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Barclays fires over a dozen bankers, traders before Christmas — without giving them bonuses: sourcesThe Sweden midfielder hailed Saturday’s 4-0 thrashing of the champions as the best game of his career. The 24-year-old delivered an outstanding performance as Spurs shattered the champions’ 52-game unbeaten home run, helping start the rout with a superb cross for James Maddison’s opening goal. Kulusevski said: “I believed (we would win) this because in the past years, we’ve come here and played really well. “So this is the game I look forward to most in the year and, once again, it happened – glory to God. “I’d say it’s the best result ever in my career. It’s a big night for the whole club, for the coach, for the players. “Because City have a lot of the ball sometimes, we can rest when we defend. There’s also so much space up there, we play one against one and then it’s always dangerous because we have a lot of quality. “It’s always great to play great teams because they always want to play football. When you play lower teams, sometimes it’s not. There’s not much football played because they are a lot of fouls, a lot of injuries and it’s slow going.” Maddison stole the show with two goals in quick succession in the first half while Pedro Porro and Brennan Johnson later got on the scoresheet. Kulu-chef-ski cooked 👨‍🍳 📊 @KumhoTyreUK pic.twitter.com/CsrTh5oUgn — Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) November 24, 2024 Yet Kulusevski’s performance was also eye-catching and the player himself believes there is plenty more to come from him. Asked if his form made him feel “unstoppable”, Kulusevski said: “I feel like that. I feel very good and I’m trying to keep this way. I’m very happy, I’m trying to improve. “I started the season good but there is over half of the season left and I hope I can do much better. “I think I have something that no other player has. With my engine, with my heart – I don’t get tired – I feel like I can do a lot still in my career.” Spurs have won more matches against Pep Guardiola's Man City than any other side 👀 pic.twitter.com/BHLZqde9sP — Premier League (@premierleague) November 23, 2024 Tottenham’s scintillating performance marked a spectacular return to form after their dismal loss to Ipswich in their previous Premier League outing. Kulusevski said: “We have to be much more consistent. It’s not a turning point. We just have to be better in other games. “This game suited us perfectly but we have a lot of improvement to make in the other games.”

Save up to $1,100 on this Sony Bravia 7 and soundbar bundle at Amazon for Black FridayTHE WOODLANDS, Texas , Dec. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TETRA Technologies, Inc. ("TETRA" or the "Company") TTI today announced the commercial launch of TETRA Oasis TDS, an end-to-end water treatment and desalination technology for beneficial re-use and mineral extraction applications for oil and gas well produced water. TETRA also recently completed a commercial pilot project for the desalination of Delaware Basin produced water for a major North America oil and gas operator. The desalinated water was tested against published Texas Railroad Commission ("TRRC") standards for beneficial re-use water at both TETRA's laboratory and an independent third-party laboratory. Subsequently, the treated water was sent to a third party for Whole Effluent Toxicity ("WET") testing where it successfully passed all test parameters. WET testing is a method used to measure the combined toxic effects of all pollutants on aquatic organisms and involves exposing aquatic organisms to treated wastewater samples and observing how the organisms respond. The tests can be acute or chronic and measure different aspects of the organisms' health. WET testing is a vital component to implementing water quality standards under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System ("NPDES") permits program. Brady Murphy , TETRA's President and Chief Executive Officer said, "For several years we have been working to leverage our deep brine chemistry expertise, our US onshore water treatment resources, and our customer network and relationships to address the sizeable industry challenge surrounding treatment of oil and gas produced water for beneficial re-use purposes. By combining our existing expertise in produced water recycling for frac re-use to pre-treat the feed water for two unique membrane technologies, we have developed a high-quality, cost-effective solution. Our first field pilot program successfully treated produced water where we achieved 92% recovery rate of desalinated water with total dissolved solids levels ranging from 40 parts per million ("ppm") to 200 ppm, which are better than the average municipal drinking water standards. In our latest pilot test of more challenging Delaware Basin produced water, we are very pleased to announce that our TETRA Oasis TDS resulted in high-quality desalinated water that not only met or exceeded all customer KPIs but passed all third-party WET testing. Given the importance of WET testing standards for the regulatory agencies, we believe this is an important step for future beneficial re-use project permitting. This is a rapidly evolving market, and the need for cost effective technology to address produced water volumes continues to grow. TETRA see significant opportunity in the space and continue to engage high quality customers to address their water challenges and disposal restrictions due to seismicity events with seven