PAEC Centres Have Introduced Over 150 Crop Varieties: Dr Raja Ali Raza

FAISALABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Mar, 2024) Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) Chairman Dr Raja Ali Raza has said the centres working under the commission have produced and introduced more than 150 crop varieties in the country.

Addressing the concluding ceremony of 2-day Agriculture Symposium and Exhibition, organised by the PAEC at Nuclear Institute for Agriculture & Biology (NIAB) here on Saturday, he said state-of-the-art centres of the PAEC were taking a lead in implementing government’s vision of achieving self-reliance in agriculture by making best crop varieties of cotton, wheat, rice, chickpea, mung bean, lentil and brassica. These varieties available to farmers are not only high yielding but also climate smart, he added.

He appreciated the role of agriculture scientists and researchers for producing high-yield and climate-resilient seeds of various crop varieties and stressed other players in the field of agriculture to work with equal honesty and dedication to boost the agriculture potential of Pakistan to bring about economic and agricultural revolution.

He also hoped that the vibrant platform agri symposium and exhibition would produce the desired result of promoting public-private partnership for the shared benefit of all stakeholders relating to agriculture and biotechnology fields which would ultimately benefit the small growers and poor farmers.

Support Industries and Technologies (SITECH) sponsored the symposium titled "Cultivate Innovation to Harvest business Growth" in line with Government’s Green Pakistan Initiative.

The symposium was a major step towards agriculture industrialization, with the aim of commercializing and popularizing the latest technical advancements in the field of agriculture and biotechnology.

The leading agricultural experts and researchers from seed companies, progressive farmers, corporate sectors, researchers, academia from agri and biotech fields and representatives from government, Fongrow Coy and FFC participated in the symposium and exhibition.

Four Panel Presentations were the highlight of the symposium which aimed to showcase PAEC Agri and Bio institutes' capabilities and commercialization of agri developed products while sharing the technical achievements made by PAEC agri institutes.

The participants actively took part in healthy question-answer session.

Later, PAEC Chairman also inaugurated NEM Phosphate plant at NIAB in addition to opening an exhibition wherein the state-of-the-art stalls showcasing products of PAEC Agri and Bio Institutes, SUPARCO and NILOP attracted the visitors’ interest in various Agri & food Domains.

The progressive farmers and academia visited and exchanged knowledge in particular areas of interest.

The participants of the event were excited and hoped that such informative platforms will provide the necessary boost to the country's economy by encouraging public-private partnership in agriculture and biotechnology sector.

Overall, the event was suitably articulated and organized in a professional manner and well applauded by the audience. The healthy response is expected from commercial point of view from various stakeholders in near future.