10 reasons why you should consider buying a Q Mobile

Disclaimer. I have no affiliation with Q Mobile in any ways except that I am using one of their products and this post is not about marketing their stuff. I am what they call a “loyal customer”.

I have been using Android smartphones for a couple of years and now I think I am addicted to them. There’s loads of apps available for free, the features are great, you remain connected anywhere, anytime, there’s maps (online and offline), great camera, WhatsApp, Viber, Skype. Man it’s a world out there. Previously it was HTC or Samsung, but now my choice has shifted to Q Mobile. Here are some reasons why I would prefer Q Mobile smart phones over any other brand.

1. Price. They are inexpensive. I won’t call them cheap but inexpensive is the right word. A Q Mobile with a monstrous 5” screen like the A 10 costs like Rs. 15,000 which other Android powered phone with an 8 MP cam, dual flash, face camera, and all other bells and whistles can you find in this price range? None.

2. Backed by Guarantee.  Yes, you get warranty and back up support. In case it goes wrong, just send it to Q Mobile for repairs. I got my Q Mobile screen replaced after it cracked in about two weeks time. They have service centers all around the country.

3. All smartphone features. You get the best of smartphone features in them, from Wi Fi to Bluetooth, to face came and dual LED Flash, dual core, quad core and off course the latest Android versions.

4. Basic models are inexpensive. Should you decide not to go for a smartphone then there’s plenty of basic models to choose from that cost from a Rs. 2000 and upwards. And believe me they are as good quality as the expensive ones.

5. Variety.  Q Mobile has over 50 models to choose from, starting form the basic bar phones, QWERTY ones and the huge smartphones. So there’s obviously one for you out there.

6. Value for Money. Q Mobile offers best value for money. If you buy the latest Samsung S4 for Rs. 64,000 today, by the end of month its value will have depreciated to Rs. 50k and sure enough in a year’s time it will sell for around Rs. 40 k or less. You end up loosing more money. But with for a top of the line  Q Mobile which you bought for Rs. 19 k how much will you loose? Even if you loose 50 % in a year its still worth it.

7. Dual SIM:  I never knew how simple it was to use the dual SIM feature till I started using Q Mobile. Now I don’t have to carry two mobile phones and two different kinds of chargers everywhere. The dual SIM has some very nice features in the OS itself.

8.  Synchronization Software. Q Mobile has its very own sync software available at their website for backing up data and contacts on your PC. Besides this it also offers a host of features like sending SMS etc.

9. They are trendy. Q Mobiles are not those simple Chinese looking phones with irritating caller tunes anymore. They are trendy phones just like any other top of the line brand.

10. It is quality stuff. I think the quality is quite good. Off course it doesn’t compare to the latest Samsung S4 or anything like it but it does carry the bells and whistles. The touchscreen is quite responsive, the apps work just fine, A 10 has dual core and now the latest ones I hear have quad core which all comes at a very low price.

So, if you have oodles of money to spare by all means go for the latest Samsung or any other thing you fancy. But if you are someone like me who values his hard earned money, I would say think before you spend it on expensive phones and consider buying a Q Mobile.

IT projects ranging from automated meter reading and computerized land records management to online education and mobile banking are now at various stages of implementation across Pakistan.  In a report released today, the World Bank calls these projects "unprecedented in the public sector in developing countries". The objective of these efforts is to reduce corruption, increase productivity and improve service delivery in both private and public sectors. Here's a brief description of five key areas where information technology penetration is visible:

1. Automated Meter Reading:

Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) project has been rolled out across the country with the help of United States Agency for International Development (USAID).  It is aimed at reducing power theft which accounts for 20-30% of all power generated in Pakistan. It will provide accurate electronic meter readings with little human intervention, using technology to transmit meter readings data via GSM/GPRS and Radio Frequency. It is expected to help power distribution companies (DISCOs) to monitor electricity consumption trends for different consumer categories, understand demand patterns, reduce electricity losses significantly and increase their revenues. Initial AMR pilots indicate significant reduction of power theft in Lahore.

In addition to automatic reading of consumer meters, smart meters have been installedwith the support of USAID on incoming and outgoing feeders at all nine government-owned electric utilities. These will help move toward building of a smart national grid to better manage power generation, transmission and distribution in the country.

