People are talking about —

— the news that the government took notice of the plight of a school located in the most remote area of Balochistan in the rugged mountains of Ornach after the issue recently surfaced on international media and overnight, rooms were constructed and a hut-like school was turned into a well-furnished educational institution. People say where there’s a will there’s a way, as the school was established on a self-help basis, while social media prompted government action to patronise it.

— the UN report on gender-based violence in Pakistan and how, if the government is genuinely interested in eradicating it and the misogynistic mind-set, it needs to educate the young generation and hold awareness campaigns in areas where women are the most affected. People say this centuries-old patriarchal society cannot transform within minutes; it will take time and strenuous efforts to end the misery of our womenfolk but the time to make an informed and sincere beginning is now.

— how university students are finding it difficult to change fields due to the absurd eligibility criteria followed by most universities, that in order to change fields, they have to register from the first semester and repeat many of the courses already completed. People say this would be a waste of valuable time and money and is extremely unfair as in this day and age, it is common for people to discover new interests and change subjects and professions later in life.

— the sad fact that while many Pakistanis go abroad for better opportunities, this does not apply to most of the people from Balochistan, who go abroad mainly to Gulf countries to work at jobs that pay a pittance because jobs are scarce at home and they will take whatever they can get. People say Balochistan is rich in natural resources, yet many young people are doing menial jobs after having earned a degree and the government needs to do something about it.

— the argument that if priority is given to freight trains, a major chunk of commercial goods traffic will divert from road to rail, which can reduce our crude oil import bill by at least 25 per cent and in addition, it would save huge expenditures on road infrastructure. People say this idea needs serious consideration as all road and highways are overcrowded with huge trucks and trailers which are a major cause of traffic snarls especially in cities.

— the warning about fake medicines and how they are a significant problem in Pakistan because health insurance is unavailable and a majority of the general public does not earn enough to afford the medications needed for serious and complex health problems, creating fertile grounds for traffickers of counterfeit medicine. People say the relevant authorities must become more alert to this problem as, given our economic situation, these crooks will find no shortage of desperate buyers, creating havoc with their health. —