Analysis Of Pakistan Research Articles

Updated earthquake catalogue for seismic hazard analysis in Pakistan

A reliable and homogenized earthquake catalogue is essential for seismic hazard assessment in any area. This article describes the compilation and processing of an updated earthquake catalogue for Pakistan. The earthquake catalogue compiled in this study for the region (quadrangle bounded by the geographical limits 40–83° N and 20–40° E) includes 36,563 earthquake events, which are reported as 4.0–8.3 moment magnitude (MW) and span from 25 AD to 2016. Relationships are developed between the moment magnitude and body, and surface wave magnitude scales to unify the catalogue in terms of magnitude MW. The catalogue includes earthquakes from Pakistan and neighbouring countries to minimize the effects of geopolitical boundaries in seismic hazard assessment studies. Earthquakes reported by local and international agencies as well as individual catalogues are included. The proposed catalogue is further used to obtain magnitude of completeness after removal of dependent events by using four different algorithms. Finally, seismicity parameters of the seismic sources are reported, and recommendations are made for seismic hazard assessment studies in Pakistan.

Future risk assessment by estimating historical heat wave trends with projected heat accumulation using SimCLIM climate model in Pakistan

Climate change has adverse effects at global, regional and local level. Heat wave events have serious contribution for global warming and natural hazards in Pakistan. Historical (1997–2015) heat wave were analyzed over different provinces (Punjab, Sindh and Baluchistan) of Pakistan to identify the maximum temperature trend. Heat accumulation in Pakistan were simulated by the General Circulation Model (GCM) combined with 3 GHG (Green House Gases) Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) (RCP-4.5, 6.0, and 8.5) by using SimCLIM model (statistical downscaling model for future trend projections). Heat accumulation was projected for year 2030, 2060, and 2090 for seasonal and annual analysis in Pakistan. Heat accumulation were projected to increase by the baseline year (1995) was represented in percentage change. Projection shows that Sindh and southern Punjab was mostly affected by heat accumulation. This study identified the rising trend of heat wave over the period (1997–2015) for Punjab, Sindh and Baluchistan (provinces of Pakistan), which identified that most of the meteorological stations in Punjab and Sindh are highly prone to heat waves. According to model projection; future trend of annual heat accumulation, in 2030 was increased 17%, 26%, and 32% but for 2060 the trends were reported by 54%, 49%, and 86% for 2090 showed highest upto 62%, 75%, and 140% for RCP-4.5, RCP-6.0, and RCP-8.5, respectively. While seasonal trends of heat accumulation were projected to maximum values for monsoon and followed by pre-monsoon and post monsoon. Heat accumulation in monsoon may affect the agricultural activities in the region under study.

Politics-media-youth nexus: Analysis of Pakistan’s general elections 2013

This study investigated the nexus of politics, youth and media, drawing on the example of General Elections 2013 of Pakistan. It analysed the youth oriented advertisements (YOAs) of three major pol...

Review and Validity of Capital Asset Pricing Model: Evidence from Pakistan Stock Exchange

Since the inception of prospects theory of Markowitz (1952) which leads to the development of CAPM has been studied and applied in many ways. Some researchers conclude that CAPM is valid and could be used for valuation of securities and cost of equity. However, critiques arise that CAPM is a single risk factor and remark that a single factor model cannot be generalized in the overall capital markets because the capital market absorbs many other risk factors. The CAPM has been applied to the Pakistan’s Stock Exchange to check the validity of CAPM for a sample of 306 individual firms and 18 industrial portfolios. Two pass regression has been applied to check the applicability of CAPM in Pakistan’s stock exchange. The results show that CAPM, single factor model is not valid for the technical analysis in Pakistan's capital market. The investors need to use other type of factor models which include other economic and non economic kind of variables for valuation of securities.

Consumer Behavioral Intentions towards Mobile Payment Services: An Empirical Analysis in Pakistan

This research aims to investigate the behavior of consumers towards the implementation of mobile payment services, factors that can aff ect their attitudes towards this behavior, and how these attitudes transform into intentions. A survey instrument was developed using items developed in similar studies. In total, 335 usable responses were used to do a series of statistical tests aimed at confi rming the reliability and validity of the instrument. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. Our results showed that perceived compatibility, perceived usefulness, and subjective norm are signifi cant predictors of consumer attitude towards the use of mobile payment services, whereas the impact of perceived security and perceived ease on attitude is insignifi cant. Finally, attitude towards mobile payment services have a signifi cant impact on intention to use mobile payment services. This research contributes to the development of the technology acceptance model (TAM) in general, as well as in the context of mobile payment services. It tests TAM’s explanatory ability and suggests new variables as model extensions. The fact that the sample includes respondents from only one country (Pakistan) could be considered the main limitation of this study. A cross-cultural study would likely lead to important knowledge since cultural context has proved to be important in previous research on intentions. Also, the sample used here comprises mostly young and educated people. The present research study empirically tests the signifi cance of newly suggested TAM extensions (subjective norm and perceived security) and provides a complete and tested measurement instrument as a basis for future research.

