WORLD IN FOCUS (Dec 2012- Jan 2013)

News From National & International Press 

 National 

Dec 13: The NAB chief, Admiral (retd) Fasih Bokhari, raised the estimate of the level of corruption in the country to Rs.13 billion a day or Rs.5 trillion a year dismissing government’s reaction.

Dec 13: The ministry of food security conceded that poverty has been increasing in the country during the past four and a half years of the PPP-led coalition government.

Dec 14: Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf designated his son-in-law Raja Azeemul Haq as executive director of the World Bank.

Dec 14: The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) tribunal allowed the Balochistan government and Dr Samar Mubarakmand to carry out mining and smelting project in Reko Diq.

Dec 17: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) transferred Sindh Election Commissioner Sonu Khan Baloch to its central secretariat in Islamabad as the new director-general budget.

Dec 17: The UNDP and Federal Judicial Academy (FJA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding allowing the partnership to work in areas of infrastructure and IT support, policy engagement, capacity building and research and advocacy.

Dec 18: Five women vaccinators were killed and a couple of their male colleagues were injured in Karachi and Peshawar.

Dec 18: The European Union donated its 2012 Nobel peace prize cash, plus a one million-euro top-up, to thousands of children impacted by war in Syria, Colombia, Congo and Pakistan.

Dec 19: President Asif Ali Zardari signed ‘The Right to Free and Compulsory Education Bill-2012’.

Dec 19: Malala Yousufzai was declared runner-up as Time magazine named President Barack Obama as its ‘person of the year’ for the second time.

Dec 19: The World Health Organization suspended polio operations in Pakistan and called back their field workers due to security threats.

Dec 20: The National Assembly passed a bill to permit state interception of private communication mainly to track terrorists, after the government accepted 32 amendments proposed by the main opposition party.

Dec 20: The Supreme Court (SC) barred the acting chairman of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra), Dr Abdul Jabbar, from holding office.

Dec 21: The Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) discovered gas reservoir of about 1.06 trillion cubic feet (TCF) from its well Zin SML-I, located in Dera Bugti, Balochistan.

Dec 21: President Asif Ali Zardari assented to Airports Security Force (Amendment) Bill 2012.

Dec 22: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) proposed a four-fold increase in election expenditure to Rs.6 million for a National Assembly seat and Rs.4m for that of a provincial assembly.

Dec 23: The World Meteorological Organisation of the United Nations unanimously re-elected Dr Qamar-uz-Zaman Chaudhry vice-president of WMO for Asian Region for four years.

Dec 24: President Asif Ali Zardari inaugurated a 50MW windmill project that generates energy from renewable sources, in Jhimpir near Thatta.

Dec 24: Pakistan officially recognised Kosovo as an independent state. Pakistan`s Ambassador to Turkey has been accredited to Kosovo as the country’s envoy.

Dec 25: Pakistan International Airlines launched its Quetta-Kandahar service.

Dec 25: President Asif Ali Zardari decorated Sindh Governor Dr Ishrat-ul-Ebad with Nishan-i-Imtiaz, the highest civil award, in recognition of Dr Ebad’s services in the field of public service as governor over the past 10 years.

Dec 25: Makhdoom Ahmad Mehmood took oath as 28th governor of Punjab.

Dec 25: A no-confidence motion against Speaker of the Balochistan Assembly, Mr Muhammad Aslam Bhootani, was adopted in the assembly.

Dec 26: Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf approved comprehensive guidelines for streamlining the civil service.

Dec 26: Punjab got an independent nephrology department, the first in the province.

Dec 26: The Pakistan Railways and a private company signed an agreement to operate third passenger train, the Night Coach Express, between Punjab and Sindh capitals.

Dec 26: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government appointed Haroon Bilour, the son of assassinated senior minister Bashir Bilour, adviser to Chief Minister Ameer Haider Hoti on local government affairs.

Dec 27: Young Bilawal marked his entry into active politics at a large rally held to pay homage to his mother, Benazir Bhutto, on the fifth anniversary of her assassination.

Dec 28: Leader of the Pakistani Taliban Hakimullah Mehsud said he was willing to hold peace talks with the Pakistan government but would never lay down arms till implementation of Shariah in the country.

Dec 28: The Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousufzai was named as The Times ‘Young Person of the Year’.

