Writing on the Wall

 The word Hijra has, ironically, become a curse in Pakistan which clearly shows the cruelty and obliviousness of a society. Moreover, transgenders are often cast away by their families in Pakistan and many were forced to become either beggars or sex workers owing to lack of acceptance and social status. Part of the transgender or  Hijra  community, social stigma, and discrimination make them outcasts in Pakistan’s highly conservative society. Today hijras, who include transgender and intersex people, are hard to miss. Dressed in glittering outfits, their faces heavily coated in cheap makeup, they sashay through crowded intersections knocking on car windows with the edge of a coin and offering blessings. They crash fancy weddings and birth ceremonies, singing bawdy songs and leaving with fistfuls of rupees. Many Hijras feel a sense of alienation, of being looked at as freaks. They complain about being heckled, harassed, and assaulted. Gurus help the young Hijras navigate some of th

 Muhammad Bin Qasim is a central figure in the history of Pakistan, invoked by the leaders of Pakistan Movement in the past and still quoted as the first Pakistani in our national curriculum today. The story of his conquest of Sindh as the origins of Islam in the sub-continent reifies the idea of Muslim foreignness to the land, cultures, religions, histories of the sub-continent. Pakistan then enters into the picture as the preserver of this alienness. The story of Muhammad Bin Qasim’s conquest, however, is rife with historical inaccuracies. Arab General Muhammad Bin Qasim conquered Sindh in 712 AD and became another invader termed a superhero for the emotional people of Pakistan. However, the facts surrounding this conquest, and the ill fate that followed for the conqueror is known to few among us. People today are divided on his adorned status some term him as a preacher and some say he was a predator. According to researcher and historian Dr Mubarak Ali, the war between Muhamad

  The commander of faithful Imam Ali said Value of a man depends upon his courage, his veracity depends upon his self-respect, and his chastity depends upon his sense of honor. General Qasim Suleimani possessed all these traits and perhaps this was the reason behind a severe propaganda campaign orchestrated by the West which he faced his entire life. The multi-million dollar smearing campaign marred the personality of the real Qasim Suleimani which was deliberately kept hidden from the world. In true letter and spirit, Qasim Suleimani lived like Ali (AS) and died like Hussain (AS). He changed the shape of the Syrian civil war and tightened Iran’s grip against the terrorists and tyrant regimes. He was behind hundreds of ISIS deaths in Iraq and planned movement against Israel’s oppression. And for two decades, his every move lit up the communications networks — and fed the obsessions — of intelligence operatives across the Middle East.  He was known as the two-edged sword of Sye

J K Rowling said, “You care so much you feel as though you will bleed to death with the pain of it.” Five years ago I lost my maternal grandfather who was the real source of joy in my life, a dear friend. We buried him, while I was laying his body in the grave I felt as if I have buried a part of my soul with him. I too used to believe that ‘time heals everything’ but after 5 years the grief remains the same and I feel that only a day has passed. The longing and sense of attachment never faded. So I began to question the possibility of death, we can control the birth then why can’t we control the time of death. We can even choose the time of birth but the possibility of choosing the time and design of death seems impossible.  Why grief prolongs and stays like a scar on a person’s heart? It’s a tragedy that one day we all will experience the loss of a loved one. According to research every year around 50 million people die worldwide and leave behind an average of 5 persons in

The Imam of wisdom and commander of faithful  Hazrat Ali  said that increase your silence and your thoughts will flourish, your heart will enlighten, and people will be safe from your hands. He again reiterated in another quote that excess of silence produces awe.  In a detailed sermon,  Hazrat Ali  said, “Your redressing what you have missed through your silence is easier than attaining what you have lost through your speech, Safeguarding the contents of the vessel through fastening its cover and safeguarding what is in your hands is dearer to me than seeking for what is the hands of others.  The bitterness of cutting off hopes (in people) is better than seeking from people. An occupation (to earn one’s living) accompanied by chastity is better than wealth accompanied by immorality. A person is the best keeper of his secrets. Often one strives for what is harmful to oneself. He who speaks much speaks nonsense and he who contemplates gains insight. Associate with peopl

Lahore has got a special place in every person's heart and this is the reason it will always be the city of hearts and dreams. I spent 20 years of my life in Lahore and cherished every single memory I have, the friends I made there; they are all so uniquely kind and generous. I had my life-changing moments there. On Sunday I would get my self lost in the labyrinth of the old city. I used to sit there imagining the glory of the old Lahore, seeing the ghosts walking in the streets, people greeting Eid to each other, vendors selling spices and other edibles and the entire experience was mesmerizing. not too many people know the history of the city so let's take a journey back in time and explore the real Lahore. The early history of Lahore is obscure, inauthentic, and attributed to myths and tales. Virtually no historical reference of the city is available in travelogues; history books and archaeological excavations historical chronicles do not provide any account of such a city w

The angels cried for her as she was too innocent and naive to understand that the parrots she just freed would be the cause of her death by torture. Zohra Shah was just an 8-year-old innocent girl when she succumbed to injuries in a local hospital in Rawalpindi. She was brought to the hospital by her killers. Soaked in her blood, the poor angel was unconscious and her entire body turned blue owing to merciless torture and later she died because she was young enough to tolerate the excruciating pain. She committed two crimes i.e. she freed the expensive parrots and she was a poor domestic worker. Her employer had beaten her like a beast. Imagine a minor girl being kicked again and again in her private parts for countless painful minutes for a crime which wasn’t a crime in her eyes. Being herself a captive, she couldn’t see the parrots in the cage sighing for freedom. Zohra Shah, an unpaid domestic worker, was killed in the affluent neighborhood of Rawalpindi, Pakistan’s fourth-largest c

Transport and logistics being important component of supply chain management play a vital role in the modern economy but in Pakistan, this sector has been facing severe challenges owing to the lack of innovative policies and vision of the government.   Pakistan has kicked off the China Pakistan Economic Corridor but, unfortunately, it considered that a mere road construction across the country will solve all the issues related to the logistics sector.  On the other hand, the developed countries mainly focused its policies on the logistics industry and gave it a proper status and their progress is visibly playing a vital role in the modern economy.  Pakistan’s logistics and transport sector depend upon railways, roads, ports, and air cargo. Railway – despite its growth at snail’s pace – is the single major mode of transport for the public sector. Recently it was discovered in a news story that as many as 141 out of a total 474 diesel-electric locomotives of Pakistan Railways are not in

Indus delta is also known as the vertebra of Pakistan’s ecosystem and economy, Indus delta is 5 th largest in the world and home to the 7 th largest mangrove forest. It forms where the mighty Indus River flows into the Arabian Sea, creating a complex system of swamps, streams and mangrove forests. A triangular piece of fertile land is created when the fast-flowing river deposits rich sediment as it empties into the sea. However, dam construction and mismanagement of water by the government have significantly reduced river flows, causing the delta to shrink, and threatening both human life and its ecology. The absence of flowing freshwater allows seawater into the delta, destroying the soil and the aquifers, making it unfit for humans, animals, or crops. Last year, The Third Pole reported that around 1.2 million people from the delta have already migrated to Karachi. For years, the communities in the delta have reported the loss of livelihood, an increase in disease, and forced migrat