Latest news with #MuhammadAslam
Yahoo
26-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
No food, no pay, no freedom: marooned seafarers call out rogue shipowners
Twelve seafarers have been stranded in a tanker off the coast of Beira in Mozambique for 10 months, with limited supplies of food, water and power, after a UK-registered shipping company refused to let them leave. The Gas Falcon has three Pakistani and nine Indonesian seafarers on board. They have not been paid this year and are collectively owed more than $260,000 in missed salaries. 'The uncertain conditions, lack of supplies and non-payment of salaries have affected the crew's mental condition very badly,' the ship's captain, Muhammad Aslam, told The Observer. 'They are unable to sleep properly and are always thinking about what will happen and: 'When we will be able to get out of this forced prison?'' Cases of seafarer abandonment are rising. More than 2,280 seafarers have been stranded on 222 vessels this year, with unpaid wages totalling $13.1m – a 30% year-on-year increase, according to the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), which supports abandoned crews. Many ships are registered in countries with lax enforcement and owned by shell companies that obscure responsibility. In an industry driven by cost-cutting and aggressive competition, some shipowners walk away when faced with financial trouble, leaving crews unpaid and stranded without food, water or legal recourse. The fragmented nature of maritime law, which varies in each country, combined with limited accountability across jurisdictions, can drive exploitation. The Gas Falcon's registered owner is Gator Shipping Alfa, whose holding company is Gator Shipping Limited, a private limited company registered in Torquay, Devon. The ITF's Steve Trowsdale said the seafarers 'have been abandoned by a company that clearly has no intention of meeting its legal or moral obligations'. Gator Shipping did not respond to this allegation. 'We are very concerned to hear about the plight of these seafarers,' said Sapna Malik, partner and co-head of the international department at the law firm Leigh Day. 'It may be possible to seek legal recourse in the English courts against Gator Shipping for allegedly breaching its duties to the seafarers, potentially engaging the Modern Slavery Act.' 'You do not care how much the ship's crew is suffering aboard your vessel. Now we have run out of supplies and, despite my repeated requests, you are unable to arrange it' The Gas Falcon had been carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). The crew was told by Gator Shipping that salaries would be paid after the cargo was discharged. Instead, it sent the vessel to an anchorage farther out to sea. The seafarers are not allowed to disembark because they do not have visas for Mozambique. The crew has sent repeated emails to Federico Careri – the majority owner of the company, according to company records – pleading for sufficient supplies of food and water. Careri has periodically paid for provisions to be provided to the vessel by port staff in Mozambique. 'You do not care how much the ship's crew is suffering aboard your vessel,' states a 14 July email sent to Careri by Aslam and viewed by The Observer. 'Now we have run out of supplies and, despite my repeated requests, you are unable to arrange it.' In a statement to The Observer, Careri denied being the owner of the Gas Falcon, describing himself as the commercial manager. The Observer has reviewed documents that confirm he is the owner. He did not respond to follow-up questions on this. In the statement, he said: 'We have consistently taken steps to ensure the vessel has sufficient food and water, although delivering bunker provisions and fresh water in Beira presents significant logistical challenges and may have caused occasional delays.' 'We are not getting paid, and not being released or allowed to disembark and work for some other shipping company,' said Aslam, 51, from Lahore, Pakistan. His family back home is running out of money and has taken out loans to make ends meet because he is not being paid. All of t he crew are under pressure to support families, who have been left in a state of despair and poverty, Aslam added . The seafarers have requested permission from the shipowner to disembark three times since December, according to documents seen by The Observer. Gator Shipping has not acted on these pleas.'The company is beyond reason. Mainly they do not bother to reply, and even if they reply it is: 'We are working on it' or simply: 'Noted',' said Aslam. Careri, through Gator Shipping and another of his entities, Kharta Shipping, has been involved in three crew abandonments since May 2024, says the ITF. Last year, another cohort of crew on the Gas Falcon was abandoned off the coast of Mogadishu with 19 seafarers on board. At that time, the ship had insurance with the West of England Shipowners Mutual Insurance Association, which paid the crew's salaries. The Gas Falcon is uninsured, according to the ITF and the crew, after the West of England terminated coverage following that incident. In November 2024, another vessel, the Gas Parrot, was abandoned for about three months with 10 seafarers onboard while under the ownership of Careri's Kharta Shipping. The crew was eventually repatriated in January this year after intervention by the ITF and India's National Union of Seafarers. That vessel was also uninsured, and the crew had only limited food, water and fuel during the ordeal. The Gas Parrot's crew still has not been paid their full salaries, according to the crew and the International Labour Organization, which documents ship abandonments. 'The owner has no mercy in his heart,' said Rey Lorenzo Saraan, the Gas Parrot's second officer at the time. The Gas Falcon is registered under the flag of Gabon, despite having no connection with the West African nation. Most abandoned vessels sail under similar 'flags of convenience', according to the ITF. This system allows shipowners to register vessels in countries with weaker labour protections and oversight, making it harder to hold them legally accountable. This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center's Ocean Reporting Network Photograph by Airbus DS/Earth Genome
