A letter to the editor of a daily by Mahd Ahmed Fayyaz of class GCE O' Levels

Subject: Role of Science and Technology

Dear Editor,

Through your esteemed paper, I would like to notify that science and technology have had a very positive impact on us and have played a major role in our life. No one can refute the fact they have changed our lives in many aspects. In the past, the minutest tasks would take a long time, but technology has given us the luxury of convenience. For example, in the past, it would take us to get from one place to another, which now air travel has reduced that to hours. One can reach one’s destination, no matter how far it be, within the same day as one started.

Relaying messages over large distances was a problem of the past. Now, all it takes is a click. Science and technology has contributed to the development and advancement of our civilization.

Being a Pakistani, our country is far from being advanced and that is because of the negligence of the concerned authorities. Our country is busy trying to persuade foreign corporations to establish plants locally while our neighbors continue to produce twice as much merely by utilizing their local industries.

Seeing this, we must emphasize on bringing technological advancement to our country, so that we may stand on our feet and emerge as a different nation – a nation to be admired.

Yours truly,

Mahd Ahmed Fayyaz

O’ Levels 2^nd year

There is no denying the fact that child girl education is still lying badly neglected here in Pakistan. The sooner we realize the better that a child girl is the mother of tomorrow. See, how effectively Okasha Shams has voiced his opinion on the subject.

Subject: Girl child education

Dear Editor,

I believe that our government should support the education of girls all over our country. There are many problems holding the girls of our nation back from getting their much-deserved education. The benefits, however, are far too great to not be strived towards. Educating our women could help bring about an end to child marriage, help in improving our economy and ultimately ending poverty.

The prevalent notion in developing countries is that educating women is secondary to educating men who will be the backbone of the economy, but educating women is just as important. One of the benefits of empowering a girl child is that it will enable her to get better healthcare and to help her provide capable upbringing to her children as she’s after all the mother of tomorrow. Secondly, it will lead her to being independent breadwinner for her family, or at least she won’t be a dependent soul when she grows up.

Hence, enlightening women will eventually lead to changing a woman’s status in the society, which will in turn ultimately put an end to child marriage. Education will also help in improving the economy overall as women will be working alongside men.

I strongly believe that our government should support the education of girls on priority basis. Imagine what would happen if every girl in every town was educated. How many problems could be solved simply by using this single tool. There is probably a woman out there stronger and smarter than any man ever, but she may never have a chance to reach her true potential simply because she is a woman. I urge you to provide the women of our nation the right to an education.

Yours truly,

Okasha Shams
O class O' Levels 2nd year

A smart attempt at formal letter writing by Okasha Shams of class O' Levels 2nd year

Subject: spreading of garbage in and around our locality

Dear Editor,

I would like to bring to the authorities’ attention the worsening hygienic conditions of our locality. Being a resident of the Tarlai community, it is my moral responsibility to take care of my home and to keep it clean. Sadly, I have failed to fulfil my duties, as there is garbage all around my house; garbage near the road side; in the gutters blocking the sewerage; near ponds and lakes, contaminating them, spreading vile odors and filth atop many other environmental problems.

The toll is not only environmental but also societal, as the rates of our property have been declining, as has the fondness for our area in the eyes of outsiders, therefore, a solution is gravely needed. 

A campaign must be started to rid the streets of this filth. The community must come together and ask the government for support. But firstly, the community and all its members should work together to not spread this mess any further.

Yours truly,

Okasha Shams

Okasha Shams

Enjoy another piece of creative writing by Mahd Ahmad Fayyaz. See the thrill he's created in his present attempt at a topic on 'descriptive narrative'.

Narrate a frightening experience that you had.

Life is brimful of occurrences, frightening as well as pleasant ones. Last month, I experienced something frightening which haunts me to this very day.

I had been playing cricket with my brother on a pleasant day with some feathery white clouds drifting over the azure sky. It was all normal until I hit a six and the ball went over the wall and into the field.

As soon as I saw the ball accelerate and go over the wall, I understood I was in deep trouble. I, accompanied by my brother, climbed up the wall and made my way to where I had last seen the ball. We tried spotting the ball from the wall but in vain. At last, I mustered up the strength and jumped into the field. I was soon neck-deep in grass from all sides.

After searching for a good fifteen minutes, I decided all effort was futile and that the ball was lost to the grass now. As I made my way back, I stepped on something firm – the ball. I gave a relieved sigh and stooped to pick it up. The next things I heard were a rope snapping by force and my brother’s frightened cry, “run!”

I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, the ball firmly clasped in my hand. The horrid creature had almost descended upon me – just within pouncing distance. I quickly threw the ball to my brother and climbed the wall. Now I looked down. To my horror, there stood a growling dog with my left shoe clung firmly between its jaws. I thanked God for saving me and went home with my brother.

Mahd Ahmed Fayyaz
O' Levels 2nd year

Mahd Ahmed Fayyaz

More practice on 'descriptive narrative'. Muhammad Uzair Bhatti of class O' Levels 2nd year opted for the topic: 'A moment when I thought I was starting to grow up.' A fine attempt, indeed!

