UAF NEWS

Pakistan Agriculture Research Council Chairman Dr Muhammad Azeem Khan has said that all-out efforts were being carried out to address the issue of locusts and other agricultural challenges.

He visited the University of Agriculture Faisalabad and called on UAF Vice Chancellor Dr Muhammad Ashraf along with UAF agricultural engineers and entomologists. He said that PARC will support the UAF to disseminate its locust spray machine, research and development work for fighting the agricultural challenges confronted the country. He also witnessed the UAF newly developed locust spray machine first one in the country and termed it a hallmark step to combat locust. He also visited the work on bio pesticide at locust research lab. He said that federal government was planning a project worth Rs 500 million to catch the locust alive to use it as the poultry feed. The UAF scientists should provide a complete research and development on locust nutritive values for poultry and its feasibility etc, he added. He said that patents in the field of agriculture across the country were not more than 35 for which the agricultural scientists should come up with the innovative ideas to register these as patents. UAF Vice Chancellor Dr Muhammad Ashraf said locust has emerged the second largest threat for the country after Covid 19 and it may be termed as Covid 20 that is posing a serious threat to the food security. He said that the UAF-developed locust spray machine was first of its kind in the country that was bearing effective results. He said that tangible research and development on locusts were underway at the UAF. He said according to the FAO, as many as 38 per cent of the total agricultural area in the country had become the breeding grounds for the desert locust. He said that 97 percent of our farming community was comprising small farmers that were unable to adopt the mechanization which is hampering the process to boost up our agriculture. He added that the China had developed the small technology for small farmers. We have also need to develop such technology on that pattern that will boost up our agricultural productivity manifold. He added that in China, farmers from six Kanal of land were earning income of 8000 dollar per annum due to mechanization. Incharge Water Management Research Center Dr Muhammad Arshad, Engineer Ahmad Waqas, Chairman Entomology Dr Mansoor Sahi, Dr Ameer Rasul, Dr Muhammad Sagheer, and to other notable attended the meeting.