Dec 29: Data from 56 meteorological stations in Pakistan shows a sharp rise in temperature during the first decade of the 21st century, except the year 2005. Impacts included loss of vegetation, deforestation and irregular precipitation, says a study, part of the Synthesis Report 2012.

Dec 29: A refurbished plant for manufacture of small arms ammunition was commissioned at the Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF) Wah Cantt.

Dec 30: Mir Mohammad Yusuf Badini of Pakistan People’s Party was elected unopposed to a Senate seat.

Dec 30: Rotary Jo Goth, a model village for the worst flood-affected 150 families of District Thatta was inaugurated by Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, Speaker Sindh Assembly.

Dec 30: A book ‘Aik Ghazal’ consisting of 30,000 verses and written by Pirzada Ashique Keranvi was launched.
The book claimed to be a record-breaking longest poetic creation ever written in Urdu in form of Ghazal.

Dec 31: The government set another eight senior Taliban leaders free in two batches over the past few days.

Dec 31: The Balochistan Assembly elected Syed Matiullah Agha of JUI-F as speaker and Dr Fouzia Marri of BNP-Awami as the deputy speaker.

Dec 31: Shareeka, a Punjabi film produced by Syed Noor, was declared the movie of 2012 and won the 32nd Asian Awards.

Jan 01: The Supreme Court suspended its registrar’s summoning by the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly.

Jan 01: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet approved Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Policy and changed the composition of the shareholding in Business Train by increasing Pakistan Railways’ share.

Jan 01: Byco’s single point mooring (SPM) facility, set up on the coast of Arabian Sea at a distance of approximately 14km from the Byco’s Mouza Kund site, was commissioned.

Jan 02: Ziauddin Yousafzai, the father of Malala Yousufzai, was appointed Pakistan’s education attach in Birmingham.

Jan 03: The Abbottabad Commission, tasked with revealing the circumstances surrounding the killing of Osama bin Laden in a US raid in 2011, presented its findings to Prime Minister.

Jan 03: Malala Yousufzai was chosen as the Herald’s Person of the Year for 2012 for “championing the cause of girls’ education.

Jan 03: The Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Transparency International Pakistan (TIP) to further strengthen its accountability mechanism.

Jan 04: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) appointed Sonu Khan Baloch as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Election Commissioner replacing KP Election Commissioner Tariq Qadri, who was made the Punjab Election Commissioner. The Punjab EC head, Mehboob Anwar, was made Sindh Election Commissioner.

Jan 05: The Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture launched a yearly cash award of Rs.100,000 for the best works on Punjabi language and literature after the name of renowned Punjabi scholar researcher, poet, writer and journalist Shafqat Tanvir Mirza.

Jan 06: A Pakistani soldier was killed and another injured in a gunfight between Indian and Pakistani troops in Kashmir, an incident that could heighten tensions between the neighbours.

Jan 06: Intense fog and chill broke 50-year record in plain areas of Punjab.

Jan 06: Former Chief Justice of Peshawar High Court (PHC) Muhammad Raza Khan was appointed adviser at the Federal Ombudsman’s office.

Jan 07: The Supreme Court accepted MQM chief Altaf Hussain’s apology in a contempt of court case.

Jan 07: Tehzeebun Nisa, an officer of AJK’s management group, became the first woman deputy commissioner in Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) when she assumed the charge of her office.

Jan 09: Raja Azeemul Haq, Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf’s son-in-law, assumed the charge as Alternate Executive Director of the World Bank.

Jan 09: Distinguished politician and activist Nilofar Bakhtiar was decorated, in India, with Happy Women Happy World Award 2012 for humanitarian services.

Jan 09: The 8th South Asian Free Media Conference 2013 ‘A South Asian Vision and Union: opening minds, opening borders, was held in Lahore on January 5-9, 2013.

Jan 09: The Safma re-elected Imtiaz Alam, editor of Quarterly South Asian Journal, as its Secretary General. Political Editor of Hindustan Times Vinod Sharma was chosen as President while Pakistani journalist Mehmal Sarfraz became Deputy Secretary General for the next term.

Jan 09: Pakistan proposed a UN probe into attacks across the Line of Control (LoC) over the past few days.

Jan 09: “Between Clay and Dust” by Pakistani author Musharraf Ali Farooqi was among five books shortlisted for Asia’s most prestigious award, the $30,000 Man Asian Literary Prize.