2. Mobile Governance:

The Punjab government is deploying smartphone applications to crack down on absentee mobile government workers and their corrupt practices. As part of this project, the government employee must send his or her picture and a report of interaction with citizens along with GPS coordinates. For example, a agricultural pest control official required to visit farmers must file reports of his findings and actions in real time via a smartphone app.

An agricultural field monitor uploads a picture of himself and spotted pests on crops using a smartphone. This data is used to ensure visits happen and create easily-accessible time and spatial data. Source: World Bank

An SMS soliciting feedback from citizens is sent out after each such visit or interaction. Responses from users are logged into a central database, and the data then analyzed and mapped. Call centers have also been trained to contact those who do not respond or are unable to read the text due to illiteracy.More than three million users of public services have so far been contacted since the summer of 2012, with both positive and negative feedback, according to the World Bank report. “Sir, we went to the hospital yesterday. They asked for 1500 rupees [in bribes]. We didn’t have the money so we left,” reads one of the reports about a hospital in Lahore, the provincial capital. The feedback is actively monitored by the office the Chief Secretary – the top civil servant in the province – to manage the performance of officials.

Results of Google-sponsored Survey in Pakistan Source: Express Tribune

3. Computerized Land Records:

Provincial land departments in Pakistan regularly show up as the most corrupt in Transparency International surveys conducted every year. In fact, most Pakistanis refer to the culture of corruption in Pakistan as "patwari culture". For the uninitiated, a patwari is a low level official in the land department responsible for keeping land title records. Corrupt patwaris either deliberately misplace such records or delay issuing land title papers when citizens refuse to pay bribes.  With digitization of such records, citizens will be able to check and confirm titles to lands on a computer screen by entering  their computerized national identity card (CNIC) number. Corruptpatwaris are trying to undermine the computerization project.

4. Education and Training:

Pakistan has been at the forefront of using information technology to increase literacy and offer higher education. A pilot program in the country has demonstrated the effectiveness of pushing mass literacy through the use of cell phone text messaging capability.

A UNESCO has recently also started a post-literacy project in Pakistan based on mobile technology. The Mobile Based Post Literacy program is targeted at young rural women, aged between 15 and 25, by keeping them interested in literacy through the mobile phone.

The concept of virtual instruction is finding its way to K-12 education as well. Increasing number of Pakistanis are drawn to various online sites. Silicon Valley NEDians have launched Learntive, an effort to offer digitized lessons in high-school courses.  Virtual Education for All is a local Pakistani initiative extending the concept to primary level. 

Virtual University(VU) and Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) offer distance learning programs using information technology. Pakistan's Virtual University (VU) has won theOutstanding New Site Award 2012 for an Open CourseWare website which was created in 2011.

5. Mobile Banking:

Combination of growth of mobile phones and ease of mobile money transfers have enabled many Pakistanis to have access to financial services for the first time in their lives.

In a country where only 22% of the population owns bank accounts and more than 70% owns mobile phones, mobile banking is proving to be the fastest way to promote financial inclusion considered by experts to be essential to lift people out of poverty. Benefits include easy access for rural customers to banking services through agents in villages without bank branches, better documentation of the economy, enlarging of the tax-base and efficiency of economic transactions.

Summary: 

Increasing use of computers and mobile phones is enabling broad adoption of information technology in Pakistan. It has the potential to increase transparency, enhance individual productivity and improve standards of living of ordinary citizens.

New Colonial Cricket System Is An Insult

It's not just a game, it's our life. It's not just a kit, it's our skin. We bleed green. Money can never get bigger than passion and believe me, cricket is our passion. Cricket, a gentleman's game, a game which we consider holy and sacred is on the verge of becoming a hostage by the 'big three' countries namely India, Australia and England. It is a blatant attempt to buy victory.

The new colonial and imperial system based on absolute greed and arrogance is an arrangement to ravage the game, a game incarnated into the hearts of millions. I'm appalled by this short-termism and how money can bulldoze the true essence and spirit of the game.

Australia and England being an accomplice at this stage will inevitably feel remorseful as soon as they are acquainted with the heinous designs of BCCI. Their interests will be lashed and they'll be ultimately purged out of the gang when the troika stands dissolved. India, the spoiled baby, will eventually end up ruling the world of cricket and other countries would have as much influence as the husband of a porn star has over his wife. The 'big three' are working towards a bleak future of the game.