Cross-National Systematic Review of Neonatal Mortality and Postnatal Newborn Care: Special Focus on Pakistan.

The latest nationwide survey of Pakistan showed that considerable progress has been made toward reducing all child mortality indicators except neonatal mortality. The aim of this study is to compare Pakistan’s under-five mortality, neonatal mortality, and postnatal newborn care rates with those of other countries. Neonatal mortality rates and postnatal newborn care rates from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHSs) of nine low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) from Asia and Africa were analyzed. Pakistan’s maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) policies and programs, which have been implemented in the country since 1990, were also analyzed. The results highlighted that postnatal newborn care in Pakistan was higher compared with the rest of countries, yet its neonatal mortality remained the worst. In Zimbabwe, both mortality rates have been increasing, whereas the neonatal mortality rates in Nepal and Afghanistan remained unchanged. An analysis of Pakistan’s MNCH programs showed that there is no nationwide policy on neonatal health. There were only a few programs concerning the health of newborns, and those were limited in scale. Pakistan’s example shows that increased coverage of neonatal care without ensuring quality is unlikely to improve neonatal survival rates. It is suggested that Pakistan needs a comprehensive policy on neonatal health similar to other countries, and its effective programs need to be scaled up, in order to obtain better neonatal health outcomes.

Is it wise to compromise renewable energy future for the sake of expediency? An analysis of Pakistan's long-term electricity generation pathways

Pakistan's acute energy crisis has critically affected its already fragile economy, costing in recent years up to 4% it's of Gross Domestic Product. Political expediency in the wake of the current power crisis in Pakistan together with the current high investment costs of renewable energy technologies have shifted focus of the policy to thermal power plants in the short run to meet the deficit. This paper presents a long-term view of the current power policy and forecasts electricity demand in Pakistan in the long run congruent with anticipated strong economic growth, as envisaged in 'Pakistan Vision 2025', its medium-term development framework. Using Long Range Energy Alternatives Planning (LEAP), a bottom-up scenario modelling framework, different electricity generation scenarios are developed to meet an estimated annual requirement of 303.7 terawatt-hours (TWh) by 2035. Government policy (GP) scenario models the current economic and power policy, while Renewable Energy (REN) and Demand Side Management (DSM) scenarios provide alternative power generation pathways. These scenarios are compared based on net present cost (NPC) at different discount rates (5%, 7% and 10%). Interestingly, the REN scenario with a 35% share of solar PV and wind power turns out to be economically more viable than GP and DSM scenarios saving $26 billion and $17 billion in NPC respectively, due to sizeable savings on imported fuels. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with all three scenarios over the study period are also estimated, whereby the RE scenario appears to save over 221 MtCO2 and 159 MtCO2 more emissions compared to GP and DSM scenarios. The results of the least cost scenario are also analysed to depict falling investment and installation costs of renewable energy technologies making them more profitable as a long run energy security option for Pakistan. Policy implications in the light of the study are discussed.

A Critical Analysis of Pakistan's Compliance with the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment: An Alternative View

This is the preliminary text of the alternative report which was submitted to the UN Committee against Torture (CAT) relating to the examination of the initial report of Pakistan under Article 19 of the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment and Punishment (UNCAT) on behalf of National Commission for Human Rights (“NCHR”). NCHR is newly established Paris Principles mandated independent body created through an Act of Parliament known as the National Commission for Human Rights Act (“NCHR Act”), 2012. Pakistan ratified the Convention in 2010, submitted its initial report in 2016 which was reviewed by the CAT during its 60th session from 17th April to 19th April 2017.