A moment when I thought I was starting to grow up

I had an overwhelming passion for driving ever since I was a child. My family is a small one: just mother, father and I. As a child, I remember sitting with my father in the driving seat. My mother used to sit in the back as she had a sort of phobia for driving. Now my father drives while I sit in the back.

This was before my father took me to an empty ground used for driving practice and taught me how to drive properly. He did that so a member of the family knew how to drive in case of an emergency. It was followed by my driving on busy roads as well, quite a couple of times, so I could learn what ‘road sense’ is, and I did learn a lot.

Then there came a day when an emergency did knock on my door some six months later when my cousin called me: “Uzair, hurry up and get here in a car, papa isn’t feeling well. We need to get to the hospital,” he said as soon as I picked up. It mustn’t have taken me more than five minutes to get the car out and rush to his place. We laid our uncle in the back and I drove to the nearest hospital as fast as we could.

The doctors ran some tests but we soon found out it was nothing too severe as we had made it to the hospital just in time. Relaxed, we all drove back home where everyone praised me for my help. That is the day, I think, I realized I had grown up now. I had made myself proud.

By:

Muhammad Uzair Bhatti
O' Levels 2nd year

Muhammad Uzair Bhatti

A very good attempt by Okasha Shams of class O' Levels 2nd year. The question given was: Write a letter to the editor on the topic: street light problems.

Dear Editor,

I would like to bring to light a problem regularly faced by most of the country regularly. We do not utilize our resources properly such as street lights. 

There aren’t many street lights in most parts of our country and if there are any number of lights installed, they aren’t functional. Emergency issues include missing panels, exposed wiring, hanging light covers, a burning or smoking light, lamp posts damaged by a road traffic accident. Any of these issues is liable to cause harm or damage to a person or property.

Due to this slight misconduct, bigger problems are born. The safety of the common man is compromised as criminal activities are more easily conducted in the dark. Obnoxious crimes take place such as theft, murder, robbery and even rapes.

It is easier for criminals to hide under the veil of darkness as it becomes harder for the victims to identify the culprit, and the police in turn to catch them. Hence, this small change could make a big difference to someone’s life.

Our government must not waste public resources like that and take steps to keep their systems running as efficiently as possible so as not to cause problems to the public.

Yours truly,

Okasha Shams
O' Levels 2nd year

Okasha Shams

Write a letter to the editor on the topic: “ Bad roads in your locality”. Yet another attempt by Muhammad Uzair Bhatti of class O' Levels 2nd year.

Dear Editor,

Through the columns of your esteemed daily, I would like to draw the attention of the authorities towards an awful condition of the roads in our locality, Shadman Colony, Rawalpindi.

No one will deny the fact that roads play the role of backbone in a residential area as they help people connect with each other and for all sorts of their day to day movement. We cannot even think of such smooth movement in the absence of good roads. However, it is unfortunate that in our locality, almost all roads are lying badly damaged for the last few years with no serious notice taken so far. As a consequence, the list of problems being faced by the residents is endless. Every time we come out of our places, we find many vehicles stopped on the sides of roads, sometimes, even in the mid. Obviously, the worried owners are seen busy fixing them and fretting all along about the loss of their precious time. I have seen many cars getting entangled near potholes.

Mention of a few serious accidents is also relevant here because a very bad condition of the roads has a due share in all such heart-breaking incidents. I seriously feel dreaded at the thought of losing priceless lives some day.

Along one road, there is a park where small children come to enjoy some of their time playing. There are occasions when children come out to pick up their balls. Children, sometimes, while taking the ball out of a pothole fall into it.

If a serious action is not taken, the roads will continue getting deteriorated making the situation worse.

I, therefore, submit hereby an earnest appeal to the authorities concerned to kindly take notice of the situation as soon as possible. A quick and serious action to address this problem will go a long way in improving life quality in the area.

Yours truly,

Muhammad Uzair Bhatti 

Muhammad Uzair Bhatti

Boys of class O-II are busy practising Descriptive Narrative here. Description of situations and feelings is deemed as one of the most challenging jobs when it comes to writing skill, but see our brilliant Ahmar Siddiqui has fully succeeded in that. Well done, boy! :)

A time I experienced something spooky

The pungent smell of perspiration in the air entered my nostrils as I entered the newly constructed jogging track. Already, there were runners left and right racing enthusiastically. One side of the track was lined with tall hedges that separated the track from an educational institution whereas the other side afforded a view of the park. I had caught wind of the establishment through a friend who also exercised routinely. I did a quick warm up and began to run at a brisk pace. After successfully completing two laps around the track, I stopped and sat down, leaning against the towering hedge. I looked up to find the sun hidden behind thunderous clouds that rumbled above. I made a silent prayer for it not to rain otherwise I would be unable to visit the open air gym.

Unfortunately, my prayer went unanswered, and it started raining heavily – that they call ‘cats and dogs’. So, I briskly made for the exit. On the way, I jumped over a black cat. Though I continued onwards, but was internally aghast. I bit my tongue as I recalled the superstition that walking past a black cat is a bad luck sign. I dismissed the thought as an old wives’ tale and got back to the task at hand.