ICC has been paralysed ever since with the hyperactive BCCI pulling its strings. No surprises there at all. The 'flag-bearers' and 'custodians' of the game have zero offering for the evolution of this game. That too involves a malicious will because expansion of cricket to China and USA could cause potential threat to India's cupidity. Associate members namely UAE, Afghanistan, Scotland and Ireland were not mentored according to the eminent international standards. The troika has been juggling well and the associate members are being offered inducements. The minions might fall into the trap.

The imperious attitude of BCCI is the root cause of this ongoing vandalism of the game. This is a perfect epitome of power gone mad. BCCI claims to bring in about 80% of the revenue to ICC. Under the proposed ICC revamp, BCCI's income will increase by 500%, England's and Australia's income would increase by 75% and 10% respectively. South Africa's and Pakistan's share will decrease by 20% with the rest of the countries getting a paucity of the great wealth. So, this is the standard operating procedure to plunder cricket.

All the television broadcasters and sponsors belong to India and bring in about 80% of the money in the world cup. Can't India pull everything out to make it worthless? If Bangladesh doesn't support this idea, they will be deprived of the ICC T20 world cup. Isn't it blackmailing? Definitely, India is trying to intimidate and patronize the weaker cricketing countries. CA, ECB and all those in support of this proposal are equally culpable. I would rather go an extra mile to comment that it is a suicidal instinct.

BCCI has already averted twice from the promise of Indo-Pak bilateral series. Also, BCCI can't refrain itself from mudslinging and casting aspersions on Pakistan. Remember the spot-fixing case? On the other hand, Suresh Raina was granted a safe exit passage after being in limelight for corruption charges. They have all the right to be treated superiorly. Money speaks. Might is right. Time and again we hear BCCI spitting venom against PCB. If BCCI takes over, the entire struggle through back door diplomacy to revive cricket in Pakistan will go in vain due to the conventional hostility between the two.

Another pertinent viewpoint; the fallacious proposal of the 'big three' will trigger corruption in cricket. From the very inception of IPL, this filth has incorporated the game and totally plagued it! Despite of having an anti-corruption unit with limitless jurisdiction, corruption has still not been completely expunged from the game.

BCCI chairman himself is entailed in corruption and his son-in-law was leveled with corruption allegations and was put behind the bars. In recent times, cricket is losing its popularity because of abundance of commercialized policies and faces a severe trust deficit. The approval of the proposed ICC revamp can prove to be the final nail in the coffin.

India's flamboyance was exposed in New Zealand where they were confronted with a humiliating defeat. England met the same fate in Australia. Australia faced a thrashing defeat at the hands of England when they toured them last year. After taking over the ICC, the arrangement of conditions, venues and dates would be their prerogative which will provide them with the edge and increase their prospects of winning.

This is simply disgusting and an insult to the rest of the cricketing nations. Pardon me for my bias; Pakistan has not played a single match on their home ground, yet managed to secure a record-making seven series win in a calendar year.

A natural knee-jerk reaction is a big 'NO' when a diehard cricket fan becomes aware of this monarchical two-tier system plan. Although commercial and financial committee is already gone to England, it is never too late to react. Cricket fans protested outside India versus New Zealand match, such is the indignation among the followers. The new structural apparatus would benefit the financially weaker countries has been erroneously indoctrinated by dodgy estimations and fudged statistics.

Unanimity among the non-members of this proposed system is the need of time. We need to combat this through due-diligence, media management and lobbying otherwise sovereignty of the game will be compromised. PCB, CSA, WICB and SLC should become an impediment and agitate against this tyranny or else they'll have to face the ramifications in the form of cricket being made 'very exclusive.' Putting everything in a nutshell, the ICC proposed revamp is not good for cricket.

The menace of Aerial Firing

Little Anwar* was just nine when he died. He wasn’t suffering from any ailment, he wasn’t retarded in any way, his father had no enmity with anyone, he didn’t die in a road accident, nor was he a victim of a suicide bomber. He died because of a macho’s stray bullet, (ostensibly having a good time trying his new weapon) that hit him right in the head while he was learning to read Quran from a lady on the roof of his house. Death did not come to him instantly, he died some hours later in a hospital. His family is devastated, the pain cannot be described, it is beyond words. I know it because he was my cousin’s son. A lovely boy, always smiling and cheerful. When I went to his father’s house sometime back, I saw a letter written by his class fellows lamenting how much they all missed him. The thought of that letter alone brings tears to the eyes of a harum-scarum slob like me.