NDA's in place and ongoing negotiations with others to discuss the proprietary details of our TETRA Oasis TDS." Despite U.S. land oil and gas well frac and completion activity declining throughout 2024, produced water volumes continue to increase. Rystad Energy estimates Permian Basin produced water volumes of 8.3 billion barrels in 2024, up 5% from 2023. In Rystad Energy's fourth quarter 2024 Water Management report, they estimate that a 20% reduction in Permian Basin disposal well capacity due to regulatory restrictions would result in up to 4 million barrels of produced water per day as the available market for beneficial re-use. A recent Houston Chronicle article referenced a study that the handling and treating of produced water is a $4 billion annual market opportunity in the Permian Basin, making this one of the fastest growing market opportunities in the oil and gas industry. TETRA Oasis TDS TETRA Oasis TDS is a proprietary end-to-end offering that involves a variety of processing stages starting with operator's oil and gas well produced water as feed brine for a pre-treatment step. TETRA has developed extensive experience and expertise over the past six years in the treatment and recycling of produced water for frac re-use, as demonstrated by having treated in the fourth quarter, 2024 a record peak volume of over 800,000 bbl/day. This experience has advanced TETRA's chemistry know-how in addressing a wide variability of produced water constituents, including dealing with organic compounds that would otherwise be destructive to membranes used in other industries to desalinate water. The critical pre-treatment first step is followed by the desalination stage through two technologies licensed exclusively to TETRA for oil and gas produced water applications, KMX Technologies Inc., ("KMX") Vacuum Membrane Distillation ("VMD") or Hyrec Holdings Company W.L.L. ("Hyrec") Osmotically Assisted Reverse Osmosis ("OARO"), or a combination of both. The selection of which technology or combination thereof depends, in part, on the total dissolved solids of the feed water, the end use application, and optimizing both the capital and operating costs of the process. The final stage is a post-treatment process designed to meet customer water specifications and may involve extraction of minerals, which TETRA's chemical business has been doing for many years, and potentially significantly improving the economic benefits. TETRA Oasis TDS was successfully proven in the field to deliver a water quality that achieves or exceeds regulatory requirements in a cost-effective manner for multiple beneficial re-use applications, including potential surface irrigation and industrial uses. TETRA recently completed an equity investment in KMX Technologies Inc. Details on TETRA Oasis TDS can be found on the following website link: https://onetetra.com/energy-services/water-management/produced-water-desalination/ Investor Contact For further information, please contact Elijio Serrano , CFO, TETRA Technologies, Inc. at (281) 367-1983 or via email at eserrano@onetetra.com . Company Overview TETRA Technologies, Inc. is an energy services and solutions company focused on developing environmentally conscious services and solutions that help make people's lives better. With operations on six continents, the Company's portfolio consists of Energy Services, Industrial Chemicals, and Critical Minerals. In addition to providing products and services to the oil and gas industry and calcium chloride for diverse applications, TETRA is expanding into the low-carbon energy market with chemistry expertise, key mineral acreage, and global infrastructure, helping to meet the demand for sustainable energy in the twenty-first century. Visit the Company's website at www.onetetra.com for more information. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements This news release includes certain statements that are deemed to be forward-looking statements. Generally, the use of words such as "may," "see," "expectation," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "projects," "anticipate," "believe," "assume," "could," "should," "plans," "targets" or similar expressions that convey the uncertainty of future events, activities, expectations or outcomes identify forward-looking statements that TETRA intends to be included within the safe harbor protections provided by the federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding TETRA's beliefs, expectations, plans, goals, future events and performance, and other statements that are not purely historical. These forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and analyses made by TETRA in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Such statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of TETRA. Factors which may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: changes adversely affecting the business in which we are engaged; our ability to forecast trends accurately; our ability to develop efficient water treatment processes to scale and to forecast related costs and efficiencies accurately; fluctuations in our revenue and operating results; competition from existing or new competitors; future relationships between parties; risks associated with security breaches in our information technology systems; risks related to legal proceedings or claims; risks associated with changes in federal, state, or local laws; risks associated with potential costs of regulatory compliance; risks associated with changes to U.S. trade policies; and risks related