Jan 10: Bomb and suicide attacks in Quetta and a powerful explosion in the Mingora town of Swat valley claimed the lives of at least 115 people and left 261 others injured.

Jan 10: The Awami National Party (ANP) nominated Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain as its parliamentary leader in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.

Jan 10: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) imposed a fine of Rs.25 million on the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP), and restrained it from prohibiting training of non-ICAP accountancy students by their approved training organisations.

Jan 12: The Pak-Saudi Joint naval exercise Naseem Al Bahr commenced. This was the 10th exercise of this series and was held in Pakistani waters.

Jan 14: Balochistan Governor Zulfikar Ali Magsi took over as chief executive of Balochistan after a proclamation for imposition of governor’s rule in the province was issued.

Jan 14: After the acceptance of their demands, the Hazara Shia community ended their protest and buried the bodies of their 86 loved ones killed in the twin bomb blasts.

Jan 14: The Pakistan army lodged a strong protest with the Indian military authorities over ‘continuous ceasefire violations’ along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir.

Jan 14: The provincial government approved establishment of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Authority for Promotion of Regional Languages.

Jan 14: Shahrukh Jatoi, the main accused in the Shahzeb murder case, surrendered himself to the Pakistani Consulate General in Dubai.

Jan 15: The Balochistan Assembly unanimously adopted two resolutions which rejected imposition of governor’s rule in the province as an undemocratic move, demanded reversal and called for a judicial inquiry into the killing of Shia Hazaras in bomb blasts.

Jan 15: The Supreme Court directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to arrest Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and other persons, involved in Rental Power Projects (RPPs) scam.

Jan 15: Supreme Court (SC) constituted a two-member Media Accountability Commission headed by Justice (R) Nasir Aslam Zahid and comprising Javed Jabbar.

Jan 15: The Lahore High Court set aside appointment of chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority by declaring it illegal and ordered his immediate removal.

International

Dec 11: An international study revealed that Asian schoolchildren dominate in reading, math and science, coming in ahead of their peers in Europe and the US.

Dec 11: Soldiers arrested Mali`s prime minister and ordered him to resign.

Dec 13: Diango Cissoko swore in as the new interim prime minister of Mali.

Dec 13: European Union finance ministers brokered a deal to create a single bank supervisor with powers to close down lenders right across the eurozone.

Dec 14: At least 28 people, including 20 children, were killed when at least one shooter opened fire at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.

Dec 14: China provided the United Nations with detailed claims to waters in the East China Sea.

Dec 14: Envoys in Dubai signed a new UN telecommunications treaty to endorse a greater government control of the internet. The US and more than 20 other countries refused to ratify the accord by the 193-nation International Telecommunications Union.

Dec 14: Indian and Pakistani home ministers signed an agreement to ease visa restrictions for travellers.

Dec 17: Venezuelans showed overwhelming support for Hugo Chavez’s United Socialist Party in elections for governors by selecting its candidates in almost all of the nation’s 23 states.

Dec 17: World’s scariest bridge, Titlis Cliff Walk, opened in Switzerland. It’s a pedestrian walkway suspended 1,500ft above a glacier in the Swiss Alps and is the highest suspension bridge in Europe at 9,000ft above sea level.

Dec 17: Romanian President Traian Basescu reappointed Victor Ponta as prime minister, averting the risk of a political crisis in one of the European Union’s newest states.

Dec 18: South African president Jacob Zuma scored a thumping victory in the ANC’s leadership contest to lead Africa’s largest economy until 2019.

Dec 18: Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II attended her first-ever cabinet meeting to mark her diamond jubilee, the only monarch to do so since 1781.

Dec 18: A Pakistani origin House of Lords member, Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon, was made Lord in Waiting to the Queen Elizabeth II at her majesty The Queen’s household. Mr Tariq will perform various duties of state, including the receiving of heads of states on behalf of her majesty.

Dec 19: South Korea elected Park Geun-Hye, daughter of the country’s former military ruler, as its first female president.

Dec 19: Russia’s lower house, State Duma, of parliament passed in a key second reading a bill banning Americans from adopting Russian orphans amid a huge outcry against the move.

Dec 20: Twenty-year-old Olivia Culpo, an American university student, became Miss Universe, bringing the crown back to the United States after a drought of more than a decade.

