Wheat campaign concludes

FAISALABAD November 30: The researches must be reached to the agricultural fields in order to develop the agriculture on scientific bases for increasing per acre production, said Prof Dr Muhammad Sarwar Khan, Vice Chancellor, University of Agriculture Faisalabad. He addressed the farmers’ day in the village 125 Jaranwala on the concluding day of 15-day wheat campaign. He said the researches should not be piled up in the libraries but it should be reached to address the problems of the society, farming community, industry and others. He said that wheat campaign is a hallmark step towards spreading the latest information, agricultural techniques and practices. He said that in the campaign, senior students of BS 7th semester and MS were sent to the field. He said that usage of certified seeds, balanced fertilizers, water saving techniques, and implementation of experts recommendation at field level will boost up the wheat productivity He said that the government had launched projects worth billions of rupees for agricultural uplift in which farmers were being provided with green tractors, laser land levelers and other incentives. He also said that farmers can get agricultural inputs on interest fee loans through Kisan cards, getting out of them from the clutches of middlemen. He also said that tangible measures be taken to buy the farmers produce on proper prices. He said that timely sowing increases production and make crop healthy. He said we have to promote drill sowing on zero tillage that will help increase the productivity and save water. He said that the irrigation with sewerage water was causing health hazards and measures must be taken to maintain the MRLs level in the fruits and vegetables. He said that the university had developed genetically modified varieties of sugarcane that are resistant to herbicides and insects to produce high-yielding crops. The first GM sugarcane borer-resistant varieties were approved for commercialization in Brazil in 2017 and these are saving 1.52 billion USD annually. We are the second in the world to develop the GM Sugarcane. Assistant Director Extension Rizwan Amir said that the wheat campaign is a commendable step in which the students of the university and the officers of the Extension were promoting modern trends by making joint efforts. Dr Muhammad Naveed said soil analysis should be carried out to get complete information about soil so that the best crop can be obtained by applying balanced fertilizers. He said that soil health was deteriorating day by day for which we have to conduct soil analysis to overcome the shortage of zinc, sulfur, potash and others. He said that bio-fertilizer needs to be applied in the fields. Chairman Entomology Dr Muhammad Jalal Arif said that university has come up with new varieties of wheat, sugarcane, cotton and others bringing the excellent results. He urged the farming community to shun the traditional way of farming and adopt the experts recommendations Dr Ghulam Murtaza, convener of the campaign committee and the coordinator for the Faisalabad Division Dr Shahid Ibne Zamir and others spoke on the occasion.