The Engineers Pakistan to support engineer candidates contestingFeb 8 general elections

on 03/02/2024

The Engineers Pakistan (TEP) will support all engineer candidates contesting the February 8 elections in the country. A TEP’s moot said the organization will support them irrespective of their political affiliation.
A TEP communication says that the TEP Core Committee and Executive Council meeting was held on January 24, 2024, in Lahore. The following points were unanimously resolved:
TEP members & all Engineers will support Engineers candidates irrespective of their political affliction who are contesting in Forthcoming National/ Provincial Elections on February 08, 2024.
TEP fully supports the struggle of Power Sector Engineers for the Supply of energy units which is a part of their service contract. Since the court has given a stay against the government orders to stop supply. Thus, any deviation by WAPDA or Discos in noncompliance will be considered as contempt of court. Which they should avoid.
TEP is fully focused on the issues of young Engineers;
A) Unemployment of all Engineers will be addressed in six months.
B) Arrangements of Free Training for Engineering graduates which they couldn’t get in universities to meet the present industry and world market demand.
C) Emergent improvement of the curriculum of respective disciplines of undergraduates to meet the global challenges.
D) Setting up incubation centers in all big cities of Pakistan for engineers’ career development.
E) Arrange Exhibitions of Engineers’ innovative projects to add value to the growth of Engineers and the country.

Information technology services export shows over 5 pc growth

on 03/02/2024

Pakistan earned $1,151.956 million by providing different information technology (IT) services to various countries during the first five months of the current fiscal year 2023-24. This shows a growth of 5.89 percent as compared with the $1,087.929 million earned through the provision of services during the corresponding months of the last fiscal year 2022-23, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported. During the months under review, the export of computer services grew by 8.17 percent as it surged from US $864.429 million last year to US $935.016 million during July-November 2023. Among the computer services, the exports of software consultancy services witnessed an increase of 46.67 percent, from $1.710 million to $2.508 million this year while the export of hardware consultancy services also surged by 4.15 percent, from $318.041 million to $331.231 million. The export of repair and maintenance services however decreased by 40.74 percent from $1.485 million to $0.880 million whereas the export and imports of computer software services surged by 4.05 percent, from $239.473 mil¬lion to $249.179 million. Meanwhile, the export of information services during the months under review dipped by 22.91 percent from $1.790 million to $1.380 million. Among the information services, the exports of information-related services increased by 12.37 per cent, from $0.485 million to $0.545 million whereas the exports of news agency services however decreased by 36.02 percent, from $1.305 million to $0.835 million. The export of telecommunication services dipped by 2.77 percent as these went down from $221.710 million to $215.560 million, the data revealed. Among the telecommunication services, the export of call center services increased by 11.11 percent during the months as its exports increased from $87.327 million to $97.026 million. In contrast, the export of other telecommunication services witnessed a decrease of 11.798 percent, from $134.383 million to $118.534 million during this year, the PBS data revealed.

Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project back to life? Most say yes

on 03/02/2024

Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project is back to life? It seems so as the reports claim the landmark deal between Iran and Western nations has apparently brought the multibillion-dollar back to life.
An Iranian team, comprising legal and technical experts, will visit Pakistan soon after the general election to discuss the project with the political government, a report says.
Moreover, Pakistan now hopes to invite China and Russia to finance the project. They had backed out in the past for apparent reasons.
This deal will also help Pakistan import oil from Iran, which was suspended in 2010 after the US and European Union imposed sanctions on Tehran. As a result, international banks also refused to open Letter of Credit to import oil, and therefore supplies were suspended.
Yet another report said Pakistan would deliberate on further extension of the deadline of September 2024 to avoid Tehran’s moving to the Paris-based International Arbitration, seeking a penalty of $18 billion, the sources in Petroleum Division further stated. In order to avoid the imposition of the penalty, Pakistan was already in contact with the Iranian side to find a way out and to avoid a legal battle in the International Court of Arbitration.
Now the officials believe the Geneva deal would help Pakistani and Iranian energy ministers, who are scheduled to meet for the first time in Turkey, to resume talks positively.
“We hope the agreement between Iran and the world powers would revive the confidence of countries like China and Russia to finance the IP gas pipeline project,” a senior government official was quoted as saying in the report. The Pakistani government has been requesting the US to exempt the project from possible sanctions. During his recent visit to the United States, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif asked the Obama administration to exempt the project from sanctions, but he was noncommittal.
Islamabad has been facing a delay in the important energy project as the government failed in securing funds for the project. The incumbent PML-N government was also forced to request the Iranian government to completely finance the project.
The first gas flow was scheduled for December 2014. However, the possibility of US sanctions caused such trepidation that even the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) and the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) had refused to provide funding for the project.
A petroleum ministry official said Islamabad had earlier approached Moscow and Beijing for a solvent solution – but even Russian banks backed out. “Now, we are hopeful that those institutions would have some confidence and they would sponsor the IP project after Iran and Western nations inked the agreement,” another official said.
Likewise, Pakistan would now be able to import pipeline material and compressors required for its development. Officials claim that the country can now buy material at competitive rates as the Geneva deal has opened way to award the contract to any party.
As there was no progress on the IP pipeline, Tehran was also unable to develop its South Pars field, the source of the gas supply for the project. “But now, Iran will be able to develop the field by importing technology,” said an official. “Moreover, the Geneva agreement would help improve trade ties with Iran.”
Despite a lot of optimism, some officials are still skeptical. When contacted, one of the senior aides to the prime minister was cautious about drawing any conclusion at this stage. “It is too early to say anything. The impact of the relief in sanctions will be very limited.”
He said Pakistan would continue to observe the situation closely and hoped that the accord on Iran’s nuclear program would eventually lift all economic sanctions.

