SUNDAY
July 25, 2021
CULTURE & SOCIETY
Page 3
Govt should realise how we feel seeing our
holy places used for recreation — Parkash
By Zeeshan Ahmad
Humans have wondered about life on other planets for
as long as they have known about space. Renowned
astronomer Dr Seth Shostak of SETI explains why
the question matters and how the search for extra-
terrestrial intelligence actually works
T
he question of whether there is life outside of
Planet Earth is perhaps as old as the discovery of
outer space. Ever since it became clear that our
planet was just one of the countless bodies in
the universe, people have wondered if we, the
human race, are all alone in its vastness.
Still, it was only recently that we could start an attempt
to find an answer. As humans breached the edge of
the Earth’s atmosphere, corresponding initiatives and
advancements made some experimentation possible.
The not-for-profit SETI Institute developed as just one
result of that. Incorporated in 1984, the institute has
been on a mission to explore, understand and explain the
nature of life in the universe.
The Express Tribune reached out to someone who is
perhaps SETI’s most public face: American astronomer
Dr Seth Shostak. In a wide-ranging conversation, Dr
Shostak explains how the search for intelligent life out
there actually works and how such an endeavour may
be important for us to understand our place in the grand
universal scheme.
ET: What does SETI do exactly and how did it come about?
SS: Well SETI is a generic acronym. It stands for the ‘Search
for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence’. That was our first project
and it still is a project of this institute – the SETI Institute –
which is a non-profit.
Now, the first SETI experiment was done in 1960 by
It is possible that there is indeed
nobody out there. But if that were
in fact true, then that would make
Earth extraordinarily remarkable
Frank Drake, who was a young astronomer at the time,
in West Virginia, United States. Since then, SETI has
been a sort of ‘sometime activity’ for people. The fact that
it is not very large is entirely due to the lack of funding.
When I joined the SETI Institute in 1990, it was a NASA
programme. But that stopped three years later and it has
not been government funded since 1993.
That means that the number of people involved is very
8 million
is the number of Hindus currently living in
various parts of Pakistan, according to PHC
low. The SETI Institute has about a hundred researchers,
but the number that are working on the SETI project
is one and a half. It is very very small and that is just a
money issue.
The rest of the institute, if you walk down the
halls here, you would find are doing what is called
‘astrobiology’. They are interested in life in space but
probably microscopic life and not that kind that will hold
up their side of the conversation.
So, that is what the institute does. It is non-profit and
we have a lot of scientists, but we have a small number
that are actually interested in the search for extra
terrestrial intelligence.
ET: When it comes to searching for signs of life in
space, there are some people who become somewhat
paranoid. They ask ‘why invite trouble’ if there is
intelligent life on other planets. Why is it important for
us, both philosophically and scientifically, to determine
whether we are alone in the universe or not?
SS: If you ask me why is it interesting to do this, I think it
is curiosity more than anything. That is not a superficial
uninteresting motivation to do this. I am just doing this
because I want to know the answer to ‘is there somebody else
out there in the galaxy’.
We now know something that we did not know 2,000 years
ago and that is that there are like a trillion planets in the
Milky Way. And we can see a million million other galaxies,
each with a million million other planets, in the sky.
It is possible that there is indeed nobody out there. But
if that were in fact true, then that would make Earth
extraordinarily remarkable. It would be like finding one
lottery ticket in your pocket and it happens to be the
winning one – it could happen, but the chances of that
happening are small.
There is a much bigger chance of there being life out
there than there is a chance that all of these trillions of
planets in trillions of galaxies are sterile. That is very
unlikely.
As far as the danger of searching for intelligent life out
there is concerned, there is no danger in listening at all.
Nobody knows that you are listening, unless you were to
broadcast something back.
Some people think that would be dangerous. I’m not
one of them, but there are people who say: “oh, you don’t
know what is out there and you may threaten the Earth.”
Those people do not seem terribly concerned about all
TRAVEL
Page 4
I want to show that Pakistan is safe for
female solo travellers — Syra Hussain
There is no danger in
listening for intelligent life
at all. Nobody knows you are
listening, unless you were to
broadcast something back
the radar or our television and FM radio, all of which are
going into space. Those would be alerting the ‘aliens’ too.
ET: That is an interesting way to frame it. Usually, one
thinks only about what the discovery of intelligent
species or civilisations on other planets would mean for
us. But if we were in fact alone in the universe, you say
that in itself would be an important discovery.
SS: Yes, but keep in mind that there is no way to prove that.
You can point your antennas at all the trillions of planets in
the Milky Way and you may not hear anything. But that still
does not prove that there is not intelligent life out there. It
could mean that your experiment is not good enough.
There is no way to prove that there is nobody out there.
It is not a falsifiable hypothesis. But there is a way to
prove that there is intelligent life out there and that is
what we are trying to do. And again, we do it out of
curiosity more than anything.
ET: When we talk about bodies in space, there are
obviously distances that even light takes thousands if
not millions of years to travel across. How does that
affect the search for extra-terrestrial life? How does
the SETI project account for that when performing
its experiments?
SS: Well, it is true that everything you see in the sky is via
‘old light’. If you look at the moon, you are not seeing it as
it is ‘now’. You are seeing it as it was one and a half seconds
ago. That does not really matter as the moon has not changed
much in the interim.
I think you could make that same argument probably
for any alien signal you pick up. Yes it is true that we
can see things and galaxies from our telescopes that are
billions of light years away. But we are not looking at
those for SETI. We are looking nearby, in our own galaxy.
SPORTS
Page 8
Tape-ball cricket lets you hit the ball hard out
of the park. It’s more fun — Hafsa Khalid
And if you just expand the search to 300 light years, to
give a number, then there are more than a million star
systems within that distance. So, even if you think the
chances are one in a million, you will have success if can
look at all those star systems within 300 light years.
Of course, that would mean that the signal is 300 years
old. But even then, it would not be uninteresting to us.
There are plenty of people who study the 18th century on
this planet.
It does make conversation very difficult if there is some
civilisation that far away. But who knows, there could be
some intelligent life that is much closer. Our nearest star,
for instance, is only four light years away. That would
mean tedious conversation but it is not impossible.
ET: The term extra-terrestrials, usually, evokes
conspiracy theories about UFOs and alien visitors. What
would you say to those who confuse the scientific search
for extra-terrestrial life with conspiracy theories?
SS: Well, there are certainly dozens of conspiracy theories
that I hear from people every day. Some of them are nuts,
but most of them are not. They are just citizens who have
seen something.
As it turns out, I have a background in photography
so I ask them if they have made any photos. And you
know, maybe half the time they say yes. I have them
send me the photos if they are willing and I can usually
tell what they are.
It’s true the galaxies we see from
telescopes are billions of light
years away. But for SETI, we are
looking nearby, in our own galaxy
In most cases, they can be explained by photographic
effects, or just the fact that they are using their
cellphone cameras, pointing them at the sky at night.
The cellphone camera does not know what to focus on, so
it goes in and out of focus, and they think they are seeing
aliens. There are many interesting optical effects that
many people interpret as being alien spacecraft.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
 COVER STORY