Business Recorder
19-07-2025
- Business Recorder
Pak crew stranded: LPG vessel seized in Mozambique over payment row
KARACHI: LPG cargo vessel, Gas Falcon, has been seized at Beira Port in Mozambique due to unresolved payment disputes, leaving the crew stranded in deteriorating conditions and sparking urgent humanitarian concerns. The vessel, reportedly held by Italian authorities, is currently without food, water, fuel, or basic life support systems. The ship's captain, Muhammad Aslam, a Pakistani national, raised an emergency Mayday alert after power and air-conditioning systems onboard failed. 'The diesel, fresh water, and cooling systems are all exhausted,' Captain Aslam stated. 'Emergency lights will go out soon, and mobile devices will also shut down due to lack of power.' It is reported that in addition to the Pakistani captain, the first officer and chef are also Pakistani. The remaining crew includes over 10 Indonesian nationals also. In a conversation with the media, Captain Aslam confirmed that Indian maritime authorities had successfully rescued their citizens. However, Pakistani personnel remain aboard with no relief in sight. 'We contacted Ports and Shipping authorities, but haven't received any response yet,' he said. Responding to media reports, DG Aaliya Shahid later claimed that contact had been established with the Pakistani crew and that efforts were underway in coordination with Mozambican authorities to secure their release. 'We are in communication with the Mozambique government, and the crew will be freed soon,' she stated. Back onboard, according to Captain Aslam, the situation is worsening by the every hour passes. Refrigerators storing perishable items, including vegetables and meat, have stopped functioning. Clean drinking water is unavailable, and the temperature onboard is rising due to the non-operational air conditioning system. The Gas Falcon was reportedly detained by Italian port agents over non-payment of port dues, although the exact amount and nature of the dispute have not been publicly disclosed. The ship is operated under a foreign flag, and its detention has triggered a series of legal and diplomatic complexities. According to data from the Marine Traffic website, the Gas Falcon (IMO: 9040883) was last reported in East African waters of Indian Ocean nearly 13 days ago. The vessel is an LPG tanker sailing under the flag of Gabon, with a length of 113.22 meters and a beam (width) of 15.9 meters. However, Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs, Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry, has taken notice of the incident involving a foreign vessel detained in Mozambique, which reportedly has Pakistani crew members on board. The Minister directed immediate assistance for the Pakistanis stranded on the ship and emphasized providing relief on humanitarian grounds. According to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, the vessel currently holds three Pakistani and nine Indonesian crew members. The Ministry remains in constant contact with the Director General Ports and Shipping, Captain Aslam, who is actively coordinating with Mozambican authorities. The DG Ports and Shipping is liaising with the Mozambican government to ensure all necessary formalities are completed promptly. The Ministry has also sought support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan to ensure the early resolution of the matter and the safe return of the affected individuals. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
LHC blocks plot to get land fraudulently
The Lahore High Court (LHC) has rejected the appeal of a man who, while transferring a piece of property to his nephews, declared himself as their father in the tamleek deed and later gave his own sons the same names as his nephews in an attempt to acquire the property through deception. There were two real bothersthe petitioner Muhammad Nawaz and Muhammad Aslam. Nawaz gave 400-kanal property in 1975 to two minors namelyMuhammad Farrukh and Muhammad Mohsin alias Nijal, who were the sons of Muhammad Aslam. However, he fraudulently showed himself as their father in the registered deeds. Subsequently, he tried to manipulate the situation to favour his own sons by giving them similar names. This arrangement continued undisputed for years during Muhammad Aslam's life. Years later, the doneesFarrukh and Mohsin, Aslam's sonsinstituted a civil suit against Nawaz and his sons as well as the Government of Punjab. The trial court handed in a decision in favor of the real sons of Muhammad Aslam. The petitioners challenged this order but the appellate court also upheld the trial court's decision. The petitioners including Muhammad Nawaz later moved the LHC Multan Bench where Justice Anwaar Hussain dismissing his plea also upheld the decisions of the district courts. Farrukh and Mohsinsons of Aslamclaimed that total property measuring 818 kanal17 marlasof land was purchased by their