National Finance Commission Awards in Pakistan : A Historical Perspective

This study explores the evolution of fiscal resource distribution in Pakistan. Pakistan is a federation comprising four provinces, federallyadministered areas, and the Islamabad Capital Territory. Being a central type of government, most of the revenues are collected by the centre and then redistributed vertically between the federal and the provincial governments, and horizontally among the provinces. Provinces then also redistribute revenues among lower tiers of the government, through a revenue-sharing formula. A thorough look at the history indicates that this process has been complex and has a far-reaching impact. A less systematic approach has been adopted to decentralise the financial matters. Over time, the divisible pool has expanded due to heavy reliance on indirect taxes as well as improvement in the collection. Population is the sole distribution criteria, adopted in all NFC awards from the divisible pool. This has raised friction among the provinces, necessitating inclusion of other potential variables evolved from international best practices. In addition to that, absence of technical experts and permanency of the NFC is another impediment. The NFC is supposed to provide the framework for amicable distribution of resources between the federal and the provincial governments for the joint goal of development and prosperity.NFC, Pakistan, fiscal federalism, Rule and Discretion, political economy, Population, Subventions, Doing the Business of Government

National Finance Commission Awards in Pakistan: A Historical Perspective

This study explores the evolution of fiscal resource distribution in Pakistan. Pakistan is a federation comprising four provinces, federally-administered areas, and the Islamabad Capital Territory. Being a central type of government, most of the revenues are collected by the centre and then redistributed vertically between the federal and the provincial governments, and horizontally among the provinces. Provinces then also redistribute revenues among lower tiers of the government, through a revenue-sharing formula. A thorough look at the history indicates that this process has been complex and has a far-reaching impact. A less systematic approach has been adopted to decentralise the financial matters. Over time, the divisible pool has expanded due to heavy reliance on indirect taxes as well as improvement in the collection. Population is the sole distribution criteria, adopted in all NFC awards from the divisible pool. This has raised friction among the provinces, necessitating inclusion of other potential variables evolved from international best practices. In addition to that, absence of technical experts and permanency of the NFC is another impediment. The NFC is supposed to provide the framework for amicable distribution of resources between the federal and the provincial governments for the joint goal of development and prosperity.NFC, Pakistan, Fiscal Federalism, Rule and Discretion, Political Economy, Population, Subventions, Doing the Business of Government

Energy analysis for replacing fossil fuel energy source of electricity wtih solar cells in the UK and Kurdistan, Iraq

Energy is a vital resource required for the operation of any business. Currently, the vast majority of businesses use electricity derived for non-renewable fossil fuels, which are expected to run out at its current rate of expenditure and causing substantial environmental damage threatening the future generations. In the UK if the current energy source used by small and medium enterprises (SME’s) could be replaced by solar energy then damage to the environment can be prevented and reduce costs as solar cells become more efficient. Solar cells involve harnessing the energy from the sun to generate electricity. In this study a methodology has been developed to compare a model micro-business in Manchester, UK and Kurdistan, Iraq. The comparison shows quantatively that even though Kurdistan, Iraq is abundant in oil and gas its climatic conditions favour the implementation of solar cells. Therefore, it is more feasible to replace the existing non-renewable fossil fuel sources with solar cells in Iraq due to greater solar radiation striking the earth’s surface. Our research suggests that solar cells can replace a reasonable amount of the energy requirements even in Manchester, UK and a much higher proportion in Kurdistan, Iraq. Using existing 20% efficient silicon solar cells we can replace 28% and 88% of the energy requirements of the micro business in UK and Kurdistan, Iraq respectively

Effect of micro sized marble sludge on physical properties of natural rubber composites

Marble waste as sludge is collected from Marble industry, as a way of solving the environmental problem of industrial waste. The sludge was dried, ground and passed through desire sieves (10, 15, 20, 37 and 75 μm), This powder was characterized by the X-ray fluorescence technique and then incorporated in the formulation of NR composites with different loading of micro sized MS particles (20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 parts per hundred of rubber, phr). The cure characteristics, mechanical properties and swelling properties of MS/NR composites were evaluated. Results indicate that minimum torque, maximum torque, tensile strength, modulus, tear strength, hardness, crosslink density were increased while the scorch time, cure time, cure rate, cure rate index (CRI), elongation at break, compression set, rebound resilience, abrasion loss, swelling coefficient, average molecular weight and filler-rubber interaction decrease with increasing MS loading

Symbolic Analysis of Waiting for Godot: A Critical Comparison Between the Bible and Quran Symbols in Waiting for Godot

Waiting for Godot (1952) is a conventional and remarkable play that is written by Irish author Samuel Beckett. The play Waiting for Godot is part of theater of absurd and it is written during modernism. This research is divided into three different sections and conclusion. Firstly the introduction for this research is given and the twentieth century drama, theater of the absurd, and the summary of the play. Also in an independent section we show other people’s work on the play Waiting for Godot. Later on we clarified the Biblical and Quranic symbols in Waiting for Godot and shows the comparison of the symbols in the holy books Quran and Bible in Waiting for Godot. Eventually, conclusion will be drawn as the final outcome of the study.

