Moot on conservation of medicinal, aromatic plants

My Mahboob Ali Yousafzai

MINGORA: The 2nd International Conference on “Conservation of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants for improving the livelihood of mountain communities through industrial linkages” kicked off here on Monday.

The three-day conference has been organised by the Centre for Plant Sciences and Biodiversity, University of Swat in collaboration with Higher Education Commission of Pakistan and Himalaya University Consortium-Members Universities.

Addressing the inaugural session of the conference as chief guest, Vice-Chancellor University of Swat Prof Dr Muhammad Jamal Khan said that Pakistan possessed high value medicinal plants with high demand of the national and international herbal markets.

He said the medicinal plants were important in all the systems of medicine around the world.The vice-chancellor asked institutions, academicians, researchers, policy-makers and dealers and industries to join hands to undertake research on medicinal plants. He assured full administrative support to faculty members on medicinal plants.

He said Pakistan in general and Swat district in particular was the hub of medicinal plants.Dr Jamal stressed the need for exploiting the vast potential of medicinal and aromatic plants, saying that the role of private sectors was also significant in promotion of medicinal plants and medicines.

Speaking at the occasion, Director, Centre for Plants Sciences and Biodiversity University of Swat, Dr Hassan Sher said that the science of medicinal plants had taken leap forward and pharmaceutical industries around the world were making heavy investment in it.