Punjab Agriculture Minister Naeem Akhtar Khan Bhabha on Saturday said adaptation of latest agricultural methods was vital to increase per acre production and alleviate poverty and hunger. The awareness about latest agricultural trends at the doorstep of farming community will help shift from traditional way of farming to modern one in order to compete with the rest of the world.
He addressed the concluding session of International Entomological Congress arranged by the Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture Faisalabad at the New Senate Hall. The congress was meant to address the issues of crops' pests including pink boll worm, fruit fly and others The Minister added that the government was determined to uplift the agricultural sector which, he termed, backbone of our economy and contributes 21 percent to the Gross Domestic Product. He said that the government had brought ‘Kissan Package to give relief to farming community, enabling them to cultivate the crops and to address their problems. He said that the government provided the subsidy of Rs 39 billion to reduce the prices of inputs for facilitating the farming community. He said that they had cut down the prices of electricity for the farmers that will lower the cost of production. He said that the government was also providing free seed to the farming community. He said that the government was providing the interest free loans worth Rs 100 to the small farmers. He said that Pakistan was an agrarian country and our majority population was associated with the sector. He urged the researchers and scientists to develop climate resilient new crop varieties. UAF Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan said that the agricultural productivity in the major crops was facing the stagnant. For which step-up efforts are needed to address the issue at the national level. He said that the pests are responsible for the loss of the million of the rupees to the national economy. He urged the scientists to come up with the strategy to address the issue. He said that pink boll worm was a real threat especially for the cotton production. He said that the cotton crop production declined by 40 percent last year. He said the UAF had developed a short duration germplasm of cotton PB 896 this year that will prove best variety. He said that the UAF had developed ten varieties of mango with excellent aroma and taste. He said that the UAF is working with the Aussie institutions on the hybrid variety of wheat. He said that the UAF was the only institutions in the country which was is ranked in the top 100 universities of the country. Chairman Entomology Prof Dr Jalal Arif said that pink ball worm will boost due to global warming, specifically, increases of 1.5 – 2.5 C in average temperatures would greatly enhance winter survival and allow expansion of pink ball worm. He said that last year, the county suffered 4.5 million tones bales of cotton due to pink ball worm. He said that Punjab Chief Minister had given the task of revamping the agricultural policy to UAF Vice Chancellor in which all issues are addressed effectively. He said that the Entomology Department was devising a national plan of fruit fly and pink ball worm. He said that his department in collaboration with Punjab Government was working on Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) to eradicate pink ball worm and fruit fly. Dr Thomas A Miller from USA said that pink bollworm is costing U.S. cotton producers more than $32 million each year in control costs and yield losses. He said that Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is among the most environment-friendly insect pest control methods. DG Extension Prof Dr Anjum Ali Buttar also spoke the occasion.