similar to humans.
I have consulted
for some films and
television shows too and
of course, you can argue
that maybe life out there
looks nothing like us or maybe
they are machines, and so forth.
But yes, in media, they
always go back to the idea of
humanoid aliens and the reason is
just in the storytelling. If you show a
humanoid alien, with the big eyes and
the grey skin, for example, the audience
immediately knows who that is. It does
not require a back-story. If they decide they
are not going to do that anymore and the
aliens look like frogs or grizzly bears, you have
to establish who they are and that requires screen
time. So in the interest of the story, they usually do
not do that and go back to the humanoid aliens.
But yes, there is no reason to think that life out there
would look humanoid. If the dinosaurs made movies,
all their aliens would look like dinosaurs. It is just
wherever you are in history or evolutionary history.
really
a lot
more fun
to think
this is true.
In most cases, UFOs can be
It is a lot
more fun for
explained by photographic
me to believe in
angels, just for
effects or someone pointing
example, and one- their cellphone camera at the
third of the population
believes in them too. But sky at night
you say “okay, that is fine
but what is your proof?” They As far as SETI experiments are concerned, however,
give you whatever they have, we do not really account for that. We do not even make
but it does not convince many the assumption that whatever is out there is alive – I
scientists. think machine intelligence is a much better guess. All
The same is true for the UFO we hope for is that whatever is actually out there, no
phenomenon. There is just no good matter what they look like, they do produce evidence
evidence in my opinion. Not to mention of their existence. Not necessarily deliberately, but
all sorts of problems with getting here even accidentally, just from the thermal heat or
and why are they here now and other whatever else they do or use, like computers.
things, other arguments you can make. We do not make any assumptions about their
But the bottom line is, if they are here now, behaviour or what they look like, their lifestyle or
why do we not see them with our airport radars, what they like to eat. None of that matters.
for example. Or our radar fences that extend across All we care about is “did they build a radio
the entire United States? Or the fact that there transmitter and is it on?”
are satellites up there and they are not all American
satellites. There are plenty of satellites that are just ET: In recent months, there has been some interest
photographing every part of the globe today and they in a US government report concerning UAPs. What
do not see them either. thoughts do you have about that?
Now, SS: For the last several weeks, I have been dealing with
o n e ET: There is this idea that the appeal of ‘conspiracy people who are interested in this report about UAPs
t h i r d theories’ comes from people’s need to convince – Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon, which used to
of the themselves that there is an order to the chaos they be called UFOs, but the government has changed the
American observe in life. Do you think that explains why the terminology for some reason.
public be- public interest in UFOs has been so enduring? The thing about that argument is that to begin
lieves that SS: I think the whole UFO business in the United States with the intelligence services did not even mention
we are actually – I think its safe to say for the world actually – began aliens in their analysis. That was not even up for
being visited and in the late 1940s and it started with an observation consideration and there was not even any evidence of
that some of these made in the state of Washington by this fire equipment that.
UFOs are real inter- salesman. The government did actually cover up some But what I find really interesting is the highly
stellar objects. That of the information around those early UFO experiences, emotional nature of this particular issue. That to me
is the same in Europe. I if you will. In particular in the case of Roswell, because is both interesting and puzzling.
don’t know what it is on the there was actually a classified experiment being I have gotten a lot of hate mail over articles I have
Subcontinent but I would be conducted at the Roswell Army Air Force Base involving written saying the ‘aliens are not here’. That gets
surprised if the numbers were balloons. The government did not tell the truth on that some people very upset. Many say it is great, but
very much different. until 30 years later. many others accuse me of being closed-minded,
So that precipitated make ad hominem attacks on me and even berate
a kind of distrust my ancestry.
amongst the public The interesting thing to me is why? Why are these
here in the United beliefs so closely held? It reminds me of wars and

What I find interesting is States that

the highly emotional nature
of this particular issue. I
government was not
the conflicts over religion. You wonder why people cannot
say, ok, you have your religion and I have mine. It
being honest about
what it knew. Ever
does not work that way and people get very emotional.
The same is true with the UFOs. Either you think the
since then, there has aliens are here or they aren’t.

have gotten a lot of hate

been this idea of a
conspiracy or cover ET: Talking about the report, some people have sug-

mail over articles I have up. gested that the UAPs could be drones or other small
I have worked for the aircraft used by some other nation, maybe China or
written saying the ‘aliens federal government.
I even had Top Secret
Russia, to spy on US installations.
SS: I don’t believe any of that actually. To begin with, all
are not here’. That gets clearance given
worked in a research
I these Navy videos were shot in the Pacific Ocean, off of
San Diego. Now, the fact that these videos were made by
some people very upset lab, and well, I have the military explains why these events are taking place
never been convinced close to where the Navy has ships.
that the federal I suspect these are just observational artefacts. I
Dr Seth Shostak government
cover up anything.
could mean, there are people who say well, the UFOs are
spending a lot of time looking at our missile silos.
But there are still And I think if they have the technology to come all
plenty of people who this way from another star system, why would they
So, that means for a do think that and, for its part, the federal government be interested in our guided missile systems. That
hundred million people in here does occasionally keep things quiet. It certainly would be like you going back to the Roman Empire
the United States and does that when it comes to military information. and telling Julius Caesar that the first thing you want
another hundred But the reason that when you go down to a science to look at is where they make their spears. It does not
million people in museum you do not see any stuff about UFOs is not make any sense.
Britain, Europe that the museum directors are thinking ‘no one
and Japan and wants to see that’. Of course the public would be very
so on, this interested. The reason you do not see that in a science If aliens have the technology
is true. museum is because there really is no science to it.
It is Nobody has come up with any real science connected to come all this way from
to the UFO phenomenon.
another star system, why
ET: When one usually thinks of alien life or when it is
depicted in popular media, what comes up is very would they be interested in
humanlike in terms of shape and thinking. But in
looking for extra-terrestrial intelligence, there
our guided missile systems
is no reason to expect any potential life
out there would be similar to us. When
experiments are developed in SETI, is As far as those videos are concerned, there are very
there any kind of speculation about prosaic explanations too. For instance, in one, you
what an intelligent extra-ter- are just looking up the tail pipes of those Navy jets a
restrial life-form would think hundred miles away using infrared cameras.
and behave like? You could still say, no, I am wrong and what the
SS: It is true that videos are showing is a Klingon spaceship. But if you
in movies and in don’t have any convincing evidence of it being an
television that alien spacecraft, it is probably better to go with the
when it comes to more prosaic explanation.
aliens, what
is shown ET: There is also the suggestion that such reports
is very before US lawmakers are actually aimed at securing
more funds. Do you think that is the case with the
UAP report?
SS: Having worked for the Navy myself, they are always
interested in getting more of the federal pie. The
government report, like I mentioned before, does
not have the word aliens or extra-terrestrials
anywhere in it. It just says we couldn’t explain
these 144 or 143 incidents. But it also says
that these are worthy of additional
study. It’s a nothing statement,
which is not really wrong, but
it is something you will need
new money for. So maybe it
is just that, a ploy to get
more money. But I’m
not that cynical yet.

