest run-getter in the series with 213 runs and 3 half-centuries.

According to Babar’s close sources, the injury was not very severe, but Babar wanted to take a break since Pakistan had already lost the series. He also thought that this would give a young player a chance to showcase his talent, but the team management did not agree and Babar played in the match.

Disposable vapes to be banned for children's health, government says

 Disposable vapes are set to be banned as part of plans to tackle the rising number of young people taking up vaping, the government says.

Figures from the Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) charity suggest 7.6% of 11 to 17-year-olds now vape regularly or occasionally, up from 4.1% in 2020.

The ban is expected to be introduced across the UK, the government said.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is expected to explain the plans during a visit to a school on Monday.

It follows last year's announcement of a ban on the sale of cigarettes to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 as part of an attempt to create a "smoke-free generation".

"By stopping children and young people from ever starting to smoke we decrease their chances of developing preventable diseases later in life," she said.

Trading Standards officers also say more resources are needed to help crack down on rogue retailers, and it may take some time and a different range of policies to stop vapes with damaging illegal content coming into the UK and reaching children.

The Sufi shrine caught up in a religious row in Mumbai

 A Sufi shrine frequented by Indians of all faiths made headlines recently after a top political leader said that he wanted to "liberate" it for just Hindus.

The ascent is no easy feat, with some 1,500 rock-cut steps separating the devout from their destination: a Sufi saint's tomb that has become a seat of faith, legend and disputed history.

The shrine's managing board mirrors this sense of respectful co-existence - while two of its trustees are Muslims, its hereditary custodians are from a Hindu Brahmin family.

But political observers say that Mr Shinde's stance may have less to do with faith and more to do with optics. Dighe's campaign had bumped up his appeal among Hindu voters in Maharashtra state.

All politicians want to do is play games to get votes. Nobody really cares about what the people want."

The sentiment is echoed by numerous locals.

"Hindus and Muslims have co-existed in harmony on this hill for centuries," Mr Shaikh says. "We celebrate festivals together and support each other in times of need.

Moon lander Slim comes back to life and resumes mission

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said it re-established contact with the lander Sunday night, indicating that the glitch had been fixed.

The spacecraft ran on battery power for several hours before authorities decided to turn it off to allow for a possible recovery of electricity when the angle of sunlight changed.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Jaxa shared a photograph taken by Slim of a nearby rock that it nicknamed a "toy poodle".

Jaxa could not immediately say until when Slim will operate on the moon. It has previously said the lander was not designed to survive a lunar night. A lunar night, which is when the surface of the moon is not exposed to the sun, lasts about 14 days.

Earlier this month, a US spacecraft launched by a private operator ended its lunar mission in flames over the Pacific. In August last year, Russia's first lunar spacecraft in decades crashed into the Moon after spinning out of control.

Pakistani CULTURE

 

RELIGION

The country has a strong and rich “Sufi” cultural heritage. The Sufi thought embodies religion, values, literature, education, and mysticism that has created an enduring impact on the presence of Islam in South Asia today. Today, there are thousands of Sufi shrines and mausoleums, which dot the landscape of Pakistan

CLOTHING AND FASHION

Pakistani fashion is a combination of traditional and modern outfits and it has become the cultural identification of Pakistan. Despite all modern trends, the regional and traditional dresses have developed their own significance as a symbol of native tradition. This regional fashion is not static but evolving into more modern and pure forms. Besides the national dress, domestically tailored suits and neckties are often and usually worn by men in the country. It is customary in offices, schools and other popular gatherings.

FESTIVALS

Pakistan is a land of festivals,which are rooted in the diverse and rich culture of the country. The two biggest festivals are Eid-ul- Azha and Eid-ul-Fitr, which have Islamic significance. The Eid-ul- Azha celebrates the sacrifice of prophet Abraham and coincides with the annual pilgrimage of Muslims to Mecca. Eid-ul-Fitr celebrates the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

SPORTS

Field hockey is the national sport of Pakistan. Pakistani hockey team is one of the top teams in the world. It has won many international hockey tournaments including the World Cup, Olympics, and the Champions Trophy.

Cricket is the most popular sport in Pakistan. The Pakistan Cricket team is a test playing nation – a status enjoyed by only ten nations in the world. The Cricket team has won many accolades including the World Cup and ICC T20 World Cup. Pakistan Women Cricket Team won gold medals in Asian Games in 2010 and 214.

Physical Activity for Health and Fitness:

 It’s a saying “The early we start, the early we attain good health”. Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely absence of disease Fitness is an ability to execute daily functional activities with optimal performance, endurance, and strength to manage minimalist of disease, fatigue, stress and reduced sedentary behavior. In the modern era with advancement in technology, erosion of physical activity has drastically led to retardation in health and fitness. Hoods of luxurious and competition among students for scores/grades and professionals for promotions/incentives/benefits have deviated people from concentrating towards their health and putting it secondary.

A review document from 2012 expressed prevalence of physical inactivity to exist in wide regions of the world; 27.5% in Africa, 43.3% in America, 34.8% in Europe, 17% in South East Asia and 33.7% in the Western Pacific [5,6]. To support further, in June 2018

Benefits of physical activity have been documented since early 20th century [14]. Study show rate of coronary heart disease lower among physically active London bus conductors than bus drivers and government clerks [15].

Physical activities can be implemented and regularized through two modes; self and under supervision. Physical activities pose negligible negative effects in comparison to medication [26]. WHO proposes individuals to indulge in any kind of a moderate intensity exercise for at least 150-300 minutes per week [27].

 Fitness Trackers, Smart Watches, Heart Rate Monitors, and Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking devices have boomed with its use extending from children to elderly. These devices are designed and marketed with the aim to push inactive individuals to think critically towards their health by creating mental concern for heart rate, number of steps/cadence, duration of current and projection of future workout, calorie loss, running distance, activity recording, sleep patterns and blood pressure thereby, enabling them to become physically active. According to a systematic review, activity trackers increased people’s physical activity