uncle (Nawaz) and their late father (Muhammad Aslam) jointly. However, it was purchased in the name of Nawaz as their father was a government employee. Nawaz, later on, transferred the suit property measuring 400 kanal, out of the total land purchased, in their favour as an acknowledgment that the suit property was purchased with the funds of the late Muhammad Aslam. However, Nawaz fraudulently showed himself as their father in the registered deeds and subsequently, manipulated the situation to favour his own sons by giving them same names with the intent to misappropriate the suit property. It was stated that registered deeds attested in pursuance to the tamleek deeds, to the extent of parentage of the Farrukh and Moshin are against the law as well as Shariah and are based on mala fide. The petitionersNawaz and his sonstook the defence that the suit property was purchased with funds remitted by Nawaz from the United Kingdom. They contended that the transfer of the suit property through tamleek deeds was always intended for his own sons. After framing of issues and recording of evidence, the trial court through judgment on March 28, 2013 decreed the suit of the respondentsthe sons of Aslam.
Business Wire
24-04-2025
- Health
- Business Wire
Paige and NHS Wales Launch PanCancer Pilot to Triage Cases with AI at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Paige, a leader in next-generation AI technology, together with NHS Wales, has announced the launch of a new pilot project at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB). The project will evaluate how Paige's AI-assisted diagnostic application, Paige PanCancer Detect, can streamline pathology workflows and enhance patient care by triaging routine clinical cases. 'Through this pilot, we aim to establish the real-world utility of AI to prioritize potentially malignant cases and reduce diagnostic delays,' The pilot will be the first clinical use of Paige PanCancer Detect and involve the prospective assessment of cases across all tissue types consecutively received for routine evaluation. This will determine whether the use of AI can shorten turnaround times for malignant case assessments and facilitate earlier detection of cancer to get the results to patients faster. 'Through this pilot, we aim to establish the real-world utility of AI to prioritize potentially malignant cases and reduce diagnostic delays,' said Dr. Alistair Heath, Histopathologist at BCUHB. 'By analyzing the impact on turnaround times and diagnostic accuracy, we can begin to understand how to better support quality improvement, more efficient patient management, and ultimately, faster results for patients.' Each case will be analyzed using Paige PanCancer Detect, developed using more than three million pathology slides, to predict whether a whole slide image (WSI) is benign or suspicious for cancer. Cases flagged as suspicious will be prioritized for pathologist review, while those marked as benign will follow the standard workflow. 'We are committed to exploring how innovative technologies can support our pathology services and ultimately benefit patients across North Wales,' said Dr. Muhammad Aslam, Consultant Pathologist and Clinical Director for North Wales Diagnostic and Specialist Clinical Services. 'This pilot represents an important step toward that vision, and we are pleased to be working on this initiative.' 'We are thrilled to support this pioneering pilot with NHS Wales,' said Dr. Juan Retamero, Medical Vice President at Paige. 'Paige PanCancer Detect was designed to assist pathologists across tissue types, and this project provides a valuable opportunity to see it in action in a clinical setting.' The pilot builds on the success of Paige being awarded an NHS tender to conduct a larger-scale study and the service improvement project will expand to include additional health boards across Wales. About Paige Paige is pushing the boundaries of AI to solve cancer's most critical issues, revolutionizing cancer care with next-generation technology. By leveraging exclusive access to millions of digitized pathology slides, clinical reports, and genomic data, Paige gains a holistic understanding of cancer, encompassing diverse factors such as gender, race, ethnicity, and geographical regions. This comprehensive data enables Paige to create advanced AI solutions that redefine cancer detection, diagnosis, and treatment. With a unique, intricate understanding of tissue, Paige sets new standards in precision diagnostics, earning the distinction of being the first FDA-cleared AI application in pathology. Paige has also developed the first million-slide foundation model for cancer, continuing to lead the way in uncovering novel insights and transforming them into life-changing products. For more information, visit About Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) BCUHB is the largest health organisation in Wales, with a budget of £1.99 billion and a workforce of more than 20,000. The Health Board is responsible for the delivery of health care services to more than 700,000 people across the six counties of North Wales (Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham). This includes the provision of primary, community and mental health, as well as general hospital services. In primary care settings the Health Board delivers NHS care through a combination of independent contractors and directly delivered services across North Wales. This network of primary care services covers 96 medical practices ('GP practices'), 83 dental and orthodontic practices, 69 optometry/optician practices and 147 community pharmacies.