Hardly a minute had passed when an oddly shaped object caught my eye. I neared the tall hedge where the unidentified object was. To my horror, I found a severed finger! I yelped and ran home faster than a speeding bullet.

When I lied down in my bed that night, my wild imagination began to conjure multiple scenarios regarding the severed finger. The scenario that my mind deemed most likely was that a man had been chopped up into miniscule pieces by a serial killer. Realizing how close to my residence the heinous act had been committed, I found sleep escaping me. I recalled the black cat I had jumped over and concluded that bad luck was responsible for my current predicament.

The following day, I set off towards the jogging track to procure the finger to submit it to the police. Trying to appear inconspicuous I casually jogged over to the spot where I had discovered the finger. To my utter disbelief, I found several severed body parts littered beside the hedge. The horrific sight made me queasy.

A stranger approached me and inquired about my obvious distress. I responded by pointing to the body parts. The stranger laughed and told me that the body parts were fake; they were used to teach first aid classes at the school that was on the other side of the hedge. Dubious, I reasoned how lifelike the parts looked. The stranger who had introduced himself as a regular runner, named Ahmed, showed me the insides of the objects, proving that they were made of plastic.

I took a sigh of relief. My belief in superstition disintegrated as swiftly as it had formed.

Written by:
Mohammad Ahmar Siddiqui

Ahmar

An attempt on formal letter writing by Uzair Bhatti. The question given was: 'Write a letter to the editor of a daily on the topic “Role of Science and Technology.'

Write a letter to the editor of a daily on the topic “Role of Science and Technology.”

Dear Editor,

Through your esteemed paper, I would like to communicate that we, as Pakistanis, need to realize the fact that science and technology have brought about a tremendous revolution around.

For example, by 1990 not a single person could ever visualize provision of tons of material on a certain topic by just typing on a bar when www dot was formed. People used to write letters to their relatives and friends which would reach their target addresses in days, but now because of technology one can read the same message in just seconds. From travelling all summer to get to a destination the world has come to a phase when one can take a flight and reach one’s destination in just a couple of hours.

When we look around, the role of science and technology seems to have changed almost every single bit in our lives. Cooking, bathing, clothing, travelling, eating, reading – everything. Technology has a huge share in sources of entertainment as well. Even ways of protesting are now mostly dependent on effective use of technological tools. Hence, it goes without saying that sci-tech touch has become a foremost factor of why and how this world is changing.

What to emphasize here is the earlier we realize this reality the better. When compared with the world around, I find Pakistan far behind. We, therefore, need to bring in all such technological development here pretty fast to help our experts pace up their work, enabling us to stand confidently in front of other nations.

Yours truly,

Muhammad Uzair Bhatti  

Uzair Bhatti
Of Class O' Levels 2nd Year

Here we are with our blog reactivated to continue sharing writings from our budding writers. The foremost episode carries an attempt by a very good student from our Cambridge Section. 'A difficult decision that I had to make' is a short piece of writing by Uzair Bhatti, a promising scholar of class O' Levels 2nd years here at Cambridge Section of PakTurk Chak Shahzad Campus.

A difficult decision that I had to make

Turbulent times are part of life. They come and go leaving irremovable marks behind, and a great deal of learning for us to feel mature than before. However, what’s more important is the decision we make in such tight situations.

It was the year 2015 when I got promoted to grade 9. Immediately after, I felt extremely perplexed when faced with a dual situation demanding what version of the syllabus I should opt for:

Should I go for GCE O’ Levels or our local Federal Board syllabus, that is, simple matriculation?

I asked my parents first, but their reply was of no help as they left it entirely up to me to decide by saying: “You can go for whatever you feel like.”

I made up my mind for choosing GCE O’ Levels, but to my dismay, my uncles and aunties came out as strong opposition to that. They rejected the idea pretty severely – saying they were in favour of matric system. “GCE O’ Levels is just a show-off, and has no scope, in fact,” they opined, discouraging me to a considerable extent. Though they might be very sincere in their approach, I wasn’t convinced of their outlook. Deep down, I believed I knew better what was good for me and on what grounds.

I now was in a terrible fix as their sweeping remark had further muddled the issue.

As I consulted with my cousins aboard, they all strongly voted in favour of O’ Levels as they all had gone through this phase. 

Anyways, I mustered up enough courage and confidence to stand by my decision no matter what! I, therefore, stuck to my own vision and since then I’ve never looked back or lamented whatever I chose for myself. Though I admit it was a very difficult decision, but by God’s grace, I’ve continued with CCE O’ Levels with my head high, working hard day and night.

I have gradually come to believe that my decision was right as I’m happy with it. Others too have got convinced by seeing the grades I scored in the three subjects I appeared in. My result has become a strong evidence of the accuracy of my decision. Yes, I can certainly do it. I won’t quit at all!

Uzair Bhatti

Of Class O-II

Uzair Bhatti