Where does the buck stop? on November 1, 2020If you ask anyone on the streets whether the PTI government has made life easier for the common man, the answer is always in the negative. From massive unemployment to high inflation, this government seems to have done its best to make our lives miserable. And almost invariably, our ministers blame the previous regime for […]
What if the subcontinent had not been partitioned? on August 13, 2020If you ever wondered what would the situation have been today had partition not taken place and Pakistan not come into existence, you can get a good idea from what is happening to Muslims in India today. Just consider the following: 1. Despite Muslims being at least 20 per cent of the total Indian population, […]
What will future historians write about Pakistan? on August 1, 2020I wonder how future historians of the country will view Pakistan in these crisis-ridden times. I assume, of course, that humanity will survive the current pandemic and there will be historians in future. Perhaps they will write about how the dithering Chief Executive of the country went around in public without wearing a mask in […]
Government should open Karachi’s beaches for the public on June 23, 2020The government recently relaxed restrictions and lifted the lockdown imposed for the past two months. Shopping malls are now open, public transport has resumed, and people made to wear masks and maintain social distancing. As the Great Khan said, it was done to prevent people from starving and revive the economy. One of the oldest […]
Will our people accept the Covid-19 vaccine? on May 27, 2020A few days back I read an article in the New York Times about what would happen if half of the U.S. population refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19 (whenever a vaccine is developed). I found there is a very vocal anti-vaccine movement in the United States (despite its literacy rate being much higher than […]
Has Pakistan lost the war against coronavirus? on May 2, 2020I’m one of the lucky few who have been able to stay at home while my assistants are also working from their homes. Fortunately they live in localities where practically no cases of coronavirus have surfaced (on the other hand, DHA, where I live, has many infected residents and we have been told to stay […]
Government should get out of the sugar business on April 17, 2020No one should have been surprised at the recent report on sugar and wheat shortage in the country, which caused a split in the ruling party. It was only natural for the core members of the party to feel bad when they saw the sugar barons getting wealthier while they continued to remain mere spectators. […]
Lockdown: violators should be punished on March 31, 2020It’s been many days since I last went out of my house. The good men who manage the affairs of our apartment complex have decreed that senior citizens stay home until the virus has been tamed. But most residents violate the order to refrain from praying in the mosque. “It’s unthinkable”, says a Muslim resident, […]
Black magic, astrology and all that mumbo jumbo on March 20, 2020The one thing you find in most countries (particularly India and Pakistan) is a strong belief in black magic and the supernatural. You see huge billboards in every locality, with names of experts like “Amir Bangali Baba” who can tell you what will happen to you in future, and how to get rid of any […]
Keamari gas leak: what really happened? on February 24, 2020I have worked for most of my life in the petroleum and other industries, located at the shore of the Arabian Sea in Karachi. So, I know the kind of horrible stench the people, who live in the coastal areas, have to endure on most days, especially when the tide is low in winter or […]