• PKR
    • PKR
    • USD
    • EUR

My Account

  • My Account
    • Checkout
    • My Account
    • My Cart
    • Wishlist
    • Compare
  • Cart
  • Wishlist
  • Checkout
  • My Account
  • Login
HSM Publishers
  • Home
  • E-Magazine
  • Current Affairs
    • Daily News
    • Current Affairs Daily Quiz
    • Best Columns Pakistan/World
    • Science and Technology
    • Economy
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
  • Home
  • E-Magazine
  • Current Affairs
    • Daily News
    • Current Affairs Daily Quiz
    • Best Columns Pakistan/World
    • Science and Technology
    • Economy
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
call us now: 03000459551
Email: contact@hsmpublishers.com
Books Categories
  • E-Magazine
  • CSS
    • CSS Compulsory Subjects
    • CSS Optional Subjects
    • CSS MCQs
    • CSS PAST PAPERS
  • PCS / PMS
  • Admission Tests
  • Armed / Defence Forces
  • Law
    • LL.B – Part I
    • LL.B – Part II
    • LL.B (5 Years)
  • E-Magazine
  • CSS
    • CSS Compulsory Subjects
    • CSS Optional Subjects
    • CSS MCQs
    • CSS PAST PAPERS
  • PCS / PMS
  • Admission Tests
  • Armed / Defence Forces
  • Law
    • LL.B – Part I
    • LL.B – Part II
    • LL.B (5 Years)
0
There are 0 item(s) in your cart
Subtotal: ₨0
View Cart
Check Out
  • Home
  • Archives for HSMPublishers

Author Archives: HSMPublishers

HSM CSS Times (January 2021) E-Magazine | Download in PDF Free
09 Jan

HSM CSS Times (January 2021) E-Magazine | Download in PDF Free

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment HSM CSS Times
Warm wishes for all our readers of HSM CSS Times. We are proudly presenting You with a new Monthly e-Magazine named HSM CSS Times Magazine. This magazine is being made available to aspirants of all forms of competitive examinations. The content developed is wholly in an exam-oriented fashion – Keeping ‘You’ Ahead of ‘Them’.  We at HSM CSS Times,...
Read More
Daily current Affairs
23 Dec

December 23, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment
U.S Coronavirus relief package contains $25 million for gender, democracy programs in Pakistan The US Congress on Tuesday approved USD 25 million civilian aid package for Pakistan to strengthen democracy and promote women's rights in the South Asian country President Trump has urged the United States Congress to amend a $900 billion coronavirus relief bill,...
Read More
December 22, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs
22 Dec

December 22, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Current Affairs News
At 40.32%, Abbottabad’s COVID-19 positivity rate highest in the country On Tuesday, The National Command and Operation Centre notified that the highest positivity rate of COVID-19 cases in the country has been recorded in Abbottabad. According to a statement from the NCOC, Abbottabad's COVID-19 positivity rate currently stands at 40.32%. (NCOC) Pakistan’s Current Account Surplus...
Read More
December 21, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs
21 Dec

December 21, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Current Affairs News
Boosting trade: Istanbul-Tehran-Islamabad train to commence operation next year The ITI framework was launched in 2009 and exists as a project under the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO). The decision has been taken during the 10th edition of the ECO Transport and Communications Ministers Meeting which was held in Istanbul. (Business Recorder) Restructuring Plan: PIA to...
Read More
December 19, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs
19 Dec