to adverse changes in general economic conditions. Moreover, TETRA operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment, and new risks and uncertainties may emerge that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and, except as required by law, TETRA assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to additional risks, uncertainties, and factors, including those more fully described in TETRA's most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including TETRA's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K. View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tetra-technologies-inc-introduces-tetra-oasis-total-desalination-solution-tetra-oasis-tds-and-results-from-permian-basin-beneficial-re-use-pilot-302332985.html SOURCE TETRA Technologies, Inc. © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

The final rule (Rule) establishes the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB)’s supervisory authority (i.e., examination authority) over nonbank covered persons that are “larger participants” in the “general-use digital consumer payment applications” market. A nonbank covered person qualifies as a “larger participant” in the “general-use digital consumer payment applications market” if it facilitates an annual covered consumer payment transaction volume of at least 50 million transactions denominated in U.S. dollars and is not a “small business concern” as defined by section 3(a) of the Small Business Act. Covered entities will be subject to CFPB supervision and examination for compliance with Federal consumer financial laws such as, the Consumer Financial Protection Act, Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and Regulation P, and the Electronic Funds Transfer Act and Regulation E. The Rule is effective Jan. 9, 2025. On Nov. 21, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a final rule (Rule), pursuant to 12 U.S.C. § 5514(a)(1)(B), to establish supervisory authority over nonbank entities identified as larger participants in the general-use digital consumer payment applications market. While the CFPB already has enforcement power over digital funds transfer and payment wallet app providers, the Rule subjects “larger participants” of this market to CFPB supervisory examinations, similar to banks and credit unions. The Rule will apply to companies that facilitate at least 50 million “consumer payment transactions” per year, higher than the five million threshold contemplated in the CFPB’s initial proposal , and its scope extends only to U.S.-dollar transactions (digital asset transactions are excluded). According to the CFPB, the Rule intends to protect consumer privacy, reduce fraud, and curtail what the bureau deems unlawful “debanking” practices. “Digital payments have gone from novelty to necessity and our oversight must reflect this realty,” current CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in the announcement . Background In November 2023, the CFPB requested comments to its proposal to supervise larger nonbank entities offering digital wallet and payment apps. This proposed rulemaking followed a 2022 inquiry the CFPB conducted on digital payment practices, wherein the agency ordered large technology and peer-to-peer platforms to provide information on data and consumer protection practices, among other categories of consumer-facing information. That same year, the CFPB warned firms that provide financial technologies about their obligations under consumer protection laws, and issued an advisory on the potential risks of using and relying on digital payment apps. The Rule is the sixth CFPB rulemaking to define larger participants of markets for consumer financial products and services. The first five rules defined larger participants in markets for consumer reporting, 77 Fed. Reg. 42874 (July 20, 2012), consumer debt collection, 77 Fed. Reg. 65775 (Oct. 31, 2012), student loan servicing, 78 Fed. Reg. 73383 (Dec. 6, 2013), international money transfers, 79 Fed. Reg. 56631 (Sept. 23, 2014), and automobile financing, 80 Fed. Reg. 37496 (June 30, 2015). The Final Rule Under the Rule, nonbank covered persons that are “larger participants” in the “general-use digital consumer payment applications” market are subject to CFPB supervisory examination authority. The Rule sets forth a two-pronged test to determine whether a nonbank covered person is a larger participant of the general-use digital consumer payment applications market. 1 Nonbank covered persons wishing to claim they are not “larger participants” after the CFPB notifies them of its intent to undertake supervisory activity can submit evidence and arguments to the CFPB to support their claim. Under the Rule, “general-use digital consumer payment application” means providing a [1] covered payment functionality through a [2] digital application for consumers’ [3] general use in making [4] consumer payment transaction(s). The Rule covers two types of payment functionalities: (a) a funds transfer functionality; and (b) a payment wallet functionality. “Funds transfer functionality” means (1) receiving funds to transmit them (e.g., a nonbank transferring funds it holds for the consumer, such as in a stored value product/wallet, to another person); or (2) accepting and transmitting payment instructions from a consumer (i.e., transmitting consumer payment instructions to the entity that holds or receives the funds to be transferred). “Payment wallet functionality” refers to a product or service that (1) stores account or payment credentials, including