A Comparative Transcriptome Analysis, Conserved Regulatory Elements and Associated Transcription Factors Related to Accumulation of Fusariotoxins in Grain of Rye (Secale cereale L.) Hybrids

Detoxification of fusariotoxin is a type V Fusarium head blight (FHB) resistance and is considered a component of type II resistance, which is related to the spread of infection within spikes. Understanding this type of resistance is vital for FHB resistance, but to date, nothing is known about candidate genes that confer this resistance in rye due to scarce genomic resources. In this study, we generated a transcriptomic resource. The molecular response was mined through a comprehensive transcriptomic analysis of two rye hybrids differing in the build-up of fusariotoxin contents in grain upon pathogen infection. Gene mining identified candidate genes and pathways contributing to the detoxification of fusariotoxins in rye. Moreover, we found cis regulatory elements in the promoters of identified genes and linked them to transcription factors. In the fusariotoxin analysis, we found that grain from the Nordic seed rye hybrid "Helltop" accumulated 4 times higher concentrations of deoxynivalenol (DON), 9 times higher nivalenol (NIV), and 28 times higher of zearalenone (ZEN) than that of the hybrid "DH372" after artificial inoculation under field conditions. In the transcriptome analysis, we identified 6675 and 5151 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in DH372 and Helltop, respectively, compared to non-inoculated control plants. A Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis revealed that DEGs were associated with glycolysis and the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway in Helltop, whereas carbon fixation in photosynthesis organisms were represented in DH372. The gene ontology (GO) enrichment and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) of DEGs lead to identification of the metabolic and biosynthetic processes of peptides and amides in DH372, whereas photosynthesis, negative regulation of catalytic activity, and protein-chromophore linkage were the significant pathways in Helltop. In the process of gene mining, we found four genes that were known to be involved in FHB resistance in wheat and that were differentially expressed after infection only in DH372 but not in Helltop. Based on our results, we assume that DH372 employed a specific response to pathogen infection that led to detoxification of fusariotoxin and prevented their accumulation in grain. Our results indicate that DH372 might resist the accumulation of fusariotoxin through activation of the glycolysis and drug metabolism via cytochrome P450. The identified genes in DH372 might be regulated by the WRKY family transcription factors as associated cis regulatory elements found in the in silico analysis. The results of this study will help rye breeders to develop strategies against type V FHB

Twitter dialogue: an analysis of Pakistani politicians’ information sharing

Purpose: The use of Twitter by political parties and politicians has been well studied in developed countries. However, there is a lack of empirical work which has examined the use of Twitter in developing countries. The present study aims to explore the information sharing patterns of Pakistani politicians through Twitter accounts during the pre-election campaign of 2018. Design/Methods/Methodology: Data of three weeks of the official party accounts and the politicians running for prime minister was analysed. The mixed methods approach has been employed to analyze quantitative and qualitative data retrieved through Twitonomy. Findings: It was found that the most active Twitter account belonged to the winning party. The prominent Twitter account functions were call to vote, promotional Tweets, promises and tweeting about party developments. The present studyprovides evidence that there is a difference between the tweeting behaviour of established and emerging parties. The emerging party heavily posted about changing traditional norms/culture/practices. Practical Implications: The study contributed to existing knowledge and has practical implications for politicians, citizens and social media planners. Originality/Value: The present study was designed carefully and based on empirical research. The study is unique in its nature to fill the research and knowledge gap by adding variety of Twitter functions used by politicians

COVID-19: Implications, reactions and future directions

Humanity has faced several foes over the centuries, a formidable one amongst them is the current pandemic of COVID-19. The symptoms of COVID-19 are more or less related to the nose and throat. Therefore, patients more often present to Ear Nose Throat (ENT) clinics with symptoms including cough, sore throat, fever and shortness of breath. In the management of head and neck pathologies, as the airway is a direct source of infection, the impact of COVID-19 holds special significance. This review has attempted to explain the various aspects of the disease itself, its diagnosis, the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) to provide an overview of the evolving recommendations in head and neck patients, the future outlook and the limitations faced in developing countries specifically for ENT patients