Molecular basis of glaucoma and its therapeutical analysis in Pakistan: an overview

The human eye is an organ of vision. It plays a prime role in life, gives us the sense of sight, and enables to understand about the world around us. Visualization and interpretation of colors, shapes and dimensions of numerous objects is made possible by eye. Inherited eye diseases comprise 1/3 of all reported human genetic disorders. This review will focus on Glaucoma which comprises a predictable visual illnesses concerning optic nerve deterioration and if remains without any cure can result in failure in eyesight. The optical nerve injure comprises deterioration of the retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Glaucoma represents a heterogeneous group of optic neuropathies with a complex genetic basis. These neuropathies gradually reduce vision without warning and often without symptoms. Different forms of glaucoma share some common clinical manifestations that usually include specific abnormal appearance of the optic nerve head, characteristic loss of visual field and chronic painless progression. Glaucoma is a progressive optical neuropathy considered by optical disc changes, nerve fiber film break, and visual field defects. Present-day treatment preferences predominantly targeting at reducing IOP by making use of pharmaceutical means, laser treatment and surgical procedure. Developed conducts target neuroprotection with vaccines, the hang-up of NO synthesis and apoptosis. Attaining a better appreciative of the pathogenesis can support in the improvement of novel handling options and, perhaps, even a remedy for glaucoma. There are more than 1.8million glaucoma patients in Pakistan and almost half of them have already lost their eyesight, permanently, due to delay in diagnosis and treatment. About 90% population in the country has no awareness about this disease, resultantly; more and more people are becoming permanently blind in Pakistan due to untreated glaucoma.

Examining the public sector recruitment and selection, in relation to job analysis in Pakistan

The purpose of this research was to study the recruitment and selection practices in public sector of Pakistan with respect to job analysis. Job analysis is the most essential part of human resourc...

Regional Integration and Economic Growth: A Convergence Analysis for Pakistan

The hasty economic progress of emerging economies has opened markets for their international trade during the last 20 years. Therefore, the significance of the topic has simulated a large theoretical and empirical literature of trade and its impact on growth. However, we are interested to find out the impact of regional integration on economic growth to analyze the convergence and specifically the convergence of per capita GDP. This article presents the empirical evidence that countries with open, large and more developed neighboring countries grow faster and converge more than the closed, smaller less developed neighboring economies. In this study, we have examined the issue of convergence for Pakistan during 1980-2016 employing cointegration technique of convergence. It is recommended to policy makers to focus on those factors which are cumulating growth in the country rather to increase the commodity prices.

Accuracy of Revenue Forecast: Analysis of Pakistan’s Federal Revenue Receipts

Accuracy of Revenue Forecast: Analysis of Pakistan’s Federal Revenue Receipts

Quality control and homogenization of daily meteorological data in the trans-boundary region of the Jhelum River basin

Many studies such as climate variability, climate change, trend analysis, hydrological designs, agriculture decision-making etc. require long-term homogeneous datasets. Since homogeneous climate data is not available for climate analysis in Pakistan and India, the present study emphases on an extensive quality control and homogenization of daily maximum temperature, minimum temperature and precipitation data in the Jhelum River basin, Pakistan and India. A combination of different quality control methods and relative homogeneity tests were applied to achieve the objective of the study. To check the improvement after homogenization, correlation coefficients between the test and reference series calculated before and after the homogenization process were compared with each other. It was found that about 0.59%, 0.78% and 0.023% of the total data values are detected as outliers in maximum temperature, minimum temperature and precipitation data, respectively. About 32% of maximum temperature, 50% of minimum temperature and 7% of precipitation time series were inhomogeneous, in the Jhelum River basin. After the quality control and homogenization, 1% to 11% improvement was observed in the infected climate variables. This study concludes that precipitation daily time series are fairly homogeneous, except two stations (Naran and Gulmarg), and of a good quality. However, maximum and minimum temperature datasets require an extensive quality control and homogeneity check before using them into climate analysis in the Jhelum River basin.

Difficult Neighbourhood: the Key Objectives of Pakistan’s Foreign Policy Towards India in the Twenty‑First Century

What role does India play in Pakistan’s international strategy? The article tackles this question and explores the crucial elements of Islamabad’s policy towards India, focusing on selected internal and external security issues. Pakistani political/military leaders look upon India as its major security challenge. The alleged threat from the powerful neighbour has served as the convenient explanation for justifying enormous military expenditures and building powerful army in Pakistan, which substantially weakened democratic institutions and civilian governments and consolidated military’s grip of the state power. This sense of fear was fuelled by the catastrophist mindset, claiming that India has always regarded partition of the subcontinent as a “historical aberration” and its main goal was to undo the partition or at least to subjugate Pakistan into a client‑state. The protracted, war‑prone relations between the two nuclear states can be defined as “difficult neighbourhood.” The chapter approaches the problem of Pakistan’s policy towards India in several key parts. The introduction looks at the historical developments and current internal situation in Pakistan. The first part offers an in‑depth analysis of Pakistan’s attitude towards the Kashmir issue, the second part analyses the strategies aimed at counterbalance India’s hegemony in the region, encapsulating the phenomenon of Pakistan‑China and Pakistan‑U.S. relations. The last part briefly observes the problem of water scarcity in India‑Pakistan relations, which has a direct impact on South Asian security.

