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Broadband policy to be announced soon
FEDERAL Information Technology and Telecommunications Minister Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari has said that a broadband policy would be announced in the near future.
“We are presently in the process of finalizing the policy which will aim at more incentives for the end-users of the information technology in Pakistan,” he said while talking to newsmen at the concluding ceremony of the IT Made in Pakistan-2004 Exhibition at a local hotel.
On the withdrawal of five per cent import duty on the components of the computer by the finance ministry, Mr Leghari said that this step would go a long way in strengthening Pakistan’s hardware industry.
Research institute approved
The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has approved a scheme worth Rs25 million to establish Date Palm Research Institute at Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur.
In this regard a project costing about Rs25 million has been approved in the Departmental Development Working Party (DDWP) meeting recently held at the HEC headquarters, said an official statement.
The major objective of the scheme is not only to strengthen and intensify research programmes on tissue culture techniques on date palms but also establish protocol to obtain disease free, higher yield and better quality plants.
It would also plan and follow up research programmes for better utilization of the available local resources, solve problems of growers, processing and marketing.
The scheme aims at developing technology and data bank for the assemblage, preservation and development of the whole range of existing germ palms and analyzing and implementing integrated research programmes on soil, fertilization, tissue analysis and irrigation requirements.
Through the scheme the research programmes would be carried out on post-harvest technology and physiology to improve handling and storage of dates to reduce losses. It would also improve and upgrade production and processing practices to help reduce cost of production in the date palm industry.
The scheme aims at saving the soluble portion of Chhuhara waste for the production of Ethanol, single cell protein, amino acids, enzymes and antibiotics, which is in million tons and would plan to implement and coordinate training and extension programmes on production, processing and marketing of dates.
It is hoped that the project will provide research facilities in the field of date palm, the main crop of the area. It is also hoped that a large number of local population will benefit from the project and bring about significant qualitative improvement at higher education level and the main crop of nine districts i.e. Khairpur, Sukkur, Ghotaki, Nauthahro Feroze, Nawabshah, Shikarpur, Jacobabad, Larkana and Dadu which are date palm would be benefited by the scheme.
New building for genetics dept
A newly-constructed building was handed over to the University of Karachi at a ceremony last week by the spiritual leader of Bohra community, Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, for housing the department of genetics in it.
Syedna Burhanuddin, who has recently been awarded an honorary doctorate degree by the KU, accompanied by the university chancellor and governor Dr Ishratul Ibad unveiled the plaque in the presence of Bohra community members, political figures, as well as teachers and students of the genetics department.
In his brief statement, Syedna declared that he was dedicating the building to the nation while praying that it would prove worthy not only for the genetics department in undertaking teaching and research activities, but, also a source of benefit to the humanity.
The two-storeyed building reflected a blend of modern and Fatimid architecture, covering an area of about 26,000sq-ft. Syedna and his community members had provided Rs25 million for the construction of the building and supply of furniture and fixtures, said a KU official.
Environmental education plans
The Sindh government has allocated Rs1.5 million for public awareness and environmental education, in urban and rural areas of the province, in its budget 2004-05.
As much as Rs8 million has been allocated in the new provincial budget for one ongoing and four new schemes of the Environment and Alternative Energy Department.
The government had planned to give Rs6 million to the environmental department for carrying out new schemes, while no allocation had been made for district governments for any project.
According to budgetary documents, Rs2 million were allocated for survey and preventive measures against Arsenic contamination in underground water in Sindh. However, the documents did not show any physical progress, while it was understood that the said amount was not made available to the department.
A new scheme, at an estimated cost of Rs1.5 million, pertained to environmental study on hospital waste management for one major public sector hospital and one private hospital.
An amount of Rs2 million had been allocated for a new scheme of hygienic ground water management in Thar, and another Rs1 million had been allocated for assessment of drinking water quality in Karachi, Hyderabad and Kotri. — Scitech World Report
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