(المناهج المعاصرة للتعليم القرآني في ماليزيا (دراسة تأصيلية تطبيقية = Contemporary curricula for Quranic education in Malaysia (An applied originals study)

تروم هذه الدراسة إلى استكشاف مناهج التدريس القرآني في دولة ماليزيا، وما لها من أدوار حضارية في الحفاظ على الهوية الإسلامية الملايوية، وغرس المفاهيم والقيم الإسلامية في نفوس النشء، وتمكين الهواة منهم من اكتساب مهارات متميزة على المستوى اللغوي، والديني، والخلقي. وذلك من خلال استقراء شبه كامل لما تقوم به مؤسسات تحفيظ وتعليم القرآن الكريم في مختلف المراحل الابتدائية وحتى الدراسات العليا، حيث أكدت الدراسة على أهمية الدرس القرآني في زمن هيمنت عليه قوى الفنون وعلوم التكنولوجيا. كما تسعى هذه الدراسة الجامعة بين النظرية والتطبيق إلى اكتشاف الهدف التعليمي القرآني وما له من دور في صناعة الشخصية الدينية المتألقة والمتفاعلة في المجتمع الماليزي، وبيان دورها التاريخي في تقديم الحلول الاجتماعية المتراكمة. وكان المنهج الملائم لطبيعة هذا البحث هو المنهج الاستقرائي لجمع الأفكار المبثوثة في ثنايا مناهج التحفيظ، ثم المنهج الوصفي، والمنهج التحليلي الإحصائي الذي يحتاج إلى مكابدة عقلية شاملة لدراسة مناهج قرآنية غير عربية وفهمها، ثم القيام بترتيبها وتصنيفها ومقارنتها بغيرها من أجل استنباط معالم ثابتة لتقويمها، وتصحيح مسارها التربوي. ومن نتائج البحث: مراعاة البرامج التعليمية _ في هذه المؤسسات _ للطالب الماليزي علميًّا وسلوكيًّا، ومنها: مراعاة القائم على عملية التَّعَلّمِ _ الأستاذ _ وذلك بتأهيله علميًّا ومهاريًّا وتربويًّا، من خلال برامج مُعَدَّة لهذا الغرض. كما توجد جملة أهداف أخرى ترعى الوسائل التعليمية المتنوعة، والمناهج المتبعة في العملية التعليمية. ******************************************************************************************* This study aims to explore the world of memorization and the curricula of Quranic teaching in the state of Malaysia, and what the civilized roles it plays in preserving the Malay Islamic identity, instilling Islamic concepts in the hearts of young people, and enabling amateurs to acquire distinguished skills at the linguistic, religious, and moral level. This happens through a study of what the departments of Quranic education are doing in the various primary and even graduate levels, where the study emphasized the importance of the Quranic lesson in a time dominated by the forces of arts and technology sciences. This study, which combines theory and practice, also seeks to discover the Quranic educational goal and its role in making the splendid and interacting religious personality in Malaysian society and clarify its historical role in providing a solution to accumulated social problems. The appropriate approach to the nature of this research is the inductive approach to gather the ideas expressed in the folds of memorization approaches, then use the descriptive and analytical method, which requires a comprehensive mental endeavor to study and understand non-Arab Qur'anic curricula, then arrange, classify and compare them with others in order to derive consistent features for their evaluation and correct their educational path

Discovery of a Novel Leaf Rust (Puccinia recondita) Resistance Gene in Rye (Secale cereale L.) Using Association Genomics

Leaf rust constitutes one of the most important foliar diseases in rye (Secale cereale L.). To discover new sources of resistance, we phenotyped 180 lines belonging to a less well-characterized Gulzow germplasm at three field trial locations in Denmark and Northern Germany in 2018 and 2019. We observed lines with high leaf rust resistance efficacy at all locations in both years. A genome-wide association study using 261,406 informative single-nucleotide polymorphisms revealed two genomic regions associated with resistance on chromosome arms 1RS and 7RS, respectively. The most resistance-associated marker on chromosome arm 1RS physically co-localized with molecular markers delimiting Pr3. In the reference genomes Lo7 and Weining, the genomic region associated with resistance on chromosome arm 7RS contained a large number of nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NLR) genes. Residing in close proximity to the most resistance-associated marker, we identified a cluster of NLRs exhibiting close protein sequence similarity with the wheat leaf rust Lr1 gene situated on chromosome arm 5DL in wheat, which is syntenic to chromosome arm 7RS in rye. Due to the close proximity to the most resistance-associated marker, our findings suggest that the considered leaf rust R gene, provisionally denoted Pr6, could be a Lr1 ortholog in rye