Dec 20: French President Francois Hollande acknowledged France’s `brutal` colonial rule over the Algerian people, as he sought to launch a new era in ties on a two-day visit.

Dec 20: Pope Benedict XVI signed a decree recognising the ‘heroic virtues’ of late Pope Paul VI, putting him on the first step towards beatification and eventually sainthood.

Dec 20: India successfully test-fired an indigenously developed nuclear capable Prithvi-II missile with a strike range of 350km.

Dec 21: South Korean rapper Psy made social media history when his viral hit song, ‘Gangnam Style’, became the first video on YouTube to reach one billion views.

Dec 22: Italy’s head of state dissolved parliament and Prime Minister Mario Monti resigned.

Dec 24: Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich named Serhiy Arbuzov first deputy prime minister in the new government.

Dec 24: Russian President Vladimir Putin signed deals to sell 71 military helicopters and kits to build 42 fighter jets to India.

Dec 25: Egypt voters approved overwhelmingly a constitution drafted by President Mohamed Mursi’s Islamist allies. The government also imposed currency restrictions to cope with an economic crisis worsened by weeks of unrest.

Dec 26: Russia’s upper house of parliament unanimously backed a bill barring Americans from adopting Russian children.

Dec 26: Shinzo Abe was voted back into office as Japanese prime minister.

Dec 26: China launched services on the world’s longest high-speed rail route, the 2,298-kilometre (1,425-mile) line between Beijing and Guangzhou. December 26 was chosen to commemorate the birth, in 1893, of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong.

Dec 28: South Korea nominated its trade minister, Taeho Bark, to succeed Pascal Lamy as director-general of the World Trade Organisation.

Dec 28: China launched commercial and public services across the Asia-Pacific region on its domestic satellite navigation network. The Beidou system is expected to provide global coverage by 2020.

Dec 29: President Barack Obama enacted a law to counter Iran’s alleged influence in Latin America.

Dec 29: China passed a new law stipulating that family members should pay regular visit to their elderly relatives.

Dec 29: Saudi Arabia unveiled its largest-ever budget, boosting 2013 expenditure outlay to 820 billion riyals ($219 billion).

Dec 31: Iran test-fired a range of weapons during ongoing manoeuvres near the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian-made air defence system Raad, or Thunder, was among the weapons tested. The Raad system fires missiles with a range of 50 kilometres, capable of hitting targets at 22,000 metres (75,000 feet).

Jan 01: The UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Gabriela Knaul, appealed to the Sri Lankan government to ‘reconsider’ the impeachment of Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake.

Jan 01: The US Senate endorsed a plan to avert fiscal cliff and sent it to the House of Representatives with a strong bipartisan vote, making it difficult for the House to reject it. Eighty-nine of the 100 senators voted for the measure.

Jan 02: Iran shot down two US-made RQ-11 reconnaissance drones in the past 15 months, adding to a ScanEagle drone and RQ-170 Sentinel stealth aircraft it already claims to have captured.

Jan 03: The Sri Lankan Supreme Court declared the impeachment of Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake as unconstitutional and null and void.

Jan 03: Gen. John R. Allen, the senior US commander in Afghanistan, submitted military option to the Pentagon that would keep 6,000 to 20,000 American troops in Afghanistan after 2014.

Jan 03: Turkey tied up a giant agreement with the United Arab Emirates for the development of coal fields in southern Turkey to generate electricity and ensure power for the fast-growing economy.

Jan 03: The US President Barack Obama signed the ‘fiscal cliff’ deal into law, averting a financial crisis with global repercussions.

Jan 03: President Barack Obama signed a $633 billion defence bill that tightens penalties on Iran and strengthens security at diplomatic missions worldwide.

Jan 04: John Boehner won re-election as speaker of the House of Representatives and will again lead Republicans as they take on the White House over federal spending.

Jan 05: A monster bluefin tuna sold for a record-breaking $1.8 million, nearly three times the previous high set last year. The 222-kilogram fish, caught off Japan’s northern city of Oma, fetched a winning bid of 155.4 million yen (about $1.8 million).

Jan 06: President Bashar al-Assad offered a roadmap to end Syria’s conflict. The main Syrian opposition grouping, the National Coalition, immediately rejected the plan.

