MULTAN: South Punjab Secretary Agriculture Saqib Ali Ateel Wednesday said the living standards of farmers would be improved by promoting high-value agriculture.
Presiding over a meeting to review the performance of fruit and vegetable at the Committee Room of South Punjab Agriculture Secretariat, Ateel said with new techniques production and quality of fruits and vegetables can be enhanced. He said farmers can ensure increase in per acre yield by using latest technologies. He urged peasants to cultivate such fruit varieties that have high demand abroad. He asked officers concerned to launch programmes to impart training to farmers at village level so that with the use of modern technology they may increase their production. He directed the officials that orchards planted under old planting geometry should be replaced with the new technology as their yield is low and they are also sick. He said new orchards should be planted under a high efficiency irrigation system to save water and reduce production cost and increase production through proper and appropriate use of other agricultural interventions.
Registration and capacity building of nursery owners should be enhanced as cultivation of certified and disease-free fruit plants can increase fruit production, he said. The secretary directed the officers concerned identify proper areas for large scale cultivation of medicinal plants. Deputy Director Fruit and Vegetable Muhammad Jameel Ghauri also briefed the secretary on Rs 360 million project to boost fruit and vegetable production. Meanwhile, Punjab Cotton Research Station Director Dr Sagir Ahmed urged farmers to spray prescribed pesticides for the permanent removal of cotton diseases. He further said that farmers should keep in view the departmental recommendations and precautionary measures for obtaining clean and quality cotton. He said farmers should start the whole picking when more than 50pc of the bowls are opened. The picking should always be started with the open bowls at the bottom of the plant and gradually the top picking should be done so that the open bowls at the bottom are protected from falling dry leaves, sticks or anything else. Women involved in picking should cover their hair with a white cotton cloth and do picking so that the quality of the cotton does not deteriorate by mixing hair follicles. At the time of picking, bowls should not be plucked from the plants but cotton should be picked from them and cotton should not remain in the bowls at all. Keep an interval of 15 to 20 days between cotton picking. When picking, the fallen leaves should be thoroughly cleaned. Improper picking of cotton affects both the quality and quantity of cotton, he maintained. Dr Sagir said to achieve pollution-free cotton, carefully pick cotton because the prices of pollution-free cotton are higher. Separate the Puthi from rain and harmful insect-infested cotton and the last picking raw bowls and sell the Puthi separately. The picking of cotton affected by pink bollworm should be kept completely separate. Adequate compensation should be given to women cotton pickers so women pickers can consider cleanliness in terms of wages, he added.
Giving free hand to Tiger Force to control price-hike slammed: National Labour Alliance (NLA) chairman Ghazi Ahmed Hassan Khokhar Wednesday criticised the government act of giving a free hand to the Tiger Force in terms of controlling price hike.
Chairing a meeting of the working committee, Khokhar said the act of the government is not only harmful to the country but it will also bring anarchy in the country.
He said Prime Minister Imran Khan’s activation of Tiger Force would invite clashes between hoarders and Tiger Force workers.
He said in this regard the step of the then-PPP government about people's guards can be a lesson for the incumbent government when that measure resulted in clashes between people’s guards and bureaucracy.
He demanded the government strengthen institutions, remove flaws in institutions and improve their performance instead of launching Tiger Force against black marketing.
He demanded enactment of strong laws against hoarding, black marketing and making the offense non-bailable. He demanded stern action against traders and officials on promoting price-hike.
LHC issues notice to PHC: The Lahore High Court (LHC) Multan-bench Wednesday issued a notice to the Punjab Healthcare Commission (PHC) over raiding a clinic and sought a report on November 10.
Petitioner Muhammad Ramazan filed a case with the LHC stating that he was working at a laboratory in Vehari and the laboratory is adjacent to the clinic of Dr Sanaullah.
He told the court that a team of the PHC raided the laboratory and sealed the clinic and imposed Rs 150,000 fine upon the owner.
The petitioner stated the laboratory is part of the clinic of Dr Sanaullah where he conducts different blood tests.
He said Dr Sanaullah is running the clinic under the authority of Punjab Healthcare Commission and laboratory was part of the clinic but the PHC sealed the laboratory illegally.
LHC issues contempt notice to irrigation secretary: The Lahore High Court (LHC) Multan-bench Wednesday issued a contempt notice to Punjab Secretary Irrigation Zahid Zaman and sought a report on October 20.
Petitioner Javed Iqbal filed his plea to the LHC Multan-bench Justice Risal Hassan Syed, stating that he is a government contractor and completed his assigned contract last year but the irrigation authorities had not cleared his arrears after the lapse of one year.
The court had directed the secretary irrigation in 2019 to ensure payment of arrears to the petitioner within a month. When the petitioner got noting, he filed the contempt petition.
The LHC issued the contempt notice to the secretary irrigation and also summoned the Assistant Advocate General Shahid Pervez and directed him to dispatch court orders to the secretary.
CTP issues traffic plan for Safar processions: City Traffic Police (CTP) Muhammad Zafar Buzdar Wednesday issued the traffic plan in connection with the processions of 28th Safar-ul-Muzaffar on October 15 (today).
According to the plan, the Delhi Gate chowk, Daulat Gate chowk, Aam Khas Bagh, Ali chowk to Darbar Shah Shams routes will be closed at different times for traffic.
The public is requested to take an alternative route in addition to the route. Chowki No 14, Haram Gate, Bohar Gate, Masoom Shah Road, Hafiz Jamal Road, Khanewal Road will be used as alternative routes for traffic.
In this regard, the CTO issued instructions to the traffic wardens that no vehicle should be allowed to park on the route of the procession but vehicles should be parked in the allotted parking. The public is requested to respect traffic rules and cooperate with city traffic police to make their journey safer, said a press release issued here.
