ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet has rejected the request of Pakistan Television (PTV) to liaise with Indian companies – Star and Sony – for live telecast of the upcoming Pakistan-England cricket series.
Addressing a press conference after the cabinet meeting in Islamabad today (Tuesday), Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry said that the cabinet has rejected the request of PTV to sign an agreement with Star and Sony to air the England-Pakistan cricket series, , scheduled to start from July 8, 2021.
“Pakistan cannot undertake a partnership with any Indian company and our ties with the neighbouring country are subject to India reverting its Aug 5, 2019 decision to restore Kashmir’s previous status,” the Information Minister added.
Fawad Chaudhry said, “Star and Sony have monopoly over all the cricket content of South Asia and the entire rights are with the Indian companies,” adding, “We cannot sign agreement with any Indian company and so the series will not be aired in Pakistan.”
He further said that Pakistan would try to explore different options, including approaching the England Cricket Board (ECB) and other foreign companies to secure broadcasting rights. He also pointed out that the PTV and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) would bear financial losses due to this decision.
Other decisions
Speaking about other decisions taken during the meeting, Chaudhry said the cabinet also decided re-recording the national anthem, which was currently in analog, along modern lines. “We are working on this and will be able to move ahead with the plan soon,” he maintained.
Chaudhry further said the cabinet had also approved handing over the Pakistan Telephone Industries Haripur to National Radio Telecommunication Corporation for revamp and restructure. He said the decision in this regard was pending since 2006.
The Information Minister also said that Tariq Malik had been appointed as the NADRA Chairman after approval from the cabinet. Shedding light on other appointments, he said Umar Habib Lodhi had been reappointed as Director Utility Stores.
Moreover, the minister said that the cabinet had approved the appointments of the Board of Directors and Chairperson First Woman Bank. Najeeb Agrawala will be new chairperson of the bank, while Bushra Ehsan, Sabiha Sultan, Akbar Ali, Wajahat Rasool Khan and Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi will serve as its board members.
US air bases in Pakistan
Responding to a question about presence of US military or air bases in Pakistan, Fawad Chaudhry said Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had explained the government’s policy on the Senate floor in this regard and there was no possibility of the existence of American bases in Pakistan.
Train tragedy
Referring to the Ghotki train accident, Fawad said that it was true that our railways system needs upgradation and it cannot be fixed in one or two years. “This revamp requires long-term planning,” he said, adding instead of fixing the railways system, the previous governments ‘frittered away’ Rs300 billion to launch the Orange Line train.
