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World Press Freedom Day is being observed today (Friday), across the world including Pakistan, with an aim to keep pursuing the mission to inform others. This year’s theme is “Media for Democracy: Journalism and Elections in Times of Disinformation.” In his message on the occasion, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said a free press is essential for peace, justice sustainable development and human rights. He said no democracy is complete without access to transparent and reliable information. He said that “No democracy is complete without access to transparent and reliable information,” describing unfettered journalism as “the cornerstone for building fair and impartial institutions, holding leaders accountable and speaking truth to power.” He said that free press is the cornerstone for building fair and impartial institutions, holding leaders accountable and speaking truth to power. The United Nation General Assembly declared May 3 as World Press Freedom Day in 1991

The Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR)  informed the Senate Standing Functional Committee on Problems of Less Developed Areas (LDAs) that only 31 per cent of urban and 18 per cent of the rural population have access to clean drinking water in the country. The Chairman (PCRWR) Dr Muhammad Aslam Tahir apprised the committee that over Rs 112 billion was being spent annually on treatment of water-related diseases due to the provision of low-quality water to the citizens. The committee met under the chairmanship of Senator Muhammad Usman Khan Kakar here and attended by Senator Rahila Magsi, Molvi Faiz Muhammad, Fida Muhammad, Haji Momin Khan Afridi, Agha Shahzaib Khan Durrani, Sardar Muhammad Shafiq Tareen, Kalsoom Parveen, Chairman PCRWR, Secretary and another high official of Ministry of Science and Technology. Aslam Tahir also informed the meeting that over 40 per cent of beds in the country’s healthcare facilities were occupied by those patients who were

Karachi University termed a sexual harassment complaint filed by its students against its faculty members as "fake", saying the varsity received no "official" complaint from any students alleging sexual harassment against any professors. Two professors of Karachi University’s Mass Communication department were accused of sexual harassment in a complaint filed by six students. The complainants alleged that the teachers in question harassed their students by sending inappropriate messages on WhatsApp, screenshots of which were attained by Geo News. “They try their best to play mind games with female students to gain favours that have sexual overtones, all with the ever-lurking threat of failing them or putting them short of the attendance list,” the complaint read. Commenting on the allegations, a university spokesperson acknowledged that the institute had received an application from a student, but the application bore "fake" signatures. The sp