Jan 06: Venezuelan lawmakers re-elected a staunch ally of Hugo Chavez to head the National Assembly.

Jan 07: Algeria and Qatar signed nine accords, including for the construction of a steel plant, during a visit by Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani.

Jan 07: US President Barack Obama nominated two controversial officials, Chuck Hagel and John Brennan, as secretary of defence and the CIA chief respectively for his second-term national security team.

Jan 07: India’s chief justice ordered judges to set up special courts to fast-track trials for sex crimes after the outcry over a brutal gang-rape and murder.

Jan 07: Malta’s president dissolved Parliament and set national elections for March 9.

Jan 07: A top aide to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was replaced as the head of Iran’s state Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

Jan 09: Moviegoers in China spent 17 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) on tickets last year, turning the country into the second-largest film market in the world. United States is the world’s largest movie market.

Jan 09: The European Union unveiled a new cybercrime centre (EC3) in The Hague.

Jan 09: A US defence contractor, accused of helping torture prisoners at Iraq’s infamous Abu Ghraib prison, paid former detainees more than $5 million to settle a law suit.

Jan 09: Britain’s capital began year-long celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the world’s oldest underground passenger railway.

Jan 09: The United States hinted at withdrawal of all its troops from Afghanistan by 2014 and also emphasised Pakistan’s role in bringing stability to the war-ravaged country.

Jan 10: With his choice of Jacob J. Lew to be secretary of the President Barack Obama completed the transformation of his economic team.

Jan 10: The South Korean capital Seoul installed anti-suicide monitoring devices on bridges over the city’s Han River.

Jan 11: US President Barack Obama said that it would be very hard to imagine stability and peace in the region if Pakistan and Afghanistan did not come to some agreement.

Jan 11: Saudi King Abdullah appointed women for the first time to a top advisory body, with decrees published marking a breakthrough.

Jan 13: Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa sacked the country’s first female Chief Justice Shirani Bandarnayake after ratifying her impeachment by parliament.

Jan 14: Suicides in the US military surged to a record 349 last year, far exceeding American combat deaths in Afghanistan.

Jan 14: The UAE and Argentina signed an agreement to cooperate in the field of peaceful nuclear energy.

Jan 14: Iran hostage drama ‘Argo’ scored a sweet double victory at the Golden Globe awards, winning best movie drama, the night’s top prize, and best director for Ben Affleck.

Jan 14: The governors of Madina and the restive Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia were removed.

Jan 14: Indian-origin politician Halimah Yacob became Singapore’s first female Speaker of parliament.

Jan 14: Global warming has caused monthly records for heat to increase fivefold in frequency, according to a study by scientists in Germany and Spain.

Jan 15: Russia granted Bangladesh a $1 billion loan for weapons purchases and $500 million to help one of Asia’s poorest countries build its first nuclear power plant.

Jan 15: Former Attorney general Mohan Peiris was sworn in as Sri Lanka’s 44th chief Justice.

Jan 15: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that the business with Pakistan could not be as usual after the incidents at the Line of Control (LoC). India also changed its mind about the new visa regime, citing ‘technical problems’.

Science & Technology

Dec 17: A brain-removal tool used by ancient Egyptian embalmers was found wedged in the skull of a female mummy after embalmers left it there thousands of years ago.

Dec 19: The Ceti, one of our closest stars, is a good candidate for hosting an Earth-like planet, astronomers reported. Located a relatively close 12 light years away, the Sun-like star has five planets that orbit it in a balmy zone which gives the best chance for nurturing life.

Dec 28: Titan arum, also known as the ‘corpse flower’, is the world’s smelliest and largest tropical flower.

Jan 01: Female humpbacks on the prowl prefer the largest males on the breeding ground, while smaller males gravitate towards smaller females’ apparently so as ‘to run less risk of a big male coming over and beating you up’.

Jan 01: The human brain responds to music in different ways, depending on the listener’s emotional reaction, among other things. Now researchers report that the same holds true for birds listening to bird song.

Jan 01: Adding to the current crop of health risks involved in space travel, new research suggests that it could be harmful for the brain because galactic cosmic radiation could cause Alzheimer’s.

Jan 03: Our Milky Way galaxy is home to at least 100 billion alien planets, and possibly many more, a new study suggests.