Genetic Variation of high-risk HPV-16 From a Cervical Cancer Biopsy Collected in Pakistan

Aim: HPV-16 is one of the causative agents of cervical cancer. The HPV-16 genome is characterized widely to assist mutagenesis studies, phylogenetic analysis and protein annotations. This is the first report of HPV-16 sequence analysis from Pakistan. Materials & methods: The gene and long control region specific primers were used to generate the targeted amplicons that were then cloned and sequenced. Results: The complete genome analysis revealed nine changes both at amino acid and nucleotide level including seven novel and two previously reported mutations. The evolutionary relationship of HPV from Pakistan and reported sequences shows that strain reported in this study segregates with European taxa. Conclusion: This report lays foundation to conduct HPV genome mutation analysis in Pakistan.

Impact of Tax and Transfers on Income Inequality and Budget Deficit: A CGE Analysis for Pakistan

This paper analyzes the impact of tax and transfers on income distribution. We use a simple Computable General Equilibrium model for Pakistan (CGEP) adapted from Lofgren et al. (2001). Our CGE model takes into account the market interactions, that is, the effects of pricing outcomes of one market in other markets; which in turn create ripples throughout the whole economy, even to the extent of affecting the price-quantity equilibrium in the original market. We use Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) 2008 as developed by Debowicz et al (2012). To explore the impact of tax and transfers on income inequality, two sets of simulation exercises are performed. Further, we examine the inequality effects using Theil T, Theil L, Theil S and Hoover’s Indexes. Our results show that a policy mix of sales tax, income tax and government expenditures helps in reducing income inequality; while, at the same time it lessens the economy’s financial dependency.

Fiscal Policy and Its Role in Reducing Income Inequality: A CGE Analysis for Pakistan

Income inequality is one of the critical barriers to growth and development in most of the developing countries including Pakistan. Every third man in Pakistan falls below the poverty line1. Moreover, the budget deficit has also been a serious issue throughout the history of Pakistan‟s economy. The persistent budget deficit is the constant source of increasing poverty and deterioration of income distribution. Since deficit is financed by increasing indirect taxes and money supply, it causes the reduction in purchasing power and leads the masses towards poverty [Arif and Farooq (2011)]. Therefore, it is a dire need of the economy to have a good public policy such that it could reduce budget deficit, alleviate poverty and redistribute income. Malik and Saqib (1985) suggest that the resources of the economy can be distributed equally only through appropriate changes in the tax system. Fiscal policy can have a significant influence on removing the gap between haves and havenots both directly and indirectly. It directly affects the disposable income of individuals, whereas affecting their future earning capacities indirectly

Accounting for Contribution of Trade Openness and Foreign Direct Investment in Life Expectancy: The Long-Run and Short-Run Analysis in Pakistan.

This paper examines the impact of trade openness and foreign direct investment (FDI) on life expectancy using time series data over the period of 1972–2013. We have applied structural break unit root as well as cointegration tests to examine integrating properties of the variables and cointegration among the variables. The causal linkage between the variables has been tested by applying the VECM Granger causality. The empirical evidence confirms the presence of cointegration amid the variables. Moreover, trade openness and FDI increase population health measured by life expectancy in the long-run. Furthermore, the analysis suggests that trade openness and FDI cause life expectancy in the short-run. These findings have several policy implications to improve life expectancy for the people of Pakistan in particular and other developing countries in general.

English

English

Impact of banking institutions on national economy an empirical study of time series analysis in Pakistan

This paper examines the long and short term relationship of financial sector development on economic growth of Pakistan where development of financial sector is detected by the variables truly depicts the efficiency of financial sector i.e. Money Supply, size of Advances, Private sector Credit growth and Bank’s equity with economic growth which is pronounced by Gross Domestic Product in this study. Data of almost 22 years ranges from 1992 to 2013 of overall banking industry is taken to obtain results by employing Johnson and Jusellious co integration technique to detect long run association while Granger Casualty test is used to determine cause and effect relationship and to measure short term dynamics Vector Error correction model is used. The result shows that both long and short run relationship exists between growth of financial sector and economy of Pakistan.