KHAIRPUR: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah inaugurated the Khairpur Date Festival on Saturday evening.

Speaking to audience at the seminar held in Sachal Auditorium on the occasion, Mr Shah said he was impressed by the dates verities displayed at the festival. He called for an effective global marketing of the product.

He noted that there was a high demand of dates of Khairpur in India and Malasia. However, he added, the product could not make its way into the European markets due to certain reasons.

The chief minister pointed out that Iran was exporting dates to many European countries, and observed that its product was competing in the international market due to the attractive packing. He stressed the need for ensuring a high standard of packing while exporting Khairpur dates to other countries. Furthermore, he added, that the quality of dates should be improved to capture the market.

He also called for preservation of the crop for export purpose.

Sukkur Commissioner Mohammad Abbas Baloch in his speech said that the construction of a cold storage plant for dates was under way and would be completed soon.

Earlier, the chief minister visited the stalls set up at the exhibition at Shaheed Benazir Bhutto open-air theatre.

The chief minister was to inaugurate the exhibition at 11am but the ceremony was held in the evening due to his preoccupation.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2014