2 July 25, 2021

Cover Design: Ibrahim Yahya | Photos: SETI Institute

By Asad Zia
Peshawar and other parts of K-P were once
home to thousands of minority religious sites,
many of which had immense spiritual and
historic significance, at least for adherents.
With members of various minorities moving
away due to pressures, many of these sites are
defenceless against commercialisation
As one of South Asia’s most ancient cities, Peshawar
boasts a rich cultural and religious heritage that stretches
back to more than 2,000 years. If the Khyber-Pass served
as the historic gateway into South Asia for visitors from
lands west, then the present day capital of Khyber-
Pakhtunkhwa was the first stop on their journey to spice
rich lands of the Subcontinent. In the process developed
a unique mix of art, culture and architecture inspired
by the ever-evolving syncretistic religious traditions of
the region.
Among the many historic structures Peshawar
once boasted of were the various Hindu temples that
dotted the city. With a history that spanned decades
if not centuries, these once served as nuclei for local
Hindu communities. They could also, in line with
the present government’s ambition, served as at-
tractions for religious tourism – that is if they were
preserved. Against the unrestrained onslaught of
commercialisation and the ‘property development
machine’, Peshawar’s famed heritage is slowly being
lost to the sands of time.
In 2016 an old Hindu temple located in Mohalla
Wangri Gran of Peshawar’s Karampura locality was
demolished. In its place, property developers built up
a new commercial plaza. For the Hindu residents of
Wangri Gran, the day was one of immense sadness.
“It was demolished before our eyes, but we were in
no position to resist and save the holy building,” la-
mented one resident.
“The temple was more than 82 years old. It was
built back in 1948, shortly after Pakistan became an
independent country,” shared Pandit J Gopa. “In-
stead of being preserved, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
Department for Archaeology and Museums first gave
it on lease and then it was completely demolished,”
he said while reflecting on the tragic day for his com-
munity. “Now a three-story commercial plaza stands
in its place.”
The two temples are enough for the
few families that remain in Peshawar.
This is why we can’t raise our voice
and stop the govt from selling or
leasing away the other temples
B J Sharma
Gopa is just one of the many members of Pesha-
war’s Hindu community who had to watch the bull-
dozing in silence. He blames the Evacuees Trust Prop-
erty Board (ETPB) for neglecting their responsibility
to look after the religious places and properties of the
Hindus and other minorities who stayed behind or
moved to Pakistan once it was established as an in-
dependent state.
“It was the responsibility of ETPB to look after our
temples and the properties of Hindus and other mi-
norities,” said Gopa. ““There were thousands of re-
ligious sites, especially of the Hindu faith, whose
control should have been given to the Archeology De-
partment for conservation in line with the interna-
tional guidelines for protected monuments.”
“Instead of looking after these temples and proper-
ties, several worship places of the Hindu community
were leased off or sold, mostly to Muslim clients,
on throwaway prices. Many of them have now been
razed to make way for commercial plazas and family
parks,” he added.
According to the documents received from the
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Archeology and Museums
Photos: Asad Zia
Neglected
21
temples only are
currently operation in
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
Department, around 3,000 to 4,000 residential and
worship sites of the religious minorities in different
parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were officially listed at
the time of the British Raj. But these days, a major-
ity of those locations show no signs of the original
structures, having been converted to business spots
or family parks. Ones that remain are closed to public
and in dilapidated condition.
Presently in Peshawar, only two Hindu temples are
open to the public - one of them is the Kalibari Mandir
located in Peshawar Cantt while the second one is the
Dargah Pir Ratan Nath at Jhanda Bazaar. Five other
minority worship places - Shiv Mandir, Balmiki tem-
ple, Gorakh Nath temple, Gurdwara Bhai Joga Singh,
and Nandi Mandir - have been closed for years.
Two more have been replaced by commercial or
public developments. “The Panj Tirath temple in
Hashtnagri has been converted into the Chacha You-
nis Family Park,” said Pandit J Gopa. The Wangri
Gran temple, as mentioned before, has been replaced
by a commercial plaza.
Gopa pointed out that Peshawar is not the lone victim
of this erosion of religious heri-
tage. He explained that in Dera
Ismail Khan’s Kali Bari area, the
spacious temple of Garur Bhag-
wan, which once had between
30 to 35 rooms, has now been
converted into a hotel.
B J Sharma, a Hindu Com-
munity leader in Peshawar
shared that Peshawar city was
once a hub of historical sites
in the region. “There was a
time when all religious com-
munities could hold and enjoy
their religious events and prac-
tices here,” he recalled. “But
militancy and the long waves
of terrorism in the country
disturbed every aspect of our
lives.”
According to Sharma, most
of Peshawar’s Hindu families
have migrated away, either to
India or to other parts of the
world. “Those who remain be-
hind in Peshawar are now very
few in number,” he said. This
trend, Sharma pointed out,
was a major reason behind the
erosion of Peshawar’s Hindu
heritage. “The two temples
that remain are enough for
the few families that now live
in Peshawar. This is why we
CULTURE & SOCIETY
cannot raise our voice and
stop the government from
selling or leasing away
the other temples,” he la-
mented.
Parkash, another mem-
ber of Peshawar’s Hindu
community, explained the
significance of the city’s
once famed Panj Tirath
temple. “The name Panj
Tirath is derived from the
five pools of water pres-
ent here. Our elders tell
us that the entire facil-
ity – which spanned about
14 kanals and 10 marlas
- was a place of utmost re-
spect and spiritual signifi-
cance,” he said.
“This was once a presti-
gious place for the local Hindu community but now
it used for public enjoyment,” Parkash said while ex-
pressing disappointment in the government. “Even
though it was declared a heritage site, the district
government leased a major part of the complex to the
owner of the Chacha Younis Family Park.”
“Much of the area around the temple structure now
serves as the park premises while the buildings are
used as godowns by the park authorities,” he added.
“The government and authorities need to realise
the importance such sites hold for us. They need to
understand and empathise with how we feel when
we see our holy places being used by people for rec-
reation and restore them too their previous status.”
Echoing Sharma’s views Besma Bibi from the mi-
nority community residing in Peshawar, said that
once upon a time they used to celebrate Holi and oth-
er religious events freely but now the situation has
taken a turn for the worse. Expressing fawning ado-
ration for the past, the 70-year-old shared how they
could easily offer prayers in all of Peshawar’s temples
in the past. “There were no differences between Hin-
dus and Muslims. We lived together freely in Pesha-
war, but now we fear for our safety,” she said. “Mean-
while, most of our temples have been closed.”
Bibi, like Parkash, urged the government to restore
their temples in their respective areas that they
can easily offered their worship and other activities
freely.
The Express Tribune learned that in all of K-P, only 21
temples are operational out of which a few are cen-
turies old and a majority of them were built before
the partition era. “The Hindu community has a long
history here in the province but unfortunately the
land grabbers in connivance with the concerned de-
partment have occupied the historic and archeologi-
cal religious sites to use for their own interests,” said
rights activist Haroon Sarab Diyal. He also shared a
commercialisation story of another Hindu place of
worship in Bannu, which now houses a bakery in
the Teri area of Karak District. Diyal added that simi-
larly, the city temple in Kohat was converted into
a school, Gorakh Diggi another holy place is now a
park, and the complex of five temples in Asamai Gate
in Peshawar has been leased out to the families mi-
grating from Kashmir.
Diyal mentioned that the law declares that only
spaces other than those specified for worship can be
leased out and that Section 31 of the Pakistan Admin-
istration of Evacuee Property Act, 1957 clearly states
that any person who willfully causes damage, mis-
appropriates any evacuee property or unlawfully con-
verts it to his own use shall be punishable as per the
law. He said that according to Pakistan Hindu Coun-
cil statistics around eight million Hindus currently
reside in different parts of Pakistan and they have the
right to worship freely but still their places of wor-
ship are a target for commercialization.
Wangri Gran temple was over
82 years old. Instead of being
preserved, K-P govt gave it on lease
and it was demolished. Now a three-
story plaza stands in its place
Pandit J Gopa.
Diyal also condemned the illegal construction at
the Shiva temple in Nowshera and demanded the
district administration to stop work on it. He sug-
gested that the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government
should instead develop Hindu religious sites in the
province for tourism to help the economy.
Muhammad Assad Khan, a student of Archeol-
ogy Department at University of Peshawar agreeing
with Diyal’s opinion on developing religious sites for
tourism, told the Express Tribune that K-P can earn
millions of rupees by preserving the worship places
of Hindus and Buddhists as these sites will attract re-
ligious tourists from countries like India, Japan, Sri
Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Thailand.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Archeology and Museums
Department Director Dr Abdul Samad reflecting on K-
P’s centuries old religious sites said that the depart-
ment works hard to preserve these archeologically
significant sites in different parts of the province so
that they do not perish and tourism can be promoted.
July 25, 2021 3
 TRAVEL

thirsting
FOR
adventure
By Omar Qureshi & Allia Bukhari Design by: Mohsin Alam

Pakistan has the potential to be one of the world’s premier destinations

for adventure seekers around the world. Although the government has
taken note and embarked on a drive to boost the country’s tourism sector,
several challenges still exist in the way of fully realising that ambition
Pakistan is often termed a prime country for adventurers as it is home to some of the
highest mountain peaks in the world and offers diverse terrain that caters to the prefer-
ence of all kinds of travellers. Situated in the north, five of the 14 highest independent
peaks in the world are present in Pakistan.
In 2018, the British Backpacker Society ranked Pakistan as the top destination
People hear about adventure, camping or hiking
for adventure travel and the country also topped Condé Nast Traveller’s list of best
holiday destinations for 2020.
and become thrilled but once they begin the
To gain deeper insights into the adventure and tourism ecosystem of Pakistan,
The Express Tribune reached out to tourists and adventures for detailed accounts
exercise, they realise that they are unfit
of their journeys across the country. Travel blogger Muhammad Ilyas

A rocky road
In comments to The Express Tribune, Motorcycle Girl of Pakistan Zenith Irfan detailed that
riding a bike on mountains was quite different compared to driving it in a city.
According to her, two things pose huge challenges while motorcycling across the
country ie changing weather and difficult terrain.
“Geography wise, terrain is the biggest issue and I took some time to learn how
to drive bike on diverse landforms,” she said.
She added that Pakistan had a lot to offer to adventurers and gave example of
Gilgit-Baltistan where visitors can find desert, mountains and rivers.
Rarely there is another place on earth that offers the combination of all three
landforms, she said.
“I will recommend every Pakistani to explore their country on a motorbike be-
cause Pakistan is blessed with a diverse terrain, geography and scenic beauty,” she
said. “Moreover, one can explore more openly on a bike and have a liberating ex-
perience.”
Talking about security, she termed northern region of Pakistan safe and said she
never had a problem or felt unsafe.
She added that adventurers like her were playing a role in promoting Pakistan
as a destination for adventure by posting their travel accounts on social media par-
ticularly Instagram.

