Swiss team launches project with Mardan varsity

MARDAN: A team from the Centre of Agriculture and Bioscience (CAB) International, Switzerland paid a visit to the Department of Entomology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan on Monday.

According to a press release, the team included the eminent researcher Dr Philip Weyl from CAB International Switzerland and Director CAB International Pakistan Dr Abdul Rehman along with his technical staff.

The team launched a collaborative research project with Dr Farman Ali, chairman Department of Entomology, for the biological control of the invasive and widespread weed Parthenium in Pakistan.

Biological control is an environment-friendly technique for pest control that avoids the use of toxic chemical insecticides.The CAB International team will financially support the establishment of the laboratory at the Entomology Department for research and mass rearing of the biocontrol agents, which are being released in Mardan and Swabi in the first phase and will be extended to other districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa later.

The government of Pakistan has already issued a no-objection certificate for it. The CAB International team met the faculty, visited the laboratories of the Department of Entomology and the Parthenium field for the release of biocontrol agents inside the campus.