HYDERABAD, June 12: The overall wheat sowing area in Sindh decreased from 875,224 hectares to 863684 hectares this year due to a number of reasons including non-availability of water.

This was informed at a meeting held here on Thursday with Dr Abdul Salaam, chairman, Agriculture Prices Commission, in the chair.

The meeting was told that a report about the low yields of wheat crop in the country during the Rabi season 2002-2003 would be finalized by June 25 by the committee which had held its first meeting at Lahore.

It was observed that low yields were due to less weed control, aphid attack, excessive rains in March and high temperature in some areas.

For Sindh, causes of less per acre yield were attributed to shortage of water, delay in crushing and sowing and shifting of area to sunflower cultivation due to better rates.

The committee discussed in detail various measures which could be suggested for ensuring better crop of wheat in the country during the next Rabi season. The committee will meet growers at fields and other concerned experts on Friday to know the actual causes of low yields.

Those who attended the meeting included director-general, agriculture research and extension, Sindh, Malik Mohammad Akram, Dr Waqar Malik, member, social sciences, PARC, Islamabad, Dr Nisar Ahmed, chief, National Fertilizer Development Centre, Islamabad, Dr Akhlaq Hussain, DG, Federal Seed Certification Department, Dr Nafees S. Kisana, Wheat Coordinator NARC and a representative of the NWFP agriculture extension department.

MBBS EXAMS: The last date for submitting forms for final professional MBBS, part-I, bi-annual examinations of 2003 at the Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Jamshoro, Chandka Medical College, Larkana, and the People’s Medical College for Girls, Nawabshah, has been fixed at June 28.