Anara Tower

 

Anara Tower was a proposed super tall skyscraper located in Dubai. It would have been 600m tall with 135 floors. It was designed to look like a massive wind turbine. The building was cancelled in 2009.

MUCH TO CHEER IN PAKISTAN

Some facts for the faint hearted Pakistanis

The Gallup 2012 Well Being survey reports that 20% of Pakistanis say they are "thriving". Even with the high levels of corruption and security situations facing the country, Pakistan still ranks better than their neighbours in Bangladesh (16%) and India (11%).

Pakistan's Stock Markets are booming, hitting new 4-year highs. Share prices are driven by healthy profits and foreign buying, making the KSE-100 the third fastest growing index in the world.

Pakistan’s bustling IT Industry is now worth $2.8 billion and growing. Pakistan also leads the world in biometric IT services with the world’s biggest biometric database.

Today, Pakistan's economy is the 27th largest in the world. As Part of "the Next 11" group of nations, it is one of the top 15 emerging economies (BRIC + Next11). Pakistan will be among the top 20 largest economies in the world by 2020.

Preliminary official estimates are indicating that Pakistan's nominal per capita income has increased by 9% to $1372 in 2011-12 from $1258 in 2010-11.

Pakistan is still a country with significant population of poor people. However, its recent levels of poverty are among the lowest in South Asia. Life expectancy in Pakistan has jumped from 32 years in 1947 to 67 years in 2009. Preliminary estimates are also showing that the poverty rate in Pakistan has declined from 17.2% in 2008 to 12% in 2011.

Literacy is also a very important indicator of progress. Though the literacy in Pakistan has increased from about 10% in 1947 to about 60% today, it remains dismally low relative to many other nations. However, a closer examination of literacy data by age groups shows that the literacy rates are rising by every generation.
Age +55 = 30%
Ages 15 to 25 = 70% (Male 80%, Female 60% - UNICEF)

Enabling virtual education is the high-speed broadband expansion led by PTCL which has propelled Pakistan to become the fourth fastest growing broadband market in the world and the second fastest in Asia, according to a recent industry report. Serbia leads all countries surveyed with a 68% annual growth rate from 2010 to 2011. Thailand (67%), Belarus (50%), Pakistan (46%), and Jordan (44%) all follow Serbia.

Based on hunger data collected from 2003 to 2008, The International Food Policy Research (IFPRI) has reported that Pakistan's hunger index score improved over the last three consecutive years reported since 2008 from 21.7 (2008) to 21.0 (2009) to 19.1 (2010) and its ranking rose from 61 to 59.

The Gallup survey confirms that only 28% of Pakistanis have confidence in their national government which stems from the obvious failure of the state in delivering basic services such as rule-of-law, security and electricity to the people. The best way to improve the well-being of the people is to improve governance, reduce corruption and persuade people to pay taxes to give the state more resources.

While the worst 5% of the Pakistan story gets all the headlines, the reality of Pakistan today as vibrant society and a strong nation gets ignored by the mainstream media. The real story of Pakistan is the resilience of its 180 million citizens who continue to strive to make it better and stronger.

DESTINATION PAKISTAN..........Ski Resorts of Pakistan.

The two major Skiing resorts in Pakistan are in Malam Jabba (Swat Valley) and Naltar Valley (near Gilgit). The Malam Jabba Resort was much more developed with a great hotel and all skiing facilitiies but all are destroyed by terrorist and rehabilitation work is underway. However, Naltar requires some work but still is a very beautiful area and lots of snowfall in the winter. There are also 2 ski lifts here and Ski competition is organized regularly by PAF.

Malam Jabba

Malam Jabba is a Hill Station in the Karakoram mountain range nearly 40 km from Saidu Sharif in Swat Valley. Malam Jabba is the most famous ski resort in Pakistan. The area also contains two Buddhist stupas and six monasteries that are scattered around the resort. The presence of the monuments at such a height indicates that the area has been inhabited for over 2000 years.

The Malam Jabba Ski Resort owned by the Pakistani Tourism Development Corporation, had a ski slope of about 800 m with the highest point of the slope 2804 m (9200 ft) above sea level. Malam Jabba Ski Resort was the joint effort of the Pakistan government with its Austrian counterpart. The resort was equipped with modern facilities including roller/ice-skating rinks, chair lifts, skiing platforms, telephones and snow clearing equipment.