December 19, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Current Affairs
U.S. can play a "critical role" in India-Pakistan dispute: The United States is perhaps the only country which can persuade India to stop its subversive activities in Pakistan, says the country’s envoy as a US scholar sees merit in Islamabad’s claim that India is supporting separatists in Balochistan. (The Christian Science Monitor) Sindh first province...
Read More
Heavily in Debt Pakistan’s foreign debt and liabilities have been increasing rapidly over the last several years. The government is forced to borrow heavily from external sources — including multilateral and bilateral creditors, and commercial lenders — in order to meet its foreign debt repayment obligations, as well as to finance its budget, development and imports. Its growing need for dollars has compelled the country to periodically knock at the doors of the IMF over the last three decades, at the cost of economic growth, to avert potential defaults on foreign repayment obligations and shore up forex reserves. With cheaper and softer bilateral and multilateral flows becoming scarce, the government’s reliance on expensive foreign commercial debt is rising. In November alone, it was forced to borrow $1.1bn from commercial lenders, pushing up the total debt flows in the first five months of the present financial year to $4.5bn. According to the economic affairs ministry, the new debt inflows so far constitute 37pc of the annual budget estimates of foreign borrowings of $12.4bn for the entire fiscal. There are multiple reasons why Pakistan has turned into a heavily indebted nation. The exponential growth in foreign debt levels underscores that the country has been unable to attract adequate non-debt-creating, long-term inflows like FDI or increase its exports, which remain stuck at $23bn-$24bn a year, to meet its external account requirements. The extremely low level of formal domestic savings as reflected by banking deposits means that the government would have to depend on foreign savings to finance its budgetary operations as well as for balance-of-payments support. For example, almost 87pc, or $3.9bn, of the total loans taken in the last five months were meant for balance-of-payments or budgetary support. Similarly, the failure to reform the tax system and increase revenue collection is a major factor behind heavy domestic and foreign borrowings by the government. The fact that Pakistan’s external debt continues to accumulate and it has to borrow more dollars to repay its old loans suggests that the country has actually been caught in a debt trap. Since July 1, 2018, the government has accumulated $23.6bn in foreign debt. The external debt rose by $10.7bn in the last financial year and $8.4bn in 2018-19 with debt servicing becoming the largest budget expense. According to official data, the government paid back $2.45bn in the first four months of the current fiscal against repayment estimates of $10.4bn for the entire year — this, in spite of debt payment relief allowed by bilateral lenders to countries like Pakistan in view of Covid-19. That shows the government will continue to borrow more money to repay its old loans while accumulating more debt. This is not sustainable for any economy, least of all a fragile one. The government should put its house in order to attract FDI, boost exports, increase tax revenues and incentivise domestic savings to get out of this trap. Background: Pakistan originally became highly indebted in the 1970s, when the government borrowed to cope with the impact of high oil prices. Ever since, the people have suffered from a large external debt. The response to this debt crisis has been to continuously obtain bailout loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). For 32 of the last 44 years, Pakistan has received loans from the IMF, one of the most sustained periods of lending to any country. However, Pakistan today continues to have a large external debt, inequality is entrenched, and the country failed to meet most of the Millennium Development Goals. During July-October of 2020-21, the government settled $1.295bn worth of foreign commercial loans. Pakistan had received a total of $10.7bn during FY2019-20 and $8.4bn during FY2018-19. Afghan Taliban Visit The Afghan peace process is in a critical phase as several developments within and outside Afghanistan are likely to have an impact on negotiations. Firstly, a new administration will enter the White House in January, and it remains to be seen if Joe Biden will continue Donald Trump’s policy of pulling American troops out of Afghanistan, or adopt a different path. Moreover, there is little forward movement in peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, though the fact that negotiations are continuing is in itself positive. This is especially true considering the fact that both sides continue to talk peace and make war at the same time. Considering all these variables, the recent visit to Pakistan by a high-powered Taliban delegation carries much weight. On Friday, the delegation representing the Doha-based Taliban Political Commission led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar met the prime minister in Islamabad. According to the PM Office both sides discussed progress on the Afghan peace process while Prime Minister Imran Khan reiterated the fact that there is “no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan”. Indeed, nearly two decades after the US invaded Afghanistan, and the Taliban took up arms against foreign forces, this fact is very much evident. Earlier, the Taliban delegation also met the foreign minister, with Shah Mahmood Qureshi saying the next round of intra-Afghan dialogue was due to begin on Jan 5, though questions remain about the venue. From this point on, it is primarily the responsibility of the Afghan government and the Taliban to take the peace process forward and attain a workable solution. This will no doubt be difficult, mainly because violence has not stopped in Afghanistan even as peace talks continue. For example, while the Taliban delegation was visiting this country, at least 13 policemen were killed in Afghanistan. If peace talks are to succeed, such acts of violence must end, especially those that target civilians. The Taliban political wing must let their field units know that attacks risk jeopardising talks. While foreign forces can contribute to peace in Afghanistan by not interfering in its internal affairs and facilitating dialogue between Afghan factions, it is the country’s internal stakeholders — the government, the Taliban and tribal/ ethnic leaders — who hold the key to peace. That is why Kabul and the Taliban must put in all-out efforts to make the peace process succeed, or risk extending Afghanistan’s war. Facts: U.S. President Donald Trump in November ordered a withdrawal of nearly half of the 4,500 or so U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Under the U.S.-Taliban deal, all 11,000 or so foreign troops are to leave by May in exchange for security guarantees by the Taliban. U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, who takes over in just over a month, has not committed to continuing the drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan or continuing to push the negotiations in Doha.
19 Dec