in encrypted or tokenized form; and (2) transmits, routes, or otherwise processes such stored account or payment credentials to facilitate a consumer payment transaction. Generally, “digital payment applications” include software programs that consumers may access through a personal computing device, including, but not limited to, a mobile phone, laptop computer, or other common means, such as a personal identifier (e.g., a passkey, password, or PIN). The Rule does not include market payment transactions that do not rely upon the use of digital applications (e.g., presenting a debit or credit card at the point of sale). The Rule defines “general use” as being “usable for a consumer to transfer funds in a consumer payment transaction to multiple, unaffiliated persons.” The Rule borrowed from Regulation E by adopting the phrase “multiple, unaffiliated persons” to define the universe of potential funds transfer recipients that would cause a payment functionality to have “general use.” Accordingly, unless an exclusion applies, a covered payment functionality that facilitates consumer payment transactions to multiple unaffiliated entities or persons would qualify as having “general use” under the Rule. By contrast, payment functionalities that facilitate consumer payment transactions to a single entity/person or to a group of affiliated entities/persons (e.g., flexible spending arrangements, gift certificates, payment functionalities used to pay a specific debt or type of debt or that facilitate purchases from a single merchant) are not considered “general use” under the Rule. “Consumer payment transactions” generally include payments to other persons for personal, household, or family purposes. The term covers transactions made by or on behalf of a consumer “who resides in” a U.S. state or territory (narrowing the scope of covered transactions from the proposed rule, which purported to cover transactions facilitated for consumers “physically located” in a U.S. state or territory). 2 The term excludes from its definition certain transactions such as: (a) international money transfers; (b) foreign currency exchange transactions; (c) credit extensions through a digital application provided by the person who is extending, brokering or purchasing the credit; (d) payments for donations to a fundraiser selected from the provider’s platform; and (e) payments for the sale or lease of goods or services purchased from merchants and marketplaces. One of the most significant changes in the Rule is the exclusion of digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies, from the scope of “consumer payment transactions.” This is a notable shift from the proposed rule, which initially interpreted “funds” to include digital assets. By excluding digital assets, the CFPB limited its scope of expanded oversight to payment transactions conducted in U.S. fiat currency only. Nonetheless, the Rule notes that the “CFPB intends to continue to gather data and information regarding the nature of such transactions and the impact of digital transactions on consumers, and to take further action as appropriate[,]” leaving open the possibility of future oversight over digital asset transactions. Other Relevant Exclusions: BNPL and Earned Wage Access Products The CFPB has also declined to include “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) transactions in the scope of “consumer payment transactions.” The CFPB reasoned that exempting BNPL transactions would be consistent with the exemption for nonbank persons that provide digital applications to initiate consumer credit transactions and also engage in activities directed at originating consumer credit extensions, regardless of who is extending the credit (and even if a third-party financial institution such as a bank or credit union is extending the credit). The CFPB also has opted to exclude earned wage access products insofar as they transfer wages belonging to or advanced on behalf of a consumer to that same consumer. As the CFPB explains in the Rule, a “consumer payment transaction” does not include “transfers between a consumer’s own deposit accounts [or] transfers between a consumer deposit account and the same consumer’s stored value account held at another financial institution, such as loading or redemptions[.]” Similarly, the Rule notes that the CFPB does not interpret the market definition to include payments by or on behalf of a consumer to other accounts the consumer owns or controls in which another person, such as a spouse co-owner or minor child, also holds an interest. Takeaways The digital payment market has grown rapidly, with consumers broadly relying on general-use digital consumer payment applications. However, the Rule has generated mixed reactions. At least one industry group has urged the CFPB to withdraw the Rule, while at least one consumer advocate group stated the Rule would ensure people are treated fairly when they use a payment app, taking “payment apps out of a regulatory blind spot.” The timing of the Rule is noteworthy, with the Trump administration set to take over in January 2025, and Director Chopra unlikely to remain agency head. What priority this Rule has for the new president, who is expected to generally ease regulations, and a newly appointed director, is yet to be seen. Nonetheless, impacted companies should review their products, services, consumer-facing documents, and compliance management systems, including all relevant policies and procedures, and consider establishing a strategy for managing a CFPB exam.