In late June 2008, the Malam Jabba Ski Resort was set on fire and destroyed after being closed for more than a year. A large portion of the resort had been reduced to ashes and the militants also damaged chairlifts and a tower belonging to the meteorological department. In May 2009 however the army started an offensive against the Taliban and retook the town. The ski hill at the resort has now been rebuilt and is fully operational. The hotel has undergone reconstruction and rehabilitation.

Malam Jabba is at almost 1 ½ hours drive from Mangora Town in Swat valley. In winters one can easily reach there through jeeps from Mangora

Naltar Valley

Naltar is a valley near Gilgit and Hunza in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. Naltar is 40 km from Gilgit and can be reached by jeeps. Naltar is a forested village known for its wildlife and magnificent mountain scenery. Now the communication is available by the efforts of Pakistan army signal corps. There are ski lifts under the 'Ski Federation of Pakistan'. Transport is available from Gilgit to Naltar.

After Terrorists attack on Malam Jabba, Naltar is rightly called the Home of Skiing in Pakistan. Naltar is the oldest Ski resort of Pakistan at an altitude of 10500 feet. Naltar has Ski slope of almost 600 meters. There is a base camp of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) at Naltar. Ski Competitions are held at Naltar regularly under the supervision of PAF. Pakistan Skiing Federation has installed two lifts at the skiing sites and is also planning to install another one there.

DESTINATION PAKISTAN........Trekker's Paradise

The mountain ranges of Pakistan offer breathtaking, action-packed trekking routes. Pakistan hosts Hindukush, Pamirs, Himalayas and Karakoram, they contain the world's densest concentration of high peaks (five out of 14 highest). There are limitless possibilities for trekking, mountaineering, skiing, and river rafting. Within this alluring arena, the Baltistan region, occupy the central place, with special points of interest for the trekker.

In almost every part of Pakistan, there is a variety of trekking adventure options awaiting the trekker, some soft, others not so. In this vast wonderland, trekking itineraries from one to four weeks or more provide endless opportunities for discovery for the trekker. 

In Pakistan Trekking enthusiast can also explore the rugged beauty of the lofty mountains romancing the sparkling waterfalls. One can experience the thrill of sheer adventure on countless trekking tracks in Pakistan.

The Northern Areas of Pakistan are called Roof of the World . Nowhere in the world is such a great concentration of high mountains, peaks, glaciers, and passes except in Pakistan. Of the 14 over 8,000 meters high peaks on our earth planet, four occupy an amphitheatre at the head of Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram Range: K-2 (8,611 meters, originally called Chogo-ri which in Balti language means 'king of the mountains,' of all the world's mountains second only to Mount Everest), Gashabrum-I (8,068 meters), Broad Peak (8,047 meters) and Gashabrum-II (8,035 meters).

There is yet another, which is equally great, Nanga Parbat (8,126 meters), located at the western most corner of the Himalayas. There are 42 other peaks which are higher than all the highest peaks of the other continents. In addition to that, there are 160 peaks over 7,000 meters and 700 others over 6,000 meters.

The Northern Pakistan is also home to some of the longest glaciers outside Polar region; Siachen (72 kilometers), Hispar (61 kilometers), Biafo (60 kilometers), Baltoro (60 kilometers) and Batura (64 kilometers). Besides the high mountains, Northern Areas' longest glaciers including the Godwin Austin, Abruzzin and Baltoro which meet at Concordia forms the largest glacial lake at a height of 4720 meters.

The enchanting valleys of Hunza, Shigar, Khaplu, Ishkuman, Naltar, Gilgit, Skardu, Chitral, Dir and the glacial lakes like Kachura, Satpara, Lalusar, and Saiful Muluk add unmatched grandeur to the beauty of the rugged mountains. The Northern Areas with its flora and fauna; the wildlife which can be seen in the form of snow leopards, ibexes and urials; and the variety of people who live in these areas with their diverse cultural heritage and millennia-old civilizations form a paradise for the tourists, trekkers, and mountaineers from all around the world.

The mountaineering & trekking season in Pakistan roughly runs between April and November, but some routes are only open for a couple of months, each year. 

Trekking in Pakistan is an unforgettable experience as it not only let you to experience the unexplored trails made by nature, but also bring the visitor directly in touch with the country and its people and helps you to appreciate the mountain environment.

Pakistani Media- Forth Pillar, Fifth Column

Here you go people, another great short film by some very talented Pakistani Youngsters, I am loving the facts that our youth has realized many things (our mainstream media has been ignoring) and are expressing it through any mean possible, hats off to the team for the idea and the execution.