Express Tribune
26-03-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
How is this 'controlled inflation'?
Listen to article As the holy month of Ramazan draws to a close this year, millions of Pakistanis are still struggling with an unrelenting surge in the prices of essential goods, despite the government's repeated claims of "controlled inflation". Official statistics released in March 2025 show an inflation rate at a historic low of 1.5%, a figure met with widespread scepticism by citizens. Many argue that such numbers may look good in the books the government prints to show the world how cheap this country currently is, while the rest of the world grapples with high inflationary figures. However, for households like that of Muhammad Aslam, a 48-year-old father of four working as a daily wage labourer, these numbers are meaningless. "Our salaries have stayed the same for years, but every Ramazan, prices climb so high that even basic groceries feel like luxury items," he said. "The government talks about stability, but when a kilogram of sugar jumps from Rs140 to Rs180 in weeks, and chicken becomes unaffordable, how can we believe them?" he asked. During Ramazan, the government's heavy focus on sugar prices has also drawn criticism from the majority of families and experts. While federal ministers have held press conferences promising to crack down on sugar hoarders, ordinary citizens question why the same eagerness isn't shown for other commodities. "Sugar is important, but why ignore everything else?" asks Saima Bibi, a housewife, pointing at her half-empty shopping bags. "A single chicken now costs Rs800, up from Rs400 last month. We used to buy fruits like apples and bananas for iftar, but apples are Rs500 per kilogram and bananas Rs300. How is this low inflation?" she asked. Economists, on the other hand, attribute the disparity between official data and market realities to methodological gaps. "The inflation basket doesn't fully capture frequent price hikes in perishables like poultry, vegetables, and fruits, which hit hardest during Ramazan," said Dr Aliya Hassan, an economist at a Lahore-based think tank. "When the rupee loses value year after year, and incomes stagnate, even minor supply shocks devastate households." The Pakistani rupee has depreciated by nearly 80% against the dollar since 2020, shrinking purchasing power for imports like fuel and edible oil, which indirectly drive up domestic prices, she added. For low-income families, the math is daunting. Arsalan Rana, a rickshaw driver, calculates that the Rs180 sugar price adds no more than an extra Rs100 to his monthly budget. "But chicken? We've stopped buying it except for special occasions," he said. His wife, Nusrat Bibi, added, "Last week, tomatoes were Rs200 per kilogram. Pulses, spiceseverything costs more in Ramazan. They set up Ramazan bazaars with subsidised rates, but those are miles away and overcrowded. What about people in villages? They talk about sugar, but what about the rest of our hunger?" The government's inconsistent policy approach has also come under fire. While authorities occasionally intervene to cap sugar prices, critics argue that this ignores systemic failures. "Sugar constitutes just 20% of household consumption, with commercial industries like bakeries and beverages consuming the bulk," says Dr Hassan Khan, a commodities expert. "When sugar prices rise, businesses pass costs onto consumers by increasing prices of bread, sweets, and drinks. So even if sugar is controlled, the relief is minimal." Meanwhile, poultry farmers blame rising feed costs and electricity tariffs for soaring chicken prices, but no long-term solutions have materialised, he added. With no respite in sight, economists warn that temporary price controls will fail without addressing structural issues, such as improving agricultural yields, curbing future currency depreciation, and ensuring annual wage increases in the private sector. "Until incomes align with living costs, statistics will remain a fancy dreamespecially for those suffering silently, and now for years," Khan concluded.
