Bus and oil tanker collision near Kabul in Afghanistan kills more than 70

In one of the worst road accidents in Afghanistan, two buses and an oil tanker collided and burst into flames leaving more than 70 people dead - the dead included women and children and many of the victims were charred and burnt beyond recognition in the head-on crash that occurred near the capital Kabul.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 8 May 2016.

Many persons suffered serious injuries on the highway that links the two largest cities in the conflict-hit country. The vehicles involved in the accident were completely gutted in the eastern Ghazni province. A ministry spokesman has indicated that the death toll has soared to 73 and there are fears of still more casualties.
The area is one of the worst affected by the Taliban insurgency and insecurity is on the rise around Afghanistan as the militants continue with their 15-year insurgency against the Western-backed Kabul government. Moreover, most of the roads in Afghanistan are dangerous roads and in dilapidated condition and traffic rules are rarely enforced.
Road accidents are not new. At least 18 people were killed in May last year when a mini-van overturned in the western province of Badghis. And, before that, in April 2013 a bus hit a fuel tanker in the southern province of Kandahar and 45 people died.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Afghanistan looks to pomegranates to revive its economy

Kandahar is a province in Afghanistan that is more associated with the Taliban than its famous pomegranates and it is now that harvest time is coming to an end for these fruits. These fruits are usually packed in boxes or jute sacks and sent to markets and warehouses in Pakistan and the Middle East.
This is a key produce for the country and it needs to reach more profitable destinations in Europe and other places so that the export could improve the economy of Afghanistan.
Right now, delegates have gathered in London for a conference on Afghanistan and, the prospects for reducing the reliance on foreign aid are increasingly focused on two sectors of the economy: agriculture and hydrocarbons.
In this conference, already a beginning seems to have been made by Pomegreat Juice Company that buys quality pomegranate concentrate from all over the world. It has set its sights on Afghanistan. In the London Conference on Afghanistan, Mr Pritchard of the Pomegreat Juice Company has reportedly signed a multimillion pound supply agreement with the Kabul-based Omaid Bahar Fruit Processing Company to buy 1,000 tonnes of pomegranate concentrate.
It could prove a blueprint for Afghan agriculture in the years to come if all goes to plan and be a step towards good days to come.
However, Najlla Habibiyar, the head of Afghanistan's Export Promotion Agency, has her doubts. She is aware of the extent of challenge that would be faced by Mr Pritchard and his Afghan partners because it is tough for Afghan farmers to make a living from pomegranates. Poppy (from which opium is made) is a better option. Pomegranates need "work, time and a good market", the poppies pose no such problem – the poppy farmers know that they will always get paid, even if their crops get eradicated.
Of course, pomegranate production is also on the rise but, there is a difference – the poppy farmers can expect the buyers to come to them while the pomegranate growers could face huge obstacles to get their fruits to the market.