Sales blog for our young engineers and enterpreneurs! Our ancestors

on 03/01/2024

Once upon a time, there lived a young man affectionately called Babu. Babu had recently migrated from India to Pakistan after the partition, seeking a safe and secure life for himself and his family.
In the process, he lost his parents, wealth and business! He faced many other challenges also. Due to scars left by bloody riots, he lacked confidence, and had a stutter and a fear of unknown, which made him an easy target for ridicule by others.One day, Babu came across a quote that changed his life. It said, “When God is with you, nobody can be against you.” Inspired by these words, Babu started to research how can God be with him? One day he found the verse “Surely Allah is with those who shun evil and who do good deeds” (16:128)! Babu decided to live by this verse of God and prove everyone wrong.Shortly after his arrival in Pakistan, Babu faced another setback. He went for a job interview in sales, hoping to start a new career, but the recruiter dismissed him, saying he had no chance of succeeding. The recruiter pointed out that Babu had no experience of the Pakistan market and claimed his business English wasn’t good enough.Instead of feeling defeated, Babu used this rejection as fuel for his determination. He believed that sales was not just about words, but also about passion and character. He knew he could prove himself if given the chance.He started his job search with renewed vigor. He spent hours researching sales techniques, improving his business English skills, and building his confidence, enthusiasm and smiling appearance. Despite facing numerous rejections, he never gave up. He knew that every “no” brought him closer to a “yes.” He soon found a job in a Dining Car Service company! It gave him a sense of accomplishment and pride. Unfortunately, the company was shut down in the wake of IndoPak war in 1965. Soon he found a lucrative sales job in a pharmaceutical company and continued there till his retirement! He raised a family of eleven children whom he educated well to become Doctors and Engineers! His house was considered to be an epitome of knowledge converting numerous ordinary boys and girls into brilliant students and professionals!Babu’s story teaches us an important lesson. When someone tells you that you can’t do something, it is often a reflection of their own limitations, not yours. His success was a testament to his own motivation, commitment and trust in God, not his accent or stutter or large family members.Dear readers, story of Babu teaches that you are as good as your own character and a hundred hours of hard work per week. Don’t let anyone’s doubts hold you back. Believe in yourself and you can overcome any obstacle. The rut is only mental; the disability is in the mind only, it is not physical and that if through your character, you can get God on your side, nobody can be against you! This is similar to the story of most of our own ancestors; who settled in Karachi and made it the main revenue generator for the whole country! May Allah rest our ancestors in eternal peace! — and make Karachi continue to contribute to the national exchequer through salesmanship of its upright people. This is a legacy they have inherited from their great ancestors!

NED University hosts 2 international moots with IEP, others in collaboration ‘Technology Enabled Infrastructure Engineering and Management’