Jan 08: The Milky Way contains at least 17 billion planets the size of Earth. Astronomers using NASA’s Kepler spacecraft found that about 17 per cent of stars in our galaxy have a planet about the size of Earth in a close orbit.

Jan 08: A new study suggests that babies learn bits of their native languages even before they are born. A baby develops the ability to hear by about 30 weeks’ gestation.

Jan 09: Lenovo is to release a 27-inch Windows 8 PC billed as a computer for multiple users.

Jan 09: An asteroid believed to pose a remote risk of colliding with Earth this century is 20 per cent bigger than previously thought. In a press release, the European Space Agency (ESA) said its Herschel deep-space telescope had scanned a space rock called 99942 Apophis as it headed towards its closest flyby with our planet in years.

Jan 09: 2012 was the warmest year on record in the contiguous United States, according to scientists with The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Jan 09: A smart TV, unveiled at the International Consumer Electronics Show, offers technologies that watch the viewer, in an effort to offer more relevant programming.

Jan 10: A new species of flying frog which can glide from tree to tree using its webbed hands and feet as parachutes has been discovered.

Jan 12: Astronomers have discovered the largest known structure in the universe, a clump of active galactic cores that stretches 4 billion light-years from end to end.

Jan 15: A batch of 1,000-year-old manuscripts from the mountainous northern reaches of Afghanistan has revealed previously unknown details about the cultural, economic and religious life of a Jewish society in a Persian part of the Muslim empire in the 11th century.

Jan 15: Adult sharks have sensitive receptors that can detect electric fields emitted by prey and predators. Now it turns out that at least in one species, their unborn offspring have the same powers.

Economy

Dec 14: The State Bank of Pakistan cut its policy interest rate by 50 basis points to 9.5 per cent bringing down the rate to a single digit for the first time in five years.

Dec 19: The Swiss banking giant UBS announced a record settlement with financial regulators in several countries, agreeing to a combined $1.5 billion in fines for its role in Libor.

Jan 03: Natural catastrophes including the US hurricane Sandy caused $160 billion worth of damage in 2012, the world`s leading reinsurer, Munich Re, estimated.

Jan 04: Thailand lost its status as the world’s top rice exporter in 2012 overtaken by India and Vietnam.

Jan 04: Luxury German carmaker Mercedes Benz achieved record sales in 2012. About 1.3 million Mercedes Benz cars were purchased in 2012.

Jan 07: Pakistan Railways (PR) purchased 202 coaches of different types from China at a cost of above Rs.16 billion.

Jan 08: The State Bank of Pakistan allowed the Fauji Foundation to acquire majority shares of the Askari Bank.

Jan 08: US regulators have reached an $8.5 billion settlement with 10 major lenders to resolve claims of foreclosure abuses, including the use of flawed paperwork and bungled loan modifications that may have led to wrongful evictions.

Jan 11: Sindh achieved 96 per cent of the wheat sowing target obtaining the production level of 3.6 million tonnes for 2012-13 Rabi crop.

Jan 11: Japan’s new government unveiled a $226.5 billion stimulus plan in the latest bid to boost the world’s number three economy.

Jan 12: Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf inaugurated the Phase-1 of Al-Tuwairqi Steel Mills, having the annual production capacity of 1.28 million tonnes.

Jan 14: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) extended the jurisdiction of the Web Based Auto Clearance (WeBoC) software to off-port container terminals.

Jan 15: Stocks fell by over 500 points, the fourth time in its history, following arrest orders issued for the prime minister in a corruption case.

Sports

Dec 11: Serbia’s Novak Djokovic beat Andy Murray to the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) annual men’s World Champion award. Serena Williams of the US took the women’s prize for a third time.

Dec 13: Pakistan lost the final of the Blind T20 World Cup to India by 29 runs in Bangalore.

Dec 16: Amir Khan, a British boxer of Pakistan origin defeated previously unbeaten American Carlos Molina in a light-welterweight showdown.

Dec 16: Chen Long won badminton’s BWF Super series Finals by downing Chinese compatriot Du Pengyu.

Dec 16: Corinthians stunned Chelsea to win soccer’s Club World Cup.

Dec 16: World super middleweight champion Arthur Abraham defended his WBO belt with a technical knock-out win over France’s Mehdi Bouadla in Nuremberg.

