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Pakistan's death toll from the coronavirus has surpassed 1,000 after Punjab and Sindh reported 17 fatalities each. The breakdown of the number of deaths per province is as follows: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — 345, Sindh — 316, Punjab — 290, Balochistan — 38, Islamabad — 9, Gilgit Baltistan — 4, Azad Jammu and Kashmir — 1. Punjab has reported 709 new cases of the novel coronavirus, with 17 new deaths. Sindh has recorded 1,017 new Covid-19 cases, with 17-recorded deaths, 127 patients in critical condition, and 32 on ventilators. SAPM Usman Dar stated that the federal government has decided to "activate in principle" the Tiger Force in Sindh, which will be led by Sindh Governor Imran Ismail. Dar said that the PM approved the assigning of responsibility of the 154,000 volunteers who registered to the province's governor and "expressed satisfaction over the volunteers' work [in other provinces]". Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid has said that the train services have been resumed across the country even though the move will land the department into a loss. Addressing the media, Rashid said that the money lost would be recovered once "corona is gone". Prime Minister Imran Khan will inaugurate the Tele Health Portal so that citizens can get medical guidance over phone without having to risk contracting the coronavirus by visiting hospitals. Doctors can register themselves "voluntarily" and guide patients without any charges. President Arif Alvi has urged people to offer Eidul Fitr prayers at home in order to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. “It is not just a matter of our own lives, but of our families,” he said and added: "This is a responsibility. If someone gets sick because of my carelessness, for example, if you are driving fast and hit someone, God will ask why you were driving rashly."

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In compliance with the Supreme Court directive, the government has allowed resumption of train service, public transport, and opening of all shopping centers across the country. The decision was taken as the total number of cases has crossed the 43,000 mark, with 924 deaths across the country. The PM agreed to a transporters’ demand to maintain the price of fares. He also accepted Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid’s demand for resuming train services with a limited number of trains to facilitate the poor and low-income group. The PM also made the decision to open all markets throughout the week, including Saturday and Sunday. The PM also announced that traders could open their shops during Eid holidays. Following the meeting, the Islamabad Administration issued a notification opening markets for the entire day, lifting a restriction on closing of markets and shops by 5pm. “We welcome the decision of the Supreme Court,” Information Minister Shibli Faraz said at a press conference after the meeting. “The Supreme Court’s directive has vindicated Prime Minister Khan’s stance of simultaneously fighting the pandemic and saving the vulnerable segments of society from hunger and starvation,” he added. In reply to a question about a massive increase in the prices of essential items during Ramazan, the minister regretted that it had become a tradition in the country to get maximum profits during the holy month, which was not the case in other countries. It was a serious issue, he said. Mr Faraz said the government had ensured uninterrupted supply of essential commodities, besides bringing down inflation and interest rates. He said the business community should cooperate and give relief to the people by taking advantage of these two factors.

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Joe Rogan, comedian and the host of one of the most popular podcasts in the world, is moving to Spotify. His podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience will soon become a Spotify exclusive. This means that episodes’ full audio and video will only be available through the platform starting later this year. The multi-year deal is believed to be worth $100m (£82 million), according to the Wall Street Journal. The show will be available globally starting September 1st. While listeners won’t have to pay to access the episodes they will have to become Spotify users. In a press release, Spotify stated that Rogan will have full creative control over the show. Rogan said, "It will remain free, and it will be the exact same show. It's just a licensing deal, so Spotify won't have any creative control over the show,” adding, "They want me to just continue doing it the way I'm doing it right now.” "I'm excited to have the support of the largest audio platform in the world and I hope you folks are there when we make the switch!" Rogan’s YouTube channel will remain live, but it won’t contain full episodes. There might be clips or other supplementary content, which could benefit from YouTube’s search algorithm and push people to listen to full episodes on Spotify. Rogan’s podcasts provide deep insights into any topic that the expert-guest touches. It is a huge favorite amongst people across the globe. His YouTube channel has 8.42 Million Subscribers. The topics of discussions vary from explanations regarding black holes by top scientists to the return of Mike Tyson and it’s implications.

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