‘Not for everyone’

Travel blogger Muhammad Ilyas said the adventure ecosystem in Pakistan is not or-
ganised because people are expected to carry their own equipment and protective gear.
Other nations, particularly European economies that house Alps, ensure that
adventure gear is available for rent or purchase for visitors for respective activities
offered by them.
Ilyas, a habitual camper, said that lack of physical fitness among the general
public is a huge issue.
“When locals hear about adventure, camping, hiking or similar recreations,
they become thrilled and gear up for them but once they begin the exercise, they
realise that they are unfit and hence many of them experience problems and are
unable to enjoy the trip,” he said.

Geography wise, terrain is the biggest issue

and I took some time to learn how to drive
bike on diverse landforms
Zenith Irfan

He detailed that by the end of adventure, not everyone is content and few people
just long to return to their comfort zones.
From an earlier camping trip, he recalled watching few travellers face problems
while sleeping.
Rains at campsites scare quite a few people as gusty winds can tear tents apart
and wreak havoc which terrifies fresh travellers.
“Hence adventure is not for everyone,” he concluded.
Syra Hussain, who runs a travel focused blog on Instagram, said that Pakistan
possesses immense potential to transform itself into a global hub of tourism and
travel.
“Hardly any other country comes close to the diversity that Pakistan offers to
travelers and adventurers,” she said. “Take example of northern region, eight lan-
guages are spoken in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) and every district contains people from
different ethnicities.”
Some of the highest peaks of the world are also located in Pakistan and the inte-
gration of different plains, rich culture and history makes it a prime location for
travellers.
If more facilities are offered and travelers are given more opportunities, Paki-
stan’s tourism sector can rise to a new peak.

Solo traveling
Hussain, who motivates girls in her community and rest of Pakistan to travel alone,
holds the view that assurance of security is essential for vacationers.
“Solo travelling in Pakistan cannot be promoted in true sense until the authori-
ties ensure security,” she said. “Laws should be implemented in a strict manner
and whenever there is an incident, it should be countered by the authorities.”
Hussain considers Pakistan to be a safe country for travel “because people are
respectful, welcoming and hospitable.”
When it comes to foreigners, locals welcome them with open hearts, she said.
She remarked that she had been travelling for the past six to seven years and
never had a single bad experience.
However, she admitted that there is always an uncertainty and in this re-
gard, she recommended females to take safety measures such as keeping phones
charged, loaded with credit and connected to the internet at all times.
“I want to give a message that Pakistan is safe for female solo travellers,” she
said.
Ghazanfar Shehzad Sandrana, who explores Pakistan on a bike, termed it a
The deteriorated state of many roads and
thrilling sport and said that he never faced a problem while exploring the country.
“Prior to visiting the places that are prone to security lapses, bikers need to at-
an upsurge in traffic over the past few years,
tain no objection certificates (NOCs) and other similar approvals from the govern-
ment departments,” he said.
has sparked uncertainty about accessibility
In comments to The Express Tribune, he motivated all Pakistanis to undertake and time needed to reach destinations
whichever adventure activity suits them the best because it is therapeutic and
good for health. Polani Travels Operations Manager Syed Sameer Muzaffar

