Bio environmentalist offers services to develop grassroots economy

ABBOTTABAD: A bioenvironmentalist has offered his services to the government to initiate steps for developing the grassroots economy.

Agriculture and horticulture yields enhancement, cottage-based industry, low-cost disaster-proof construction of homes, energy domes for recycling municipal liquid waste; biomethanation for energy generation and biomelioration for coastal development projects were offered by one Sardar Taimur Hayat Khan while briefing the media here on Sunday.

Offering Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif a number of initiatives to cope with the present economic crisis, Taimur said South Asia is among the regions, most vulnerable to climate change as its people are living with intensifying heat waves, cyclones, droughts and floods.

He offered a number of remedial cost-effective measures through the foliar application which results in enhanced quantity and quality yields; longer shelf-life; improved plant immune system to fight disease and increased plant protection.

Taimur pointed out that to counter rising temperatures, farmers could shift planting to cooler times of the year and adopt soil and water conservation technologies.

He said that increased temperatures and more erratic rainfall may have significant impacts on the state of both soil and water in Pakistan and higher temperatures are likely to increase the rate at which water is lost from the soil, meaning that farmers will have to exert more effort into maintaining soil moisture.

Taimur offered complete eco-safe plant nutrition that not only increases yields but also improves the plant’s immune system against soil; water and air-borne pests; methods of overcoming drought and heat stress through drought-proofing; crop health

Taimur who has served with a number of government as well as non-government organizations, also shared his experience in the promotion of the home-based cottage industry.

He proposed to develop an export house and tourist attraction to give a unique look to Hazara.

Taimur suggested various measures including exemption from income and sales tax on home-based products, development grants and interest-free loans for the micro industry.