Options Corner: MARA Holdings' Wild Swings Incentivizes A Directionally Neutral Iron Condor TradeTimes News Network Ludhiana: Three persons were injured after five vehicles, including a Haryana roadways bus, collided with each other on Delhi-Amritsar National Highway in Khanna early on Friday morning. Passengers in the bus had a narrow escape. The injured have been identified as bus driver Tokhraj of Mahendragarh district in Haryana, conductor Satish, a resident of Jhajjar and Sandeep of Uttar Pradesh. Sandeep, a canter driver, told the police that his canter was behind another canter loaded with vegetables on the road. He said that the driver in front of him suddenly slammed the breaks, due to which he collided with the canter and a Haryana roadways bus rammed into his vehicle from behind. The bus driver said that they were on their way from Sonipat to Amritsar when the accident took place. Sources said that the canter driver may have slammed the breaks to avoid hitting a stray animal or the driver may have momentarily dozed off. They added that many lights on the stretch of the road were not working at the time. This was also confirmed by the bus staff. ASI Gurwinder Kumar of Sadak Suraksha Force (SSF) said that on receiving information, they reached the spot in seven to eight minutes. Besides the SSF team, area residents and police personnel also came to the rescue of the victims, he said. The ASI said that the driver, whowas stuck in the canter, was extricated. He did not suffer injuries. He added that the 20 to 25 passengers in the bus were moved to another bus for their onward journey. SSF team got vehicles damaged in the accident shifted to one side to restore flow of traffic. The cabin of the bus was damaged and vegetables being transported in the canter were strewn on the road. SSF sources said that they had alerted NHAI officials about the dysfunctional road lights but no action had been taken. They expressed apprehension about the situation worsening with the onset of fog in the days to come. Meanwhile, there was commotion in the crowded area near Gill Chowk after a gas agency vehicle driver allegedly hit seven vehicles one after the other in the area. There were no casualties in the accident. We also published the following articles recently Bus mows down man crossing road, driver held A bus driver in Ghaziabad was arrested after fatally hitting a pedestrian. Rajkumar, 43, was crossing the road Monday evening when the speeding bus struck him. He succumbed to his injuries Tuesday. Police have seized the bus and are searching for the conductor who fled the scene with the driver, Raghuraj Singh. Brakes of bus failed, says arrested driver A bus driver in Bhopal was arrested after his vehicle fatally struck two motorcyclists who were MBA graduates. The driver, Deepak Gangrade, alleges brake failure as the cause, claiming he honked repeatedly before the collision. Around a dozen student athletes were on board at the time. Gangrade fled the scene post-accident but was later apprehended. Shivshahi bus driver remanded in 2-day police custody Eleven passengers were killed and at least 40 injured when a Shivshahi bus overturned near Khajri village in Gondia district on Friday. The driver, Pranav Raipurkar, has been remanded in police custody for two days. Police suspect Raipurkar lost control while trying to avoid a biker. Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss daily games like Crossword , Sudoku , and Mini Crossword .

Commentary: Giving thanks for America and opportunity

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration is urging Ukraine to quickly increase the size of its military by drafting more troops and revamping its mobilization laws to allow for the conscription of troops as young as 18. A senior Biden administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private consultations, said Wednesday that the outgoing Democratic administration wants Ukraine to lower the mobilization age to 18 from the current age of 25 to help expand the pool of fighting-age men available to help a badly outnumbered Ukraine in its nearly three-year-old war with Russia. The official said “the pure math” of Ukraine’s situation now is that it needs more troops in the fight. The White House has pushed more than $56 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s February 2022 invasion and expects to send billions more to Kyiv before Biden leaves office in less than months. But with time running out, the Biden White House is also sharpening its viewpoint that Ukraine has the weaponry it needs and now must dramatically increase its troop levels if it’s going to stay in the fight with Russia. The official said the Ukrainians believe they need about 160,000 additional troops, but the U.S. administration believes they probably will need more than that. More than 1 million Ukrainians are now in uniform, including National Guard and other units. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has also been hearing concerns from allies in other Western capitals that Ukraine has a troop level problem and not an arms problem, according to European officials who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive diplomatic conversations. The European allies have also stressed that the lack of depth means that it may soon become untenable for Ukraine to continue to operate in Russia’s Kursk border region that Ukraine seized this year. The situation in Kursk has become further complicated by the arrival of thousands of North Korean troops who have come to help Moscow try to claw back the land. The stepped-up push on Ukraine to strengthen its fighting ranks also comes as Ukraine braces for President-elect Donald Trump to take office on Jan. 20. The Republican said he would bring about a swift end to the war and has raised uncertainty about whether his administration would continue the vital U.S. military support for Ukraine. “There are no easy answers to Ukraine’s serious manpower shortage, but lowering the draft age would help,” said Bradley Bowman, senior director of the Center on Military and Political Power at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. “These are obviously difficult decisions for a government and society that has already endured so much due to Russia’s invasion.” Ukraine has taken steps to broaden the pool of draft-eligible men, but the efforts have only scratched the surface against a much larger Russian military. In April, Ukraine’s parliament passed a series of laws, including lowering its draft-eligible age for men from 27 to 25, aimed at broadening the universe of men who could be called on to join the grinding war. Those laws also did away with some draft exemptions and created an online registry for recruits. They were expected to add about 50,000 troops, far short of what Zelenskyy said at the time was needed. Zelenskyy has consistently stated that he has no plans to lower the mobilization age. A senior Ukrainian official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Ukraine does not have enough equipment to match the scale of its ongoing mobilization efforts. The official said Ukrainian officials see the push to the lower the draft age as part of an effort by some Western partners to deflect attention from their own delays in providing equipment or belated decisions. The official cited as an example the delay in giving Ukraine permission to use longer-range weapons to strike deep into Russian territory. The Ukrainians do not see lowering the draft age to recruit more soldiers as a substitute for countering Russia’s advantage in equipment and weaponry, the official said. Conscription has been a sensitive matter in Ukraine throughout the war. Russia’s own problems with adequate troop levels and planning early in the war prevented Moscow from taking full advantage of its edge. But the tide has shifted and the U.S. says the Ukrainian shortage can no longer be overlooked. Some Ukrainians have expressed worry that further lowering the minimum conscription age and taking more young adults out of the workforce could backfire by further harming the war-ravaged economy. The senior Biden administration official added that the administration believes that Ukraine can also optimize its current force by more aggressively dealing with soldiers who desert or go absent without leave.An icon of the left: Part – II We will remember Saeeda Gazdar as a potent voice of courage and bravery Saeeda Gazdar’s short stories are not all about politics and repression; some are full of nostalgia and recall the pre-partition days. Her story ‘Hindustani, Pakistani’ is one such story that begins in London where a Pakistani man Ahmed and an Indian woman Najma meet after a long time. They had studied together decades ago and now they recall their good old days as students in London when they were all Indians; Pakistan had just come into being. Ahmed had come from India to London but now his family had migrated to Pakistan. He had offers from Karachi University to teach but Najma wants him to go back to India with her and start a career there. They hear on the radio that the political situation in Pakistan is volatile with agitation all around. Ahmed wants Najma to move with him to Pakistan. In flashback, Ahmed recalls his landing at Karachi port. Four years ago, he had left Bombay for London as an Indian citizen and now he was approaching Karachi in the newly created Pakistan. After joining the University of Karachi, the first objection that he receives from one of his colleagues is why he says Adaab rather than Salaam. This conversation displays an early divergence of ideas in Pakistan that ultimately led to the Khuda Haafiz discussion. The university colleague insists that Adaab was used to address Hindus but now we have a Muslim-majority country of our own where we should not use Adaab as a form of greeting. Ahmed turned out to be an enlightened and progressive teacher who always cherished the company of his bright young students. He wants more books in the university library but the vice-chancellor objects to them as ‘communist propaganda’. The VC accuses him of referring to Karl Marx too often and citing examples of the French and Russian revolutions to students in classes. Ahmed feels that the university is more of a spy network than a teaching institution; the atmosphere is suffocating and there are no alternative ideas or voices he can convey to his students who are fairly fond of him. The VC is only interested in propagating Islamic and Pakistan ideologies so that a certain mindset prevails. The VC insists that the university professors will teach history only through a religious and nationalist lens. Ahmed retorts by saying that the VC will turn the university into a seminary and that will greatly harm education