4 July 25, 2021

Photos: File

Challenges and mitigation
Polani Travels Operations Manager Syed Sameer Muzaffar considers the current government’s tourism
policies quite “wise and friendly”.
He stressed that ease of travel and relaxed visa policies are essential to boost tourism, much in
line with the incumbent government’s vision of bolstering the tourism sector.
In 2019, Pakistan eased its visa requirements by offering on arrival visas to citizens of 50 coun-
tries and electronic visas to visitors from 175 countries.
Prime Minister Imran Khan too has reiterated on numerous occasions the importance of the
tourism sector for the economy while adding that Pakistan can easily become a top tourist destina-
tion in the world thanks to the natural and cultural diversity and the many historical attractions
it hosts in abundance.
Travellers Hub Pakistan co-founders Shahzaib Bhutto and Sabeera Hussain, who have facilitated
over 2,000 individuals on their journeys around Pakistan, elaborated a few challenges they face
from time to time.
“First is unreliable access with regard to both air and land,” they said. “Specifically, the deterio-
rated state of many local roads, along with an upsurge in traffic over past few years, has sparked
uncertainty about accessibility and time needed to reach destinations.”
Moreover, there is a lacking in regulatory environment and a lot of improvement is needed on
this front, they said.
They remarked that businesses should be able to set prices for their services but a few rules need
to be in place for them to follow.
The two officials lamented that “at present, any firm can demand whatever amount it want from
tourists for rooms. Basically, there is no standard judgement of value.”
They were also irked over lack of digitalisation of existing transport systems (busses, operators)
as well as the existing hotel infrastructure.
One has to go around the place themselves to understand what is available, they said.
Vaqas Aizid Khurshid, a traveller and adventurer, stated that infrastructure was the biggest prob-
lem in the overall travel and adventure ecosystem of Pakistan.
“Very few facilities are available in remote places and some spots have become accessible to the
general public solely due to cooperation of locals,” he said. “Government support is direly needed
for this sector.”
He endorsed Hussain views and said security is no longer an problem in Pakistan.
“I have facilitated group tours, sometimes having females, and there was never a security issue,”
he said. “In addition, access to food is also not a problem for travellers anywhere in Pakistan.”
However one big problem that affects whole traveling industry is the availability of washrooms
as many tourist places lack public toilets.
Besides, mobile signals are occasionally weak in far flung areas and at times,
they disappear for several days and as a result, travellers lose contact with the
rest of the world.
Sometimes, landslides or floods block roads and people remain stranded at one
place for several days while waiting for authorities to clear the path.
Finally, he lamented lack of hotels, resorts and rest houses at prominent ad-
venture sites of the country and said that people are forced to either camp or sleep
under open sky due to absence of proper accomodation.
A Chief Operating Officer of an adventure club, on the condition of anonymity, said that infra-
structure was the biggest problem hindering the growth of adventure in Pakistan.
In other countries, government lends supports to all adventure and tourist sites but this was not
the case in Pakistan and facilities are scarce in the country.
He further added that the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation, the dedicated tourism
authority of Pakistan, was in a lamentable state.
Adventurers and tourists have to use jeeps instead of cars and bikes because no attention has
been paid by the authorities to improve the terrain.
He further regretted that road to Skardu was still under construction even after five years had
lapsed since the development work kicked off.
The official admitted that PTDC hotels were the best in Pakistan “but they are non functional.”
Talking about camping, he said that few sites lacked even most basic utilities however he appre-
ciated the government for introducing tourism friendly initiatives at Fairy Meadows and Kumrat
Valley which enhanced the number of campers at the two sites.
The official highlighted that Neelum Valley was located near the Line of Control therefore the
situation at that place was usually uncertain and many tourists are afraid to visit that part of the
country.
How government can assist
The official remarked that first and foremost, the government should prioritise building roads to inac-
cessible parts of the country and repairing broken paths.
He further called upon the leadership to promote tourism on modern lines and give a new and
updated look to PTDC’s website.
Giving example of tourism websites of other regional countries, he was of the view that PTDC’s
webpage was outdated.
“There is no doubt that the security situation improved 10 years ago and the government should
be appreciated for it,” he said. “The leadership has announced excellent plans for the tourism sec-
tor and I hope they materialise in true spirit.”
Muzaffar felt that more infrastructural development work, especially in the northern areas, was
the need of the hour to attract tourists from outside of Pakistan.
“Compared to other developing countries, our hotel and road infrastructure, particularly in the
northern areas, is not up to the mark. The potential is much more,” he highlighted.
Khurshid stressed that if promotion of tourism became the top priority of the government, then
this sector alone could boost the flow of dollars in the country.
He also recommended constructing public washrooms at all tourist places citing that it would
give a boost to camping activities in Pakistan.
“Many people are reluctant to camp solely due to lack of washrooms,” he said.
TRAVEL
K2 base camp
Arba Tourism CEO Khobaib Vahydi, who assists adventurers to travel to K2 base camp, said that
it was not difficult to travel to the location.
“If a person is physically fit and can walk 7-9 hours straight, he can trek to the base camp
easily,” he said. “There is no age limit however pre requisites exist for making this journey
and the conditions are that the person should not be overweight, possess good stamina
and have no breathing problems.”
The CEO added that his sons aged nine and 12 years accompanied him to the base camp
on one of the journey.
“Even children smaller than that can visit the location and recently, I facilitated a for-
eigner aged 75 years to reach the base camp,” he said. “Therefore it is possible for everyone
to climb to that place.”
Detailing the facilities available for travellers, he admitted that they were inadequate
however he appreciated the government for taking targeted initiative in recent years such
as construction of jeep track to Jhola.
Earlier, people had to hike to Jhola but with jeep track in place, it saves a lot of time and
energy, he said.
He recalled visiting Mount Everest Base Camp in Nepal in 2012 and pointed out that the
facilities at that place were way better compared K2 base camp.
Comparing the two countries, he said that several tea houses, resorts and hotels were
located near Mount Everest base camp in Nepal.
“Here in Pakistan, people have to set up tents or camps to sleep and rest,” he said. “My
son accompanied me to Nepal as well hence climbing Mount Everest base camp is not an
arduous task either.”
Giving details of safety at K2 base camp, he said that mattress are placed inside the tents
which act as insulated seat and sleeping bags are placed upon them to enable the adven-
turer to sleep comfortably.
Network services
Moving on to network services, Vahydi highlighted that SCOM laid fibre optic line near K2 base
camp this year after which calls can be made through mobiles and wifi service can be used.
“Earlier, we used to carry satellite phones and sometimes, we used to go out of contact
for 12-14 days which perturbed the families of adventurers back home,” he said. “Now, 4G
network service has been installed at Concordia as well.”
He further appreciated Prime Minister Imran Khan’s efforts aimed at promotion of tour-
ism such as Clean and Green Pakistan and Billion Tree Tsunami and added that public’s
support was also needed for success of the two initiatives.
While visiting northern areas, local travelers should be forced to plant trees at places
where fertile land and conducive environment for plants is available, the CEO recom-
mended.
“International tourists demand cleanliness and the two schemes are proving vital in at-
tracting foreigners to Pakistan,” he said.
He lamented that delegations from South Africa, Malaysia and US were due to visit Paki-
stan in 2020 however they were forced to call off the tour due to outbreak of Covid-19.
The number of international travelers in Pakistan in 2021 stands at a low level due to
global Covid-19 restrictions.
“Recently, French adventurers wanted to visit K2 however insurance companies in their
country refused to offer insurance coverage because they know Pakistan is a risky destina-
tion and government facilities are inadequate,” he said.
Safety measures in adventure sites of Pakistan are scant and because of this, a lot of
foreigners hesitate to visit the country. He called for improvement on this front to boost
adventure ecosystem of Pakistan.
Moving on to food, he said plenty of edible items and clean drinking water were avail-
able in tourism sites of Pakistan however he demanded enhancing their availability to far
flung areas near K2 base camp.
Facilities at Skardu
Elaborating the measures taken by the government for Skardu, he recalled that earlier, flights
to the scenic city were only available from Islamabad and securing seats was a huge problem
because of fully booked flights.
“Nearly 80% of the time, people failed to book spaces on spot,” he elaborated.
Due to government efforts, airlines have introduced Skardu bound flights from major
cities of Pakistan including Karachi, Sialkot and Lahore which has lent massive support to
adventurers and travelers.
“The load of Skardu destined travellers on Islamabad airport has fallen due to this initia-
tive,” he said.
Talking about Skardu he said there was little to no support from the government for the
city.
Private hotels are present for tourists however the government needs to introduce special
facilities for visitors.
He underlined the need to construct guest houses of international standard in the city.
Moreover, cleanliness should be ensured at all tourist sites of the country along with
public washrooms.
With regard to Covid, he said facilities like Covid testing centres, socially distanced sit-
ting areas and quarantine spaces should be established. He was of the view that all these
facilities would earn hefty revenue for the government.
“When we travel to foreign countries and land at a particular city, there are tourist
guides, travel books, brochures, maps, subway routes and similar stuff available that con-
tain details of how to navigate around the city and what places to visit,” he said. “Such
initiatives are needed at Skardu and travelers from Pakistan and foreign countries should
be made aware of the places of interest in and near the scenic city.”
July 25, 2021 5
 ART, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT
By Gibran Ashraf
The latest entry in The Conjuring franchise takes inspiration from the
only real-life instance of ‘demonic possession’ being tried as legal defence
With the reality of stabbing his landlord multiple times
dawning on him, Arne Johnson, in the recent horror-
thriller “The Conjuring 3: The Devil Made Me Do It”, admits