Why I am writing such a long premise for a post whose title needs no long introductions is because the pain of loosing someone to a random bullet can only be felt by people who are close to him. It is like nothing imaginable. I have since then wept secretly a number of times. I wish to take the macho who fired that bullet to the court, I want to show him Anwar’s grave, the flowers that have been placed on it, let him hear Anwar’s mother’s woes over and over again, I want to read the letter written by Anwar’s class fellows to him, I want to ask him why in the world did he have to fire in the air that very day; that very hour. I want to drag him in the streets and leave him for dead, let the dogs eat him or worse the vultures bite him while he’s still alive. I want so badly to do things that are shown in ghastly movies.

What do these people with incapacitated brains and bloated egos think? Do they even know that they are having fun at someone’s life expense. Just read papers, surf the web or worst still log on to YouTube or Daily Motion to see these goons having fun, firing in the air with weapons some of which happen to be automatics. The abject disregard of laws by these thugs, total lack of awareness of on the subject by all, and inability of the Government to enforce whatever laws there are on  the subject results in countless deaths every year. Some of which happen during marriages and festive events. A small spectacle of this was experienced by me on new Year’s eve just as the clock struck midnight and 2013 rolled over to 2014. There was enough firing at least in Karachi Saddar area that night to make a sane person believe, he was in a war zone.

I will not suggest or recommend or say what needs to be done. Everybody knows what needs to be done. Anyone firing in the air needs to be treated as if he has in fact shot a living man. And why don’t the droves of MNAs and MPAs we have make a few firing ranges for these wily machos? I am sure they can work out a million ways to make a quick buck out of it. It will certainly make them more rich and will also save a couple of hundred lives every year. If they care, that is. Why doesn’t the media (of whose insanity and immaturity there’s no dearth) cover these things? Why don’t start a massive campaign on educating the rich yet ill-mannered millions who resort to this sly practice? And why don’t you and I raise our voices and condemn this ghastly act whenever we see it? This madness has to stop, and it is I and you who need to voice our opinions in a vociferous way.

* Name changed to protect privacy.

The Little things in life & How to bring-up your children?

Let’s take a moment and praise everything we don’t usually. Let’s notice the things without which life is ugly but we never pray for them, Let’s use our senses to the little things in life which makes all the difference but we don’t harness them to our advantage rather we have put it in a danger.

We work in big, ugly buildings, the bigger the better , the more high-tech it is, the more we feel accomplished, while they are so far from nature and it doesn’t bother us much. Our cities are a mess, and eatables are adulterated just like our integrity. Our roads, our parks, our empty plots are filled with so much filth, it’s appalling.

We pray for a lot of money, travelling to far and wide places while the beauty near us is in shambles.

No matter how much money you have, in the end hearing the birds chirp, leaves rusting in the wind and sunrise makes life more fulfilling than ipads and the gadgets we are swarmed with.

The way  we are bringing up our children is even worse. They should know about everything but converting their free time into a busy time with some futile activity only makes your children hyper and the time they can contemplate into a time pass. They are not going to get this time back. The way your children can imagine NOW and feel NOW, they won’t be able to do that when they grow up even when exposed with the same things. So it’s better to expose them to stuff that matters. Here is a list I could think of, there could be more but this is it for now.

1.       Make them listen to nature. To the birds, leaves, make them climb trees, make them lie down in the hammocks. Let them dance in the rain. Let them sit and play in the park with themselves. Show them sunrise and sunset.

2.       Let them run after moon and the setting sun, let them observe the multi-colours of the sunset.

3.       Keep them away from gadgets and mindless cartoons. When they grow up, they won’t be able to cherish those cartoons the way they would be able to imagine how nature made them feel.

4.       Make them paint the nature.

5.       Let them love the animals. Keep pets.

6.       Teach them love for others, don’t gossip in front of them.

7.       Let them read books with illustrations, pictures.

8.       Read to them if they are young. Read to yourself.

9.       Whatever you want to teach your kids, first teach that to yourself.

10.   And if you are too busy to do all this with your children, please produce less of them. Don’t ruin their lives by teaching them the same competition and selfishness you learned, don’t convert them into a rat and chase after your own dreams. Let them have their own dreams and give them the freedom to chase it.

11.   Not every kid has to gain the so-called ‘Professional Qualifications’. Kindly use your brain or whatever is left of that. Let them be what they are.