Dawn Editorial with topic background, Vocabulary (December 19, 2020)

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Dawn Editorial
Heavily in Debt Pakistan’s foreign debt and liabilities have been increasing rapidly over the last several years. The government is forced to borrow heavily from external sources — including multilateral and bilateral creditors, and commercial lenders — in order to meet its foreign debt repayment obligations, as well as to finance its budget, development and...
Read More
December 18, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs
19 Dec

December 18, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Daily Current Affairs
UNGA adopts Pakistan’s resolution reaffirming peoples’ right to self-determination: As per details, the resolution was adopted by consensus which was co-sponsored by 71 countries. It calls on countries to immediately cease their foreign military intervention in and occupation of foreign countries and territories, as well as acts of repression, discrimination and maltreatment.(Business Recorder) Pakistani-American Ali...
Read More
Dawn Editorials 19
18 Dec

Dawn Editorial with topic background, Vocabulary (December 18, 2020)

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Dawn Editorials
Provincial Autonomy THE government’s decision to “devise a mechanism to hold provinces accountable” for how they spend money they receive as their share from the federal tax pool under the NFC award is at best illogical and at worst lacks a constitutional basis. It will also be seen as an attempt by the centre to...
Read More
Current Affairs MCQs
17 Dec

December 17, 2020 TOP 10 National & International Current Affairs

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Current Affairs News
United States has provided $128 million in debt relief to Pakistan in 2020: Under the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative, the U.S. provided $128 million in debt relief to Pakistan in 2020. Through efforts like this, the U.S. and Pakistan are working together to redirect critical resources to the COVID19 pandemic response. (U.S. Embassy Islamabad)...
Read More
Dawn Editorial
17 Dec

Dawn Editorial with topic background, Vocabulary (December 17, 2020)

Post By: HSMPublishers 0 Comment Dawn Editorial

Biden’s Victory

MORE than a month after a historic election yielded a change for the United States, the electoral college vote count is in. With this, Joe Biden has officially been affirmed as the winner of the 2020 presidential race after comfortably crossing the threshold of 270 electoral college votes. While this official confirmation of a Biden presidency gave members of the Republican party an opportunity to congratulate the incoming president, there are some — and foremost among them President Donald Trump — who are still in a deep state of denial. From the moment a Biden victory started looking possible, Mr Trump and his supporters threw every toy out of the proverbial pram to halt the vote count with the hope of changing the result. From legal challenges to incessant tweets, Mr Trump has dedicated a remarkable amount of energy and time to creating an ‘alternative reality’ for the consumption of his support base. Chaos has been the ruling theme of Mr Trump’s efforts to discredit the election and the fact that he lost. Mr Trump has still not conceded, as is customary for runners-up in American politics, and the days ahead will see the Republican Party digging its heels in on the electoral fraud claims. On Wednesday, a Wisconsin Republican senator held a hearing to probe the 2020 election by inviting two Trump campaign lawyers who tried to overturn the election results in Nevada and Wisconsin.

While there is little doubt that this voter fraud allegation is nothing but a fishing expedition, it can have serious consequences. Mr Trump will have to accept the truth eventually, but the period before he leaves the White House has seen him promote damaging election conspiracy theories that have largely been debunked. That a US president is disseminating falsehoods is troubling. Fortunately, the incoming president responded to Mr Trump by reiterating his conciliatory message from the early days of his projected victory. “I will be a president for all Americans. I will work just as hard for those of you who didn’t vote for me as I will for those who did.” He also reminded Mr Trump that in America, “politicians don’t take power — the people grant it to them”, and repeated his firm belief in an indestructible democracy. The days ahead promise to be challenging for Mr Biden, who not only has the gargantuan task of running the American government but also carrying an unprecedented burden of a trust deficit among millions of Republican voters.