on 03/01/2024

International Conference on Technology Enabled Infrastructure Engineering and Management (TECH-IEM) was organized by NED University in December 2023.
In Pakistan, health monitoring of the infrastructure systems and decision-making will now be conducted with the help of the Internet of Things, virtual reality, laser scanning, and drones. This was stated by
Dr. Sarosh Lodi, Vice Chancellor NED University at the two-day TECH-IEM conference Organized by NED University of Engineering and Technology in collaboration with CPEC Academic Research and Development Unit (CARDU) of Higher Education Commission, in collaboration with the Institution of Engineers Pakistan Karachi Center, under its NED University Virtual Reality Center, collaborated by Neuro Computational Lab. The Conference was held at Mehmood Alam Auditorium, Ashraf Habibullah AV Hall, and Mechanical Hall. Patron-in-Chief of the Conference, Vice Chancellor of NED, Dr. Sarosh H. Lodi said that through the development of technology under the CPEC research project currently being conducted at NED, Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, laser scanning, and drones will be used for health monitoring of the infrastructure system and its related decision making.
On this occasion, Pakistan’s Counselor to China for Science and Technical Affairs, Khan Muhammad Wazir highlighted the importance of technology for the construction and maintenance of vast CPEC-related infrastructure.
The keynote speaker of the conference was Dr. Naveed Anwar from the Asian Institute of Technology.
Chairman IEP Karachi Center, Engineer Sohail Bashir was guests of honor along with Pro Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Muhammad Tufail and Dean CPL Prof. Dr. Asad ur Rehman. Focal Person/Co-Chair Conference Dr. Farrukh Arif emphasized the use of modern construction technologies during the construction and maintenance phase of the Infrastructure projects. Six technical sessions were conducted at the conference. Researchers from Australia, Spain, Italy, Turkiye, USA, and national experts presented their recent work on the subject of construction and technology. 28 papers were presented at the conference. In the closing session, Chairman Civil Engineering Professor Dr. Abdul Jabbar Sangi, keynote Speaker Prof. Dr. Mehmet Emre from the School of Construction and Design of America, and other experts gave examples of smart maintenance and operations, laser scanning, automatic robots, drones, virtual reality, 5G and Internet of things, and how these technologies can contribute to improving the infrastructure industry, and help in increasing efficiency. They emphasized that with the help of technology in modern times, the overall construction and maintenance projects can also be improved in addition to comparing the construction performance. Conference Secretary Dr. Shamsoon Farid thanked the experts and audience at the end.
“Forewarned is Forearmed: Construction Disputes Avoidance and Resolution”,
The International Seminar on “Forewarned is Forearmed: Construction Disputes Avoidance and Resolution”, was held in Decemer 2023 too at NED University.
Over 200 professionals from the construction industry and legal fraternity participated in the seminar.
The Institution of Engineers Pakistan (IEP) Karachi Centre, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) Pakistan Branch, Asian Civil Engineering Coordination Council (ACECC) Future Leaders Forum collaborated for the program. Prof. Dr. Asad Ur Rehman Khan, Dean of Civil and Petroleum Engineering, NED University welcomed the participants. This was followed up by the address of Barrister Mian Sheraz Javed, Chairman Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) Pakistan Branch.
Engr. Nasir Khan MBE, Principal a HKA, UK and Chair of Construction Industry Council UK (liability panel) made a technical presentation on “FOREWARND IS FOREARMED – Anticipating Challenges, Mitigating Risk”, while Dr. Farrukh Arif. An associate professor at NED University presented his teams’ work regarding “Practices and effectiveness on arbitration as ADR mechanism in the construction industry of Pakistan.”
The technical session was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Engr. Sohail Bashir, Chairman IEP Karachi Centre, with Barrister Mian Sheraz Javaid, Engr, Nasir Khan MBE, and Ms. Navin Merchant from Merchant Law Associates as the panelists. The panelists deliberated ways through which Construction Arbitration became a successful ADR mechanism in Pakistan.
On this occasion, Mr. Justice Zulfiqar Ahmad Khan, Honourable Judge of Sindh High Court was the Guest of Honour, and Honourable Chief Justice of Sindh High Court Mr. Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. Engr. Sohail Bashir, Chairman IEP, Karachi Centre, formally welcomed the distinguished guests and provided an overview of the objectives of the seminar. Dr. Sarosh H. Lodi, Vice Chancellor NED University in his address highlighted the efforts of NED University to provide and upgrade quality human resource capacity in the area of construction engineering law. He specifically highlighted the integration of construction law courses in Civil Engineering and Construction Engineering degrees at the undergraduate level, while providing insights into M.Engg. (Civil) Construction Engineering Law degree being offered by NED University and its impact on the profession being the only construction law program in Pakistan. In his address, Honourable Mr. Justice Zulfiqar Ahmad Khan, stressed the efforts to improve arbitration practices, ways to strengthen the arbitration regulations, and the importance of intellectual property and professional ethics in the construction law profession.
On this occasion, an MoU was also signed between NED University and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Pakistan Branch for collaboration in education, research, and professional development in the area of Construction law with CIArb recognizing the M.Engg. The Construction Engineering Law program, being offered at NED University as its qualifying requirement for direct associate membership grade.