12.   Trust your child and be their friend. God has given you your child but you are not a God to your child now. Just like every other relationship, you have limited rights and duties. If God has not given himself unlimited rights then how can He give parents or children unlimited rights!

13.   Don’t teach them right from wrong by giving the reason ’What will people think?’ Tell them why what’s wrong is wrong and is not to be done. Keep reiterating, one day they will understand.

14.   Last but the most important thing is: Your kids have a higher activity level, they want to do something all the time, give them something to keep them busy. Let them do dishes with you rather than making them see ‘ Sheela ki jawani’.or those wailing saas bahu,doosri aurat and bhaajpan dramas. Let them make their own sandwiches, juices etc. Let them dance and let them earn after they are 15 at least. Rather than forcing them to collect degrees till 21,22 and then expecting them to become a CEO by the age 23.

All Pakistani Resources Diverted To Punjab

All the intellectuals are agreed on the point that one of the main reasons behind the rise of a nation or a country, is its ability to learn from history. It implies that all the developed nations of today have made use of the history to understand the mistakes which their forefathers and other nations made, and formulated their strategies accordingly. 

Unfortunately, Pakistanis are one nation which refuses to learn from history. We have a tendency of viewing everything in the context of religion, therefore even the good deeds of non-Muslim nations are brushed aside as sinful. For example the European countries, learning from their history, separated the religion from the affairs of estate. This was the time when the Church, in connivance with the monarchy, exploited the religious sentiments of the masses to help the monarchy in usurping the rights of common citizens and in maintaining their iron grip over the estate.

The civilized and technological advanced Europe we see today, is the result of eliminating the role of religious establishment from the matters of estate. 

On the other hand, we in Pakistan, continue to let the religious leaders and religious-political parties to dictate the policies of estate. Generations after generation these religious leaders have played havoc with the country's progress and have ensured that their own vested interests are served. This handful group of people has thrived on anti-India and anti-all religions sentiments. 

This is why whenever there is an attempt to improve the ties with India, these religious parties swing in to action to oppose such moves. Their objective is not the betterment of our country, for if that had been the case they would have whole-heartedly supported such moves as the huge funds spent on reinforcing our eastern borders could be easily diverted towards development projects. The main objective of these religious parties is to ensure the continuation of billion of rupees in donations which they collect in the name of anti-India slogans. 

Interestingly these religious contractors are not the only ones who consider it their responsibility to dictate our foreign policy. There are some journalists and anchorpersons who too are always trying to keep the war hysteria alive. 

This nexus of religious establishment and journalists is visible these days in a Show of Dunya News where the anchorperson Kamran Shahid along with some religious leaders, is seen indulging in useless and at times pointless arguments with Indian Journalists and intelligentsia. I don't have any problem with the nature of the program but what sends my blood boiling is that both Kamran Shahid and his panellists, keep blaming the Indians for the fall of Dhaka in 1971. 

It is sad to note despite losing one half of the country, our so called opinion makers have not learned the lesson from history. Blaming India is easy but the fact of the matter is that we ourselves are responsible for what happened in 1971. 

The separation of East Pakistan was in the making for a long time, the continued neglect, denial of rights and uneven distribution of resources had nurtured the sense of deprivation which finally culminated in the demand for separation from East Pakistan. 

Sadly, instead of learning lessons from our history and mistakes, we blame India for the creation of Bangladesh. The religious establishment which has always strengthened the hands of landlords and politicians, had termed the people of East Pakistan as anti-Islam, they had formed their own death squads which indulged in merciless and brutal killing of Bengalis. 

Things are not much different today, journalists like Kamran Shahid use religious leaders to endorse the view that Pakistan's politicians and religious leaders were innocent and it was actually India which had caused the separation of East Pakistan. 

These journalists are turning a blind eye to the sense of deprivation prevailing among the people of smaller provinces. All resources are being diverted to Punjab and in some cases the funds allocated for projects of other provinces are being diverted towards Punjab, to be precise in Lahore. The atrocities being committed in Karachi are completely being ignored, while the rights of Baloch people are also being denied. 

Things are again moving towards the 1971 direction. The failure to learn lessons from history has brought the country to the point where there are separatist movements in Sindh and Balochistan, while other parts of the country are also heading in the same direction. 

We must address the issues and must ensure equal distribution of resources to prevent a tragedy like 1971, whereas there is a strong need to keep the religion out of politics also. 

May Allah bless Pakistan.