while sitting in a police holding cell, that he is the one to
blame for the murder.
“I invited this thing into me, and that’s the reason
that he’s dead. So, you know, whatever happens to me,
I’ve got it coming,” says Ruairi O’Connor, who plays the
19-year-old Arne Cheyenne Johnson in the movie, with
tears rolling down his cheeks.
Debbie Glatzel, Johnson’s girlfriend at the time and
played by Sarah Catherine Hook in the movie, offers
A particular case of
some consolation to Johnson, convincing him that he
was somehow taken over by another entity.
interest in this regard,
“No, you don’t. Look, I was there. Whatever is going dating from 1963, is the
on, whatever happened that day, that was not Arne.”
The movie follows the real-life story of Johnson who sentencing of an exorcist
had stabbed and killed his landlord, 40-year-old Alan
Bono of Brookfield in early 1981. The case later became in-
in the Madras High Court
famous after Johnson claimed in court that the devil had
made him carry out the deed.
after he attempted
The movie itself, however, is another chapter in the to exorcise ‘evil’ from
long chain of movies based on the exploits of the ghost
hunting, husband and wife duo Ed and Lorraine Warren, a young woman who
captured with great creative liberty and reasonable acting
and directing in the Conjuring and Insidious series.
suffocated in the process
The third instalment in The Conjuring series has been
directed by Michael Chaves, whose only previous feature-
length directorial credit includes the critically panned The
Curse of La Llorona – albeit that movie too belongs in the same
universe in which The Conjuring and Insidious movies are based.
The movie starts by following the possession – or as we later learn the curs-
ing of - 11-year-old David Glatzel, Debbie’s younger brother and then how the
possession or curse is transferred to Johnson.
Later, it is discovered that there is more at play than just demon possession.
Departing from history into fantasy, the movie claims that there is Satan wor-
shipping and the occult involved as well.
The real Brookfield case was one of the more popular cases where lawyers
attempted to use demonic possession as a defence for a heinous crime. What
added weight to the case was that this was one of the first known instances
where the clergy was officially involved in investigating the case and at some
point in the ensuing trial were due to sit in the witness box.
While the lawyers were not ultimately given any chance to either prove or
disprove the concept of possession and its implications in a court of law, it
helped bring a fringe concept into mainstream discourse.
Of course, the topic was already in public discourse
at the time due to the presence of other wildly
popular films that explored the theme of
possession by ghosts or demons. The
real-life duo of Ed and Lorraine Warren
too had been working in their field
of the paranormal and demonology
for around 30 years at the time.
Superior Court Judge Robert J.
Callahan may have poured cold
water on any attempts to legally
prove a paranormal possession
but one has to wonder why that
could not be so.
Ed Warren, played brilliant-
ly by Patrick Wilson, at one
point in the movie tells Ashley
LeConte Campbell, who is play-
ing Waterbury lawyer Martin J.
Minnella (renamed in the mov-
ie as Meryl), that: “The court
accepts the existence of God
every time a witness swears to
tell the truth. I think it’s about
time they accept the existence
of the devil”.
Cultures and religions across
the world have a deep belief
in the paranormal and or the
metaphysical. This is one rea-
son why, as Ed rightly points
out, that even courts accept the
presence of or faith in at least one
supernatural entity – God.
Judges in our part of the world
have often been known to cite not
only God’s existence but also bank on
divine laws in searching for meaning and
guidance in several cases. Yet, acceptance of the
paranormal as a legitimate and legal cause for occurrences
is ruled and excluded from our laws.
We acknowledge the existence of and accept the Quran as sacrosanct and
the provider of divine law – the basis of all laws in our part of the world. Yet,
we do not accept actions attributed to entities mentioned in this sacred of
texts.
One particular case is of interest in this regard. Dating from 1963, it is the
sentencing and subsequent appeal of an exorcist in the Madras High Court af-
6 July 25, 2021
ter he attempted to exorcise evil from a young
woman but who suffocated in the process apart
from suffering severe burns and lacerations to
her body.
The appellate court noted “It is not claimed for
the prosecution that the accused intended to cause
the death of the woman, or even to do her any grave
injury. However, deluded he might have been, the
accused was under the genuine impression that
the woman was possessed by an evil spirit and that
he could exorcise her effectively by means of this pro-
longed ritual.”
The court ended up rescinding the life in prison sen-
tence awarded to the exorcist by the sessions court and in-
stead sentenced him to spend three years of rigorous imprisonment.
The Madras High Court, much like Superior Court Judge Callahan, consid-
ered the material evidence, testimonies and excluded the possibility of an oth-
erworldly entity unexplainable by science.
The belief in black magic, the occult and the existence of djinns and unclean
spirits is quite strong in the eastern culture and religions including Islam and
Hinduism.
The court ended up rescinding the life in
prison sentence awarded to the exorcist by
the sessions court and instead sentenced
him to three years of rigorous imprisonment
Indeed, as a subject, this was broached in much greater detail in the 1973 cult
classic, The Exorcist. Credited with really bringing demonic possessions into
the mainstream discourse and sparking off an entire generation of movies and
graphic novels surrounding the idea of possession by an external force.
There is even a homage to The Exorcist in the first act of the movie as
Steve Coulter (playing Father Newman) arrives at the Glatzel house to dis-
cover that David is possessed and requires an exorcism. As he steps out
of the cab, he stands before the house in the light of an adjoining street
lamp, much the same way Max von Sydow did when playing as Father
Merrin in the 1973 classic.
While the faithful around the world acknowledge the presence of evil and
the malicious – just as much as they acknowledge the presence of the “Good”
and the “Benevolent” perhaps as the necessary counterweight to
even describe righteousness, what they can-
not explain is how that
comes to pass or how is it that people can suddenly speak
in a multitude of voices, possess hitherto little known
knowledge or a different language previously unexposed
to or exhibit powers of telekinesis or extreme strength.
Even science – some practitioners of which now exist
at the crossroads of reason and faith - are also at a loss
to explain just how can a person be “infected” or taken
over by a largely invisible entity from perhaps another
dimension.
Dr Mark Albanese, who studied medicine at Cornell
and has been practising psychiatry for decades, once
wrote about his colleague, Yale-educated and board-
certified psychiatrist Dr Richard Gallagher - who teaches
at Columbia University and New York Medical College
and has consulted on numerous exorcisms, claiming
that people have a “spiritual dimension” as well and one
which must be taken into consideration when treating
patients claiming possession.
It is unclear how the “spiritual dimension” is defined
or what it may contain, gain access to “our” tangible di-
mension. Whether the demonic is part of the
spiritual dimension or another dimension
altogether and whether crossings can be
a trigger or whether there are doorways
or rifts between these dimensions and
who and how can travel across them be
achieved.
Dr Frank Pastore from Peekskill New
York in his letter in the New Oxford
Review wrote that in soft sciences —
such as psychiatry — measurements
become limited.
“As Harry Stack Sullivan pointed
out regarding psychiatric phenom-
ena, the observer influences the
observed, and one’s findings must
be held cautiously,” he warns, add-
ing that the marginalization of religion
in modern times has encouraged even honest sci-
entists to dismiss phenomena involving the supernatural.
He recommends being scientific enough to be open to the possibility
that in some cases of mental illness the diabolic may be involved.
Indeed, there is still a lot that science has yet to decipher about the hu-
man mind and its workings. However, even if we are to decipher that, it is
still a mystery how can a demonic “infection” of the spiritual dimension
impact a human’s physical dimension and allow them to speak in differ-
ent languages, voices and even obtain super strength, levitate, perform
telekinesis to move around objects and affect the environment around
them. Further, what is the matter that a soul is composed of (humans are
made of carbon and nitrogen-based flesh and bones) – or better yet – a de-
mon comprise?
In the film, however, our protagonists are also confronted with another co-
nundrum. The demon, having possessed Johnson, has since left him. This is
proved when the Warrens ask Arne to read a passage from the Bible. When
Arne reads the passage without any encumbrances, Lorraine exclaims disap-
pointedly that he is not possessed.
These religious objects would’ve been enough to provoke an inhuman spirit
if there was one present, she says.
To this, a confused Father Newman asks: Does that mean he’s not possessed?
A frustrated Ed Warren responds by saying: The fact that he can read from
the Bible just seals it.
To Jonhson’s question of whether he is just plain “crazy”, Ed retorts: “Well,
you’re not possessed. But that doesn’t mean that you weren’t”.
The exchange suggests a new possibility of demons or evil spirits possessing
and de-possessing people almost at will. And if that is the case, why are not
more people possessed?
The movie, though, throws up at least one way to have some sort of com-
munication with the demonic dimension and be able to bring them into the
spiritual dimension through the practice of the occult.
John Noble, who plays Father Kastner in the movie wherein he is ap-
proached by the Warrens to help them with their case because he had experi-
ence in breaking up a satanic cult – tells the husband and wife duo how defil-
ing holy land with rituals and committing acts of blasphemy granted them
power which they used against those persecuting them. In The Exorcist, the
demon was apparently trapped in a statute in the ruins of Babylon.
In the film, the Warrens manage to solve a related crime in a different coun-
ty to secure the evidence to convince the courts while Lorraine manages to
defeat the occultist by destroying her altar. The demon summoned devours
the occultist’s soul, treating it as currency for an unfulfilled promise.
In the real world, and the movie, Johnson is convicted and sentenced.
Legally, demonic or occultist practices are ruled out as the reason for mur-
dering a middle-aged man.
Scientifically – as explored in The Exorcist – no logical reason for pos-
session exists so far. Split personality and psychosis, misdiagnosed for
long as possession can be deciphered but there remains, even amongst
doctors and people of science - that there are those rare cases where even
science fails to explain.
The Conjuring 3 – The Devil Made Me Do It, thus offers another
fantastic exploration of the intersection between this world and the
spiritual dimension along with the possibilities of what the occult can
theoretically do with some brilliant storytelling and acting by the two
leads Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga.
Photos: File