Dec 16: Kenyan runners swept the titles in both men’s and women’s categories in the Fubon Taipei Marathon.

Dec 17: Pakistan won the second Deaf Asia Cup, crushing Sri Lanka by 92 runs in the final.

Dec 17: Sind Institute of Urology and Transplantation’s (SIUT) athletes won six medals including one gold, three silver and two bronze in the 4th Middle East Transplant Games at Abu Dhabi.

Dec 17: England broke a 28-year-old jinx with a historic Test series win on Indian soil with a 2-1 verdict in their favour.

Dec 18: Pakistan handball team won the silver medal in the U-21 Asian Challenge Trophy in Kathmandu, Nepal.India won gold medal while Yemen clinched bronze.

Dec 18: Mohamed Bin Hammam, the former FIFA presidential candidate resigned from all his positions in football and has been given a life ban.

Dec 19: Australia Women won the Rose Bowl 3-1 with a seven-run victory in the final ODI against New Zealand Women.

Dec 22: The Malaysian heroine Nicol David extended her record of World Open titles to seven from eight finals.

Dec 22: Singapore lifted the AFF Suzuki Cup for a record fourth time with a win over Thailand.

Dec 23: Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar announced his retirement from One-Day International cricket after scoring a record breaking 49 centuries in the 50-over format.

Dec 26: President Asif Ali Zardari inaugurated the Shaheed Mohtarama Benazir Bhutto International Cricket Stadium in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh.

Dec 27: Pakistan won the Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament by beating India 5-4 in final.

Dec 27: Journalists from 26 news agencies chose three-time Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel as the European Sportsperson of the Year.

Dec 27: Pakistan’s new fast bowling sensation Mohammad Irfan is the tallest cricketer in the history with a height of seven feet and one inch.

Dec 28: India survived Pakistan skipper Mohammad Hafeez’s scare in the second T20 International to level the series 1-1.

Dec 28: Wapda emerged victorious in the 32nd National Games, winning the Quaid-iAzam trophy. They grabbed 190 gold, 83 silver and 46 bronze medals.
Pakistan Army had been winning the main trophy since the inception of the national gala in 1948.

Dec 31: Japan’s Kohei Kono knocked out title-holder Tepparith Kokietgym of Thailand to win the World Boxing Association (WBA) super flyweight title.

Dec 31: Bangladesh shelved a planned cricket tour of Pakistan on safety grounds.

Jan 03: Nasir Jamshed’s century helped Pakistan to trounce India in the second one-day international at the Eden Gardens and win the three-match series.

Jan 05: Serena Williams captured her 47th career title with a comprehensive victory in the Brisbane International final.

Jan 06: India won the thrilling third ODI, denying Pakistan a clean sweep.

Jan 06: Andy Murray defeated Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in the Brisbane International final.

Jan 06: Australia beat Sri Lanka in the third and final Test to sweep the series 3-0. In addition, Michael Hussey called it a day and announced the end of his Test career.

Jan 06: Spain secured a surprise victory in the Hopman Cup to win the mixed teams’ event for the fourth time.

Jan 06: Austrian star Marcel Hirscher won his third World Cup slalom of the season setting a new World Cup record of nine successive podium finishes in both this discipline and the giant slalom.

Jan 07: Nicol David retained her World Series Squash Finals title defeating England’s Laura Massaro. In the men’s final, Egypt’s Amr Shabana beat England’s Nick Matthew.

Jan 08: Malik Amjad Ali Noon was reelected as president of the Punjab Squash Association.

Jan 08: Lionel Messi won an unprecedented fourth, consecutive, FIFA Ballon d`Or. Before it, Messi and former French star Michel Platini were only players to win three straight Ballon d’Or awards.

Jan 09: America’s Dustin Johnson captured the PGA Tour’s season-opener to win the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

Jan 09: Qatari ace Nasser al-Attiya won his second successive stage in this year’s Dakar Rally.

Jan 10: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) launched Pakistan Super League (PSL) in an effort to revive international cricket in the country.

Jan 10: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) launched the logo of its Twenty20 Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Jan 12: Russia’s Elena Vesnina won her first WTA title in the Hobart International final.

Jan 13: Off-spinner Saeed Ajmal swept four trophies in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)’s inaugural awards ceremony.

Jan 14: South Africa completed a series win over New Zealand after thumping them in the second Test.