Unknown Facts about US President-Elect Joe Biden

  • He is the second Catholic president in US history. The first was John F Kennedy.
  • At 29, Biden was one of the youngest people ever elected to the United States Senate.
  • In December 1972, Biden’s wife Neilia and their one-year-old daughter Amy were killed in a road accident.
  • Joe Biden wrote and championed the Violence Against Women Act.

Chemical Castration

Chemical castration is no remedy for curbing sexual violence, any more than is public hanging, which an enraged citizenry has been increasingly demanding as punishment for rapists. The procedure does, however, give the impression of being proactive. It could silence those who believe the government is not doing enough to tackle a crime that seems to have assumed alarming proportions.
On Tuesday, President Arif Alvi signed off on the Anti-Rape Ordinance, 2020, that allows for chemical castration of those convicted of rape. Contrary to the earlier draft however, the perpetrator’s consent will not be required for the procedure to be carried out; rather it will be at the discretion of the judge to impose the punishment for a period ranging from six months to life.
This is not to say that the legislation has no redeeming features. For instance, it mandates the setting up of special courts for speedy trials of rape cases, which would spare victims the distress caused by long-drawn-out legal proceedings; and making their identification a punishable offence may encourage more victims to come forward. The ordinance also stipulates that anti-rape crisis cells will ensure medico-legal examination of victims within six hours, which would improve the chances of putting together a prosecutable case. However, the ordinance falls short in several significant respects.
For one, the punishment of chemical castration is impractical in Pakistan’s context and raises serious ethical concerns. Secondly, it demonstrates a lack of understanding about the crime of rape. While studies show that chemical castration can drastically cut recidivism rates, it is no quick fix. The treatment must be continuous to remain effective. Is our criminal justice system so efficient that it can keep track of these individuals and bring them in for their injections at regular intervals? If they are to be imprisoned and also subjected to chemical castration, the latter course is redundant. It compounds the fact that chemical castration is a cruel and unusual punishment. Adopting this path puts us on the wrong side of international law that holds that invasive medical treatments require explicit consent of the individual.
Moreover, rape is a crime of power; to reduce it to a crime of lust disregards the social context with which it is inextricably linked. Pakistan’s patriarchal culture denies women agency over their bodies while outmoded notions cast them as repositories of family ‘honour’. That, coupled with a culture of machismo, means women are always potential ‘prey’. Rape is an instrument with which to demonstrate power, to retaliate against another man, or simply, to put a woman ‘in her place’. Children of course, are the most vulnerable in this hierarchy of power. What is needed is better criminal investigation resulting in higher certainty of punishment, and a sea change in social attitudes. That is the longer but far more certain route to reducing sexual crimes.

Facts

  • The ordinance prohibits revealing the identity of victims and making it a punishable offense. A record will be prepared at the national level with the help of National Database and Registration Authority to register the perpetrators of sexual abuse.
  • The Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) Ordinance, 2020 and the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 introduce the concept of chemical castration mainly as a “form of rehabilitation”.
  • “The two state of the art pieces of legislation are in line with the Constitutional guarantees of Pakistan, as also the International treaties.”
  • Pakistan ranks 130th on the UNDP’s Gender Inequality Index and 151st, or third-last, on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index.
Read More
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 5
  • 6
  • Next
©2020 HSM Publishers
  • E-Magazine
  • CSS
    • CSS Compulsory Subjects
    • CSS Optional Subjects
    • CSS MCQs
    • CSS PAST PAPERS
  • PCS / PMS
  • Admission Tests
  • Armed / Defence Forces
  • Law
    • LL.B – Part I
    • LL.B – Part II
    • LL.B (5 Years)
Close
Sign in Or Register
Forgot your password?

NEW HERE?

Registration is free and easy!

  • Faster checkout
  • Save multiple shipping addresses
  • View and track orders and more
Create an account
X