By Maheen Irfan
The book ‘MEDJACK: the extraordinary journey
of an ordinary hack’ explores how industries like
healthcare, which are inherently reluctant to change,
can be ‘hacked’ into breaking out of that inertia
When thought of as a verb, the suffix ‘jack’ generally suf-
fers from a nefarious connotation. For instance, the term
‘to hijack’ – or to seize any vehicle unlawfully, usually
through force or the threat of it – would be what usually
comes to mind. Similarly, in the context of technology
and science, one may think of hacking, viruses and other
cyber attacks when asked to reflect on the term – nothing
good in both cases.
So what could the suffix be used for in terms of
healthcare and medicine? What of the term ‘medjack’
in particular? In its most used form, the word is a con-
traction for ‘medical device hijack’, a type of cyber at-
tack that targets weaknesses in the medical devices
of a hospital. Over the course of 2015, 2016 and 2017,
the word gained sinister prominence after a string of
medjacking incidents targeted several hospitals in the
fashion described.
The writers of the book ‘MEDJACK: the extraordinary
journey of an ordinary hack’ seek to repurpose the
word. Instead of the damaging disruption wrought by
cyber crime and cyber warfare, they want readers to
think of a more positive disruption – one that concerns
inspired and innovative thinking. What if an entire
healthcare system could be ‘medjacked’ into rethink-
ing its entire mechanism and philosophy?
The writers of the book seek to
repurpose the word medjack.
Instead of cyber crime, they
want readers to think of a more
positive disruption
The topic may seem daunting to those like me – those
with no expertise in the healthcare sector. Like its
much of its potential audience, I had to jump into it
despite zero experience as a healthcare professional or
an entrepreneur for that matter. One may think, as I
initially did, what benefit someone not directly linked
to the field may gain from reading about startups. And
yet, I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised.
The book mainly chronicles the journey of Critical
Creative Innovative Thinking (CCIT) forum, which was
founded in 2013 by two fourth year medical school stu-
dents at Agha Khan University (AKU) along with Dr
Asad Mian, who was then an Associate Professor of
Emergency Medicine there with a mission to promote
biomedical and healthcare-related creative ideas and
innovations. Each chapter of the book is penned by a
different person however, all authors have been mem-
bers of the CCIT from whereas the primary editor is the
founder of CCIT himself.
In the beginning of the book, it is highlighted that
the healthcare industry possesses an inherent reluc-
tance to change. A significant point that was also high-
lighted early on in the book was the fact that develop-
ing countries tend to ‘leapfrog’ outdated technology.
The developing world tends to skip past the bypassing
stages of technologies in many cases and often ends up
adapting the latest technology once its already been
tried and tested. With this backdrop, the book sets the
stage for what CCIT set out to do, which is create a fo-
rum to critically solve the healthcare problems of the
world today.
While the first chapter outlines CCIT objectives and
briefly touches on its journey over the years. Chapter
two, three and four provide further insight into each
of CCIT’s initiatives. In chapter two, authors Sarosh Ir-
fan Madhani and Maryam Siddique talk about CCIT’s
Ignite talks. Ignite talks, as is explained in
this chapter, were initially begun
by Brady Forrest and Stephen
Lead and were later taken
over by the O’Reilly
group in the United
States. The pur-
pose of Ignite
was to serve
as a channel
to pres-
ent ideas
that
Photos: File/Creative Common
were both quick and innovative. Each
‘Igniter,’ according to the rules set by
its founders, gets five minutes and 20
slides to present their idea. However,
CCIT’s Ignite sessions had one more
requirement: all ideas presented at
Ignite had to healthcare centric. CCIT
held its first Ignite event in 2014 at
AKU on the back of its success, held
three more such events for the next two
years. In one particularly interesting such Ignite ses-
sion (held in 2016), CCIT conducted its session as part
of a larger AKU conference National Health Science and
Research Symposium, which was themed specifically
around ‘Mind and Brain.’ For this purpose, this Ignite
session was also focused specifically around that topic.
Chapter three on the other hand, authored by Waqaas
Akmal, focuses on the Hackathons held by CCIT. Medi-
cal Hackathons, inspired by MIT’s Hacking Medicine
Institute, are two to three-day events planned around a
specific medical theme or a particular branch of medi-
cine with the goal to come out of the event with plans
for solutions around that theme.
Similarly, chapter four (written by Rafeh Ahmed and
Muhammad Mohsin) focused on CCIT’s experi-
ence with incubation, which focused on
the growth and develop-
One more thought-provoking
theme is ‘jugaar,’ which as
is explained in the book, is a
necessary tool in medicine for any
developing country to survive
BOOKS & LITERATURE
The book mainly chronicles
the journey of Critical Creative
Innovative Thinking forum,
which was founded in 2013
ment of entrepreneurial skills. The
chapter highlights their learnings
through the hackathons.
However, by the end of chapter
four, one thing that seems to be
missing in each of the chapters is
that while each chapter chronicles
the experiences of each of CCIT’s
initiatives it doesn’t delve deep
into each of these experiences
but rather presents an overview
of each of them. As a reader, it
would have been far more inter-
esting if the chapters gave specific
examples of ideas presented dur-
ing Ignite events, hackathons or
through incubation. If the jour-
neys of any specific candidate or
their particular ideas were chron-
icled as specific examples, then
as a reader, it would have been far
more interesting and engaging to
learn about them. For instance,
at the end of chapter four, a list
of Incubate teams is shared and
along with each of the teams, a
brief description of their ideas
and the current status of those
ideas is provided. However, if one
or two of those specific ideas and
their status thus far in completing
those incubations was discussed
in detail, then that would have
been extremely fascinating to
learn more about. Same was also
done in chapter one, where a table
outlining a few examples of the Ig-
nite event titles and their respec-
tive content was shared. However,
a detailed account of those Ignite
ideas were not shared.
Another significant hurdle that
is mentioned in the book is that at
the outset, AKU’s policies when it
came to Intellectual Property own-
ership policies were not in favour
of innovators who may present
their ideas at a forum that is part of
AKU. This would massively impact the participator’s
decision to share their ideas and would have been a
huge obstacle in this process. While it is shared that
since then, certain policies have
been amended
to fa-
vour innovators, it is not highlighted to what extent
these policies impacted participants who shared their
work with CCIT thus far.
Another interesting theme touched on in the book
is that of narrative medicine. While the chapter cov-
ers CCIT’s inclusion of reflective writing into their
programme what is extremely interesting is the point
raised in the chapter about the importance of journ-
aling in the field of medicine. As the authors of the
chapter Komal Dayani and Haider Ali note, writing
helps one better understand someone else’s mindset.
Moreover, the practice of combining storytelling with
medical education in medicine, as the authors explain,
has been around for a few decades and is important in
helping readers feel empathy and compassion. More-
over, an ‘empathy gap’ is what is missing in contem-
porary medicine as is identified in the book. With this
backdrop, the authors introduce CCIT’s joint initia-
tive with Aga Khan University Hospital’s psychiatry
department to conduct reflective writing workshops
in 2016. Through the course of the chapter, other en-
deavors taken by the CCIT since then, to inculcate nar-
rative medicine, along with the learnings from those
initiatives, is shared. This includes a virtual course on
innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship with nar-
rative medicine being an integral part of it. Another
important point noted here in the chapter is the im-
portance of including art and science of story-telling
into healthcare for the purpose of medical innovation.
As explained here, it’s important to go farther than
disease or profit based frameworks and shift to more
patient-focused approaches.
One thing missing is that while
each chapter chronicles a
particular CCIT initiative, it doesn’t
delve deep into each experience
and presents only an overview
One more thought-provoking theme of the book is
‘jugaar,’ which as is explained in the book, is a nec-
essary tool in medicine for any developing country to
survive, even more so now than ever during a global
pandemic. Innovation and jugaar together can help
create quick and cost-effective solutions to resolve ur-
gent healthcare problems. With limited resources,
jugaar has the potential to innovate in the pandemic.
Based around this theme, CCIT designed a ‘jugaar ini-
tiative challenge’ between March and April 2020 – dur-
ing the first phase of the coronavirus pandemic. Since
this was a virtual hackathon due to the pandemic, it
enabled people from all across the world to participate
and the virtual characteristic of the event, also made
it cost effective and ‘jugaar’-like in a sense. A total of
1,441 participants were able to take part in the virtual
hackathon and once again there were several qualita-
tive learnings taken away from the project. Thus, this
illustrates the importance of jugaar in innovation for a
country like Pakistan.
Thus, through a myriad of approaches and varied
themes, CCIT’s initiatives have set out to ap-
proach medicine differently. There’s an in-
tentionality with which this project has
been conceived, and conscientious and
concentrated efforts have been made to
address different aspects of medicine
and moreover, it has provided people
within medicine and outside the
field of medicine, a platform to
present, grow and nurture
their ideas.
July 25, 2021 7
 SPORTS

