Call to promote new hi-tech hybrid seeds

LAHORE:Former caretaker federal minister for National Food Security Dr Kausar Abdullah Malik said on Sunday that promotion of new hi-tech hybrid seed varieties of various crops under public-private partnership could revolutionise the agriculture sector of Pakistan.

He added that industry-academia synergy was also the need of the hour to achieve this goal. He expressed these views in a meeting with Pakistan Hi-Tech Hybrid Seed Association (PHHSA) Chairman Shahzad Ali Malik here. Dr Kausar, who is also a former dean of postgraduate studies at Forman Christian College University, appreciated their research efforts and emphasised for industry-academia linkage arrangements with the GARS such as collaboration in research and development of new seed varieties; internship programmes and employment opportunities for young talented graduates of school of life sciences, FCC.

He added that the GARS was also good platform for exploring disease resistant high yield new seed varieties. Later, Dr Kausar along with other leading researchers also visited the rice production facilities and rice quality laboratory and lauded state-of-the-art technology employed for ultra-modern research.