in the country. The VC insists that all universities must resemble mosques as religious centres of learning and teaching. In the VC’s office there is a large photo of General Ayub Khan receiving an honorary degree from the VC. Finally, Ahmed decides to leave the country and join an international organisation. Mind you, this story about the Pakistan of the 1950s shows how closely it resembles the Pakistan of today. Now we lament increasing extremism in the country and play naïve as if we did not know the root cause of this malaise. Writers such as Saeeda Gazdar were consistently highlighting the perils of extremism in the country but the powers that be did not listen to them neither are they doing so now. Another of her marvellous stories is ‘Aakhri manzil’ (Last destination) dealing with the labour force in cities that comes from villages and has no name or address. The story begins with a news item announcing that an under-construction building caved in killing five labourers. The death certificate of an 18-year-old reads as follows: “Name: unknown; Father’s name: unknown; address: unknown.” The story unfolds in flashback when a family of villagers visiting Karachi finds a small boy crying in the streets. They take the boy to their village and raise him as their own son. When the foster father dies in the village, the foster mother reveals to the boy that he is not their real son and sends him to the city to locate his real father. ‘Aag Gulistaan na bani’ is also a very good short story that takes its cue from the Sumerian story of Gilgamesh which narrates the struggle of Enkidu against the brutalities of Gilgamesh. Saeeda Gazdar unfolds the story of a female student whose class fellow yearns for democracy in his country. The girl faces investigative officers who press her to reveal the whereabouts of the boy who is at the forefront of the democratic struggle. They want to know the plans of the agitators against the dictatorship, but she refuses to reveal anything. The girl recalls how they met in the library and then nurtured a friendship that brought them closer. He influenced her to change her apolitical personality into a socially conscious person who becomes concerned about the plight of her country. There is a section in the story about an overloaded donkey cart that is hard to pull by the beast of burden. The poor animal gets a thorough flogging and blood oozes out of its skin. Saeeda uses that as a metaphor for a nation being flogged under the yoke of a dictatorship. Another story ‘Charhawey ki chadar’ (wreath of gratitude) is about a girl who is married to a much older man. When she is unable to conceive, the in-laws take her to one shrine after another and she has to bear the burden of taunts for being barren. As she constantly shuttles from one spiritual healer to another, she finally breaks down and shouts at her husband for being impotent. In a society where men are beyond reproach and women are nearly always on the receiving end of injustices, this story reflects a common problem in society. Other stories such as ‘Dhara’ (Flow), ‘Neelam’, ‘Laali’, and ‘Tamgha’ (medal) are all worth reading. ‘Aag Gulsitaan na bani’ is a collection of stories that must be included in the compulsory reading list of students but unfortunately, you will hardly find it in any school or college library in Pakistan which are replete with volumes by Naseem Hijazi, Qudratullah Shahab, Bano Qudsia, and Ashfaq Ahmed. That shows the preference of our authorities in educational matters. The more conservative and obscurantist writer you are, the more your books are likely to find a place in libraries. In 1982, Saeeda Gazdar brought out her collection of poetry ‘Tauq o daar ka mausam’ (Season of shackles and gallows). It contains politically charged poetry such as ‘Qaidi gatey hain’ (prisoners sing), ‘Tumhari salgirah par’ (On your birthday), ‘Kaisey ho’ (how are you), and ‘Faisla’ (decision). Two of her best poems that I like the most are ‘Theek do bajey (Exactly at 2) and Aik Khabar (a news item). ‘Theek do bajey’ later appeared in her second poetry collection ‘Zanjeer-e-roz o shab’ as ‘Subh honey wali thee’ (dawn was about to break). It recalls the hours that Z A Bhutto was hanged in the dead of the night. “It is nearly 2am; But the night is till dark; Extremely suffocating and traumatizing; They have come to take the prisoner to the gallows; Wake him up from deep slumber; ‘get up and take a bath’; Say whatever you want to utter; God is the witness; It is not punishment but murder.” Saeeda was equally conscious of struggling peasants and workers around the world. Her poem ‘Aik Khabar’ which appeared in her second collection as ‘Dehshat gardi’ (terrorism) talks about the struggle of peasants in El Salvador. “Millions gather; and chant in unison; we are hungry, we are naked, and have no jobs for years. Why is slavery our destiny? Generals thunder with loaded guns; ‘Move back and yield’; go back to your homes and write gentle applications; this is terrorism and violation of law” We will remember Saeeda Gazdar as a potent voice of courage and bravery. She lived a full life, but dementia marred her last decades. There are not many left like her. Concluded... The writer holds a PhD from the University of Birmingham, UK. He tweets/posts @NaazirMahmood and can be reached at: mnazir1964@yahoo.co.uk

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