By Nabil Tahir

When it comes to the men’s game, tape-ball cricket in the

streets is where most of Pakistan’s
professionals get their start. For
women looking to begin their
cricketing journey, there is
no such option. One grass-
roots tournament now
seeks to fix that

Girls cannot or are not allowed to

travel far away to play matches. Some
are not allowed to dress up for the game.
Others are stopped for fear of injury. Most
girls opt for tape-ball as there is less risk of that
Ramin Fatima

In the corner of every city across Pakistan, you will often observe
group of people, young and old, mostly men, playing cricket on
the streets. In the middle of a residential street, with a wicket
set up in the middle, often inconveniencing cars driving by,
there will a batsman, a baller, fielders all enthusiastically en-
joying one of the country’s favourite pastime. You will even see
some observers, either neighbours or the staff members of the
members, maybe even construction labourers taking a break
from their work, sitting and enjoying and passing commentary
on the ongoing game. This most famous type of cricket in the
country is called tape ball.
One important point to note however is that unfortu-
nately, when we look at the opportunities of tape-ball
cricket on a professional level, the ratio men participating
is far substantially higher than women. One of the most
common reasons female players don’t come forward is the
restrictions they get from their own families.
In Pakistan, especially in Karachi, which is said to be the
region of origin of tape-ball cricket, the streets are filled
with tape-ball cricket matches during the month of Rama-
zan. Tournaments for men are held with big prize money.
Even aside from Ramazan, night tournaments are held
throughout the year.
We started this off with the aim
to provide the girls with a safe
place to play and a tournament
to test their skills
Hadeel Obaid Chinoy
For women, it’s the other way around. Except for
the street cricket that they play with their siblings and
friends, there is no tournament, with the exception of
one, is held for women. Khelo Khawateen, organised
by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), is an indoor cricket
tournament under their initiative, Cric4U that is held
once a year.
The seeds of passion
Pakistan has seen a number of great players who have come
from street cricket to represent the Pakistan national team.
Pacers like Wasim Akram, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami,
Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Amir, Junaid Khan – are
all products of tape-ball cricket. The same goes for the Women’s
national team, where most players have come from tape-ball
cricket backgrounds.
Hafsa Khalid, a Pakistan Women A team player who
started off playing cricket at the age of five outside her
home with boys, said that every female player had grown
up playing tape-ball cricket on the streets before they opt
for professional cricket.
“I used to play with boys on the street outside my house.
I played there, and then by grade six, inter-house tourna-
ments in school were held. Soon when I reached grade
eighth, I played for U19 professional hard-ball then comes to the reflexes and then speed,” he said, add- cricket tournament held by Khelo Kricket, is a ray of hope.
team at the national level,” she said. ing that he in his academy focuses on these areas to make For the last five years, this tournament has given the
She added that she didn’t know that there is any cricket the female players stronger. women an opportunity to build up a team and play tape-
team for women during her early days. “Many of the girls ball cricket in a safe environment. The tournament is held
don’t know that there was a women’s cricket team. The The first step to national level in Ramazan, a time of the year when cricket is happening
reason is that we see no girls going up to play local tourna-
Hafsa, who had played both tape-ball and hard-ball cricket, all around the city. This tournament provides them with
ments unless someone from their family is from a cricket referred to tape-ball cricket as a first step towards professional a ground to play under the same conditions as the male
background,” she added. cricket. “Like me, there are thousands of girls who have played players.
tape-ball cricket. This type of cricket is more fun than profes- Hadeel Obaid Chinoy, the founder of Khelo Kricket, took
Held back by social pressure sional cricket,” she said. the initiative five years ago to give the girls an opportunity
One of the common “In tape-ball crick- to test their skills and opt for further training. “We started
reasons for the girls et, you get a chance this off with the aim to provide the girls with a safe place
not playing cricket to hit the ball hard to play and a tournament to test their skills. The interested
is the restrictions out of the park. players are encouraged to register their teams or as indi-
and limitations It’s more fun. viduals who are later pooled in with a team, to come and
they have from The batter targets play,” she told The Express Tribune.
their families. the ball to hit the Talking about indoor cricket, Hadeel said that there is
Ramin Fatima, boundary while no point in getting the girls to play in an artificial environ-
an 18-year-old the bowler aims ment. “Unless the player doesn’t want to go forward and
cricketer, said that to bowl quick de- play for just fun, then indoor cricket is good but if they plan
the girls cannot or liveries to get the to go forward and play for the national team, then coming
are not allowed to hold of the batter. out in the ground is a must. This is why we hold our tour-
travel far away This is training nament out in the ground so that the girls can train them-
to play matches. for both play- selves according to different conditions,” she said.
“This is just one ers with the bat
of the restrictions. and ball,” added
Some girls are not Hafsa. I used to play with boys on the street
allowed to dress
up for the game.
Ramin, On the
other hand, says
and then by grade 6, inter-house
Some are not al- that the condi- tournaments in school When I reached
lowed just because
they will get an in-
tions of tape-ball
cricket are much grade 8, I played for U19 professional
jury. Most of the girls
opt for tape-ball as there is less risk
more difficult than
the hard-ball. “The weight of the
hard-ball team at the national level
of injury,” she told The Express Tribune.
One of the other limitation that There are not many
ball is light. If there is wind, you
will get more swing which is diffi-
Hafsa Khalid
Ramin indicated was that she and
her brother use to play cricket to-
tournaments for girls. cult for both baller and batter. But
at the same time, it increases the “We do get issues from some of the girls that they don’t
gether on the street, but once they They will only get attracted focus, and you learn to have more have a ground to play, so we are working on this to pro-
decided to go to the academy for fur- control on the ball,” she said. vide them as many opportunities at the ground to enhance
ther training, it took her six months and motivated once they have She added that more advantage is their skills. I am also a part of PCB’s cricket association,
just find an academy that inducts
female players.
ground to play. We organise a given to the baller in tape-ball crick-
et. “This form of cricket is played on
and we are working with PCB to bring something up for
the girls but that is for the future. Currently, we are trying
“My brother and I went together tournament once a year but cemented pitches, which are slippery to create a platform where you can scout talent and a path
to find an academy to get training. and gives the bowler an increased for the girls to get to the national team,” she explained.
My brother had dozens of options more tournaments for female pace. Pacers are the ones getting the Talking about the tournament rules, she said that they
but I couldn’t find a single academy
that trains female players. Then
players should be held to get most advantage,” she said.
The coach of a women cricket
have different rules of the game to make it more fun. She also
informed that not only the amateur girls come out to play but
after searching many academies, I them into this sport team of Credo College, Raja Naveed also the players who have represented Pakistan team at dif-
found Customs academy that had said that some schools and colleges ferent levels. The team Athletic Club, has been the winner
a separate training plan for female Raja Naveed hold a tournament for their stu- for the past four editions and is a fan favourite team this year
players,” she said, adding that there dents but that too is limited to their due to the presence of its professional players.
are very few opportunities for fe- inter-house tournaments. “There She added that they live-stream the tournament on so-
male players who want to become cricketers. are not many tournaments for the girls. They will only get cial media, try to get more sponsors and give good prize
Mohsin Khan, a fitness trainer at National Coach Cen- attracted and motivated once they have ground to play. money to the teams so that the players are motivated to
ter who also runs an academy and a women’s cricket team We organise a tournament once a year but more tourna- join the game on the ground.
known as the Athletic Club, says that female players face ments for female players should be held to get them into In the tournament, a wide delivery bowled in the
fitness issues while playing. this sport,” he said. middle of the over is counted as a legal delivery but give
“There are many players who only come for the tour- two runs to the opponent team. If the last of the over is
nament and don’t play cricket or work on their fitness A ray of hope – Khelo Khawateen bowled wide, that has to be bowled again and gives the
throughout the year. That is where they face challenges. For passionate female players don’t get enough opportunity to opponent one run. The matches are played with eight
Stamina is the most common issue among female players, showcase their cricketing skills, Khelo Khawateen, a women’s overs an inning.

8 July 25, 2021

Photos: Khelo Kricket